If there is
one thing that Trump’s bleach statement told us Indians, it is not no matter
what your political ideology is, you have to be thankful that we have someone
like Modi and not Trump in power here.
(Source: Mediaite)
But is that
really a good thing? Dive in with us as we analyze the positive and negative
decisions taken by Modi to deal with the Virus.
First, let’s
get this out of the way: the policies and the decisions taken by the Central
government with respect to the COVID-19 have been more or less the best one
could hope for in these times. When we compare the effect of the virus on India
with the problems that more developed countries like USA, Italy, the United
Kingdom, and France are facing right now, we can realize how very effective the
administration has been. The lockdown, while not being the best solution, as I have
discussed here: The Lockdown: An Alternative Solution, was definitely the best that could have been implemented on
such a short notice. 4 states in India right now are currently free of even a
single case, and the Western media as well as other South-East Asian countries are
now looking to India for advice as well as inspiration.
However, Modi
himself has done a lot of questionable things during this time period, and we
shall be looking at two of the most major ones today. These are the promotion
of pseudoscience, and the appeasement policy implemented by Modi towards
Muslims despite there being a severe risk of a COVID-19 explosion.
So, let’s
get started without any further ado.
Promotion
of Pseudoscience and Misinformation
It was not
very long ago that the Hindu Mahasabha held GauMutra parties, claiming that
GauMutra was an effective remedy against the Coronavirus. Several major BJP leaders
also spoke out in favor of this. In a temple in Maharashtra, visitors were
dabbed with GauMutra without their knowledge or consent. When questioned,
temple officials claimed that this was being done to “boost their immunity”.
(Source: National Herald)
As if this
was not enough, in his address to the nation on 26th April 2020,
Modi then promoted Ayurveda as an alternative form of medicine to deal with the
Coronavirus. Ayurveda is a “Science” that believes in using the medicinal properties
of nature to deal with diseases and illnesses. It is not a verified branch of
medicine. There is no proof that says Ayurveda works. All the personal experiences
claiming Ayurveda works could very well be instances of the Placebo Effect,
however Modi seems determined to hold on to his preconceived notions about
medicine and science rather than accepting valid facts.
As if this
were not enough, the Central Government has now instructed all states to start
preparing a “remedy” (heavy eye rolls) for the Virus as directed by the Ministry
of AYUSH. For those unaware, AYUSH stands for Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha,
and Homeopathy, and represents everything wrong with the medicinal system of
the country. Yoga works as a form of meditation and peace of mind, but all of
the others are just pseudoscience that are promoted by the government in the
name of preserving the Indian culture. In this address on 26th April,
Modi said that India should not flock to Western medicine, rather we should try
to promote our own system of alternative medicine.
(Source: The Print)
At a time
when misinformation is on the rise, rumors of all sorts are floating around,
and people are already reluctant to visit doctors, promoting pseudoscience like
this is definitely a very dangerous thing to do. At a time like this, we should
be working to combat misinformation and encourage people to get themselves
tested if they feel any symptoms, but it seems Modi is functioning on a
different agenda entirely.
Muslim
Appeasement Policies
Yes, I know
what you’re thinking. Modi is probably the last person anyone could accuse of
Muslim appeasement, right? Wrong.
(Source: Al Jazeera)
On the 14th
of April, Modi addressed the country and extended the nationwide lock-down for
19 days, up until the 3rd of May, in light of the ever-increasing
count of the cases of Coronavirus.
However, in
lieu of the fact that the Holy Month of Ramadan is starting, the Modi government
has allowed several shops and stores deemed “essential” to resume their
operations from the 20th of April. This has drawn the ire of a lot
of experts, who say that the Coronavirus curve has not flattened enough yet for
such a move to be safe.
This move came
a few days after thousands of people all over India violates the lockdown for their
Ramadan shopping, and instead of reprimanding them, Modi just made shopping and
trading legal.
If that is
not appeasement and vote bank politics, then I don’t know what is.
At a time
when India is recording 2,000 cases a day, at a time when the curve had just begun
to show signs of flattening, at a time when we finally had some semblance of
control, Modi goes ahead and does something like this.
The amount
of danger this places the entire society in is enormous, and there is a very
good chance that this move will lead to a major spike in the number of cases.
But worry
not, I guess? Modi has found the cure. And Ayurveda it is.
(Source: Business Today)
In my
article here: Corona: Money, Religion, and Politics, I talked about how playing vote bank politics and dividing the
country on communal lines was the absolute worst thing India could do. Well,
guess what? Modi just want ahead and did both.
What we as
a country need right now is for the government to stop sanctioning and
promoting misinformation. Also, either the lockdown relaxations need to be reversed,
or the necessary preventive measures need to be taken.
Dear Mr.
Modi, you have done a good job so far, better than most other Heads of State.
Please don’t let vote bank politics and your superstitious beliefs ruin all of
that, and undo everything that you have worked for.
Jai Hind!
-NK
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