India Covid-19: From losing loved ones to volunteering for a vaccine

In September, a close friend of Anil Hebbar died of Covid-19 in India's western city of Mumbai after being ferried around three hospitals over five days. Mr Hebbar, who runs a medical equipment firm, had visited his 62-year-old friend, a well-known social worker, in the intensive care unit, hours before his life ended. The social worker was not the only friend Mr Hebbar lost during the pandemic. Since March, 10 people he knew well have succumbed to the virus in Mumbai, which quickly emerged as a hotspot. The city has reported more than 230,000 cases so far. 'It was all very overwhelming. I felt this had to stop. That's one reason I decided to volunteer for the Covid-19 vaccine trial,' Mr Hebbar, 56, told me. Earlier this month, he signed himself up for the clinical trials for a vaccine being developed by pharmaceuticals group AstraZeneca and Oxford University.