exploring Kolkata (Calcutta), India

There are several serious threats to mankind in the modern world. A nuclear war, climate change, hunger, super volcanos, etc. But one of the most underestimated ones is the return of the plagues. My story starts in Kolkata, India.

It's a fascinating mega city, with a disgusting range between poverty and wealth. And that's part of the global problem. The poor living conditions for millions are a perfect breeding ground for diseases like tuberculosis.

These are the banks of Hugli river. The smell of the water is indescribably, it's full of waste and feces and sometimes a dead cow. The poor inhabitants come here to wash themselves and their clothes. They even brush their teeth with it.st

But why should the whole world worry about the hard life in Kolkata? Besides of moral obligations, of course. Well, I mentioned tuberculosis. Local doctors and authorities say, it is out of control here.

I visited a tuberculosis clinic in Kolkata financed by German charity organizations. They try their best, but it's a fight they can't win. The hospital runs several ambulance centers in the slums. This photo was taken at such a site.

This is how the people earn their living: panning for gold in the sewage using quicksilver. The ambulance in the background consists of straw mat walls under a corrugated tin roof.

The doctors are in despair. Tuberculosis patients are given antibiotics, but as soon as they feel a little better, they go back to work and don't collect more meds. But it would take months of treatment to finally defeat the bacteria.

So multiple drug-resistance is produced. Tbc survives and the infection continues to spread. Next time someone is infected, there's no curation anymore. And this doesn't just mean the antibiotics available in the so called third world.

Tbc is spread by sneezing or simply breathing. A flight from Kolkata to Munich takes about 13 hours. And there are plenty of other tbc regions in the world. The return of the plagues isn't just a fictional story. It's horrible reality.

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