This is the time to lead disciplined lives, adopt healthy lifestyle, provide selfless service and spread awareness.
Ayan Banerjee and Smaranika Banerjee
COVID-19 pandemic has emerged as a major challenge before India as the rest of the world. Thinkers, policy planners and leaders across the world have been brainstorming over the past few months over what this challenge entails, how we can get out of it and what it will mean for us in future. It seems most agree, that the post Covid-19 world will be a different place which will look at finding solutions differently.
Chief of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh Mohan Rao Bhagvat gave some relevant pointers in this hour of crisis indicating the path we need to take ahead. He observed that volunteers across the country have resolved to fight the spread of this viral disease while emphasizing the centrality of physical distancing in this battle. Social discipline and making appropriate changes in daily life are needed to cope with this challenge. With no cure as of now, staying at home seems to be the medicine. Bhagwat rightly pointed out that just like those who are stepping out to provide relief to the needy, those staying at home are also helping to fight the virus. In the present context as various states are beginning to relax lockdown, the importance of wearing mask and washing hands also remains undiminished. The need now is to find ways to work ably in this crisis situation. Bhagwat too had emphasized that there is no need to be afraid of this pandemic and we must work with restraint and balance. On one hand while we need to continue our efforts to stop the spread of the virus, on the other hand we also have to find ways to continue work in newer and innovative ways.
This challenging time is also a test of communities and their ability to help and also exercise restraint. Bhagwat too highlighted that while some elements are trying to drive a wedge between the society by spreading rumours and misinformation, it is our responsibility to not get provoked. He also evoke the intrinsic elements of Indian society that has always shown the ability to rise up in the face of crisis. When seen from Indian perspective, the fight against Corona also looks far simpler as traditional Indian ways from Namaste to cleanliness norms are proving to be the best defence against the virus. This is also the time to bear in mind the common bond that we share with 130 crore people and it is our moral duty to help all those who have been affected.
In the face of this lockdown and the extended impact of COVID-19, self-restraint emerges as a significant tool – something that was also emphasized by Mohan Bhagwat. This is the time to lead disciplined lives, adopt healthy lifestyle, provide selfless service and spread awareness. This crisis has indeed brought us to a turning point in history where we have the opportunity to transform ourselves for better. Indeed, as Bhagwat pointed out, this can be an opportunity for us to turn to sustainable and more fulfilling formats of living.
(Ayan Banerjee is Assistant Professor, Kolkata, West Bengal, and Smaranika Banerjee is Assistant Professor, Nadia, West Bengal)