A Learning in Time Saves Lives

Vijay Sekhar is the sole breadwinner for his family, earning a small living from farming; it is not surprising, therefore, to see him make repeated trips to Chittoor to buy seeds, manure and other agriculture-related inputs for his farm. So much so he was even forced to travel to Chittoor during the COVID-19 pandemic, since his livelihood depended on ensuring timely agricultural inputs to the crops throughout the cropping season.

That is why the conversation with the PSI India Volunteer was all the more revealing – not only did his knowledge about transmission of COVID-19 increase, he was convinced that following desired preventive behavior like maintaining social distance, using masks, and hand washing frequently, etc. More importantly, Vijay Sekhar came to realise that the best way to keep himself and his family safe was hand washing using soap, not just hand washing with water. Following the discussion with the PSI India Volunteer, everyone in his family practices hand washing with soap several times a day, especially if they have travelled outside their home. As an added precaution, all his family members have also got themselves vaccinated.

But every time he travelled, Vijay Sekhar always worried about
catching Coronavirus disease’ more than that, he was mortally
afraid of passing on the illness to members of his family,
especially his elderly parents.