As the second wave of COVID-19 rages through the country, media and global donor attention is focused on the supply of oxygen in its various forms—even as the country grapples with extreme hunger, poverty, and loss of livelihoods.

The question today is, why aren’t global, institutional funders—many of whom are familiar with India’s development sector landscape—funding humanitarian relief during this wave? Especially at a time when nonprofits that have been embedded in communities for years are struggling to raise funds for their efforts.

These nonprofits work with vulnerable populations, many of whom have already been pushed into poverty due to the first wave of COVID-19. From March 2020 to October 2020, the number of individuals below the poverty line in India increased by 23 crore—a staggering 77 percent. An alarming 90 percent of households surveyed had less to eat. The second wave seems to have exacerbated the problem as primary breadwinners in these communities succumb to the virus.

International donor attention however has been entirely focused on the supply of oxygen in Delhi, and now to some extent, Bangalore. The rest of the country seems to have faded into the background despite 533 of India’s 700 districts showing a positivity rate of more than 10 percent, and 42 percent of districts reporting a positivity rate more than the national average of 21 percent.

GiveIndia—one of India’s leading fundraising platforms—has raised more than USD 32 million (INR 240 crore) as part of its India Covid Relief Fund (ICRF-2) in the first three weeks of the crisis.

Read the full article about humanitarian relief funding for India by Smarinita Shetty at India Development Review.