Dinshaw Avari- Trying my Hand at Blogging!

May 30, 2020   (This is a long article) (photo credit- webmd.com) Since my last “diatribe” on this topic ( https://dinshawavari.com/2020/04/19/imitation-is-the-sincerest-form-of-flattery-further-ramblings-of-a-layman-covid-2/ ), we have opened a lot of our lockdown sectors, retail outlets, business, etc.     Now comes the question- has lockdown helped or not? 1.      Personally I believe that lockdown was an important strategy at the outset of this pandemic- however, it should have been all encompassing and stricter.  Our businesses have been closed for last two months instead of 2-3 weeks – and that is due to a “hybrid” system instead of “total” lockdown.   However, dynamics have changed.  Two months without income cannot sustain any economic band of society- it’s just not possible.  Giving credit where it’s due - to the State Bank and the Federal Government for supporting companies and businesses - is important but it isn’t e...

May 2, 2020 To arbitrarily attack the World Health Organization that it “flip flops” is unfair.  As WHO puts it- “ What it has done differently is it has very much relied on its relationship with its citizenry and the ability and willingness of its citizens to implement self-distancing and self-regulate ” ( https://nypost.com/2020/04/29/who-lauds-sweden-as-model-for-resisting-coronavirus-lockdown/ ).   Besides this, Sweden has issued rules for social distancing and encouraging working from home- they haven’t arbitrarily opened up their society. While that strategy seems to work for Sweden, Australia & New Zealand’s strategy of lockdown has worked for them ( https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/24/world/australia/new-zealand-coronavirus.html ) . So, WHO’s statement on Sweden’s strategy should not be taken out of context. Practically speaking, none of us alive today have EVER faced a pandemic like this in our lifetime.  Nations, leaders, scientists...

April 29, 2020 COVID … COVID … COVID!  We will PREVAIL but that doesn’t mean we forget all other social ills ☹ . I don’t recall the source or location of this Twitter picture but KUDOS to the inventor for this simple ‘ garbage collector ’ system to capture debris, rubbish, flotsam, etc. So much of Karachi’s industrial waste, rubbish & sewerage finds its way into the Sea through its identifiable & controllable outlets & nalas (nala = stream).  There are manifold advantages to this simple model- ·         It’s cheap & easy to make - really, all it is, is a modified fishing net!  ·         Easy to set up & operate – the way I visualize it is that you place it over the city sewer and “stormwater drain” outlets where they discharge into the creeks & canals leading into the sea.  Not only will it contain all the debris, stopping its passage int...

April 7, 2020 ( This is a long article ) Pakistan does not have the resources to sustain a lengthy closure yet we can’t all come out “dancing on the streets”. However, I feel a four-pronged action is now the order of the day- continue with Coronavirus mitigation, restart limited commerce getting people back to work, the Government works on helping affected companies and uses funds to aid the unemployed (through registered NGOs). The views in this Paper are personal and formed with a combination of thoughts from family members, inhouse executives and a series of publications on incentives being created by European governments on COVID-19 mitigation (some bibliography at the end). COVID MITIGATION 1.        Government contracts local, reputed medical manufacturers to urgently manufacture N-95 masks for entire population. 2.        Isolate areas of city/towns where virus is dense and lock off those area...