Meghalaya Writer Janice Pariat Stuck in Italy amid Coronavirus Scare

Shillong, March 14, 2020:

A renowned writer from Meghalaya, Janice Pariat, is stranded in Italy, that is the second worst-hit country in the world with at least 950 deaths as the international total rockets past 5,000.

The writer, is the first writer from Meghalaya to receive an award from the Sahitya Akademi for a work in English, recently took to social media to express her helplessness and claimed that the Embassy was not doing anything in order to ensure the safe passage of Indians who wished to leave the European country.

The Jorhat-born writer, taking to social media, wrote that she was stuck at the airport as they were not allowed clearance to leave for India as they were unable to produce a certificate saying that they are free from coronavirus. In an Instagram story, she wrote, “Indian citizens stuck at Rome’s Fiumicino airport—unable to board the Alitalia flight to New Delhi this afternoon. The Indian embassy has circulated a directive this morning that travellers need a certificate (to say they’re coronavirus free) to travel back to India. Doctors here are saying that they are unable to provide that certificate. We are stuck at the airport, with no help from the Indian embassy in Rome nor from India. We need to contact someone at the health ministry in New Delhi, India, so they can do the needful as soon as possible. Our flight leaves in an hour. Help.”

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The writer’s subsequent posts reveal that she is still in Italy, however, she seems to be enjoying the sights. The writer, in a recent post where she muses what the outbreak means for the planet and the ecosystem, writes, "A few evenings ago, over a small gathering with Roman friends, talk inevitably steers towards the Cvirus. Rome, which sees 4.2 million tourists a year, is bereft of the usual crowds teeming over every inch of the historical centre. In all honesty, our friends tell us, after so long our city feels like our own again. Their streets are quiet, their neighbourhood bars and bakeries uncrowded. Yes, jokes one, we are even thinking to go visit the Colosseum!"

"I’m not suggesting that utter economic disruption, or illness that takes a human toll is the way to deal with climate crisis or the general unhappy state of our world—but this offers us a moment to consider these things: sustainable tourism that doesn’t suck the soul out of cities and its inhabitants, sustainable lives with greater time for leisure, with your children, with nature, with yourself. Maybe, the universe whispers, this is what we need—a global slowdown, triggered not by fears of an unknown virus, but one prompted by compassionate consideration of ourselves and our planet", she further adds, looking at the bright side of the countrywide lockdown that has affected the entire country.

It may be mentioned here that there is mass panic in the European nation, Italy, after the coronavirus, that originally originated in the market town of Wuhan in China, spread its tentacles there. According to latest figures, at least 5,440 people have died from the pandemic, while over 6,000 people are said to be in a serious/critical state.

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