Disaster Management in Rajasthan: A case study around COVID-19 Pandemic 2020

ACN NEWS On May 4, 2020

By Prof. Ashok Kumar

Rajasthan is one of the sacred states of India in which Bhaktimayi Meera Bai took birth. Besides her many other historic personalities who made this pitch of land more sacred are the ancient heroes and freedom fighters of this state who made this land more sanctified. The passion for heroic ventures among the people of Rajasthan made the state more fertile to produce different warriors and heroes.

Prof. Ashok Kumar, VC. Shri Kallaji Vedic Vishvavidyalaya, Rajasthan.

Although the state has a glorious past, wonderful present, and golden future; several natural calamities strike on its backbone each year and as a result, the state is unable to prosper in the rate of its potentiality. The geographical location of this sacred land Rajasthan is 27.0238° N, 74.2179° E and due to this reason, the state is facing several natural calamities every year. Failure of monsoon and regular drought makes the condition of the state more vulnerable.

About 60 % of the western part of the state is covered with deserts. Due to the dry climate, the habitation/industrial areas of the state are quite prone to fire accidents. The disasters like hailstorms and thunderstorms, frost and cloud wave, sandstorm, locust attack, cyclone, cloud burst, etc. are common in some parts of the state. It is seen several times that heavy crop damage is caused due to hailstorms & frost and consequently the people of rural areas face scarcity of food grains.

Besides these natural calamities, the other calamities that the state of Rajasthan has been facing for several years are – the Rajpura Dariba Mine VRM disaster took place in Dariba, Udaipur on 28 August 1994. A human stampede occurred on 30 Sept. 2008, at the Chamunda Devi temple in Jodhpur in which 224 people were killed; the Jaipur oil depot fire broke out on 29 Oct., 2009at 7:30 PM at the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) oil depot ‘s giant tank holding 8,000 kilolitres (280,000 cu ft) of petrol, in Sitapura Industrial Area on the outskirts of Jaipur, Rajasthan, killing 12 people and injuring over 300; the under-construction KotaChambal River Bridge collapse in Kota, Rajasthan, India, in December 2009 and at a mine operated by Hindustan Zinc Ltd.; about 27 people were killed and nearly 100 injured as a high-intensity squall followed by thundershowers hit parts of Rajasthan overnight on 2^nd May 2018.

Such disasters disrupt progress and destroy years of painstaking developmental efforts of the state and thrusting the state back by several years. The impacts of such disasters are strong in the case of developing states in terms of recovery. It is, therefore, pre-disaster efforts such as early preparedness, capacity building, spreading awareness as well as building efficiency in response mechanism results comparatively lesser loss of lives and properties. During such calamities, the state of Rajasthan analyzes the risk first, and thereafter certain measures are taken up including management techniques during the development of the methodological feature. This management proficiency includes the processing of risks. On the basis of impact and probability of assessment, the state analyzes the risk factors and accordingly plans to face the disaster with very nominal loss in lives and properties.

Corona Virus – Pandemic in Rajasthan: Rajasthan Wikipedia.

At present Rajasthan is the fourth most affected state in India in terms of coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic cases. The 1^st case of Covid-19 was found in Jaipur on 2^nd March 2020. Department of Health, Govt. of Rajasthan has confirmed a total number of 2,803 coronavirus pandemic cases including 70 deaths and 1,273 recoveries till 3rd May 2020. The following graph represents the spread of coronavirus in Rajasthan during the last 15 days.

The following graph depicts the spread of coronavirus pandemic in the state of Rajasthan including no. of casualties and no. of patients cured.

Steps taken by the Government of Rajasthan emerge from this coronavirus pandemic: It is crystal clear that the spread of coronavirus Covid-19 could not spread over a vast area of the state of Rajasthan, death rate also became very nominal and people got cured in a high rate due to activeness of the State Government under the dynamic leadership of our Hon’ble Chief Minister Shri Ashok Gehlot ji. He is being appreciated by people for his commitment to the prevention and cure of Corona Virus effects in the State of Rajasthan. His performance in the battle against Coronavirus shows that he is handling this situation as an effective and strict administrator, sensitive for marginals, poor and migrants who are suffering in this lockdown; and reframing Rajasthan to make it able to fight the pandemic.

The first case of coronavirus pandemic was found in Rajasthan on 2^nd March 2020 in Jaipur. He was one 69-year-old Italian tourist. In the preliminary test, his report was negative but as his health condition found deteriorating, the second test was made after two days in which the report was found positive. Doctors Under the guidance of Dr. Sudhir Bhandari, Principal of SMS hospital and Medical College, and in consultation with the ICMR, followed a unique line of treatment, combining Lopinavir/ Ritonavir, drugs are usually given as a second line of treatment for HIV, with drugs meant for curing Malaria and Swine Flu, to cure a patient, an Italian lady, of Coronavirus, for the first time in India.

Since on 2^nd March 2020 to till date Govt. of Rajasthan has been taking several steps to stop the spread of coronavirus (COVID – 19) in the state which is as follows –

On 3^rd March 2020, the Union Health Ministry held a meeting with officials of Rajasthan Health Department over the outbreak, and immediately the Chief Minister of Rajasthan asked all the hotels of the state where the Italians stayed to be sanitized(ANI – 3^rd March 2020).
The state-imposed section 144 across the whole State on 18^th March 2020 and also imposed curfew around the infected areas to prevent forming of a positive cluster(The Hindu – 19^th March, 2020).
Isolation of suspected cases initiated in Bhilwara on 20^th March, 2020(The New Indian Express – 20^th April, 2020).
On 19^th March, 2020 the Govt. imposed section 144 in the entire area of Jaipur and restricted gathering of more than 5 persons , as well as screened all the passengers reaching Jaipur via foreign flights from abroad(The Hindu – 19^th March, 2020).
A door-to-door survey of arround 80,000 houses was carried in Bhilawara on 20^th March, 2020(The New Indian Express – 29^th April, 2020).
The state was first in the country to announce complete lockdown in the entire state barring essential services starting from 22^nd March 2020 including public transportation (ABP News bureau – 21^st March, 2020). When the Lockdown started and the laborers were rendered jobless, he emerged as the first chief minister who announced 1,000 labor maintenance supports. He also announced various support measures for peasants and ordered to pay minimum support price to the peasants in the harvesting season.
The Rajasthan government also announced to give free ration to the needy people. The free ration was announced for 2 months for the families covered under food security (Hindusthan Times – 24^th March 2020 &2020 coronavirus pandemic in Rajasthan Wikipedia).
Govt. of Rajasthan is the first in the country to announce financial support of 50.00 lakhs to the families of Govt. employees who died during anti-Covid-19 operation (Hindusthan Times – 11^th April 2020 &2020 corona virus pandemic in Rajasthan Wikipedia).
Private vehicles are banned in the state since 24^th March 2020 (Hindusthan Times – 24^th March, 2020).
Rapid testing for Covid – 19 through rapid testing kits was started in the State of Rajasthan, first in the country, on 18^th April 2020, but as soon as it is found that the accuracy rate of kit is low, it was banned later on 21^st April, 2020 – (2020 corona virus pandemic in Rajasthan Wikipedia, TheTimes of India – 18^th April, 2020& The Hindu – 21^st April, 2020).
The Government of Rajasthan has a stock of 10,000 Test Kits and 20,000 PPE. (India Today – 15^th April 2020)
The state has about 900 ICU beds in Govt. hospitals of which 392 have ventilators.The Govt. has a stock of 1,057 ventilators. Beside Govt. hospitals, there are about 2,100 beds in different private hospitals of Rajasthan reserved for corona patients. The state has total 1,06,673 Quarantine beds and 20,863 isolation beds.(India Today – 15^th April, 2020)
The government of Rajasthan has given orders to all Govt. and private hospitals to attend all patients including corona patients.(India Today – 15^th April, 2020)
The Government has identified 54 big hospitals for symptomatic COVID 19 patients but other patients are also taken care of there. (India Today – 15^th April, 2020)
Keeping in view of threatening given to several doctors by their concerned landlords in the state who are engaged to treat Covid – 19 affected patients, Government of Rajasthan issued Rajasthan Epidemic Diseases Covid – 19 Regulation 202 under Epidemic Disease Act 1897 and Epidemic Disease Act 1957 for prevention and containment of Covid – 19.(The Times of India – 25^th March, 2020)

The State Government is serious about the problems of labours of Rajasthan caught up in other States and similarly, laborers of other states stuck due to Lockdown. The Government is continuously talking to the Government of India to send these labours to their homes.

An awareness campaign has been organized at the mass level by inspiring and educating people through pamphlets, videos, written articles etc. It is very important to maintain the confidence of the personnel involved in fighting corona around the clock.

About the author:

Prof. Ashok Kumar is the Vice-Chancellor at Shri Kallaji Vedic Vishvavidyalaya, Kalyan Lok, Nimbahera, Rajasthan. He is the former Vice-Chancellor of CSJM University, Kanpur & DDU Gorakhpur University, Gorakhpur.