On predicted lines, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced extension of the lockdown until May 3. The announcement was made as 21-day lockdown comes to end while the novel coronavirus cases in India surpassed ten thousand and deaths count nears 400-mark.
In Jammu and Kashmir, the lockdown now nears a month and this period has seen cases of COVID-19 rise from single-digit last month to nearly 300 now. The invisible assassin has already claimed its four victims—three in Kashmir Valley and one in Jammu.
The choice for the Prime Minister now was the same as on March 24 last when his government decided to impose the lockdown and it was between saving lives and ensuring livelihoods. The government has chosen the former. It also reflected in his address: “From an economic only point of view, it undoubtedly looks costly right now but measured against the lives of Indian citizens, there is no comparison itself.”
Many people call it a right step given the macabre across the globe due to the dreaded disease which scientists are finding very difficult to conquer in the time synonymous to Information Age—an era marked by the rapid adoption of new technologies.
While correctness or otherwise of the decision will be revealed by time itself which surely is not distant but the lockdown has already caused the serious damage to livelihoods and it is already starting to make itself apparent. In the context of Jammu and Kashmir, the damage is more prominent. The lockdown comes at a time when the economy of the Jammu and Kashmir was already in doldrums due to the events which unfolded last year. Some sectors such as tourism and allied segments are so badly shattered that it may take years to revive and that too when the situation remains conducive. The disappointment and worries are writ large on faces of artisans, shikarwalas, small and big traders alike. Lives could be lost to varied reasons and hunger may be among them as livelihoods are sacrificed in the lockdown. The present crisis is without precedent and the solutions to it cannot be conservative. Rather it entails out-of-the-box ideas for delivering support and raising the required funds.
Beyond doubt, a substantial economic relief package is needed which must be generous in the financial commitment and the spread to suffice need of the moment. Importantly, it shall be quickly delivered.
Life And Living
