Some people like to see doom (not gloom) in the recent and ongoing scare of corona virus which reminds me of an Edgar Allen Poe short story; the virus is doing much more harm than giving Corona beer a bad name.
At a recent funeral where I was present hundreds of people who attended the wake kissed the wife of the husband who had passed away. I did a namaste but was embarrassed as I was the only one and it made me feel somewhat less compassionate than the others. But, then, who gives what to whom or gets what from whom may be a matter of life or death, especially when one is an oldie. Anything to win an election? While a few politicians have warned people not to gather in crowds they themselves are to be found smack bang in the middle with smiles that would win anybody’s heart. They seem to say: I don’t practice what I preach! No point in bringing objections to this class of people who see themselves above everything else, above everyone else, and every law. Good will and sincerity is for mere mortals - not gods. One Minister said a few days ago, Goa would not be affected by the corona virus as ours is a hot state (no pun intended) but a few days later we were told there is a slowdown at Dabolim airport by 50%. Hotels and restaurant are empty, especially 5-star hotels which have a high percentage of air-conditioned rooms. Are these cool rooms a cool boudoir for the corona virus? Is the 5-star hotel business a good place to catch the virus? Will customers demand to have air-conditioning turned off in future? And, what about the tariff? Will we hear, “Can I get a 60% discount?” If the letter ‘C’ stands for anything it is - CAUTION. Be careful. With hotels and restaurants taking a hit from the virus, our government might consider scrapping the GST for a period of 6 months which would encourage business establishments not to shut down and layoff workers. The government must be perceived not only as an agent which is doing something but also as having done something! With the approaching elections this can hardly be overstated.
