The most comprehensive answer to the great conundrum named coronavirus which is the vaccine is still at least 18 months away and efforts to resist it to the maximum are now being adopted by all affected countries including India. Lockdown has been imposed, also extended and it’s an everyday fight to shield the 135+ crore population. As a part of the overall efforts, two important decisions have been taken. The first coming Tuesday is taking into account the citizenry as a collective participant and involving them in a feedback exercise on Covid-19. On Wednesday, another important one has arrived, which is to make assault of doctors, nurses, paramedics and ASHA workers both a cognisable & non-bailable offence. It is now a reality that the pandemic possess such a lethal edge that it has caught everyone completely off-guard and to tackle it confidently, measures like these and many more will be needed, sooner or later.

One of the most practical difficulties faced by governments and the medical world is lack of reliable data. It’s totally a new virus and hence there are obvious difficulties while tracking its pattern and capacity of spread. Union Health Ministry, to make good this huge vacuum in Covid-19 data bank which is also causing hindrance in taking appropriate policy decisions, has decided to accumulate data, directly from citizens through telephonic survey. 1921 is the number and the notable thing is that, the process has been kept reachable for the entire mass. Smartphones are not needed, just any mobile phone will do and the feedback on prevalence and distribution of Covid-19 symptoms will be shared by citizens themselves. This will give way to a mass participation and if properly exercised, within a short period of time, the data collected will act as a reliable platform to take the fightback to more meaningful and result-oriented levels. It is now a vital responsibility on part of the citizens and it must be accepted as a collective task. 

Meanwhile, in another timely decision, Union Cabinet has approved promulgation of an ordinance to amend the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 which will now make the prevailing acts of violence against medical staff cognizable and non-bailable and will also allow compensation for injury to them or for damage due to loss of property. It’s a shame for all that such inhuman acts on the frontline warriors of the pandemic are happening only in India.

To streamline the efforts in taming the virus, both the above will prove to be decisive, if properly implemented and in context of the pandemic, it will not be an overstatement to say that ‘time is life’. Actions of these sort must flow fast and in good measure.

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Kenter Joya Riba

(Managing Editor)
      She is a graduate in Science with post graduation in Sociology from University of Pune. She has been in the media industry for nearly a decade. Before turning to print business, she has been associated with radio and television.
Email: kenterjoyaz@easternsentinel.in / editoreasternsentinel@gmail.com
Phone: 0360-2212313

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