EDITORS' PICK

The pandemic has forced most of us to stay put at homes and adapt to new ways of getting things done. While many of us have adjusted to this new life, several people across the country have been hit hard. With no food, water, shelter, access to public health and awareness, this vulnerable population, which includes daily wage workers, homeless, migrants, and senior citizens, is at risk of contracting the coronavirus. In most cases, this is after they have lost their jobs or have no way of earning. However, there are several individuals and groups who have come out to…

Translated by Sandhya Raju கோவிட் வைரஸ் தொற்று குறித்து மத்திய அரசு பல முன்னெச்செரிக்கை நடவடிக்கைகளை அறிவித்துள்ளது. எனினும் தொற்று பராவமல் தடுக்க அடுக்குமாடி குடியிருப்புகள் கட்டாயமாக சில நடவடிக்கைகளை மேற்கொள்ள வேண்டும். இது குறித்த சில பொது கேள்விகளும் பதில்களும்: பாதுகாவலர்களும், வேலையாட்களும் கடைபிடிக்கவேண்டியவை? குடியிருப்பு பகுதிகளுக்கு வரும் வெளியாட்களை இவர்கள் அதிகம் சந்திக்க நேரிடுவதால், இவர்களுக்கு முக கவசம், சோப், போதிய தண்ணீர் வசதி, கிருமி நாசினி ஆகியவற்றை வழங்க வேண்டும். லிஃப்ட் பட்டன்களை கிருமி நாசினியால் துடைப்பது கடினம் என்பதால் ஒரே ஒரு பாதுகாவலர் மட்டுமே இதை இயக்க வேண்டும். அவர் இல்லாத சமயத்தில், மக்கள் படிகளில் செல்வது நல்லது என சுகாதாரத் துறை அதிகாரிகள் அறிவுறுத்துகிறார்கள். வெளியாட்களிடம் சுவாச சுகாதாரம் (இருமும் போதும், தும்மும் போதும் வாயையும் மூக்கையும் சட்டையாலும், கைக்குட்டையாலும் மூட அறிவுறுத்துதல்),  சோப்பால் கை கழுவுதல் குறித்து விழிப்புணர்வை இவர்கள் ஏற்படுத்தலாம். விழிப்புணர்வு…

It has come to our notice that this article has been forwarded on several chat and social media platforms with a MISLEADING introduction that the Disaster Management Act prohibits any citizen, apart from the government, to post any update or share any forward related to Coronavirus, making it a punishable offence. This is NOT what the article below says; it merely explains the provisions of the said law, and points out that **FAKE** claims and warnings may attract penalties under Sections 52 and 54 of the Act. Fake news peddlers may now face imprisonment of up to one year or…

The spread of the novel coronavirus pandemic across the world has brought entire nations to a standstill. As a measure to prevent extensive transmission of the virus, the Government of India announced an extensive lockdown for a period of 21 days starting March 25. During this time, all no-essential shops, establishments and non-essential activities have been ordered to be stopped. All citizens have been advised to remain indoors and only step out in case of emergencies.  While the strict lockdown measures are essential to curb the virus, the move has left people from various walks of life vulnerable, with many…

Volunteers are most often people who lead from the front, blaze the trail on ground zero and set the path for others to follow. And the others inevitably do follow, because goodness and giving have a ripple effect like none other. Chennai is no stranger to such phenomena and our citizens are not new to volunteering in times of normalcy and disaster, alike. As a volunteer, I have been part of citizenship efforts in times normal and severely abnormal. In terms of the latter, we have volunteered through floods, water scarcity, cyclones and earthquakes. We have rallied thousands of volunteers…

Michael Ryan, Executive Director of the World Health Organisation recently said that India has tremendous capacity in eradicating the coronavirus pandemic. He cited the country’s success in handling polio and smallpox, both through targeted public intervention. Of these, the smallpox story is directly connected to the history of Chennai, for it was here that the first decisive public intervention was done. And the man behind it was Dr Ayyagari Ramachandra Rao, the institution being the Communicable Diseases Hospital (CDH), Tondiarpet. I have written before about him, but a repeat is still worthwhile. Summer may pack in a whole host of…

The ever-bustling Velachery Main Road in Chennai is deserted now, thanks to the impending imposition of Section 144 by the Tamil Nadu government. The coronavirus scare has led people to stay indoors and maintain social distance fearing contact transmission. In many parts of the city, shops are open only for a few hours and there is panic buying to stock up on essentials. There is an informal instruction issued by the cops to shut down supermarkets to limit crowding. In this scenario, have the small businesses in Chennai seen an increase in business yet? Sadly not. With lockdown in force,…

There has been a strange silence, both before and after the Janata curfew. Even as the rest of the world announces massive economic relief packages to tackle the Corona spread and help those whose livelihoods have been badly hit by the virus, the Narendra Modi government has said and done little on this so far. Trade unions and other groups have sent numerous recommendations to the Centre on steps that can be taken in the short term But even the economic task force, which the PM had announced during his address to the nation, has so far not yet been…

Sheikh Serafat Hussain is a 70-year-old typist who operates from the footpath outside the Calcutta High Court. Even as the court premises teem with litigants and lawyers, Hussain, who has been sitting outside the high court for over 40 years, finds ample time to talk to visitors over a cup of tea or go for a casual amble during the court’s working hours. Hussain is the last of the typists who were once ubiquitous outside the high court, typing out people's petitions and other documents needed by litigants at the court. “We typists belong to a bygone era that will…

Kerala has received kudos for its proactive measures in this time of COVID19 crisis. First in tracking corona patients and their contacts and creating adequate testing, treatment and isolation of potential victims and the other steps like setting up screening in railway stations to contain the spread of the virus. And the second, for being first state to announce a Rs 20,000 crore economic package providing relief to the poor and other vulnerable sections of society who have been hard hit by the virus spread. Critics have described the measures as a sop to woo voters for the local body…