Eid Mubarak: Let us build our community based on care and solidarity.

EID Mubarak: it’s really difficult to write this word in 2020. We are passing through unprecedented situation in our country and elsewhere in the world due to COVID19. EID is the important festival for the Muslims across the globe. But, in such crisis, how can one celebrate any festival, when most of the people from the world are in pain, particularly, people from low income group or who engaged in the unorganized sectors, now even employers from organized sectors are asking staff to region from job or introducing pay cuts. People are losing their job. In India, there were 8% unemployment before the COVID19, currently, this has reached around 24% in such short span of time.

One cannot imagine suffering of the vulnerable communities or groups like sex-workers, domestic workers or street vendors, peasants, fisher-folk, and many more The way our City Makers are walking away from Cities with un-measurable pain on their heart and mind. This is sheer evidence of negligence from the side of larger society, Government, Business houses and affluent people, who always benefited from the sweat blood of those people, who left their home to find they ways to change their life, but hardy changed their own life instead their masters accumulated all the benefits, which are being earned with hard work of those labors.

Many families are not able to have proper food in these days, even people are eating less food or many case families are mostly dependent on the community initiatives. In such condition, one can think, how difficult to manage the others expenses like medicines or milk for children. We are seeing, how our migrants’ sisters are walking with infant kids, and some of them going through harsher condition despite of their heavy pregnancy, many of them delivered baby on the way.

For last couple of days, I tried to interact with some people through phone or other sources to understand the situations. Her name is Shuman, she has been working as a domestic help for last 10 years, she lives with her parents or she is the sole earner for the family, she said, once government announced lockdown on 22^nd March, most of her employers didn’t paid even for the march salary forget about the rest of the months. She was anxious, how will she manage her expenses, she did not have paid her house rent for last three months.

Another person with whom I talked , his name is Kalam, he has been working as a rickshaw puller in our colony, he knows everyone in our street, he had kind of regular work to carry school kids in the nearby or taking passengers in the rest of time. Few days back, I found him selling vegetable on the pushing cart, he said, it was difficult to survive without work, after waiting for one month, Kalam decided to start selling vegetable, so at least he can earn some money for survival of his family. Kalam changed his work much before our Prime Minister announced Atmanirbhar

The story of Shuman and Kalam are not only end with them, these are the story of lakhs of people in our county, who mostly engaged with informal work, employer paid them every month or they earned based on daily work, in our country. Around 90% of work force don't have secured income. There are no regulation of wages or other social securities for most of the informal workers or self-employed.  

In such a difficult time, many countries have taken steps for helping their citizens, through various means and methods. One of most necessary major to transfer the cash to most of the citizens, who are in need and take appropriate major to protect the jobs. But, unfortunately none of those steps are taken in our country.

Eid Mubarak-We should not forget the compassion, love, sharing and caring for all, without any distinction of religion, race, gender or caste. Let us build our community based on care and solidarity.
No matter where are you from? What Faith you are following or even if you do not believe in anything.