The Lockdown Escape

 

Three years of run and hide from the Virus made the world tired but the small Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan is tireless with the least number of COVID-19 death (6 only) among the pandemic hit nations. Bhutan is still holding on to its only first antidote called lockdown to break the chain and eliminate the virus while many nations started to live with it.

We prayed and hope for the new year (2022) beginning but the existing variant Omicron proved to be more infectious among all variant to all age group of the population. Though considered less lethal than earlier variant Delta but the world is yet to know even its first variant itself. If not, we would have been already eliminated by now. Thus, this variant has crippled the world further and to expect another super variant would be no surprise to us.

This variant too didn’t leave me to escape the lockdown for the third consecutive year and that too away from my family. I decided to take a bolder step and started an official tour with my team/colleague to initiate the prolonged project in the East affected by the pandemic.  Upon genuine government project request to the Taskforce authority in Phuntsholing I was allowed to take an Indian highway with the escort convoy as VIP. It was exciting yet scary to drive from the highest risk area as we perceive. I was briefed thoroughly on Indian highway travel protocol in convoy. (that I should have Indian currency note denomination exchange ready. To receive the change in a polythene/plastic from the Toll Gate counter. To use the hand sanitizer after each Toll Gate. Never to overtake the vehicle and drive in convoy. Full time mask ON). With all these strict protocol I finally checked into our first destination and woke up next morning only to find out the 72 hours’ blackout period for 14 Dzongkhags/Districts in the country.

The lockdown kept on extending with surging cases in the community to third month in row and I was locked for exactly one and half month as a guest to my friend’s place. It was more than a homely stay in my friend’s place with exceptional hospitality and comfort. I could cook myself of my choice sometimes and show case my southern culinary skills and taste to my host. I also revived their fallow kitchen garden with top soil all the way from his Mine site and leave soils from the forest nearby. The soil was further enriched by cow-dung manure. There we tried some potatoes in first bed. We sowed some green chilli seed and beans along with cucumber.  The tapioca stem was also planted to the end bed and green chilli sapling in the richest bed. The potatoes and the beans started to sprout in green before this hell lockdown could relaxed. I could sense that I can take these harvest if I keep waiting to reopen the lockdown. Each day the lockdown came to be stricter confining to respective residence. My lens (DSLR) kept me alive capturing the feathered beauties and deer through the windows. But the prolonged homestay killed me inside every day with incomplete goal and yet to reach the final destination of my tour.

Finally, the Taskforce and the Toll Free number 1195 team Pemagatshel came to my rescue with all prerequisite formalities like e-pass, RT-PCR negative result and vehicle to Quarantine Facility (QF) at Manas Hotel at Panbang on 1st March, 2022.  It was the new dawn of dark straight forty-five days and driving towards my final destination to undergo a mandatory one-week quarantine for my return journey back to station without accomplishing my task. This is ridiculous. I can do my work for few days after I complete the quarantine if there is no lockdown here but I have to go another round of quarantine to move back to my station as this area also being a high risk area. So, if this quarantine is successful with negative RT-PCR test on 7th day, we will be escorted in convoy till Rendibi bridge which is a green zone area near Tingtibi, Zhemgang. The green zone also never certain as it becomes red and yellow all of sudden.

On my way from Nganglam to Panbang QF also it was straight drive without mixing to the community as directed by the authority. Thank God there was not even a nature call on the way where I should have had to come out from the vehicle. There is no way one can breach the protocol and I even ignored (to say hi from car) to my relatives who were working on the road side and my colleague’s parents waving to us from their residence below the highway. The Dessup personnel instantly escorted us to the room upon reaching the QF considering our visit from high risk zone of Nganglam. The room is cozy with standard hygiene. I am waiting for my successful quarantine and drive home through the unexpected surprise on the way. Let’s hope for the best. The quarantine Day 1 just started today.

The beauties through my lens and through the windows of locked room. Enjoy the below pictures!


                                                    
The gardening activities pre-lockdown!
Bed preparation!
                                                            Chilli sapling plantation!

The Bean's sprout!
And the Potatoes sprout within lock down period, OMG!!! Should I wait for its harvest???








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