‘Can’t distance ourselves from news even while maintaining social distancing’

Laxmi Prasad Pant, State Editor for Rajasthan for Dainik Bhaskar, has been reporting about the COVID-19 pandemic from Jaipur, which has been a major epicentre for the spread of the virus in Rajasthan. After a long day’s work of reporting from ground zero, hospitals, quarantined zones and hotspots, when he reaches home well past midnight after clearing 25 check posts, his neighbours look at him with disregard and ask a number of questions before he is allowed to reach his home. On human grounds, he says, there are many stories that really upset him. Over to Pant.

 What have you been covering specifically on the field and since when?

As a journalist, I have reported from Jammu & Kashmir and the terrorist tension there. However, there at least we knew the probable dangers and also got security. But, right now the dangers of the field we are reporting from are absolutely unknown.

In Rajasthan, out of 35 districts, 25 are affected including cities like Jaipur, Jodhpur, Bikaner and Kota. All Government officials and our sources of news are behind closed doors. Only health workers, police and journalists are out there on the field. The information and press releases we are supposed to get from the Government do not come at all, nor is there a media centre where we can get updates on a regular basis about the situation. So we need to go to affected areas, hospitals and quarantine centres to gather news, which becomes very risky.

Everyone on the ground is doing great work. I have never had as much respect for police officers as I do now after seeing what they are doing for citizens. 

What has been your most challenging experience so far?

An area called Ramganj in Jaipur has a population of about 20,000, with 300 positive cases of COVID-19. One infected person who had travelled from Oman went on to infect 285 others in that area. As journalists, we need to go to these places and get news. The biggest challenge for us is that we cannot distance ourselves from the news while maintaining social distancing. Also, in many cases, even if we wanted to help people out, we can’t, because of the fear of getting infected.

 Can you share any particular experience that moved you the most?

A husband and wife had tested positive for the COVID-19 virus. They had a two-year-old daughter. Doctors asked to test the child for the virus too and the parents agreed. What touched me the most was that when the little girl was undergoing the test, those doctors were actually wishing and praying that she too would test positive. No one in the world would want a small kid to test positive for COVID-19! I asked the doctors why they were praying for a positive result. They said, “With whom will this little girl stay if her parents test positive for the virus?” The girl did test positive and actually it was the first case in Rajasthan where a two-year-old had the infection. This experience was very shocking for me. 

Do you/your family worry about your own safety?  

When I reach home late at night after work, and crossing about 25 check posts, I have to answer so many questions by the security guard. People don’t want me to enter the colony or stay there. There are many journalists across Rajasthan and India who face such wrath.

 What kind of support are you receiving from the company on reporting the COVID-19 pandemic?

We are taking due care about safety and precaution in our organization. Not only us, but the company is also ensuring safety for hawkers and vendors of newspapers. The entire process of news gathering, printing and eventually delivering it to people is being monitored for safety and sanitization.

 Your message at the end of the day…

We just hope that no coronavirus symptoms are found in us. More than us, we are worried about our family members.