These are strange times for humanity. It is like we are at war against mother nature. We committed so many wrong deeds against her for ages, it seems that the bills are coming due now. We caused different kinds of pollution, destroyed forests, and utilized resources without proper planning. Our wrongdoings have contributed to global warming, extinction of various species of flora and fauna, and looks like mother nature has had enough of everything we did that she created a virus to neutralize us. We are prisoners in our own home.
A virus that mysteriously appeared in China’s Wuhan, is now threatening the very existence of human civilization. This situation is akin to the endgame stage of chess, one wrong move, its checkmate, the only difference is that our very life is on the line here; not only our life, but the lives of others as well, the ones we care for and the ones we don’t. This epidemic has been a reality check for us. Humans have been thinking that with all the advances in the sector of science and technology, they are prepared to face any kind of crisis. This COVID-19 situation has washed away all such puny human pride down the drain.Countries like America, England, Italy, France, and Spain among many others, often regarded as superpowers, have been brought down to their knees. They are crying the blood of hundreds and thousands of their citizens everyday. Experts predict that if it is not taken seriously now, it is only gonna turn to worse, that is until a cure is found, but that seems to be still a few months away from now, provided all goes smoothly. All we can do is hope and pray and distance ourselves socially. We are going to be stuck like this for quite a time now. The political, economic, and social repercussions of the current pandemic situation is going to echo through many years into the future from now. But what are the consequences? Are we prepared? Are the governments of the world ready to face what comes next, provided humanity survives this?
As a rational creature, we all are very aware of what is going to come next – economic crisis, unemployment, patients of depression, etc. among many other things. Due to complete or partial shutdown, industries around the world are already facing huge losses daily, due to which they are offloading staff members and other workers. People are losing jobs, poor people are starving… Monarchy, Capitalism, Communism or whatever the government system is, it won’t matter. All are going to suffer from the consequences. This is only going to continue further, as this current COVID-19 situation has completely retarded the flourishing of economy. Experts believe that it is going to take decades to overcome the aftermath of this. The ramifications of all this are heavy and long-term.
The damage is done. We cannot go back in the past, present is too confusing and scary, while the future is also looking bleak. So what needs to be done to minimize the negative effects of the current pandemic situation? Noone really knows. Even the world’s most intelligent brains are having a hard time figuring this out. The policy makers around the world are perplexed, for this sword of current situation is a double-edged one, and the cut from either one of them is going to be deep. If they continue the lockdown nationwide then people are going to starve and great financial losses are to be dealt with. And if they loosen the lockdown, then people are prone to fall victims of COVID-19. Even the smartest of humans aren’t being able to answer which one is going to have heavy repercussions. There really isn’t a perfect preventive measure for the current situation. And no matter what step is taken henceforth by countries of the world, it will come at a price, but we can ensure that the price is not too big.
One preferred measure is to seal all the surrounding borders, and completely stop the incoming and outgoing of people for a certain period of time, while the government sets up strict health facilities at all the airports and borders for future operations. This does allow a certain freedom to loosen the nationwide lockdown to a certain degree. But even this has its own flaws. In theory, it does sound an efficient measure, and to a degree, it really is, but what about those children of the nation who are stuck abroad? Who rescues them? They are a major component of the national economy. They can’t just be left on their own. For a country like ours, the government should look towards this matter seriously, for Nepal is a country that is heavily dependent upon the remittance. The Nepal Government and all other governments of the world should rescue their citizens who have already lost their jobs abroad due to the worldwide financial crisis and ensure the safety of those who haven’t. Not only the citizens who are abroad to work, but also the students, those young, brilliant minds who have gone far away from their motherland to get proper education and hope to return with something valuable to offer, also deserve such attention, for they are the pillars of the future. Saving them is saving the future.
During these uncertain times, it is not only the government but also us, the public, who have to be equally responsible and sensible. We must maintain social distance, wash our hands often, and carefully select our diets among many other things. If one has come to his/her country from other red-alert parts of the world, then he/she must inform the authorities, and stay in quarantine, for it is not only your life, but it is the matter of the lives of your loved ones too. Your ignorance can come at a cost of your life and your loved ones’ lives, and that is too heavy a price. Also in times like this, one major problem a nation and its citizens face is price-hiking, the selling of essential goods at a price much higher than its actual cost along with smuggling and black-marketing. This must be stopped. We, as a civilization, are in this together. One must not focus on gaining profits out of this while the whole world descends into chaos. If found guilty of such wrongdoings, then the guilty party must be properly punished by the concerned authorities, so that in the future others don’t even think of committing such evil things. This COVID-19 epidemic has already challenged our position as social beings by forcing us into social-distancing and reluctantly become anti-social. We cannot further demoralize ourselves by doing such lowly deeds.
The people at the higher ups must be highly responsible during uncertain times like this. They must think of the welfare of the entire nation and the citizens, and not concentrate on accumulating wealth at the expense of the general public’s well-being or personal agendas or the agenda of the party for that matter. Also the political leaders, who are not in the government, should look for and suggest ways to tackle this pandemic situation, and not make it even more hard for the ruling party. At the end of the day, it is not about one person, or one group, or one area, this is about entire human civilization. The very fate of our existence is on the line. And so in these contagious times, one must rise above his/her personal vendettas and desires, so that our species can rise together from these pandemic ruins, like a Phoenix bird rising out of its ashes.
