The human civilisation has achieved a lot of success but how lonelyand helpless the civilisation is before a virus i.e Covid-19! It hascreated the biggest challenge for the human race.Every day we are losing our known men. The situation is so tragic that in a family father, son, husband, wife, uncle, cousin are dying and even they have no family members to express grief on their death or to take their bodies to crematorium.
During Covid-19, the individual’s responsibility is to abide by all norms of the Government. They must see that they should not be spreader of the virus but the responsibility of the Government is to ensure an uninterrupted health facility for everybody and to protect the health of every citizen.
It is not that the Government should guard the economy and all economic activities of the country; it has to save the lives of the people as well. In 2020 when this virus was first found in Wuhan of China, it was predicted that the virus will affect India very severely. But at that time, the Modi Government was busy with the Namaste Trump programme. Lakhs of people gathered from the country and outside. Likewise, when the first wave of the virus had subsided, the Kumbhamela was arranged.
Election was also conducted in four States and Union Territory in eight phases. West Bengal election acted as a super spreader and helped in multiplying the Covid patients in the country. Today we are the single-largest Covid infected country of the world with a very high death rate during the 2nd wave of the pandemic. The Central Government under the leadership of PM Modi has failed in controlling the 2nd wave. We failed to save our people in providing medicine, oxygen and hospital beds but our State Government ensured liquor was delivered at home. Our people are dying for want of bed, medicine and oxygen.
Lord Jagannath can only be the saviour of the State.I recall the great famine of Odisha in 1866, also known as the "Naank Durbhikhya". The famine was caused due to the complete failure of the then British Government.
The British administration failed in arresting situation because they had no clear policy, knowledge and vision to check the draught. Lakhs of people lost their lives because of hunger. People were forced to eat the non-eatables, so again they died in large numbers.155 years after the great famine of Odisha, we are not able to change the fait accompli.
In the ongoing year, we are facing double disasters, one, the 2nd wave of Covid-19 and the other, the furious cyclone ‘Yaas’ which hit the State on May 26. It’s undoubtedly a great challenge for any Government.
Thanks to God's grace, the cyclone passed off without causing the expected line of damage. But the way it has been advertised in media is a matter of great concern. I believe the present day Government is busy in making headlines and big advertisement rather than facing the real issues. During 1999 Super Cyclone the causality was very high because we did not have sophisticated systems to predict the storm accurately like radar and other scientific apparatus as it is possible today.
Because of the doppler radar, the Met department is now able to predict a cyclone before a week. From 2013 to 2021 Odisha has faced eight cyclones such as Titli, Bulbul, Hudhud, Fani, Amphan and Yaas, but every time we are engaged in evacuating lakhs of people in the affected district.
Why the number of evacuees is not decreasing, even though we have given pucca houses in various State and Central plans to the people. During Yaas, the State administration evacuated 6 lakh people, but as per the confirmed sources people have registered their names in order to get cyclone relief. Most of the people left the cyclone shelters by only putting the signature. It is known to everybody that pucca houses were distributed on political affiliation. Most of the concrete houses were distributed among the ruling party workers but not among the real beneficiaries.
The situation is worse in hospitals. To get a bed in the hospital you need a lobby. Our Governments went on increasing the price of essential commodities like edible oils, pulses and other food items. Petrol and diesel prices have crossed the Rs100- mark per liter. Cooking gas price has risen to Rs 950 per cylinder. It appears as if the Governments are there to loot the people and that too, during such a crisis period. Lockdowns and shutdowns in our State are meant to collecting fines from vehicles, not fighting Covid-19.
In spite of such unspeakable human crisis, our Governments are trumpeting about their achievements. Odisha is collecting award after award in mitigating Cyclone Yaas. Unless and until people do not realise the truth, the situation cannot improve. False assurance or immediate relief is not the solution.
(The writer is president, Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee)