India lockdown diary, Day 64: Kerala village uses umbrella to combat covid; Techie on mission to find jobs for migrants, and more

Here’s a curated list of some interesting stories from across the country on Day 64 of lockdown.

On day 64 of the nationwide lockdown Wednesday, the Union Health Ministry said there have been “multiple gains” from the lockdown and the most important of them is that it has “decelerated the pace” of the spread of Covid-19. The number of positive cases, however, have only risen in India with 1,51,767 infections reported, so far. The death toll has reached 4,337. The country has been registering new cases in excess of 6,000 daily since the past six days.

But there’s good news too.

With the fourth phase of the nationwide lockdown ending on May 31 and the Centre deliberating on the roadmap ahead, the Railways is gearing up for the graded resumption of passenger train operations from June 1. Over 48 lakh migrant workers on board 3,604 ‘Shramik Special’ trains have been ferried to their respective hometowns since May 1, said the Indian Railways.

Besides, on the third day of the recommencement of domestic flight services in the fourth phase of lockdown in India, a total of 354 flights operated which carried 47,917 passengers till 5 pm on Wednesday, said Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri.

Here’s a curated list of some interesting stories from across the country on Day 64 of lockdown.  

Amazon India to provide free Covid-19 health insurance to sellers

Amazon India said it will provide free Covid-19 health insurance to its sellers in the country to help cover expenses around hospitalisation and treatment. The insurance, which will be valid for one year after activation, will help cover expenses related to Covid-19 hospitalisation and treatment as well as ambulance assistance and ICU charges of up to Rs 50,000, Amazon India Vice President Seller Services Gopal Pillai said. Amazon will fully fund the premium for this health insurance and has partnered with Acko General Insurance (Acko) to manage policy delivery and handling of claims and reimbursements, he added. The insurance will benefit lakhs of sellers on Amazon India’s platform, Pillai said.

Kerala village uses umbrella to combat Covid-19

No matter what the season is, the humble umbrella is proving to be a Kerala village’s chief weapon against the coronavirus. Having tested umbrellas as an effective instrument for social distancing in peak summer, Thanneermukkom in the coastal district of Alappuzha hopes to reap benefits from the unique project in the rainy season that starts in June and lasts for three months. The motto is ‘Open Your Umbrella, Come Rain, Shine or Pandemic,’ said P S Jyothis, president of Thanneermukkom Panchayat that has 23 wards. In a month’s time, the administration distributed 6,000 umbrellas at a subsidised rate through the anti-poverty Kudumbashree project led by women.

Already, the scenic village has found a place in the world’s health map, thanks to the civic body’s exemplary fight against the coronavirus through various measures. The model, which blends administrative acumen with community participation, stems from a unique feature that guarantees further efficacy for all seasons. The panchayat mandates every resident holds an umbrella while going out. “Open umbrellas guarantee a minimum distance of one metre between two people,” said Finance Minister Dr T M Thomas Isaac, the Alappuzha MLA, who suggested the idea. According to Minister for Local Self Government, A C Moideen, who inaugurated the umbrella venture, “It ensures social distancing. That is key to checking Covid-19.”

They took good care of me: 9-yr-old after solo flight back from Mumbai

A day after domestic flight operations resumed in India, nine-year-old Shiven Desai was reunited with his parents in Bengaluru after being stuck with his grandparents in Mumbai for over two months because of the nationwide lockdown.

“No one could sleep till his flight took off. We were very worried that it would get cancelled,” said Neha Desai, Shiven’s mother.

But the boy, who took the flight alone, was more upbeat after his little adventure. “They took good care of me. As soon as I entered the airport, I was given sanitiser, gloves and protective gear,” Shiven told indianexpress.com. His temperature was checked upon arrival at the Bengaluru airport, and he was instructed to stay at home in self-quarantine for the next 14 days.

This Hyderabad techie is on a mission to find migrant workers their livelihood

With lockdown restrictions being relaxed in Hyderabad, migrant workers stranded in the city are looking for a chance to get work again. Getting them back on their feet is 41-year-old Harish Kumar Daga, a senior project manager in a leading IT company who has taken on himself the responsibility of what he calls, “lighting the candle”.

Over the last week, Daga has reached out to several manufacturing units through his friends and relatives and connected them to workers, providing urgent employment to close to 700 workers. Recalling the plight of these workers, Daga says the least they want is to be paid every week and not later.

Tripura claims best model to tackle coronavirus in country

Tripura Law Minister Ratan Lal Nath Wednesday claimed the state government’s model to handle Covid-19 pandemic is best in the country and said while the Kerala model is entirely focused on home quarantine, Tripura is engaging in sample collection to ascertain spread of the virus.

Speaking to reporters at the state secretariat here this evening, Law Minister Nath said, “We have he best model to tackle coronavirus pandemic in the country. Kerala and different other states are following home quarantine alone while we are focusing on sample collection as well. We have zero death rate and we are testing people for coronavirus at 1:5 ratio. Our approach will continue in coming days since we can’t shift our system at every turn. Changing protocol frequently has it complications”.

Nath also said if anyone faces problem in home quarantine, they can seek help from corona monitoring and awareness committees set up till village level to arrange for alternative quarantine accommodation.

On a different note, the minister said Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb would start visiting 58 blocks spread across 8 districts any time from May 29 to inspect ground realities of steps taken to combat coronavirus. — Debraj Deb reports from Agartala