Coronavirus pandemic | People who keep Mumbai going during lockdown

It is the longest pause this city has taken. India’s financial capital, the Maximum City, the entertainment capital-- Mumbai was the city that never slept. But like the rest of the country, it has stood in its tracks to stonewall the rampaging coronavirus.

India is in the final week of the 21-day nationwide lockdown and the Mumbai administration has been on its toes to ensure complete adherence in the city that is the capital of Maharashtra, which has the most cases --1,364--in the country.

The city’s lifeline has stopped. The Mumbai local, or the suburban trains for the uninitiated, covers 400km and ferries millions of office-goers every day from the suburbs to the heart of the city.

The service that braved floods, serial bomb blasts and even the horrific November 2008 terror attack can’t take a chance with the tiny microbe that has swept through 185 countries and territories, infected more than 1.6 million people and killed at least 100,661.

But, the country’s financial hub can’t just afford to stop. The National Stock Exchange and the Bombay Stock Exchange continue to operate, banking and other financial services are working as usual, and “essential services” continue to support Mumbai’s 25 million residents.

So, how have the people who keep the city going are dealing with the lockdown? How is the city that never stops adapting to the new reality?

‘Essential personnel’

These are people who provide essential services and are exempt from the lockdown but have to follow all the steps to guard against the virus.

Healthcare professionals

Doctors and other healthcare professionals are the first line of defence against coronavirus. In the race to save lives, there are no work hours, no shifts. Many doctors who run private practices have volunteered to help and authorities are setting up more and more beds to prepare for the worst-case scenario.

But there is a bright side, too.

"I'm logging a significantly lower number of patients than usual. I believe it's because people are staying healthy in the last few weeks by not exposing themselves to pollution, waste and junk food. Patients with chronic illness can consult over the phone or come in only if absolutely necessary," said a doctor who has a clinic in Central Mumbai.

The good doctor, however, has seen a rise in panic-stricken patients rushing to him at the slightest hint of fever or cough, fearing the worst. It is mostly psychological, we can't suddenly forget that there a host of other illnesses still out there, says the doctor.

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Mumbai Police

They are not doctors but they are on the frontlines of the battle against the rampaging virus, keeping us safe and protecting us from our foolish impulses to venture out.

Several videos of police personnel hitting people for breaking the lockdown are circulating but it is far from the truth. The force is calm and friendly, but firm in getting its message across: “please stay home and stay safe”.

"My home is more than 80 km away from my assigned chowki. Our shifts range from 12 to 18 hours a day. Usually, I go home once every two or three days. Now, I may as well avoid that because my family shouldn't be at risk because of me," said a senior constable manning a roadblock at a South Mumbai intersection.

The story repeated across the city. "We're operating like it is ‘section tight’ for the last two weeks, and we don't know how long it'll go," an inspector said. Section tight is a Mumbai Police slang for high alert, with no room for lapses in patrolling—a normal practice during elections, national holidays and other important events.

Municipal staff

All back-end operations like water filtration, wastewater treatment, sewer management, garbage collection and other monitoring services are operating as usual. The Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) is using the lockdown to repair and rebuild roads in the suburbs ahead of the monsoon season deadline. Manpower shortage hit the work but efforts are on step it up and clear roads in an order of priority.

During a recent morning visit, R North Ward's health staff were busy, tracing possible coronavirus patients and creating containment zones, areas where one or more positive cases or suspected infections are found and the area sanitised.

Coronavirus guidelines rule the billboards that once flashed the latest phones, clothes, shoes, jewellery and penthouses. Kitchens of the local restaurant are rustling up meals for the personnel on the ground.

Banks and other financial services

The staff is recognised as "essential" but there are restrictions on the number of people allowed in a branch or an office at a particular time so that social distancing, staying at least 6 feet apart to keep infections in check, is maintained.

Only those critical for ensuring smooth operations are at work, rest are working from home. "The company has moved all back-end activities to WFH (work-from-home) model and staff is consistently clocking an average of 10 hours of work,” a senior executive with a private bank said, requesting anonymity. “While it's indeed challenging, the time saved in commuting helps in reducing overall stress. However, distractions are higher and sharp focus is needed to finish tasks."

Another senior executive, responsible for all the branches of a financial services company in Mumbai, said they managed to convince reluctant customers to make the technological leap and turn to apps or the website for routine work instead of risking an office visit in these times.

Many PSU banks, too, have also closed doors for non-critical functions like updation of passbooks.

How do financial services and WFH gel? Typically, the staff accesses the intranet server remotely via a VPN (Virtual Private Network). This ensures encryption and guards the data that is being shared from man-in-the-middle (MITM) attack or interception.

‘Non-essential’ but vital

Lawyers

Courts are scrambling to establish video-conferencing facilities to comply with the Supreme Court directive to maintain social distancing. Only urgent matters are being heard.

It also means that the usually busy and crowded Horniman Circle at Churchgate is eerily quiet, like most parts of the city. "We're on complete leave. WFH model doesn't come in the picture because no deals are being signed, there's no due diligence or any requirement of non-judicial activities like stamp paper registration," said an advocate who represents one of Mumbai's top construction firms.

Litigation has pretty much come to a standstill that too in a country that is notorious for rushing to courts on the slightest pretext.

Accountants

The financial year 2020 has just ended and should have been the busiest for chartered accountants but no, not in the times of coronavirus. "The WFH model has its limitations. We can go through the finances of a company, coordinate with team members over a call, and continue doing what we do from our ‘office’. But on-site audits are impossible, cutting our work right now by half," said as a senior consultant with one of the "big four" accounting firms. Work was piling up and would come down like a tsunami once the lockdown ends, he said.

Another accountant said companies had increased focus on SAP-like software but forensic authentication was improbable. Those dealing with income tax are having a break of sorts as the deadline for filing taxes has been extended.

Call centres and BPOs 

The WFH model has worked quite well for most since they've been quick in adopting remote technology like their banking counterparts.

"There has been no change in how we work. Instead of sitting on our desk, we sit home with our earphones and use software that automatically routes calls to us via the internet," said a BPO executive, requesting not to be identified.

The switch to the WFH model has been easy for BPOs, as these services are remote in nature. A call centre in the middle of Mumbai is handling a German client for an American company. Instead of being in an office building like a cluster, the workforce is scattered but connected. The software is designed to log the time and status of the employee's working output, eliminating lethargy.

Aviation

The best way to stonewall the coronavirus is distance, restricting movement. The virus has travelled-- on planes, trains, buses and ships after it emerged in Wuhan town of China late last year.

Pilots, cabin crew and ground handlers in Mumbai, like elsewhere in India and several other countries, are at home. Some are stressed about their future and finances, as the aviation industry is expected to take big hit.

With airports closed, only a handful of staff is required. Airlines have shifted their customer service personnel to the WFH model, and IndiGo has even gone to town about its quick customer grievance redressal time.

Enthral Aviation, a city-based charter flight company, received several requests from stranded corporate honchos and the super-rich to airlift them and bring them back home. “Clients were ready to pay double or triple the standard rate but we had to decline all requests since no non-scheduled passenger charter flights are allowed," CEO Tapish Khivensra said.

"We are one of the industries that cannot work from home. We are literally grounded."

Entrepreneurs

The lockdown has dealt a huge blow to small and medium-sized enterprises, which are the engine of India’s economy and account for a sizable chunk of jobs.

"I own this shop. I'm not worried about rent and can feed my family for a few months. But, the majority of establishments out there are leased, have loan repayments, and many more liabilities," the owner of a small restaurant in Borivali West said.

Eateries are trying to pay the delivery staff but how long can a business survive without cash flow? And the pain is across sectors. "My consignment is stuck at JNPT. I have some liquidity, but that'll barely get me through for a month. Then, I'll be forced to downsize," said a man who has an import and export business.

But the worst-hit are the owners of the roadside stalls. These food stalls are the heart and soul of Mumbai but have had no business for almost three weeks now. The owners can’t wait for the lockdown to end so that they can dish out piping hot vada pavs or spicy Mumbai Bhel for their customers, who could be a tired rickshawala or a business tycoon.

The Blue Collars

Faceless and nameless, they are the ones who keep Mumbai going. They cook food, clean homes, build houses, keep a watch as we sleep, drive us around, deliver our favourite meals and books and do so much more. Motormen, BEST staff, drivers, delivery agents, daily wagers, construction workers and so many others who have to work every day to feed their families. Most of them have come to Mumbai from various parts of the country, hoping to build a better life in a city that has something for everyone. But when this huge city comes to a standstill, so do many lives across the country.

Built by many such people, the 25-km Western Express Highway, which connects the city’s tony southern neighbourhood of Bandra to the more egalitarian Dahisar in the north, is one long empty stretch on a recent afternoon.

The drive is an unbelievable 20 minutes, end to end. A driver’s delight, right? No, much rather curse and even be caught in a jam than have a smooth ride in eerie silence.

The tiny virus with a big name --severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 has been a great leveller. From the richest to the poorest, everyone has been forced to hunker down, as infections and deaths inch up in Mumbai.

There is talk that the lockdown could be extended. It could be a long haul for my city. But it is prepared, people may be off the roads but they aren't off their desks. And once it is all over, they will reclaim Mumbai, their city, their home.

(The author writes on technology, aviation, and mobility.)