The postponement comes as India reaches nearly 20 million positive cases since the onset of the pandemic and a 12th day of more than 300,000 new cases, according to the Ministry of Health. Some experts say the numbers are likely wildly underreported given India’s developing infrastructure.
India’s medical interns will be deployed for COVID management duties, and final-year undergraduates will provide tele-consultation and monitoring for mild cases, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said.
Final-year postgraduate students may continue serving as residents, and the NEET-PG, India’s qualifying and ranking exam for doctors, will be pushed back to August 31 as shortages of hospital beds, oxygen, medication and qualified personnel create chaos for the imperiled nation.
The prime minister’s office said that the triage efforts arose of necessity and that the deployed students will be under the orientation and supervision of faculty as part of their internship rotation. Trainees receive honors after enlisting in the emergency program for at least 100 days.
“All such professionals who sign up for minimum 100 days of Covid duty and complete it successfully will also be given the Prime Minister’s Distinguished Covid National Service Samman from Government of India,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement. “Doctors, nurses and allied professionals form the backbone of Covid management and are also the frontline personnel. Their presence in adequate strength is critical to address the needs of the patients well. The stellar work and deep commitment of the medical community was taken note of.”
Scenes from across India show overcrowded hospitals, grief-stricken families and mass cremations as crematoriums struggle to burn the dead quickly. Last week, hospitals began begging the Indian government for oxygen supplies as doctors and medical personnel saw their patients gasping for air.
Other countries have rushed to India’s aid with medical equipment and supplies. The British high commissioner to India announced Monday that the United Kingdom will send 1,000 more ventilators in addition to the 200 ventilators, 495 oxygen concentrators and three oxygen generation units announced last week.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration has received widespread criticism for its handling of the pandemic. In January, Modi confidently announced that India had conquered the coronavirus.
“[India] has saved the world, entire humanity, from a major tragedy by effectively controlling coronavirus,” he told the World Economic Forum.
Activists have called for the resignations of top officials, blaming the scale of the outbreak on the government’s desire to cast India as a leader in pandemic management.
The Ministry of Health said positive cases of the virus relative to the number of tests decreased on Monday for the first time since mid-April, a small sliver of hope for the desperate country.
