A microbe, technically not even a living organism, unleashed by China, not before experiencing significant damage despite massive cover up is bringing the whole mankind on its knees. The task before the mankind as it struggles to grasp the latest bio-challenge is manifold and needs no hyperbole. The virus originating in wild animal market in Wuhan spreads through human transmission and traces of virus left on the surfaces by the currently infected. Chinese cover-up and perhaps an underestimation of the threats by the Europeans have made the battle seemingly unconquerable at least for the moment. There is no doubt that world would conquer this invisible warrior yet the damage might be huge. Irreparable socio-cultural-economic changes will follow the victory no matter when it is achieved.
It is perhaps a lonely battle for many on the frontline. To the doctors, their support staff comprising of nurses, ward-boys, technicians, lab assistants and many others, the race is to save lives in the face of unknown challenger with no known cure yet. The attempts at treatment are more or less a trial and error approach which itself might be prone to errors resulting in death or other complications yet untested and unobserved. This puts a pressure on the pharmaceutical industry, the biotechnologists, virologists, chemists, scientists, experimentalists, epidemiologists among many others as they seek to try and discover a medicine for cure and a vaccine for prevention. While some trials have happened, they are still in the infancy and the universe stares at a long haul. There has been some progress in testing mechanisms leading to reduction in the lead time between symptoms, diagnosis and commencement of treatment. Yet even the same seems to be in scarcity forcing many others to adopt selective mechanisms for testing. India has slowly expanding the scope for testing following the steps of Japan whereas, South Korea adopted very aggressive testing model perhaps feasible given the population and the clusters it spread into.
The only known mechanism to stop the spread is to reduce the reproduction ratio. The reproduction ration reduces only when the Wuhan virus fails to transmit to another recipient. This is possible only when the infected is completely isolated and does not contact anybody else till such time he or she gets completely cured. Therefore, social distancing or social isolation is the only known mechanism for the same. Yet people naturally being social animals cannot remain isolated. To them, a short term horizon tends to revolve around the personal risk which they feel would be low. Secondly, as they measure the risk as against uncertainty, there is a feeling of invincibility which makes them abandon the caution throwing it to the winds. From South Korea to Iran to Italy to Thailand to Malaysia, mass events became a catalyst for the super-spreaders to expand their tentacles all over the place. The only solution is to quarantine the suspects and the number increases with the increase in the number of positive cases. Contact tracing begins to have demising return. Yet the pursuit of contact tracing necessitates team of law and order thus the irreplaceable role of the police and perhaps in the later stages the para military forces and maybe even armed forces. The health workers, municipal workers too have to play a role in the same. As the lockdown is imposed, there are chances of law and order breaking down. Further the reactions of the people cannot be gauged or predicted in times of panic. The moment panic happens, all the mess is let loose. An instance is the migration outwards from Mumbai, Pune, Kerala to other parts of the city. In such times, the presence of effective law and order team is sine qua non.
Leading them with directions would be the force of the government departments including district and divisional administrators among others. The chain climbs upto the highest level at the centre. It is the calmness which these handle or at least the calm which they manifest in their interactions with the public and representatives of public that sends a message of control and motivation downstream.
A sign of an understanding, resilient and cooperative citizenry would be to demonstrate an expression of gratitude and support to all those unsung and unnamed warriors of the frontline. It is impossible to express the same at an individual basis. In economics, the high transaction costs are sought to be substituted by signals. One such signal would be demonstration of such a gratitude to the soldiers through an action that conveys them the message firm and reassuring. The sounds of the claps, bells, conch shells, plates, pre-recorded mobile sounds among many others was perhaps the best way to record the same. Therefore the meeting of sounds in appreciation of the soldiers on the war on the Wuhan virus on March 22, 2020, 5.00 PM for five minutes or so (but carried on for nearly 40-45 minutes) represented such a signal. Moreover, the fact that there was an overwhelming response to the Janata curfew to a call by Prime Minister Modi, was another strong signal and indicator of Indian resolve to fight the epidemic. It might have been symbolic yet symbols have significant import particularly in an uncertain long haul battles.
Thoughts on Theory and Practice 