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The COVID-19 pandemic has presented a significant challenge to countries worldwide, and South Asia has not been an exception. The region is home to over 1.8 billion people and some of the world's largest cities, making it a potential hotspot for the virus's spread. This paper presents case studies from three South Asian countries: India, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan, analyzing their response to the pandemic and the measures taken to contain its spread. The paper analyzes India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka's healthcare infrastructures, their strengths and weaknesses, and the measures taken by these governments to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on the economy and society. Overall, the paper provides insights into the response to the pandemic in South Asia, highlighting the successes and challenges faced by the countries analyzed. The case studies offer valuable lessons on the importance of preparedness, effective communication, and coordinated responses to pandemics. They also underscore the need for greater investment in healthcare infrastructure and the importance of addressing socioeconomic disparities to effectively combat pandemics in the region. This paper also brings together the recent publications on the current pandemic to help understand the recent works in this area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has unleashed havoc across different countries and was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization. Since certain evidences indicate a direct relationship of various viruses with the weather (temperature in particular), the same is being speculated about COVID-19; however, it is still under investigation as the pandemic is advancing the world over. In this study, we tried to analyze the spread of COVID-19 in the Indian subcontinent with respect to the local temperature regimes from March 9, 2020, to May 27, 2020. To establish the relation between COVID-19 and temperature in India, three different ecogeographical regions having significant temperature differences were taken into consideration for the analysis. We observed that except Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Kashmir showed a significantly positive correlation between the number of COVID-19 cases and the temperature during the period of study. The evidences based on the results presented in this research lead us to believe that the increasing temperature is beneficial to the COVID-19 spread, and the cases are going to rise further with the increasing temperature over India. We, therefore, conclude that the existing data, though limited, suggest that the spread of COVID-19 in India is not explained by the variation of temperature alone and is most likely driven by a host of other factors related to epidemiology, socioeconomics and other climatic factors. Based on the results, it is suggested that temperature should not be considered as a yardstick for planning intervention strategies for controlling the COVID-19 pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vibrio cholerae causes the fatal cholera diarrhea. Chironomids (Diptera; Chironomidae) are abundant in freshwater aquatic habitats and estuaries and are natural reservoirs of V. cholerae. Until now, only the non-O1/O139 serogroups of V. cholerae were identified in chironomids. Here, we explored whether chironomids are natural reservoirs of V. cholerae O1/O139 serogroups, which are associated with cholera endemics and pandemics. All four life stages of chironomids were sampled from two rivers, and a laboratory culture in Pune, India, and from a pond in Israel. In total, we analyzed 223 chironomid samples. The presence of V. cholerae O1/O139 serogroups was verified using molecular tools. Nine chironomid species were identified; of them, Chironomus circumdatus was the most abundant. The presence of V. cholerae serogroup O1 and the cholera toxin genes were detected in samples from all chironomid species. However, serogroup O139 was detected in only two chironomid species. Besides PCR to detect specific genes, a metagenomic analysis that was performed in three selected C. ramosus larvae, identified a list of virulence genes associated with V. cholerae. The findings provide evidence that chironomids are natural reservoirs of toxigenic V. cholerae O1/O139. Chironomid populations and V. cholerae show biannual peak patterns. A similar pattern is found for cholera epidemics in the Bengal Delta region. Thus, we hypothesize that monitoring chironomids in endemic areas of the disease may provide a novel tool for predicting and preventing cholera epidemics. Moreover, serogroup O139 was detected only in two chironomid species that have a restricted distribution in the Indian subcontinent, possibly explaining why the distribution of the O139 serogroup is limited. Author summary: Vibrio cholerae, is the causative agent of the diarrheal disease cholera, which infects millions of people worldwide. Despite intensive research, the environmental reservoir of V. cholerae is still unclear and under debate within the scientific community. Chironomids, an aquatic insect group that is closely related to mosquitoes, were reported to function as reservoirs of V. cholerae. Nevertheless, until now, there have been no reports regarding the presence of pandemic-causing V. cholerae O1/O139 serogroups in chironomids. By using molecular tools including metagenomic analyses of chironomids larval microbiomes, we provide here evidence for the first time, that chironomids harbor pandemic serogroups (O1/O139) of V. cholerae, which possess the cholera-toxin gene. Chironomid populations and V. cholerae demonstrate biannual peaks similar to the biannual peaks of cholera epidemics in the Bengal Delta region in India. Thus, we hypothesize that monitoring and controlling chironomid populations in endemic areas could be used as a tool for predicting and controlling the devastating cholera outbreaks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has intensely impacted art production and the art market all around the world. This is dramatically visible inside the Patua or Patachitra communities in Medinipur, West Bengal, where Patachitras' scrolls characterise the economy of folk-art communities in the so-called villages of painters. Patachitras' singing pictures belong to an ancestral tradition of storytelling and performing art. For centuries, new themes have been embodied inside the Patuas' repertoire, creating a living heritage that has always reflected the political, religious, cultural, and social main events and, ultimately, COVID-19. Resilience has always been an important component of this heritage, as social changes and new kinds of entertainment have changed the audience addressed and the performances' function. In the last few decades, the role of travelling artists has resisted and been readapted to the global art market by approaching art fairs and festivals both inside and outside the villages. Now, the impact of COVID-19 on the economy of these artists has been severe, as art fairs and exhibitions have been cancelled, and lockdown orders have stopped tourism and travels, significantly reducing their income. Thus, new approaches and virtual spaces of exhibiting are being experimented with to support the survival of these artists and keep the performances' essence alive. This article aims to address how the pandemic has affected Patuas' art market and production both from an economic and social perspective. The difficulties encountered due to the restrictive measures and the impossibility of performing will be analysed through an empirical approach. Based on telephonic interviews conducted with 30 hereditary Patuas from Naya between April 2020 to April 2021 as part of the project "Folk Artists in the Time of Coronavirus", the article hopes to shed light on the impact of the pandemic on hereditary, performing castes in India, which might mirror the experiences of similar groups in the rest of South Asia. The article will also try to outline the future perspectives for the art market of these folk artists. The article consists of two parts: the first traces the transformative journey of Patachitra and Patachitrakars, and the second focuses on the impact of the pandemic through deploying the concepts of precarity, precariousness, and resilience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]