By Marcellus D’Souza

Ape 16: Easter means rebirth, a new beginning, something afresh. But with the economic slowdown looming upon us and the price of fuel skyrocketing, it means we will celebrate a burdened Easter.

As a society, we got to stop living in denial of the real situation at hand. Pulses and lentils have become dearer and the steady climb of fuel prices will only increase the costs of essential commodities to increase further.

As much as we may try to forget the Covid years and pretend it was a bad dream, the deep holes the Pandemic has burnt in our monthly earnings continue to haunt us. Yes, Covid did happen, even though we would like to take it in our stride. We lost our jobs. We were given pink slips or told to go home and not to return to work. This is despite the fact that the stock market scenario has been propped up artificially.

We may put on the facade of normality and would like to think ‘nothing has really changed’. The governments have opened everything. Markets, schools, malls, eateries and local transport have been opened throwing caution to the wind. The governments have even dispensed off with wearing of mask. But the medical fraternity is apprehensive about the situation at hand and oppose this idea. The governments do not want to inconvenience people. But in the same breathe they warn of the fourth wave of the epidemic coming on the horizon.

The lockdown exposed us to various psychological diseases. Boredom and seclusion become a norm rather than an exception. The youth were left with no option but to take refuge in alcohol and drugs to escape the reality. We faced death in the face. Every community, family reported a death of a near and dear one or a distant relative or friend. Visits to the crematoriums and graveyards increased. Even the river Ganges spotted the scourge of the disease that was once a tale for afar but had now become a reality.

Now the war between Russia and Ukraine has hit us. The exponentially high prices of fuel will only climb further north. There is bound to be a cascading effect on prices. How do we make ends meet? We are the middle class people with limited income. On a normal day, it is difficult to meet the expenses of a ‘decent’ living. Living has become a hand-to-mouth existence. The price of a gas cylinder has crossed the Rs. 1000/- mark. The government too has its hands tied behind its back but do not want to admit the fact that we are in a precarious position. Inflation is at a 45-year high. But the government continues to pull the wool on our eyes. Indian labour force has shrunk by 3.8 million to an 8-month low in March. Industrial jobs in March fell by 76 lakh, manufacturing by 41 lakh, construction by 29 lakh and mining by 11 lakh.

What about the poor? They too are going thru the rigours of existence. Some of the less fortunate brethren go to bed without a meal in their belly or with just one meal to suffice an entire day.

So what does Easter mean for people on the fridges of society. It means nothing. Imagine the plight of a mother who got to rustle up a meal for the family. Or a dad, who has to find the most convincing excuse why he is unable to buy the kids the cheapest Easter eggs. Today we are called to stretch the rupee to breaking point.
What about those afflicted with terminal diseases. What is Easter to a person on the death row? Waiting for the time and moment when the ultimate call shall be made. Cancer, heart disease, COPD or Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and a mired other diseases have become rampant. This is across age groups. True there is a cure for every disease, but what is the cost of medicines. Ordinary people just cannot afford to pick up the costs of hospitalisation and surgery. Even a doctor’s consultation is steep.

The reality cannot be erased. We got to face the reality that life which more than challenges us. Tomorrow shall surely come. A bleak tomorrow and the question if India will go the Sri Lankan way will have to be answered, sooner than later.

Easter, happens every day in our lives. We die and are resurrected every day. This year’s festivity will be somber and burdened but we got to take it in our stride.