question: The intersections of class, region and other social dimensions that go into the discovery and identification of some diseases as epidemics while relegating other pervasive and lethal illnesses as “ordinary” are examined In this regard, the lopsided relationship between epistemology and epidemiology is explored in detail It is argued that the combination of Covid-19 with other diseases (also referred to as co-morbidity), as well as undeclared silent epidemics of several other diseases, require recognition © 2020 Economic and Political Weekly All rights reserved