British Columbians with ties to India watch with concern as COVID cases spike

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – With India now reporting a global record for daily COVID-19 infections, some people on the Lower Mainland are raising concerns for family members still in that country.

India is dealing with a worsening coronavirus situation, with more than 314,000 new cases reported on Thursday alone. The country has also recorded more than 2,100 deaths over the 24-guhour period.

“It’s a grave concern over the number creeping up. Nobody knows what’s going to be happening,” said Malkiat Singh Dhami, the president of the Khalsa Diwan Society in Vancouver — Canada’s oldest Sikh society. “It’s a very disturbing situation, but I don’t know, what we can do?”

“From the gurdwhara, I pray to God to help everybody, the whole humanity, and all mankind,” he added. “Everybody’s concerned.”

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Singh Dhami is keeping in frequent contact with his family, who mostly live in smaller villages of northern India, where the outbreaks are less severe.

“The villages are still a better place to be. So far, by the grace of God, they are fine,” he said of his relatives.

As the federal government considers new restrictions, Singh Dhami says he would support Canada imposing stricter travel measures on those trying to fly here from India.

The federal Conservatives are pressing the Trudeau government to implement an immediate pause on incoming travel from countries considered COVID-19 hotspots. The opposition is also calling for enhanced measures to ensure people aren’t trying to get around any travel restrictions.

Conservative Leader @erinotoole is calling on the federal government to temporarily suspend flights from COVID hotspot countries #cdnpoli

— Cormac Mac Sweeney (@cmaconthehill) April 22, 2021

However, Singh Dhami notes this remains a global pandemic, and isn’t isolated to one country or another.

“It’s not (just) India — wherever this coronavirus is spreading is a cause of concern,” he told NEWS 1130.

The grim COVID-19 surge in India, the world’s second-most populous country, has sent more and more people into a fragile health-care system. That system is now dealing with critical shortages, both in space and of oxygen, with ambulances having to line up outside of hospitals to help.

The “double mutant” variant spreading around India, known as B.1.617, has now been identified in B.C. and Quebec.