Pandemic Corona Story 1
Interestingly, people who depend on LPG cylinders should brace up to not get the cylinders on time (in the next 30 days). Usually, people have spare cylinders, but turns out sometimes the pin might turn faulty, or the rubber gasket might be damaged.
Interestingly in the lockdown, after conversations with various stakeholders, it turns out that the distribution is categorized as essential services, but the warehouses are not. And the delivery is categorized as essential services but the delivery boys are not unless they wear the uniform, which will arrive at their offices tomorrow. How will they reach the office without their uniforms you may ask? Even they have no clue. Also, emergency servicing of LPG cylinders (considering they are a blasting danger to the weak meaty humans), are not essential services. So if you have a leaking cylinder, you gotta do what you gotta do.
This is bang in the middle of a very modern part of the metro city Kolkata called Newtown. I wonder what happens to the poorest of the poor villages and cities who don't have other mechanisms like induction or microwave.
I read about Zomato guys getting beaten up, lakhs of truck and drivers stuck at the border, and bawling labourers not knowing where to go as they got stuck in the middle of nowhere with no money. How do you turn away from that as a fellow human? There is no blame here because there is actually no right and wrong.
My hope is this, that from this situation, we learn and create a framework that makes us better prepared for the next pandemic with an ounce of humanity. A framework that sustains life with compassion and leaves no one behind in the era where disasters are no longer clustered in a geographic epicentre.