BEST DECISION
   Date :20-Apr-2021

Ayodhya_1  H x
 
 
THE decision of people in authority first to curtail the Kumbh Mela in Haridwar and then to cancel the Ram Navami celebrations in Ayodhya in view of the growing coronavirus pandemic should be considered one of the best in the recent times. What was utterly essential at this point in time has been done, for which the authorities deserve appreciation. Now, it is expected that devotees and religious and social organisations cancel the upcoming Ram Navami celebrations and get engaged in worship individually in the confines of homes or even temples with only a handful of people following all COVID-19 norms. A similar approach was taken last year too as regards Ram Navami celebrations, which had earned a widespread praise from all quarters. The year that went by also saw a good dose of self-restraint exercised by the people of various communities to curtail celebrations of their respective religious events. Social appeals and a healthy volunteer action made all the difference. Frankly, a similar approach should have been taken also towards the legislative elections in five States.
 
A six-month extension could have been given to the Legislative Houses of all those States to tide over the current crisis. In addition to this, there were elections to local self-government bodies in the State of Uttar Pradesh, too. That idea did not get any support and the five States saw massive public gatherings attending campaign rallies and meetings and road-shows of leaders and campaigners of all parties. The massive surge of people on those occasions -- shown so liberally on television and covered extensively in the print media -- was actually frightening, to say the least, in view of the risks of throwing to the winds the simple caution of social distancing. Yet, there was nobody with some authority to give even a scant thought to the risk involved -- unfortunately.
 
There is every reason to believe that the second wave of coronavirus pandemic now tormenting the country may have been helped by those crowds in 20% of States in India. That is the reason why we appreciate whole-heartedly the decision of the authorities to curtail the Kumbh Mela and cancel the Ram Navami celebrations in Ayodhya. We believe that this decision will trigger similar decisions elsewhere in the country in the subsequent times -- in continuation of what most communities across the country did last year. The common purpose is to ensure that we keep the spread of the dangerous coronavirus down to the minimum and master one of the worst challenges the humanity ever faced. This sense of purpose needs to be extended and expanded to cover all our actions the moment we step out of our homes. It must be noted with a deep sense of sadness that the overall behaviour of the people across the country is nowhere close to the ideal. Habitually, common people are seen violating norms of personal and social distancing, cleanliness and hygiene.
 
They appear to conduct themselves properly only when there are cops monitoring their behaviour in public places. Such a slackness will only harm the country in the short as well as long runs, which unfortunately only a few among us seem to realise. If one section of our larger society is acting in such a foolhardy manner, there is another section that is so terribly bogged down by fear of the pandemic that even a usual headache and a couple of coughs and sneezes drive them to a doctor. This rushing to the doctor has an element of risk involved. In order to err on the safer side, the medical doctors send such people for COVID-19 testing and including the advanced CT scan investigation. This rush of only marginal suspects has been known to add to the numbers in the final count of coronavirus, giving rather false signals to the authorities and distort the statistics -- something that can be avoided easily. In the sum and substance, what the society needs, therefore, is an extremely careful approach to to its own overall conduct.