KOCHI: The United Nations General Assembly observes October 31 as World Cities Day, an occasion to address challenges of urbanisation, and contribute to sustainable urban development. This year, in the wake of Covid-19 pandemic, an unprecedented catastrophe that affected life around the world, the day is all about valuing local communities that played a key role in keeping people safe and maintaining economic activities.
In UN’s words, this encompasses local volunteering and people organising in their own neighbourhoods as well as social movements that challenged poverty and discrimination.
The secretary-general has identified cities and communities as being on the frontline of the Covid-19 response, urging countries to extend the recognition of communities’ value beyond the virus outbreak.
Today, Team Express salutes every selfless effort that continues to keep our beautiful city afloat, despite all odds.
Picking up our litter
Saji C, a sanitary worker of Kochi Corporation, starts his day stacking up bags of garbage that people recklessly throw around town. Despite a pandemic on the loose, the 52-year-old has been serving the city for months now. Hailing from Fort Kochi, one of the district’s Covid clusters, the quinquagenarian has never had second thoughts about his duty. “There is no point in staying back or fearing infection. If we don’t do our work properly, the daily life of many people will be affected the city would begin to rot. We take basic precautions, but ensure that our allotted areas stay clean. In fact, I haven’t taken a day off in the last six months,” he said.
Saji begins his cleaning duties around 6.30am, and it goes on till noon. Apart from his daily chores, he also helped the health department set up Covid frontline facilities in the city. Covering over 50 houses daily, he single-handedly manages to keep a big chunk of the city clean and alive. But he does feel that the public hasn’t learned their lessons, even after fighting a pandemic. “Instead of proper segregation, many are callously throwing away their waste into the street, believing cleaning workers like us will take it away anyway,” said Saji.
Food and livelihood
Pokkali farmers of Kochi’s islets faced two devils this season — inconsistent monsoon and a pandemic. Despite low demand and prices caused by the economic slowdown during the lockdown, these traditional farmers continued with production, ensuring food supply among local communities. K A Thomas, secretary of Kadamakudy Padasekhara Samithi, pioneered the movement. “Even during the crisis, we managed to keep our routine intact. Though export was dull, we found takers for the produce in the domestic market. We cultivated rice in over 400 acres and provided jobs to many Gulf returnees. The subsidiary prawn farming has also flourished,” he said. Recipient of the Central government’s ‘Plant Genome Saviour Community Award’, Thomas is now trying to promote the ‘Jaiva Pokkali’ brand through value-added products.
“We have been promoting it since 2010. Production of rice flakes and other value-added products have already started. Recently, I tried my luck in mushroom farming using Pokkali straws. We are looking to diversify the products for a more sustainable future. With government support, and a base price for Pokkali, we could get more youngsters to join agriculture,” he added.
Till the last goodbye
Ever since Kerala reported the first case of Covid-19 in late January, the state has been fighting a relentless battle against the pandemic. One of its most despairing outcome is fatalities, and a situation where family and friends are unable to perform the last rites for their deceased kin. With cases of patients succumbing to the virus gradually mounting, the District Medical Office had a challenging task on hand. Medical staff being deployed at hospitals and Covid care centres meant that burial or cremation of deceased patients could not be carried out by professionals.
That’s when Sahrudaya Samaritans, the charitable wing of the Ernakulam-Angamaly Archdiocese, came to the aid of authorities. They enlisted nearly 1,000 volunteers from Ernakulam to bury the dead with all honours. The initiative which started early July has assisted nearly 40 funerals in the district so far, including the cremation of a non-Christian man from Balleri, Karnataka who contracted the virus while in Kerala. “We currently have about 1,000 active volunteers belonging to all faiths as part of the initiative. While Sahrudaya has contributed a sizeable number, others belong to smaller Muslim and Hindu associations. Many individuals have also come forward,” P N Sreenivasan, district nodal officer, Covid management.
Not all heroes wear capes
When Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the nationwide lockdown on March 24, it was by all means an event unprecedented in Indian history. While many were stranded with little groceries and limited provisions, food delivery agents emerged as the unsung heroes, risking their lives to bring food and other essentials to people’s doorsteps.
Deemed as essential service, delivery executives from aggregators like Swiggy and Zomato zipped past Kochi’s roads dodging multiple restrictions brought in by the lockdown. Muhammed Mohzin, an agent with Swiggy, is one among the many unsung Covid-19 warriors. He considers it an honour, having had the opportunity to serve his city. “I delivered equal orders for food and groceries. I personally did not face any trouble from policemen. They would only stop us to give guidelines. We had to be in uniform and wear masks, and carry all necessary documents. I never thought I was putting myself at risk,” says the Aluva native.
Washing their woes away
When the Covid-19 pandemic toppled the economy, Dhobi Khana, the community of washermen halining from Veli in Fort Kochi, survived by providing service to the local families. Jayaprakash, one of the 50-+ workers in the group, points out that people are still fond of traditional washing and drying, despite the threat of contact. “We struggled initially, because our major customers were the lodges and homestays that shut down during the lockdown. But this gave us a chance to re-establish our connections with the local residents. With work from home becoming common, many didn’t have the time to run errands.
We reached out to them and offered our service at a mere `30 per kg,” he said. The community used to cater to interstate lorry drivers and tourists. The community used to attract brisk business during the winter season with tourists pouring in from around the world. This time, they missed out on all that business. “What we earned in five days before Covid is now being made in a month. Luckily, Mattanchery police and other compassionate souls supported us during these days,” said 56-year-old Jayaprakash.
Saving the loom, and the city
Those working with traditional arts and crafts watched their whole word fall apart during this pandemic. Bearing the onus of having mouths to feed, several of them were also frantic about the disappearance of skills and traditions developed over hundreds of years. Anticipating the high demand for masks, ‘Save the Loom’ initiative decided to capitalise on the existing resources and employ handloom weavers who had little to no work during the lockdown to engage in mask-masking. A week before the lockdown, ‘Save the Loom’ explored the possibility of creating masks, both to ensure their availability as Kochi fights Covid, and to reinstate employment. Khadi masks proved to be reusable and eco-friendly, thereby not just creating engagement but also ensuring sustainability. Sindhu T N, stitching unit head at the GSGS centre, added that they had numerous orders for masks in the initial stages of the lockdown.
No room for fake news
A single web search on coronavirus and fake news can conjure up nearly 90,50,00,000 results. This is excluding the numerous misinformation and hoaxes that do not make it to headlines. Realising that media and e-literacy can propel a society forward, especially amid a pandemic, the Kudumbashree Mission converted their network of WhatsApp groups across the state to disseminate awareness and broadcast accuracy during the second week of March, thereby fostering a society that can distinguish wheat from chaff. Divided into Area Development Societies (ADS), Community Development Societies (CDS) and Neighbourhood Groups (NHG), the teams circulated authentic information and updates regarding the outbreak. They also spread precautionary measures stipulated by the chief minister’s office, health department and district authorities.
Currently, Ernakulam hosts around 26,000 Kudumbashree Whatsapp groups, comprising almost three lakh members. “Along with spreading Covid-related material, we have also begun to update people on the ‘Athijeevanam’ campaign, a programme to create livelihoods for at least 15,000 people. This falls under the 100-day action plan of the government. Similarly, information on Haritha Karma Sena that recycles non-biodegradable waste is also being provided,” says Renjini S, assistant Ernakulam district mission coordinator.
ASHA, the beacon of hope
Combing the narrow lanes of Kochi, Sreeja Raju covers around 50 homes a day, meticulously jotting down details of newborns awaiting vaccination and the senior citizens under treatment for ailments.
This 43-year-old is one of the many ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activist) workers who are actively ensuring general health of the city amid the fight against Covid-19. ASHA workers like Sreeja have been having a hectic schedule since March, handling everything from contact tracing to providing medicines to Covid patients. “Apart from the regular responsibilities, we also call bed-ridden patients and those needing palliative care.
We also instruct families of infected patients regarding reverse quarantine and Covid protocols. Many are struggling with psychological stress too. We help them get in touch with doctors,” she said. With the onset of monsoon, Sreeja also has to address the spread of other communicable diseases like malaria and dengue. After all this, she returns home to her family confidently. “We maintain a safe distance during the visits. Things have been under control so far,” she says.