Corona virus and Normalcy
Will the normalcy be restored after the pandemic is over?
Will the world go back to how it was or is it the beginning of a new chapter in the history of man kind and also the 21st century? The answer to this question is difficult to per se. But it would be something afresh that is for sure.Before this pandemic,the world was a monotonous and robotic life lived by human beings. I sometimes wonder,was this pandemic necessary for us,to make us just stop and think about our lives even if it just for few hour or minutes. Now that this pandemic has struck us,we have got plenty of time in our hands to think the road ahead of us and how we want to live it in the future.
To think of normalcy at this point is beyond my imagination.Whenever I think of it,gives me chills and makes me want to imagine the world before this pandemic casted a blanket over the world.
When I stepped out for the first time after the lock-down was issued,it was an alien feeling for me.The streets wore a deserted look,people being confined to their houses,the stadiums and amusement parks have gone eerie silent and the enthusiastic voices cannot be heard,the vehicles parked in the garage untouched with dust covering them up like sugar coat on the cakes. But at the same time,it was freedom for the animals and birds to wander around. Every morning when I get up,I hear the sweet voices of koel and cuckoo singing.The dogs barking in the distant.Even saw a couple of photos and video of peacock,who had taken it to the streets of India.
This is a surreal moment for anyone.Never had anyone imagined that such a day might come which would be worse in the history of mankind.This pandemic is bigger than The Spanish flu of 1918,the World War I,the Great Depression and World War II. Such an unprecedented level of lock down and fall of economies around the world has pushed all countries into recession and some countries into knee deep poverty.According to the International Monetary Fund the world economy will grow by about 5.8% in 2021 but that too with the help of respective countries government.Let alone,India’s economy is predicted to be growing around 1.9% for FY20. Whereas India’s growth forecast is said to be around 4.8% for FY20.
With countries already in recession and some laying off jobs which has lead to massive amount of unemployment, the world is not going back to normalcy anytime soon. The economies of all the world put together have accounted for a loss of about 2$ trillion dollars for 2020. This corona virus is bigger than the SARS outbreak which took place in 2002–03. The result of that is in-front of you people.
I don’t know what normalcy is anymore.Is this the new normal, where we maintain social distance from our loved one and colleagues? Social distancing,quarantine,lock-down,isolation are some of the new words that people all over the world have started to hear frequently. Will these words be leaving us anytime soon? Will we continue to live in fear even after the lock-down is removed?
According to WHO (WORLD HEALTH ORGANISATION),normalcy won’t happen until the vaccine for the virus is prepared which is at-least gonna take about a year give or take.What shall we do till then? Live cautiously,maintain social distance,practice proper hygiene,value our lives,take necessary breaks in everyday life to reflect upon oneself,be kind,be loving,accept this is gonna be a new kind of normalcy where you see no handshakes,no hugs,no kisses,just gloves and masks over people’s hand and face. This too shall pass away as we have been told time and again. Mankind is being tested at this moment,we can only sit back and see if we win this war.