Me-first won’t help

AMID the clarion call for social distancing to contain the coronavirus outbreak, people thronged supermarkets and bazaars on Thursday to stock up on essential commodities. Exposing one another to the risk of infection for the sake of feeding the fears of scarcity — in anticipation of an unprecedented lockdown — can only be called a self-defeating exercise, if not a suicidal step. In his address to the nation, PM Narendra Modi red-flagged panic buying, saying that the practice must be avoided. He exhorted citizens not to hoard necessary items such as medicines. It’s the job of the authorities to crack down on hoarders and profiteers so that the masses don’t bear the brunt of shortages. Visible action on the ground can act as a confidence-building measure. But the people themselves need to change their ‘me-first’ mindset.

Several cases of individuals cocking a snook at the government’s advisories have come to light. Some passengers have gone to the extent of concealing their foreign travel history or fleeing from isolation wards to evade the mandatory 14-day quarantine. Their recklessness — which is punishable with a prison term under the Epidemic Diseases Act — is now taking a toll on their family members, friends, acquaintances and worse, the entire neighbourhood. It’s imperative that all those who have returned from abroad recently should come forward for tests. Any delay on their part can be life-threatening for them as well as others.

China has not reported new domestic cases for two consecutive days and the epicentre has shifted to Europe. But India can’t afford to be complacent. It’s too early for the country to pat itself on the back for having done a good job so far. India can take a leaf out of South Korea’s book. The World Health Organisation has praised Seoul for controlling community transmission with an ‘innovative testing strategy, expanded lab capacity and exhaustive contact tracing’. Though India’s Health Ministry has claimed that Covid infections have not reached the ‘community level’, being well prepared for the worst will matter the most over the next few weeks.