Michigan Indian Community - Life under the threat of Coronavirus

March 13, 2020

Never before in history has there been a time where school and college buildings are emptying out in early March and employers are mandating that employees work from home. The threat of the dreaded COVID19 Coronavirus continues to ravage the world with a health crisis nobody expected.

With domestic and international travel severely restricted, our community members are in total shock. India has cancelled all foreign visas including those with OCI cards. It appears that some exceptions are made under extenuating circumstances. 

» Home bound – Most of us will be home for next few weeks. Working with family members around us.  Kids are all home expecting attention, food and care.

» No events or movies - Watching Indian movies have always been a major entertainment option for thousands. Not right now. Entertainment has been downgraded to old movies and shows on home TV/laptop and Netflix. With most events cancelled weekends are not going to be same. Bharatiya Temple, Troy, Hindu Temple, Canton and Shirdi Sai Temple, Livonia have announced closure until further notice.

» Kids – Confined to home kids have to adjust to a lot of sleeping, extreme social media communication, frustrated parents and of course no special classes.

» WhatsApp and Facebook are likely to consume a significant amount of bandwidth and time for all of us.  In particular, fake WhatsApp forwards will keep everybody busy. Please do not forward misleading forwards about coronavirus and miracle solutions as it could cause harm to some.

» Power grocery shopping – March 13, 2020 will go down in history as the day when Indian grocery stores in Michigan looked  like war zones as desperate shoppers emptied out the shelves and kept the store owners and helpers on their toes. Miindia.com has been informed that shelves will be replenished in a few days.

» Stress – Some may have difficulty balancing childcare and job responsibilities, some may have visa issues. Please do your best to stay calm. Indian consulate website provides helpful information for Indian citizens. For US visa issues contact your lawyer.

Please be patient as we overcome this terrible scenario. In a few days test kits will be widely available and hopefully new infection numbers in USA will subside. Wash your hands often and keep your distance from people even if they are your friends and relatives.  More importantly, seniors should stay home and vigilant. Keep your doctor’s number handy.  Call your medical office or doctor first if you think you are unwell.

Stay tuned to www.miindia.com for reliable updates.  If you are in need of information please e-mail us at info@miindia.com.  We will do our best to help.