Rural India and Covid-19

A key arsenal in rural India’s pandemic fight
Context: With the influx of thousands of migrant labourers into their villages, the houses in villages, which are often one or two-room dwellings with an average seven family members to accommodate, are some of the worst places where one can hope to contain the deadly disease. 
Issues faced by Rural villages

• Every village is in itself a fortress during these difficult times and every village needs attention within.
• No place to isolate: Unfortunately, the houses in villages are often one or two-room dwellings, with an average seven family members to accommodate.
• Absence of running water within households: Villages consist of common points for water and there are heavy chances of these becoming hotspots for COVID-19.
• No decentralisation in reality: Issuing orders from the top is the norm and an ecosystem has evolved where even the elected representatives of panchayats wait for directions and a sarpanch does not assert himself before a bureaucrat.
• Villages are more prone: Many scientists and researchers have already predicted the possibility of villages becoming hotspots of the disease after the 21-day lockdown is lifted.

Suggestions for Gram Panchayats

• A model needs to be established, with concrete standard operating procedures and best practices that can be replicated throughout rural India.
• Organisations such as Professional Assistance For Development Action (PRADAN) have been trying to influence gram panchayats in many States to coordinate with the administration to use the resources of panchayats. This should be done more.
• Even with the harvesting of wheat almost over in States such as Madhya Pradesh; people are still out in the fields, but once they are done with their work it is the panchayat that can do the work effectively to confine people within their homes with adequate awareness generation.
• Community policing with the active engagement of panchayats, by collaborating with women’s collectives, is a potential area where a people-led movement can be kick-started in a short time span.
• Despite the financial packages being rolled out to avert panic about basic food requirements, many will be left out as documentation is core to availing these social-service provisioning schemes.
• Without gram panchayats, it is not possible to deploy any system to adequately take prompt actions to include the excluded.

Road Ahead

Panchayats can work exactly in three areas:

• Awareness generation,
• Setting up isolation conditions, and
• Streamlining social security measures announced by the Central and State governments.