Gurugram villagers take measures to tackle Covid-19

Villages in Gurugram have made several arrangements — spraying disinfectant with water in colonies, making locals aware about coronavirus through loudspeakers, including

Villages in Gurugram have made several arrangements — spraying disinfectant with water in colonies, making locals aware about coronavirus through loudspeakers, including dos and don’ts and ensuring all homes have enough ration in the entire village — tackle the Covid-19 outbreak.

HT Image

In Pataudi village, located around 19 kilometres from Gurugram, villagers have started making masks from palm leaves and locals are spraying water mixed with disinfectants.

Pradeep Yadav, sarpanch, Pataudi village, said, “We don’t have many facilities in the village. So, the panchayat decided that we needed to disinfect the entire village on our own. We have asked a few youngsters to spray disinfectors in the entire village.” Locals have started making masks out of palm leaves and wear the same if they have to step out, said Yadav.

Many villages have put up bamboo sticks, as a makeshift checkpoint at the entrance, to deny entry to outsiders. It is easier to identify outsiders in villages and thus, the spread of Covid-19 through contact can be easily avoided, said villagers of Kakrola.

Fakir Chand, sarpanch, Kakrola village, said, “Youngsters are taking turns to man the barricade, to prevent anyone who is not from the village from entering. This is why we have come up with our own way of stopping outsiders from entering our village.”

Villagers, in some cases, are also denying entry to locals who stayed in cities. “On Thursday evening, a family who stayed in Delhi returned to Pataudi. We immediately stopped them and sent them back,” said Yadav.

Village heads are also conducting regular patrols, issuing instructions to the villagers about the lockdown. “Fellow villagers, please wear masks, wash your hands regularly and avoid going outside. This message is being circulated every day for at least three times in the village,” said Monu Khatana, social worker, Sehjawas.

For those living in villages, food and dairy products are not a concern as they make it a point to share the daily collection among everyone. “We are supporting each other; anyone who is growing potatoes in their fields has been asked to share it with all households for free. Families that own buffaloes are providing milk to everyone. We are self-sufficient and don’t have a scarcity of food,” said Chand.

There are 203 gram panchayats in the state, which undertake village-level plans for development, active participation in government programmes and self-governance. These villages don’t come under the rule of Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG). “We don’t come under MCG; our village is looked after by the gram panchayat. This is why we are disinfecting our village on our own. We need to take care of the residents in the village,” said Chand.

Kakrola gram panchayat on Friday decided that all landlords must ensure supply of essential food items to their tenants so that no one leaves the village.

The district health department said that spraying any disinfectant with water is not the ideal sanitisation method, but encouraged the efforts of villagers. Ram Prakash, the district epidemiologist, said, “Something is better than nothing.”

The district administration said that they are carrying out regular drives to make people aware of sanitisation in villages. Amit Khatri, the deputy commissioner, said, “Regular campaigns are being carried out in villages too.”

Meanwhile, MCG commissioner said that they are carrying out sanitisation drives, under the guidance of Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA). Vinay Pratap Singh, the MCG commissioner, said, “It’s good if villages are also sanitising their areas.”