Observation on the epidemic situation of "blockade" in Jaipur, an ancient city in northern India

Jaipur is the administrative capital of Rajasthan and an ancient historical city in northern India. According to legend, in 1876, Ram Singh, the ruler of the ancient city, ordered the whole ancient city to be painted pink in order to welcome the arrival of the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII of England), so Jaipur was also called the "pink city". Today, it is a famous tourist city in India, attracting many domestic and foreign tourists every year.

Jiang Feng comes from China and has lived in India for a long time, providing chartered services for China tourists. Ravin Nuwan is from Sri Lanka and studied Ayurveda in India, which is regarded as the oldest medical system in the world. Two people from all over the world, with different cultural backgrounds and different languages, have no intersection, but they are both "trapped" in Jaipur because of an epidemic. Together, they witnessed the outbreak of the epidemic, the closure of the city, and the transition from calm to panic in India.

Not long ago, the newspaper Private Geography reported the experience of a cyclist in southern India during the epidemic. This time, let's focus on northern India and listen to the story of an ancient city in northern India during the epidemic.

Close the city overnight.

Jiang Fengju lives in a community with many locals and few outsiders. After Indian Prime Minister Modi announced the implementation of the national blockade, as one of the few foreign faces, she basically stayed in the rented house every day, and her only outdoor activities were limited to going back and forth between the apartment and the food store 100 meters away from her residence.

The roads leading to the outside of the city are blocked, and the main roads in each block are guarded by police. Occasionally, people riding motorcycles or electric cars are stopped by the police for questioning. If someone is disobedient, the police will take out batons to threaten. Food stores, small supermarkets and pharmacies in the block are still allowed to operate, and people can go out to buy food and daily necessities, and there is no problem in basic life.

After the city closed, the streets were empty. Jiangfengtu

As early as before the outbreak of the China epidemic, Jiang Feng had also heard that China compatriots were reported in India and were forcibly taken away for inspection and isolation. Even once, when she went shopping, she was scolded by a rude local: "Get out, COVID-19".

"I have lived here for a long time, and most people are still friendly, but some people will inevitably have extreme ideas because the epidemic is disgusting to China people." Jiang Feng said.

Jiang Fengyuan had planned to return to China in March, because all his work was basically over by then, but he didn't expect the epidemic in India to get worse and worse, and things were delayed. Many friends sent condolences, and even many guests who had received them before told her to pay attention to safety and asked her if there was a gap cover.

"I found that masks are not very scarce for Indians at present. Because a box of masks is not cheap, many people can't afford it. Instead, many Indians wear homemade masks or wrap their faces with towels when riding motorcycles, which can cover their faces and prevent dust. " Jiang Feng said.

"But in any case, Indians are not as obedient and self-disciplined as they say on the Internet. In India, people who have received some education are basically concerned about this virus. "

On April 9, in Mumbai, India, people lined up to get food. Xinhua News Agency

As a medical student, Sri Lankan Rivini Nuwan and his classmates obviously realized the threat of virus earlier than most Indians. At the same time, Ravin made many friends in China. After the outbreak, he kept in touch with friends at home and learned a lot about the epidemic.

"I remember one day, the World Health Organization announced that COVID-19 could be confined to high temperature. So at that time, we thought that the virus was not a threat to India, because the temperature in India was rising. India can reach above 40 degrees when it is hottest. Therefore, despite some bad news in Kerala (Indian media1reported on October 30th, 65438+), the first confirmed case of COVID-19 was found in Kerala, India. We feel that the situation will be solved soon. " Ravin said.

However, things started to get out of hand. Soon, there were also confirmed cases in Jaipur. Then, after the outbreak in Italy, Iran, Britain, Spain and more countries, people began to feel fear.

In the end, the Indian government closed the city overnight.

"In the past, in Sri Lanka, we encountered a situation in which the city was closed and the supply of materials was insufficient. So out of concern, the next day, we immediately went to the store to stock up. Fortunately, the Indian government allows food stores and pharmacies to continue to operate during the city closure, so food, toilet paper and daily necessities are still sufficient. "

According to Ravin, at present, the business hours of shops in Rajasthan are divided into two periods: 6 am to 9 am and 4 pm to 6 pm. At the beginning, some sanitary products such as masks were still scarce. However, due to the government's refusal to export medical supplies to other countries, the supply is recovering. Although the price is a bit expensive, people can still buy it in pharmacies.

"It can't be said that the government has done its best, but we can see that the government and suppliers have done their best in drug transportation and food supply." Ravin said.

After the city closed, schools in Ravin closed. This is his last year of study, and it is not known when the school will start.

Injured tourism

Although it is imperative to close the city, many migrant workers who work in other places are too sudden to return home or go to work in other places. As a result, many people lost their jobs and all walks of life were affected.

For Jaipur, which has always relied on tourism, the impact of the epidemic is even greater.

According to The Times of India, on March 12, the tourism industry in Rajasthan was hit hard by the epidemic, and 80% of hotel reservations were cancelled. Not only foreign tourists, but also about 60-70% domestic tourists canceled their orders. And this time is the local tourist season.

Moreover, as a member of India's "Golden Triangle of Tourism" (the other two are the capital Delhi and Agra, the latter is famous for the Taj Mahal), Amber Fort and Hawa Mahal in Jaipur are the most visited historical sites in Rajasthan during Ramadan every year, attracting nearly 8,000 to 10000 tourists every day. Other popular scenic spots, such as Chittorgarh and Kumbhalgarh, have an average of 8,000 and 3,000 tourists respectively.

Tourism in Rajasthan is famous for its fortresses and palaces. Source map

Data map of Amber Fort, a famous scenic spot in Jaipur.

However, after the city closed, Rajasthan closed 224 scenic spots, including popular ones.

"In Jaipur, traditional handicrafts are also famous. But traditional handicrafts also depend on tourism. In addition, other service industries such as taxi drivers and tourist buses are also affected. " Ravin said.

"I think the impact of tourism recession may be more terrible than that of novel coronavirus, because it will not recover soon. Now is the tourist season, and people can't make enough money in this season. How can it last for half a year or even longer? "

At present, in order to make up for the loss of international tourists caused by the COVID-19 epidemic, Rajasthan's tourism plan has shifted its focus to domestic tourists. The tourism department of Rajasthan has used its brains to design various virtual experiences around tourism products and popular attractions and put them on social media platforms to attract tourists.

"We hope that tourists can participate in our activities during the blockade to strengthen their memory of Rajasthan tourism brands. When the policy is relaxed, we will gain better advantages to promote the development of tourism. " Sreya Guha, chief secretary of the tourism department of Rajasthan, said.

digression

Jiang Feng believes that the Indian government's action of closing the city is effective, because before closing the city, the local people paid little attention to the epidemic. In early March, Holi Festival was held in mathura, Jaipur and other places, and a large number of tourists gathered together to celebrate the festival. Although China tourists have disappeared, there are still many tourists from Europe and America, and the scene is still hot.

Many people gathered in front of the famous scenic spot "Wind Palace" in Jaipur to celebrate Holi Festival. Jiangfengtu

However, she found that some reports about India circulating on the Internet were exaggerated. "I saw someone say something like' tens of millions of people will die in India'. Although I'm not sure what will happen in the end, I think neither the Indian government nor other governments want to see such a situation. The Indian government still attaches great importance to this epidemic. " Jiang Feng said.

Ravin also saw all kinds of "gossip" about India on social media. Sometimes, even when something spreads from south to north, or just passes through another state, the information will change.

"India is very big, like China. There are all kinds of people and different ideas here. For example, after the incident, some people refused to test because they didn't understand the epidemic situation, and some people might make a fuss and ridicule it. I don't think we should tell others what to do at this time. "

Ravin said that after the outbreak, many friends also advised him to go back to Sri Lanka to take refuge. Even after the closure of the city, the Sri Lankan government arranged for chartered flight to evacuate overseas Chinese and take Sri Lankan citizens from the affected areas back to China, but Ravin decided to stay in Jaipur.

"I am a medical student. For personal safety, how to choose to return to China at this time? At this time, as long as someone needs it, I will definitely stand up and join the volunteer work. In addition, there are some Sri Lankan friends and friends from other countries here. How can I leave them and go back by myself? " Ravin said.

The gathered crowd still paid insufficient attention to the epidemic. Jiangfengtu

Lovely India

"When I first came to india tourism, my first impression was the poor environment. Animals walk directly in the street. There is a lot of rubbish and dust in the street, and my ears are full of horns. Even encountered unpleasant things such as slaughtering customers. But I went from Delhi to Jaipur, then Agra and Valassi, and fell in love with India all the way. "

Jiang Feng found that India is so charming that every city has its own unique culture, which attracts people to keep digging. So, at the end of 2065438+2008, she stayed and began to engage in chartered tours in India. With the Indian government's vigorous promotion of tourism and film culture, people's interest in India has gradually increased in recent years.

"Of course, stereotypes and prejudices still exist, but we encourage communication and encourage everyone to see for themselves." Jiang Feng said.

After studying in India for more than four years, Ravin said with a smile that before he came to India, his English was not so "curry-like", but it became biased after a long time. But the biggest influence is that his experience in India made him stronger and taught him dialectical thinking.

"You must understand that this is not your country, so there will definitely be times when you feel uncomfortable. Please don't come to India if you are not ready. But if you come with love, India is your paradise, especially in the countryside. Indians are very simple and enthusiastic and will treat you like a king. "

"This is a lovely country, full of joy, color and philosophy of life. It is like a mirror, which can help you understand yourself. So, if someone wants to experience a different life and want to know more about themselves, welcome to India! "