After maintaining a staunch silence of nearly 3 days, the Biden administration finally jolted into action to provide help to India. This came after a severe backlash towards the WH from all social, business, and political quarters in the world.
India has been ravaged by the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic, with tens of thousands of daily infections and hundreds of daily fatalities. The images of funerals pyres lit across the country on a daily basis were a staunch reminder of the havoc that the pandemic can unleash.
The vaccine manufacturers in India had asked the Biden administration to lift its restrictions on the export of raw materials necessary to make the Covid-19 vaccines. Even the government of India had made an appeal for the same, but in vain.
Over the past 72 hours there was unrelenting and continuous criticism on the WH via different channels to change its stance. Eventually, after the unwarranted delay, President Biden finally announced that the US will be sending assistance to India to combat the virus.
The President tweeted “Just as India sent assistance to the United States as our hospitals were strained early in the pandemic, the United States is determined to help India in its time of need.”
Soon after Vice President Kamala Harris also tweeted, “The US is working closely with the Indian government to rapidly deploy additional support and supplies during an alarming Covid-19 outbreak. As we provide assistance, we pray for the people of India—including its courageous healthcare workers.”
The US assistance currently includes raw materials for making the vaccines, PPE’s, oxygen generating equipment, and other logistical help. There has been no mention of shipping ready-for-jab Covid vaccines to India.
