Faizel Patel – 20/05/2021
Political analyst Sanusha Naidu says India has been in a very invidious position with the deadliest level of COVID-19 infections and on the same day the country west coast was battered with a cyclone.
Naidu was speaking to Radio Islam during the Asia Pacific Report taking over from seasoned political analyst Kiru Naidoo.
Cyclone Tauktae, the strongest storm on record to hit India’s west coast, has killed at least 40 people since it made landfall in western Gujarat state on Monday night.
The cyclone formed in the Arabian Sea, and tore past the financial hub of Mumbai, in Maharashtra state, before reaching Gujarat.
Its strong winds and heavy rain caused flooding and destruction in low-lying coastal regions, even before it made landfall.
Naidu says it was a very challenging time for India.
“In addition to the virus, you had to also manage how you are going to reach particular communities, particular areas that were basically cut off from urban centre’s. You had to have your rescue gear, your rescue teams being very, very clear about what strategies they had to take so that they won’t compound the daily infection rate.”
Naidoo also shared updates about China’s probe to Mars touching down on the Red Planet to deploy its Zhurong rover.
State broadcaster CCTV launched a special TV programme dedicated to the mission called “Nihao Mars” (“Hello Mars”).
Naidu says the mission was a great achievement for China.
“It’s the first mission to Mars. It’s the first kind of big space power dynamic for China. So the first pictures that have been published is to show who successful the Chinese space programme has been. I think there is only two other countries in history that have managed to do similar things and land on Mars and that is the US and the other is the Soviet Union.”
Naidu also touched on stories about the International Olympic Committee guaranteeing vaccinations of athletes and a boycott of the Winter Olympics in 2022 hosted by China over human rights abuses.
Listen to the Asia Pacific Report with Sanusha Naidoo
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