BHOPAL (Madhya Pradesh): The way the residents of Bhopal celebrated Holi last year was very different from the one they celebrated it this year.
The coronavirus nibbled at human lives. So, it did to all joys of life. It all began from the middle of 2019. The virus, nevertheless, entered the Indian territory in the beginning of January 2020 and started spreading its tentacles everywhere. It soon took the entire country into its grip.
By the time it afflicted India, the virus destroyed many other countries, including the United States.
On March 24, 2020, India went into lockdown for the first time, and it continued. The thoroughfares in Bhopal, like any other cities across the world, wore a deserted look.
There was no food, no medicine. As there were no vehicles on the roads, the birds chanted throughout the day, but the cries of hungry dogs reverberated the evenings.
The siren of ambulances carrying the patients often broke the stillness. On hearing those sirens, many residents peeped through the windows of their homes to see what had happened. There was no joy. There were no festivities: only sorrows, sufferings and deaths.
Yet, time rolled on. People were vaccinated against the virus. The corona-related restrictions were lifted; and the city walked back to normal with a limp; yet, there was no joy. Then came the third wave of the pandemic; however, that failed to cause much damage to human beings.
The residents of Bhopal were deprived of the joys of Holi, Diwali, Dussehra, Eid, and other festivals; for, there was fear of pandemic.
The New Year, 2022, brought a piece good news: the virus began to wear out, partly because of the vaccination, partly because of awareness about the disease among people.
Therefore, this year, the residents celebrated Holi with usual zeal; they took out processions, danced to the tune of old and new Bollywood numbers and met each other.
Still, the fear of coronavirus prevailed. Though there were no restrictions, many people kept away from playing Holi as freely as they used to do earlier.
Ergo, the residents of Bhopal, belonging to all ages, were cautious as they did not want another wave of the pandemic that ruined millions of people. The blue funk of the coronavirus seemed to have haunted the residents.
