"Whatever can go wrong, will go wrong."
Murphy stated this long time back. What he really meant was If there's more than one way to do a job and one of those ways will end in disaster, then somebody will do it that way.
Let's take example of current pandemic situations. Don’t we all feel bad about the problems around us and wonder why someone has not already solved this. How come an entire city, or a country or even the whole world has not been able to find a cure for this? Doesn’t the inner hero in us wish to create a carefree happy world around.
This world around is too big with an infinite scope for things that can and will go wrong.
Be it a virus that you never planned for or an economic downturn that economists never predicted. Such external factors may hurt each one in varying degrees. What is common across all such problems is the way we stand up and face them. Some of them we solve on our own some with the help of friends and some are solved by those who care and are passionate about powerful solutions that improve the world around them.
Another such problem we face is the quality of the air we breathe.
No I am not saying this is an imminent problem or scaring you out. Just reminding myself of the enemy that plays hide and seek every year and resurges each winter to surprise us all. Yes this is the smog that rises like a phoenix from the ashes in some distant fields of states around Delhi NCR. Now, the plant stubble, its burning, the smog are not the only problems as problems you know they come like bees. Add to it the constrained air flow of winters, the vehicles on the roads and what not. Together they make our homes an uneasy place and leave us all wanting to get this solved as soon as we it can be.
I read somewhere that there have been cases where a combination of respiratory infection, heart disease with Covid-19 has triggered a cardiac arrest. Now citing upcoming air pollution in Delhi, I am quite unsure of what exactly I should be doing in such scenarios. Probably bunking up in our house and using masks are the way to go for us. I sincerely hope that a greater awareness of such life threatening topics could be provided to us soon.
But I am hopeful.
Last seven months have been incredibility difficult but it has also taught us many valuable lessons:
Single objective mindset makes way for collective efforts towards handling an issue
It is possible to achieve cleaner air when fast and decisive actions are taken
It is possible to live in a way that creates less pollution on an individual level, by for example - travel less; ride a bicycle or walk short distances; work from home if possible
Great cities like Delhi were built to elevate human lives and make quality of life a bit better for everyone. In my opinion, it is definitely a goal worth striving for.
As we go back to our normal routine, I believe the most important thing to remind ourselves would be that it is indeed possible to have cleaner air. It is possible to have this again even without a lockdown, only if we actively practice what we have learned over the past few months.
Written by Neeraj Kumar, FMS Delhi