'An out-of-body experience': What it's like to be in India's Covid crisis

Fear, grief and boredom pervade the lives of those contending with the country's severe outbreak. Their solace: family, friends and their own efforts to help others

Infections are soaring. So are deaths. Whole cities are under lockdown. And the government seems powerless to help.

India is in the grip of a coronavirus crisis. Experts agree that the spread is probably even worse than the official statistics suggest. In many parts of the country, hospital beds, supplemental oxygen and other vital supplies are running short.

As Western countries roll out mass vaccination campaigns, only about 3 percent of India’s population is fully inoculated. Though conditions are slowly improving in New Delhi and Mumbai, the virus appears to be spreading largely unchecked through the rest of the country.

The New York