BY APURVA RAI
IT was not an easy decision announcing countrywide
lockdown in the wake of Corona virus or Covid-19 pandemic. However, this was
the only solution to prevent the virus from spreading among people. The
decision to implement the lockdown came suddenly and took everyone by surprise;
many not even knowing what it actually means and how it has to be followed. The
administrative machinery had to work relentlessly to make people understand the
lockdown and to ensure its implementation further.
The effects of lockdown surfaced a few days later
and as a result of it people experienced a life that was unheard of. Lockdown
affected different people in different ways. Some just tried to get through it,
others felt it has brought forward opportunities for personal growth. For some
it took off as fun and relaxation and culminated in boredom. For some it has
been time for multi tasking as they took care of family needs while also
working from home. For students it has been most exhilarating experience as
they got hooked to online classes, perhaps, for the first time.
Talk to different people and they have a different
'Lockdown Tale' to tell. The social
media too has been full of all kinds of gossip stuff and videos to 'Gyan ki
Pathshala' (School of Wisdom) to keep your senses on the right track.
While the lockdown has been welcomed by people
largely it also invited resentment from some quarters. Though merits and
demerits of lockdown or its worthiness is a matter of debate there is nothing
wrong in admitting that it has taught us many a new lessons in our life. It is
not wrong to say that the lockdown is going to change our life and style for
many more months or even years to come. It is also not wrong to say that post
lockdown our lives are going to be same again as things have changed altogether
for a long time to come, if not forever. We, the people, have to present a 'New
U' (you) if we want to live a safe and secured life and ensure a happier and
brighter future.
The lockdown has transformed our lives in more than
many ways. While many people would revert back to their older lifestyles, few
of us might adopt the positive changes that we have experienced all these days. Surely, many of us have reinvented ourselves
during this time. Knowingly or unknowingly, the new life has been very positive for many of us
and has also transformed our mindset for the better.
HEALTHCARE:
Post lockdown the biggest focus is going to be ensuring good health for all.
Corona virus, which took its wings from Wuhan in China, traversed all over the
globe spreading fear and panic everywhere irrespective of nationality, colour
or religion. Even the most developed nations with sound medical facilities
crumbled resulting in lakhs of deaths.
India, which ranks very low in medical care,
however, managed to keep the virus impact under check by implementing lockdown
and appealing to maintain social distancing. The prolonged lockdown did cause
unrest among people and the government also faced criticism from various
quarters it cannot be ruled out that the mortality rate has been among the
lowest in the world. But this does not mean we should become complacent in
future.
The lesson that we learn now is that there is an
urgent need to further strengthen our health care system which is in a poor
shape despite so much of investments in the past several decades. We should
also learn that the governments, both at the centre and the states, would henceforth
determine honestly that strong public health system would be their foremost
priority. The present condition of public health system is not hidden from
anyone and there is no need to write more about it.
Even the private hospitals will have to change their
outlook now. India today is an important nation for health tourism only because
of high quality and prompt medical facilities largely provided by the private
sector. Sadly, the treatment in private hospitals is very expensive and beyond
the reach of a common man. Time has come when the management of private
hospitals as well as private medical practitioners should change their thought
and make treatment more affordable.

Online work culture will have further impact:
a)
Lesser Demand for Office Space: It's a reality that the real
estate might see a decline in the demand for large office space. The companies
might consider going for comparatively smaller offices, either rented or
purchased, and ask majority of their staff to continue working from home. Staff
might be asked to come to office for collective meetings etc on a pre-scheduled
date on rotational basis. This will help the corporate save huge amount of
money which may be invested in expanding business.
b)
Redesigned Homes: Work from Home (WFH) meant you fix a corner in
your room or go for a separate study room which is presentable and equipped
with all necessary facilities like a book shelf, study table, internet
connection, desktop/ laptop, headphone etc. In future we are definitely going
to see homes being renovated or redesigned to make them compliant with WFH
culture. A study corner or a study room is the new necessity. The builders too
will not lag behind and include study rooms in their apartments which will
surely give them a reason to attract more clients. And more clients means more
business.
GREATER ROLE OF MEN IN HOMES:
I am a man, why should I cook? Why should I perform domestic chores ? So far
the men folk have, generally, lived with this kind of reputation in our
society. Up till now the men had the reputation of being a grumbling,
order-passing figure who sits on a couch and watches women perform all domestic
chores only to find mistakes or criticise them at the end. So much so they would not even serve their
plates and expect the lady of the house to do this miniscule job. Ironically,
level of education does not reflect on their personality from any corner.
Of late, a change in personality was noticed,
particularly in metropolitan cities, where men shared the household
responsibilities since their spouses too went out to work. The lockdown,
however, saw a drastic change in the role men played in their homes. Many men
ventured into kitchens and cooked, good or bad, for their family, rendered a
helping hand in mopping the floor or washing clothes. Social media was abuzz
with photographs of food cooked by the 'dads'.
Men, hopefully, will stand up to their newly earned
reputation post lockdown. Don't be surprised when you go for lunch at a
relative or a friend's home where the hostess introduces you to a new chef and
serves a stunning new dish prepared by 'him'. A meaningful change that we are
going to see in our future lives.

Surely, we have imbibed the western culture in true
sense now; so far we just wore western dresses, listened to western music and
spoke English loudly to show off our modernity. The lockdown has made us
westernised in true sense.
SIMPLICITY IS THE NEW RULE:
During lockdown when we did most of the work by ourselves and remained confined
to our homes many people realised that life is all about simplicity but adopting
it has been so difficult. Many of us awakened to the fact that we needed one decent,
well designed home to live, lesser clothes than we have in our wardrobes,
lesser commodities that have cramped in our homes, simpler food that we never
thought of eating, not more than one or two cars and the need to lead a more disciplined
life.

We must realise we are in the world and should make
the most of it. We should make happiness our pursuit, spread a little sunshine
here and there. We should enjoy the flowers, the breeze, the waving trees, the
rivers, sea, sky and the mountains. Should we not say hi to a passing child,
wave at children going to schools in a rickshaw early morning, help a pregnant
lady by sharing her luggage, stop and ask the well being of an old person whom
we meet on the pavement. Life is great and much beyond the commodities that
occupies most of the space in our homes just to pump our ego and vanity.
SPECIFIC INDUSTRY WILL GROW:
The new living environment and Do it Yourself (DIY) lifestyle means that some
specific industries will see growth as the demand for certain products will
escalate. There are huge opportunities for such industries engaged in
manufacturing and selling of home maintenance gadgets. Besides, the food and
beverage industry too stands to gain in the post lockdown world.
Things of everyday use like an easy to use broom which does not give an aching back, fast and convenient floor mopping gadget, brushes to wipe out dust, floor cleaners, smaller washing machines which use less water, folding racks to dry clothes, convenient ironing tables etc are many such things which are likely to come in greater demand for some time to come.
Things of everyday use like an easy to use broom which does not give an aching back, fast and convenient floor mopping gadget, brushes to wipe out dust, floor cleaners, smaller washing machines which use less water, folding racks to dry clothes, convenient ironing tables etc are many such things which are likely to come in greater demand for some time to come.
Similarly, ready-to-eat food stuff, pre-cut
vegetables, variety of packaged food including heat- and- eat chapatis,
packaged salads, variety of yogurts, sprouts and a variety of takeaway add-on fresh
food products are likely to see growth post lockdown. The sweet shops remained
closed during lockdown and it became difficult to control our cravings for
them. We have seen many families posting photographs of variety of sweets,
cakes and cookies that they made in their homes. Those who could not make them
were jealous and felt helpless. Packaged sweets too is likely to see a huge
growth since social distancing norms are there to stay for many more months to
follow.

There have
been many a talks and controversies about the lockdown, its implementations and
effects but the second opinion only goes on to say that it was a necessary evil
to keep us safe and healthy. It would become more meaningful if we forget the
difficulties that came our way during this period and share our stories of
change to our children and grandchildren.
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NOTE:
Read more articles by me on life affected by Corona pandemic. Copy/Paste the given links to open the write-ups.
1) स्वाद का लॉकडाउन
https://apurvarai.blogspot.com/2020/04/blog-post_28.html
1) स्वाद का लॉकडाउन
https://apurvarai.blogspot.com/2020/04/blog-post_28.html