Patricia Mukhim
The pain caused to the entire world by Covid -19 does not mean that crime has reduced or that corruption has gone off the mindscape of those in power. We still get to read stories of rape and molestation even during these cheerless times. People are assaulted; there are stories of politicians making capital out of the disaster. There was news of a dead child being denied burial in Umran Diary in Ri Bhoi district because of a conflict between two factions of the same church. So if we think that Covid has changed our psyche and made us better humans than we were before the pandemic then we have another think coming.
There is a general sense of hopelessness among those who returned home recently from their respective places of work. Meghalaya is more fortunate in that the bulk of the returnees are students and professionals. Those in the IT industry and other sectors that allow ‘work from home’ have stayed back as they should be. There is no point panicking and wanting to return home at this juncture. It’s critical to hold on to the job, now that they are going to become scarcer. We should actually be proud of these brave young professionals who have decided to brave it out, some in the most infected cities of Delhi, Bengaluru, Mumbai etc.
Right now the challenge for the Government is to rehabilitate those who have lost their jobs following the closure of the hospitality sector. This requires a determined and focused approach by a team in the Government which should not be burdened with the current Covid work. It also requires intense consultations with a range of stakeholders.
To add to our woes, within the state we have the case of young entrepreneurs in the tourism business who have suddenly lost their incomes but have to still think of paying staff and also paying for the rented premises out of which they run their businesses (guest houses, bed & breakfast, eateries, cafes et al). One can imagine the burden that these young (young in the business and age too)entrepreneurs carry. Thus far, other than an announcement from Chief Minister, Conrad Sangma about ‘Covid-resilient tourism,’ a phrase that needs some unbundling, we have not heard of a bail-out package for the Tourism sector especially for the smaller enterprises. It is time that all these entrepreneurs come together and engage with Government. Last heard, only hoteliers have been in conversation with government but that’s not a fair deal.
The hospitality sector has to be looked at through more holistic lenses. The smaller the businesses the more cushion is needed so that the entrepreneurs don’t lose hope and give up. Most of these entrepreneurs had ventured into village tourism and home-stays and were not making a killing but just enough to sustain themselves and their families. Whatever savings they have made these last few years would by now have dwindled since they have been out of work for nearly four months now. The tourism sector is a chain. There are small vendors such as those running tea shops, shops selling artifact and several other knick-knacks which every tourist destination earns from. On a rough estimate about two lakh people are involved in the tourism sector across Meghalaya (if the figures are wrong, please correct me). It’s frightening to imagine a future for these people if Covid does not make a hasty exit.
Much has been spoken about the Agriculture, Horticulture and Fisheries sector. We have harped on these sectors for decades without results. Sure the strawberry experiment worked and growers are doing good business; so too the sellers who fleece us the buyers. But all in all the strawberry experiment is a success story. One only wonders why we don’t have more upgraded, state of the art processing plants for pineapples, oranges, plums, peaches et al. At the moment there is a glut of pineapples in the market. True they are rather exorbitant at Rs 60-80 a piece but that’s because the pandemic leaves us with little choice but to buy it from the first vendor we meet. What we don’t see happen is that the growers get very poor returns. It’s the vendor who buys from the grower that makes all the money. So when we speak horticulture which is Meghalaya’s potential, let us focus on the processing bit where the processed stuff is better than the standard “Meg” brand where Sohiong jam for instance has completely lost it’s the original taste of the fruit. There are modern processing methods that retain much of the original flavour of the fruit.
Agriculture too is Meghalaya’s strength but only if the markets are better organised. Quite a bit of agricultural products in Meghalaya are organically grown. Only cabbage and cauliflower and now broccoli require both chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Potato requires chemical fertilizers too. Its sad that the state has not yet been able to produce enough organic manure for its crops. Also the marketing has to be better organised. At the farm gate vegetables are sold dirt cheap. Cabbages were apparently sold at Rs 5 a kg to vendors who in turn sold them at Rs 30-40 a kg in the roadsides. This fleecing by middlemen and vendors needs to stop and that can happen if farmer’s markets are set up at vantage points across the state.
On Thursday Chief Minister Conrad Sangma spoke of micro management, micro lockdown and quick response to any situation. He also spoke about adaptation. This must be the most realistic suggestion one can think of. Containing small areas where Covid has appeared, rather than a complete lockdown is the answer. Managing those small areas is far more doable than hunting for contacts in a whole containment zone. Indeed, a quick response team to ensure that those testing Covid+ive are quickly quarantined before they meet more contacts is the key. A vigilant citizenry that reports the arrival of new faces into their localities and who evidently skipped quarantine is the need of the hour. Several such stories of people returning from Guwahati but roaming around irresponsibly are doing the rounds. One is unsure how they got through the strict vigil at the various check gates. Perhaps now that the gates are temporarily closed a stock-taking is necessary to see where the loopholes can be plugged.
The more we watch the behaviour of the Covid virus and observe its spread the more we need to learn ‘Adaptation.’ The reality today is that it is possible to be infected at some point or the other because some of our family members have to go out to work. Not everyone can work from home. Banks are functioning; government functionaries are working more than ever before; those in the construction business are working at full force. Everyone is playing catch-up. At some point, despite all the precautions (wearing masks, using generous doses of sanitizers, social distancing etc) someone may contact the virus and bring it home. Instead of pushing the panic button it is more sensible to follow the protocols and be quarantined and get tested. This goes for neighbours and people in the locality too. We have played the stigmatization game for far too long. Not everyone who contacts the virus is a covidiot. The 41 people of a marriage party are exceptions. They violated all protocols and have to face penal action. But most of the others who have tested positive have done so because they arrived from hotspots.
So let’s leave it at that and stay vigilant yet composed. Panic is no solution.
(Views expressed in these columns are personal and do not reflect the views of the newspaper)