Day 214 – 7th Month Anniversary – October 2020
It is usually rock and roll on Indian shores at this time of the year. Festivals, festivities and colours. The Celebrations of Life’s Causes as per the Respective Gods’ planetary positions - during the August-January phase, in any annual calendar.
Invoking the Elephant God Ganesha heralds the start (around 3rd week of August) – the Lohri Harvest prayers to the Sun God (in the 2nd week of January) is a finale. It is not that no auspicious days occur between February to July, however the waning Solar Cycle and yearly efforts, are done by August – giving all the chance to catch their breath. And prepare for the next season.
But 2020 is bringing in a new realisation. Just that the song and dance, are a whole lot more individual, personal. Versus the public show that comes full-on, during The Great Indian Festival Season. Ask any seasoned marketing professional planning her campaigns. (E Commerce exceptions aside).
Mother Earth was pleased “The Prime Minister has come on prime time TV and exhorts all to follow Safety Norms. This war is on the Invisible Enemy rather than the much talked about Real, Potential ones”.
Father Earth is practical “But where is the money”.
Mother Earth had the answer “The Government has worked on that one! Those who availed formal loans, will get ex-gratia by way of subsidy. Prompt repayments win, Those who couldn’t – will be charged less. And the final bill is a clear reflection of the stand-still through interest-freeze”.
Father Earth is still lost “ Supreme Court? RBI ? Ministry of Finance. And there is something about conversion of LTC to Vouchers”.
Mother Earth is triumphant “Welcome to Politics 101. We do the greatest good for the greatest number of people. And using available machinery, tools”.
As a country, we received higher rainfall in 3 of the 4 monsoon months this season. Augurs well for the agriculture pillar that fuels our daily bread!
Consumption, E-Commerce, IT, Pharma are also seeing robust demand.
Social Assistance sector is expected to do well.
Automobiles are bridging the gap between Public Transport Availability and Private Need. “Nobody is going to schools, colleges, offices and malls” quipped Mother Earth. “The consumption is on OTT, Home Delivery and House-hold Atma Nirbhar”.
Education is clearly looking at making the most of a Gap Year – different kinds of recuperation, for different stages, yet no official closures. Time will heal for K-12, and yet again, with some uniformity across different ages. The much awaited closure to the admission process from High School to Undergraduate, is a big success of Sep/Oct.
Doctors and health-care professionals are still tested – Stay at Home syndrome afflicts different individuals in many ways.
Small business, is having its resilience tested. Need for credit here is acute. Yet, a model to link past-savings, current-entrepreneur-commitments to future resurrection will take time to evolve. Everyone’s a-trying. Including one start up that went back to accepting cheque mode payments.
Anticipation – that is what defines the Month # 7 moment. Maybe the pandemic will cause a reinfection. Possibly US elections will produce unique results. China could try to react differently in Asia.
But Indians got well-knit during this period and started looking inwards. The solutions are a-coming, from the streets and country-side. And the anxieties, fears are ebbing.
Father Time summarised “We won’t wait for the vaccine to settle in. We will continue to do our normal, allowed routine”.
“But don’t go overboard this Festival Dear” cautioned Mother Earth.
“Not even to buy you a saree” smiled Father Time. “We celebrate life, living”.