Attend to People's Concerns on a War-Footing
The country has entered the second week of the 21-day lockdown to
contain the community spread of COVID-19 pandemic.
Many problems have surfaced in a sharp manner which need to be
resolved urgently. Many of these were anticipated but unfortunately no
remedial action was taken before the announcement of the lockdown.
1. Crores of people have lost their sources of livelihood. The exodus
of migrant workers from urban centres has shown the degree of
unsettling of people's livelihood that this sudden lockdown
announcement caused. There is an urgent need to stop the growth of
widespread hunger and malnutrition. The COVID-19 pandemic feeds on
such conditions of the people. The promised Rs5000 to all Jandhan, Bpl
and unorganized workers must be transferred immediately. The central
government must provide 35kgs per family to all migrant workers and
poor ,with or without ration cards, from the 7.5 crore of stock of
food-grains, all across the country. Proper health care facilities for
the migrant workers and others who have travelled from various parts
must be put in place. Effective and hygienic quarantine facilities
must be established in all parts of the country. Police brutalities on
migrant workers must be put an end to and strict action must be taken
against those who gave such orders.
In all urban centres, particularly in the large conglomeration of
urban slums, provision of food grains and essentials to the needy is
urgently needed to prevent hunger, starvation and the community spread
of COVID-19.
This is the harvest season. The farmers need to be supported to ensure
that the food crop is not wasted which is essential for our food
security.
2. Much of this work will have to be undertaken in the states. The
state governments are already facing severe financial crunch and would not be in a position to undertake these tasks. They must be liberally
assisted financially by the Centre. Limit on States' borrowing must be increased. On this depends the life and livelihood of crores of Indian people.
3. During the lockdown increasing reports are now appearing of growing
shortages of essential commodities and medicines. There is no clarity on the movement of trucks carrying essential goods across the states.
This must be set right immediately and all essential requirements of the people must be met.
4. There is a growing genuine complaint from the health workers who
are courageously discharging their duties, of the lack of personal protective equipment and medicines. They must be provided immediately.
Equipments like Ventilators must be acquired urgently on priority.
People suffering from other life-threatening conditions cannot be
neglected for treatment by the health facilities. Some reports have
estimated that at least 43 such patients have died so far.These must
be augmented by the central government urgently.
5. Large scale testing for COVID-19 should be undertaken during this period of lockdown to identify clusters where this pandemic is
spreading, isolate those areas and treat the people properly. The ICMR has now approved a rapid testing kit. This must be deployed on a large
scale across the country. Currently, India's testing rate is one of the lowest in the world. It is 241 times lower than South Korea.
6. There is growing concern over the rabid communal campaigns being conducted after the Tablighi Jamaat congregation which was an act of
gross irresponsibility by the organisers. But to convert that into a
campaign for communal polarisation only divides the united effort required by all Indians to battle this pandemic and defeat it.
Effective steps must be taken to dispel stigma, generating empathy not
criminalizing patients. Curb fake news and communicate scientific facts of the pandemic. The central government should urgently intervene to ensure that this fight against COVID-19 is a fight in which all of us are united and determined to defeat it.
Repeated calls for people's solidarity actions by the PM cannot substitute the need to address the above issues on a war footing.
It is called upon the central government to immediately
undertake these measures in the interests of our people's welfare and
to strengthen out fight against COVID-
The country has entered the second week of the 21-day lockdown to
contain the community spread of COVID-19 pandemic.
Many problems have surfaced in a sharp manner which need to be
resolved urgently. Many of these were anticipated but unfortunately no
remedial action was taken before the announcement of the lockdown.
1. Crores of people have lost their sources of livelihood. The exodus
of migrant workers from urban centres has shown the degree of
unsettling of people's livelihood that this sudden lockdown
announcement caused. There is an urgent need to stop the growth of
widespread hunger and malnutrition. The COVID-19 pandemic feeds on
such conditions of the people. The promised Rs5000 to all Jandhan, Bpl
and unorganized workers must be transferred immediately. The central
government must provide 35kgs per family to all migrant workers and
poor ,with or without ration cards, from the 7.5 crore of stock of
food-grains, all across the country. Proper health care facilities for
the migrant workers and others who have travelled from various parts
must be put in place. Effective and hygienic quarantine facilities
must be established in all parts of the country. Police brutalities on
migrant workers must be put an end to and strict action must be taken
against those who gave such orders.
In all urban centres, particularly in the large conglomeration of
urban slums, provision of food grains and essentials to the needy is
urgently needed to prevent hunger, starvation and the community spread
of COVID-19.
This is the harvest season. The farmers need to be supported to ensure
that the food crop is not wasted which is essential for our food
security.
2. Much of this work will have to be undertaken in the states. The
state governments are already facing severe financial crunch and would not be in a position to undertake these tasks. They must be liberally
assisted financially by the Centre. Limit on States' borrowing must be increased. On this depends the life and livelihood of crores of Indian people.
3. During the lockdown increasing reports are now appearing of growing
shortages of essential commodities and medicines. There is no clarity on the movement of trucks carrying essential goods across the states.
This must be set right immediately and all essential requirements of the people must be met.
4. There is a growing genuine complaint from the health workers who
are courageously discharging their duties, of the lack of personal protective equipment and medicines. They must be provided immediately.
Equipments like Ventilators must be acquired urgently on priority.
People suffering from other life-threatening conditions cannot be
neglected for treatment by the health facilities. Some reports have
estimated that at least 43 such patients have died so far.These must
be augmented by the central government urgently.
5. Large scale testing for COVID-19 should be undertaken during this period of lockdown to identify clusters where this pandemic is
spreading, isolate those areas and treat the people properly. The ICMR has now approved a rapid testing kit. This must be deployed on a large
scale across the country. Currently, India's testing rate is one of the lowest in the world. It is 241 times lower than South Korea.
6. There is growing concern over the rabid communal campaigns being conducted after the Tablighi Jamaat congregation which was an act of
gross irresponsibility by the organisers. But to convert that into a
campaign for communal polarisation only divides the united effort required by all Indians to battle this pandemic and defeat it.
Effective steps must be taken to dispel stigma, generating empathy not
criminalizing patients. Curb fake news and communicate scientific facts of the pandemic. The central government should urgently intervene to ensure that this fight against COVID-19 is a fight in which all of us are united and determined to defeat it.
Repeated calls for people's solidarity actions by the PM cannot substitute the need to address the above issues on a war footing.
It is called upon the central government to immediately
undertake these measures in the interests of our people's welfare and
to strengthen out fight against COVID-
