Since India is ‘tiredly’ running after COVID 19, may be with the understanding and conviction that India has to chase the novel coronavirus anywhere and everywhere and only then India can be saved. Fie.
Anyone turns positive for the viral RNA by RT-PCR even when they show no symptoms of the disease are immediately pushed inside the quarantine chamber and the entire area where such people may live is declared as containment zone thinking that, it is the best way to prevent the viral spread.
Do we know, when we prevent the virus to spread, the virus may shifts to ‘viral latency’, meaning the virus may take absolute holiday, will not be active until the onset of return the favourable condition. The duration of latency period cannot be predicted easily because it depends on how long the virus may take to find a favourable condition to become active and other virus linked factors yet to be understood and studied.
Whether the novel coronavirus would switch to virus latency or not is not clearly understood but such possibility cannot be ruled out. Imagine if the virus goes for such long or short holiday and by not seeing the holidaying virus, we claim we have overcome the pandemic …..are we not going provide a chance for the virus to learn how to live in human host, understand the human host and become an obligate anthropophilic virus?
Are we not creating such situation by pushing people to quarantine and containment zones?
WHO and the world community have finally accepted the defeat in its fight against novel coronavirus. The world is now proposing the gospel that people must learn to live with the virus. But by putting people inside quarantine chamber and containment zones, are we not allowing the virus to learn to live with man than allowing man to learn to live with the virus?
Should we not totally ignore the virus and tell people to seek medical assistance whenever necessary and otherwise manage the problem locally? Should we not quickly allow the virus to leave us or allow the virus to remain in us, instead of allowing the virus to explore all evolutionary tricks and possible adaptations like ‘viral latency’ etc., and become a nemesis at our own cost and risk?
When a virus spreads or contract so fast in a community or population means, it multiplies fast as soon as it enters and much before it invades the system, spreads to another host. Possibly due to the inability of the virus to stay long with the given host because the virus may be still searching for its ultimate host; in all probability, man may not be its final host. From the pathological analysis of all those died of COVID 19 also shows that the death was more due to immune flare-up (cytokine storm) than due to viral damage of tissues.
Are we trying to somehow fix or implicate the virus as the ultimate villain and spent our rest of life fighting the virus hoping that it is the only way we can save humanity? Are we open to understand or else have we fixed our mind to certain notions and convictions and want to write the script and screen play to prove our pre-fixed narrative alone is only true?
If we let people and virus free, the problem may vanish. But we want to live with the problem therefore we are trying to tie the virus and then attempt to chase the shadow of the ghost with the conviction that we are after the ‘real’.
In all those patients who died of COVID 19 had shown viral RNA and therefore we have concluded the script accordingly means, can we say with great affirmation that no other pathogen will be there in those patients? We have not tested such possibility. If the patient also shows the presence of other pathogens like Salmonella etc., or other opportunistic microbes, will we still outcry that the death was due to coronavirus?
When we beat the drum too much in favour of coronavirus, we will see the music and dance played by the novel coronavirus only and nothing else. Time has come; India must move ahead forgetting the virus. We must stop testing, quarantine and creating containment zones. Let us learn to live with the virus, also allow the virus to live with us. Let us make India prosper economically, in technology front, science and in education.
Death and dying are part and parcel of every living being. When death becomes inevitable, dying cannot be stopped. Government of India and the respective state governments have the responsibility also to save all those who are ‘unlikely’ to die of novel coronavirus!
When we cannot stop death, should we not support the life of those alive by accepting what we cannot stop is part of the larger universal truth.
When a country like Sweden can do such experiment means, why not India?
Do all ‘doctors’ of today truly fit the essay of RK Narayan “Doctors word”.
Can we give so much of value to the words of doctor? Doctors may speak truth but who’s truth they often speak only we need to verify? The truth that only when the patient gets scared, panic and remains ignorant…… good harvest is possible (not all).
When the virus can travel across the globe, affect people in all geography, won’t the virus also know how to switch to viral latency when man tries to isolate the virus by pushing its transient hosts to quarantine and containment?
Let us make India truly ‘independent’ for both people and the virus and let us save the life and livelihood of those whom the virus may dare to threat while attempting to save the lives of all those vulnerable or risk group.
The future of India lies in those who survive and outwit the virus and not those who fall victim of the virus. It may sound barbaric, but unfortunately the truth is always bitter, looks barbaric and would tempt our anger. Shoot the messenger (the author) but not the message.