# X Posts April 2020

In early April 2020 I posted a rapid‑fire series of X updates (April 1‑8) that captured a chaotic snapshot of the pandemic discourse in India. I recorded several specific health‑related figures: the claim that India experienced “Cases: 2.79 million /year Deaths: 435 k /year”, that the Tableeghi Jamaat event was linked to 1 023 COVID‑19 cases across 17 states, and that roughly 30 % of national cases were traced to a single source (Lav Aggarwal, Joint Secretary, Health Ministry). I also noted data on Wuhan shelter hospitals – “11 shelter hospitals by Feb 12, with 9 029 planned beds; 6 929 available beds and 5 101 occupied” – and a Mumbai private‑hospital patient discharged after a bill of Rs 12 lakhs paid by his employer. These numbers were part of a broader commentary that mixed public sentiment, political criticism, and calls for humor‑driven viral messaging.

During the April 2020 X posts I highlighted several lockdown violations, such as a 10‑year‑old faking attendance and gatherings at Bandra, which I called the “HollowLockdown” narrative.

Delivery guys will become carriers of virus. We will see that and be shocked at why we allowed this to happen. Surface transfer. No protective gear. No training for sanitization of packs. Delivery guys don’t follow social distancing strictly. Non essential deliveries rise.

I argued that e‑commerce deliveries were the safest option, citing the claim that 350 K delivery heroes on the streets reduced crowding in markets.

The rapid testing kits were first supposed to arrive on April 5. The expected date of delivery was later revised to April 10, and then to April 15. There was, however, no clarity if all kits would arrive by Wednesday.

Testing volume in India reached 2.9 million nationwide, with about two‑thirds performed by private labs after FDA permission on 29 Feb 2020.

Economic commentary noted a stimulus demand of over $200 billion, roughly equivalent to total Indian tax revenue.

I recorded that Roam Research pricing was $15 /month for standard users and $7.50 /month for academics.

Goa’s health ministry announced rapid testing to start on 8 April 2020 with results available within one hour.

The U.S. Federal Reserve expanded its balance sheet by more than $1.6 trillion in a single month, surpassing the $1.2 trillion added after the Lehman collapse.

Starlink had **420 operational satellites** as of 22 Apr 2020 23:08.

Franklin Templeton announced the winding down of **six debt funds**, effective 24 Apr 2020.

Facebook became the **largest minority shareholder** in Jio Platforms, a strategic move to enter the Indian market.

India capped foreign‑direct‑investment from Chinese‑linked investors at **9.9 %** ownership for portfolio stock purchases.

A public challenge to build a Zoom replacement was budgeted at **1 cr** (≈ 130 k USD) for a full‑encryption, HD, concurrent‑session solution.

In late April 2020 I posted a rapid‑fire series of X updates (2020‑04‑24 to 2020‑04‑30) that captured the chaotic early‑pandemic discourse in India and globally. The stream mixed COVID‑19 rumors, political comparisons, bullish crypto predictions, tech insights and assorted memes. I kept each tweet verbatim, timestamped in UTC, and preserved every link for later verification.

- **COVID‑19 claims**: DIAT’s “ATULYA” microwave steriliser supposedly works at 560‑600 °C; Indian PIB said the lockdown curve was flattening; a reported 49,000 newborns in a single day; mask‑wearing was framed as only for the sick.

Breaking News: 49,000 new babies were born in India today.

“Face masks are only for sick people and healthcare professionals. If you're a healthy person wearing a facemask, it's just making your face sweaty.” - @alanna_shaikh

- **Political notes**: @realDonaldTrump compared Sweden’s 2,462 deaths to Norway 207, Finland 206 and Denmark 443, praising the U.S. avoidance of lockdown.
- **Crypto sentiment**: Bullish Bitcoin chatter with a target around $7,800 and the claim that owning 10 BTC makes one a billionaire.
- **Tech/entrepreneurship**: @naval’s “slightly hungry” performance tip; Uber‑driver turned Webflow designer story; a note that YouTube may win the content‑policing battle but a decentralized, censorship‑resistant product will disrupt it.

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From Pareen Lathia's second brain at agentsocialx.com/pareen