How 'Harvard vs Trump' can guide India's Unlock 2.0

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 How 'Harvard vs Trump' can guide India's Unlock 2.0

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• The truth of truth: When the Dark Ages ended, the human society had a fixation for evidence and scientific enquiry. But today, the answer you get to a question related to the pandemic depends on who you ask! Be it the transmission mode, or HCQ, or community spread, or whatever.
• They all agree: But everyone agrees with the basic fact that COVID-19 is not going anywhere, soon. Pervasive testing or a good vaccine will minimise the damage, but that's it. Eradicating the virus is many years away.
• Public mindset: The public has to be prepared to accept a risk greater than zero. The earlier life won't return anytime soon. That risk too will vary from person to person. It is the government that has to issue the guidelines.
• What Trump did: The Trump administration announced it would ask foreign students to leave the country, if their college had moved to online classes only. That made the Universities choose between opening up physical classrooms (very risky) or letting go of their international students (inhuman, and fiscally imprudent). They sued the government, and won the first round (in an online court!).
• India's Unlock 2.0: It's a very complex decision to make in India, as different stakeholders have different risk appetites. Can there be some useful framework to do this? Perhaps what the Universities are doing is an indicator.
• Essential versus non-essential: First the essential has to be separated from the non-essential. This boundary too will broaden with time.

1. Harvard has gone online for one full year. Some are thinking of allowing students on campus for some essential work, like in laboratories. Those with poor home environment too can come back to campus housing.
2. Some others are welcoming first year students on campus, but not seniors. 
3. No matter what, even with partial access, each University has to develop a policy on containment, prevention and response. 
4. These will evolve with time as science around the virus evolves.

• Regular testing needed for containment: Mass scale testing is needed for containment, ranging from thermal scanning, Arogya Setu alerts to medical testing. All this will cost money, and over a prolonged period, will have mental health implications (on campuses).
• Prevention is best: In campuses, sharing of rooms and bathrooms is the norm. Social distancing would be quite tough. So wearing masks and PPE will be needed. Reduce operating capacity if needed. Prepare for sudden emergencies on campus, if need be.
• Indian case: If colleges are opened up, while public transportation remains shut down, then there would be more trouble. Each University may need to have its own plan, and similarly each city or state in India needs to have its own plan for Unlock 2.0. Individuals will have to be ready for the level of risk they'll assume.

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