It has now been established that ruthless containment is the only way to beat COVID-19. On March 19, when six cases of COVID-19 were reported in Bhilwara district, we were left with no option but to declare a curfew.
There was a clear and present danger of Bhilwara entering the community transmission stage. The Brijesh Bangar Memorial Hospital in the city had become the epicentre of COVID-19 cases. Doctors and other health care workers had tested positive. The doctors had seen around 7,000 to 8,000 patients in the hospital, and possibly as many at their home clinics—and there was no record of the second set of patients. So, we estimated that at least 15,000 to 20,000 people had had direct contact with the hospital staff. If we had allowed people to move around and leave the district, we would have seen community transmission not only in Bhilwara, but also in other districts of Rajasthan and beyond state lines.
The borders of Bhilwara were sealed for private vehicles. Trains passed through, but did not stop in the district. Bus services were not allowed to function. Instructions were given to close all establishments employing more than 10 people. So, everything from industries to offices and brick kilns were shut down.
Initially, as the number of cases rose and Bhilwara accounted for majority of the cases in Rajasthan, it was extremely stressful for us. Bhilwara was being described as the Wuhan and Italy of Rajasthan. And, it was not a wrong assessment. The doctors at the Bangar Hospital had seen thousands of patients, and we had no means of tracking them down. My team and I did not go home for around a week as we rolled out containment measures.
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Denne historien er fra April 26, 2020-utgaven av THE WEEK.
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William Dalrymple goes further back
Indian readers have long known William Dalrymple as the chronicler nonpareil of India in the early years of the British raj. His latest book, The Golden Road, is a striking departure, since it takes him to a period from about the third century BC to the 12th-13th centuries CE.
The bleat from the street
What with all the apps delivering straight to one’s doorstep, the supermarkets, the food halls and even the occasional (super-expensive) pop-up thela (cart) offering the woke from field-to-fork option, the good old veggie-market/mandi has fallen off my regular beat.
Courage and conviction
Justice A.M. Ahmadi's biography by his granddaughter brings out behind-the-scenes tension in the Supreme Court as it dealt with the Babri Masjid demolition case
EPIC ENTERPRISE
Gowri Ramnarayan's translation of Ponniyin Selvan brings a fresh perspective to her grandfather's magnum opus
Upgrade your jeans
If you don’t live in the top four-five northern states of India, winter means little else than a pair of jeans. I live in Mumbai, where only mad people wear jeans throughout the year. High temperatures and extreme levels of humidity ensure we go to work in mulmul salwars, cotton pants, or, if you are lucky like me, wear shorts every day.
Garden by the sea
When Kozhikode beach became a fertile ground for ideas with Manorama Hortus
RECRUITERS SPEAK
Industry requirements and selection criteria of management graduates
MORAL COMPASS
The need to infuse ethics into India's MBA landscape
B-SCHOOLS SHOULD UNDERSTAND THAT INDIAN ECONOMY IS GOING TO WITNESS A TREMENDOUS GROWTH
INTERVIEW - Prof DEBASHIS CHATTERJEE, director, Indian Institute of Management, Kozhikode
COURSE CORRECTION
India's best b-schools are navigating tumultuous times. Hurdles include lower salaries offered to their graduates and students misusing AI
