COVID-19: How The Quarantine Is Proving To Be Another Deadly Threat For The Underprivileged
Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic has placed the world in a state of panic, people are being advised to remain in isolation and practice social distancing in order to prevent the spread of the virus.
Health workers and governments are requesting people to work from home and practise social distancing. However, there are millions of people in this world who do not have the means and resources to get their work done from home and this quarantine is proving to be very dangerous for their livelihoods.
For low-income or daily wage workers, each hour spent at work determines how much they get paid. Add to that the fact that they don't have the basic essentials needed to stay at home for a long time.
AFP
The fact of the matter
So, while the world is panic-buying and losing its 'shit' over toilet paper, there are people--street vendors, beauticians, retail workers, domestic help--who can barely afford a week's worth of groceries let alone a month.
To make matters worse, low-income workers or daily labourers do not have medical insurance and that puts them in a very risky situation if they were to contract the infection.
AFP
To make sure they can eat three meals a day, they have no choice but to show up to work and put themselves in the middle of a crisis.
Global stock markets have taken a huge blow and major economies are on their way to recession, but where do the poor fit in all this?
According to Economic Times, India¡¯s economy is suffering and its financial markets have witnessed a sharp decline due to foreign portfolio investors pulling out of the country's equity markets which has further weakened the rupee.
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It's all in the statistics
Another report published in The Lancet says 2.4 million Indians die every year due to diseases that are treatable and, right now, the world is witnessing a virus whose cure is still on the way. Based on studies, it will probably take at least a year to come into the market.
If millions of Indians can lose their lives over conditions that already have treatments available, we can only imagine what the future holds for us.
On top of it, the quarantine is making people stay at home and for good reason, of course but that just means that even if the poor go out to work, they have no customers since the rest of the world is at home.
According to sources in touch with the writer, cab drivers are breaking down when they get passengers because apparently they are going days without getting bookings. More people like cabbies are suffering through the worst-hit global crisis since World War II.
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Vir Sanghvi, a TV journalist and talk-show host tweeted some advice in order to lend out a helping hand to street vendors. In his tweet, he mentioned how the street vendors and their families will end up starving if people don't buy from them during a time like this.
I feel bad for everyone in the food business during this crisis.
¡ª vir sanghvi (@virsanghvi) March 16, 2020
But worst hit are poor street vendors whose families go hungry when business collapses.
Do what I do.When you see a vendor, buy two plates of what he is making.
You don¡¯t have to eat it.But help him make a living pic.twitter.com/qvMfFHCHkw
He suggested that people buy at least two plates of food from such street vendors and even if you do not want to eat it, at least pay him for the same and offer the food to the needy.
The homeless in our country
According to Global Homelessness Statistics, there are an estimated 1.8 million homeless people in India out of which 52% are in urban areas. Also, based on the same statistics, 73 million Indian families lack the access to decent and sanitary housing. These people have nowhere to go and majority of them do not even have a stable income to support themselves and their families.
Beggars depend on people to help them out but with no people out on the roads, they have no one to turn to. In a country like ours where millions and millions of people live below the poverty line, this pandemic can prove to be more fatal than just losing our lives; it has the potential to demolish entire livelihoods of people and affect poor communities in a fatal manner.
AFP
What you can do
For people who can afford to be on the other side and keep themselves safe from this blow to our lives, help out those who are in need. Tell your domestic help, driver, gardener, security guard etc, to stay at home. Pay them their salaries in advance so that they can buy basic necessities for their families. If you cannot afford to pay them yet, help them out with some groceries so that at least they don't starve.
Since countries are considering to go on lock down just like Italy has, there will be no places left to buy these things from and for the poor, it will be even more difficult because they cannot afford to shop at supermarkets who are also running out of their stocks. The poor depend on small shops and sabzi mandis which are also being shut down due to the virus outbreak.
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This is the time to be a good human being. Help those in need while keeping yourself safe at the same time. All of us are in this together and there is no running away from this. While most of us can do our part by staying at home and praying that things do not get worse, we can at least help out those that do not have the luxury to do the same.
