Pandemic enters IIT

“No single person can terrorize a nation, we are all his accomplices.”

Though the generous MAL180 Professor spared us half an hour of lectures, the mood turned from joy to commotion on watching the always serious group of Computer students, turned into a bunch of mourners wearing green masks, as if returning from processions of a morgue. Soon the news spread, what we knew was 1 confirmed case of Swine interference in human life, in the form of Flu- having had 8 more cases to its name within my hostel and 20 in the campus. The legs automatically moved away from each other, masks covered my face too, often suffocating and heating my respiratory system. We played our roles in letting the news find more ears, instilling terror and helping a shop’s sales umpteen times than any other day. Disillusionment was on the cards, as the numbers played between 20 in IIT to the same number in Delhi, to 22 in India with only 1 in IIT. Obviously (not that obvious maybe), the last one was true. But the truth seemed condolences rather than facts as masks continued to cover the faces even as people drove wildly, played cricket but never let the mask loosen. None researched how effective the 5 rupee cloths were, could flu really spread and certain minute facts.

An attempt to be cool and bold it may sound, but it was totally irrational walking around with masks and it didn’t find itself outside my bag after an hour of drama. Rather, it added fun to my life watching the other’s ‘preventive’ measures. Seriously, it taught me a lesson, it’s easy to fool people.