Original version

BBC World Service Europe and the Middle East

From Our Own Correspondent

News

BBC World Service Australasia

BBC World Service schedule for American satellite radio and the Caribbean

BBC World Service Americas and the Caribbean

BBC World Service

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa Schedule

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa

BBC World Service News Internet

BBC World Service Online

BBC World Service West and Central Africa Schedule

BBC World Service West and Central Africa

BBC World Service South Asia

BBC World Service East Asia

From Our Own Correspondent: Mumbai’s missed opportunities

Magazines & Reviews

Mumbai’s missed opportunities

13/06/2020 GMT

BBC World Service - From Our Own Correspondent, Mumbai’s missed opportunities

Stories from Mumbai’s monsoon season, Minneapolis and Ireland’s lockdown

Monsoon season in Mumbai as coronavirus still lingers, what it is like to be a black journalist in Minneapolis and a philosophical tale about our times from lockdown in Ireland.

Pascale Harter introduces analysis, reportage and personal reflections from correspondents around the world.

In India, the financial capital Mumbai has recorded more than 50,000 coronavirus cases, taking it past the peak in China’s Wuhan where the virus first emerged. The surge coincides with India’s decision to relax measures after three months of strict lockdown; opening markets, shopping malls, places of worship and offices, in order to minimise economic hardships. But, says Yogita Limaye, hospitals need more help as Mumbai enters even more unstable times.

There’s been widespread revolt in Minnesota, where George Floyd was killed by a police officer kneeling on his neck. So much so that the Minneapolis City Council has announced plans to disband the police and introduce community-based public safety programmes instead. At the core of these actions is an acknowledgement that police tactics have disproportionately targeted African Americans. Jo Erickson is originally British, but moved to Minneapolis a few years ago. She has had first-hand experience of the policing there.

Being under lockdown is not comparable to being a blindfolded hostage, and yet they have something in common. When your usual routine is stolen, the more it makes you think. You travel the landscape of the mind, and sometimes find unexpected things there. During lockdown in Ireland, no guests have been allowed to the home. But former hostage Brian Keenan has had unexpected visitors to his garden. They were a fox, an owl and a squirrel, and inspired a philosophical tale about our times.

Presenter: Pascale Harter
Producer: Bethan Head

(Image: A man walks inside a hospital constructed to treat coronavirus patients in Mumbai, India. Credit: Reuters/Francis Mascarenhas)

Accessibility links

Programme Index

From Our Own Correspondent

Mumbai’s missed opportunities

Genres

Formats

Brand

BBC World Service Europe and the Middle East

About BBC World Service