Consequences of Covid

The anticipated rollout of the Covid-19 vaccine in the first and second quarter of 2021 will offer some respite from the devastating effects of the illness and the lockdowns. But the lasting after effects of the virus and the social precautions will persist. A new study by the United Nations Development Programme has found that "an additional 207 million people could be pushed into extreme poverty by 2030 due to the severe, long-term impact of the coronavirus pandemic (The Indian Express, December 7, 2020)."

In an aging, dwindling community deeply divided by opposing views on many religious, political and social issues, the pandemic has only created new barriers. While we do not have community statistics on the economic consequences of the lockdowns, most businesses and individuals have suffered major reverses. Many have seen their salaries shrink; others may have lost their jobs. According to one news report, the employment market in India shrank in the months of October and November. Jobs are hard to come by. A research paper published by The University of Chicago Booth School of Business noted, "across income groups, we find middle income groups suffered the worst relative to their pre pandemic levels."

All this means that in a community with few earning members in a family, the wherewithal to manage and to assist others is greatly reduced. If individuals do not have substantial earnings and savings how do they support various trusts that in turn help the disadvantaged, the elderly, the infirm and the destitute?

The flow of funds to trusts and individuals depends largely on income from investments and rents from property they may possess. During lockdowns, the returns on any assets suffer. Political upheavals may also cause disruptions. The nationwide farmers’ stir this December could easily result in a shortage of produce reaching the markets and a spike in prices.

Among the major donors to the Parsi community in India is the Zoroastrian Charity Funds of Hongkong, Canton and Macao. With the Chinese government asserting control over Hong Kong, they could change policies that may adversely affect the flow of funds to Indian charities. Relations between China and India are strained.

In India, the government has tightened its grip on foreign funds flowing to nongovernmental Indian trusts. To assume, therefore, that donations will continue unabated is unwise.

From March onwards, Parsi baugs used for celebrating navjotes, weddings and other joyous occasions have been unutilized. Even assuming the momentum picks up somewhat in 2021, the current loss of income these trusts have suffered cannot be reversed. Raising rates will be suicidal because everyone’s ability to pay has been reduced. Earlier, a part of the surplus income the baugs may have generated was donated to needy causes and individuals. Aid to those recipients will lessen. Parsi caterers, lighting contractors, photographers, flower arrangement concerns have seen their incomes plummet (see "Covid, the gate-crasher," Parsiana, November 7-20, 2020).

With religious institutions in the city and elsewhere in India being shut close to nine months, the income of fire temples and priests who serve them has been almost non-existent. Some agiaries have had to dip into their corpuses to pay for the kathi used to keep the consecrated fires burning continuously.

In addition to the economic cost of the pandemic, there is also the emotional and psychological damage. Being confined to home with no visitors, and often no domestic help, many must have felt abandoned. Not all are conversant with electronic forms of communication for staying in touch with friends and family. Even when the restrictions were eased many did not venture from their homes. The elderly who may have desired to stir out were prevented or prevailed upon by family members not to do so. Often friends and neighbors were shunned. Lonely lives turned lonelier.

Calcutta has a core of volunteer Parsi social workers who visit the elderly but most other cities like Bombay are bereft of this companionship. The Bombay Parsi Punchayet did set up help lines to assist those who needed delivery of food and provisions. But for those with limited financial means the intake of food and the number of meals would be restricted. As the Booth report notes, "A sustained reduction in food expenditure might have consequences on health and nutrition, especially in households with children."

So how does the community free itself from this morass? Community institutions in India have to be very circumspect in how they raise and utilize their resources. Optimal usage of community assets is both crucial and necessary.

The Delhi Parsi Anjuman has demonstrated that by permitting non Parsis to avail of their Mengusi Dharamshala lodging and boarding facilities, a loss-making institution could become profitable. In other cities we find similar lodging facilities being underutilized, with funds constantly being sought to maintain the structure and pay salaries. They could easily study how Delhi has gone about the conversion without outstation Parsis being inconvenienced or denied accommodation.

Similarly, our baugs used for festive occasions can be made available to other communities at a higher levy. The Olpadvala Memorial Hall in Calcutta has done this successfully over the decades. Bombay baugs are booked on an average for 60 to 70 days in a year. By reserving the peak months for community members, the balance days could be booked by other communities that do not have such spacious facilities, especially in south Bombay.

These are only two examples of how one can capitalize on existing facilities without having to spend large amounts. There is bound to be opposition but through dialog and open discussions, acceptable solutions can be arrived at. We have only to look at the example of once Parsi-only schools accepting students from other communities to fill their otherwise empty classrooms.

One is not talking of selling community assets, merging fires of agiaries or developing and constructing new institutions. Such attempts in the past have met with stiff resistance and usually defeat. The best option for now is to pursue doable projects that have a greater chance of success.