Ep 119: How are Darjeeling, Kalimpong, and Sikkim handling the Covid-19 pandemic?

We want to keep you posted about one of the most ignored regions of the country. So, in this episode, host Snigdha Sharma is joined by Times of India correspondent Shradha Chettri, and East Mojo’s Sikkim correspondent, Pankaj Dhungel.

The podcast begins with the trio talking about the number of Covid-19 cases in each region, the number of healthcare facilities available for infected patients, quarantine centres, etc. The conversation soon leads to a shocking revelation: the entire region of North Bengal including Darjeeling and Kalimpong, and the state of Sikkim had only one testing centre until the end of May when Sikkim got its own testing facility. They talk about the backlog in test results due to the immense pressure on the lone testing lab at the NBMCH which still caters to Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar and Cooch Behar districts, apart from Darjeeling and Kalimpong.

They also discuss the government’s lack of transparency in these testing times, and the impact of the pandemic on the tea and tourism industry. 

This and a lot more as they talk about what made news, what didn’t, and what shouldn’t have.

Tune in!

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