Tough Times

Everyone is talking about Covid, the economic impact (both shot term and long term) and the life changing impact it seems to have on all of us. 

Sitting safely in our homes, most of us are as far from reality as one can think.

Very few have been able to articulate the situation being faced by individuals who are locked-out (not locked down) by their own states because they were working elsewhere. 

Arundhati Roy, in her article in Financial Times, appropriately said, The Covid crisis is still to come. Or not. We don’t know. If and when it does, we can be sure it will be dealt with, with all the prevailing prejudices of religion, caste and class completely in place. 

And that sums up the impact of what this has done to the society at large. While most of us (read netizens) are happily talking about rejuvenation of body, mind and the soul, what we don't understand or appreciate is that we are lucky enough to be able to do so. We are the privileged ones, not having to rely on the daily-food being provided by the government, trying to make peace in the camps/bastis where distancing is impossible. The incident at the Anand Vihar bus depot earlier clearly shows the sheer volume of people who are being impacted in an adverse way by the situation. 

While there is no way to say which way the government should decide, and what would be the right move, the obvious question looming over their head is, Is the cure worse than the disease? I don't envy the position of the decision makers, who are faced by no less than Sophie's Choice, doomed if they do, and doomed if they don't !

But what we all can collectively decide to do, is help those in need of help.. because in this moment of crisis, what will define us as a society is not the money or groceries that are doled out to people in need, but how we treat all our fellow citizens.