How did we get here? Where do we go from here?

I have realised that when someone is in the grip of stress, frustration or anger, asking them to focus on being the cause vs. being at the effect, doesn’t work. They want closure. They want answers. They want to know who got them here. Why did this happen! 'What ifs' and 'how comes' overpower 'what do we dos’!

My blogpost last week on the 3 Ways We Can Handle the 2nd Covid Wave Better received a lot of responses. Apart from the public comments, there were several DMs too. And those DMs in varying degrees shared people’s disappointment and frustration at the current situation. And so caught up were they in their emotion that they were finding it hard to move forward. I realised that it was important for people to blame, complain and express. This is cathartic. But there is a gap post catharsis, that if not filled by action, leads to cynicism. So let’s indulge in some catharsis first before thinking about what to do:

How did we get here?

1. We failed to anticipate the 2nd wave because the ebbing of the 1st wave lulled us into complacency. We didn’t build healthcare capacity. We didn’t build vaccination capacity fast enough. And we didn’t publicise enough the need to follow Covid appropriate behaviour. This is mostly the error of our political leadership - both centrally and at the state level.
2. We all lowered our guard. Parties, weddings, gatherings picked up. Masks went off. Social distancing went off. Hand sanitisation went down. We thought Covid was gone. But it was lurking and with a mutant strain, it hit us with ferocity. This is mostly our callousness. And we need to do better as people - masking up properly, though a little uncomfortable in India’s hot weather, saves lives! We must do it unconditionally and over the nose!
3. We exacerbated the situation by holding rallies and religious congregations. From assembly elections in Assam to TN to WB to local elections in parts of Maharastra, people gathered in thousands for election rallies - super spreader events because hardly anyone was seen with masks. Religious gatherings at Kumbh, Ramzan, Telangana, TN and other places, put religion over health and we are paying the price for it. This is on both our political leaders and us for not holding each other to account. No one is forcing us to attend these gatherings. But they should not be held in the first place!

Where do we go from here?

Now the country is facing the combined effect of the above errors of omission and commission. So what do we do?

1. Masking up, social distancing and hand sanitising are still the 3 simple ways of keeping us safe. The more we stay safe, the less burden on our health infrastructure. The less the spread and mutation of the virus. And the less we will make others sick. Following Covid appropriate behaviour is the highest humanitarian service we can do today.
2. Do what we can in our capacity. We know that Govt will not be able to solve this crisis on its own. So willy-nilly we have to step in and help our fellow countrymen and women. Whether it is oxygen, ventilators or medicines, let us spread information, contribute our money and volunteer our time.
3. Push for vaccination. Push with the Govt and your local MLA/MP to push for more vaccines faster. We should aim for a 10 million doses a day goal asap. More people getting vaccinated faster is the only way out of this.

As we come out of this crisis (and we will), don’t forget. Don’t forget to ask the hard questions. Don’t forget who did what because people reveal their true self during a crisis. 

Ask:

1. Why do we spend so little on our health infrastructure? Only 1.5% of our GDP spent on health is appalling! How do we create a path towards good quality universal healthcare for all?
2. What have we learnt from this experience and how do we use it improve Emergency Response Mechanism in the country? Currently, we are only reacting. How do we plan and prepare well via better scenario analysis? 
3. How do we lift 1/4th of our population out of poverty? Why are we in a place after 75 years of independence where we still have 1/4th of our population living under poverty? They are the ones that get the most affected during any disruption. What is our national plan of remedying this? 

It is only if we turn the pain of this experience into a push for reform that we will move forward. Otherwise we are condemned to have more pandemics, more disruptions and more of the same thing.