Leadership Lessons From India During The Covid-19 Crisis

The Covid-19 pandemic has undoubtedly altered the socio-economic dynamics of the world. The UN chief recently conceded that the pandemic could be considered as the biggest litmus test for the world, since World War II.

The economic hardships, the acute stress on the healthcare systems and the high rate of mortality, has proven to be a significant challenge to all countries affected by Covid-19. Even developed countries with mature healthcare infrastructure have struggled to cope with the devastation that Covid-19 has left in its wake.

Based on the situation in richer countries, many economists, data scientists and professional doomsday foretellers were predicting the pandemic to cause havoc in India too, given our limited resources compared to the developed countries.

In this back-drop, India has taken a leadership role in fighting the pandemic. The Indian government has followed a well-defined escalation path factoring in professional advice in a step-by-step model within the country to deal with this unprecedented challenge.

From early screening at the airports, to initiating targeted travel restrictions to clamp down on social gatherings, the Indian administration was ahead of the curve in dealing with the pandemic.

These steps were followed by locking India down for 21 days. Our unified, unwavering response of enforcing a strict lockdown required enormous political courage in light of the potential hardships Indians would face.

To mitigate the economic costs of the lockdown, the government instituted a basket of measures focusing on smoothening the lives of citizens. For instance the $22.6-billion relief package announced by the Ministry of Finance to directly aid the poor communities hit by the lockdown was a significant step. The package consisted of direct cash transfers and food security measures under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana.

The government also acknowledged the risks taken by the frontline health workers by providing an insurance cover for them. These measures were endorsed by the WHO chief, who tweeted his appreciation for the relief measures and economic stimulus undertaken by the government.

The pandemic undoubtedly has unsettled the global environment and disrupted the lives of millions. But the efficacy of the response of the Indian state remains unparalleled as represented by the Oxford Covid-19 Government Response Tracker.

The metric which tracks government’s policies and interventions and assesses the response proportional to it, found that India had consistently been on the upper band of the response which suggests that response was quick as opposed to other countries that lagged in providing quick responses.

In tune with this, the state has exponentially ramped up the Covid-19 testing mechanism where, imports of Personal Protection Equipment(PPE), testing kits, ventilators, face masks were exempted from basic customs duty and health cess .

Besides, the decision to allow the shipment of hydroxychloroquine - regarded to be a “game changer” to 55 countries including US, Brazil among others also symbolises India’s outlook to mitigate the Covid-19 crisis contained in its philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam(The world is one family).

Certain other measures including launch of the PM-CARES fund for voluntary contributions, provision of essential services including food and lodging facilities for migrant workers, establishment of helpline numbers for different states to disseminate information about Covid-19, and doorstep delivery of essentials including food and medical supplies were undertaken at massive scale around the country demonstrating government agility and compassion.

The use of technology has been another defining feature of the government response.

The identification of possible Corona-infected patients through the official contact-tracing app Aarogya Setu and popularising the concept of telemedicine to ensure uninterrupted delivery of healthcare services demonstrate this.

The closure of inter-state and inter-district borders are being monitored via drones, another technology intervention. Several states have used drones to spray disinfectants in congested areas.

Moreover the government has used social media platforms effectively to address the instances of false news and to rapidly disambiguate facts from fake claims.

The PIB Fact Check system has been working tirelessly to bust information-pandemic in this age of social media. From using citizen engagement portals such as MyGov along with the popular social media channels including Facebook, Twitter, Telegram and WhatsApp, the government has constantly striven to provide accurate and timely information.

These measures albeit deemed simple, go a long way in the fight against disinformation and fake news.

Apart from instituting a graded response strategy to combat the outbreak at home, the Indian government has also presented India as a leader in crafting global responses to the pandemic.

While most countries chose to fight the Covid-19 outbreak within their borders, India took a lead by calling for regional cooperation. PM Narendra Modi convened a teleconference with SAARC nations on 15 March, instituting a SAARC-wide fund for rapid regional response including pooling healthcare resources.

India also set the precedent within SAARC when the Prime Minister announced an initial $10million contribution for the new coronavirus emergency fund. The Indian proposal was unique and imaginative as it exhibited a nation rising above its own suffering to lead the regional solution.

India did not confine itself only to the regional space and projected its resolve for leadership in the broader global geopolitics as well. Prime Minister Modi during his conversation with Saudi crown prince Mohammad Bin Salman (the current G20 chair) broached the possibility of replicating the SAARC videoconference with the G20 leadership, the first head of state to do so. The online session took place on 26 March, 2020.

Combined with this, India also ran a string of evacuations, both of its own citizens and citizens of many other countries including Maldives, US , Madagascar and China ,from some of the critical coronavirus hotspots.

An appraisal of the above response ascertains that India has quietly, but effectively managed the spread of pandemic through multiple systemic interventions. What becomes clear is that India under the able administration of PM Narendra Modi is taking proactive approach in finding solutions for global problems.

India projects its compassionate nature as well as strength of domestic industries like pharmaceuticals and technology to galvanise a global response, and was proven to be an exemplar in crisis leadership on the global stage and also primarily in the South Asian region.

India has so far done a great job of keeping the impact of Covid-19 in check. However, the battle continues and it needs the support and cooperation of all Indians to tide over the crisis.

PM Modi had rightly given the clarion call to spread the light to dispel the prevailing darkness. Under his methodical leadership, India is working hard to emerge stronger and more resilient to fight this pandemic.