- China controlled Coronavirus by developing an App for every mobile. Corona-afflicted mobile holder’s App used to blink red leading to his/her quarantine.
- Such wartime Under-the-Skin-Surveillance is in use in many countries to monitor everyone round-the-clock.
- Privacy has gone world over. Surveillance will remain after Corona is over as police apparatus build in Punjab in the 1990s not dismantled after militancy.
- A bit of history: Punjab was the epicentre of pandemics-both bacterial cholera and virus-caused influenza from 1897 to 1921 which took a toll of one crore lives.
- With more awareness now, Corona influenza could be controlled in due course if the Government avoids politicking and furnishes hospitals, medical staff with the required equipment.
- All rice-shelling mills in Punjab have been converted into grain markets for a new wheat crop where purchases and payments will be made to the farmer.
- With chain of smuggled narcotics is broken in Punjab, addicts are on streets— either begging for money or making a beeline to hospitals for OPIOID treatment. Panchayats/ officials could identify addicts to treat them.
As a cover-up of criticism on official unpreparedness before lockdown, the Modi regime has allowed the building up a counter-narrative holding Tablighi Muslims largely responsible for Corona spread. Now Muslims/ mosques are being attacked at various places, forcing Muslims to shut down their shops and not to enter the colonies to sell vegetables/fruits. Muslim thinkers fear pauperizing Muslims further leading to earlier segregation of –Muslim Paani (water) and Hindu Paani at public places as was in pre-1947 days.
* Jaspal Singh Sidhu is a retired senior journalist. He tweets @SdhJaspal.