That India's inadequately funded public health system would be able to bear the burden of a pandemic was nobody's expectation. The colossal failure though, has taken almost everybody by surprise. The private sector was unable to keep up with a demand that almost no one forecasted, and the lack of basic drugs and supplies compounded the problem to a point where this tragedy will be remembered as the darkest days in Independent India's history.

With many examples from rural India and her native Orissa, Sweta Dash explains to us what is unfolding in India's hinterland. As Covid 19 makes inroads in previously unchartered territories, we must contend that most of these stories will never reach us. In this insightful discussion, Sweta tells us about the structure of public health facilities in rural India, the state of healthcare workers, the surprising lack of data in a regime where data collection is a huge part of a healthcare worker's daily routine, and why the public needs to be taken into confidence to turn the tide against this pandemic.

(Sweta Dash is an independent researcher and journalist. Her work can be found on TelegraphGHS, EPW, Wire, DC, Article14, FirstPost, Caravan, GC and Swaddle. She tweets @SwetaDash93)

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