On 25th March 2020, the first phase of lockdown was imposed nationwide and during the initial days, my family would hardly get together. Each of us were all busy either with our phones or laptops, except for evenings when we would eat dinner together.
But now in the fifth phase of lockdown and with the decreased workload, our household of eleven members has been able to spend time learning new hobbies together. Some have mastered cooking, baking and gardening while the others indulged in eating. For the past three weeks, we have gathered together every night after dinner and settled down with musical instruments to sing hymns together while also sharing stories and incidents.
The debate started with the topic of the quarantined people who had returned from COVID-19 red zones (large number of positive cases) and orange zones (limited number of cases) in India. Three members argued that stigmatization of such groups was inevitable and fear in the hearts of people was justified with the ever increasing number of positive cases. Over 15,600 deaths had occurred in the country since the first case was detected five months ago and my state Nagaland which had zero positive cases (a green zone) had to accommodate them.
COVID-19 pandemic is like a wild fire and if not tackled very carefully can immediately spread. During the ongoing lockdown, prices of commodities have soared and rigid timings for people to come out of their homes to grab essential items is doing more harm as people tend to panic and rush. As long as everyone is made to maintain social distance, the rules should be relaxed to avoid panic and fear. However, the opposing members argued that the effects of such behavior is more dangerous than the pandemic.
Reported cases of mental Illness have risen by 20% in India since the lockdown. The mental stress that such victims have to carry will deplete all their energy and strength which in most cases has contributed to the rate of suicides. Never has such an event affected so many individuals across the globe. Excessive fear can lead to acute stress and anxiety. Moreover, if people become laid back then all the efforts will go in vain so one should always be alert and follow rules and regulations implemented by the government.
After the debate, each of us learned something new and apparently COVID-19 is not the first pandemic the world has faced. One of the most deadly plagues known as The Black Death claimed up to 200 million lives within four years. Yet here we are, we have braved through disasters, pandemics and wars. I believe as we overcame in the past, if everyone would join together in this fight then surely we shall overcome this pandemic as well.
Rachel Swu
MA English
Tetso College