Non-Coronavirus Related Deaths In India

trigger warning: suicide

In important yet devastating news, a group comprising public interest technologist Thejesh GN, activist Kanika Sharma and assistant professor of legal practice at Jindal Global School of Law, Aman said 338 deaths have occurred from March 19 till May 2, related to lockdown.

Suicide was the leading cause of "non-coronavirus" deaths in India which was, in part, triggered by the lockdown and resulted in over 300 deaths. According to the data, 80 people killed themselves due to loneliness and fear of being positive for the disease " A large number of migrant laborers stuck in quarantine facilities, away from family, died by suicide, fearing infection, and sometimes even the stigma attached to the disease," the group said

The suicides are followed by migrant deaths due to accidents they faced on their way back home (51), deaths associated with withdrawal (from narcotics or alcohol) symptoms (45), and those related to starvation and financial distress (36)

As many as seven people have died after consuming aftershave and sanitizer lotions.

Some more causes for “non-coronavirus deaths” were exhaustion (24), including workers traveling long distances on foot or queuing for ration; police atrocity/state violence (11), lockdown-related crimes (12), including vigilantism for violating rules, and denial of medical care (38). There are also 41 cases where the specific cause is not clear. An example of such an incident would be where there is a conflict between the account of the state and the family/friends of the deceased about the cause of the death, said Aman. "Also, it must be understood these deaths are likely an underestimate: only a fraction of deaths as per reported by the media and we may have missed some deaths reported in local media as well." The group said

The group tracked newspapers and web portals in a handful of languages, primarily English Hindi and a few vernaculars languages (Kannada, Marathi, Tamil, Odia, Bengali, Malayalam) and used social media as an effective tool to collect data.

We are grateful to this group for bringing this data to the public’s attention. Since the lockdown is to continue at least till the 17th of May and the cure for the virus is nowhere near, mental health issues and domestic violence are peaking and this data is just the gruesome reality check we needed. Please stay safe seek appropriate help and check on your loved ones.

Written by: Katyayani