Lockdown and the Migrant Mess

I am back to writing after a long break of more than 20 days. Things have changed a lot in this period. Things have started to get on track slowly and steadily. The relaxations in Lockdown 4.0 came as a relief to a lot of people. Markets are now allowed to open for a specific time. People are permitted to get out of their houses for work in non-red zones. But such is not the case in major cities.

Me being from Maharashtra, the worst-hit state in India, I feel a bit worried. Things are not improving in our major cities, making it difficult for the government to end the lockdown. Mumbai has been severely affected by the COVID-19 outbreak. Mumbai accounts for about 80% of the total cases in the state. But why did this all happen? A lot of people are blaming the government for mismanagement, including the opposition parties. But my take on this is that we as citizens failed to recognise the seriousness of the issue. Our CM Uddhav Thackeray came out several times and warned people now and then about staying home and maintaining social distancing, but people turned their blind eye to it. The consequences of this are what we are facing today. Cases are increasing at a faster rate in Maharashtra.

The Government of India gave the go-ahead for domestic flights to commence operations from today. This news comes in as a positive sign. Is it safe to allow people from COVID-19 hotspots to non-red zones or vice-versa? Some studies suggest that the chances of virus transmission in an aircraft are low. But none of these studies are sure about its application for COVID-19. If this backfires then the situation can only get worse.

Another big issue that India is facing is of the migrant workers. Who is a migrant worker? A person who moves to another country or area to find employment, in particular seasonal or temporary work. These workers who live on daily wages are with no work at their hands because of lockdown. No work means no food for them and their families. Yesterday I saw a video of Barkha Dutt, who has been doing ground reporting of the migrant worker issue for a long time now. In that video, she asked a little boy about coronavirus, and his answer will make everyone think. He replied, 'Khana Nahi Milta. Pehele chicken Khate the Abhi khichadi khana pad Raha Hain' he added. The government has now started special trains for the workers to travel back home, but many are still on the roads walking thousands of kilometers. Many workers have lost their lives in doing so. Businesses will be affected a lot if these workers decide not to come back to the cities again. When I think of the overall situation in our country, I feel it is in a complete mess at the moment.

Read More:

1) Barkha Dutt migrant worker interview: https://twitter.com/BDUTT/status/1264220398171947011?s=20

2) Studies about virus transmission in aircraft: https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-why-risk-of-virus-transmission-in-an-aircraft-is-seen-as-low-6425594/