Are masks now just a facade?
Let’s take a walk down the memory lane to the initial days of the pandemic.
Who is the frontrunner among the memories? Masks! That’s right. There used to be a time when the pandemic hit and people obsessively wore masks to protect themselves from COVID. Masks found their way into our wardrobes as an essential daily wear.
However, a large chunk of people have now resorted to wearing masks to disguise their identity instead of using it to protect them from COVID.
With curbs relaxed, people say that they now feel stripped without masks. One of the reasons for this might be the prolonged lockdowns that led to people developing social anxiety, and has rather provided more relief for the ones with the condition.
A young Shillongite told the SJ team: “Masks help me avoid people I don’t want to speak to. With a mask on, all I need to do is face the floor and there is hardly any chance for me to get recognised.” “It also complements your look, I think,” she added.
Will the use of masks continue in the post-pandemic society or has its purpose been redefined to merely playing the role of a facade?
Baby steps towards normalcy
Starting April 1, India has seen some big changes on the COVID-19 pandemic front — containment measures have been discontinued by the Centre while states like New Delhi, Maharashtra, Telangana, et al, have officially discontinued the use of face masks, which were once deemed a sine qua non in the fight against COVID-19. Some other states, too, have done away with mask protocols, although without any official communication.
People have started to come out of their houses without having to wear masks, especially when the mercury continues to rise exponentially across parts of India. Life continues to limp back to normalcy even here in the state capital, which has, of late, seen a healthy inflow of tourists.
The weeks-long observation by the SJ team has discerned that mask protocols in Shillong are pretty much voluntary now. But then again, can Shillongites and the tourists alike, at a time when the entire country has set the ball rolling for doing away with COVID-19 protocols, be accused of throwing caution to the wind? Or can the Health department be accused of turning a blind eye to the “violation” of masking protocols? Well, many surely will agree to disagree on this. But then again, the COVID-19 situation is much better than what it was a year ago or, for that matter, two years ago.
Shillongites now do not have to give a second thought before planning interstate or intrastate travels, frequenting public places and restaurants, holding social gatherings on weekends, et al. All in all, there are illustrations aplenty to corroborate that Meghalaya has actually started its journey in tandem with other states towards normalcy. However, the wait may still be long to reach the destination.
Did you notice?
Did the rotary circle near the playground in Fire Brigade area come to anybody’s notice of late? It has been more than two years since they demolished the structure to give it a facelift, supposedly. For most of us Shillongites, time went by so fast that the shrivelling went unnoticed.
Earlier an enclosed area with the interior housing a single-pole hoarding, the rotary is now in a state of disarray — dust covers majority of the road encircling the roundabout, which gives it a detestable appearance.
Moreover, stones have been used to demarcate the motorable part of the road in the place where earlier there was traffic booth, which often commuters do not pay heed to.
Shillong’s commuters have been one of the relatively less impatient; but use stones to delineate a path and you’re bound to see vehicles making a dash for their destinations through whatever way that suits them.
Although some of the onus falls on the traffic personnel, they are seen time and again trying to ensure there is no hotchpotch among the commuters. One of the traffic police personnel is most of the time stationed at the roundabout which leads to St. Edmunds School.
A light pole, however, has been erected at the centre of the rotary, which is a silver lining.
There is no picking any holes in the delay to do whatever was intended with the rotary, but it pains the SJ team as Shillongites to watch this once-picturesque part of the cityscape sit in shambles.