As COVID overwhelms India’s hospitals, housing societies step in

Residents’ welfare associations in urban areas provide critical medical aid as country’s healthcare system buckles.

New Delhi, India – When Shonalika Ghosh’s father tested positive for COVID-19 in India’s capital New Delhi, she had to monitor his symptoms and coordinate remotely from Dubai, where she lives. Along with friends and family who helped deliver medicines and supplies, it was the support of the managing committee of the apartment complex that was particularly reassuring. “For my sister and me, both living outside India, it was comforting when the committee monitored my father’s health daily, called with regular updates and assured us that they were equipped with oxygen concentrators for an emergency,” Ghosh told Al Jazeera.