Corona virus disease (COVID-19), as you know is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered corona virus. Most people who fall sick with COVID-19 will experience mild to moderate symptoms and recover without special treatment. The virus that causes COVID-19 is mainly transmitted through droplets generated when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or exhales. These droplets are too heavy to hang in the air, and quickly fall on floors or surfaces.
You can be infected by breathing in the virus if you are within close proximity of someone who has COVID-19, or by touching a contaminated surface and then your eyes, nose or mouth. This disease has made its presence with big bang and panic due to its death rate world-wide. Approximately 215 countries and territories worldwide have been affected by the COVID-19.
As on today (29-September-2020), more that 1 million people lost their lives world-wide. Most affected countries are: the United States (205K), India ( 96,318), Brazil (142K) and Russia (20,385). There is no medicine for its prevention or cure so far. Everybody is looking at the possibility of early development of vaccine(s) for its effective prevention. At least there are three-four claims in the advanced stage of vaccine development which has ignited the light of hopes for managing this disease. However, it is not that rosy as people are expecting that vaccines in the market will solve the problem immediately. The problems that we are going to face once the vaccines are clinically tested and approved as follows:
1. Organizing production of the vaccines to immunize approximately 7.0 billion people in the world within a shortest span of time.
2. Organizing transportation and distribution from the vaccine production centre to farthest distribution point.
3. Above all resources mobilization for achieving the target.
This monumental task can be accomplished provided all the countries join their hands to keep their political/national differences keeping aside for the time being. So far India is concerned, the first two problems will not be very difficult to overcome since we have world’s largest vaccine production facilities and infrastructure is also amply sufficient to transport and organize distribution. Last but the most important problem of resource mobilization for making vaccines available to its 1.30 + billion people will be a real challenge. Govt. is already starving on many fronts due to the economic slowdown due to COVID-19 lockdown. Therefore, Govt alone cannot face this challenge unless rich taxpayers are coming forward to contribute generously.
Let us roughly estimate how much resource is needed by the government to immunize the 29.1% Below Poverty Line (BPL) population which is about 364 million. A conservative estimate says that about INR 200 will be the cost of one vaccine. If we calculate on that basis the Govt would need INR 728 billion. It is not a small amount. Yet is it so difficult to mobilize such huge funds?
364,000,000 x @ INR 200 = INR 72800,000,000 money is required for vaccination.
If I am asked, my answer will be “difficult, yet achievable” if you look at the economic growth data:
“In the last five years, over 15 millions cars were sold in India – that too expensive ones. Over 30 million Indians went abroad for business or tourism. We have so many professionals – big doctors, lawyers, chartered accountants, class I officers, Business houses/film stars etc.”
It means that we as a nation have enough resources to tackle this issue.
It will be little easier to be generous, If we realize the meaning of these three Sanskrit words and roots of our culture that Dr. Kumar Viswas explained in a recent video:
“Vikriti” (विकृति) : You eat snatching from others, depriving others (Distortion)
Prakriti (प्रकृति) : You eat, others also eat (Nature)
Sanskriti (संस्कृति): Assuring others eat, you eat. (Culture)
Once we know our root of culture, we will be generous to assure that my neighbour also gets the vaccination who cannot afford. We cannot live in isolation. Lockdown has made us realize enough how pathetic isolation is?
Having said all these, I have a suggestion to the Govt. Don’t ask the citizen who can donate in any account, since credibility of the utilization of these funds like the PM Relief Fund is questionable and not convincing. I shall suggest that the concept of adoption by direct citizen participation comes in the forefront for achieving this mammoth task. Let the people inform about how many vaccinations they can sponsor and let them pay the money directly to the beneficiaries. The data of BPL families should be placed in public domain on a website and once someone gets sponsorship, he/she should be disqualified for receiving sponsorship for the same purpose. Our Hon’ble PM is working hard to remove middlemen from any transactions and this arrangement would be a step forward in this direction too.
I know that “Preaching is easier than practice”, therefore, I would like to practice my idea by committing 250 vaccinations to BPL persons if such arrangements are made. I also call upon my fellow citizens to participate and encourage their friends, colleagues, family members and relatives to participate in this movement sp
55100cookie-checkA call for COVID-19 free nation
