Govt, Opposition parties should alter their approaches

The Indian political system needs to change a lot. From indulging in criticising each other it needs to mature into finding solutions to the problems and work out a long term plan to see that the country is well geared up to meet any medical emergency.

We are witnessing a Covid second wave and the situation can be termed as dangerous. It is the result of sheer negligence of the part of the political executive, both central and states. Every leader and even the media is going overboard in highlighting the failure of the government in providing adequate beds, oxygen and injections like Remdesivir thereby creating a visual pandemic rather than coming up with workable solutions.

The most immediate task which the Centre and State governments should embark on is to ramp up the vaccination programme. Instead of spending money in publicising the vote bank-based welfare schemes, they should go in for vigorous campaign. Just as they ensure that their voters go to the polling booth, they should make people go to vaccination centres. Lack of proper and authentic information about the vaccine has resulted in many senior citizens too postponing their decision to get the jab.

All governments need to be proactive and follow the advice of experts and take up massive vaccination programme in a mission mode. If this can be achieved, by July the country can be out of pandemic situation and the graph would once again fall drastically. This would help in breaking the process of new mutations and we would be out of danger both in terms of health and economy.

Lockdown certainly is not the solution. People on their part should decide whether they would prefer complete lockdown or using of masks and physical distancing so that the wheels of economy would continue to move.

There is also difference of opinion on night curfew. Except closure of pubs and preventing youngsters from partying, night curfew may not help much. Some medical experts suggest that the central Government should also focus attention on spending more of GDP for medical infrastructure and make changes in medical education.

It should send medical students who are in second year of MBBS for clinical training and promote final year students and house surgeons as doctors and send them for taking up case studies of the patients. The government should utilise the pandemic to train the present genre of doctors to handle emergencies. In 1918 when the world faced the pandemic which is known as Spanish Influenza, there was no facility to provide practical training to the doctors. But now the situation is different.

As far as people are concerned, they should also realise their responsibility. They should follow the protocols by wearing proper masks covering the face from nose to chin, sanitise or wash hand frequently and maintain physical distancing. The government too should be ruthless in implementing these protocols.

The second stage is racing towards peak but what we need to realise is that we should now prepare ourselves for the third wave which is likely towards the end of the year and go in for concerted efforts so that we can defeat the Pandemic.

The only Ram Baan according to medical experts is to boost your immunity in a scientific manner and not based on the stuff one finds on social media. The simple preventive way to stay safe is to take healthy food, indulge in limited regular exercises and following health protocols. Stay Home, Stay Safe. Wear mask.