Not COVID, Lockdown Killed Them: Hundreds Of People Have Died So Far Of Helplessness & Apathy

In the midst of the coronavirus lockdown which started on March 25, thousands of migrant workers left for their villages with little money and food, bracing for a nightmare to follow.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the lockdown which would continue till May 31 (subject to extension), to prevent the spread of deadly coronavirus that has infected close to 1,60,000 people in the country. But the same announcement was a sound of doom for thousands of workers who rely on daily wages for sustenance.

With the country under lockdown, factories shut and all modes of transport suspended, the migrant workers have been forced to undertake a long and treacherous walk back home.

BCCL

The scenes in the national capital New Delhi were of a mass exodus. Images of people en masse walking a hundreds of kilometres circulated in the last week of March for survival.

Thousands of migrant families in the metropolis and other big cities were seen carrying loads of luggage, setting off for their homes situated kilometres away.

All modes of transport were shut and these families, some of which had newborns and young children, undertook the journey on foot. In the midst of chaos and confusion, no one thought of social distancing.

Thought the government finally took notice of their plight and arranged for "Shramik Special" trains to ferry them to their native states, the ordeal is far from over. Over the ast few days, tragic pictures, videos and news of migrant workers travelling in such trains have died of exhaustion and hunger, shaking the soul of the nation.

People who couldn't make it

Humiliation and despair came in many forms. Those who made it to their villages, were hosed down with sanitiser and chlorinated water at the borders. And there were some who undertook the journey but could never reach their destination.

Multiple reports suggest that hundreds of people have lost their lives so far and several others were injured while trying to reach their villages. However, the number could be much higher.

BCCL

According to Worldometer, coronavirus cases in India have risen to over 1,58,000, and more than 4,600 people have died so far.

But there¡¯s little contrition over the deaths that were caused by the lockdown and not coronavirus. Below is a curation of lockdown deaths-

7 migrant workers died in past two days

On May 27, at least seven deaths on board migrant special trains were reported, raising questions over Railways' handling of the non-AC trains.

However, the Railways said most of the people who died had pre-existing health conditions.

The seven deaths -- four on-board trains travelling to Bihar and three terminating in Uttar Pradesh -- happened over the past few days, and were reported on Wednesday. Read more

Toddler Playing Next To Dead Mother At Bihar Railway Station

The video now being widely circulated online allegedly shows a woman lying dead at a railway station while her toddler plays next to her, even trying to wake her up.

The video that first surfaced on Twitter was also shared by Sanjay Yadav, Leader of Opposition-Bihar Assembly, Social & Political Scientist, who wrote: "The little child does not know that the sheet he is playing with is the shroud of a mother who is dead. This mother died due to being hungry and thirsty in the train for 4 days. Who is responsible for these deaths in trains? Strong questions should be asked!" Read more

Migrant Worker Trying To Reach Bengal From UP Delivers Twin Girls On Bus, Both Didn't Survive

The woman who was six months pregnant was trying to reach her hometown from Hapur district of Uttar Pradesh where she and her husband used to work in a brick kiln. After the brick kiln shut down during the lockdown, they applied online to return home with the assistance of the government but did not get any response.

So the couple along with 42 other people paid Rs 1.2 lakh to hire a bus to reach their homes. But while the bus in which she was travelling, was passing through the Bareilly district Fatima went into labour and delivered twin girls on the bus.

When Fatima's condition deteriorated, the couple was dropped off by the bus driver on National Highway 24 in the Bithri Chainpur area of Bareilly. The bus driver, however, refused to wait and left for the destination with other passengers. The woman and her twin daughters were taken to the district hospital and before reaching there both the babies had died. Read more

Pregnant Migrant Labourer Walking From Punjab To Bihar Delivers Baby On The Way, Child Dies

In yet another such tragic incident a migrant labourer's pregnant wife, who walked over 100 km from Ludhiana in Punjab, delivered a girl child after reaching Ambala in Haryana but the baby died shortly after birth.

Bindia and her husband Jatin Ram, who are in their early 20s, had set out from Ludhiana last week for their village in Bihar. When the couple reached Ambala City on Wednesday, the woman gave birth to a female child. However, the baby died immediately after the birth. Read more

16 Sleeping Migrants Crushed By Train In Maharashtra, Driver Tried To Stop

At least 16 migrant workers in a group of 20 were killed after a cargo train ran over them who were sleeping in the rail tracks in Maharashtra's Aurangabad on May 8. The migrants were walking from Jalna to Bhusaval, 157 km apart.

Four survivors, who are in shock, are being counselled by the police. The fifth survivor has been admitted to hospital with injuries, a report by NDTV said.

The Railways Ministry tweeted that after seeing some people on the track, the driver of the cargo train tried to stop but couldn't do so in time. Read more

Migrant Couple On 700-km Cycle Journey Home Run Over, Children Injured

A migrant worker from Chhattisgarh and his wife, stranded amid the coronavirus lockdown, left from their shelter in Uttar Pradesh's Lucknow in the early hours of May 7, desperate to cycle back to their village - a distance of nearly 750 kilometres.

A few minutes later, they met with a tragic accident.

Their two children - both less than five years old - were with them and survived the crash. According to police, Krishna Sahu (45), his wife Pramila (40) and their children were hit by a speeding vehicle. The couple was rushed to a local hospital but neither could be saved. Read more

Maharashtra Man Dies After Men Allegedly Attack Him On Road Thinking He Was A Covid-19 Patient

A 34-year-old man was allegedly attacked on suspicion of being a COVID-19 patient and died after falling into a manhole during the assault in Kalyan town of Maharashtra's Thane district.

According to a report by news agency PTI, the incident took place on the morning of April 22, when Ganesh Gupta had stepped out of his home to purchase some essentials amid the COVID-19 lockdown.

When he saw a few policemen manning the road, he took an alternate route, where a few passersby attacked him when he coughed while walking, an official told PTI. Read more

39-year-old migrant worker dies after collapsing

A 39-year-old migrant worker died after walking 200 km from Delhi to Agra on Saturday. The victim, who worked at home delivery service for a private restaurant in the national capital and was a father of three, was on the way to Morena district of Madhya Pradesh, another 85 km from Agra.

Identified as Ranveer Singh, the man was a resident of Badfra village of Amba police jurisdiction in Morena, and was heading home on foot.

According to police, the victim collapsed near Kailash Mod on national highway-2, after which a local shopkeeper rushed to his help.

¡°He made the victim lie on a carpet and offered him tea and biscuits. The victim complained of chest pain and also spoke with his brother-in-law over the phone to share his health condition. Around 6:30 pm, the victim died and local police were informed,¡± said Sikandra station house officer Arvind Kumar. Read more

62-year-old dies after walking home from hospital in Surat

A 62-year-old man died in Surat on March 28 after walking from a hospital to his house for around 8 kilometres because he could not find any vehicle due to the lockdown.

The deceased, Gangaram Yelenge, was returning from New Civil Hospital at Majuragate along with his son Naresh Yelenge (40).

He fell unconscious on the road near his house in Pandesara and was taken back to the hospital where he was declared brought dead. Read more

Four migrants run over by a truck in Virar

Four migrants who were turned back from on the Maharashtra Gujarat border and were walking back to Vasai were killed after being run over by a truck at Virar on the Mumbai ¨C Gujarat highway. The four were part of a group of seven who wanted to reach their villages in Rajasthan after crossing into Gujarat. The driver of the truck who fled from the spot was later arrested by the police. Read more

Eight from Raichur killed in lorry-mini truck collision near Hyderabad

Eight people, including a three-year-old boy and an eight-year-old girl from Karnataka, were killed and three others suffered severe injuries on the Outer Ring Road (ORR) in Shamshabad after a mango-laden lorry rammed the Bolero maxi truck they were travelling late on Friday. The wounded were rushed to Osmania General Hospital in Hyderabad and their condition is said to be critical. Read more

Death toll rises to 4 in Theni forest fire tragedy

Two more people died in the forest fire at Rasingapuram in Theni district on Tuesday night, taking the death toll to four.

The victims were part of estate workers returning from Kerala and had taken a forest road which was no longer in use amid the lockdown. Read more

Five Migrants Dead, Eight Injured After Being Hit By Truck While Walking Home

At least five migrants, including a one-year-old, hailing from UP were killed and eight others critically injured on Sunday, March 29, after being hit by a truck on KMP (Kundli Manesar Palwal Expressway) in Haryana, The Week reported. Read more

Namakkal student¡¯s 1,300-km trek home ends midway

A 23-year-old student from Namakkal pursuing food processing course in Wardha, Maharashtra, travelled nine days, taking different modes of transport to cover nearly 1,300 km to reach his hometown but his trek ended midway, tragically at a function hall in Secunderabad. Read more

Telangana youngster on bike dies in attempt to flee from police at Andhra border

A youngster lost his life after crashing into the barricade at a border checkpost in an attempt to cross over to Andhra Pradesh from neighbouring Telangana. The inter-state borders were sealed in view of the nationwide lockdown being enforced to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Read more

Buried In 15-Ft-Deep Pit While Walking Home

A 168-km-long journey back home to their native place in Uttar Pradesh ended tragically for three labourers, who were found buried under soil in a 15-foot-deep pit dug up for construction of a power sub- station at Sakatpur in Gurugram. Police were alerted by locals. The stray dogs had mutilated the bodies, they added.
Read more

Thrissur man reportedly commits suicide over not getting liquor

A man has reportedly committed suicide unable to procure liquor. Sanoj (35) is a native of Thuvanoor in Kunnamkulam. His relatives stated that he committed suicide as he was not able to obtain liquor. They also said he was feeling disturbed for the past two days because he could not indulge in his drinking habit. Read more

No booze, 8 commit suicide in Kerala

At Kechery, 28 km north of Shybu¡¯s Venginissery village in central Kerala, daily wager KV Sanoj (38) chose to hang himself. That was last Friday. Four suicides were reported on weekend: SK Suresh and Biju Viswanathan of downstate Kollam district, KC Vijilal of north Malabar¡¯s Kannur and B Vasu of Kaitharam near Kochi.

All this for a common reason: non-availability of liquor. The state has all its beverages shops shut from March 25 following a nationwide lockdown against the coronavirus. Read more

Three persons die in Telangana due to dearth of alcohol amid COVID-19 lockdown

The nationwide lockdown is proving to be fatal for the alcohol addicts. The number of people attempting suicide and dying due to the unavailability of alcohol reiterates the same.

As many as three persons died due to the non-availability of toddy in erstwhile Mahbubnagar district. Read more

Two suspected to be coronavirus positive commit suicide in UP

Two youths committed suicide over suspicion that they were infected in Hapur and Bareilly districts in Uttar Pradesh

According to reports, one of the two was a youth, who was a resident of Pilkhua area in Hapur. He killed himself by cutting the veins of his neck and wrist on Sunday. In a suicide note left behind, the youth said that he had been infected with the novel virus. Read more

UP farmer commits suicide fearing coronavirus infection

A farmer from a Mathura village, who was suffering from fever and cold, committed suicide to ''save his entire village from being infected with coronavirus'', said police.

The deceased, Mahendra Singh, 36, had "assumed" that he was suffering from novel coronavirus without undergoing any medical test. His is the fourth such suicide in the state. Read more

Corona scare drives govt employee to suicide

A government employee hanged himself in his office and stated in his suicide note that he was ending his life as he was afraid of the Corona virus. Senior Superintendent of Police Dinesh Kumar P said that the employee''s family said that he had been depressed for some time.

The body has been sent for post mortem.

This is the sixth Corona suicide in Uttar Pradesh and second in 24 hours. Read more

Karnataka man commits suicide over doubts of contracting coronavirus infection

A 56-year old man, who suspected he had contracted the coronavirus infection, ended his life in Udupi district, police sources said. The deceased has been identified as Gopalakrishna Madivala, a resident of Narnadu in Uppoor village of Udupi taluk.

Sources said the man had no specific symptoms of the virus infection. He was awake till 2 am in the night, speaking to his family members. He was found hanging from a tree near the house when others in the house woke up at 5 am.

A death note saying he was taking his life as he doubted he had coronavirus infection was recovered from the house. The note also asked the family members to stay safe. Read more

Hassan man commits suicide after being placed in home quarantine

A 55-year-old man who was placed under home quarantine allegedly committed suicide by hanging self at his residence in Manchenahalli in Channarayapatna taluk. The deceased had recently arrived in his hometown from Mumbai, on the occasion of Ugadi. Since he came from a different state, the health officers had put home quarantine seal on his hand and advised him to stay under home quarantine for 14-days. Read more

Suspected coronavirus patient commits suicide at Delhi's Safdarjung Hospital

A 23-year-old man, suspected to be a patient of novel coronavirus infection, committed suicide by jumping from the seventh floor of Safdarjung Hospital in Delhi, where he was admitted. "The deceased was admitted at hospital today at 9 pm after returning from Sydney, Australia," the Delhi Police said in a statement. Read more

2 commit suicide in Bengal over fear of contracting coronavirus

Amid the coronavirus outbreak already claiming lives across the country, in the past 24 hours, two persons committed suicide in the past 24 hours in different parts of West Bengal, allegedly due to the COVID-19 scare infused depression. Read more

Migrant Worker From Shillong Commits Suicide, Accused Employer Of No Support During Lockdown

A migrant worker from Meghalaya who was working at a restaurant in Agra allegedly committed suicide on March 30. According to the reports, police officials found that he hanged himself at his rented house in the city.

The man has been identified as Aldrin Lyngdoh. Aldrin took to Facebook to write about his employer who refused to support him during the 21-day nationwide lockdown period that has been imposed by the Central Government in an attempt to control the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. Read more

Quarantined Tamil Nadu Man Runs Out Naked, Bites Woman To Death: Cops

A 35-year-old man who was placed under home quarantine amid the COVID-19 pandemic after he returned from Sri Lanka has been charged with killing a woman at a village in Tamil Nadu.

The man ran out of his house naked and bit an 80-year-old woman in her neck.

"The accused, Manikandan, has a history of mental illness for which he was treated in Madurai back in 2010. On Friday, he disrobed himself and ran from his home. He tripped and fell a hundred metres from his home and targeted the elderly woman, who was sitting outside her house," a police officer told NDTV. Read more

Woman dies of ¡®hunger¡¯ in Ramgarh district, administration denies

A 70-year-old ailing Dalit woman allegedly died of starvation in Gola block of Ramgarh district amid the lockdown. District officials, however, said that the deceased, Upaso Devi, died of old-age related ailments and that their team, which went to her house, found foodgrains. Police have sent her body for post mortem. Read more

Bengal man's family says he died of police beating, police say he had heart ailment

A 32-year-old man in West Bengal's Howrah went out to buy milk during the lockdown when he was beaten up by the police. He later passed away after the thrashing. His family has alleged he died of the injuries. Read more

Chandigarh: Woman out to buy medicines dies, relatives attack cops

Violence rocked Manimajra after a 45-year-old woman died under mysterious circumstances.

Angry relatives and neighbours clashed with the police following rumours that "police beating" killed Mindo Devi of Shanti Nagar. People claimed they were told that "a cop hit the woman going to buy medicines for her ailing husband with a stick on her head", leading to her death. Cops clarified they did not even touch the woman and only asked her to go back to her house due to the lockdown. "Suddenly, she fainted. She was declared brought dead by doctors at Government Multi-specialty Hospital, Sector 16," cops said. Read more

Probe ordered into ambulance driver¡¯s death after assault by policeman

The Pimpri-Chinchwad Police have ordered an inquiry into the death of an ambulance driver on Friday afternoon after he was allegedly beaten up by the police on allegations of ferrying passengers illegally in his ambulance.

The 50-year-old driver Naresh Shinde died soon after he was allegedly hit hard on the back with a lathi by a policeman on duty at Talegaon phata, his son Nilesh Shinde, who was accompanying him, said. The ambulance was headed from Thane to Ahmednagar district when it was stopped at the Talegaon phata on the Mumbai-Pune highway, said Nilesh. Read more

Dalit youth kills self after allegedly being tortured by UP police for breaking quarantine rule

A Dalit youth committed suicide on Wednesday after he was allegedly beaten up by the UP police for breaking quarantine rules. A resident of Fariya Pipariya village which falls in Lakhimpur district, the Dalit youth, Roshan Lal worked as a daily wage worker in Gurugam.

In a recorded audio clip, which Roshan Lal forwarded to his friend and family members on WhatsApp minutes before he committed suicide, he can be heard screaming and narrating the story of torture and humiliation in a very feeble voice. Read more

Two more patients die due to blockade at Karnataka border

Two more critically ill patients in Kasaragod died after they were denied access to hospitals in Mangaluru by Karnataka police at the border at Talapady.

With this four persons have lost their lives in the past five days because of the stringent blockade of the highway by Karnataka police as part of the lockdown to fight the spread of COVID-19. Read more

Lockdown has killed more than 50 people and has left over 60 severely injured

Assam Constable Dies in Market, Family Claims Lynched; SP Differs

An Assam Industrial Security Force (AISF) constable died in Cachar district on Saturday, after which his wife claimed he was lynched by a mob while enforcing a lockdown at a market, but police said his death was probably due to high blood pressure. Read more

Pregnant woman denied admission in hospital, baby dies

A woman experiencing labour pain was allegedly refused admission into a government hospital by its staff citing her religion in Rajasthan''s Bharatpur district.

The pregnant woman delivered the infant inside an ambulance, after leaving the hospital, but the child could not survive.

Irfan Khan, the husband, said, "My wife was referred from Sikri to the Janana hospital in the district headquarter, however doctors here asked us to go to Jaipur as we are Muslim. While on our way to Jaipur, my wife delivered the child but the baby passed away for which the administration is responsible." Read more

Facing 'Social Boycott', Himachal Man Hangs Self Day After Testing Negative for Coronavirus

A 37-year-old man hanged himself to death in Himachal Pradesh's Una district a morning after allegedly facing "social boycott" by some villagers, who suspected him to be suffering from COVID-19 despite testing negative for it.

Mohammad Dilshad committed suicide under a shed at his residence in Una's Bangarh village, a day after health officials dropped him at his village following his negative report, an official said. Read more

Covid fear: Elderly couple ends life in Amritsar

An elderly couple committed suicide by consuming a poisonous substance at Sathiala village in Baba Bakala subdivision of Amritsar, allegedly under the scare of Covid-19 outbreak, police said on Friday.

The deceased have been identified as Balwinder Singh,65, and his wife Gurinder Kaur. Police said they have recovered a suicide note, purportedly written by the deceased.

The suicide note reads: ¡°We are finishing our lives. No one is responsible for this. There has been a tension due to coronavirus. We both were also ill.¡± Read more

Uttar Pradesh man suffering from cough, cold ends life fearing he had COVID-19

A 35-year-old man who had self-isolated after having a cough and cold, hanged himself in Jamalpur village here, with the police suspecting that he acted out of the fear of having contracted the novel coronavirus.

His brother-in-law told police that after having a cough and cold he isolated himself in a room after some villagers suspected that he was suffering from COVID-19. Read more

Three men die in Tamil Nadu after consuming hand sanitizer following lockdown

Three men died in Chengalpattu, about 60 km from Chennai, they consumed hand sanitizer since alcohol was not available following the nationwide lockdown, police said. Read more

Elderly woman commits suicide fearing Coronavirus infection in Punjab

A 65-year-old widow, suffering from common cold, reportedly committed suicide by consuming celphos at her residence in nearby village Khurampur on Saturday night over fear of getting infected by Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), the police said. Elderly women, identified as Santosh Kaur, even asked her daughters not to visit her in the apprehension of any infection. Read more

42-year-old businessman in quarantine commits suicide in Gujarat

A 42-year-old man in Gujarat's Palanpur who was put under 14-day quarantine period has committed suicide, police said. Vinodbhai Purushottambhai Chaurasia was put on quarantine on March 20. Police said his quarantine period ended on Friday and the coronavirus test reports were negative.

Covid scare hits business, auto driver ends life

In what could be the first casualty of the extreme economic stress on the lower-income groups and daily-wage workers due to the havoc caused by the Novel Coronavirus, a 24-year-old autorickshaw driver in the city committed suicide on March 19 over loss of daily business for more than a fortnight now. Read more

Covid-19 Suspect Tries To Escape Hospital In Karnal; Dies After Falling From 6th Floor

A suspected coronavirus patient died in Haryana in a bid to escape from a government hospital in Karnal where he was being kept in isolation.

The 55-year-old suspected Covid-19 patient fell from the sixth floor of a government hospital in Karnal town in Haryana as he tried to escape by tying bedsheets together to make a rope. Read more