COVID-19 dominates 'near me' category in Google's 'Year in Search 2021'

Google India has released the list of top trending ‘Near Me’ searches in India in 2021 in its ‘Year in Search 2021’ report. The Year in Search 2021 list includes categories such as movies, TV shows, recipes, sports personalities, 'What is' and 'How to'.

India, which started one of the largest COVID-19 vaccination programmes in the world in January, this year, was hit by a second COVID-19 wave in April and May. It is no surprise, thus, that searches related to COVID-19 dominated Google's platform in 2021. 

Top 5 'Near Me' Google searches in India

1. COVID vaccine near me

India started its mass immunisation programme in January 2021 and subsequently, the most searched place 'near me' remained COVID-19 vaccination centres in Google's Year in Search 2021. It should be mentioned here that India has vaccinated over 135 crore people till now.

2. COVID test near me

The second most searched item showed how citizens were eager to get themselves or their acquaintances tested for the novel coronavirus as it wreaked havoc worldwide. Notably, the 'COVID test near me' search was trending most in Delhi, Telangana, Karnataka, Goa and Maharashtra.

3. Food delivery near me

The COVID-19 pandemic was marked with several lockdowns and stringent restrictions. As work from home became normalised and eateries restricted, several people took to Google to find out where they could order their favourite cuisines from. Notably, while restaurants remained closed for the longest time, the government had later relaxed restrictions for food delivery. 'Food delivery near me' was most searched in Sikkim, Kerala, Puducherry, Jammu and Kashmir and Meghalaya. 

4. Oxygen Cylinder near me

Search for oxygen cylinders also witnessed a spike as people in India fought the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. People who were hospitalised or had severe conditions due to COVID-19 required oxygen cylinders. The query reflects the difficulties India had to overcome during the second COVID wave. 

5. COVID Hospitals near me

With a sudden spike in COVID cases between April and June, people looking for 'COVID Hospitals near me' comes as no surprise. People wanted to know about hospitals that would treat people infected with the highly contagious coronavirus. 

Here are some more lists from Google's Year in Search 2021

News events:

1. Tokyo Olympics
2. Black Fungus
3. Afghanistan news
4. West Bengal elections
5. Tropical cyclone Tauktae

Overall top trends in India:

1. Indian Premier League
2. CoWIN
3. ICC T20 World Cup
4. Euro Cup
5. Tokyo Olympics

(Image: Unsplash)