By: Lauren Vergos
Since the beginning of the global COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, social media has played a vital role in almost all of our lives. While it has always functioned as a means of communication and relaying information to others, social media gained an entirely new meaning during the pandemic. From communicating with each other during periods of isolation to raising awareness about important current events, social media has played an integral role in our society.
For India’s COVID-19 crisis, social media has been especially beneficial. For months, the country’s healthcare system has been completely overwhelmed by an unprecedented Covid surge. The population suffers from around 400,000 new cases and thousands of deaths from the virus daily. Hospitals have been at maximum capacities, and it’s extremely difficult for people to access the care that they need.
In hopes of positive change, relatives and friends of those affected started using social media as a way to raise awareness about the crisis in India and call on others for help. Through social media platforms, these calls have reached politicians, doctors, lawyers, engineers, and many others who have then mobilized to help those in India with the virus. Together, they have formed grass-roots organizations that work both online and in person to help the cause. One example of an organization helping India is the Indian National Congress party’s youth league. Much of their work involves transporting oxygen and ventilators, which are extremely scarce. They currently have a team of 1,000 volunteers in Delhi, the center of the outbreak.
Many people involved in the effort to help India in its crisis have credited social media as the driving force behind the global movement. If not for social media, it’s unlikely that so many people would work to help India on such a large scale and short amount of time.
Delivering oxygen tanks to sick patients in India.
The Academy Journal for Global Affairs 