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In a City Frozen in Fear, Time Freezes, Too In a City Frozen in Fear, Time Freezes, Too
(30 days later)
NEW DELHI — The first thing that disappeared was the annoying sound of a power drill up the street, from a house under construction.NEW DELHI — The first thing that disappeared was the annoying sound of a power drill up the street, from a house under construction.
Then the newspapers.Then the newspapers.
Then the fruit sellers, the taxis, the rickshaws, and chicken.Then the fruit sellers, the taxis, the rickshaws, and chicken.
Day by day, life under coronavirus lockdown in India took away something else, usually something good. And nearly six weeks into it, much of this country is still frozen.Day by day, life under coronavirus lockdown in India took away something else, usually something good. And nearly six weeks into it, much of this country is still frozen.
In many cities like New Delhi, practically nothing is moving on the roads. People stay indoors, as instructed, emerging only to collect the basic necessities. One friend who gets his food delivered told me he hasn’t left his house for a month.In many cities like New Delhi, practically nothing is moving on the roads. People stay indoors, as instructed, emerging only to collect the basic necessities. One friend who gets his food delivered told me he hasn’t left his house for a month.
All the airlines are grounded. Schools and offices are closed. The only businesses that I’ve seen operating are food shops, pharmacies and banks. The banks have lines running out the door and down the sidewalk where red circles have been spray-painted for people to stand in, six feet apart, like little islands.All the airlines are grounded. Schools and offices are closed. The only businesses that I’ve seen operating are food shops, pharmacies and banks. The banks have lines running out the door and down the sidewalk where red circles have been spray-painted for people to stand in, six feet apart, like little islands.
The other day, I drove to Delhi’s outskirts. India is a place rightly known for teeming crowds and riotous traffic. There seems to be a national aversion to sticking to your lane, so I felt almost guilty blazing down an empty highway, past miles of shuttered shops, with no one to cut me off.The other day, I drove to Delhi’s outskirts. India is a place rightly known for teeming crowds and riotous traffic. There seems to be a national aversion to sticking to your lane, so I felt almost guilty blazing down an empty highway, past miles of shuttered shops, with no one to cut me off.
Whenever we turned off the highway, every village, no matter how small, was barricaded — some with oil drums, others with rope. Behind the barricades stood villagers carrying sticks to keep strangers out and wearing frayed bandannas over their faces, the virus vigilantes.Whenever we turned off the highway, every village, no matter how small, was barricaded — some with oil drums, others with rope. Behind the barricades stood villagers carrying sticks to keep strangers out and wearing frayed bandannas over their faces, the virus vigilantes.
Even the sky above us is different these days. New Delhi is usually one of the world’s most polluted cities; its ceiling is invariably smudge gray. But now with so few cars and factories running, the air here is cleaner than it has been in decades.The weather that first weekend under lockdown, in late March, was especially lovely: mid-80s, breezy, clear skies. So on the following Monday when I saw The Times’s driver, Jag Singh, one of the few Indians I now see on a regular basis because of our isolation, I asked if he had managed to get outside.Even the sky above us is different these days. New Delhi is usually one of the world’s most polluted cities; its ceiling is invariably smudge gray. But now with so few cars and factories running, the air here is cleaner than it has been in decades.The weather that first weekend under lockdown, in late March, was especially lovely: mid-80s, breezy, clear skies. So on the following Monday when I saw The Times’s driver, Jag Singh, one of the few Indians I now see on a regular basis because of our isolation, I asked if he had managed to get outside.
“No.” Did his neighbors? Again, “no.”“No.” Did his neighbors? Again, “no.”
Having seen the photos of some Americans rushing to beaches as soon as they were allowed, I asked why he thought Indians felt so constrained.His answer came quickly: “Everyone’s scared. People are saying if they get sick, where will they go?”That explained a lot. It explained why I wasn’t seeing anyone in my neighborhood venturing into the parks or strolling under the banyan trees. It explained why few people in India were testing the lockdown limits.Having seen the photos of some Americans rushing to beaches as soon as they were allowed, I asked why he thought Indians felt so constrained.His answer came quickly: “Everyone’s scared. People are saying if they get sick, where will they go?”That explained a lot. It explained why I wasn’t seeing anyone in my neighborhood venturing into the parks or strolling under the banyan trees. It explained why few people in India were testing the lockdown limits.
It’s not that they are automatically more willing to follow the rules than say, California’s sun lovers who were not nearly social distancing. It’s that in this case, Indians are more scared.It’s not that they are automatically more willing to follow the rules than say, California’s sun lovers who were not nearly social distancing. It’s that in this case, Indians are more scared.
They’re scared of catching a highly contagious disease, and they don’t trust that a beleaguered health care system will save them. Or they’re scared about how they’ll pay for it, even if they get the care they need.They’re scared of catching a highly contagious disease, and they don’t trust that a beleaguered health care system will save them. Or they’re scared about how they’ll pay for it, even if they get the care they need.
India has a lot of great doctors but the ratio of doctors or hospital beds per person is much lower than in the West. And many people here survive on a few dollars a day.India has a lot of great doctors but the ratio of doctors or hospital beds per person is much lower than in the West. And many people here survive on a few dollars a day.
India seems to be doing better than many richer countries in containing the virus, at least so far. With reported infections relatively low, around 35,000, the government is trying to loosen the national tourniquet and reopen some industries, such as agriculture and select manufacturing.India seems to be doing better than many richer countries in containing the virus, at least so far. With reported infections relatively low, around 35,000, the government is trying to loosen the national tourniquet and reopen some industries, such as agriculture and select manufacturing.
But many Indians don’t want to take the tourniquet off, even if it is stanching the economy’s flow.But many Indians don’t want to take the tourniquet off, even if it is stanching the economy’s flow.
A good chunk of the population has decided that the best way to protect themselves is not only to stick to the lockdown rules, but to go above and beyond them, like the volunteer virus squads who sealed off entire villages. Even people in my Delhi neighborhood have become lockdown enthusiasts.A good chunk of the population has decided that the best way to protect themselves is not only to stick to the lockdown rules, but to go above and beyond them, like the volunteer virus squads who sealed off entire villages. Even people in my Delhi neighborhood have become lockdown enthusiasts.
A few weeks ago when I biked with my two sons to the neighborhood milk depot — perfectly permissible under lockdown rules — someone leaned out a window and boomed: “Go home!”A few weeks ago when I biked with my two sons to the neighborhood milk depot — perfectly permissible under lockdown rules — someone leaned out a window and boomed: “Go home!”
My kids’ eyes widened. I pedaled away shaken. Did he mean back to our apartment? Or to America? Many people here have blamed foreigners for bringing India the coronavirus.My kids’ eyes widened. I pedaled away shaken. Did he mean back to our apartment? Or to America? Many people here have blamed foreigners for bringing India the coronavirus.
Updated June 2, 2020
Mass protests against police brutality that have brought thousands of people onto the streets in cities across America are raising the specter of new coronavirus outbreaks, prompting political leaders, physicians and public health experts to warn that the crowds could cause a surge in cases. While many political leaders affirmed the right of protesters to express themselves, they urged the demonstrators to wear face masks and maintain social distancing, both to protect themselves and to prevent further community spread of the virus. Some infectious disease experts were reassured by the fact that the protests were held outdoors, saying the open air settings could mitigate the risk of transmission.
Exercise researchers and physicians have some blunt advice for those of us aiming to return to regular exercise now: Start slowly and then rev up your workouts, also slowly. American adults tended to be about 12 percent less active after the stay-at-home mandates began in March than they were in January. But there are steps you can take to ease your way back into regular exercise safely. First, “start at no more than 50 percent of the exercise you were doing before Covid,” says Dr. Monica Rho, the chief of musculoskeletal medicine at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab in Chicago. Thread in some preparatory squats, too, she advises. “When you haven’t been exercising, you lose muscle mass.” Expect some muscle twinges after these preliminary, post-lockdown sessions, especially a day or two later. But sudden or increasing pain during exercise is a clarion call to stop and return home.
States are reopening bit by bit. This means that more public spaces are available for use and more and more businesses are being allowed to open again. The federal government is largely leaving the decision up to states, and some state leaders are leaving the decision up to local authorities. Even if you aren’t being told to stay at home, it’s still a good idea to limit trips outside and your interaction with other people.
Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks.
Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days.
If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.)
More than 40 million people — the equivalent of 1 in 4 U.S. workers — have filed for unemployment benefits since the pandemic took hold. One in five who were working in February reported losing a job or being furloughed in March or the beginning of April, data from a Federal Reserve survey released on May 14 showed, and that pain was highly concentrated among low earners. Fully 39 percent of former workers living in a household earning $40,000 or less lost work, compared with 13 percent in those making more than $100,000, a Fed official said.
Taking one’s temperature to look for signs of fever is not as easy as it sounds, as “normal” temperature numbers can vary, but generally, keep an eye out for a temperature of 100.5 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. If you don’t have a thermometer (they can be pricey these days), there are other ways to figure out if you have a fever, or are at risk of Covid-19 complications.
The C.D.C. has recommended that all Americans wear cloth masks if they go out in public. This is a shift in federal guidance reflecting new concerns that the coronavirus is being spread by infected people who have no symptoms. Until now, the C.D.C., like the W.H.O., has advised that ordinary people don’t need to wear masks unless they are sick and coughing. Part of the reason was to preserve medical-grade masks for health care workers who desperately need them at a time when they are in continuously short supply. Masks don’t replace hand washing and social distancing.
If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others.
If you’re sick and you think you’ve been exposed to the new coronavirus, the C.D.C. recommends that you call your healthcare provider and explain your symptoms and fears. They will decide if you need to be tested. Keep in mind that there’s a chance — because of a lack of testing kits or because you’re asymptomatic, for instance — you won’t be able to get tested.
So my family now does what everyone does: we stay inside, looking out the windows at one beautiful day passing after another. We used to sit around the table and share upcoming plans. Now we don’t have any.So my family now does what everyone does: we stay inside, looking out the windows at one beautiful day passing after another. We used to sit around the table and share upcoming plans. Now we don’t have any.
We are marooned in the present tense. We couldn’t leave New Delhi even if we wanted to. I crave sitting in the open night air in a Rajasthani village, listening to tabla music. Or simply standing in a freshly turned field that smells of earth and shaking a farmer’s hand.We are marooned in the present tense. We couldn’t leave New Delhi even if we wanted to. I crave sitting in the open night air in a Rajasthani village, listening to tabla music. Or simply standing in a freshly turned field that smells of earth and shaking a farmer’s hand.
Lockdown is a blow to what I do and why I’ve dragged my family into this. Foreign correspondents relocate themselves and their families to soak up new experiences and transmit as much of that as possible to readers back home — not just the news but also the feel of a place, the humanity. We wither doing Zoom calls from our couches.Lockdown is a blow to what I do and why I’ve dragged my family into this. Foreign correspondents relocate themselves and their families to soak up new experiences and transmit as much of that as possible to readers back home — not just the news but also the feel of a place, the humanity. We wither doing Zoom calls from our couches.
But there is so much suffering around me, I’m not focusing on that right now.But there is so much suffering around me, I’m not focusing on that right now.
I get out a couple of times a week with my journalist pass, and just a few days ago I met a mother and her 9-year-old daughter moving from spray-painted circle to spray-painted circle down a sidewalk in a food line. The mother was a maid who had lost her job because of the lockdown. The daughter told me coronavirus came from stones that fell from the sky.I get out a couple of times a week with my journalist pass, and just a few days ago I met a mother and her 9-year-old daughter moving from spray-painted circle to spray-painted circle down a sidewalk in a food line. The mother was a maid who had lost her job because of the lockdown. The daughter told me coronavirus came from stones that fell from the sky.
They had zero money and I could tell from how listlessly they accepted their two pieces of fried bread and two lumps of potato curry that they hated taking handouts.They had zero money and I could tell from how listlessly they accepted their two pieces of fried bread and two lumps of potato curry that they hated taking handouts.
Behind them, in the bright sun, were hundreds of people just like them, marching slowly forward.Behind them, in the bright sun, were hundreds of people just like them, marching slowly forward.