‘No schools, no one to ferry; there’s no money’

The district administration has My organisation has asked all Managing life in these circumstances closed down dance institutes and the employees to stay at home has become tough. I gyms. I am the sole bread earner till further orders. My routine supply drinking water from in a family of six that includes has changed completely. I am a reverse osmosis (RO) plant my mother and four younger sis- working woman but now I am to households twice a day in ters and now I am without work. busy with my husband taking the morning and evening. My father died last year. I was care of my one-and-a-half-year- But due to the lockdown I taking classes at various gyms old daughter. A person like me couldn’t work for three days, and dance institutes in the city who is used to the 9 am to 6 pm now I’m back. I also used to ferry and earning about ₹20,000 to office routine finds it very diffi- people, especially schoolchildren ₹25,000 a month and managed to cult to spend the whole day at but after the lockdown I save ₹3,000 to ₹5,000 after deduct- home. I belong to Kangra in don’t get such rides, so the ing all expenses, including house Himachal Pradesh. As a curfew earnings that my family rent. Now I am digging into my has been imposed over there we depended on have stopped. I savings and have managed to are very worried about our fam- don’t know how I will take care of buy grocery items. I don’t know ily members. Not just me, it will my family or manage things as what I’ll do once my bank be very difficult for people if the the lockdown will remain in account empties out. lockdown is extended.. force till mid-april.”