Shabana has written to the Consulate General of India to express support for India’s battle against Covid-19.

India has faced a humanitarian crisis in its response to the coronavirus pandemic, with rising cases in the country contributing to a shortage of beds, medicine, and oxygen.

In the letter, signed by MPs across Birmingham, Shabana insists that the UK must step up its support for India in its hour of need.

You can read the letter in full below.

Letter to the Consulate General of India

Dear Consul General

As Parliamentarians representing Birmingham’s great Indian diaspora communities, we are writing to express our profoundest sympathies and solidarity with India as it battles a second wave of Covid-19.

The distressing scenes we have all seen on the news have been a grave reminder of the grief this virus has caused both of our countries. The images of cremations on waste land in New Delhi, overcrowded hospital wards and grieving families are a call to action for the international community. On behalf of the 1.5 million people in Britain’s Indian diaspora, and the many British Indians who call Birmingham home, we are determined to play our part.

It is as clear as ever, that defeating this virus anywhere means defeating it everywhere. We have seen how quickly Covid-19 variants that have been identified in one country are able to spread rapidly across the globe, but we are clear as well that our moral responsibilities extend beyond our borders.

We believe the UK must step up to support India in its hour of need, and are therefore writing to offer our support, wherever we can lend our hand. We are grateful that over 600 ventilators and oxygen concentrators have already been sent from the UK, but believe we can be doing more to provide surplus therapeutic drugs and medical equipment, assist in brokering deals for oxygen, and offer our expertise in genome sequencing and epidemiology.

The pandemic has been a stark reminder of the importance of global collaboration. At times of humanitarian crisis, the British public has always showed great generosity and solidarity with people who are suffering across the world, and we are resolved to reaffirm that friendship with the Indian people now.

Yours sincerely

Birmingham Members of Parliament