According to THE TIMES OF INDIA
Why China's Covid crisis raises more questions than answers
The Covid situation in China has exacerbated in the last few weeks with the highly contagious Omicron variant breaking the country's tight virus defences and triggering the worst outbreak since Wuhan in 2019.
After a fresh surge in capital Beijing, the authorities have decided to start mass testing millions of residents as part of an unprecedented scheme designed to identify and squash Omicron’s stealthy spread. Nearly 20 million people will undergo three rounds of Covid testing through the weekend.
In Shanghai, China's most populous city, deaths have started soaring even as a strict lockdown is taking a toll on millions of residents.
One thing that is emerging from the current Covid crisis is China's dubious response to the outbreak. From a curiously low death rate to crippling lockdowns, critics are questioning China's handling of the Omicron wave, which is a reminder of the country's shady response during the initial days of the pandemic in 2019...Read More
According to Hindustan Times
Beijing tests 22mn for Covid-19, closes off some city areas
The caseload is low but that didn’t stop residents from panic-buying essentials on Sunday and Monday with many fearing that a lockdown in Beijing is imminent.
China’s capital Beijing on Tuesday started testing most of its nearly 22 million residents for Covid-19, swiftly expanding mass tests from one district, Chaoyang, to many more areas within 24 hours amid a spreading outbreak and fears of a Shanghai-style lockdown.
The Beijing government announced the decision to expand tests across the city late on Monday night as the 3.5 million residents of Chaoyang district completed their first round yesterday.
According to Times Now
Fearing Shanghai-style lockdown, Beijing expands COVID mass testing to 20 million residents
Fearing an imminent lockdown similar to Shanghai’s, China’s capital Beijing on Tuesday scaled up its COVID mass testing for nearly 20 million residents in most of the city.
The authorities expanded mass tests from one district, Chaoyang, to many more areas within 24 hours amid growing concerns about a fresh Omicron outbreak. The Chinese capital started testing the residents of Chaoyang, its most populous district, on Monday. By the end of the day, the authorities decided to conduct mass testing across Beijing from Tuesday to cover about 19.5 million of the city's 21.5 million residents.
Having seen the hardships of Shanghai, China's financial hub, the authorities announced to conduct testing in 10 other districts and one economic development zone this week...Read More
According to Bloomberg Quint
Shanghai Cases Fall a Fourth Day; Beijing Finds More Infections
Shanghai’s Covid-19 cases fell for a fourth day, while a mass-testing drive in Beijing unearthed more infections.
Shanghai reported 13,562 local cases and 48 deaths for Tuesday, down from 16,980 infections and 52 deaths on Monday. The financial hub is in the midst of a crippling lockdown that has left much of the city’s 26 million residents confined to their homes.
Beijing reported 34 cases for Tuesday. The capital city has started testing millions of its residents as part of an unprecedented drive to identify and squash omicron’s spread before it spirals out of control...Read More
According to NDTV
"Feel Like Animals": Green Fences Baffle Locked Down Shanghai Residents
Authorities in Shanghai, which is battling one of the worst COVID-19 outbreaks, have erected fences outside the homes of people who have tested +ve.
Authorities in Shanghai, which is battling one of the worst COVID-19 outbreaks, have erected fences outside the homes of people who have tested positive, according to New York Post. This has sparked an outcry on Chinese social media platforms that people are being treated like animals amid a harsh lockdown, the publication further said.
“This is so disrespectful of the rights of the people inside, using metal barriers to enclose them like domestic animals,” it quoted a resident as saying.
Many users on Weibo and other Chinese social media platforms have posted images of Chinese healthcare workers installing green metal bars outside residential buildings to stop people from coming out...Read More
According to Forbes INDIA
Beijing lockdown talks fuel supply chain disruption concerns
The city government ordered one of its districts to test all 3.5 million of its residents for coronavirus in the coming days, a move that may be a prelude to a larger lockdown in China's capital city.
The prospect of further lockdowns in China prompted a fresh wave of economic anxiety Monday as investors and companies whose supply chains run through China contemplated the effect of 70 new virus cases that the Beijing government said it had detected over the weekend.
The city government ordered one of its districts to test all 3.5 million of its residents for coronavirus in the coming days, a move that may be a prelude to a larger lockdown in China’s capital city. Shanghai, a major port and business center, has been locked down for roughly a month, part of China’s “zero COVID” strategy. Other Chinese cities both large and small have announced their own restrictions on the movement of residents in a bid to keep the virus from spreading...Read More
According to News 18
Beijing Expands Mass Testing as Lockdown Fears Grow
Under its zero-Covid policy, China has used lockdowns, mass testing and travel restrictions to stamp out infections.
Beijing launched mass coronavirus testing on Tuesday for nearly all its 21 million residents, as fears grew that the Chinese capital may be placed under a strict lockdown like Shanghai.
Under its zero-Covid policy, China has used lockdowns, mass testing and travel restrictions to stamp out infections.
Its biggest city, Shanghai, has been almost entirely locked down for weeks, and the mass testing order in Beijing has sparked worries the capital will be placed under similar restrictions...Read More
According to INDIA TODAY
Beijing to mass-test most of city as Covid-19 cases mount
Beijing will conduct mass testing of most of its 21 million people as the Chinese city reported a surge in Covid-19 cases, pushing some residents into lockdown.
Beijing will conduct mass testing of most of its 21 million people, authorities announced Monday, as a new Covid-19 outbreak sparked stockpiling of food by residents worried about the possibility of a Shanghai-style lockdown.
The Chinese capital began mass testing people in one of its 16 districts where most of the new cases have been found. The city also imposed lockdowns on individual residential buildings and one section of the city. Late in the day, health officials said the testing would be expanded Tuesday to all but five outlying districts...Read More
