Khalida Niaz

PESHAWAR: The lockdowns are being lifted gradually and apparently life is getting normal, but facts on ground are quite different and it may take several years for us to get back to the life which existed seven months ago when there was no coronavirus in the world.

Iftikhar Khan, a Peshawar-based journalist, says world has changed after the pandemic; millions of jobs are lost; world trade has suffered beyond measure, and economies dependent on oil and tourism are on the verge of collapse.

The pandemic has also impacted the living style and habits of people and the existing world is quite different from the pre-pandemic era. Iftikhar Khan said that after closure of offices, many workers started working from home and spent time with family, but it also gave rise to domestic quarrels, and incidents of violence against women and children increased. This fact was also endorsed by the UNICEF in its report. The report mentioned that 19 percent married women reported violence from husbands.

Has corona changed Pakistanis?

Pakistan is no different from the rest of the world as far as the impacts of coronavirus are concerned.

Although a sizable number of people still deny the existence of the pandemic, but the majority had to change their approach to life and conduct after seeing changing trends in the rest of the world.

“I am well educated, but I was not taking coronavirus seriously until it killed some people in my area. Now I am so scared that I have stopped socialising and I am very careful now,” said Bajaur Youth Jirga president Wajid Ali Shah, who is also a social activist.

Wajid Ali Shah said he used to roam freely for social work, but now he has restricted his movement to urgent issues only.

“When corona first came in Pakistan, several rumours about the disease also spread, like it would end in summer, black tea or a particular plant can be useful, etc, but all these things proved to be part of misinformation,” he said.

Wajid believes that ignorance and non-serious attitude of the people of his village Faja and rest of the country caused quick spread of the disease. He said people did not take the disease seriously and paid the price. He said his social network is now confined to social media after the pandemic and he uses these platforms to create awareness among the people.

About educational institutions

All the institutions are opening up gradually in Pakistan except for the educational institutions which are shut for the last four months.

Samiur Rehman, a private schoolteacher in Mardan, told TNN that corona has changed his life and now he takes online classes while sitting at his home. He said online classes are not as effective as direct classes. He said technical issues, particularly the availability and speed of internet, also halt the perfect delivery of lectures to students.

However, corona has proven that people associated with different professions can work from home in cases of emergency during this era of technology.

Corona victims in KP and rest of Pakistan

Death toll from the pandemic in Pakistan has surpassed 4,500 with over 218,000 infections.

In KP, the death toll stands at 983 and infections are at 27,170, according to latest data of KP Health Department.

The pandemic has killed over 526,000 people worldwide since it surfaced in China late last year, according to latest reports. More than 11  million people have been infected in 196 countries and territories.

The United States is the hardest-hit country with over 130,000 deaths. It is followed by Brazil with over 62,000, Britain with 44,000, Italy with over 34,000 and France with over 29,000 fatalities.

Professor Zafar Khan of Sociology Department of the University of Peshawar said while talking to TNN that the pandemic has exposed the governance structure and weaknesses of the whole world, particularly in US and other developed countries. He said the social bonds among Pakhtuns are always very strong and almost unbreakable. However, he said, the pandemic has also dented these bonds to the extent of precaution because no one wants to get infected with a disease which has no known cure.

Professor Zafar Khan said a positive impact has come in shape of greater care for cleanliness by the people. However, he said, it has impacted children negatively, as they can’t go to school or take part in recreational activities and spend most of the time playing with mobile phones and internet which is not good for their health. He said online shopping and viewing of movies and dramas on the internet has also increased in the times of pandemic.

Psychological impacts

Experts believe that continuous coverage about coronavirus by the mainstream media has created an atmosphere of fear and depression.

Dr Shaharyar, serving in Lady Reading Hospital, Peshawar, said he has noticed that most of the coronavirus patients in the ICU confront serious stress and depression.

“The doctor and patient’s relation builds on trust, but corona patients need isolation, due to which such trust could not be developed and attendants of patients often complain about this,” he said.

However, he said doctors have not got used to the situation and now they have started handling such issues easily.