COVID-19 LESSONS

Today it seems like the COVID lockdown has accentuated the divide between the rich and poor more than ever in India. The leadership has failed to address the large population of our mass, that today are not worried at all about the virus killing them but about their lives and livelihood.

We must be frank here that the poor living in slums in the cities and in the rural areas can hardly practice social distancing. So they will be more susceptible to the virus and many other viruses any which ways. So the lockdown is more to keep us, the more well-to-do safe rather than them.

When the PM announced the lockdown on March 25^th to begin from midnight for 21 days till April 14, no one was prepared. Perhaps the Prime Minister was worried that there will be a rush to hoard stocks and there will be panic and frenzy. So he locked down the whole country one fine day. Lets assume this reasoning to be fair. But he left the migrant and the poor to decide for themselves what they should do. Besides leaving many stranded Indians abroad, who may have gone on holiday or work, and could not come back.

When America announced a shutdown, Indian students had the time to rush back to their homes instead of being cooped up in hostels or university rooms or other places. Why did they take that risk to travel that 24 hours by flight? Why did we not stop them considering the risk? They wanted to come back to their homes and be with their family. Ditto for migrants. But nobody bothered to make any arrangements for the migrants.

Maharashtra government claims it had made the request right at the beginning of the lockdown but other states did not yield. Could then the Center not take the lead and make arrangements and insist that the states must welcome their rightful residents in a systematic and proper manner? On April 14, the government again extends the lockdown with absolutely no regard for the migrant workers across India. Imagine the migrants twiddling their thumbs, cooped up in those small homes for a month, with nothing to entertain themselves with. Finally they took the risk and started walking miles to go back home. Imagine their plight.

PM Cares fund, the name itself sucks. Is there any website or any other link I can go to, to understand how the funds were utilised? Doling out rupees (and if they were doled out) is not the answer.

Did we use the funds to maybe give the poor and the migrant workers vegetables, fruits, bread, dry fruits for free or at low rates? Did we or their employers make arrangements of food for them? Cannot the money have been used for such simple things to build their immunity? Maybe given them Vitamin C tablets or other multivitamin tablets? Migrant workers and even those staying in slums such as Dharavi are not beggars. They work and they cook their own food in normal times. They are not people wanting to stand in long lines for food. Honestly what did we really do for them other than some emotional speeches and some apps.

Apart from action, the need all round is also for communication – good communication, right communication, useful communication.

Did we really have serious communication going on in understanding what happens in the first few days when someone contracts COVID? What precautions should be taken? How to build immunity? Were all these communicated to the poor or did we tell them we have installed some app for you!!!  

When somebody sent me the video above, which is so useful and has such great information, I felt this is the kind of information we need to have relayed to the poor and help them too to build their immunity, indirectly curtailing the spread of COVID. 

Media plays an important role in such times to highlight useful information rather than senseless debates that really are of no use to anybody.

Action with good communication, right communication and useful communication in nationwide emergencies which reaches every citizen can reflect some sense of equality in a society.

Government is busy now with a revival package for Mutual Funds! Hope there are revival packages for those who need it the most.