2. Profile of India
The Republic of India is the most populous democracy in the world, and the second-most populous country overall, housing over 1.2 billion people.
The secular nation is in South-East Asia, stemming from the historic Indus Valley Civilization. It houses the most ancient scriptures of Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism, and is rich in intellectual fields of mathematics, astronomy, music and the fine arts. It is one of the most geographically and ethnically diverse countries, with over 22 regional languages.
Despite a history of imperialism by the British Empire, circa 2017 India’s economy is the sixth largest by nominal GDP and third largest by purchasing power parity. However, it still faces challenges of poverty, governmental corruption, inadequate public healthcare and remnants of an ancient caste system.
The Indian government has recently come under fire from some domestic and most international press organizations for its handling of the COVID-19 crisis. TIME magazine[i], NYT[ii], and Al Jazeera[iii] have been some organizations that have produced critical pieces on India’s response (or lack thereof) to the pandemic.
References
[i] Chowdhury, Debasish Roy. “Modi Never Bought Enough COVID-19 Vaccines for India. Now the Whole World Is Paying.” Time, Time, 28 May 2021, time.com/6052370/modi-didnt-buy-enough-covid-19-vaccine/.
[ii] Gamio, Lazaro, and James Glanz. “Just How Big Could India’s True Covid Toll Be?” The New York Times, The New York Times, 25 May 2021, www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/05/25/world/asia/india-covid-death-estimates.html?referringSource=articleShare.
[iii] Sharma, Saurabh. “Tales from an INDIAN CREMATORIUM.” Coronavirus Pandemic | Al Jazeera, Al Jazeera, 27 June 2021, www.aljazeera.com/features/2021/6/27/india-covid-crisis-the-crematorium-workers.
