Can’t afford to lower guard against covid

Can’t afford to lower guard against covid

Success of vaccine trials is good news — for the future. It is not licence to abandon Covid protocols. Till the vaccine is available and a sizeable proportion of the population inoculated, the Covid-era behavioural protocols must be observed.

This is the only way to protect individuals and the collective. There is a need to rethink funeral processions, marriages, protests, celebrations and even how we queue up for public transport.

This week, we witnessed the protests by farmers from Punjab and Haryana. Large groups of people, many of them maskless, gathering, clashing with police, not observing any of the social distancing norms. The right to protest is an inalienable right, but it is the duty of every person not to endanger the health, well-being and life of others.

Or take the funeral procession for former Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, who passed away from Covid-related complications. It is expected that people will want to say their final goodbyes to a respected leader or a celebrity, but pandemic requires us to be responsible, often forcing family members to forgo their final goodbyes to their loved ones. It is incumbent on those responsible to avoid situations of mass vulnerability.

Leaders, beginning from the local level, and celebrities need to step up and reinforce Covid-appropriate behaviour. Individuals must strictly adhere to Covid protocols of using masks and social distancing, even in public places. They must do this for their own safety, that of their families and loved ones, the community and the country.

The pandemic has required everyone to make sacrifices, and these sacrifices have been necessary to minimise loss of life and suffering. A vaccine may be within reach but now is not the time to throw caution to the winds.