India is currently in a state of medical emergency — and it's affecting our communities, friends and loved ones. SafetyCulture Head of Design, Manoj Verghese, reflects on the Aussie Tech for India joint relief program and how we all can help.
India is going through a health crisis that's never been seen before in either my generation nor my parent's generation. My folks, along with many other elderly people in India are feeling the anxiousness and helplessness that the rest of the country feels at the moment.
I have friends here and in India who've lost their loved ones to this deadly variant of the virus. People have lost jobs and my heart goes out to the daily wage workers who have sadly faced the brunt of it all. They barely have money to make ends meet on a daily basis and now this threat looms over them, rendering them literally both physically and mentally drained.
We pride ourselves as a nation that is built on grit, courage and hard work. India has gotten past similar epidemics like polio in the past by leading the charge with vaccination drives. However, this is different.
This deadly virus comes at a time when our government did not proactively put measures in place to curb the spread. The public health system in India is not great either. We have very few public hospitals in cities and scarce access to medicines in the regional villages of India. It makes it very hard to treat something like this at this scale.
I've heard of crematoriums being full, hospitals not having enough ventilators or life support systems like supplies of oxygen cylinders. I feel very helpless, now that I can't be with my folks and close friends back home in tough times like these.
On the other hand, I'm very aware of the privilege that we get to work and live in Australia without worrying about similar consequences. I know the government here has the support ecosystems to stop the spread and treat the virus.
It's out of this helplessness that I reached out to our CEO Luke Anear when I heard about the Medical Oxygen For All initiative, requesting help in any way possible. He was gracious enough to promptly help out and did so generously, which I'm grateful for.
This is a time when we as tech unicorns can come together around a common cause and lead the way to positive change and reform. We can only get through this by putting aside our individual mindsets and join forces to tackle this pandemic at a global scale.
The last 12 months have proven that our greatest strength stems from coming together. I believe India is going to get through this soon and we will all come out stronger for it.
Alongside Canva, Airtasker, Blackbird and AirTree, SafetyCulture getting involved in the Aussie Tech for India initiative, partnering with Medical Oxygen For All do what we can to help the country's ongoing COVID crisis. Learn more about MOFA goals, progress and how you can lend a hand.
