Corona virus Diseases 2019 (COVID -19) and Human behavior: A socio-

psychological Study in Kolkata and Purbabardhaman (West Bengal)

Dr. Ananta kumar Biswas

Asst. Professor, Dept. of sociology

The University of Burdwan

West Bengal

(I thankfully acknowledged Sustainable Consumption Institute (SCI), Manchester, for insights on the

subject and also Environment and Social Development Association (ESDA), Delhi for a valuable feedback

on the topic in the Webinar (National online Conference) on 5-6 June 2020)

Contribution: This paper contributes to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic through addressing health,

environment and employment in a holistic way

Key words: social milieu, de-carbonization, re-orient, relationship, behavior

Abstract: Our social milieu has been changing rapidly with the outbreak of corona virus

(COVID-19) since December 2019. We have experienced millions of deaths, job lost, livelihood

lost, massive economic costs, psychological trauma, panic and paranoia ever seen before in

human civilization. We are becoming puzzle to take several measures to handle the situation but

unfortunately we are hopeless enough! Contrary to these, we have pleasant experiences like

fresh air and water due to decreased air and water pollution in Europe and Asia, de-carbonization

(which is much cherished for our sustainability), fishing and animals’ free movements on road

etc. Our governments nothing but has to take aggressive steps like lockdown for controlling the

situation. But how do we close ourselves overtime in isolation? Do we want shutting down our

industry, transport and business?

What we actually want is emanated from the catastrophic that we faced. The fact is that

catastrophic is not unknown to human history, but COVID0-19 is the exception among all

happened in the world till the date. Catastrophic are being handle by human through focusing on

the immediate, i.e. relief and rescue but COVID -19 aberrantly focused on learning of how do we

rearrange, reorganized, reordered our course of action for next planetary emergency.

Now the question what COVID-19 teaches us to follow in coming days? In the COVID-19

times, we have seen disorder and disruption at scales we never thought would happen in our life

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time. So, now we need to fix what is broken in our relationships with nature and how do we

renew our relationship with nature in the sake of humanity and our earth? COVID-19, no-

doughtly re-orient us in thinking on our present action and activities which are destructive and

damaging in nature and consequently inviting many catastrophic like COVID-19 pandemic in

this time.

Therefore this paper tries to explore how to effect positive changes in human behavior in the

context of COVID-19, which may lead sustainable social and cultural practices in order to cope

with the challenges like COVID-19.

Introduction to the problem:

We are together at home! Virtual concert bring together musical talent from around the world

to thank front line health workers and rose about thousands of million to support COVID-19

response efforts globally. There is a popular belief that corona virus diseases (COVID-19)

emerged in Wuhan, China in December 2019. The fact attracts the notice of regional authorities

and drawing global attention quickly. According to World Health Organization (WHO) in less

than four month COVID-19 spread through almost all countries and region thereby caused

millions of deaths and sufferings. Considering its extent and manner of attack all over the world

this disease is termed as pandemic by world health organization (WHO).The COVID-19

pandemic is wreaking havoc on the world economy, in addition to creating the current global

health crisis.

In recent decades, we have witnessed several other epidemic outbreaks, which have

highlighted the importance of strengthening our ability to anticipate epidemic and pandemics in

addition to taking appropriate and timely global measure. The most important recent outbreaks

included severe acute respiratory syndrome in 2003, H1N1 influenza in 2009, Middle East

respiratory syndrome in 2012 and Ebala in East Africa in 2014-’16. Every one of these

experiences taught us salutary lessons for managing similar situation in the future and reminded

us that we remain inadequately prepared for a pandemic.

Corona viruses are large family of virus that usually causes mild to moderate upper-respiratory

tract illness, like common cold. However, three new corona viruses have emerged from animal

reservoirs over the past two decades to cause serious and widespread illness and death. There are

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hundreds of corona viruses, most of which circulate among animals as pigs, camels, bats and

cats. Sometimes those viruses jump to humans, called a spillover event –and cause disease.

Three known corona viruses already mentioned that cause more serious even fatal disease. Most

people infected with the COVID-19 will experiences mild to moderate respiratory illness and

recover without requiring special treatment. Older people, Children and those with underlying

medical problems like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, and cancer

are more likely to develop serious illness.

COVID-19 virus spreads primarily through droplets of saliva or discharge from the coughs or

sneezes, so it is important for everyone to practice respiratory etiquette.

It is needless to say that global COVID-19 pandemic that started at the end of 2019 is deeply

affecting societies worldwide, and demands a strong response. Now, it is a vital task of

academics for shaping immediate actions to save lives and minimize the human sufferings that

the pandemic brings. On the other hand, what is the way through which societies will come out

of the pandemic will be affected by individual and collective choices on the base of an

understanding of possible future. Academics can play a role here to provide adequate evidence to

enhance that understanding. The virus threat has led to situation described as ‘lockdown’ in

many countries, leading to stay at home with all but essential activities closed. As academics are

interested in sustainable production and consumption, this leads to immediate reflections on how

the current strategies might feed into the transition to sustainable societies. Helping to

understanding the challenges and helping to facilitate this transition is an equally vital task of

sociologists.

Approach:

From socio-psychological perspective 1 am trying to explore how people’s internal

motivation and govt. intervention for handling the present situation do change human behavior or

practices in a manner in which whether the changes in behaviors or practices ‘bounce back’

after the cause of disruption ceases, or be retained in ‘new normal’? And further, whether

these changing ‘new normal’ behaviors or practices translate into sustainable cultural

practices to cope with the problem like COVID-19 and thereby initiating social changes.

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Methods:

I have conducted online survey in Kolkata and in Purbabardhaman in West Bengal during the

month of June, 2020. I select fifty individuals of which twenty-five from Kolkata and rest of

them from Purbabardhaman District. I sent semi structure mail questionnaire using Google Form

to the respondents through link on WhatsApp. I select numbers of WhatsApp groups from

student’s teachers, professional and others’ who are known to me and well wishers and these

groups comprise of people of different age group, education, occupation and income.

The Problem: People’s View:

Respondents from Kolkata and Purbabardhaman define the problem in their own ways that

uncover socio-economic, health, environmental, psychological and political dimensions of the

problem and there need in their view, public health approach to address the problem.

For most of the respondents the present situation is traumatic where deaths continued owing to

various latent and manifest symptoms related to disease and the situation become uncontrollable

in the wake of insufficient health structure, improper policy guidelines and politicians’ leg-

pulls make the situation ever worst and pandemic. Livings in a fear of corona virus and ‘stay at

home’ have immense impacts on people and their activities in daily life. Some belief upper

classes people are the carrier of the virus as because they have frequently visited abroad, even

though they are less sufferer or no sufferings for them due to their capacity to protect themselves

from the very infection of the diseases. Although this disease covers people irrespective of status,

prestige and culture of the world. But it is noticed that lower middle classes people are the worst

sufferer where they lose both of their lives and livelihoods as a consequent some people, in

respondents’ view, have no option to alter their modes of earnings at the outset of their survival

as the present situation disrupts the previous modes of earnings. Staying at home or maintaining

social distance for protecting themselves from possible infections from corona virus disturb

people’s day to day life, activities and dependency on each other which put the former in

challenges in many ways. People dying out of hunger and the inter-state migration enhanced the

problem in multiple where number of infections and deaths have increased while various crimes

and domestic violence as well as abuse of different kinds have committed in the present

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situation. Lockdown disturbs the present system of distribution and delivery of daily needs and

others at the same time, online shopping and contact Apps appeared as new methods of coping

with the situation.

Analysis:

As the problem is big and widespread and has an immense impact on peoples’ health, job

opportunities, and on environment. In the survey I try to collect peoples’ experiences, views,

opinion on different aspects of the problem and its impacts on their lives and health as follows:

Infections due to corona virus spread rapidly and consequent death and sufferings increasing,

although some has been cured. Social distance as a precautionary measure leads losing of jobs in

factories and companies. Transport is withdrawn because gathering of more people or any type

of crowd create the fertile ground of spreading virus causing infections and deaths. As a result,

transport lockdown office goers, laborers and common people that the people faced problem with

the transport system because all of them do not have the option and therefore sufferings is

inventible. But the situation is expected to become gradually normal!

Workers in informal sectors or unorganized sectors as well as daily laborers have been facing

severe problem. Unemployment, poverty and homelessness are the outcomes of the COVID-19

situation. The virus attacks differently with the individuals who have good immunity system are

being able to cope with the deadly virus but others have failed. The COVID-19 situations have

impacted a lot on daily wage earner, service industries like advocates, entrepreneurship like

OYO and hospitality. As all service industries are not able to earn that much they are not able to

pay taxes consequently affecting economy in this time. Lockdown however, has some positive

impacts on environment. All industries and factories have been shutting down and possible

sources of pollution are being stopped like air, water and noise pollution and thereby free

movement of animals, birds, fishing are occurred in this time. It is peoples’ experiences and

report available till date that the levels of pollution of all kinds in Kolkata have been reduced

drastically.

Worldwide response to the COVID-19 pandemic has been to keep citizens at home as much

as possible. In the absence of vaccine or any medicine till date people adopted measures like

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physical distancing, personal hygiene and other norms and protection as per government orders

time to time at the same time people invented methods in their own ways to cope with the

problem. Therefore individual and collective methods or practices of handling the COVID-19

situation are the central focus of my present study. A key question that I address in my study is

whether the current change that we observe is either temporary, and limited to the period of the

lockdown/crisis, or will persist more permanently post- crisis times. ‘Any disruption like

COVID-19 or others along with fundamental societal change constituted one possible outcome,

i.e., societal transition. This means disruption and societal change occurred replacement of an

existing integrated set of practices and associated infrastructures, institutions and skills with an

alternative set. Transition may materialize slowly over longer periods(decades) ,such as the shift

from horse and carriage to fossil fuel –powered vehicles, but can also happen quickly when

triggered by disruptions ( such as the change to communism in Eastern Europe after WW-2).

They cannot be explained as a simple shift from one behavioral pattern to another i.e., behavioral

model. Social practices are relevant as they are a major factor in shaping the environmental and

social impact of the technologies, products and services we use to fulfill our needs. An

understanding of evolving and revolutionary transitions is needed to understand what pathways

lead to structural change in practices (Boons, F. A. et al 2020).

Government intervention, i.e. imposing Lockdown, and other measure i.e., screening and

therapies as well as maintaining personal health protection unable to address the problem as

number of infected cases increased day by day. But government intervention along with

people’s own way (if any) for tackling the problem combine to constitute some practices of

new kinds which are, no doubts strong exposures to the present pandemic situation. Now I try

to estimate individual’s sharing the problem and their views, experiences and initiatives to the

problem in the following manner.

Most of the respondents shared the problem with friends and relatives through phone or

internet and they have exchanged their views and experiences on the matter like free movement,

unavailability of resources and doctors as well as the problems faced by elderly persons and

pregnant women. Some of them discuss on increasing number of corona positive cases,

lockdown, supply of daily essentials, red zone and even politics on this among themselves. Few

shared the problem on web, net and television talk show and exchange opinion on COVID-19

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symptoms, working of health professionals and WHO’s role for controlling the situation. A few

discussed the matter with family members only and they mainly talk on studies, job opportunity,

medical facilities and treatment etc. Some respondents shared the problem among the community

members through phone or net and they discussed matter like stay home, protective measures

and how to overcome the situation and normalcy.

As far as we concern respondents’ doings on the problem, it is state that they make aware

themselves and others about the problem, maintained personal hygiene, sanitizing, wearing mask

and keeping social distance in social dealings among themselves etc. Some do meditation but

without knowing its curative ability if any. A few pray to God for their family members and

others for remedy from the problem. Some respondents told Government role and responsibility

in distribution of essentials, wage of the daily labors, problems of migrant workers and

implementing norms and measures strictly; however they do not mention their own doings in this

regards. Respondents in the survey also paid attention for distribution of food among needy

people sometimes with the help of friends and community members.

From the above observation it is stated that virtual interaction through phone or internet

replaced conventional methods of individual’s day to day contact and thereby virtual concert are

the emerging mode of social life. Secondly, individuals are concern with the problem but they

are limited themselves only to awake about the problem. Although they maintained hygiene and

other protection with hardly any doings of their own on the problem but depend on and demand

government’s action for distributing essentials and implementing norms and rules.

Government’s dependency in the face of any crises or pandemic like COVID-19 create a space

for ‘bio-politics’ and in present situation imposing lockdown and other rules are the

manifestation of such steps. I now enumerate government’s intervention in the form of

lockdown and other rules and people’s reaction as conformity or non- conformity to these

rules in order to find any reflection of these in their practices in present situation as well as

afterwards whenever crisis is over.

Government imposed lockdown and other directives related to health measures as well as

people’s personal health protection to follow, the respondents in my survey react positively and

abide by all the measures in order to protect and save health and lives of their own and family

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members. They maintained home isolation, do not go out without any dire necessity, avoid

public gatherings, wearing mask whenever go outside and sanitizing them. Some say they

inadvertently missed to follow the norms as they are not accustomed with new hygiene rules

although some have routinized their daily life with the norms. Some have views on proper

implementations of the Disaster Management Act-2005 for controlling rumors and fake news

regarding infections and deaths as well as non-conformity to the rules regarding COVID-19.

Installation of Arogya Setu App should be compulsory for every phone user citizen is another

opinion given by respondents. Respondents follow the measures as because in their views that

there are no alternatives for saving the lives from the pandemic. Some also admire government’s

steps like free rationing, tax benefit and loans on exemption for borrowers.

Therefore, respondents feel convenient to conform the measures and norms although some

admit lockdown limits them for going out and having social life and these happen at the costs of

lives that there are nothing precious than lives. Some feel displeasure on imposing regulations

nonuniformly and offenders’ not getting treatment equally. Some respondents disagree with

declaration of lockdown without proper guidelines and plan. Some have more robust views on

implementing the measures and guidelines in order to fight against COVOD-19 unitedly and

criticizing government not to take strict steps from the beginning of the pandemic as well as not

undertaking the issue of migrant workers properly .Some also blame government for hiding data

regarding corona infections and deaths that result in terrible effects on peoples’ health, life and

society. Due to hiding data for political gain and others people are unable to aware about actual

facts and figure of the problem in one hand, and these led paying more costs in terms of money,

sufferings and deaths on the other hand.

From the above discussion it may be cleared that respondents expose to some changes in their

behaviors or practices as follows.

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(i) Habit for cleanliness and hygiene culture

Hygiene and cleanliness often considered practices, but these practices are deeply shaped by

socio-cultural norms and infrastructural arrangements that enact social inequalities and

injustices. The current crisis has many implications for domestic, personal and the resources

associated with keeping clean. It has compound effects on water usage: increased water and

energy demand as people increase hygiene practices to protect their homes and family members

against the virus, but also reduced households water use as demands to be ‘ready’ for work or

social engagements are reduced. Covid-19 has also revealed society’s unbreakable bond with

single –use plastics and the importance of understanding disposable hygiene culture. The use of

PPE, masks, gloves and sanitizer and its proper disposal have come forward during the period

along with homemade sanitary napkin used by school girl replaced napkin suppliers whether the

suppliers are schools and /or retailers. Hygiene cultures have a class and gender implications

in that lower classes people who have no proper spaces for defecation or latrines as well as

toilets to ask them for using sanitizer is nothing but luxury. Women are more habituated in

cleanliness in the way that their lived experiences of daily life shaped how to look after their

homes and bodies, as well as the bodies of their children and others that they care for. And any

previous lived experiences of infectious health crisis impacted women for the development

of future hygiene cultures in practices and the associated use of materials and products

such as soaps, water and energy as well as disposability. Recent research (Boons, F. A. et al

2020) indicates that many hygiene and cleanliness practices of women in Shanghi and Beijing

had been shaped by their pervious experiences of infectious health crisis such as SARS and

MERS.

(ii) Practices of food provisions

Respondents in the survey admit that they changed their diet to some extent i.e., junky to

homemade food believing that homemade item can boost their immunity. Some prefer

vegetarian, healthy and fruits to non- vegetarian food. Turmeric and spices like garlic, cumin is

likely to use more by some respondents. Taking food on need and avoid over consumption

admitted by some respondents. Yet some take more vitamin and proteins enriched foods. Survey

indicates that Lockdown results in outlawed of eating out which had become habitual and routine

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for many people in Kolkata and to some extent in Burdwan City. The closure of restaurants, café

to eat in and the decreased need for having meals in public spaces as more people work from

home, however also has changed the lifestyle that was the basis for food to go. Alternatively

delivering food to home developed to some extent is it individually or through platforms

like Zomato and others which involve packaging waste and food waste containing higher

ecological footprint. The agri- food system (i.e., vegetables, rice, milk etc,) with its supply chain

and business come under considerable stress through the Covid-19 crisis. This is due to workers

absence for illness or self isolation at home and the government introducing protectionist

measure on agri-food products putting food supply as well as imports at risk. These result in

several consequences such as increase in prices for some agri- item, lost of jobs, and income,

although local food harvest inspired to some extent as farmers are adopting their practices to

maintain supply of vital products and services, often reducing the range of products and item.

The Covid-19 outbreak has affected emergency food providers who support vulnerable

families. The Lockdown results in declined in volunteers and shortages in food donation

although government takes initiatives at the best for maintaining the supply of food to the poor.

At the same time numbers of people in need of food are rapidly increasing which is at stake as

food distribution is under critical by political bias.

A Shift from animal to plant –based food item would help reducing green house gas

emissions as well as tackle some of the major health problems faced people and society. In

addition, adding vitamin, proteins and spices such as turmeric garlic and cumin in diet help to

boost people’s immunity for fighting Covid-19. Survey observe that more people have reduced

their meat and dairy intake as well as outdoor foods over the lockdown period with many

intending to maintain this change of diet. Instead people try animal free substitutes such as

vegetables, or oat milk. From a practice perspective meat and dairy alternative are some of

the easiest sustainability improvements for diets with lower environmental footprint. It is

also therefore, a strong increase in demand for meat- free diet and homemade food occurred in

historical period of crisis.

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(iii)Mobility- travels, visiting aboard and free moving here and there, now and then.

Transport is the domain where moving here and there, travels and visiting abroad have been

carried out and now these are severely disrupted. Flying, driving train, buses and other means of

transport has been replaced by walking or cycling. The energy used for transportation is much

reduced as mobility patterns are transformed. Reduction in the use of fossil fuels has well

documented effects in improving air quality, demonstrating that it is human activity which

causes global warming. But GHG emissions foregone in transport are thus offset to some extent

by increased emissions from private transports like cars, commercial deliveries using transports

as well as energy used in the households. However, in lockdown period, work from home has

been reduced travelling to minimum and this in turn has produced stark environmental

impacts, including lower carbondi-oxide emission. This has begun to renew a debate about the

potential for addressing the public health effects of air pollution through building low carbon

mobility networks that are also more resilient to future crisis. This is part of a transition to

more sustainable modes of transportations in the country and for the world.

(v) Shopping

Covid-19 led to changes in practices of shopping for goods and services, in terms of both what

is bought and how. With rising unemployment and income effects many households reduced

expenditures to cover necessities only. Market for durable goods is adversely affected by this.

But cases of non-durability like foods and basic households’ supplies the situation is different.

Demand for e-commerce and ‘‘digitalization” in purchasing and shopping in which households

rely on the continued functioning of appliances and electronics. When this extends the time-in-

use of the device, this has been shown to have substantial positive environmental impacts

(Boons, F. A. et al 2020). In the lockdown period e-commerce and non-restaurants food delivery

(Home delivery) services soared, but traditional practice of shopping in supermarkets underwent

significant changes as well. Therefore, less frequent visits and buying in bulk have become more

common and many households buy processed, packaged and frozen food to secure mid-term

supply of food. At the same time, the increase in demand for goods like washing machines, and

napkin making in home as well as others indicate that many households shift to self –

provisioning as a means of avoiding social contacts.

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(v) Changes in job markets, economy and participation in public gatherings, politics

Jobs lost and growth of alternative employments is important outcomes of the lockdown and

virus attacks. Research indicates that crisis of any kind does not make certain practices ,

economy or otherwise obsolete; rather it impel people to reclaim , invent and adopt alternative

practices. Practices of thrift re-emerge in period of scarcity and austerity in some cases; they

shape the approach to resources throughout the life of the generation that experienced the crisis

(Boons, F. A. et al 2020).

Another way in which households have responded to the crisis is in large-scale participation in

community work voluntarily which offer foods and others for people in need and self- isolation

etc. In our state other than government initiatives several NGOs, religious organization like

Bharat Sebasram Shanga as well as individuals are coming forefront for distributing foods and

essentials to the people in need. There are huge literature on alternative routes of supply in

crisis on alternative economics, and literature on collaborative on platform mediated

consumption. Research says these shifts in modes of provisioning are often valuable network

which could play a significant role in the future economy.

Further, research identified environmental conscience practices in which people try to prevent

excess wastes. Re-use, re-cycle or repair and re-distribution (3R) are the well founded motto of

environmental consciousness which motivate people how to doing environment friendly. But

among these re-use are fundamentally challenged by Covid-19 and the risk infection. Our

government and some NGOs have been inspiring people for using just made bags including

clay or mad made utensils instead of re-usable water bottle, coffee cups and plastics bags,

as because former are safer than reusable in preventing the spread of diseases. Thus our

motivation to be thrifty have been changed and challenged.

(vi) House work

Work from home alternatively blurring of boundaries between households and work has

enable greater flexibility in the way people combine paid and unpaid work to reduce

transportation –related environmental impacts of employment.

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Reports of the increase in domestic violence during Covid-19 have been covered by media in

our country. There is scientific evidence that during times of stress, such as unemployment and

impoverishment, power imbalance in households result in increased levels of violence against

the less powerful members.

People in big city in our country and in Europe are turning to alternative housing designs and

arrangements precisely because of the limitations of single family dwelling. Lockdown during

the pandemic has raised awareness that the built environment builds –in dominant assumptions

about the purpose of the domestic sphere and the activities that take places within it, making it

very difficult to adapt to social change (Boons, F. A. et al 2020). Examples proved this

assumption in that house design for the nuclear family with a master bedroom, small child’s

room, kitchen and bath room are poorly suited to adult co-habitation, self-employment, and

household groupings that do not have lots of disposable time’ for full time house work and

cleaning; they also tend to be energy inefficient and designed for unsustainable levels of types of

consumption. Covid-19 crisis and other research on similar events proved that typical

modern households, as spaces and social units play a significant role in sustaining

environmentally and socially unsustainable practices.

Existing literature available on the changing behaviors or practices due to disrupting situation

reveals that after a period of disruption people will mostly returned to their old routines and

habits, but ‘bounce back ‘ do not occur following some condition , as follows1:

(i) If people positively attached in the interim

(ii) Infrastructure and facilities supporting earlier practices are changed such as old

habits are no longer possible or less congenial, or new equipment re-directs

attention towards new practices.

(iii)People lack the personal resources, health or finance to return to previous ways of

acting.

(iv) New regulations and new prohibitions eliminate some previous practices and

enhance or promote others/ new ones.

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(v) A changed cultural context alters how people value or conduct activities.

(vi) Adjustments in other, adjacent and more distant, practices have knock –on effects.

When one or more of these conditions is met, a new normal may come about.

Now the question what this new normal may look like as the combined and configurational

effect of these possible mechanisms within a wider social context; this is a quest for my study.

My argument is that retaining changed practices have beneficial effect on GHG and air

emissions and other sustainability indicators. Changes practices retain or not may be estimated

on the basis of evidence produced thus far. Here numbers of points are of interest2:

(i) The disruption and change in practices as a result of COVID-19 has positive as

well as negative sustainability impacts.

(ii) Several of the positive impacts come from changed and disrupted practices which

are likely to bounce back

(iii)For many of the practices listed, retaining them will be a mixed blessing from a

social and / or environmental perspective.

(iv) Evidence on the likelihood of retaining practices is often weak or non-existent.

This requires research on the conditions associated with practices; positive

appreciation, the prolonged availability of needed infrastructure and resources,

norms and regulation and supportive collective awareness.

In the light of the above conditions and point of interests I estimate changed practices in the

differential provisions mentioned above and its impacts on the society and environment which

may translating into or appear as ‘new normal’ picture of social life in the following table.

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Table: Estimating changes in practices, sustainability, and ‘New Normal’ picture of

social Life

Area of provision Changes in practices

Forces of changes

Sustainability impacts

‘New normal’ picture of life

Hygiene and Cleanliness

(i)Use PPE masks, gloves (ii)Sanitizing (iii)House cleaning and washing

(i)Health norms (ii)Personal cleanliness

(i)Increased plastics wastes water pollution (ii)Increased water use, more housework

(i)Bounce back, may take months depending on rules of eased lockdown (ii)Use of soaps, water, and energy, (ii) Proper disposability, and hygiene practices

Food provisions (i)Home cooking, (ii)food delivery through individuality or platform, (iii)Increased or decreased meat consumption

(i)Lockdown and closure of restaurants

(i)Packaging wastes, foods waste, (ii)Changes in CHG emissions, (iii)More housework

(i)Re-skilling and appreciation, (ii)Appreciation of meat and dairy alternatives like vegetables and oat milk

Mobility, traveling, etc

(i)Work from home, (ii)Substituting private to public transport, (iii)Abstain from commuting, leisure touring, (iv)Increased walking and cycling

(i)Lockdown and disrupting transport.

(i)Decreased GHG and local air pollution, (ii)Increased emission and local air pollution to some extent, (iii)Collapse in car purchase

(i)Reluctance of use public transport use, but inequality due to car access/ ownership. (ii)Declined consumption due to income effects. (iii) Cycling may be retained but there needs adequate road infrastructure.

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Shopping (i)Decline in the purchase of durables, (ii)Shift in purchasing practices to online + delivery

(i)Lockdown and closure of markets

(i)Reduced wastes, longer life for existing durables. (ii)Reduced transport for shopping, (iii)Increased packaging

(i)Delayed / decline in consumption due to income effects. (ii)Supporting platform to retain market share.

Market, Economy

Some evidence of alternative employment, routs of supply, etc,(ii) Just made and single-use plastics/mad or paper made cups, utensils, (iii)Individual/ household practices of thrift, community organization, and provisioning, threat/abandoned to reuse due to virus infection, etc.

Market slowdown and economic recession

Reduced wastes and resources use, (ii)Increased social capital

The success of existing organization may be leading to new structural opportunities, (ii) Bounce back may be delayed.

Housework Increase in household labor and infrastructure reinforced gender division of labor and violence,

Lockdown (i)Increase resource throughput, (ii) Increase level of abuse victims, (iii) Increase pressure on service provisions.

Depends on how change in work practices will be retained.

Source: Online Survey

Present slow down growth and recession of economy due to disruption caused by Covid-19 has

been affecting all spheres of life, but we have some pleasing experiences in reducing air and

water pollution, de-carbonization and these contrary situation in fact, open for us an opportunity

to redirect the development path of society at the benefit of environment.

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In many cases Covid -19 and lockdown leads to changed practices which result in a reduction

of environmental impact. As report says that, in New York there is nearly 50 percent reduction in

pollution in all as a result of measures taken containing the virus. In China emission fell 25

percent at the start of the year. In Europe, satellite image show nitrogen dioxide (No2) fading

away over northern Italy, Spain and UK (BBC Future, April 2020). The awareness of these

reductions have been reinforcing in behavioral changes which lead citizens to retain their

changed practices as the ‘New normal’.

Covid -19 and lockdown leads to changed practices which result reduced in economic growth.

This is reflected in tremendous fall in gross domestic product (GDP) in countries of Europe, Asia

and America. In Spain GDP reduced to 18.5 percent, in France it is 13.8 percent, in America

GDP reduced to 9.9 percent and also in India this is not less than that (Anandabazer, 1st August,

2020). These lead to efforts for economic recovery which facilitate a bouncing back to pre

–crisis practices.

Countries of the world however, can take the advantages of keeping ‘new normal ‘life while

maintain their GDP growth at optimum level through shifting to low carbon economy. In this

way however, development at the benefit of environment or sustainable development can be

ensured.

Historical changes during 1971- 2015 show that global CO2 emissions increased by 1.93% per

year. Growth in population (1.53% per year) and per capita real GDP (1.91% per year) in that

period exerted upward pressure on CO2 emissions, but these are only partially offset by

downward pressure from higher energy efficiency and lower carbon intensity3. These

downwards trends in energy and carbon intensity may be insufficient to delink economic growth

and carbon emission however, they are underway as WRI observes as many as 21 countries

mostly belonging to (OECD)4manage to reduce their carbon emissions while growing their GDP

at optimum level in the period 2000-2014( Aden 2016).

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Discussion: Tackling Corona virus (Covid-19) through Low carbon economy

Further, as countries look to give their economics a much needed jolt in the wake of the

Covid-19 outbreak, government and companies considering stimulus packages essentially have

two choices: (i) they can look in decades of polluting, inefficient, high –carbon unsustainable

development or (ii) they can use this as an opportunity to accelerate the inevitable shift to low –

carbon and increasingly affordable energy and transport systems that will bring long term

economic benefit.

The government should avoid is trying to boost their economics in the wake of one global

health crisis and deaths by exacerbating another –namely air pollution. Air pollution caused

health dangers in the world in the way that more than five million people worldwide already die

prematurely each year due to this. Two-thirds of air pollution deaths are caused by fossil fuels

emitted from sources such as power plants, cars and factories. Experts estimate that illness and

premature mortality associated with the air pollution from road transport cost OECD countries

1.7 trillion dollars in 2020 (WRI 2020)5. And air pollution and corona virus both pose higher

risks for people with pre-existing respiratory condition like asthma, so adding to our air pollution

burden could exacerbate the corona-virus’s overall contribution to illness and deaths. China has

suffered the most from this COVID-19 outbreak so far, and also has some of the highest rates of

air pollution. In 2003, coal related air pollution caused approximately 366,000 premature deaths

in China. Of course China is not alone; India has twenty- two of the thirty most-polluted cities on

Earth (ibid...) So, low carbon economy able to obtain optimum GDP without polluting air

while tackling pandemic like COVID-19. We can kill three birds i.e., gain optimum GDP,

maintain environment and tackling corona-virus with one stone i.e., low carbon economy.

Conclusion:

Present pandemic and stay-at-home order have led people to adjust their daily lives; although

people have been living behind normality have to reconfigured their daily rhythms, also part of

these people adopted new practices, adjusted existing ones, and are abstaining from others.

Some evidence available from my survey reveals that in conditions, changed practices might be

retain, rather than bouncing back to the previous normal. These changed practices may be a

source for a social transition and change. But there needs intervention in order to bring about

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substantive and long lasting change towards a more just and sustainable society. Covid -19

pandemic demands interventions that could pave or obstruct the path toward sustainability. Such

interventions however, necessarily go beyond individual consumer centric ‘behavioral model’

to consider all of the contexts- material, structural, social and individual- that shape people’s

behavior (SCI, 2020).

In the contest of West Bengal where death rate from novel corona virus diseases (COVID-19)

are high with the least testing in India. The combination of the two (i.e., high rates and lowest

tests) may prove to be disastrous for the state in long run, as observed health experts. So, here

‘public health issue’ come forward and arguing that if there is no access to public health care

or public health services have collapsed – as is the case in most of the emerging world and the

united States today – then we cannot withstand pandemics in this time.

Medical model that applied in most countries of the world consist of screening and therapies

for diseases prevention and management, on the other hand, population health approaches in

contrast consider everyone and examine what keeps people healthy. Social and economic

determinants of health are much more strongly related to health outcomes than biological factors

in addition, population health approaches look at the environment in which people live and

ensure they have means and access to services to lead healthy lives. The narrative to date has

been dominated by the medical model i.e. testing and the search for treatments, ICU and

ventilator however, population health approaches (PHA) do focus on these factors to ensure, we

can treat those who develop severe diseases but this fixation has come at the expense of the

population health perspectives as well.

Surprisingly we do not do anything only adopting some measures like mask, sanitizer,

quarantine etc. to protect ourselves and over the last few months we have nothing but has a

shameful record of self- interests and self –preservation over every things else. We are not

getting together to discuss the matter globally and therefore no global response to the global

pandemic. Why? What more can and should we do? This raises an issue, the issue of ‘global

response to global pandemic (COVID-19). As part of global responses to the present situation

there need among others taking low carbon activities worldwide as because high carbon

emission make the problem worst by adding air pollution to the pandemic as in the case of

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China and others. Climate change due to increased temperature induced by high carbon activity

is another great threat for us which are, no doubts more serious than present pandemic (Covid-

19) as because we can’t certainly chase climate change away with a vaccine neither keeping

ourselves in lockdown or in quarantine (Bhusal 2020). That’s why we need global cooperation

and serious concerted action to tackle the climate change and high carbon activity.

Scientists in the world consider that limiting global mean temperature increase to 1.50 is not a

technical fantasy. This is possible through inventing and development of low-carbon technicality

although technical know-how for low- carbon infrastructure is in underway; however political

will forces in favor of this be a catalyst for such desired development. Prospects of political

change favoring drastic de-carbonization are primarily awful although, some countries of the

world have been directing themselves towards low- carbon economy.

Recommendations:

From the above analysis and discussion some policy recommendation for low –carbon recovery

can be suggested as follows:

1. Avoid sidelining environmental constraints and weakening as well as bypassing environmental

rules in order to reduce policy uncertainty for businesses, to achieve co- benefit and to reduce

barriers from political and others.

2. Solve liquidity problems if any to those who engaged in renewable energy and other low-

carbon technology.

3. Enhance guaranteed support to firms and organizations on environmental improvements and

protection.

4. Extend support in behavioral changes that may help a low-carbon transition. These are done

through facilitation teleworking and rolling out high-speed broadband.

5. Prepare low-carbon projects. Projects are made through continued evaluation of economic and

environmental impacts using quantifiable metrics that will help designing effective policies in

this regards.

6. Invest in low-carbon infrastructure and avoid locking-in emission- intensive technologies. It is

through encouraging those who are in low-carbon domain and discouraging firms and companies

to invest in all types of emission intensive activities/ technologies.

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7. Public health sector should be prioritizing over private sectors and action should be taken for

the development of public health infrastructures in the country.

8. Global cooperation should be enhanced regarding action related to climate change, health,

economy and infrastructural development.

Abbreviations:

ICU Intensive Care Unit

GHG Green House Gas

NGOs Non- Governmental Organization

OECD Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development

OYO On Your OWN - Hotel Network, HQ- Gurugran, Haryana

PHA Public Health Approaches

SCI Sustainable Consumption Institute

WRI World Resource Institute

Foot Notes:

1, 2 SCI, 2020 Sustainable Consumption Institute, The University of Manchester, Manchester

sci@manchester.ac.uk, frank.boons@manchester.ac.uk

3Working paper No.84 Institute for New Economic Thinking, Nov. 2018: (inete

economics.org/working paper)

4 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) https://www.

oecd.org.corona virus

5 WRI, 2020 World Resource Institute, Washington -https: www,wri.org/blog/2016/o4

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Measures and Implications for the Covid -19 Crisis.” Cited in OECD

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