A PERVASIVE PANDEMIC AND ITS BARBAROUS REPERCUSSIONS

PREFACE:

Pandemics are large-scale outbreaks of infectious disease that can greatly increase
morbidity and mortality over a wide geographic area and cause significant economic,
social, and political disruption. Evidence suggests that the likelihood of pandemics
has increased over the past century because of increased global travel and
integration, urbanization, changes in land use, and greater exploitation of the natural
environment. These trends are likely to continue and intensify. Significant policy
attention has focused on the need to identify and limit emerging outbreaks that might
lead to pandemics and to expand and sustain investment to build preparedness and
health capacity. Pandemics are generally classified as epidemics first, which is the
rapid spread of a disease across a particular region or regions. The Zika virus
outbreak that began in Brazil in 2014 and made its way across the Caribbean and
Latin America was an epidemic, as was the Ebola outbreak in West Africa in 2014-
2016 and the most recent being the COVID-19 pandemic, declared as such by the
World Health Organization on March 12, 2020.

Pandemics can cause significant, widespread increases in morbidity and mortality

and have disproportionately higher mortality impacts on LMICs. Pandemics can
cause economic damage through multiple channels, including short-term fiscal
shocks and longer-term negative shocks to economic growth. Individual behavioural
changes, such as fear-induced aversion to workplaces and other public gathering
places are a primary cause of negative shocks to economic growth during
pandemics. Some pandemic mitigation measures can cause significant social and
economic disruption. In countries with weak institutions and legacies of political
instability, pandemics can increase political stresses and tensions. In these contexts,
outbreak response measures such as quarantines have sparked violence and
tension between states and citizens.

Difference between the widespread of an endemic, epidemic and pandemic

CHAPTER 1 : The Out Break of The Spanish Flu

Disease and illnesses have plagued humanity since the earliest days, our mortal
flaw. However, it was not until the marked shift to agrarian communities that the
scale and spread of these diseases increased dramatically. Widespread trade
created new opportunities for human and animal interactions that sped up such
epidemics. Malaria, tuberculosis, leprosy, influenza, smallpox, and others first
appeared during these early years. And due to such epidemics was founded the
World Health Organization - a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible
for international public health on 7 April ,1948. The pandemics have not come to a
stop even till today however it acts as a directing and coordinating authority on
international health work, to ensure valid and productive technical cooperation, and
to promote research. According to the sources the Spanish Flu was declared as one
of the deadliest pandemic with a death rate of approximately 60 million people.

Doctors in the laboratory working to find the prevention for the Spanish Flu

The outbreak began in 1918, during the final months of World War I, and historians
now believe that the conflict may have been partly responsible for spreading the
virus. On the Western Front, soldiers living in cramped, dirty and damp conditions
became ill. This was a direct result of weakened immune systems from
malnourishment. Their illnesses, which were known as "la grippe," were infectious,
and spread among the ranks. Within around three days of becoming ill, many
soldiers would start to feel better, but not all would make it. The pandemic out broke
in 4 segments or ‘waves’ -

First wave of spring 1918

The pandemic is conventionally marked as having begun on 4 March 1918, with the
recording of the case of Albert Gitchell, an army cook at Camp Funston in Kansas,
United States, despite there likely having been cases before him. The disease had
been observed in Haskell County in January 1918, prompting local doctor Loring
Miner to warn the US Public Health Service's academic journal. Within days,
522 men at the camp had reported sick. By 11 March 1918, the virus had
reached Queens, New York. Failure to take preventive measures in March/April was
later criticised. The first wave of the flu lasted from spring-summer 1918 and was
relatively mild. Mortality rates were not appreciably above normal in the United
States ~75,000 flu-related deaths were reported in the first six months of 1918,
compared to ~63,000 deaths during the same time period in 1915. In Madrid, Spain,
fewer than 1,000 people died from influenza between May and June 1918. There
were no reported quarantines during spring 1918. However, the first wave caused a
significant disruption in the military operations of World War I, with 3/4 of French
troops, half the British forces, and over 900,000 German soldiers sick.

Deadly second wave of fall 1918

The second wave began in the second half of August, probably spreading
to Boston and Freetown, Sierra Leone by ships from Brest, where it had likely arrived
with American troops or French recruits for naval training. In the next two months it
spread over to all of North America, and then to Central and South America, also
reaching Brazil and the Caribbean on ships. From Freetown, the pandemic
continued to spread through West Africa along the coast, rivers, and the colonial
railways, and from railheads to more remote communities, while South Africa
received it in September on ships bringing back members of the South African
Native Labour Corps returning from France. From there it spread around Southern
Africa and beyond the Zambezi, reaching Ethiopia in November. From Europe the
second wave swept through Russia in a southwest-northeast diagonal front, as well
as being brought to Arkhangelsk by the North Russia intervention, and then spread
throughout Asia following the Russian Civil War and the Trans-Siberian railway,
reaching Iran where it spread through the holy city of Mashhad, and India in
September, as well as China and Japan in October. The celebrations of
the Armistice of 11 November 1918 also caused outbreaks in Lima and Nairobi, but
by December the wave was mostly over.

A hospital showing patients of the second wave of the Spanish Flu

Third wave of 1919

In January 1919 a third wave of the Spanish Flu hit Australia, where it killed 12,000
following the lifting of a maritime quarantine, and then spread quickly through Europe
and the United States, where it lingered through the Spring and until June 1919. It
primarily affected Spain, Serbia, Mexico and Great Britain, resulting in hundreds of
thousands of deaths.  It was less severe than the second wave but still much more
deadly than the initial first wave. In the United States, isolated outbreaks occurred in
some cities including Los Angeles, New York City, Memphis, Nashville, San
Francisco and St. Louis. Overall American mortality rates were in the tens of
thousands during the first six months of 1919.

Fourth wave of 1920

In spring 1920 a very minor fourth wave occurred in isolated areas including New
York City, the United Kingdom, Austria, Scandinavia, and some South American
islands. Peru experienced a wave in early 1920, and Japan had one from late 1919
to 1920.

CHAPTER 2 : Impact of the Deadly Pandemic in China

In the first phase of the 1918 pandemic in Canton (now called Guangzhou) in
Guangdong Province adjacent to Hong Kong, Cadbury reported that most of the
cases in the June outbreak were young people 11–20 years of age, with a male
preponderance. Later in October of the same year most people infected were
between 11 and 15 years of age. Mortality was relatively low, in great contrast to the
situation in Europe and the USA, where all ages were apparently affected, with most
deaths occurring in young adults, particularly 15–34 year-olds.17, 18 In 1927, Jordan
wrote in his book that influenza did occur in early 1918 in China, but the outbreaks
were minor, and did not spread widely. Dr A. Stanley who was employed by the
Shanghai Health Bureau at that time, described in a private letter written on February
11, 1919 that, “At the end of May influenza started and lasted until June. In October
to November the influenza reoccurred with more serious symptoms. Earlier, most of
the patients had headache, extreme fatigue, sore throat and fever; these symptoms
lasted 4 to 5 days. Erythema was found on the necks and the patients were usually
misdiagnosed as scarlet fever. But from September onwards the pattern of the
illness was changed suddenly; the number of influenza patients was sharply
increased, often with serious symptoms. Some patients were complicated
with bronchitis, pneumonia, and even hemolysis. However the death toll still
remained low”. This report published in the China Medical Journal (English) by the
foreign medical practitioner was very close in detail to other relevant reports for the
same event at that time except with respect to the death rate. From the limited
available records we are confident that the 1918 Spanish influenza did spread in
China from the south (Shanghai, Guangzhou) to the north as far as Harbin even to
remote regions like Gejiu Yunnan Province. To investigate how widespread influenza
was in China in 1918–19, 45 treaty ports of China were reviewed as recorded in
the Returns of Trade and Trade Reports for 1918 and 1919. Among them, for seven
ports – Changsha, Jiujiang, Hangkou, Fuzhou, Nanning, Lungchow and Tengyueh –
no mention was made in the reports for either 1918 or 1919 nor was any other
disease or health matter referred to. For another 12 ports – Dalian, Tianjin, Yochow,
Wuhu, Zhenjiang, Ningbo, Santuao (Fujian), Shantou, Kowloon, Lappa, Pakhoi and
Mengtsz – influenza was not referred to, but there was mention of some other
disease or health matter. For the remaining 26 ports, influenza was reported in 1918
or 1919. These ports were situated in different parts of China, from the far northeast
(Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoling) to Guangdong in the south, with influenza reported
from every coastal province in between (Hebei, Shangdong, Jiangsu, Zhenjiang, and
Fujian), as well as from some provinces further inland (Guangxi, Hubei, Sichuan and
Yunnan).13, 14 However the severity of the epidemic in China was apparently not as
serious as that in Europe, the USA, and India. As an active port of China, Canton
(Guangdong) accommodated many foreigners at that time, such as missionaries,
doctors and businessmen. Apparently few foreigners in Canton suffered from
influenza; none of them died of it. The influenza symptoms described in June were
mild; apart from chills, temperature ranged between 39 and 40 °C. Other symptoms
such as fever, headache, back pain, and leg pain were also observed and some
cases had vomiting and fatigue. Only a few cases presented with symptoms of
pneumonia and bronchitis. If the outbreak in China was just like the situation in
Europe and the USA, the death rate in China should have been higher because at
that time the economic and healthcare situation in China was very poor. However the
situation appeared different. According to a statistical report of a Guangdong hospital
no person died of influenza in June and only four persons died in October 1918. The
average mortality was 0.1%. Summarizing the data from Shanghai, Hong Kong and
Guangdong, the overall mortality in China was still much lower than other countries
and regions in the 1918 influenza pandemic.

People in a hospital in Hong Kong waiting for their treatment to be done

CHAPTER 3 : Changes Bought About After the Formation of WHO

WHO Was formed in 1948. Since then, it has played a key leadership role in
combating novel diseases, pandemics and epidemics. Infectious diseases have
been a long standing threat to humans. WHO has done a phenomenal job of
controlling, treating, researching on and educating the masses about these diseases.
Before the formation of WHO, the world had overcome pandemics, but in a rather
inefficient manner. Global coordination as well as focus on research about the
pathogen was lacking. Nations downplayed the extent of the contagion, they did not
openly and squarely acknowledge the presence of the disease and tried to prove
that it was something else. This ignorance and denial lead to loss of life at an
unprecedented scale. Science and technology in the early twentieth century and
before that was not advanced enough to tackle-infectious diseases at a large scale.
Improper monitoring of the spread and inaccurate identification of symptoms,
causative agents and vectors largely contributed to the mortality. However, after its
formation, WHO has taken prompt action against outbreaks it has done a
phenomenal job in developing plans, standards, strategies and guidelines to help
countries improve their healthcare infrastructure. it has been training health workers
and researching on potential and existing threats tirelessly with regard to HIV, WHO
has helped tremendously in monitoring the infection rate and availability of treatment
and prevention services and advocating for greater global attention and commitment
to the disease Regarding the SARS Outbreak in 2002, WHO Coordinated the
unprecedented Global response and helped the affected countries and areas
manage the outbreak. WHO overlooked all the operations, from reducing initial
denial to mass mobilization to controlling the devastating, rapidly spreading disease.

The logo of World Health Organization (WHO)

CHAPTER 4 : The Ebola Virus Out Break

Ebola virus disease (EVD) is a deadly disease with occasional outbreaks that occur
primarily on the African continent. EVD most commonly affects people and
nonhuman primates (such as monkeys, gorillas, and chimpanzees). It is caused by
an infection with a group of viruses within the genus Ebola virus. It had an impact the
people and their economy in several different ways like-

1. Less trade and transportation

An Ebola outbreak may lead to restrictions on trade and transportation to prevent
transmission of the virus. This may mean the limit of goods moved within a country.
It also means limiting the movement of people and goods between countries. For
example, in 2014, Sierra Leone declared a lockdown for three days to decrease the
movement of people and to give healthcare workers a chance to identify new cases
and spread awareness about the disease. The country also placed quarantine
restrictions on high-risk areas and set curfews, which lasted as long as several
months in some areas. Situations like this can harm an economy that relies heavily
on cross-border trade. According to the Africa Economic Brief, informal cross-border
trade is a source of income for about 43 percent of Africa's population.

2. Reduced tourism
News of an Ebola outbreak prevents tourists from traveling to countries where an
outbreak exists. Many countries rely on tourism economically. For example,
according to the World Bank, receipts from 2012 added up to over $36 billion and
contributed 2.8 percent to the gross domestic product (GDP) in the sub-Saharan
Africa region.

When the Ebola epidemic hit West Africa, borders closed and airlines stopped.
According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, tourist arrivals went down by
half from 2013 to 2014. In addition, tourists saw the entire continent of Africa as a
risk, even though the Ebola outbreak was not all over Africa. For example, countries
such as Kenya, which is located thousands of miles from the West Africa Ebola
zone, saw a drastic decrease in tourism due to fear of Ebola. According to the CDC,
most travellers are at very low risk of getting Ebola. Despite this, tourism declines
during outbreaks.

3. Decreased agricultural production

The epidemic had an adverse effect on agricultural market chains in the three West
African countries, particularly on communities that rely on agriculture as a main
source of income. The Ebola epidemic mostly impacted the transporting of
agricultural goods to consumption areas. Workers were afraid of traveling to
contaminated areas, and the number of traders decreased by 20 percent at the
height of the epidemic. This lowered farmers' incomes and led to unstable crop
prices.

Local rice production, for example, was affected due to difficulty maintaining farmer
groups, but the decrease in production was contained at the national level. Farmers
were encouraged to continue farmer group activity and take measures to reduce
infection risk for workers. Overall, an Ebola outbreak disrupts agricultural production,
and may lead to fewer crops and higher food prices.

4. Decreased mining activity

An Ebola outbreak leads to decreased mining activity due to travel restrictions and
loss of workers. For example, the epidemic decreased mining for gold and diamonds
in Liberia due to mobility restrictions. The prices of bauxite, iron ore and
gold declined by 30 to 60 percent compared to previous years in the three West
African countries hit by the virus. Also, according to The Wall Street Journal, the
Ebola epidemic delayed mining projects meant to be filled by thousands of
workers in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. One example is the mining company
Rio Tinto, which stopped work on a $20 billion iron ore mine in an area affected by
the virus. The virus sent many skilled workers away in fear of getting infected, and
projects came to a halt.

5. Fewer investors
Investors lose confidence in companies located in Ebola-afflicted areas. For
example, in Liberia, Arcelor Mittal, a large mining company, put a hold on
investments to expand mining production of iron ore during the epidemic. A second
large company, China Union, closed its operation in response to the epidemic.

6. High fiscal impact

When Ebola strikes, economic activity goes down. Declining economic activity
reduces revenue from taxes and tariffs. In 2015, the deficits were estimated at 8.5
percent of GDP in Liberia, 4.8 percent in Sierra Leone and 9.4 percent in Guinea.
However, financial assistance reduced some of the shock.

7. Higher unemployment
In 2016, the World Bank reported there was a 40 percent decrease in those working
in Liberia since the epidemic began. As a result of the 2014 Ebola epidemic, the
private sector in Sierra Leone lost half its workers.

With companies shutting their doors and households afraid to go to work or send
their children to school, it's easy to see how an Ebola outbreak grinds productivity to
a halt.

Soon after WHO representative Mark arrived in Liberia, his team learned of rampant
Ebola outbreaks in remote parts of the country. Hours later he found himself trekking
miles into the jungle. Mark described coming across grave after grave along the path
as they approached a village. “When we finally got to the village, it was deserted.
People were hiding in the forest or had fled to neighbouring villages, taking the virus
with them. ”Mark and his colleagues immediately started contact tracing. “We quickly
learned that contact tracing wouldn’t work here. There were dozens of unknown
Ebola contacts scattered across the dense forest and there was no cell phone signal
to coordinate teams. Villages were connected only by narrow forest trails that were
unreachable even by motorbike. ”Mark and his team set up a system based on a
traditional method of communication used in these villages for hundreds of years.
“We worked with the village chiefs in the surrounding area to identify trusted
members of their community who would be responsible for asking every villager how
they were feeling each day. They would have a runner, usually a child, sprint the
information back to the central village, which then connected every day with the
district health team to pass on the information.” As Ebola cases were found, Mark
helped set up an isolation area and brought in Doctors Without Borders (MSF) to
treat patients. Symptoms of Ebola virus disease (EVD) are treated as they appear.
When used early, basic interventions can significantly improve the chances of
survival. These include providing fluids and electrolytes (body salts) through infusion
into the vein (intravenously). Offering oxygen therapy to maintain oxygen status.
Using medication to support blood pressure, reduce vomiting and diarrhea and to
manage fever and pain. Treating other infections, if they occur.

Ebola virus disease (EVD) is a very rare disease that has only occurred because of
cases that were acquired in other countries, eventually followed by person-to-person
transmission. EVD is most common in parts of sub-Saharan Africa, with occasional
outbreaks occurring in people. In these areas, Ebola virus is believed to circulate at
low rates in certain animal populations (enzootic). Occasionally people become sick
with Ebola after coming into contact with these infected animals, which can then lead
to Ebola outbreaks where the virus spreads between people. When living in or
traveling to a region where Ebola virus is present, there are a number of ways to
protect yourself and prevent the spread of EVD

 Contact with blood and body fluids (such as urine, feces, saliva, sweat and
vomit) of persons who are ill.
 Contact with semen from a man who has recovered from EVD, until testing
verifies the virus is gone from the semen.
 Items that may have come in contact with an infected person’s blood or body
fluids (such as clothes, bedding, needles, and medical equipment).
 Funeral or burial rituals that require handling the body of someone who died
from EVD.
 Contact with bats and nonhuman primates’ blood, fluids, or raw meat
prepared from these animals (bushmeat).
 Contact with the raw meat of an unknown source.

These same prevention methods apply when living in or traveling to an area affected
by an Ebola outbreak. After returning from an area affected by Ebola, monitor your
health for 21 days and seek medical care immediately if you develop symptoms of
EVD. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the Ebola vaccine
rVSV-ZEBOV (tradename “Ervebo”) on December 19, 2019. The rVSV-ZEBOV
vaccine is a single dose vaccine regimen that has been found to be safe and
protective against only the Zaire ebola virus species of ebola virus. This is the first
FDA approval of a vaccine for Ebola.
 A microscopic image of the Ebola virus

A diagram showing the entry of the Ebola virus in the human body

CHAPTER 5 : Covid – 19 Crisis In India

With India already grappling with an economic slowdown and job losses, COVID-
19 has struck at the most inopportune time. And the inept handling by the BJP-led
National Democratic Alliance government has only worsened the situation. As
always, the down-trodden sections of the society have had to bear the brunt of it.
Doctors, nurses, health workers, and police personnel too have had to suffer a lot
since the country was not prepared for this tragedy. The Covid-19 outbreak will
transform the way that we think about everything from family and healthcare to
politics. Though one may take heart from the fact that the total number of casualties
and infected person in India are less compared to rest of the world, the damages and
miseries caused by the pandemic could have been much less had the government
swung into action in time. The economic impact of the 2020 coronavirus
pandemic in India has been largely disruptive. India's growth in the fourth quarter of
the fiscal year 2020 went down to 3.1% according to the Ministry of Statistics.
The Chief Economic Adviser to the Government of India said that this drop is mainly
due to the coronavirus pandemic effect on the Indian economy. Notably India had
also been witnessing a pre-pandemic slowdown, and according to the World Bank,
the current pandemic has "magnified pre-existing risks to India's economic outlook".
According to the survey, COVID-19 is having a 'deep impact' on Indian businesses,
over the coming month's jobs are at high risk because firms are looking for some
reduction in manpower. Further, it is added that already COVID-19 crisis has caused
an unprecedented collapse in economic activities over the last few weeks. The
present situation is having a "high to very high" level impact on their business
according to almost 72 per cent respondents. Further, 70 per cent of the surveyed
firms are expecting a degrowth sales in the fiscal year 2020-21. The outbreak of the
novel coronavirus in India has shut down offices of the gloating services sector and
closed factories. But crops standing in fields kept growing, and farmers continued to
tend them. Covid-19 has essentially and largely remained an urban outbreak in India
till now. Now, economy indicators show what is already known: production has
contracted in factories and services have suffered losses. The seasonally adjusted
IHS Market India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) fell to 27.4 in
April. This is the lowest reading of PMI in 15 years, that is, since it started recording
data. A PMI of below 50 indicates contraction in manufacturing. It was 51.8 in March.
Cases of the novel coronavirus started surging in India in the first week of March.
States were going for lockdowns by the third week. The national lockdown was
announced from March 25. India remained locked down through April. Now,
lockdown 3.0 is in place. The third phase of the coronavirus lockdown is actually an
exit door. Over 14 days, India will restart the economic engine that was practically
switched off on March 25. The manufacturing units have started opening in green
and orange zones. The Indian economy is left with agriculture, only agriculture to
depend upon. And, the good news is India is expecting record food-grain production
at almost 300 million tonnes -- 298.32 million tonnes to be precise .The government
now has to ensure that all food-grains that farmers want to sell in the market is
picked up. This is particularly necessary because with seemingly less significant
contribution to the GDP at around 16 per cent, agriculture provides employment to
about 55 per cent of workforce in India. Indian migrant workers during the COVID-19
pandemic have faced multiple hardships. With factories and workplaces shut down
due to the lockdown imposed in the country, millions of migrant workers had to deal
with the loss of income, food shortages and uncertainty about their future. Following
this, many of them and their families went hungry. Thousands of them then began
walking back home, with no means of transport due to the lockdown. In response,
the Central and State Governments took various measures to help them and later
arranged transport for them. Many migrants also died due to the lockdown, with
reasons ranging from starvation, suicides, exhaustion, road and rail accidents, police
brutality and denial of timely medical care.

A microscopic view of the SARS Virus

 A group of unemployed labourers wandering about to find food and shelter

CHAPTER 6 : An Interview With Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus

I was fortunate enough to get a chance to talk to the current Director General of
World Health Organisation - Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus about the measures
that will be implemented by WHO to help the world population overcome the Corona
Virus pandemic.

Question (by me) : What made you declare the novel Corona Virus as a
pandemic ?

Answer (by Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus) : As of 11th March, 2020, 114

countries had reported that 118,000 people had contracted Covid-19, the disease
caused by the virus, known as SARS-CoV2. Nearly 4,300 people had died. In the
United States, where for weeks state and local laboratories could not test for the
virus, just over 1,000 cases had been diagnosed and 29 people had died. The virus
caused mild respiratory infections in about 80% of those infected, though about half
would have pneumonia. Another 15% developed severe illness, and 5% needed
critical care. Earlier we were hesitant to call the outbreak a pandemic in case it led
governments and individuals to give up the fight. On 11 th March , we stressed that
fundamental public health interventions can still limit the spread of the virus and drive
down cases even where it was transmitting widely, as the work of authorities and
communities in China, Singapore, and South Korea has shown.

Q : How long do you think this pandemic will last?

A : According to the data and statistics, we cannot say anything about it. Experts are
trying their best and have warned against relying on vaccines as a strategy for
ending the current crisis. Most vaccines are still likely to be 12–18 months away from
being available to the entire population, and this period is long enough to cause
lasting social and economic damage if the lockdown persists. At the moment, that is
something that we’ve got to think about and work quickly towards, but it looks like
we’re going to be in this for the long haul.

Q : How do you protect the most vulnerable individuals in crowded cities and
refugee camps? And how do you keep infected individuals from spreading the
disease?

A : Health authorities are trying out a somewhat controversial strategy: separating

the sick and those at high risk, moving them from the homes where they might live
alone or with an extended family into vacant homes or taking over facilities
previously used for other purposes, such as learning centres. The people being
targeted include the elderly and those with pre existing health conditions that make
them susceptible to COVID-19 — as well as the homeless. The strategy has been
cited by several health researchers as a practical way to control the spread of
disease in densely packed communities. Francesco Checchi of the London School of
Tropical Health and Medicine wrote a paper on the subject, and Dr. Paul Spiegel of
Johns Hopkins University, in another paper, recommended this as a potential
solution in refugee settings.

Q :  Some citizens are afraid of staying in big cities where social distancing is
hard to maintain and outbreaks are more likely to spread. In this situation
where transports are not moving as much, how to do you manage to overcome
this?

A : We have tried to provide transportation to necessary citizens and those who

have families in ancestral homelands are traveling back to stay in these rural
environments. It has happened in countries ranging from Bangladesh to Italy.

Q : It would be great if you could list down the measures that you have taken
or suggested other countries to take for the prevention of this pandemic.

A : Since more than half of the world's population lives in cities, hubs for
transnational business and movement with the potential to amplify pandemic risk is
high. Cities with a high concentration of urban poor and deep inequalities are
potentially more vulnerable than those that are better resourced and less crowded.
However, we are trying to fulfil our duties by taking various measures. We have
made sure that people all around the world are aware of the do’s and don’ts for this
pandemic. Spreading awareness about the correct preventive measures is one of
the most important things. Other than that, we have tried to provide adequate N-95
masks and hand sanitizers to few countries. We have asked all countries to
announce lockdowns and maintain social distancing. We are also promoting online
banking so that there is less contact between two individuals. WHO also welcomes
the initial clinical trial results from the UK that show dexamethasone, a corticosteroid,
can be lifesaving for patients who are critically ill with COVID-19. For patients on
ventilators, the treatment was shown to reduce mortality by about one third, and for
patients requiring only oxygen, mortality was cut by about one fifth, according to
preliminary findings shared with us. 

Q : Lastly, is there anything you would like to tell our readers?

A : It is a hard time for all of us and we need to be very careful about how we go
about things. Thus, on behalf of all my officials, our only request to all you people is
to kindly co operate with us and follow the preventive measures as they are for your
own well being.

Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of WHO

CONCLUSION

Right now, in the world we are in a fight of our lives against the coronavirus. It has
affected many people including myself. I'm now at home every day and it really is
affecting me socially. Not being able to speak to friends and see people I see on a
regular basis is hard for me. Also, now that school is closed for the rest of the year it
has really had an effect on my school life. I am not used to being at home all the time
and working on the computer. I'm usually in a classroom surrounded by my peers.
However, I am human so I will learn to adapt, but for now it is hard. It has affected
me personally in the social and educational aspect, but I know around the city of
Kolkata it's affecting others as well. The pandemic has affected the youth. Youth are
now forced to stay home instead of going to school and spending time with friends.
Most kids need to be outside and with people to release their energy and socialize.
One thing we also see happening is food insecurities and social distancing. Due to
what is happening in the world, people are very much afraid and cautious about food
supply and interactions with people. People are afraid and are told to stay inside, so
we stock up supplies that will last them about a month. Usually people get stuff that
we will last them about two weeks, but now we need to stay home as much as we
can. With social distancing, we now separate ourselves from other parts of society.
Humans are made to be out and about and socialize with beings on Earth. These
unfortunate events have led many people to be disconnected from society. This has
allowed my mind to go to the dark side, where my fears come out. My main fear is
“How long will my life be on pause?” I’m afraid of how long I will be stuck in the
house and can’t see my friends. Will it be a couple more weeks or will it be a couple
months.
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Author – SAANVI KHANNA

City – KOLKATA, WEST BENGAL

Publisher – S.K. PUBLICATIONS

Year of Publication – 2020