Covid lockdowns and the road ahead: A delicate balancing act between life, liberty and livelihood

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The Covid-19 situation is going from bad to worse by the day. The numbers of those infected and those dying from the virus are showing a startling rise across the country. The healthcare facilities are being put to a severe stress test forcing many state governments to impose stricter restrictions and mini-lockdowns and other measures in an attempt to bring the situation under control.

However, controlling the rapid spread of the coronavirus in this second wave of infections is a daunting task. In the current phase, the virus appears to be giving the slip and winning in its efforts to spread wider among the population.

It is unfair to pin the blame solely on the health administration at the Centre or the state governments for the situation that the country is facing. As medical researchers have pointed out, the virus is proving to be a difficult customer. It is fast mutating and is becoming more infectious, though possibly less lethal than its initial avatar of 2020.

At a time when the medical community itself is finding it difficult to lay a fix on the virus’s variants and impact, it is perhaps asking too much from the administration at the Centre and states to come up with a fool-proof solution to stop its spread.

The question that everyone is asking is whether imposing lockdowns, in whatever form, is the solution to contain the spread? On the face of it the answer seems to be in the negative. Did the very stringent long countrywide lockdown in 2020 defeat Covid? The emergence of the massive second wave appears to show that the virus can be a slippery opponent.

If the situation worsens more stringent steps could be in the offing. The central government, in consultation with the states, could also consider imposing a countrywide lockdown for a limited period to break the infection chain. However, all further moves will be a delicate balancing act between concerns of life, liberty and livelihood of the people.

While governments have been extremely worried at the rising health scare and the possible loss of life, there have been concerns raised about lockdowns impacting livelihood of many, especially the poor, the low income groups and the daily wage labourers if businesses, large or small, are forced to close down. The hardship faced by many and the images of migrant workers walking thousands of miles back home in the summer heat of 2020 amid a countrywide lockdown is fresh in the minds.

Across the world there are also concerns of whether governments should curb their liberties through extended lockdowns, which are causing mental and psychological issues. In fact there have been violent protests in many places against the imposition of restrictions, social gatherings and festivities. However, unrestricted intermingling, whether for, social, religious or other events, will only help the virus to spread. Governments are well within their rights to impose reasonable restrictions in crisis times.

In fact, the impact of the elections in the various states and the gatherings at rallies and road shows of political parties will be known soon. There are fears of a huge spike in numbers in the states where elections were held.

In the event the situation worsens drastically from here on, and one has to prioritise between life, liberty and livelihood, saving lives should obviously be the obvious choice even if it means considering a countrywide lockdown once again, albeit for a limited period. Fortunately, this time around, it will not be as sudden as last year and people are getting forewarned and taking necessary measures with many migrant workers already returning to the safety of their homes. However, one hopes that things ease in the coming days and people themselves adopt Covid-appropriate behavior while more and more get vaccinated along with a huge ramp up of healthcare facilities to help avoid further deterioration of the situation.