Coronavirus Disease and How India is Tackling It

What is Coronavirus Disease?

Coronavirus disease(COVID-19), according to the World Health Organisation(WHO) is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus.

Most people infected with the COVID-19 virus will experience mild to moderate respiratory illness and recover without requiring special treatment. Older people, and those with underlying medical problems like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, and cancer are more likely to develop serious illness.

The best way to prevent and slow down transmission is be well informed about the COVID-19 virus, the disease it causes and how it spreads. Protect yourself and others from infection by washing your hands or using an alcohol based rub frequently and not touching your face.

The COVID-19 virus spreads primarily through droplets of saliva or discharge from the nose when an infected person coughs or sneezes, so it’s important that you also practice respiratory etiquette (for example, by coughing into a flexed elbow).

At this time, there are no specific vaccines or treatments for COVID-19. However, there are many ongoing clinical trials evaluating potential treatments.

Prevention:

To prevent infection and to slow transmission of COVID-19, do the following:

Wash your hands regularly with soap and water, or clean them with alcohol-based hand rub.
Maintain at least 1 metre distance between you and people coughing or sneezing.
Avoid touching your face.
Cover your mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing.
Stay home if you feel unwell.
Refrain from smoking and other activities that weaken the lungs.
Practice physical distancing by avoiding unnecessary travel and staying away from large groups of people.

How is India Tackling It?

Current Scenario:

The first case of COVID-19 pandemic in india was reported on 30th January, 2020. The outbreak has been declared as an epidemic in various states and union territories.The World Health Organsiation executive director Michael Ryan said that India has tremendous capacity to deal with the coronavirus outbreak. As of 26 March 2020 (10:15 AM), according to the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW), a total of 649 COVID-19 cases (602 Indians and 47 foreign nationals) have been reported in 26 states/union territories. These include 42 who have been cured/discharged, 1 who has migrated and 13 reported deaths. Hospital isolation of all confirmed cases, tracing and home quarantine of the contacts is ongoing.

Political Efforts:

The Indian Government has taken various administrative measures in order to tackle to spread of this disease in the nation. the steps taken are as follows:-

The Indian Government showing its concern for its citizens decided to evacuate Indian citizens from foreign lands. on 17th February, India declared that it will send its Air Force's C-17 Globemaster with medical supplies to Wuhan and bring back its nationals as well as citizens of other nations. India evacuated 647 Indians, 7 Maldivians and few Bangladeshis from Wuhan. India also sent its C-17 Globemaster to airlift Indians from Iran. India had also sent Air India flights to Italy for rescuing its citizens.
on 5th March, India decided to setup a makeshift lab in Iran in order to test its 1,200 citizens stuck in the country. Though by 13th March it was made clear that India will not be able to so because it could not get permission from the local authorities, but still this effort is worth commendation. Swab samples of around 1,200 Indians have been brought to India from Iran for carrying out laboratory tests and checking whether they are infected with the coronavirus or not.
On 13th March, the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi proposed that SAARC nations fight the pandemic. On 15th March,after a video conference of SAARC leaders, he allocated 10 million US Dollars of funds classified as COVID-19 Emergency Fund for the SAARC nations.
India called upon a virtual G20 conference to discuss methods to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and safeguard the global economy, which was welcomed by various nations including United States of America and Russia.
Various protective measures were applied by the Indian Government in regard to this disease in January.
The government of India issued a travel advisory to its citizens regarding tralling to various countries like China, Italy, Singapore, Japan,etc.
The Union Government and the State Governments have setup helplines for the citizens.

Administrative Measures:

On 11th March, the Cabinet Secretary of India announced that all states and UTs should invoke provisions of section 2 of Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897.
On 14 March the central government declared the pandemic as a "notified disaster" under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, enabling states to spend a larger part of funds from the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) to fight the virus
On 3 March 2020, the Indian government suspended the issuing of new visas and visas already issued for nationals of Italy, Iran, South Korea, and Japan.^[45] On 4 March 2020, the Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Dr. Harsh Vardhan, announced compulsory screening of all international passengers arriving in India.
Between 9th March and 15th March, all international borders were closed in order to reduce the spread of the disease.
On 24th March, a nationwide lockdown which should be considered as a type of curfew was declared for 21 days, starting from 24th midnight.
The Ministry of Textiles has been assigned the task of making sure the availability of protective and medical materials. The Department of Pharmaceuticals is tasked with making sure of the availability of essential medicines. Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution has been asked to ensure availability of essentials
On 17 March, The Government of India issued an advisory urging to all Indian states to take social distancing measures as a preventive strategy for implementation till 31 March.
A government directive was issued asking all paramilitary forces (CAPFs) to get into battle mode
Various state governments have imposed curfews and are taking strict and harsh measures in order to ensure people follow the guidlines properly. For instance, the Telangana Chief Minister has urged the citizens to stay inside otherwise 'shoot at sight' orders might be implemented.
WHO Country Office for India has been working closely with MoHFW on preparedness and response measures for COVID-19, including disease surveillance, laboratory and research protocols, risk communications, training on infection prevention and control and cluster containment plan, surveillance and tracking of travellers.

Economic Measures:

On 19th March, the formation of the COVID-19 Economic Response Task Force was proposed by the Prime Minister of India in a live address to the nation.
On 24th March, an aid of 15,000 crore rupees was announced for the healthcare sector which will be used to develop testing facilities, PPEs, ICUs, ventilators and in training medical workers.
The Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman has announced a slew of measures to deal with economic distress caused due to the coronavirus epidemic in the nation. the measures are as follows;

PM Gareeb Kalyan Scheme will entail Rs 1.7 lakh crore.
It will include both cash transfer and food security.
Provide insurance cover worth Rs 50 lakh for sanitation workers, ASHA workers, doctors, nurses, paramedics in case they need it as they are on the frontlines of the corona battle.
Over and above 5kg of rice/wheat that is already given, another 5 kg per person will be given free to around 80 crore people through PDS. Besides, one kg of preferred and reg ..
Farmers: First instalment of Rs 2,000 of PM Kisan will be given in first week of April. 8.69 cr farmers will get immediate benefit out of it.
MNREGA: Increase in wage rate from Rs 182 to Rs 202 amounting to increase of Rs 2000 per worker leading to benefitting 5 crore people.
Old age/widows: An ex-gratia amount of Rs 1,000 for next three months available in two instalments. It will benefit 3 crore widows and senior citizens.
Women Jan Dhan account holders: Ex gratia of Rs 500 per month for next three months. This will benefit 20 crore women.
Women Ujjawala sheme beneficiaries: For three months, free cylinders. Will benefit 8.3 crore BPL families.
Women Self Help Groups: Under the Deen Dayal National Livelihood Mission, collateral free loan will be given up to Rs 20 lakh from Rs 10 lakh earlier. Impact on 7 crore holders through 63 lakh SHGs.
Organised sector: Government of India will pay the EPF contribution both of the employer and the employee put together 24% for next three months. This is for those establishments with up to 100 employees, 90% of them earning less than Rs 15,000.
For organised sector, EPFO regulation will be amended so that workers can draw up to 75% for their contingency expenditure non-refundable advance or three months of wages in advance whichever is less. This will benefit 4.8 cr workers.
Construction workers: State government have been directed to use the welfare fund for building & construction labourers which has around Rs 31,000 crore to help those who are facing economic disruption because of the lockdown.
Utilise the funds available under the district mineral fund for testing activities, medical screening, providing health attention needed to fight the coronavirus pandemic

On 25th March, India announced the world's largest food security scheme for 80 crore (800,000,000 people) across the country.

Impact of Epidemic on The Indian Economy:

Stock Markets posted their worst losses in history on 23rd March, 2020.
Up to 53% of businesses in India will be affected due to COVID-19.
The live events industry has seen an estimated loss of ₹3,000 crore (US$420 million).
Barclays said the cost of the 21 day shutdown as well as the previous two shorter ones will be around ₹8.5 lakh crore (US$120 billion).
It is estimated that the loss to the tourism industry will be ₹15,000 crore (US$2.1 billion) for March and April alone. CII, ASSOCHAM and FAITH estimate that a huge chunk of the workforce involved with tourism in the country faces unemployment.
Major companies in India such as Larsen and Toubro, Bharat Forge, UltraTech Cement, Grasim Industries, the fashion and retail wing of Aditya Birla Group, Tata Motors and Thermax have temporarily suspended or significantly reduced operations in a number of manufacturing facilities and factories across the country.

Conclusion:

It is my humble request to all the readers to not read this article under the influence of their political viewpoints, but to read it in an unbiased way. I myself have put aside my political affiliation while writing this article, because in this situation, we should not let our political affiliations divide us, instead we should all cooperate with each other and counter this situation collectively, as one community. Let us all hope and pray for the patients infected with this disease and let us all appreciate the efforts of the doctors, nurses, the paramedic staff and other officials who are selflessly working day and night in order to tackle this situation.

*All the facts and statistics have been taken from verified sources like the official website of World Health Organisation, The Economic Times, The Guardian, the Financial Express and The Hindustan Times.*

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