The father son painter duo of Jharia, Bhushan Singh and Gaurav Singh who are running a Covid awareness campaign through wall paintings across the district for a month have now brought to focus the pitiable condition of the common people and the failure of the political leadership to address the core issues .

“The latest series of paintings, titled, ‘Black Fungus’ made near the Randhir Verma Chowk outside the civil surgeon’s office are aimed at highlighting the pitiable condition of common people including the lack of quality medical care facilities, lack of livelihood, lack of ration cards, lack of education for their children and even lack of safe drinking water and shelter over their heads,” said Bhushan.

“The Covid crisis has bared the tall claims of our politicians and bureaucrats about the lack of focus of the government on the core areas of governance so we have painted about the corrupt practices of these politicians and bureaucrats besides doctors and hospital operators as black fungus in our painting attacking the weak body affected through Covid,” said Bhushan and added the paintings are not against any particular government or political party but rather the handling of crisis by the political leadership of states or centre in the past and present remained the same.

“Amidst the pandemic we have come across the news of different private hospitals across the country, including in Dhanbad charging extra money from the people other than the government approved treatment rate for Covid so we painted these corrupt practices and mindsets as black fungus acting to weaken our democratic set up which the founders of nation tried to establish on the ground of equality and justice to all,”said Bhushan.

“Had all preparation made in advance after the phase I the magnanimity of crisis during phase II would not have been such and the dead bodies floating in river The Ganges have greatly affected us as an artist so we have started making paintings titled Black Fungus expressing our disgust over the situation for which the policy makers are responsible,” explained Bhushan.

A resident of main road Jharia, Bhushan Singh underwent training at Kamal Arts of Calcutta and also made paintings at Mumbai before settling down in Jharia in 1997.

Singh earlier during Anna Hazare's agitation on Lokpal bill also made some paintings at Randhir Verma Chowk of Dhanbad.