Bill Gates, the world’s second-richest person, has committed $100 million through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to aid global research and treatment of the coronavirus. Jack Ma, Alibaba founder and the second-richest person in China, has pledged $14 million from his foundation to help develop a coronavirus vaccine. This, apart, from the 500,000 testing kits and one million face masks that he has shipped to the US. Popstar Rihanna has donated $1.4 million towards the purchase of ventilators at a time when hospital ICUs in coronavirus affected countries are overflowing with patients.
While some of the world’s wealthiest are happy to lend a hand for the global cause, the silence from their Indian counterparts so far has been more than deafening. A number of them, on the other hand, have pledged support to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Janta Curfew’ on Sunday.
I will be on my balcony with my family and we will applaud our unsung heroes without pause for the entire 5 minutes. One nation, One Voice. @narendramodi https://t.co/VHUu8LCIqD
— anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) March 19, 2020
A number of Twitter users have questioned the silence from India’s wealthy fraternities.
To put it in perspective, the combined total wealth of 63 Indian billionaires is higher than the total Union Budget of India for the fiscal year 2018-19 which was at Rs 24,42,200 crore.
Indian Billionairs and Millionaires, please get inspired by these companies.... @Netflix announces 100 million #CoronavirusPandemic
— Adil hussain (@_AdilHussain) March 21, 2020
Relief Fund. https://t.co/jmzjIJp7rW
Indian billionaires enjoy all haircut in corporate taxes & write off of NPAs but donating zilch to the very people they are exploiting!
— James Wilson (@jamewils) March 21, 2020
They ngage in clapping hands along with the oligarchy they installed to lead all of us to apocalypse! https://t.co/5WVzS4CYwg
Dear Indian Billionaires,
— Vaidehi |Self Quarantined (@Vaidehi36830022) March 21, 2020
Bollywood can survive without your Holi parties, but your business won't survive with masses dying from corona virus.
This is the best time to give back to the society.
WAKE UP and DONATE
Italy billionaires donated 28 million dollars to fight Corona Virus
— ஜானி (@naanthamizh) March 21, 2020
Indian billionaires only clapping from the balcony 😎 pic.twitter.com/y9qPxM9vMV
Jack Ma is distributing millions of masks and kits to fight #CoronaVirus.
— Aparna (@chhuti_is) March 21, 2020
Rihanna is donating $1 million for buying ventilators in Berbados.
Armani & 17 Italian billionaires donated $28 million.
Indian billionaires are busy thali bajaoing.
Anil Ambani is taking more loans.
World over billionaires are donating money to fight the pandemic. Indian billionaires, on the other hand, are defaulting on loans, decamping after taking public money, manipulating NCLT to buy assets cheap, spreading hate and misinformation through their news channels!
— Rohini Singh (@rohini_sgh) March 21, 2020
According to a recent report by rights group Oxfam, India’s richest one per cent held more than four times the wealth held by 953 million people who make up for the bottom 70 per cent of the country’s population.
The total number of coronavirus positive cases in India currently stands at 271, with more than 40 patients confirmed on Saturday.
As the number of cases is spiking with every passing day, medical experts have even warned that India might have already entered stage 3–of community transmission. World over, economists and medical professionals have warned that Indian conditions are favourable for the coronavirus to spread like wildfire.
Currently, India has been able to check the rapid spread of the disease to date. However, it is to be noted that lack of adequate infrastructure in the country’s healthcare system might prove detrimental if the pandemic gets out of control.
The Central and state governments alone would not be able to pull off a battle in such a case and would expect the private sector to step up in such a scenario.
