20 March 2020, 4:25 am
Covid 19 : Steeling The Mind-set Fights Pandemics ? The Sikkim Way
This article has been preserved from The Voice Of Sikkim historical news collection and reflects information available at the time of its original publication.
Full Audio Speech Of PM Address To Nation at 8 PM
Steeling The Mind-set Fights Pandemics ? The Sikkim Way
Sikkim has been preparing for managing Novel COVID19 even before the first confirmed case was reported in India
The 8 PM address by the Prime Minister on the 19 th of March pointed to the fact that the Corona Pandemic is going to get worse before it gets better unless we, the Government and the citizens don?t start following the internationally set guidelines to overcome pandemics.
Covid 19 : Steeling The Mind-set Fights Pandemics ? The Sikkim Way
A pandemic is declared when a communicable disease spreads beyond a confined region/s making it difficult to contain and control. The Spanish Flu of 1918 ? 19 is a case in point. The pandemic hit the world in the midst of the World War and took more lives than the war itself. Another is the bubonic plague of 1897 that crippled nations. India lost 10 million people during the bubonic plague. The British Empire that sold Indian Opium in China brought the disease to India through its ports.?
Covid 19 : Steeling The Mind-set Fights Pandemics ? The Sikkim Way
It is important to go back in history to understand better ways to deal with this disease. Social distancing could not be practiced in the midst of the world war in the case of the Spanish Flu and earlier the bubonic plague for unscrupulous trade reasons. The pandemic experts vouch for this practice. Social distancing helps in the isolation of infected clusters and not giving the virus the opportunity to spread to others. The Janta Curfew could have benefits if we all practice it.
Covid 19 : Steeling The Mind-set Fights Pandemics ? The Sikkim Way
In Sikkim, the Government had issued permit closure notifications, Lachen Dzomsa had cancelled tourist inflows into their region and monitoring at the border check posts were initiated from the 28 th of January. India declared its first confirmed case on the 30 th of January. Our actions do show intent. The best part of the last 50 days was criticism thrown at the state government machinery and to some extent the citizens were criticising themselves as well for not practicing the ?Do?s and Don?ts ?. This has led to incremental improvements over the last few weeks in our response to the disease. The state government started to gather resources, allocate manpower and set up extra funds to manage the disease. At the same time, political parties, panchayat bodies, block level and district level authorities held meetings throughout the state to generate awareness. We used these 50 plus days in the best possible way even before the first case has been detected.
Criticism is good. It helps the Government to stay on its toes. Moral encouragement is even better. The Government, officials and relief workers need it to stay strong and focused during these trying times.
My worry is that Corona Virus has asymptomatic carriers, especially young adults, who do not know they carry the virus as they do not show symptoms. We have to be on alert and assume that cases will happen due to the heavy tourist flow in the first half of March. The Government has to respond quickly when that happens and follow the pandemic protocols efficiently.
Along with the Government we as citizens have a great responsibility. The millennials and Generation Z (Ages: 15 ? 40 years) have the most responsibility for the well ? being of our elders, infants and children below 10 years of age. While, the 15 to 40 age group have better chances of surviving, the latter are the most susceptible to the disease. If the elders in your family have diabetes, heart disease, respiratory illness, kidney disease or have undergone a surgery in the recent past remember that their immunity is low. Your responsibility is to take care of them by practicing social distancing, allocating the responsibility to buy essential items to 1 -2 persons in the family, helping old neighbours who do not have young relatives close by, ensuring cleanliness and hygiene, actively reporting to and helping the health authorities and task force personnel to tackle the menace. Please be aware and use the internet (who.int | covidout.in | mygov.in | the MYGOV Corona Whatsapp Helpline Number +91 90131 51515 | international news reports) to read how other nations are responding to this disease, take lessons and bring it into practice in your daily routine. It?s on us to take care of ourselves.
Abhimanyu Dhakal
The author is the co ? founder of the Sikkim based health and wellness brand Earthier.???