21 Day Lockdown in India - An Analysis

It seems that the Indian government has finally taken a major and decisive step to help combat Coronavirus – starting today the 25^th of March 2020, the entire nation has been placed in a 21-day lock-down. Modi, in his address to the country yesterday at 8pm, said that social distancing is the only way to combat this virus. 

This move came after the government observed a lack of conformity to the Janta Curfew on Sunday the 22^nd of March 2020. Several individual states and cities had also implemented lock-down measures but they were not as effective. Therefore, in accordance with the powers that have been vested with the Central government under the National Disaster Management Act of 2005, the nation has been put into a complete lock-down. 

As a consequence of this, stepping outside one’s house for any non-essential task is now penalizable. Already over 200 cases have been registered against various individuals in Uttar Pradesh for not conforming to curfew rules. Also, the Delhi police has vacated the Shaheen Bagh area, where for 100 days, people had been gathered in order to protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act passed by the government in December 2019. Earlier, these protestors had refused to move, claiming that CAB was more dangerous than any virus. However, under the rules of the lock-down, the area could now be vacated with police intervention. 

The share market has also seen a major recovery today after the announcement of this decision. The Sensex has jumped up nearly 2,500 points at the time of writing this article, which is a 7% gain. This has provided a ray of hope to all those investors who had incurred heavy losses in the past month due to the enormous crash in the share market. Several conglomerates, including Tata and Reliance, have also welcomed this move. 

However, the lock-down raises a few serious questions that are at the back of everyone’s minds. We shall try answering them as best we can.

What about essential services? Will they also be shut during the lock-down? No. several essential services will remain open throughout the lock-down. These include the police, fire brigade, all hospitals and medical establishments, ration shops, dairy shops, and poultry shops will be open throughout the lock-down. In addition, all e-commerce websites shall also facilitate the delivery of food and other essential items. There is nothing to be worried about, and there is absolutely no point in stockpiling rations and other commodities. All that does is drive up the prices and induce scarcity of these items, which is the exact situation that you wanted to avoid. 

Why is the lock-down needed? Well, Modi already answered this question yesterday in his speech and I don’t think I can put it any better myself. According to the statistics released by WHO, it took 67 days to reach 100,000 infections, and another 11 days to reach 200,000, but just four days to hit 300,000 infected. At this rate, we will soon be adding millions of infections by the day, or worse, by the hour. The only way to prevent this is social distancing and practicing hygiene. 

What happens if I ignore the lock-down? Well, if you’re so hell bent on putting your life as well the lives of your loved ones in jeopardy, go right ahead. However, you might be booked under violation of the government’s orders if the police catch you. But my question to you is, is it worth it? Also, all forms of public travel have been shut down. This includes buses, trains, metros, and domestic flights. So, there's really not much you can do even if you do go out.

Well, we have presented the facts. The ultimate decision lies upon you. However, if we might make a suggestion, stay home. Connect with your family, watch some movies, and above all, stay safe and healthy. Also, do keep reading Openions 😊.

-NK