‘Neighbours think I can bring virus to colony’
NEW DELHI : The eerie silence in East Delhi’s Trilokpuri locality is punctured by the sound of a man cycling to work.
Dinesh Kumar Yadav, who works at a pharmacy in East Delhi’s Vasundhra Enclave, cycles through the empty streets of his locality to report for duty everyday at 10am.
Although his family and neighbours are staying home during the lockdown, Yadav doesn’t. He says he is among ‘frontline soldiers’ in the battle against the virus. Immediately after reaching his workplace, which is barely 2km away, Ganpati Pharmacy, the 40-year-old, with other staff, first arranges the shelves and then ties a rope on both the gates of the pharmacy to ensure social distancing from the customers. “We are not sure about the rules on how we should operate amid the outbreak. So, we have created our own rules. We have put cartons and tied ropes on both the entry-exit gates. We also wear masks and gloves,” he said. Yadav comes in direct or indirect contact with around 400 to 500 people daily “When Prime Minister Modi announced the lockdown, my wife had asked me if I can also take leaves from work. I told her that if people like me stop working, many will not get medicines and die due to other diseases,” he said.
By noon, Yadav had already attended to around 250 people. Every time a customer came, Yadav took the order from the other side of the rope. He put the packets carrying medicines on cartons placed at the gates and asks the customer to keep the money or card for payment there as well. He finally manages to take a quick lunch break around
› When the lockdown was announced, my wife had asked me if I can also take leave from work. I told her that if people like me stop working, many will not get medicines and die due to other diseases. DINESH YADAV, pharmacist
2pm, before resuming work. Whatever little time he gets, he manages to squeeze in a call or two home to check on his family.
“There is no spare time. It’s not that we are getting more than the usual number of customers. The queues seem longer because customers are ensuring social distance. We have drawn circles at a distance of one metre from each other for them,” he said.
Yadav, a native of Uttar Pradesh’s Allahabad, said that in the last few days he has noticed some changes in the attitude of his customers. “Many customers start shouting at us when we tell them that we are not getting fresh stock of some medicine or sanitisers. But, there are still some who thanks us for working.”
He said that some neighbours have also started greeting him with taunts. “They think I am continuing the work in the lockdown out of greed. They also think that I can bring the virus to the colony,” he said.
At around 8:30pm, he leaves for home. Since the last 10 days, Yadav says he has been trying to maintain a ‘social distance’ with his wife and two daughters (6 and 9-year-olds) in their one-room rented accommodation in Trilokpuri.
“I do not have any other option but to live there with the family. I take all precautions. I do not enter the house without washing my hands. After entering I immediately take a shower and change my clothes,” he said. The family then have dinner and watch TV for a while. Yadav goes to sleep by 11:30 pm. “Every night before going to sleep, I thank god that I have not developed any symptom of the virus yet despite stepping out of home,” he said.