Covid-19: Lessons from the countryside

Workers are busy picking lychees and tending ripe mangoes, while residents of some villages in Natore, the northern Bangladesh district, are adamant not to allow the much-dreaded Covid-19 to enter their area.

What has kept these villagers mentally so strong and how have they kept themselves safe from Covid-19?

No masks and gloves, but they say the coronavirus will not dare attack them.

One may think after a visit to Atgoria and Bongram villages - close to Qadirabad Cantonment - that this place is outside Bangladesh given the near total absence of any Covid-19 awareness.

The villagers, especially owners of fruit orchards, are more worried about the losses due to storms and the eventual sale of their fresh products.

According to the available statistics in Rajshahi division, known for its famed lychees and mangoes, the farmers have already lost 15 percent of their products due to storms.

Haji Delwar Hossain, a wealthy fruit farmer, laughed seeing this author wearing a mask and hand gloves, and said, "You city people are in trouble. Allah has given us natural protection."

Going around his lychee garden, he said, "We are hardy as we work in the scorching sun or rain and thus the virus cannot harm us."

"The few who came from the city were subjected to mandatory 14-day quarantine and thus Allah saved the villagers from this fearful disease," explained Haji Delwar Hossain.

Mohammad Sabuj Islam, a young fruit trader, had little idea about Covid-19 and wondered why a small virus is scaring people.

"We have no idea about this coronavirus and only saw on television that people are getting sick and dying. But it has a little effect in our village," he said, adding that the villagers were physically strong and they did not bother about any disease.

Sabuj has been busy finding lychee and mango orchards where storms have left growers in a precarious state.

Many Dhaka residents who left for their village homes as soon as the special holiday was declared two months ago, also said life was comfortable here and not scary or suffocating as in the cities.

"Life in my village is normal, but residents are alert about anyone entering from the city," said Faisal Ehmad from his village by telephone.

He added that those who left for their villages were "lucky" as life is almost normal except for some people wearing masks or rare instances of maintaining social distance.

This author found total lack of awareness or interest in rules to stay safe from Covid-19.

People here think that city residents must work out in the sun and be hardy to ward off any disease, not only Covid-19.

Haji Delwar Hossain said village life is carefree and everyone goes out in the sun and are used to living a hardy life.

"There is no air conditioner and we beat the heat with the natural wind; besides food here is pure," he added.

Thus Bangladesh is blessed with natural immunity and thus cases are still low compared to the total population. The cases are concentrated in the major overcrowded cities where most residents are flouting Covid-19 stay safe rules.