– Niyif Ashfi

Lakshadweep, an archipelago of 36 islands in the Arabian Sea did not report a single case of COVID-19 in 2020. While health officials in the Union Territory received widespread acclaim for their early preparedness, the situation this year was not the same, with the island reporting its first case in January. The UT has since registered 4,986 cases and 14 deaths with the active caseload being 1,208 cases at present.

Against this backdrop, there has emerged a social media movement of sorts to “#SaveLakshadweep” with countless individuals tweeting to highlight an ongoing crisis in the island territory – from politicians to sports personalities and actors.

He is not alone. Over the last few days, a slew of well known personalities have stepped up to highlight the situation in Lakshadweep, calling for action against the administration.
While officials in the administration point to the new COVID-19 strain and the movement of people as the reason behind the surge in cases, critics blame the new administration. Unlike previous months, the latest SOP requires only a negative RT-PCR report from an ICMR-approved laboratory to enter the UT.

As soon Shri. Praful Patel assumed that office, he unilaterally changed the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) which was in force in the island for preventing the spread of COVID-19 pandemic. According to the people of island, this unplanned and unscientific altering of SOP has led to the current surge in COVID cases in Lakshadweep where there was not even a single case reported in the year 2020,” reads an excerpt from a letter by Rajya Sabha MP Elamaram Kareem to the President.

Kareem alleged that that the orders and promulgations issued by the Lakshadweep administration under the current administrator were aimed at destroying the traditional life and cultural diversity of the people of Lakshadweep. Hundreds of casual and contract labourers, he contended, had lost their jobs, even as countless others who depended on fishing and dairy farming have been affected negatively in recent months.