19 February,2021 09:59 AM IST | Mumbai | The Editorial
This picture has been used for representational purposes
There is a key point amidst the alarm bells pealing about the rising COVID-19 cases. This is the role that get-togethers has played in the current spike.
The government and other authorities concerned have sounded out a warning about a possible second lockdown in case the people do not mend their ways.
Local leaders are going into meetings about a worrying rise and hoping to nip it before it spirals into something bigger and becomes uncontrollable.
This edit has, just recently, taken the line that we cannot throw caution to the winds. Go back to the old days should not be an option for us. Yet, this is to throw the spotlight on what big gatherings are doing, and how they have skewed the situation to a point of great concern.
Party season and wedding season have seen a steady inflow of guests mingling outdoors and inside halls. Organisers have taken the line that they are adhering to the 50 people only diktat.
The truth is that people are not clear about this rule. Is it 50 only? Does it mean that 100 people can attend weddings? Some claim that the rule stipulates not 50 but
75 people.
Others claim 50 couples, which means 100 people. Yet, others say 50 people minus the hosts. The hosts can go up to 20 people. Certain clubs and hotels are hosting functions where rules are being circumvented to 50 people in one room, 50 in the next, another 50 on the lawns.
While not everybody is doing so, it is happening in some places and needs investigation. Desist from huge get-togethers, we seem to have forgotten the term super spreader, just like we have a lot of other things. Public memory is dangerously short.
