By Smitha George

London, April 10, 2020: The COVID-19 death toll in United Kingdom has reached nearly 9,000. At least 17 workers in National Health Service have so far died from the coronavirus. Mother Teresa Sister Sienna, Indian doctors Hamza Pacheeri and Jitendra Rathod, nurse Beena George, and care worker Sinto George are among the confirmed Indian victims.

The U.K. has been effectively in lockdown since March 23 due to coronavirus. Under the strict measures, people can only leave their homes for essential purposes, such as buying food or medicine. The UK’s social distancing rules are highly likely to remain in force for several more weeks, despite early signs that the coronavirus outbreak is slowing.

While UK faces this long battle, Indians in UK have been playing a big part. Doctors, nurses, care workers, restaurant chefs have been lauded for their great service in these critical times.

The National Health Service (NHS) relies greatly upon doctors, nurses and carers who come from countries all around the world. According to recent statistics, of the nearly 330,000 doctors around 30,000 had their primary qualification in India. This accounts for the single biggest nationality of doctors qualified abroad. The number does not include those of Indian origin who qualified outside of India.

As for nurses, after the British qualified, the biggest numbers are from the Philippines and India. It is estimated that there are nearly 7,800 nurses of Indian nationality working in NHS. The total number of nurses from India may be much higher as some of them may have taken British nationality. In 2019 alone, 1,791 nurses joining the Nursing and Midwifery Register came from India.

Indian restaurants are very popular among the British. Although some restaurants have been temporarily closed due to the crisis, many others are doing their best to serve their customers by introducing ‘contact free’ deliveries and take away services. Some Indian restaurants have been in the headlines with their extra ordinary efforts to help frontline workers. To prevent the spread of coronavirus, those working on certain hospital wards are unable to leave their stations easily once they start their shift. Several Indian Restaurants volunteered to provide the NHS staff with free meals during their shifts.

The UK Home Office has recently confirmed that any foreign students or professionals on visas that are expiring and cannot leave the UK because of travel restrictions or self-isolation related to coronavirus (COVID-19) will be given extension at least until May 31.

Home Secretary Priti Patel also announced that as part of the national effort to combat coronavirus, NHS doctors, nurses and paramedics whose visas were due to expire before October 2020 would automatically have their visas extended, free of charge, for one year. The home secretary said she had taken the decision because NHS staff should not be “distracted by the visa process”, adding that the nation “owed them a great deal of gratitude for all that they do”

Many stranded students from different parts of India, including Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Maharashtra and Uttarakhand, expressed their relief at the visa extension announcement. The UK government has also announced that any health care related to COVID-19 will be free to all irrespective of their immigration status. However many remain concerned about the mounting accommodation costs and the risk of contracting COVID-19 due to being confined within the student hostels with shared facilities during the lockdown. A group of around 380 Indian students have started a data chain requesting the Indian government to evacuate them. The Indian High Commission in London has also offered assistance with organizing accommodation for Indian nationals stranded in the UK.

Several Indian associations such as Asian community, One Community, Overseas Indian Cultural Congress (OICC) UK,  Union of UK Malayalee Association (UUKMA) , Dorset Indian Cricket Club have come together to deliver food and essential supplies to the elderly, vulnerable and those in self-isolation.

In the light of this crisis, UK has stopped accepting visa applications from many countries including: Australia, New Zealand, the US, Canada, China, Hong Kong, India, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore and the UAE.

The peak of the pandemic in the country is expected to arrive in two weeks. Continued social distancing and more aggressive testing are being rolled out to get this under control. The first of the government’s emergency field hospitals to treat coronavirus patients has opened in east London’s ExCel centre. This temporary NHS Nightingale Hospital is able to treat as many as 4,000 patients and is the first of several such facilities planned across the UK in Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Belfast, Glasgow, Harrogate and Manchester.

Bells at the historic Canterbury Cathedral in Kent now toll every evening at 8pm as a mark of remembrance to the victims of coronavirus and in celebration of the heroism of frontline healthcare staff and other essential workers. It is hoped the familiar sound of the historic bells – which will be rung remotely via a timer – will be a comfort and provide strength for all who hear it.

The current Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, who apologized for the Amritsar massacre by prostrating himself when visiting Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar in September 2019 – recorded his Easter Sunday sermon in which he says, “After so much suffering, so much heroism from key workers and the National Health Service, we cannot be content to go back to what was before as if all is normal,” he will say. “There needs to be a resurrection of our common life.”