With a population of 1.3 billion, India is the second worst-hit country by coronavirus after the US. Despite the lockdown and warnings, the life of millions of people is at risk as the festive season approaches here. The health experts are expecting a spike of new coronavirus cases anytime soon.
The year 2020 has been the worst in terms of public health and safety. The on-going pandemic has made it hard for everyone to enjoy the religious, cultural, and seasonal festivals and hundreds of events were canceled amid this pandemic. However, in India, which is home to nearly one and a half billion people, the festive season seems unaffected by the coronavirus.
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After spending weeks in lockdown, the government decided to ease them, allowing the local businesses to reopen. It led people to believe that the pandemic is over and perhaps they can freely roam around, as they used to do before the pandemic. Some of the coronaviruses recovered patients are no more fearful of the virus, saying that they have recovered from it so there are not scared of it anymore.
The international statistical reports on coronavirus reveal that the risk of death by coronavirus is highest among elders. But the death reports from the US are much more than their older population, suggesting there might be much more than just ‘age’ to get coronavirus.
For economically deprived countries, managing a pandemic is much more problematic. The World Bank has predicted that nearly 150 million individuals are highly likely to lose their jobs and experience extreme economic troubles. In many parts of the world, underage children have started to help their elders for passing this stressful period. Many of the underage girls are subjected to forced marriages, some agencies report.
With all this happening around, the situation of coronavirus in India is worrisome. Local businesses are reopened, people are on roads, schools are reopening and the upcoming festive season is adding up to all this. It looks like the public has completely forgotten about the pandemic situation and the coronavirus has never hit India ever.
This current situation is exactly opposite to the time when the Indian government imposed a lockdown to control viral spread. This lockdown in India was different than any other country in terms of economic factors, public health, and availability of medical services. It left millions of people jobless, bankrupt, and penniless.
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Despite the fact that no one wants to imagine that situation again, no one is following the precautionary measures which are necessary to control the viral re-emergence. People are out on roads, roaming freely and shopping for the coming festivals.
The public response to coronavirus is somewhat mixed. Most of them understand the danger and threats related to the virus but they share not having any other option than going back to their jobs. The religious festivals only come once every year which is why, at this moment, people don’t want to lose any chance to do shopping or organize big gatherings.
The local health experts are trying to educate people on how they can contribute to propagate or control the virus. While there is uncertainty on who is most likely to die from coronavirus and who will recover, it looks like people are ready to risk their health over everything.
