Who would have thought just a few months ago that 2020 is going to be a turning point for whole of the world where every huge economy and countries with top security measures would be going to fight an unknown enemy?
Corona virus has almost been penetrated in every country of this planet. COVID19 is proliferating beyond the borders of the countries without any exception. Starting from the Wuhan, capital of the Hubei province of the China, this virus is affecting people mercilessly and have turned out to be fatal for the humankind. The material and human cost has been increasing every minute.
As the world has become a global village the extent of interdependence of nations on one another is also the major reason of the spread of the virus.
Juts few weeks ago things were not that alarming then they are today where the number of the patients affected globally had crossed 7 lacs with more than 38,000 deaths till now.
The rapid mounting of death rate in the Italy, Spain and Iran has changed the epicenter of virus from china to Europe. The deadly Corona is not bailing people out based ontheir nationality or racial link. Be it any head of the state or the general masses, everyone is under the same degree of the risk.
If we erase Corona virus from the whole equation of the world affairs, today the headlines in the newspapers and on the tv screens would have been quite different.
America would have been busy in its presidential race; UK would have been engulfed in its Brexit policy and south Asia with its hopeless expectations pinned on the US and AfghanTaliban deal.
But now the whole world is only interested in one thing and that is “when will the vaccine be available?”
The world is at its peak of technological and scientific advancements but still no country has yet been able to achieve this milestone. The most alarming thing is that how the third world countries are going to manage the peak of their corona cases because even one of the most advanced health care systems have not been able to tackle that. We have roaring example of Italy in this regard.
IMF, last week, announced that they are going to write off debt for the poor states in this situation, but those nations also want monetary assistance to manage the worst-case scenarios. Iran is suffering most in this fight against Corona virus mainly due to sanctions. There is no doubt the initial recklessness by the Iranian Government is one of the main reasons of the outbreak but at this stage the severe sanctions are the biggest hurdles in their fight against the Corona virus. Many Iranian government officials have become the target of this virus in the recent few weeks. The most recent victims of this virus, as this article is being written, are the Prime Minister of UK Boris Johnson and Duke of Wales Prince Charles. The number of the patients of COVID19 are increasing every minute. The states that have enforced lockdown as a result of this microbe are not able to predict as in till when this situation is going to last. Daily wagers in every economy are the biggest victim of this virus. The most vulnerable section would not be able to deal with this lockdown for a long time. Now this is up to the world community and various international organizations including IMF, WB and ADB to help the deserving governments in devising a bail out strategy for the most affected section of their respective populations.
After two months of lockdown, Wuhan city has been reopened few days ago. With China reducing its daily number if patients and death rate, the numbers are surging in USA, Iran and Italy. But the most dangerous and disheartening thing is that no country knows any tried and tested formula to curb the spread of this virus until the vaccine is invented.
Every educational institute in almost majority of the world is closed, industries have been shut down , markets have been closed, offices have started work from home policy in short, the life has been halted at the hands of the virus that is not visible to the naked eye. The busiest places in the world have been transformed into the most deserted spots. There is n o hustle bustle in the liveliest places of this world.
Every affected country is fighting an endless battle with this virus without knowing that when this is going to end. WHO emphasizes more and more testing but even the most richest countries on the face of this planet are not able to test every single person. The health workers: including doctors, nurses and the paramedics are combating of the frontline with the most exposure to the virus than anyone else. This also reminds us about the nobility and selflessness about their profession.
The abandoned beach of Miami, empty streets of Venice, vacant mosques of Mecca and Medina, unoccupied streets of Budapest, clear surroundings of Trevi fountain and the closed Louvre museum are the depiction of the consequences that this virus had bought down on the people of this planet. It has restricted people in their homes for God Knows till when.
The world is in the dire need of hope and optimism which unfortunately seems very far away right now. There is emptiness and pessimism all around where no one knows till when this stand still mode is going to be activated. This consistent shallowness presses a thought in one’s mind that is this planet fed up of the daily routine of its inhabitants or it wanted to take some break from the usual happenings of the mankind. Despite of that, the debate that this virus is going to change the social and personal norms of the mankind, is quite uncontested.
The more this present stalemate lasts the more this question persists in one’s mind that Is Earth in the recovery mode?
