There are no regular similarities between Coronavirus and tsunami, save that both are devastating by nature and take a toll on humans. However, looking at the simile closely, one would realise that both advance in the same fashion. Tsunami, which is a wave or a ripple, travels alternating between a crest and a trough and COVID-19 also follows a somewhat similar trajectory. At one point, the number of infections reaches its peak, then drops significantly to the ebb, only to rise again and hit a new acme. The moot questions haunting us currently include: Are we heading for another peak? Will the tsunami of Coronavirus engulf all of humanity? Is there any way out of it, or are we staring at Doomsday? What about our mammoth vaccination programme and other preventive efforts? Will they prove futile? With the scientists and Governments across the globe struggling hard with the newly emerging variants and the treacherous ability of the virus to mutate, there are no easy solutions to these puzzles. However, what is more flabbergasting is that why haven’t we learnt our lessons yet? We have state-of-the-art warning systems to alert us of tsunami, and people do pay heed, but all the warnings with respect to COVID-19 precautions are literally falling on deaf ears. Why we, as citizens, are failing in our duty to take the necessary precautions?

Despite all the efforts and awareness campaign undertaken by the Government for educating people about the importance of wearing masks and maintaining social distance, our insouciance is not dying. Many people, while using public transport and even otherwise, can be seen brazenly flouting the rules, such as “Do gaj ki doori, mask hai zaroori (maintaining the distance of two yards and wearing the mask is important)”. Especially in the Metro trains, many people can be seen standing or sitting next to each other without the required spacing, besides not wearing a mask. Protocols like mask-wearing and social distancing have literally been thrown out of the window. While the United Nations has lauded our efforts and expressed gratitude to India for its gift of COVID-19 vaccines to the UN peacekeepers, saying that the donation will help the Blue Helmets to continue their life-saving endeavours, the nation should within be ashamed by how its own people are behaving. There are incidences of people engaging in fights with civil volunteers and municipal employees who have been deployed to keep a check on the violations. We cannot afford to drop our guard at this moment when the vaccination drive is on in full swing. Seeing the size of our population, we need to amp it up but we must keep in mind that getting the jab is no panacea in itself. We still need to take full precautions as there is no substitute for it. Fighting the pandemic is our duty and we have no right to endanger our life or the lives of others. Not everyone can render extraordinary service to the nation but, let’s remember, small efforts collectively go a long way, too. We all must consider ourselves warriors in that sense.

There are no regular similarities between Coronavirus and tsunami, save that both are devastating by nature and take a toll on humans. However, looking at the simile closely, one would realise that both advance in the same fashion. Tsunami, which is a wave or a ripple, travels alternating between a crest and a trough and COVID-19 also follows a somewhat similar trajectory. At one point, the number of infections reaches its peak, then drops significantly to the ebb, only to rise again and hit a new acme. The moot questions haunting us currently include: Are we heading for another peak? Will the tsunami of Coronavirus engulf all of humanity? Is there any way out of it, or are we staring at Doomsday? What about our mammoth vaccination programme and other preventive efforts? Will they prove futile? With the scientists and Governments across the globe struggling hard with the newly emerging variants and the treacherous ability of the virus to mutate, there are no easy solutions to these puzzles. However, what is more flabbergasting is that why haven’t we learnt our lessons yet? We have state-of-the-art warning systems to alert us of tsunami, and people do pay heed, but all the warnings with respect to COVID-19 precautions are literally falling on deaf ears. Why we, as citizens, are failing in our duty to take the necessary precautions?

Despite all the efforts and awareness campaign undertaken by the Government for educating people about the importance of wearing masks and maintaining social distance, our insouciance is not dying. Many people, while using public transport and even otherwise, can be seen brazenly flouting the rules, such as “Do gaj ki doori, mask hai zaroori (maintaining the distance of two yards and wearing the mask is important)”. Especially in the Metro trains, many people can be seen standing or sitting next to each other without the required spacing, besides not wearing a mask. Protocols like mask-wearing and social distancing have literally been thrown out of the window. While the United Nations has lauded our efforts and expressed gratitude to India for its gift of COVID-19 vaccines to the UN peacekeepers, saying that the donation will help the Blue Helmets to continue their life-saving endeavours, the nation should within be ashamed by how its own people are behaving. There are incidences of people engaging in fights with civil volunteers and municipal employees who have been deployed to keep a check on the violations. We cannot afford to drop our guard at this moment when the vaccination drive is on in full swing. Seeing the size of our population, we need to amp it up but we must keep in mind that getting the jab is no panacea in itself. We still need to take full precautions as there is no substitute for it. Fighting the pandemic is our duty and we have no right to endanger our life or the lives of others. Not everyone can render extraordinary service to the nation but, let’s remember, small efforts collectively go a long way, too. We all must consider ourselves warriors in that sense.