'We work as a team and help each other out for our stories'

In our First Responder series, we bring to you accounts of intrepid news professionals who are reporting about the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic from the frontlines. Today, we speak to Diwakar Sharma, Senior Correspondent - Crime, Mid-Day, who was assigned the duty to cover the pandemic.

He has been writing about the on-ground situation of labourers and migrant workers, the state of hospitals, virus testing procedures and conditions of health workers in Vasai-Virar area of Mumbai.

 What have you been specifically covering for Mid-Day over the last few weeks?

On the announcement of lockdown, on March 24, most of the labourers working in Mumbai and nearby areas started walking towards their home-towns as all transport facilities were suspended. People were walking to Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. I interviewed a few and reported about their plight. The Vasai-Virar area had become a big hotspot for the COVID-19 virus and I was constantly monitoring the situation at hospitals, the infrastructure, the testing process and the workload and conditions of healthcare staff there.

As part of covering all this, what has been the most challenging experience for you?

It was not easy to visit hospitals and talk to doctors in confidence, as they were already overburdened trying to deal with this global health crisis. I had to take many doctors and other frontline health workers into confidence to know what is happening and how they are dealing with the crisis, what equipment and protective gear they are using to safeguard themselves. The main challenge was to keep myself safe while reporting, as my parents are senior citizens and I have to ensure that all of us are safe from the virus.

Covering the pandemic from ground zero, is there any incident or experience that moved you completely?

I was really astonished to know that the doctors, who are collecting the samples and who are on the frontline, did not have Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) suits. Secondly, hospitals in the area had no ambulance as part of their infrastructure. I spoke with the Collector and other senior Government officials regarding this.

What is the kind of support that you got from your company?

My colleagues and senior staff have been very supportive. We work as a team and help each other out for our stories.

Your message at the end of the day...

One should stay safe and encourage social distancing. The elderly are the most vulnerable lot for this disease and we must ensure that we safeguard them. This can happen only with social distancing. This is the only thing we can do to fight the COVID-19 virus.