The deadly pandemic has taught us: the world is one, we human beings are one, sufferings and deaths know no discrimination, we sink or sail together. Philosopher and thinker Erich Fromm laments the fact that despite man being aware of the risks and dangers of his existence, his insufficient defenses, uncertainty and fragmentary knowledge, he hardly works towards ‘a rebirth of humanism’ which attains inner transformation of mind and more matured sense of responsibility towards each other
“When a light is lighted it cannot be held within a short range. It is for the whole world.”
— Rabindranath Tagore in his Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech
We human beings, having endured the eighteenth century: the Age of Reason; nineteenth: the Age of Progress; twentieth: the Age of Anxiety, as author James C Coleman called them, have recently entered twenty-first century. What this century will be dubbed as when it is over, none can predict but as of now, we, the current generation people, are confronted with the times that evoke awe, agony and helplessness. Coronavirus with its gigantic hold world over has asserted human beings are not invincible and it’s not always easy to muddle through. The deadly virus has brought us closer to our inescapable finiteness and futility.
One shudders at watching ghostly backdrop of fast-spreading coronavirus and our inability in trammeling it. This human plight is daring us in this technological age that has made human life so luxurious and comfortable, at least for a few. We are so attuned to great disruptions and upheavals that these pass off while many of us stay unruffled from such tumults. Excessive global competitiveness has led to impersonal bonding and shattered our faith in traditional beliefs and values. “Coronavirus”, as a saintly figure and temple priest from Gorakhpur, Rajiv Baba, aptly puts it, “Ne Dharti Ka Hulchul Khatam Kar Diya Hai.” (Coronavirus has ended the bustling of the earth.)
It might be of some relevance to refer to Swiss psychiatrist Carl Gustav Jung’s essay “WOTAN” published in 1936. Coronavirus seems to have some traits in common with Wotan. Jung defines Wotan as “a restless wanderer who creates unrest and stirs up strife, now here, now there, and works magic.” Coronaviruses have conveniently usurped Wotan’s wandering role seizing, to use Jung’s words, “everything in its path.”
Coronavirus further shares another trait with Wotan: a trait Jung calls the “Ergriffener” connoting “a state of being seized or possessed.” Corona acts as “Ergreifer”: one who seizes. Whether it is like an Ergriffener or not is a mystery to be unraveled by future discovery of its true nature, source of its birth and treatment; it seizes is a fact more than seventy three lakh affected cases and more than four lakh deaths globally towards the beginning of second week of June 2020 bear testimony to. Like Wotan, corona has been creating, cutting across man-made boundaries, frenzy and storm unleashing fear, agony, severe anxiety and deaths. Our assumptions about modern world being a reasonable place to live are now dwindling and foundational questions about individual and collective life are bound to be pondered over sooner or later. Our belief in our indomitability emanating from technologically and medically accelerated societies has received an enormous jolt.
Jung writes about man’s tendency to regard anything unexpected coming as coming from outside but real. The idea that anything can be real but not coming from outside has been slowly dawning upon contemporary world. Drawing an analogy, one can argue that this disaster called coronavirus is real and has come from inside the society. Fast depleting natural resources like forests, water, soil, etc, question our sanctity in using these. We hardly bother to account for these. Natural Resource Accounting has not received globally the attention it deserves. It is still in a nascent stage. The accounting of natural resources while calculating GDP will yield better index of economic activities and help us control all sorts of ecological violations and pollution which have been eroding environmental resources putting the life-support system of living beings at great risk. Added to it is the brutal killing of animals, including wild ones, for meat consumption. These can be thought of as examples of possible sources of disasters which are real and come from inside. This realisation is one way of rescuing mankind from its own created perils.
How to curb the wanderer? Jung offers an answer, “... a rock crashing down the side of a hill, until it is stopped by an obstacle stronger than itself.” How to stop spread of coronavirus? Lockdown. India has been second to no other country in showing path to the world in times of mass distraught and anguish. While developed countries with very modern healthcare facilities are blamed for not resorting to lockdown at early stages of spread of virus, the most important thing that happened in India is implementation of stay-at-home order early on, when very few people were sick. Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi took a seminal decision announcing “Janta Curfew” to be observed by all throughout the country. On March 22, 2020, the country wore a deserted look indicating how meticulously people adhered to Prime Minister’s call for “Janta Curfew”. Then they unanimously followed another advice of the Prime Minister. Sharp at 5 pm the same day, people in unison came out standing in balconies or in front of their houses clapping, ringing bells, blowing conch shells and beating metal plates. The collective sound thundered and its well spread out vibrations felt far afield. The people of India showed they were one with the Prime Minister. It was followed by another announcement on March 24, 2020, by the Prime Minster regarding 21 days nationwide lockdown that laid down a uniform policy for all States to follow. Essential services like food supplies, medicines, milk and similar services were allowed. People were advised to stay home and not to indulge in social gatherings. The result has been incredible: country has witnessed the world’s most-wide-ranging Covid-19 lockdown.
On April 3, 2020, the Prime Minister in his message exhorted people, “On the 5th of April, at 9 pm, turn off all the lights in your homes, stand at your doors or in your balconies and light diyas or candles, torches or mobile flash lights for 9 minutes.” It would ward off darkness spread by coronavirus. When done, the Prime Minister continued, “We will experience the superpower of light, clearly illuminating the common purpose we are all fighting for.” On 5th night millions of diyas, candles, torches and mobile flashes illumined every nook and corner of the country. Collective light was in ample display in the collective fight against “the darkness spread by the coronavirus crisis”.
Impact of lockdown: Indian experience — Lockdown was further extended beyond 21 days in various phases. In any country lockdown never represented normal times; we were and still are grappling with abnormal times history has bestowed on us. Many and regular episodes, organised on various TV channels, particularly on DD National where Union Health Minister with his officials and doctors explained about Covid-19 and how to escape it, contributed immensely to spread of public awareness about the disease. Equally importantly, these talks dispelled unfounded fears and rumours. One important outcome of lockdown has been conversion of fear into mass awareness. What we were conveyed; what we were expected to learn and what we have learnt are 1) Social distancing: Stay at least 6 feet away from other people and avoid large groups. 2) Facemasks: Wear a facemask or handkerchief or gamcha covering nose and mouth, especially in public areas. 3) Stay-at-home requiring people to remain in their homes unless they have an essential job, or are doing an essential task and work from home. 4) Quarantine: If one has been exposed to the coronavirus or gets sick with Covid-19, one can be placed in a mandatory 14-day (or longer) quarantine. 5) Isolation: If someone in one’s home starts to feel sick, he should isolate himself inside the home, using a different bedroom or bathroom, if possible. 6) Hand hygiene and cough etiquette.
Very importantly, during lockdown, as A Surya Prakash, well-known author and columnist wrote in his article “Perception Matters” (The Pioneer dated June 3, 2020), the Prime Minister, “had a hands-on approach towards energising the healthcare system, tackling pharma-related issues and coordinating with various Chief Ministers through fortnightly meetings.” Much success is seen. Compared to other countries where corona-affected cases and deaths have been very high, India is on way to effectively control the spread of virus. At present lockdown has proved to be very effective weapon against coronavirus. Aforementioned components of lockdown have really changed things. It’s important to remember that every single one of us is susceptible to this infection and there are no vaccines or antivirals. Hospitals and clinics are not able to handle all of us being sick at the same time. The crux of lockdown has been to convince people that we just cannot let the virus run its course. Early lockdown in India has proved to be very beneficial for society and people. It has helped in identification of hotspots for better control and tackling. While around March 25, the rate of positive cases were doubling within two to three days, the decision of Prime Minister for early lockdown has unquestionably improved the doubling rate of the Covid-19 positive cases to 12-13 days as of now. Staying home has saved most lives.
For example, as per the information available on June 10, 2020, (Worldometer’s Covid-19 data), while globally, the number of cases was 73,23,799 with 4,13,733 deaths, number of cases in India were 2,76,146 with 7,750 deaths. Further analysis of information available on this site indicates that while total number of cases as percentage of total population in the USA, Spain, the UK, Italy have been 0.61%, 0.61%, 0.42% and 0.38%; in India it is 0.02%. Similarly, the number of deaths as percentage of total cases in the USA, the UK, Italy, and Spain has been 5.58%, 14.13%, 14.45%, and 9.38% respectively, while in India it has been 2.8%. In India looking at total number of Covid-19 cases alone may give misleading perceptions. Economists point out that better index for comparison is Covid cases per capita and Covid deaths per capita and in terms of both India is doing well. These read with the total recovery rate of 48.49% establish positive impact of early lockdown in the country.
Lockdown, standard of living and Christopher Bliss on migration and flight
Economists have limited the term standard of living to a narrow economic meaning. It’s now argued vigorously that standard of living should embrace all aspects of quality of life. This approach has great appeal. It also evades awkward delineation problems. Given this, let us admit this pandemic has unrolled a dark side particularly in developing countries: existence of inequalities between rich and poor. Poor people are vulnerable because they don’t have sufficient resource base.
There is no dearth of differences between the rich/middle class and poor class in the fulfillment of some of the most basic needs like meeting nutritional requirements, escaping avoidable diseases, proper shelter, proper clothing, being able to travel, and proper education. In a poor community the resources needed to participate in the standard activities of the community might be very little. In such a community the perception of poverty is primarily concerned with the commodity requirements of fulfilling nutritional needs and some needs of being clothed, sheltered and free from disease. In India particularly during last six years through various welfare schemes, a lot has been done with great success to enhance the resource base of poor and deprived people thereby empowering them. Unfortunately now this pandemic has disturbed, at least to some extent, the equilibrium has already reached. A renewed vigorous exercise is needed to restore things to pre-pandemic period.
In the context of much discussed issue of migrant workers, it is imperative to refer to works of Professor Christopher Bliss of Oxford University, an expert on international economics and standard of living, who in his pioneering essay “Lifestyle and the Standard of Living” has coined a term, “lifestyle” and used “lifestyle” gaps to study, inter-alia, migration and standard of living. He makes a fine distinction between “migration” and “flight”. He writes, “…migration is motivated by economic considerations. The migration motivated by personal safety, or to avoid maltreatment, may be called flight. The distinction between economic migration and flight is difficult to administer… However, migrants do have multiple and ambiguous motives.” Professor Bliss elucidates his views on standard of living by giving an example. Let us consider a rich individual having an untreatable disease which interferes with his enjoyment in life. That rich individual does not have a low standard of living. Rather he has a high standard of living but he is in poor health. Rich individual’s case of ill health is “accidental” and his poor health excluded from the standard of living. When it comes to a poor person, his ill health is a consequence of material deprivation and his poor health is included.
Migration is movement of people driven by a desire for higher income and economic betterment. Economic literature on migration takes a simple view of the economic incentives and other attractions which urbane life offers and which causes migration. Of course most influential models include uncertainty concerning the realisation of the improved income which the new place promises. However, it is difficult to quantify the difference between a city and a rural standard of living. Harris and Todaro hold the view that the expected real wage-differential between urban and rural areas is the principal determinant of migration decision and it is only the risk of unemployment that deters migrants. When it comes to comparing standards of living in rural area and in the city, conceptual problems are encountered. For example, the city has better education facilities and better housing but these cost more. Professor Bliss believes that weighing these differences is an issue of the city lifestyle versus the rural lifestyle itself. This vital fact has got to be considered while gauging and tackling economic impact of Covid-19 on migrant workers and persons of lower strata of society whose quality of life suffers due to this.
The moot point, in the context of Covid-19 and movement of poor people from cities to their homes, is whether this distinction as brought out by Professor Bliss has any policy implications in current scenario? It’s all the more important as the psychological components of behavior of a migrant (it is one way movement from original destination for economic betterment) are different from the one who resorts to flight (it is reverse movement towards original destination).
The response of the Government to the pandemic in many countries is focused to provide support for individuals, households and businesses. Ensuring minimum and regular income to migrant workers and people of lower strata of society is necessary so that they are not compelled to run around for a living which in turn makes them more vulnerable as much to impoverishment as to any disease including Covid-19. The real opportunities that an individual pursues depend not only on his resource base, but also on a variety of factors that influence the extent to which he can use his resource base to useful effect. This aspect needs to be looked into.
Prime Minster Narendra Modi announced on May 12, 2020, a massive economic package of `20 lakh crore. The combined package intended to benefit labourers, farmers, cottage industries, honest taxpayers, MSMES, works out to 10 per cent of the GDP, making it among the most substantial in the world. “The package will have emphasis on land, labour, liquidity and laws, and will pave the way for a self-reliant India,” the Prime Minister said. Following this, the Government of India, inter-alia, has taken strong steps towards mitigating the problems of migrant workers, small farmers and poorer sections of society. For instance, the Government will spend Rs 3,500 crore to provide free food grains and pulses for two months to 8 crore migrant workers not having any ration card. Migrant workers not possessing ration cards will get monthly ration of 5 kg rice or wheat per person and one kg channa per family per month free of cost for next two months. Under “One Nation One Ration Card” scheme, National Portability Ration Card can be used in any ration shops across the country. By August 2020, 67 crore beneficiaries in 23 States covering 87% of persons covered under National Food security Act will get benefit. By March 2021, the plan is to cover 100 per cent. This will enable the migrant workers working in other States to get ration through the PDS. Under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, the Government funded housing in the cities will be converted into affordable rental accommodations for migrants workers. This will be done in PPP mode on concessionaire basis. It will help migrant workers and urban poor to live in cities by paying reasonable rents at Government complexes. With a view to reviving businesses of street vendors, there is a special scheme to avail `5,000 crore micro-credit facility providing them `10,000 as initial working capital. Given inadequate financial resources of small and marginal farmers, the Government announced release of `30,000 crore additional capital emergency funds through NABARD for post-harvest Rabi and current Kharif related requirements. Under Kisan Credit Card Scheme, `2 lakh crore concessional credit to boost farming activities will be given that will benefit 2.5 crore farmers. These measures will certainly go a long way in helping migrant workers, small farmers and other weaker sections of society to cope with adverse effects of Covid-19 thereby ensuring their standard of living does not suffer due to the pandemic.
Towards the end let us try to answer an uncoiling question. What is the lesson we have to learn from Covid-19? Many. But one of the most important lessons this outbreak is going to leave behind is: in order to live in contemporary world a well-defined and fulfilling life, we need to revive forgotten wisdom of ancient ages. Rather than questioning long-accepted assumptions about life of tranquility and brotherhood, the time has come to get back to these. After all, this deadly virus has taught us: the world is one, we human beings are one, sufferings and deaths know no discrimination, we sink or sail together. Philosopher and thinker Erich Fromm laments the fact that despite man being aware of the risks and dangers of his existence, his insufficient defenses, uncertainty and fragmentary knowledge, he hardly works towards “a rebirth of humanism” which attains inner transformation of mind and more matured sense of responsibility towards each other. This is the need of the hour. In case of coronavirus, too, the world will learn from India and as a matter of fact has already started learning and as it happens Rabindranath Tagore’s words, “When a light is lighted it cannot be held within a short range. It is for the whole world,” get vividly painted before us.
(Born in Gorakhpur in 1960, KK Srivastava did his Masters in Economics from Gorakhpur University in 1980 and joined Indian Audit & Accounts Service in 1983. He is a poet and writer. His fourth book “Soliloquy of a Small Town Uncivil Servant”: a literary non-fiction published in March 2019 by Rupa Publications, New Delhi, has received international acclaim in literary field. Currently he is Additional Deputy Comptroller and Auditor General in the office of Comptroller & Auditor General of India. Views expressed here are his personal views)
