MILWAUKEE – The White House says the United States will restrict travel from India starting May 4th.

Many South Asians in southeast Wisconsin are grappling with the potential impact on their families in India. Kiran Sagar has been keeping an anxious eye on the situation, as has her siblings in India.

“Well, it’s very hard to see,” Sagar says.

The Biden government pointed to the devastating increase in COVID-19 cases in the South Asian country and the emergency of potentially dangerous variants of the coronavirus.

Fortunately, Noman Hussain, who works as an imam at the Brookfield Mosque, was able to safely return from India four weeks ago on his trip. Hussain’s parents had traveled to India in March 2020 to celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary but were unable to return home due to the pandemic.

During this time his father became ill and died.

“So I was in India about four weeks ago to pay my respects. We had to wait to get our vaccines,” said Hussain.

The U.S. action comes days after Biden spoke to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the growing health crisis in his country and pledged to send aid.

The country urgently needs supplies. Hospitals are stretched thin because of great shortages of beds and oxygen.

“People are just desperate people in need. The cremation centers are secured, everyone is on the street, people are just scared and frightened and concerned about the lack of resources they currently have,” says Noman Hussain.

According to the New York TimesIndia’s outbreak is believed to have originated from a variant known as B.1.617, which contains two mutations found in separate strains. An online appeal signed by over 350 scientists Friday afternoon called on the government to release data on virus variant sequencing, tests, recovered patients and people’s response to vaccines.

On site, companies like GE Healthcare, Blue Yonder and Rockwell Automation are stepping up their shipments and posting the following statements:

“Our hearts and minds go with the people of India, where many of GE Healthcare’s employees work. We have made it clear that they have our full support in difficult times, and as the nations of the world react, so does GE Healthcare. Our anesthesia and respiratory business is working at a tremendous pace to meet local demand. Our employee resource groups provide volunteers to connect people in need with support. GE Medical Center offers teleconsultation support to connect patients with doctors and resources. Hundreds of GE Healthcare family members have received assistance to date, and we remain committed to our colleagues. “
~ GE Healthcare spokesperson

Rockwell Automation employs 1,500 people in India and has stated that their teams work remotely. The company says they are also sending oxygen to India.

Rockwell Automation has 1,500 employees in India, including many who have continued to work remotely during the pandemic. To say these are difficult times for our India-based employees and their families would be an understatement. To help them, we send oxygen concentrators and take strict precautions to keep them safe and healthy while we invest in nonprofit vaccination programs. We are grateful for the many contributions from our Indian staff and proud of the role Rockwell products and technology have played in the development of all major vaccines. – Marci Pelzer, Director of Global External Communications at Rockwell Automation

With more than 2,500 employees in India, Blue Yonder, a software company based in Waukesha, has sponsored 100 units of oxygen concentrators and 50 patient monitors for hospitals through the International Association for Human Values.

Our hearts go out to India and its people. India is key to Blue Yonder with a very large presence of more than 2,500 employees based there. To help in the current situation, we are working together with our long-term partner, the International Association for Human Values ​​(IAHV). So far we have been able to sponsor the donation of 100 units of oxygen concentrators (with a capacity of 10 liters each) and 50 G30E patient monitors for hospitals in India. We continue to seek other ways to help the church and pray for the health and safety of all. In addition to supporting the community, we also support our employees and initiate vaccination campaigns to accelerate vaccination efforts. – Nathalie Carruthers, our Executive Vice President

India has reported more than 18.7 million cases since the pandemic began, second only to the US. The country set another world record on Friday with 386,452 daily coronavirus cases. The Department of Health also reported 3,498 deaths in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 208,330.

Experts believe that these two numbers are undercounted, but it is unclear by how much.