The Covid pandemic is waxing and waning in India. The government still urges us to take precautions: wear masks, use hand sanitisers and maintain a respectable distance from one another At airports the instructions are announced repeatedly but the scenario is very different. These directives go for a toss, not only in the terminal buildings but also within the aircrafts. The DGCA threatens with deboarding of passengers who do not follow the protocols and the cabin crew do their utmost to knock some sense in the passengers but most times all these are to no avail. On the contrary, air fares have shot through the roof as the companies claim that they spend a lot on sanitising the planes after every journey, and take other precautionary measures. Ironically, the magnitude of people travelling in buses and trains are greater yet, neither the passengers and nor the authorities care two hoots for Covid precautions. There seems to be different yardsticks for people commuting by various modes of transport, with laxity being a common factor despite paying through the nose for air travel.
