Bhubaneswar: The Covid-19 has been dismantling the economy of the world since two and a half years. People have been continuously fighting to protect themselves and governments on various levels have been imposing set of restrictions and guidelines in phases to prevent the wrath of the deadly virus. Around 215 countries are catastrophed with the virus and its aftermaths. No country or government seem to knock down the virus completely. As it is said and implied that prevention, protection and vaccination are the three only measures to uproot the virus, the well speculated third wave is approaching towards the humanity, makes everyone petrified. There are various tricks applied by different agencies to blight the direction of people’s attention. From the abrupt eruption of black, white and red fungus to compressing the percentage casualties by Covid-19, all are attempting to console the situation. If this scenario continues for long, the regulation of wearing masks and adaptation of sanitizing will remain forever. The counties, which have allowed their people to not wear mask in public after a considerable end to the first wave of Corona, have seem to be facing the outcome of their shortcomings.
The pandemic is expanding its’ wings by returning by one wave after another. So the country had got the confidence of having a safe shield by vaccinating the people need. It is rather suggestive that the government should get its lesson from the cases of people bring tested positive even after getting inoculated for both the doses. In the present scenario, the only precautionary measure to be followed religiously is to put on the mask, maintaining social distance and sanitizing your hands to protect oneself and the society at large.
It is hard to believe that such a lethal virus which has put the globe on stake since two years will vanish so swiftly. The virus has accounted with a much higher damage to the world economy as compared with the losses resulted by the two devastating world wars. The pandemic has completely dismantled the economy of the nations irrespective of the developing and the developed by putting a thwart to the employment opportunities, structuring and re-restructuring of the industrial sectors, and GDP growth rate in totality. The hounding reality of job insecurity and losing livelihood in both organised and unorganised sectors has surfaced the grave failure of economic instability of the nation. Even though the federal government has been periodically announcing different policies, and packages to boost up the grassroots, alas, it’s a big question mark whether they can reach at the real potential beneficiaries. In such scenarios, the continuous pressure for the Household debt of GDP has created a grave situation for the economy. it is evidently visible that the country s’ economy wouldn’t be able to gather its normal pace anytime soon. According to a research report, the household debt jumps up to GDP 37.3 % in the fiscal year 2020-21, which was recorded 32.5% in 2019-20. As a result of this, there has been a spiking inflation faced by the common man for his/her survival. While the common people struggles for ends meet, on the other hand the rapid depletion in the national GDP rate is most likely to dig irreversible vacuum in the national economy.
The pandemic has shown the brutal face of the economic crisis by the youth losing opportunity for employment, millions lost livelihood irrespective of the sector they work in (organized and unorganized sectors), many small and micro industries are closed down and small shop keepers are in the verge of shutting down their businesses. Industries like hotels, gymnastics, parlours and spas, malls and cinema halls have already been crumbled down. Many have lost jobs, those who are fortunate to remain in the job ate going through a salary crunch. Many have been abetted by the vulnerability to end their lives. With this circumstance what can be the formative measures to deal with the menace approaching in future, is worth worrying about.
Dr. Sarmistha Kabi
e-mail: sarmistha.kabi@gmail.com
-OdishaAge
