You can revive economy, but not a corpse | Abhijit Naskar

Stay calm, stay safe and seek medical information only from trusted officials and actual healthcare experts, not from random politicians, celebrities, news channels and religious fanatics.

The New Corona Virus is a previously unknown virus which can make people from all ages very, very sick and it is more deadly for older people with pre-existing medical conditions. However, contracting COVID19 is not a death sentence. So, maintain social distancing and wash your hands frequently with soap and water for no less than 20 seconds, until the WHO lifts the global emergency. And above all, do not share conspiracy theories on social media, because every single share makes it difficult for health-workers and other people working at the front to contain the situation. Be responsible and stay safe.

Also, so far studies are showing that more than half of the people infected with the corona virus show mild or no symptoms, which means, they may not even realize that they’ve got the virus, yet if they continue living their life as usual and do not stay at home, they’d keep spreading the virus among others, and those others will spread it further, and the chain will never be broken. This also means that if you have the virus and are not aware of it, by denying self-isolation you could still be causing the death of somebody along the way as the virus spreads radically starting from you. So, now is not the time for parties and communions. Right now the first and foremost priority of the entire humankind must be to plank the curve through self-isolation.

Now here is an interesting part, a few officials have said that their country cannot afford a complete lockdown, despite having an alarmingly rising number of covid-19 cases. But the point is, no country can afford a complete lockdown, but this time – at this moment, the question is not of affordability, rather it is of survival. So, if a country has a rising number of covid-19 cases, it has two choices – either a complete lockdown right now for a short period of time or a lasting crisis in all walks of the society for a prolonged period of time. What we must remember is that, these are not ordinary times where we play politics and juggle with the safety of the society. These are the times that demand prompt decisions and utter responsibility towards not just the self but our kind – the humankind. Never forget this simple fact, you can revive economy, but not a corpse.

We must practice social distancing and stay at home for a while, because that’s the only way to stop the corona virus from spreading. However, we must also keep in mind that not everybody is in the position to work from home, nor do they have enough savings to make ends meet without work for even a few days. So, now, more than ever, is the time that we wake up the human in us, and come to the rescue of those in need, by either helping such individuals in our locality personally, or by donating to a covid-19 relief fund. We must make sure that we all have each other’s back and that we all get through this catastrophe together, without leaving anyone behind.

 

For more “factual” information on COVID-19 visit:
https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html