As covid19 cases continue to rise across the country, people fear if another hard lockdown will be announced by the Indian Government anytime soon. Talking about Punjab, the situation is no good here; it’s one of the five worst-hit states in the country with maximum numbers of fatalities being reported.
Even the Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh has warned the citizens of Punjab that he would be forced to take some harsh actions in order to handle the situation.
The disturbing figures: Punjab has a total population of about 2.8 Crores, the samples taken by the state government till now are 61, 01,688 and the total patients tested positive since last year to till date are 2,54,152, while the active cases in Punjab stands at 25,419 and the deaths reported are 7,155.
The five worst-hit districts of Punjab are SAS Nagar, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Amritsar and Hoshiarpur wherein on an average 350 to 380 cases are being reported on a daily basis.
Moreover as the present restrictions of Punjab are about to end on April 10, looking around the situation, sources say either these restrictions will be extended or new restrictions will be added like a weekend lockdown. Besides, PM Modi is likely to chair a high-level meeting with CMs of the country on April 8 to review covid situation, so let’s see what will be Punjab CM’s next course of action to flatten the curve in the state.
So what’s now? Are we ready to face another lockdown?
To my understanding none of us are ready for another lockdown. Besides, it is yet not clear how the lockdown helped in the fall of the cases last year as the cases continued to rise until September and surprisingly when the government started easing the restrictions, the numbers actually came down.
Also, there are many people and businesses that are yet not back on the track and are reeling under debts as a result of the previous lockdown; therefore, the spectre of another lockdown is almost unthinkable for many of us.
Interestingly if we compare today’s situation with April 2020, we’re definitely not at the edge. Though the country is reporting around 95,000 new covid cases, which is frightening, however, we cannot deny the fact that we do have a vaccine now. If the number of those vaccinated goes up, the situation can be brought under control.
Another big question: Is there no covid19 in four poll-bound states and UT?
As assembly elections are going on in full swing in four states and a union territory, and how thousands of people are gathering in roadshows and public rallies, with no covid protocols being followed, the claims of the government then sound a bit illogical.
The schools are closed in order to control the transmission, while the Kumbh festival with thousands in attendance is in full swing in Haridwar. Well, these are some of the reasons due to which many people question the existence of Covid itself, despite the presence of the pandemic all around.
The parents in Punjab citing above reasons are adamant over reopening of the schools despite such an alarming situation. Even some private institutions have declared no matter what they will reopen the schools on April 12.
What should we do now?
No matter how much we question the existence of covid19 and the claims of the government, we cannot deny the fact this pandemic has taken a heavy toll on many people’s health and lives. Therefore, to avoid any future lockdown, we must adhere to Covid appropriate behavior. Stay Safe please!