COVID-19: India unprepared for shutdown says IIT Kharagpur survey

NEW DELHI: Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology-Kharagpur, or IIT Kharagpur are studying the impact of travel bans and restrictions on citizens during the coronavirus pandemic.

Through a survey launched on March 13, the IIT Kharagpur team is studying the impact of travel restrictions and shutdown to test the general public’s preparedness, awareness and also to suggest more people-friendly ways of implementing measures to achieve social distancing. Their preliminary findings are sobering. More than half the respondents are unprepared for a shutdown and a fifth plans to travel back to their hometowns if their offices close.

The study on “Travel in the time of COVID-19: Perceptions, Impact and Suggested Measures” is led by a research associate, Saurabh Dandapat, with project officer, Kinjal Bhattacharyya. The others in the team are research scholars Annam Sai Kiran and Kaustubh Saysardar.

Several countries have imposed curbs on travel to control the spread of the virus and the disease it causes, COVID-19. It has already killed over 10,000 globally.

The study

Survey data is being gathered in four stages. “We intend to analyse the data from time-to-time and share our observations with the public and the government,” said Dandapat.

The first stage was to collect responses from people regarding various aspects of travel and their preparedness, in case of a lockdown.

The second stage consisted of understanding how safe people feel about travel in different modes of transport such as buses and trains during a pandemic.

In the third stage, the researchers tried to understand the impact of travel restrictions on various aspects of an individual’s work and social life. The specific impact on four major aspects was studied and these included work life, family or social visits, vacations and healthcare.

“We are trying to see like how negatively it has impacted various things, specifically healthcare. The work of daily wage earners is highly negatively impacted. The government needs to take care of that,” said Bhattacharyya. Their survey shows that working from home and avoiding mass-transit services like buses are not realistic options large sections of the population.

In the final stage, they will study how well people are prepared to resume their normal activities once the lock-down is lifted. The study’s finding are expected help in taking decisions in case this situation repeats in the future.

What they found

The survey is ongoing and so far, data is have been gathered from residents in over 400 towns and cities in 29 states and Union Territories. But a preliminary analysis based on the 2,800 responses collected so far shows that more than half of the population is unprepared for a shutdown.

Also, 20 percent respondents said they are planning to travel back to their hometowns from where they work. “This will further, spread the virus, so the people and the government needs to act very judiciously,” said Dandapat.

However, the most important and alarming discovery was that 15 percent of the respondents are still planning vacations for when the lockdown is lifted.

Suggested measures

People need to be aware of the measures in line with the progression of the infection. Researchers say restrictions need to be imposed, but without creating panic.

Dandapat’s post on social media says: “Decision regarding city-quarantine, if necessary, should be pushed strategically and gradually so that people get time to prepare without panicking.”

Measures are necessary to address these aspects. “If we are going for a lockdown, the decision needs to be taken judiciously. What has been found in places like Italy, we need to learn,” said Saysardar.

The Indian government announced on Thursday that it was banning all international commercial flights from landing in the country for a week starting March 22.

Travel advisories are being updated from time to time.

All existing visas except diplomatic, official, UN/International Organizations, employment and project visas stand suspended till April 15, 2020. Visa-free travel facility granted to OCI cardholders is also suspended till April 15.

According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the number of active cases of coronavirus infections in India is 171 with 19 patients being cured. Four lost their lives.

Also Read:

• Coronavirus: States ban or restrict use of public bus, metro services
• COVID-19: Indian medical students’ ordeal at Kuala Lumpur airport

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