Covid warriors

The original intro of my second column. 

Alex, an executive in a 'bachelor' sharing accommodation, tested positive for Covid-19 and was asked to be ready for quarantine. The call came at midnight a couple of days later, and he was transported in a bus along with other Covid-positive patients to a brand new residential-complex-turned-isolation facility in Dubai. In a furnished room for three, he was provided essential toiletries, and ate his first breakfast like a (Malayali) king – milk and cornflakes, aval nanachathu or sweetened beaten rice, and boiled egg. However, the remaining meals during his 14-day mandatory quarantine ran late like Indian trains. Lunch came in the evening and dinner came past midnight outside the door which had to be kept closed at all times, he complained. Asymptomatic like his roommates, he was bored – nothing to do, a slow Wifi, no scenic views outside to cool one's frayed nerves – but he survived the test.

Goldwin's* test result is positive for Covid and his wife's negative. So he shifted to a quarantine facility in Ajman run by the KMCC where he got all his meals - traditional Kerala fare - on time and underwent regular health checks by healthcare workers. He was happy and the quarantine was a breeze.

Sajan* was shifted to hospital when a persistent cough turns into pneumonia. The medical care and facilities were the best he could ask for; the virus was defeated but not before it destroyed all organs. After battling with Covid-related complications for over 10 days, he succumbed. His office was flooded with calls from social workers enquiring if they needed help with funeral or repatriation of the mortal remains (the latter is only for non-Covid deaths).

Fr Ninan, who was called to perform the funeral rites for a church member who died of Covid, lent a hand to shovel mud to cover the 10-foot deep grave in the scorching sun. The video went viral on social media and the newspapers reported his kind gesture. However, he told his online congregation that it was the least he could do for the sole family member of the deceased performing the funeral duties.

Then we had social worker and INCAS (Indian Culture and Arts Society) member Nitin Chandran, who passed away in his sleep a day before his daughter was born, leaving Malayali expats in the UAE heartbroken. He had been too busy tending to the needs of expats during the lockdown that he had ignored the warning signs his body gave.

Alex was just one of the beneficiaries of the quarantine care in Al Warsan, managed by volunteers of the Kerala Muslim Cultural Centre (KMCC). Volunteers who are employees or businessmen by day, but spare a good part of their time and money for fellow beings from the subcontinent. Grumbling about a late meal or the fare on offer is inconsiderate when you look at the sacrifices and efforts of these young men.