essay on coronavirus in gujarati

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सार: कोरोनाविषाणू हा विषाणूंचा एक मोठा गट आहे. त्यांच्यामुळे साध्या सर्दी-पडशापासून ते मिडल ईस्ट रेस्पिरेटरी सिंड्रोम (MERS) आणि सिव्हिअर अॅक्युट रेस्पिरेटरी सिंड्रोम (SARS) अशा अधिक गंभीर स्वरूपाचे अनेक आजार होऊ शकतात.

२०१९ साली चीनमधील वुहान प्रांतामध्ये एक नवीन प्रकारचा कोरोना विषाणू (कोविड-१९) सापडला गेला. हा नवीन प्रकारचा विषाणू याआधी कधीही माणसांमध्ये आढळला नव्हता.

हा कोर्स कोविड-१९ आणि श्वसन संबंधात उद्भवणाऱ्या इतर विषाणूंविषयी सर्वसाधारण माहिती पुरवतो आणि याचा हेतू सार्वजनिक आरोग्य संबंधित व्यावसायिक, घटना व्यवस्थापक आणि संयुक्त राष्ट्रे, आंतरराष्ट्रीय संघटना आणि एनजीओ संघटना यांच्यासाठी काम करणाऱ्या कर्मचाऱ्यांना माहिती देणे असा आहे.

या आजाराचे अधिकृत नाव काही संशोधन केल्यानंतर ठरवले गेले असल्याने कुठेही nCoV असा उल्लेख आढळल्यास त्याचा अर्थ कोविड-१९, म्हणजे अलीकडेच शोध लागलेल्या कोरोनाविषाणूंमुळे होणारा संसर्गजन्य आजार असे समजावे .

कृपया लक्षात घ्या की या कोर्सची सामग्री सध्या सर्वात अलीकडील मार्गदर्शन प्रतिबिंबित करण्यासाठी सुधारित केली जात आहे. खालील कोर्सेसमध्ये तुम्हाला विशिष्ट COVID-19-संबंधित विषयांवर अपडेट केलेली माहिती मिळू शकते: लसीकरण: COVID-19 लस चॅनल IPC उपाय: IPC साठी COVID-19 प्रतिजन जलद निदान चाचणी: 1) SARS-CoV-2 प्रतिजन जलद निदान चाचणी ; 2) SARS-CoV-2 प्रतिजन आरडीटी अंमलबजावणीसाठी मुख्य विचार

कृपया लक्षात ठेवा: हे साहित्य शेवटचे 16/12/2020 रोजी अपडेट केले गेले.

Course contents

मॉड्युल १: कोविड-१९ समवेत श्वसन संबंधात उद्भवणाऱ्या विषाणूंविषयी प्रस्तावना :, मॉड्युल २: कोविड-१९ समवेत श्वसन संबंधात उद्भवणाऱ्या विषाणूंची तपासणी: पाळत आणि प्रयोगशाळेतील तपासणी:, मॉड्युल ३: प्रयोगशाळेतील तपास:, मॉड्युल ४: जोखीम संवाद आणि सामाजिक सहभाग:, मॉड्युल ५: सामाजिक सहभाग:, मॉड्युल ६: कोविड -१९ श्वसन संबंधात उद्भवणाऱ्या विषाणूंचा प्रतिबंध आणि त्यांना प्रतिसाद:, enroll me for this course, certificate requirements.

• Gain a Record of Achievement by earning at least 80% of the maximum number of points from all graded assignments.

અર્થતંત્રમાં સુધારો, બેકારી ઘટી.... પણ મોંઘવારીથી ન મળી રાહત, મોદી સરકારના 5 વર્ષના લેખા જોખા

Ashok Gehlot Corona Positive: રાજસ્થાનના પૂર્વ સીએમ અશોક ગેહલોત આવ્યા કોરોનાની ઝપેટમાં, સ્વાઈન ફ્લૂની પણ થઈ પુષ્ટિ

India Corona Cases: કર્ણાટકના રાજયપાલ થાવરચંદ ગેહલોત કોરોના સંક્રમિત, છેલ્લા 24 કલાકમાં કોરોનાએ લીધો 6 લોકોનો ભોગ

Covid 19 JN.1 Updates: એક દિવસમાં 605 નવા કેસ નોંધાયા, જાણો કેટલા લોકોના થયા મોત 

Frequently Asked Questions

કોરોના વાયરસ એક સાર્સ કેટેગરીનો વાયરસ છે. વૈજ્ઞાનિકોએ નોવેલ કોરોના વાયરસ નામ આપ્યું છે. ડિસેમ્બર 2019માં ચીનના વુહાન શહેરમાં પ્રથમવાર કોવિડ-19 કેસ નોંધાયો હતો.

કોરોના વાયરસ ફેફસાં પર અસર કરે છે. કોરોનાની શરૂઆત તાવ અને સૂકા કફથી થાય છે જેનાંથી શ્વાસ લેવામાં તકલીફ પડે છે. વૈજ્ઞાનિકો કહે છે કે વાઇરસ સંક્રમણના લક્ષણ દેખાવાનું શરૂ થવામાં સરેરાશ પાંચ દિવસ લાગે છે. તે સિવાય તાવ, શરદી, શ્વાસ લેવામાં તકલીફ, નાકમાંથી પાણી નીકળવું અને ગળામાં તકલીફ થવા જેવી સમસ્યા થાય છે.

કોરોનાથી બચવા માટે સતત તમારા હાથ સાબુ અને પાણીથી અથવા આલ્કોહોલયુક્ત હેન્ડ રબથી સાફ કરો. ઉધરસ કે છીંક આવે ત્યારે નાક અને મોઢા આગળ ટિશ્યૂ અથવા અન્ય કપડાથી ઢાંકો. જેમનામાં તાવ કે શરદી જેવા લક્ષણ દેખાય તેની નજીક જવાનું ટાળવું જોઈએ.તે સિવાય માસ્ક પહેરો

કોરોના વાયરસના દર્દીને સ્પર્શ કરવાથી ફેલાય છે. જો કોઇ કોરોનાના દર્દીના સંપર્કમાં આવે તો તેને કોરોના થવાની સંભાવના રહે છે. જેથી લોકોને ઘરમા જ રહેવાની સલાહ આપવામાં આવી છે. લોકોને સોશિયલ ડિસ્ટેન્સિંગનું પણ પાલન કરવાની સલાહ આપવામાં આવે છે.

કોરોના વાયરસનો સૌથી વધુ ખતરો બાળકો અને વૃદ્ધો પર રહે છે. તે સિવાય જેમને અસ્થમા, ડાયાબિટીસ, હૃદયની બીમારીઓથી પીડાતા હોય તેઓને કોરોના વાયરસનો સૌથી વધુ ખતરો છે.

તમે કેન્દ્રિય સ્વાસ્થ્ય મંત્રાલયના 24X7 હેલ્પલાઇન નંબર- 01123978046 પર કોલ કરો. તમે તમારા સવાલોને [email protected] પર પણ મેઇલ કરી શકો છો. તેના થોડા સમય બાદ તમારી પાસે જિલ્લા અધિકારી ટીમ સાથે આવશે. જો તમારામાં કોરોનાના લક્ષણો દેખાશે તો તમને ટેસ્ટ માટે મોટી હોસ્પિટલમાં લઇ જવામાં આવી શકે છે. શંકાસ્પદ મામલામાં તપાસ હેતુ સરકારે અલગ અલગ એમ્બ્યુલન્સ રાખી છે. શંકાસ્પદ મામલામાં પબ્લિક ટ્રાન્સપોર્ટનો ઉપયોગ નહી કરવાની સલાહ આપવામાં આવે છે.

કોવિડ-19ના ટેસ્ટમા કોઇ પણ પ્રકારનો બ્લડ ટેસ્ટ થતો નથી. કોવિડ-19 ટેસ્ટમાં ગળાની ખારાશ અથવા પછી નાકની એક સ્વૈબ મારફતે તપાસ કરવામાં આવે છે. સેમ્પલ લીધા બાદ નોડલ હોસ્પિટલોમાં તૈનાત ડોક્ટર તપાસ કરે છે કે શું વ્યક્તિને હોસ્પિટલમાં ભરતી કરવાની જરૂર છે કે નહીં. નહી તો તમને ઘરમાં જ આઇસોલેટ રહેવાનું કહેવામાં આવે છે. જો ટેસ્ટ પોઝિટીવ આવે છે તો સ્વસ્થ થાય ત્યાં સુધી ઓછામાં ઓછા 14 દિવસો સુધી ક્વોરેન્ટાઇન અથવા એકાંતમાં રહેવાની જરૂરિયાત રહી શકે છે.

હાલમાં આ લઇને કોઇ જાણકારી નથી. ચીનમાંથી મળેલા કેટલાક રિપોર્ટ અનુસાર કેટલાક લોકોને કોવિડ-19 હતો ત્યારબાદ તેઓ પુરી રીતે સ્વસ્થ થઇ ગયા હતા અને ફરીથી બીમાર પડ્યા હતા. જોકે હજુ સુધી તેને લઇને કોઇ સ્પષ્ટ જાણકારી નથી કે કોરોનામાંથી સ્વસ્થ થયા બાદ તે વ્યક્તિ ફરીથી બીમાર પડે છે. અથવા તો તેને ફરીથી ચેપ લાગે છે અથવા તો એવી સ્થિતિ જ્યાં વ્યક્તિ પુરી રીતે સ્વસ્થ થયો નથી. સિએટલના ફ્રેડ હચિંસન કેન્સર રિસર્ચ સેન્ટર (Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center - Seattle)ના વૈજ્ઞાનિકોએ કહ્યુ હતુ કે, દર 15 દિવસમાં વાયરસના 30 અક્ષરોનું આનુવંશિક કોડ બદલાય છે. એટલા માટે હજુ સુધી એ જાણી શકાયું નથી કે બીમાર લોકો વાયરસથી ફરીથી ક્યા કારણથી સંક્રમિત થઇ શકે છે.

આ અંગે નિષ્ણાંતોનું કહેવું છે કે આ એ વાત પર નિર્ભર કરે છે કે કોઇ વ્યક્તિની ઇમ્યુનિટી પાવર કેટલો મજબૂત અને કમજોર છે. WHO અને સેન્ટર ફોર ડિસીઝ કંન્ટ્રોલે કહ્યું કે, જે બે પ્રમુખ વર્ગના લોકોમાં કોરોનાનો ચેપ લાગવાની આશંકા વધુ છે એ વૃદ્ધ હોય અથવા તો અંડરલાઇંગ મેડિકલ કંડિશન-ડાયાબિટીશ, હાર્ટ ડિસીઝ, ફેફસાની બીમારી, જે લોકો વૃદ્ધ છે અને ઇમ્યૂન સિસ્ટમ નબળી છે તેમને કોરોના સામે લડવામાં પરેશાની થશે. જે લોકોમાં અગાઉથી જ એક અંડરલાઇંગ મેડિકલ કંડિશન જેવા હાર્ટ ડિસીઝ, ડાયાબિટીશ હોય તેવા લોકોને વધુ ખતરો રહે છે. આવા લોકોમાં ઇમ્યૂન સિસ્ટમ સારી હોતી નથી. જેના કારણે તે કોરોના સામે લડી શકતા નથી. જોકે, તમે યુવા અને સ્વસ્થ હોય તો પણ તમારે વધુ સાવધાની રાખવાની જરૂરિયાત છે.

ડબલ્યૂએચઓના કહેવા પ્રમાણે, તમે ફક્ત એક માસ્ક પહેરો જ્યારે તમે કોવિડ-19ની જાણ થઇ છે અથવા તો કોઇ કોવિડ-19ના દર્દીની દેખરેખ કરી રહ્યા છો. ડિસ્પોઝેબલ ફેસ માસ્કનો ઉપયોગ ફક્ત એક વખત કરવામાં આવવો જોઇએ. ખાંસી અથવા છીંકવા પર માસ્ક પહેરો. માસ્ક ત્યારે સુરક્ષા આપી શકે છે જ્યારે હાથોને આલ્કોહલ બેઝ્ડ સેનિટાઇઝરથી સાફ કરીને માસ્કનો ઉપયોગ કરવામા આવી રહ્યો હોય. માસ્કને યોગ્ય રીતે ઉપયોગ કરવા અંગેની જાણકારી મેળવો

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Ahmedabad corona: કોરોનાના કેસમાં વધારો,આ વિસ્તારમાં નોંધાયા વધુ 8 કેસ, એક્ટિવ કેસની સંખ્યા પહોંચી 58

Ahmedabad Corona Cases: અમદાવાદમાં કોરોનાના વધુ 8 કેસ નોંધાયા, જાણો શહેરમાં કેટલા છે એક્ટિવ કેસ

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COVID-19 PowerPoint Presentation for FLW Training Gujarati

In January 2020 the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak of a new coronavirus disease in Hubei Province, China to be a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. Since then WHO has declared it as a Pandemic affecting more than 115 countries around the globe. India witnessed its first COVID-19 case in Kerala on 30th January 2020. With cases rising steadily, all sections of our society must play a role if we are to stop the spread of this disease and the frontline health worker has the responsibility, the reach and the influence within the community. UNICEF and WHO are supporting the government of India in taking action to contain the COVID-19 outbreak. Towards this UNICEF and WHO developed a training toolkit for training FLWs on COVID response and containment measures. The toolkit consists of this PowerPoint presentation to be used by the designated COVID-19 trainers. The trainer should conduct the training using the PPT which has all the sessions to be covered d

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Understanding Factors to COVID-19 Vaccine Adoption in Gujarat, India

Viral tolia.

1 Post Graduate Department of Business Management, Sardar Patel University, Anand 388120, Gujarat, India; [email protected] (V.T.); moc.liamffider@dohtarmujar (R.M.R.)

Rajkumar Renin Singh

2 Shanti Business School, Ahmedabad 380058, Gujarat, India; ni.ude.loohcsbitnahs@niner

Sameer Deshpande

3 Social Marketing @ Griffith, Griffith Business School, Nathan Campus, Griffith University, Brisbane, QLD 4111, Australia

Anupama Dave

4 School of Business and Law, Navrachana University, Vadodara 391410, Gujarat, India; ni.ca.vun@damapuna

Raju M. Rathod

Associated data.

Research data are not shared.

The COVID-19 pandemic has posed threats to human life across the globe, including India. Vaccinating is an effective means of addressing the pandemic threat. The government of India has implemented a massive vaccination drive to save its citizens from the deadly virus. However, the effort has faced multiple challenges, including vaccine hesitancy. This research understands respondents’ perspectives on factors contributing to the lower vaccination uptake in Gujarat, India. Forty-four semi-structured interviews were conducted through convenience sampling representing different demographic backgrounds. Factors influencing vaccine adoption included religious leadership, political leadership and the government, and fear of side effects, especially among children and those with co-morbidities, resulting primarily from fake news and misinformation circulated through social media. Compared with nine countries from across the world, the study found similarities to vaccine hesitancy from misinformation and the fear of side effects among children. In contrast, the role of government and the influence of religious and political leaders was considered positive. The study recommends strategies to overcome people’s apprehensions about the adoption of vaccination. These include offering incentives, providing positive peer-to-peer communication, recruiting influencers such as religious and community leaders and early adopters such as the elderly population to endorse vaccination, targeting youth through social media, and reaching rural sections by involving NGOs and social service groups.

1. Introduction

The evidence demonstrating the benefits of immunization is overwhelming. It is one of the most significant and cost-effective means to improve health outcomes [ 1 ]. Vaccines have reduced the overall morbidity and mortality of several infectious diseases in the past [ 2 ]. Vaccination can similarly play a substantial role in controlling the COVID-19 pandemic [ 3 ]. Despite these benefits, a strong minority in society remains opposed to vaccines. Such opposition can derail the government’s attempt to protect the citizens and achieve public health objectives. To overcome this problem, it is important to understand the reasons for this opposition. The current study explores perceptions of the COVID-19 vaccine among residents of Gujarat, India.

1.1. Vaccine Hesitancy

The Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) Working Group defines vaccine hesitancy as the “delay in acceptance or refusal of vaccination despite the availability of vaccination services. Vaccine hesitancy is complex and context-specific, i.e., varying across time, place, and vaccines. It is influenced by factors such as complacency, convenience and confidence” [ 4 ] (p. 4163). Vaccine hesitancy lies in a continuum between the two extremes of individual behaviour, i.e., total acceptance and opposition to vaccination [ 5 , 6 ].

The World Health Organization (WHO) highlighted vaccine hesitancy as one of the top global threats [ 7 ]. Vaccine hesitancy might be observed in a mere ten per cent of the population [ 8 ]. However, they can complicate the vaccination drive as the rest of the population might be influenced by negative word of mouth [ 9 ]. Hence, understanding the reasons for the lower uptake of vaccines is critical from policy formulation and social marketing intervention perspectives.

1.2. Factors Related to Vaccine Hesitancy

Numerous studies have found that people do not consider vaccines safe and effective, thereby doubting the vaccination program [ 10 , 11 , 12 ]. This uncertainty has resulted in lower-than-expected vaccination rates, especially in low- and middle-income countries [ 13 , 14 , 15 ]. The issue is not limited to the developing world. Studies on fear of vaccines, low trust in government, and the role of misinformation have also been reported in developed countries [ 8 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 ].

1.3. Vaccination Campaign and Status in India

The COVID-19 vaccination program began in India on 16 January 2021. Consistent with the WHO guidelines, the government of India told the supreme court that the COVID-19 vaccination is neither mandated nor related to social services or benefits; it is voluntary for all [ 20 , 21 ]. The Indian government established a National Expert Group on COVID-19 Vaccine Administration (NEGVAC) to advise on all areas of COVID-19 vaccine administration in India [ 22 ]. The government formed a group of specialists from various branches to determine the clinical criteria that should be used to prioritize persons with co-morbidities for COVID-19 immunization. According to the committee, anyone with congenital heart disease or any other kind of disease was given top priority. The COVID-19 vaccination was initially administered to healthcare personnel, frontline workers, and those over 50 (with a priority for those over 60), followed by people under 50 with co-morbidities.

The population aged 50 years and above were prioritized for vaccinations in phase one, as morbidity and mortality in this group were the highest compared to other age groups. Identification of the population aged 50 years and above was created based on the latest electoral roll of the general election.

The deadline for calculating age was 1st January 2021. If eligible people were missed from the list, they could provide identity and self-register for vaccination [ 23 , 24 , 25 ]. Despite several challenges in India (i.e., limited healthcare infrastructure, limited vaccine availability, geographic constraints, and a large population), the country had administered both vaccination doses to 461.5 million people 18 years and above (49%) as of 31st July 2021. On the same day, Gujarat had administered two doses to 32.6 million people 18 years and above (66%) [ 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 ].

1.4. Setting

The research area selected is Gujarat, located in the western part of India, with a projected population of approximately 70 million in 2021 and comprising 907 women per 1000 men [ 31 ]. The literacy rate in 2011 was 78% [ 32 ], which is expected to have increased in the past decade. While the people of Gujarat mostly follow Hindu practices, a sizeable population adheres to Islam, Christianity, Sikhism, Buddhism, and Jainism. This state has an average healthcare facility with over 23 district hospitals, 8347 rural dispensaries, 14 homeopathic hospitals, 1046 ayurvedic dispensaries and 48 ayurvedic hospitals [ 31 ].

During COVID times, it was observed that the Gujarati community was keener to consume ayurvedic medicine over Western medicines; around 77% in India and 53% in Gujarat prefer ayurvedic medicines. Besides this, it was observed that instead of taking vaccines, the Gujarati population preferred homemade remedies [ 33 , 34 ].

Due to the low vaccination rate, vaccine hesitancy, and preference for home remedies, researchers decided to explore factors of COVID-19 vaccination in Gujarat.

Implementing a social marketing strategy to curb vaccine apprehensiveness is vital [ 35 ]. As per social marketing research, one-time behaviour change is easier to promote, and vaccination falls into this behaviour category [ 36 , 37 , 38 ]. There is a need to develop consciousness among the people and a positive intention towards receiving the vaccines so that the Gujarati population receives the required doses of COVID-19 vaccination. In this state, vaccination shots are available in different inoculation centers [ 39 ] at a low price [ 40 ].

In addition to analyzing the perceptions of Gujarati residents on vaccination, the current study proposes strategies from a social marketing lens to help the government of India effectively reduce the skepticism concerning the vaccines among the mass and increase the uptake of COVID-19 vaccine shots. This study contributes to the social marketing literature by discovering themes related to the lower uptake of vaccines in the context of low-income but rapidly developing countries.

The paper has been structured in the following manner: First, we describe the method used in the study. Second, we present the themes emerging from the study. Third, we compare the themes with those found in studies in other countries. Further, the social marketing strategy for the government has been explored in practical implications. Finally, the study’s limitations and conclusion are discussed. This study demonstrates how the lens of social marketing can be applied to increase the uptake of COVID-19 vaccine jabs in Gujarat.

Semi-structured interviews were administered to identify the perceptions towards the COVID-19 vaccine from respondents residing in Gujarat, India. Morse [ 41 ] and Cresswell [ 42 ] have suggested that the saturation range in semi-structured interviews is around 5 to 25. However, more interviews were undertaken to achieve saturation [ 43 ] and provide an in-depth understanding of a relatively new phenomenon [ 44 ].

Prior to collecting data, the study was approved by Sardar Patel University. Sameer Deshpande was not involved in the data collection process, and Griffith university was not involved in the human subjects ethics approval process. The respondents were recruited using purposive sampling, wherein the researchers approached participants representing varied demographic (age, gender, and religion) and geographic segments. Data were collected utilizing face-to-face and digital platforms (Google Meet).

An interview guide was prepared based on the literature on risk communication and social marketing. It was divided into two parts: the first part was related to demographic factors (five questions), and the second part was related to perceptions of the COVID-19 vaccine (two questions each related to general vaccines, lower uptake, the role of vaccines, government initiative and religion). An expert was consulted to validate and finalize the interview questions. The interview guide is provided in Appendix A .

Interviews were conducted and reviewed by two authors, (VT) and (RR), and the process was terminated on data saturation [ 45 ]. One of the authors developed transcripts in the first stage. In the second stage, both the coders independently read the transcripts and assigned the codes to relevant quotes. In the third stage, the authors merged the relevant codes into sub-themes, and sub-themes into themes in the last stage. At each stage, the coders met and resolved discrepancies; when needed, the third coder was consulted (RMR). Intercoder reliability of 80% was noted, and discussions resolved discrepancies.

Both audio and video conversations were recorded for all the interviews with the prior permission of the respondents. The interviews were conducted on average for 40 min at a location convenient to the participant. Proper care was taken to maintain participant confidentiality at every interview stage (pre, during, and post-interview). Written consent was taken from all the participants before conducting the interview. An open exit option was available to the participants if they desired to quit the interview prematurely. The interview process was entirely voluntary, and no incentive was offered to participate in the interview. The interview data were then transcribed and translated to English (for interviews conducted in Gujarati). The translation was completed by a native speaker and was cross validated by two other native speakers. The data was thematically organized and analyzed with the help of NVivo 12 (QSR International) software [ 46 ].

Overall, 44 interviews were conducted and analyzed. The demographic and geographic details of the respondents are presented in Table 1 , who resided in different cities of Gujarat. Seven themes emerged from the interviews (See Figure 1 ). The obtained themes from primary data were arranged from broader to narrow scope for better organization and ease of interpretation [ 47 ]. The themes and subthemes derived from the interviews are discussed below. The themes were later compared with nine select countries ( Table 2 ). A detailed explanation of the comparison with nine countries is presented in Section 4 .

Seven themes affecting vaccination drive in Gujarat.

Demographics of participants (n = 44).

Country-wise comparison.

3.1. Low Uptake of Vaccines

Most participants expressed their views on vaccines and described the factors influencing them.

“I already had corona once. Now, we are safe at least for three to four months. We have antibodies in our body, so we do not need to take the vaccination”. (participant 7)

“I have heard all this kind of news of vaccine inefficacy. I do have hesitancy and fear. You will not believe it; I have not even taken a test to check whether I have corona or not till today! So, forget about the vaccine”. (participant 27)

3.2. Themes

3.2.1. religious influence.

Several participants informed that religion has a positive, significant, and long-term influence on their decision to take the COVID-19 vaccine. They refer to religious norms in culture, politics, or economic concerns. The participants accepted that religion influences the lower uptake of vaccines.

“Religion will play a role. See, the thing is that Indians are quite religious. We always bring religious sentiments when eating food or wearing dresses like Western culture dresses. Also, I feel that many people would not prefer to have it (the vaccine) based on religious sentiments”. (participant 14)

Influence of Religious Leaders

Twenty-six participants stated that religious leaders would influence the vaccination process. According to them, religious leaders have the power to influence people in their daily life, irrespective of their lifestyle or educational background. They accentuated that many religious leaders came forward to guide people during the initial lockdown phase in India.

“If religious leaders are educated about the vaccination process, they will educate the local people or their community and explain to them the importance of vaccine”. (participant 18)

Ingredients of Vaccine and Religious Sentiments

One of the followers of Islam raised the aspect of halal (permissible) in vaccination but clarified that it would not alter their decision related to vaccination. The content of the vaccine, whether halal or haram (impermissible), is irrelevant to them, and they would prefer to take the vaccine.

“When it comes to vaccine ingredients, it will not matter to me what is inside the dose. For example, we are given medicine like cough syrup when we have an illness. It contains alcohol (which is haram), but we overlook this aspect. We take medicines regularly, so we cannot claim that we have not taken alcohol. I will take the vaccine as vaccine and avoid thinking about this aspect”. (participant 42)

The other follower of Islam had an opposite stand. They would refuse to take the vaccine if it did not follow Islamic laws.

“The main reason I am apprehensive about the vaccine is that I do not know exactly what is in the vaccine. I will accept it only if the ingredients are halal (and not haram)”. (participant 6)

3.2.2. Emphasis on Family

Almost all the participants were hesitant to vaccinate their young children. The reasons are (a) vaccines are not tested for children yet, (b) usually, children are at home, (c) they would like to consult the doctor first, and (d) the vaccine might have an adverse reaction on them.

“When it comes to children, one has to be very careful as they have a long life ahead. It will be a big problem if some major side effect happens. The first thing is to consult a doctor, make sure that they are mentally and physically capable of taking the vaccines, only then the vaccine should be given to them”. (participant 25)

Several participants said that they prefer the old-aged members in their family to be vaccinated. Low immunity in old-aged people makes them susceptible to the virus, and the vaccine is vital to fight against COVID-19—however, a few recommended caution due to potential side effects.

“Yes, elders should go for vaccination because their immune system is not strong. Also, many of them have other diseases and co-morbidities. The doctor’s advice is vital before taking the vaccine in such cases”. (participant 14)

“I feel like old people should go for the vaccination, but if they have some other major disease like high blood pressure, diabetes or cancer, then they need to think twice, and for the same, they should take the advice from their family doctor first”. (participant 17)

Young People

Almost everyone posits that youth should be vaccinated as early as possible. Reasons stated were (a) high level of exposure either due to personal or professional work and (b) fear related to spreading COVID-19 disease during the pandemic.

“Young people should go for vaccination because they are the main sources of spreading. Since they travel to different places for professional and personal reasons, they meet many people who might be the carriers of the virus”. (participant 19)

3.2.3. Political Leadership

Almost all the participants said that the role of political leaders is extremely influential. Respondents remarked that they were greatly influenced by the prime minister of India (Mr. Narendra Modi) and other political leaders who took the vaccine.

“Our honorable prime minister of India, as well as the chief minister of Delhi, have taken the vaccine, and hence people are influenced to follow suit. People felt assured that they took vaccinations as they were certain about their effects. Thus, personally taking the vaccine and suggesting others do the same will significantly influence creating a positive attitude towards the vaccine. Celebrities and politicians generally have a strong influence on people”. (participant 8)

3.2.4. The Role of Government

Most participants vocalized that the government has taken sufficient measures concerning COVID-19 vaccination. Furthermore, they believed that the government had utilized the available resources effectively to develop the entirety of the vaccination program. Appreciation was also expressed concerning the safe and hygienic delivery of the vaccination to the public.

“Yes, the government (across India) has undertaken sufficient initiatives to guide people; they have created awareness about vaccines using local languages like Gujarati, Hindi, Marathi and that too in layman’s terms. They have even put a caller tune of around 30 s to spread awareness about taking vaccines when the slots are available. Sometimes it was irritating, but they have used it positively to influence people by delivering necessary information”. (participant 12)

“From Rajkot municipality corporation, a team of three people including a doctor used to come to our home at a regular interval to check about our health condition. They used to bring the COVID test kit, and if found positive, they would provide free basic medicine”. (participant 40)

“As my daughter was found COVID positive, she returned for a few days from her in-law’s family. She told me, every Tuesday and Friday, she used to get a call from the local municipality to check about her health”. (participant 37)

Participants also suggested the following ideas to improve the vaccination uptake:

• (a) to control the spread of misinformation both online and offline
• (b) to provide vital information to the masses, especially to those located in rural areas and the weaker sections
• (c) to increase the supply of vaccines to private hospitals for easy access
• (d) to provide data of state-wise measures taken in the country
• (e) to ensure transparency concerning the vaccination process
• (f) to provide vaccines to private corporate employees as a priority
• (g) to collaborate with NGOs and other service provider organizations, and
• (h) to bring transparency by sharing vaccination data

3.2.5. Willingness to Pay

Nearly all participants said that they were willing to pay for the vaccine. The principal reason behind it was that they trust private health institutes more than government health institutes. The pretext for the same is (a) hygiene and safety, (b) affordable price of the vaccine, (c) reluctance towards government vaccination centers, (d) not to burden the government and (e) help a needy person instead.

“I paid for my parents’ vaccination. My reason was not safety or hygiene or anything like that. My reason was that I did not want to burden the government with additional 500 rupees”. (participant 28)

“If I am supposed to take the vaccine, I will pay for it because I can afford it. US $7 for two shots is fine. The genuine reason for not going to the government health center is that if I give up my vaccine shot, a needy person can get that shot, and they will not have to pay for it. As I can afford it, so I can get it from a private hospital”. (participant 43)

3.2.6. The Role of Misinformation

The participants also stated that they come across fake news or misinformation about vaccines’ safety and side effects, especially on social media platforms like Facebook and WhatsApp.

“There are stories related to vaccine floating around saying that if we take the vaccine, then our genetic makeup changes. We are surrounded by a lot of misinformation about the vaccine because we do not have 100% information related to the vaccine”. (participant 30)

3.2.7. The Role of Fear

The role of fear in low vaccine uptake was investigated among the respondents. Fear among the respondents was related to (1) side effects of vaccines and (2) the vaccine trial process.

“My grandmother and my mother both have blood pressure and diabetics. I insisted they go for vaccination, but they were concerned about what would happen after taking the vaccine. That is why they were hesitant”. (participant 15)

“I am afraid because as we are young. I do not think corona will easily enter our body if we take care. Because of the lockdown, we have already improved our health. So, I do not feel the need for the vaccine because it may instead cause damage”. (participant 4)

Many participants highlighted that they would like to cure themselves through ayurvedic medicines instead of vaccine jabs for three reasons: first, it is mainly prepared with homemade ingredients; second, they are comparatively easily accessible; and third, they have fewer side effects.

“When I have a health problem, I choose Ayurveda medicine since my brother’s wife, brother-in-law, and father-in-law are all ayurvedic physicians. Only ayurvedic medicines are used to treat illnesses in our family, and I am fearful of other drugs”. (participant 7)

4. How Do Our Findings Compare with the Rest of the World?

Vaccination hesitancy has been a matter of concern across the world. This section compares perceptions to COVID-19 vaccination of this research with studies from select countries: the USA, Germany, Canada, the UK, Australia, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Japan, and Thailand. These countries were selected because they: (a) collectively represent most continents; (b) have each administered, by 27 November 2021, at least one jab of the COVID-19 vaccine to 40% of the eligible population [ 48 ]; and (c) collectively represent most major religions (Christianity practiced in USA, Germany, Canada, UK, Australia, and Brazil, Islam in Saudi Arabia, Shintōism in Japan, Hinduism in India, and Buddhism in Thailand) [ 111 ], This diversity helped us examine the cross-cultural effect and its influence at the global level [ 112 , 113 , 114 ]. A comparison is represented in Table 2 .

Religion had a significant effect in Australia in relation to our first theme. Edwards, Biddle, Gray and Sollis [ 8 ] reported that very religious people tend to be more resistant to vaccine uptake. Consistently, Smith, Attwell and Evers [ 51 ] found that less religious people were more supportive towards uptake. In Japan, Lahav, Shahrabani, Rosenboim and Tsutsui [ 56 ] also revealed that more religious people were less likely to take vaccines than less religious ones. In the other developed countries like the USA and the UK, change in religious belief was reported to significantly correlate with the impact of the coronavirus crisis [ 49 ].

In the HPV vaccine context, Wong, Wong, Megat Hashim, Han, Lin, Hu, Zhao and Zimet [ 52 ] concluded that hesitancy in Muslim-dominated Asian countries exists due to the content of vaccines being haram. This reason could be extended to the COVID-19 vaccine as well. People have stated the same reason in other Muslim countries to refuse the vaccine [ 53 , 54 ]. Our study partially supports this argument.

To overcome these reasons, governments and community groups have employed various tactics. Religious and philosophical exemptions to vaccine laws were recently repealed in Maine, the north-easternmost state in the USA, owing to which 71.6% of Maine is now fully vaccinated compared with 58.9% of the USA population as of 18 November 2021 [ 50 ]. The British Islamic Medical Association and other Islamic scholars approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine [ 62 ]. While in Thailand, the Sheikul Islam Office has allowed the commencement of mosque prayers in localities where at least 70% of persons aged 18 and above were vaccinated [ 55 ].

Analysis of studies from nine countries revealed that family, friends, and other networks influenced vaccinating. For instance, in a survey conducted in the USA by Khubchandani, Sharma, Price, Wiblishauser, Sharma and Webb [ 57 ], the family was an influencing factor. Lazarus, Wyka, Rauh, Rabin, Ratzan, Gostin, Larson and El-Mohandes [ 59 ] observed that women were more likely than males to follow an employer’s vaccine suggestion in Brazil and the USA. In Canada [ 58 ], 70% of university students preferred to take the vaccine only if a doctor or pharmacist recommended it. At the same time, a few instead waited to see the effect of the vaccine on others.

In Japan, vaccines were considered a preventable tool to fight the deadly virus for themselves and their family members [ 19 ]. Research conducted among the residents and expatriates in Thailand established that 58% of residents and 82.9% of expatriates would depend on their family member’s advice on the uptake of vaccines [ 88 ]. This emphasis on family and doctors resembles the current study with a sample of the Gujarati population.

The third theme that emerged from our study was related to political leaders. While comparing this theme, several similarities were found with other countries. To increase the uptake of vaccines, political leaders across the globe have undertaken several initiatives. For example, thanks to the prime minister’s COVID-19 Vaccine and Treatment Strategy, Australia secured access to four COVID-19 vaccines and over 134 million shots [ 63 ]. In Saudi Arabia, the crown prince took the coronavirus vaccine. These government and political leader initiatives were highly appreciated [ 68 ]. In contrast, the Brazilian president was criticized for his inability to handle the pandemic [ 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 ].

A lack of trust in government and pharmaceutical companies is found in several countries. For example, in Germany, it was found that 58% of people were hesitant towards taking vaccines due to these reasons [ 71 ]. Enhancing the public’s trust in the COVID-19 vaccine has been the motto of all governments across the globe. The fourth theme highlighted the government’s active role in promoting the uptake of vaccines. Few efforts were highly appreciated. For instance, the Australian government developed a systematic four-stage process [ 73 ] and allocated $257 million to vaccinate 80% of adults by December 2021 [ 74 ]. Additionally, the government proactively curbed various companies’ false COVID-19 cure claims by issuing an advisory [ 75 , 76 ].

Furthermore, in the UK, to increase vaccine uptake among the country’s most vulnerable, 16 renowned health charities teamed up with the government and National Health Service to increase the uptake of vaccines [ 115 ]. The government started four new programmes in Canada to promote vaccine uptake through the Immunization Partnership fund [ 72 ]. In Japan, the government imported 28 million doses by April 2021 [ 69 ], significantly improving vaccination rates [ 82 ].

Under its National Vaccine Committee, Thailand allocated three billion baht to procure sufficient vaccine supplies [ 80 ]. In addition, the Thai government developed an “Anti-fake news centre” to arrest all those who spread false information about the COVID-19 and impose fines [ 81 ]. In Saudi Arabia, devotees could only visit two holy mosques for prayers if they had received both vaccine shots [ 79 ]. Such initiatives resulted in positive government perceptions [ 78 ]. In contrast, the Brazilian government was criticized for their suboptimal performance [ 48 , 77 ].

When political motives influenced vaccine hesitancy, governments responded strongly. In the USA, 29% of Republican supporters have shown hesitancy towards the uptake of vaccines [ 57 ]. Some governors have announced mandatory vaccination for state employees [ 70 ]. In Canada, 32.4% of respondents argued that vaccines were not evaluated thoroughly and had a political objective [ 60 ]. To counter, it was announced that those who refused to divulge their vaccination status or be fully vaccinated would be placed on administrative leave without pay commencing 15 November 2021 [ 15 ]. In the UK, England’s chief medical officer urged every woman planning for pregnancy to get her jab in advance as a precautionary measure [ 61 ].

These findings resonate with the current study in India.

Willingness to pay is a monetary indicator of a customer’s willingness to pay for a product or service. There are mainly two factors that are connected to the willingness to pay. The first is the type of vaccine, and the second is related to the severity of illness one will face in the future [ 116 ]. In Australia, a study revealed that willingness to pay is $34.44 for reducing the waiting time for the uptake of vaccines [ 87 ]. According to a study conducted in the USA and Canada, willingness to pay was $23 and $11.5, respectively [ 83 ]. In a more recent study, it was found that in the USA, willingness to pay was $228–$291 for a vaccine for themselves and US$243–US$321 for their children [ 84 ].

On the contrary, payments did not affect COVID vaccination intentions in Germany [ 86 ]. In Brazil, the willingness to pay for vaccine uptake was US$ 22.18 [ 85 ], although 75% of people were urged to take the vaccines if they were freely available to them [ 88 ]. Our research also found that Gujaratis were willing to pay for their vaccinations, although the value was not ascertained.

There is a thin line between information and misinformation, and especially during the pandemic, misinformation has spread worldwide [ 117 ]. Failure to prevent the dissemination of misinformation about COVID-19 and vaccines has caused panic, terror, and disorder in society [ 118 ]. In Australia, Rozbroj, Lyons and Lucke [ 94 ] concluded that people were highly concerned about the anti-vaccination movement, spreading much misinformation. Between October 2020 and March 2021, TikTok banned 873 videos that mentioned the coronavirus or other medical conditions to stem misinformation [ 95 ].

Additionally, Pickles, Cvejic, Nickel, Copp, Bonner, Leask, Ayre, Batcup, Cornell, Dakin, Dodd, Isautier and McCaffery [ 96 ] revealed that misinformation was linked with digital health literacy. Evanega, Lynas, Adams, Smolenyak and Insights [ 89 ] found that only 16.4% of people did “fact-checking” before passing information to others in the USA. In the UK and USA, through a randomized controlled trial, it was contended that there was a decline in the misinformation by 6.2% in the UK and 6.4% in the USA among those who were open to taking the vaccines [ 90 ]. Desveaux, Savage, Tadrous, Kithulegoda, Thai, Stall and Ivers [ 91 ] reported that Canadians rely more on public health websites and health care workers’ advice to uptake vaccines.

Through emergency surveillance in Japan, the government targeted companies promoting products that were not permitted and spreading misinformation [ 76 ]. A study conducted by Nomura, Eguchi, Yoneoka, Kawashima, Tanoue, Murakami, Sakamoto, Maruyama-Sakurai, Gilmour, Shi, Kunishima, Kaneko, Adachi, Shimada, Yamamoto and Miyata [ 100 ] found that people trust physicians and nurses for checking information related to vaccine uptake. A very different approach was adopted in the UK to combat misinformation. The government collaborated with the University of Cambridge to create “Go Viral!”. It was a game developed to teach and enlighten people about how misinformation was being spread on social media to safeguard themselves [ 92 , 93 ].

In Brazil, Coletiva.net [ 97 ] found that more than 70% reported the primary source of misinformation to be the WhatsApp application. Similar results were observed in Saudi Arabia, where most misinformation is spread through WhatsApp. Of that, 46% was related to the pandemic [ 98 ]. Because of the widespread misinformation in Thailand, Mongkhon, Ruengorn, Awiphan, Thavorn, Hutton, Wongpakaran, Wongpakaran and Nochaiwong [ 99 ] revealed that those exposed for three or more hours in a day to misinformation were facing problems related to depression, anxiety, and insomnia.

These perceptions were also observed in our research. Participants relied on medical staff or doctors for vaccine uptake and agreed that various social media tools were reasons for the widespread misinformation.

‘Fear’ is the most significant barrier in the vaccine uptake, which was the final theme in our research. This barrier needs immediate action because it could have a devastating impact if not controlled. While comparing our research results with other countries, some similarities and differences were observed. In Australia, Rhodes, Hoq, Measey and Danchin [ 105 ] found 82.8% of people feared vaccine efficacy and safety. Furthermore, a study indicated that one-third of people prefer not to go for the vaccine because they fear the side effects of vaccines [ 106 ]. The stress level of people had increased from 10.6% in 2020 to 12.5% in 2021 because of the fear related to vaccination [ 107 ]. In Germany, the survey conducted by Bauernfeind, Hitzenbichler, Huppertz, Zeman, Koller, Schmidt, Plentz, Bauswein, Mohr and Salzberger [ 103 ] has revealed that 79% of people have fear related to the uptake of the vaccines.

People were hesitant and reluctant (19.9%) to take vaccinations in Japan because of fear of vaccination [ 19 ]. Another Japanese study [ 100 ] reported similar findings. Furthermore, a recent study by Okubo, Yoshioka, Ohfuji, Matsuo and Tabuchi [ 110 ] found that among the hesitant group, more than 70% of people are afraid of the efficacy of the vaccine. In addition to that, Yoda and Katsuyama [ 19 ] found that fear resulted from a lack of trust and potential side effects of vaccines. Similar findings were found in the UK [ 104 ].

A study in the USA highlighted that 46.2% of people were afraid of vaccine uptake [ 101 ]. Kirzinger, Kearney, Hamel and Brodie [ 102 ] reported that 48% of Americans had not taken vaccines due to fear, even when health care workers were in direct contact with patients. In Canada, people have shown similar concern for vaccine safety, and because of fear, they were avoiding vaccines [ 58 , 60 ]

Fear from adverse side effects of the vaccine was found among 67.1% in Brazil [ 108 ], 35.2% in Thailand [ 52 ], and 61.4% in Saudi Araba [ 54 ]. These perceptions are similar to the results of this research undertaken for the Gujarati population.

5. Discussion, a Review of Government Efforts, and Recommendations

The research goal was to find the real hurdles for the uptake of vaccines in the Gujarati community. The results were categorized into seven themes. Social marketing promotes voluntary behaviour change through user-centric interventions [ 119 , 120 ]. Effective social marketing strategies can help promote ‘one-time behavioral change’ such as vaccine jabs [ 36 , 121 ]. In this section, we consider the social marketing perspective to review the efforts of the governments of Gujarat and India, connect them with the study findings, and recommend strategies to improve vaccine uptake.

The government of India aims to increase the uptake of vaccines in India (short-term) and thereby reduce COVID-19 influence in the long run [ 122 ]. Most participants agreed that low vaccination rates threatened the achievement of the long-term goal.

For any campaign to be successful, proper segmentation must be implemented. The Indian government executed this step successfully by implementing a vaccination drive in different phases. The phase-wise execution of vaccination helped them gauge the trust of the younger generation, i.e., 18–35 (the highest ratio of the total population in India), who were the last to get vaccinated.

During the initial phases of the drive, the vaccination was available quickly, which was not the case in the later stage when people above 18 years of age were to be vaccinated. Few participants in the interview highlighted the gap in supply and demand of vaccination. Respondents agreed that the cost of the vaccination was affordable to them, and many were even ready to pay and purchase the vaccine jabs. They preferred to get vaccinated at private hospitals than government centers. The result about the preference for the place is vital, as this is where the expected behaviour would occur and lead to the achievement of short-term and long-term goals.

The government used various promotional strategies to promote vaccine uptake. A few interviewees recalled strategies such as caller-tunes to remind them to wear masks, maintain social distance, and vaccinate. They reported seeing and hearing these messages in Gujarati newspapers, radio, television, flyers, and posters distributed by the local municipality government department.

Practical Implications

The study offers practical implications to reduce vaccine hesitancy.

This study indicates the need for a social marketing intervention to reduce the hesitancy and increase the uptake of the COVID-19 vaccines. We provide a few recommendations.

One of the most significant barriers is accessibility, as government centers are frequently non-operational. The government department can partner with private clinics and renovate primary health clinics to deliver vaccinations.

Offering incentives can increase the uptake of vaccines. For example, in the USA, the Alabama Department of Public Health sponsored a TikTok Contest for people between 13 to 29 years to post a video of getting vaccinated. Four winners were awarded a $250 Visa gift card. In New York, free lottery scratch-off tickets were given to people 18 years and above with a grand prize of $5 million; such incentives spread positivity about the vaccines [ 123 ]

In rural and urban areas, different strategies should be implemented. While traditional and digital media work well in urban India, traditional community media are better suited to reach the target audience in rural India through local street drama (nukkad nataks) and folk dance, to increase awareness about the uptake of COVID-19 vaccines [ 124 ].

Government can learn from previous efforts and bust myths to remove negativity. The Vaccines Bring Us Closer campaign during the World Immunisation Week 2021 is an excellent example of showing immunization as a societal norm, asking people from all walks of life to report how vaccines have improved their lives [ 121 ]. The “My why” social campaign motivated people to post their stories related to vaccination in Canada on social media. This campaign helped in increasing the confidence of others towards the vaccination. The campaign aimed to increase the overall uptake among Canadians [ 125 ]. The Indian government has introduced the “Jan Andolan” campaign. One takes a pledge on a website that he or she will follow six significant behaviors to help safeguard from the deadly virus and receive a certificate [ 126 ].

A variety of change agents should be recruited that provide different skills and reach diverse audiences. These could be doctors and frontline workers who influence people by making them aware of the facts of COVID-19 and the efficacy of vaccination and addressing any queries and confusion at a personal level. The next could be parents, who motivate the young generation to vaccinate. Film and sports celebrities would be important to popularize the importance of vaccination through mass media. Additionally, vaccination teams should reach out through phone calls, mobile SMS, and targeted ads on social media sites such as Facebook and employ direct marketing strategies.

Public places such as restaurants, malls, bus and train stations, and cinema halls should be made available to circulate communication materials in vernacular language, in addition to digital and traditional print and audio-visual media. Such forms of communication can remind the unvaccinated or those eligible for a second dose.

Using the internet and social media to increase vaccine uptake is particularly appropriate in Gujarat. According to a recent survey, Surat, Vadodara, and Rajkot have over 57 per cent users, higher than other parts of India [ 127 ]. According to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), Gujarat is currently one of the eight Indian states with a teledensity of more than 100%. Further, mobile phone users have risen in recent months [ 128 ].

Children could be reached in schools and taught the importance of vaccines. Specific groups like the Rotary Club, Jain social groups, and mosques can organize camps in their premises to increase the vaccine’s uptake. Corporate leaders can arrange seminars by inviting doctors to address employees who have not yet taken the vaccine.

Even past Indian experiences can help to increase vaccination uptake. For instance, to increase the uptake of polio vaccines, in multiple rounds, medical interns and health care workers visited the residences of Muslims who were resistant to the uptake of polio vaccines and convinced them. Such strategies can be adopted during the COVID-19 pandemic [ 129 ].

6. Limitations and Future Research

This study has limitations that future research can address. The sample was skewed towards highly educated teaching staff, which does not truly represent India’s educational and occupational profile. This review did not consider the influence of factors like storage of vaccines, transport-related issues, the requirement of booster shots, and the effect of branding of vaccines on its uptake. Another limiting factor is geography; this study was restricted to the state of Gujarat, India. To overcome these gaps, future research should investigate the study themes among respondents of lower-income and non-teaching occupations in and beyond Gujarat.

Additionally, future research should conduct surveys with a larger sample in Gujarat and other Indian states to get a more representative understanding and assess with quantitative and mathematical models. Lastly, the review of studies from the nine countries was driven by the seven themes of the current study. A more grounded approach to exhaustively uncover all perceptions would do justice to consumer insights.

7. Conclusions

This research study sheds light on factors that influence vaccine adoption, especially issues relating to lower uptake of vaccines, one of the long-standing problems in the vaccination process. Furthermore, the emerging themes can help develop strategies for social marketers, researchers, and policymakers to promote vaccine acceptance.

Semi-structured interview guide for vaccine hesitancy.

Author Contributions

Conceptualization, V.T., R.R.S. and R.M.R.; method, R.R.S.; software, V.T. and A.D.; validation, V.T., R.R.S. and R.M.R.; formal analysis, V.T. and R.R.S.; investigation, V.T. and R.R.S.; resources, V.T.; data curation, V.T. and R.R.S.; writing—original draft preparation, V.T., A.D. and S.D.; writing—review and editing, V.T., R.M.R., A.D. and S.D.; Visualization, S.D.; supervision, R.R.S.; project administration, R.M.R. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

This research received no external funding.

Institutional Review Board Statement

For the review process, the name has been withheld to maintain the anonymity of authority.

Informed Consent Statement

Informed written consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study.

Data Availability Statement

Conflicts of interest.

The authors hereby declare no conflict of interest.

Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

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Covid-19 vaccination: Gujarat covers 90% population with first dose

As per the official figures, gujarat has around 4.93 crore people above the age of 18, who are eligible to take the vaccine against coronavirus..

• Updated Oct 21, 2021, 4:38 PM IST

Gujarat has vaccinated 90 per cent of its eligible population with the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine, while 47 per cent beneficiaries are completely vaccinated against the deadly disease, state Health Minister Rushikesh Patel said on Thursday.

Speaking to reporters in Gandhinagar, Patel congratulated the countrymen, as India achieved the milestone of administered 100 crore vaccine doses "under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi".

As per the official figures, Gujarat has around 4.93 crore people above the age of 18, who are eligible to take the vaccine against coronavirus.

Till 10 am, nearly 4.41 crore people, which comes to around 90 per cent, have received their first dose, while 2.35 crore have taken their second dose as well, the minister said.

"At least 90 per cent of the eligible population has been given the first dose till today, while nearly 47 per cent, that is 2.32 crore, have been given the second dose. I urge people to come forward, so that we are able to vaccinate 100 per cent of the population with the first dose," Patel said.

The Surat, Junagadh and Gandhinagar municipal corporations along with Ahmedabad, Junagadh, Mahisagar and Tapi districts have achieved 100 per cent coverage of the first dose, he said.

Apart from this, around 15,500 villages have also achieved this milestone in Gujarat so far, he added.

"We are planning to achieve 100 per cent first dose coverage in the next 15 days in Gujarat. For that, we will ask government hospitals and health centres to check if incoming patients are vaccinated or not. We have also asked heads of government offices to check and ensure that all their entire staff is vaccinated," Patel said.

To ensure that people also take their second dose in time, the minister said his department will launch a drive using the available data to trace and track people who have already taken the first dose.

People need not worry about the availability of vaccines, as the Gujarat government has nearly 40 lakh doses of the vaccine, Patel added.

• #Gujarat vaccination rates
• #covid 19 vaccination programme

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How to Write About Coronavirus in a College Essay

Students can share how they navigated life during the coronavirus pandemic in a full-length essay or an optional supplement.

Writing About COVID-19 in College Essays

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Experts say students should be honest and not limit themselves to merely their experiences with the pandemic.

The global impact of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, means colleges and prospective students alike are in for an admissions cycle like no other. Both face unprecedented challenges and questions as they grapple with their respective futures amid the ongoing fallout of the pandemic.

Colleges must examine applicants without the aid of standardized test scores for many – a factor that prompted many schools to go test-optional for now . Even grades, a significant component of a college application, may be hard to interpret with some high schools adopting pass-fail classes last spring due to the pandemic. Major college admissions factors are suddenly skewed.

"I can't help but think other (admissions) factors are going to matter more," says Ethan Sawyer, founder of the College Essay Guy, a website that offers free and paid essay-writing resources.

College essays and letters of recommendation , Sawyer says, are likely to carry more weight than ever in this admissions cycle. And many essays will likely focus on how the pandemic shaped students' lives throughout an often tumultuous 2020.

But before writing a college essay focused on the coronavirus, students should explore whether it's the best topic for them.

Writing About COVID-19 for a College Application

Much of daily life has been colored by the coronavirus. Virtual learning is the norm at many colleges and high schools, many extracurriculars have vanished and social lives have stalled for students complying with measures to stop the spread of COVID-19.

"For some young people, the pandemic took away what they envisioned as their senior year," says Robert Alexander, dean of admissions, financial aid and enrollment management at the University of Rochester in New York. "Maybe that's a spot on a varsity athletic team or the lead role in the fall play. And it's OK for them to mourn what should have been and what they feel like they lost, but more important is how are they making the most of the opportunities they do have?"

That question, Alexander says, is what colleges want answered if students choose to address COVID-19 in their college essay.

But the question of whether a student should write about the coronavirus is tricky. The answer depends largely on the student.

"In general, I don't think students should write about COVID-19 in their main personal statement for their application," Robin Miller, master college admissions counselor at IvyWise, a college counseling company, wrote in an email.

"Certainly, there may be exceptions to this based on a student's individual experience, but since the personal essay is the main place in the application where the student can really allow their voice to be heard and share insight into who they are as an individual, there are likely many other topics they can choose to write about that are more distinctive and unique than COVID-19," Miller says.

Opinions among admissions experts vary on whether to write about the likely popular topic of the pandemic.

"If your essay communicates something positive, unique, and compelling about you in an interesting and eloquent way, go for it," Carolyn Pippen, principal college admissions counselor at IvyWise, wrote in an email. She adds that students shouldn't be dissuaded from writing about a topic merely because it's common, noting that "topics are bound to repeat, no matter how hard we try to avoid it."

Above all, she urges honesty.

"If your experience within the context of the pandemic has been truly unique, then write about that experience, and the standing out will take care of itself," Pippen says. "If your experience has been generally the same as most other students in your context, then trying to find a unique angle can easily cross the line into exploiting a tragedy, or at least appearing as though you have."

But focusing entirely on the pandemic can limit a student to a single story and narrow who they are in an application, Sawyer says. "There are so many wonderful possibilities for what you can say about yourself outside of your experience within the pandemic."

He notes that passions, strengths, career interests and personal identity are among the multitude of essay topic options available to applicants and encourages them to probe their values to help determine the topic that matters most to them – and write about it.

That doesn't mean the pandemic experience has to be ignored if applicants feel the need to write about it.

Writing About Coronavirus in Main and Supplemental Essays

Students can choose to write a full-length college essay on the coronavirus or summarize their experience in a shorter form.

To help students explain how the pandemic affected them, The Common App has added an optional section to address this topic. Applicants have 250 words to describe their pandemic experience and the personal and academic impact of COVID-19.

"That's not a trick question, and there's no right or wrong answer," Alexander says. Colleges want to know, he adds, how students navigated the pandemic, how they prioritized their time, what responsibilities they took on and what they learned along the way.

If students can distill all of the above information into 250 words, there's likely no need to write about it in a full-length college essay, experts say. And applicants whose lives were not heavily altered by the pandemic may even choose to skip the optional COVID-19 question.

"This space is best used to discuss hardship and/or significant challenges that the student and/or the student's family experienced as a result of COVID-19 and how they have responded to those difficulties," Miller notes. Using the section to acknowledge a lack of impact, she adds, "could be perceived as trite and lacking insight, despite the good intentions of the applicant."

To guard against this lack of awareness, Sawyer encourages students to tap someone they trust to review their writing , whether it's the 250-word Common App response or the full-length essay.

Experts tend to agree that the short-form approach to this as an essay topic works better, but there are exceptions. And if a student does have a coronavirus story that he or she feels must be told, Alexander encourages the writer to be authentic in the essay.

"My advice for an essay about COVID-19 is the same as my advice about an essay for any topic – and that is, don't write what you think we want to read or hear," Alexander says. "Write what really changed you and that story that now is yours and yours alone to tell."

Sawyer urges students to ask themselves, "What's the sentence that only I can write?" He also encourages students to remember that the pandemic is only a chapter of their lives and not the whole book.

Miller, who cautions against writing a full-length essay on the coronavirus, says that if students choose to do so they should have a conversation with their high school counselor about whether that's the right move. And if students choose to proceed with COVID-19 as a topic, she says they need to be clear, detailed and insightful about what they learned and how they adapted along the way.

"Approaching the essay in this manner will provide important balance while demonstrating personal growth and vulnerability," Miller says.

Pippen encourages students to remember that they are in an unprecedented time for college admissions.

"It is important to keep in mind with all of these (admission) factors that no colleges have ever had to consider them this way in the selection process, if at all," Pippen says. "They have had very little time to calibrate their evaluations of different application components within their offices, let alone across institutions. This means that colleges will all be handling the admissions process a little bit differently, and their approaches may even evolve over the course of the admissions cycle."

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Covid 19 Essay in English

Essay on Covid -19: In a very short amount of time, coronavirus has spread globally. It has had an enormous impact on people's lives, economy, and societies all around the world, affecting every country. Governments have had to take severe measures to try and contain the pandemic. The virus has altered our way of life in many ways, including its effects on our health and our economy. Here are a few sample essays on ‘CoronaVirus’.

100 Words Essay on Covid 19

200 words essay on covid 19, 500 words essay on covid 19.

COVID-19 or Corona Virus is a novel coronavirus that was first identified in 2019. It is similar to other coronaviruses, such as SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV, but it is more contagious and has caused more severe respiratory illness in people who have been infected. The novel coronavirus became a global pandemic in a very short period of time. It has affected lives, economies and societies across the world, leaving no country untouched. The virus has caused governments to take drastic measures to try and contain it. From health implications to economic and social ramifications, COVID-19 impacted every part of our lives. It has been more than 2 years since the pandemic hit and the world is still recovering from its effects.

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the world has been impacted in a number of ways. For one, the global economy has taken a hit as businesses have been forced to close their doors. This has led to widespread job losses and an increase in poverty levels around the world. Additionally, countries have had to impose strict travel restrictions in an attempt to contain the virus, which has resulted in a decrease in tourism and international trade. Furthermore, the pandemic has put immense pressure on healthcare systems globally, as hospitals have been overwhelmed with patients suffering from the virus. Lastly, the outbreak has led to a general feeling of anxiety and uncertainty, as people are fearful of contracting the disease.

My Experience of COVID-19

I still remember how abruptly colleges and schools shut down in March 2020. I was a college student at that time and I was under the impression that everything would go back to normal in a few weeks. I could not have been more wrong. The situation only got worse every week and the government had to impose a lockdown. There were so many restrictions in place. For example, we had to wear face masks whenever we left the house, and we could only go out for essential errands. Restaurants and shops were only allowed to operate at take-out capacity, and many businesses were shut down.

In the current scenario, coronavirus is dominating all aspects of our lives. The coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc upon people’s lives, altering the way we live and work in a very short amount of time. It has revolutionised how we think about health care, education, and even social interaction. This virus has had long-term implications on our society, including its impact on mental health, economic stability, and global politics. But we as individuals can help to mitigate these effects by taking personal responsibility to protect themselves and those around them from infection.

Effects of CoronaVirus on Education

The outbreak of coronavirus has had a significant impact on education systems around the world. In China, where the virus originated, all schools and universities were closed for several weeks in an effort to contain the spread of the disease. Many other countries have followed suit, either closing schools altogether or suspending classes for a period of time.

This has resulted in a major disruption to the education of millions of students. Some have been able to continue their studies online, but many have not had access to the internet or have not been able to afford the costs associated with it. This has led to a widening of the digital divide between those who can afford to continue their education online and those who cannot.

The closure of schools has also had a negative impact on the mental health of many students. With no face-to-face contact with friends and teachers, some students have felt isolated and anxious. This has been compounded by the worry and uncertainty surrounding the virus itself.

The situation with coronavirus has improved and schools have been reopened but students are still catching up with the gap of 2 years that the pandemic created. In the meantime, governments and educational institutions are working together to find ways to support students and ensure that they are able to continue their education despite these difficult circumstances.

Effects of CoronaVirus on Economy

The outbreak of the coronavirus has had a significant impact on the global economy. The virus, which originated in China, has spread to over two hundred countries, resulting in widespread panic and a decrease in global trade. As a result of the outbreak, many businesses have been forced to close their doors, leading to a rise in unemployment. In addition, the stock market has taken a severe hit.

Effects of CoronaVirus on Health

The effects that coronavirus has on one's health are still being studied and researched as the virus continues to spread throughout the world. However, some of the potential effects on health that have been observed thus far include respiratory problems, fever, and coughing. In severe cases, pneumonia, kidney failure, and death can occur. It is important for people who think they may have been exposed to the virus to seek medical attention immediately so that they can be treated properly and avoid any serious complications. There is no specific cure or treatment for coronavirus at this time, but there are ways to help ease symptoms and prevent the virus from spreading.

Explore Career Options (By Industry)

• Construction
• Entertainment
• Manufacturing
• Information Technology

Data Administrator

Database professionals use software to store and organise data such as financial information, and customer shipping records. Individuals who opt for a career as data administrators ensure that data is available for users and secured from unauthorised sales. DB administrators may work in various types of industries. It may involve computer systems design, service firms, insurance companies, banks and hospitals.

Bio Medical Engineer

The field of biomedical engineering opens up a universe of expert chances. An Individual in the biomedical engineering career path work in the field of engineering as well as medicine, in order to find out solutions to common problems of the two fields. The biomedical engineering job opportunities are to collaborate with doctors and researchers to develop medical systems, equipment, or devices that can solve clinical problems. Here we will be discussing jobs after biomedical engineering, how to get a job in biomedical engineering, biomedical engineering scope, and salary. 

Ethical Hacker

A career as ethical hacker involves various challenges and provides lucrative opportunities in the digital era where every giant business and startup owns its cyberspace on the world wide web. Individuals in the ethical hacker career path try to find the vulnerabilities in the cyber system to get its authority. If he or she succeeds in it then he or she gets its illegal authority. Individuals in the ethical hacker career path then steal information or delete the file that could affect the business, functioning, or services of the organization.

GIS officer work on various GIS software to conduct a study and gather spatial and non-spatial information. GIS experts update the GIS data and maintain it. The databases include aerial or satellite imagery, latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates, and manually digitized images of maps. In a career as GIS expert, one is responsible for creating online and mobile maps.

Data Analyst

The invention of the database has given fresh breath to the people involved in the data analytics career path. Analysis refers to splitting up a whole into its individual components for individual analysis. Data analysis is a method through which raw data are processed and transformed into information that would be beneficial for user strategic thinking.

Data are collected and examined to respond to questions, evaluate hypotheses or contradict theories. It is a tool for analyzing, transforming, modeling, and arranging data with useful knowledge, to assist in decision-making and methods, encompassing various strategies, and is used in different fields of business, research, and social science.

Geothermal Engineer

Individuals who opt for a career as geothermal engineers are the professionals involved in the processing of geothermal energy. The responsibilities of geothermal engineers may vary depending on the workplace location. Those who work in fields design facilities to process and distribute geothermal energy. They oversee the functioning of machinery used in the field.

Database Architect

If you are intrigued by the programming world and are interested in developing communications networks then a career as database architect may be a good option for you. Data architect roles and responsibilities include building design models for data communication networks. Wide Area Networks (WANs), local area networks (LANs), and intranets are included in the database networks. It is expected that database architects will have in-depth knowledge of a company's business to develop a network to fulfil the requirements of the organisation. Stay tuned as we look at the larger picture and give you more information on what is db architecture, why you should pursue database architecture, what to expect from such a degree and what your job opportunities will be after graduation. Here, we will be discussing how to become a data architect. Students can visit NIT Trichy , IIT Kharagpur , JMI New Delhi . 

Remote Sensing Technician

Individuals who opt for a career as a remote sensing technician possess unique personalities. Remote sensing analysts seem to be rational human beings, they are strong, independent, persistent, sincere, realistic and resourceful. Some of them are analytical as well, which means they are intelligent, introspective and inquisitive. 

Remote sensing scientists use remote sensing technology to support scientists in fields such as community planning, flight planning or the management of natural resources. Analysing data collected from aircraft, satellites or ground-based platforms using statistical analysis software, image analysis software or Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is a significant part of their work. Do you want to learn how to become remote sensing technician? There's no need to be concerned; we've devised a simple remote sensing technician career path for you. Scroll through the pages and read.

Budget Analyst

Budget analysis, in a nutshell, entails thoroughly analyzing the details of a financial budget. The budget analysis aims to better understand and manage revenue. Budget analysts assist in the achievement of financial targets, the preservation of profitability, and the pursuit of long-term growth for a business. Budget analysts generally have a bachelor's degree in accounting, finance, economics, or a closely related field. Knowledge of Financial Management is of prime importance in this career.

Underwriter

An underwriter is a person who assesses and evaluates the risk of insurance in his or her field like mortgage, loan, health policy, investment, and so on and so forth. The underwriter career path does involve risks as analysing the risks means finding out if there is a way for the insurance underwriter jobs to recover the money from its clients. If the risk turns out to be too much for the company then in the future it is an underwriter who will be held accountable for it. Therefore, one must carry out his or her job with a lot of attention and diligence.

Finance Executive

Product manager.

A Product Manager is a professional responsible for product planning and marketing. He or she manages the product throughout the Product Life Cycle, gathering and prioritising the product. A product manager job description includes defining the product vision and working closely with team members of other departments to deliver winning products.  

Operations Manager

Individuals in the operations manager jobs are responsible for ensuring the efficiency of each department to acquire its optimal goal. They plan the use of resources and distribution of materials. The operations manager's job description includes managing budgets, negotiating contracts, and performing administrative tasks.

Stock Analyst

Individuals who opt for a career as a stock analyst examine the company's investments makes decisions and keep track of financial securities. The nature of such investments will differ from one business to the next. Individuals in the stock analyst career use data mining to forecast a company's profits and revenues, advise clients on whether to buy or sell, participate in seminars, and discussing financial matters with executives and evaluate annual reports.

A Researcher is a professional who is responsible for collecting data and information by reviewing the literature and conducting experiments and surveys. He or she uses various methodological processes to provide accurate data and information that is utilised by academicians and other industry professionals. Here, we will discuss what is a researcher, the researcher's salary, types of researchers.

Welding Engineer

Welding Engineer Job Description: A Welding Engineer work involves managing welding projects and supervising welding teams. He or she is responsible for reviewing welding procedures, processes and documentation. A career as Welding Engineer involves conducting failure analyses and causes on welding issues. 

Transportation Planner

A career as Transportation Planner requires technical application of science and technology in engineering, particularly the concepts, equipment and technologies involved in the production of products and services. In fields like land use, infrastructure review, ecological standards and street design, he or she considers issues of health, environment and performance. A Transportation Planner assigns resources for implementing and designing programmes. He or she is responsible for assessing needs, preparing plans and forecasts and compliance with regulations.

Environmental Engineer

Individuals who opt for a career as an environmental engineer are construction professionals who utilise the skills and knowledge of biology, soil science, chemistry and the concept of engineering to design and develop projects that serve as solutions to various environmental problems. 

Safety Manager

A Safety Manager is a professional responsible for employee’s safety at work. He or she plans, implements and oversees the company’s employee safety. A Safety Manager ensures compliance and adherence to Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) guidelines.

Conservation Architect

A Conservation Architect is a professional responsible for conserving and restoring buildings or monuments having a historic value. He or she applies techniques to document and stabilise the object’s state without any further damage. A Conservation Architect restores the monuments and heritage buildings to bring them back to their original state.

Structural Engineer

A Structural Engineer designs buildings, bridges, and other related structures. He or she analyzes the structures and makes sure the structures are strong enough to be used by the people. A career as a Structural Engineer requires working in the construction process. It comes under the civil engineering discipline. A Structure Engineer creates structural models with the help of computer-aided design software. 

Highway Engineer

Highway Engineer Job Description:  A Highway Engineer is a civil engineer who specialises in planning and building thousands of miles of roads that support connectivity and allow transportation across the country. He or she ensures that traffic management schemes are effectively planned concerning economic sustainability and successful implementation.

Field Surveyor

Are you searching for a Field Surveyor Job Description? A Field Surveyor is a professional responsible for conducting field surveys for various places or geographical conditions. He or she collects the required data and information as per the instructions given by senior officials. 

Orthotist and Prosthetist

Orthotists and Prosthetists are professionals who provide aid to patients with disabilities. They fix them to artificial limbs (prosthetics) and help them to regain stability. There are times when people lose their limbs in an accident. In some other occasions, they are born without a limb or orthopaedic impairment. Orthotists and prosthetists play a crucial role in their lives with fixing them to assistive devices and provide mobility.

Pathologist

A career in pathology in India is filled with several responsibilities as it is a medical branch and affects human lives. The demand for pathologists has been increasing over the past few years as people are getting more aware of different diseases. Not only that, but an increase in population and lifestyle changes have also contributed to the increase in a pathologist’s demand. The pathology careers provide an extremely huge number of opportunities and if you want to be a part of the medical field you can consider being a pathologist. If you want to know more about a career in pathology in India then continue reading this article.

Veterinary Doctor

Speech therapist, gynaecologist.

Gynaecology can be defined as the study of the female body. The job outlook for gynaecology is excellent since there is evergreen demand for one because of their responsibility of dealing with not only women’s health but also fertility and pregnancy issues. Although most women prefer to have a women obstetrician gynaecologist as their doctor, men also explore a career as a gynaecologist and there are ample amounts of male doctors in the field who are gynaecologists and aid women during delivery and childbirth. 

Audiologist

The audiologist career involves audiology professionals who are responsible to treat hearing loss and proactively preventing the relevant damage. Individuals who opt for a career as an audiologist use various testing strategies with the aim to determine if someone has a normal sensitivity to sounds or not. After the identification of hearing loss, a hearing doctor is required to determine which sections of the hearing are affected, to what extent they are affected, and where the wound causing the hearing loss is found. As soon as the hearing loss is identified, the patients are provided with recommendations for interventions and rehabilitation such as hearing aids, cochlear implants, and appropriate medical referrals. While audiology is a branch of science that studies and researches hearing, balance, and related disorders.

An oncologist is a specialised doctor responsible for providing medical care to patients diagnosed with cancer. He or she uses several therapies to control the cancer and its effect on the human body such as chemotherapy, immunotherapy, radiation therapy and biopsy. An oncologist designs a treatment plan based on a pathology report after diagnosing the type of cancer and where it is spreading inside the body.

Are you searching for an ‘Anatomist job description’? An Anatomist is a research professional who applies the laws of biological science to determine the ability of bodies of various living organisms including animals and humans to regenerate the damaged or destroyed organs. If you want to know what does an anatomist do, then read the entire article, where we will answer all your questions.

For an individual who opts for a career as an actor, the primary responsibility is to completely speak to the character he or she is playing and to persuade the crowd that the character is genuine by connecting with them and bringing them into the story. This applies to significant roles and littler parts, as all roles join to make an effective creation. Here in this article, we will discuss how to become an actor in India, actor exams, actor salary in India, and actor jobs. 

Individuals who opt for a career as acrobats create and direct original routines for themselves, in addition to developing interpretations of existing routines. The work of circus acrobats can be seen in a variety of performance settings, including circus, reality shows, sports events like the Olympics, movies and commercials. Individuals who opt for a career as acrobats must be prepared to face rejections and intermittent periods of work. The creativity of acrobats may extend to other aspects of the performance. For example, acrobats in the circus may work with gym trainers, celebrities or collaborate with other professionals to enhance such performance elements as costume and or maybe at the teaching end of the career.

Video Game Designer

Career as a video game designer is filled with excitement as well as responsibilities. A video game designer is someone who is involved in the process of creating a game from day one. He or she is responsible for fulfilling duties like designing the character of the game, the several levels involved, plot, art and similar other elements. Individuals who opt for a career as a video game designer may also write the codes for the game using different programming languages.

Depending on the video game designer job description and experience they may also have to lead a team and do the early testing of the game in order to suggest changes and find loopholes.

Radio Jockey

Radio Jockey is an exciting, promising career and a great challenge for music lovers. If you are really interested in a career as radio jockey, then it is very important for an RJ to have an automatic, fun, and friendly personality. If you want to get a job done in this field, a strong command of the language and a good voice are always good things. Apart from this, in order to be a good radio jockey, you will also listen to good radio jockeys so that you can understand their style and later make your own by practicing.

A career as radio jockey has a lot to offer to deserving candidates. If you want to know more about a career as radio jockey, and how to become a radio jockey then continue reading the article.

Choreographer

The word “choreography" actually comes from Greek words that mean “dance writing." Individuals who opt for a career as a choreographer create and direct original dances, in addition to developing interpretations of existing dances. A Choreographer dances and utilises his or her creativity in other aspects of dance performance. For example, he or she may work with the music director to select music or collaborate with other famous choreographers to enhance such performance elements as lighting, costume and set design.

Social Media Manager

A career as social media manager involves implementing the company’s or brand’s marketing plan across all social media channels. Social media managers help in building or improving a brand’s or a company’s website traffic, build brand awareness, create and implement marketing and brand strategy. Social media managers are key to important social communication as well.

Photographer

Photography is considered both a science and an art, an artistic means of expression in which the camera replaces the pen. In a career as a photographer, an individual is hired to capture the moments of public and private events, such as press conferences or weddings, or may also work inside a studio, where people go to get their picture clicked. Photography is divided into many streams each generating numerous career opportunities in photography. With the boom in advertising, media, and the fashion industry, photography has emerged as a lucrative and thrilling career option for many Indian youths.

An individual who is pursuing a career as a producer is responsible for managing the business aspects of production. They are involved in each aspect of production from its inception to deception. Famous movie producers review the script, recommend changes and visualise the story. 

They are responsible for overseeing the finance involved in the project and distributing the film for broadcasting on various platforms. A career as a producer is quite fulfilling as well as exhaustive in terms of playing different roles in order for a production to be successful. Famous movie producers are responsible for hiring creative and technical personnel on contract basis.

Copy Writer

In a career as a copywriter, one has to consult with the client and understand the brief well. A career as a copywriter has a lot to offer to deserving candidates. Several new mediums of advertising are opening therefore making it a lucrative career choice. Students can pursue various copywriter courses such as Journalism , Advertising , Marketing Management . Here, we have discussed how to become a freelance copywriter, copywriter career path, how to become a copywriter in India, and copywriting career outlook. 

In a career as a vlogger, one generally works for himself or herself. However, once an individual has gained viewership there are several brands and companies that approach them for paid collaboration. It is one of those fields where an individual can earn well while following his or her passion. 

Ever since internet costs got reduced the viewership for these types of content has increased on a large scale. Therefore, a career as a vlogger has a lot to offer. If you want to know more about the Vlogger eligibility, roles and responsibilities then continue reading the article. 

For publishing books, newspapers, magazines and digital material, editorial and commercial strategies are set by publishers. Individuals in publishing career paths make choices about the markets their businesses will reach and the type of content that their audience will be served. Individuals in book publisher careers collaborate with editorial staff, designers, authors, and freelance contributors who develop and manage the creation of content.

Careers in journalism are filled with excitement as well as responsibilities. One cannot afford to miss out on the details. As it is the small details that provide insights into a story. Depending on those insights a journalist goes about writing a news article. A journalism career can be stressful at times but if you are someone who is passionate about it then it is the right choice for you. If you want to know more about the media field and journalist career then continue reading this article.

Individuals in the editor career path is an unsung hero of the news industry who polishes the language of the news stories provided by stringers, reporters, copywriters and content writers and also news agencies. Individuals who opt for a career as an editor make it more persuasive, concise and clear for readers. In this article, we will discuss the details of the editor's career path such as how to become an editor in India, editor salary in India and editor skills and qualities.

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Translating Gujarat: On Raising Visibility and Sharing Literary Wealth

Gujarat boasts a vibrantly active and industrious 24% of India’s overall seacoast. At 1,600 kilometers, this is the longest coastline of all Indian states and, since ancient times, has invited an unceasing influx of travelers, traders, and warriors from all over the world. The region connects with present-day Afghanistan and Pakistan via northbound land routes through the Sindh desert and what is presently known as Rajasthan. Its eastern mainland adjoins the rest of northern and central India. And in the south, it neighbors agriculturally productive and highly industrialized towns and cities like present-day, cosmopolitan Mumbai. The state’s topography is also filled with extremes and contrasts, from the salt deserts and marshes of Kutch in the northwest to the arid and semiarid scrublands of the western Kathiawad peninsula to the forested mountains and fertile plains in the southeast. Frequented by migratory tribes and clans of pastoralist warriors, pilgrims, and traders, these age-old routes and vastly diverse ecologies have allowed for a fascinating hybridization of cultures and languages from all around the country and the world. Even the name Gujarat originates from a tribal dynasty, the Gurjara-Pratiharas, who came from the north in the mid-eighth century to defeat the local rulers and rule the region along with much of northern India.

Given all of the above, the Gujarati language has never been a discrete or stable entity despite the pre-Independence attempts by British colonial officers, Gandhi, and other Indian nationalist leaders to codify it as such. As scholars like Riho Isaka, Samira Sheikh, Sitanshu Yashaschandra, Rita Kothari, Aparna Kapadia, et al. have proved, the language is a richly complex linguistic system without fixed boundaries that has evolved through centuries of economic, political, and cultural interactions between speakers of Sanskrit, Prakrit, Gujari, Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Portuguese, Dutch, Urdu, Sindhi, Hindi, and more.

This plurality enabled the flourishing of numerous ethnolinguistic identities within the region, which, in turn, have engendered diverse literatures and cultural artifacts through the centuries. Arguably, though, Gujarat had its major literary renaissance in the late 1800s. In part, this was due to cross-pollination with the growing number of literary translations from English and other Indian and European languages. And, in part, it was due to a sociopolitical awakening among Gujarat’s literati—most of whom were educated elites—driven by anti-colonialism, nationalism, and the independence movement. Both of these factors led to a profuse blossoming of the modern Gujarati short story, groundbreaking first novels and memoirs, literary criticism approached as a rigorous art form in itself, travelogues that became established as a literary genre, and modern poetic forms that deviated from all previous traditions. Writers, poets, critics, and dramatists like Dalpat, Narmad, Nilkanth Sr., Navalram Pandya, Nandshankar Mehta, and others led the initial charge.

During this pre-Independence peak era of literary output, the historical novel genre became notably dominant because it also grappled with identity-building, a sense of nationalism, and state formation. Gujarati historical novels of this time are, in themselves, sources of history—beyond the stories they contained, they were also modes of collective consciousness, social reform, and earnest attempts to transcend history itself. This pre-Independence rise of Gujarati historical fiction was deeply influenced by the likes of Scott, Tolstoy, Cervantes, and others. The first-ever Gujarati novel, Nandshankar Mehta’s Karan Ghelo, published in 1866, was historical fiction. Next came the canonical, near-historical novel quartet Sarasvatichandra,  by Govardhanram Madhavram Tripathi, published from 1887 to 1901. With over 150 characters and 2,000 pages, its length surpassed Tolstoy’s War and Peace and it preceded Proust’s In Search of Lost Time . Writers like K. M. Munshi and Dhumketu published several historical fiction series set in pre-British India. Jhaverchand Meghani painstakingly collected ancient oral folklore from different regional communities into multi-volume works. Gunvantrai Acharya created swashbuckling tales of the nautical adventures of Gujaratis who traveled far and wide.

Yet, the first-ever English (or any language) translations of a handful of these works have only emerged in the last decade or so. The rest remain like faint memories of long-buried treasures despite the recovery and preservation efforts of a few stalwarts in every generation. In particular, many works remain unknown even to the Gujarati readership because they came from marginalized Gujarati communities—for example, the Parsi Gujarati community, which was much smaller than the Hindu majority but produced relatively more books at the time.

We can draw a line connecting the aforementioned Acharya to his daughter, the celebrated and prolific author Varsha Adalja, whose fiction opened this collection. Crossroad is a multi-generational historical novel set during the time of India’s independence movement. Written when the author was in her seventies, the work is groundbreaking for several reasons. In particular, despite Gujarat giving India its two most well-known Independence leaders—Mahatma Gandhi and Muhammad Ali Jinnah—and Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad being Gandhi’s political base, this is among the handful of contemporary Gujarati novels to carefully explore those volatile times. That it does so mostly through the lives and experiences of women is another singular feat. Adalja’s prose is colloquially lyrical and true to its time and place. It is also cinematic and immersive, while not shying away from the worst sociopolitical issues like the infanticide and rape of young girls. As I finish my translation of the novel, I am frequently struck by the depth of her craft and research. And I am reminded of how much we still need to learn about Gujarat during those decades beyond the lives and works of Gandhi, Jinnah, and the intelligentsia.

Immediately after independence from the British in 1947, Gujarat became part of Bombay State, and the Mahagujarat Movement for a separate state became the next big political drive. From 1947 to 1960, a Sanskritized version of the language became more standardized, relegating the many regional variations to dialect status. This is also when, as translator Meena Desai writes in her introduction to a ghazal by Befaam (the pen name of Barkat Ali Ghulam Husain Virani), the Gujarati ghazal form came into its own as part of the “burgeoning movement toward an independent identity of a much-colonized country.” Tracing its origins back to seventh-century Arabic love poetry, the ghazal had gathered Persian influences as it spread across South Asia in the twelfth century through Sufi mystics and Islamic Sultanate courtiers. Ghazals continue to enjoy popularity today—especially in Bollywood—in different languages and regions of India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. Even noted American poets have composed ghazals in English. Though difficult to translate because of their layered meanings, repetitions, and symbolism, Gujarati ghazals continue to flourish both in India and among the diaspora.

Shortly after Independence, another upheaval in Gujarat—particularly the large regions of Kathiawad and Saurashtra—involved the unification of more than two hundred independent princely states. In British India, these states had functioned more like allies rather than subordinates of the British Raj. The newly-formed Indian government pushed hard to integrate the nearly six hundred total princely states, which made up more than half the country. But legacies, traditions, and memories lingered on, as we see in an excerpt of Hasmukh Shah’s upcoming memoir, Dithu Mai . . . ( From the Margins of History ), translated by Mira Desai. Shah describes markers of a world that was quickly disappearing at that time—a Muslim ruler, his integrated team of Hindu and Muslim drivers from across caste and class hierarchies, and his garage filled with expensive and difficult-to-maintain British and American vehicles. From the child narrator’s innocent point of view, all of this is fascinating and impressive. We know the child grew up to become a key staff member for three separate Indian prime ministers. Undoubtedly, some of his diplomatic and negotiation skills had begun developing in those humble yet culturally syncretic beginnings.

That idea of cultural syncretism is also brought forth in Bharat Trivedi’s poem about Ahmedabad , an ancient city with a rich history named after a fifteenth-century Muzaffarid Sultan. As Mira Desai writes in her translator’s note, “Beyond the Hindu, Muslim, and Maratha dynasties and the British colonial rulers, there were also the Siddis, descendants of shipwrecked Africans, who bequeathed an intricate and famous carved stone screen (referenced here as Siddi Sayyed ni jali) to the city.” Though it has seen much communal tension in the last two decades, Ahmedabad has always been a political and intellectual hotbed, particularly during the Gandhi years. And while it is a constant muse for poets, writers, filmmakers, and songmakers, the walls of this city guard many untold stories still. I lived in the sprawling outskirts from mid-2014 to early 2020 and continue to explore its past and present in my own fiction. Once it grabs hold of your imagination, Ahmedabad remains a perpetual state of mind.

The third poet we’ve featured, Jayesh Jeevibahen Solanki, grew up in a village close to Ahmedabad and was a prominent, brave voice in the Gujarat Dalit Movement for most of his adult life. As translator Gopika Jadeja writes in her introductory note , “These poems give us a glimpse into a promising young mind, a poet and activist who envisioned a different future for Dalit and marginalized communities in India.” The objects described starkly in these two poems—stolen mangoes, torn kites, ice lollies for a rupee, a shirtless torso, and shoeless feet—all reveal the impoverishment that Solanki experienced throughout his life, which he tragically ended in October 2020. During my time in Ahmedabad, when I was fictionalizing the 2014 Dalit flogging incident in Una for a short story, I found a few videos of Solanki talking to journalists and reciting his poetry. His grounded convictions and passionate energy will forever haunt all who encountered him, virtually or in person.

It takes both a deep passion and a certain kind of energy to persist as a bilingual poet and writer, as Pratishtha Pandya writes in her personal essay, “ Writing in Mother Tongue and an Other Tongue .” Pandya traces her lifelong encounters with different languages and literatures to understand how her translation practice made her “more attuned to the sounds, nuances, and even limitations of the languages I was working with.” More profoundly, she investigates how there are things she can write in the “other tongue” that she cannot approach in her mother tongue because of cultural conditioning. This linguistic hopscotching about may feel ungainly at times, she writes. Still, there is joy in the spontaneous discoveries it can yield for those willing to jump past boundary constructs and land on just the right words to express themselves fully.

Sachin Ketkar also talked about the pleasures and challenges of bilingualism in my interview with him. As a Marathi-speaking Maharashtrian who grew up speaking Gujarati in Gujarat and working with English as a scholar and academic, Dr. Ketkar experienced “subtractive bilingualism”—a phenomenon I have also experienced since leaving India in 1991 but had not been able to name until this conversation. This is when, as he told me, the acquisition of an elite and powerful language like English results in the depletion and deprivation of linguistic, cultural, and creative resources of the language(s) in which one is raised. We discussed his own literary and translation journey and how intricate questions of cultural identity, tradition, modernity, and relevance stared at him with every step of that journey. Translation, for him, is primarily a creative process of negotiating through those questions. As he also shares in the interview: while creative bilingualism or multilingualism has been additive in nature for literatures in other Indian languages (e.g. Tamil, Hindi, Bangla, Marathi, and more), it has not been the same with Gujarati literature for various reasons.

In a country with so many languages, translation is, as Rita Kothari put it in my interview with her, “an un-self-conscious act [that’s] in the air, in the cosmos. And it’s hidden by being most proximate and natural.” As a multilingual scholar, translator, academic, and author, she has written extensively about Gujarati literature and translation theory. She has also co-translated, with Abhijit Kothari, the most famous historical fiction in our literary canon: K. M. Munshi’s Patan trilogy. Here, we discussed the evolution and craft of Gujarati literature in translation . This is my third interview with Dr. Kothari, and one of the recurring themes is how she sees languages as sociopolitical constructs that are, beyond their uses for communication, about power and identity. Given the evolutionary aspects I described above, this is truer than ever for the Gujarati language. In closing, Dr. Kothari recommends another great Gujarati-to-English translator, to whom we turn next.

Tridip Suhrud is renowned for his Gandhian scholarship. He is also the only Gujarati-to-English translator who has been brave enough to take on the work of translating the canonical Gujarati historical quartet, Sarasvatichandra , which I mentioned earlier. In this interview , we discussed some of his milestone translations, and I asked him where Gujarati literature stands with respect to literatures from other Indian languages in terms of creativity, innovation, diversity, volume, and recognition. He reflected on the Gujarati intellectual tradition overall, and said that “. . . we in Gujarat [ . . . ] have not thought about ourselves in our tongue with as much rigor and originality as we ought to have, or the seriousness with which language communities like Marathi, Bangla, Kannada, Tamil, and Malayalam have done.” Regarding the Gujarati translation scene, he has also discussed elsewhere how we Gujaratis are very good at bringing literary wealth from other cultures into ours, but not so good at sharing our own wealth.

Though that last bit was also a good-humored dig at the age-old Gujarati stereotype as the mercantile, business-minded community, when we look at the three Gujarati-to-English translations published in 2022 (excluding my own Dhumketu translation, which was the US edition of the 2020 Indian publication), it bears out. In her omnibus review , Shalvi Shah writes that they were “all written and translated by men and the only literary works translated from Gujarati to English in India in 2022 were published and are set more than five decades ago.” As a young translator herself, she calls out the difficulties of finding daring, new, experimental works. Sadly, this latter point also bears out, although I’m grateful that we have rare translations of books by a Gujarati Parsi and a Gujarati Dalit among those three.

Earlier, I mentioned a literary renaissance period for Gujarati literature as the independence movement got underway. The next big turning point came in the post-Gandhian era of the 1950s and 1960s with avant-garde writers like Mohammad Mankad and Suresh Joshi. Though Joshi was trained and well-read in Western literary traditions, he chose to write in Gujarati. To date, there has been no other who can match Joshi’s experimental aesthetics and prolific works of fiction, literary prose, literary criticism, and translations from several languages. In his 1992 essay collection, Imaginary Homelands , Salman Rushdie writes this about meeting Joshi:

To go on in this vein: it strikes me that, at the moment, the greatest area of friction in Indian literature has nothing to do with English literature, but with the effects of the hegemony of Hindi on the literatures of other Indian languages, particularly other North Indian languages. I recently met the distinguished Gujarati novelist Suresh Joshi. He told me that he could write in Hindi but felt obliged to write in Gujarati because it was a language under threat. Not from English, or the West: from Hindi. In two or three generations, he said, Gujarati could easily die. And he compared it, interestingly, to the state of the Czech language under the yoke of Russian, as described by Milan Kundera.

(Joshi’s stance predates that of contemporary writers like J. M. Coetzee, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, and Minae Mizumura, who have all also made the political choice to write against the hegemony of English by first publishing their books in Spanish, Gikuyu, and Japanese respectively.)

Today, there is still a language pyramid in India where Bangla, Hindi, Urdu, Tamil, Malayalam, and others sit at the top. The language and history scholars I mentioned earlier have explored the whys and wherefores in their various books and papers. Globalization continues to diminish the ranks of Gujarati readers and writers by increasing the dominance of English. A quick check on Amazon India shows that, beyond academic texts, the Gujarati-language bestsellers are self-help and how-to books translated from English alongside the perennial favorite books about Steve Jobs and Elon Musk. With each generation, the body of Gujarati literature seems to become less abundant, vibrant, and innovative than it was during Joshi’s time. The Indian government and a handful of Gujarati literary institutions do what they can. For example, in 2007, the Gujarati Sahitya Akademi created a prize to recognize and encourage Gujarati authors and poets below the age of thirty . At last count, there are at least twenty different Gujarati literary awards . The Gujarati Sahitya Parishad, the oldest literary organization, has at least thirty different literary awards .

And yet, consider this: Gujarati has fifty-six million speakers worldwide. It is the sixth most spoken language in South Asia and the third most spoken language in the South Asian American diaspora . By some accounts, the Gujarati diaspora is spread over 125 countries . But my 2022 translation, The Shehnai Virtuoso and Other Stories by Dhumketu, was the first ever Gujarati-to-English literary translation to be published in the US. It was also the first ever book-length translation of this modern Gujarati short story pioneer, who published nearly twenty-six volumes of short stories alone.

For any literary culture to thrive, its readership must grow within its own societies and beyond with more translations into and from the language. This first-ever collection at Words Without Borders is a cultural intervention to bring these works to a wider readership, and to also help raise visibility within Gujarati society, especially the global diaspora. For translators from under-represented languages like ours, the act of translation can also be a mode of recovery and reclamation. Together, this small sample reveals rich glimpses of the diverse, complex, and ever-evolving literary traditions of Gujarat. It is an effort to share some of our literary wealth and celebrate our Gujarati ways of being.

Copyright © 2023 by Jenny Bhatt. All rights reserved.

Jenny Bhatt

Jenny Bhatt is a writer, literary translator, book critic, and the founder of Desi Books, a global multimedia forum for South Asian literature.

Into English: Sachin Ketkar on Bilingual Translation

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This Isn’t the China I Remember

By Gish Jen

Ms. Jen, an American novelist whose family hails from Shanghai, wrote from Shanghai.

In 1979 my mother pulled out a Band-Aid in a Nanjing hospital. The nurses clustered around it, amazed. “The West has everything!” they said.

We were on a family visit to China, where my Shanghai relatives were similarly wowed by our excellent teeth and ample body fat, not to mention our descriptions of American dishwashers, refrigerators and air-conditioning. And with the general awe came V.I.P. treatment. Hosts broke out bottles of expensive orange soda that they freely mixed with expensive warm beer. We could not escape drinking this any more than we could escape our government-assigned “guide,” whose job was to strictly monitor visitors like us. Relatives or not, we were foreigners.

I returned to teach English at the Shandong Mining Institute in 1981. My students were coal mining engineers preparing to study abroad, so that they might bring back safer mining techniques. I was their “foreign expert.” As such, I had not only a sit-down toilet in the apartment provided to me, but also running hot water, an unheard-of luxury. My ayi, or housekeeper, would make a fire under a vat of water on the roof and, when it was ready, turn the faucet handle in my bathtub.

After class, my students would bring stools out to the basketball court where, each facing a different direction, they would sit and study for hours on end. Loving their country and wanting to make it strong, they were grateful for Westerners like me. Foreign as we were, we were a help.

Fast forward a few decades to a booming China. In my many visits over the years — as a teacher, as a visiting artist and as a tourist — Shanghai hotel staff had always returned my credit card to me with two hands, a bow of the head, and a smile. But with a quarter of the world’s construction cranes said to be in the city during China’s boom years, raising skyscrapers from what had been rice paddies, attitudes had changed. My credit card was returned with one hand; the receptionist barely looked up. My relatives no longer asked that I bring American goods for them, either. “China has everything,” they said then. As many proudly proclaimed, the 20th century was America’s; the 21st was China’s.

One seldom hears that triumphalist tone today. Instead, the talk is of a loss of confidence and trust in the Chinese government. People remain proud of their city, which now boasts excellent, cosmopolitan food and spotless streets. There are huge new sports centers featuring tennis and paddle-boarding, there is an artificial beach with pink sand. The city is far greener than in years past, too. Magnolia and cherry trees bloom everywhere and even the strips under the freeways have been landscaped. And thanks to the ubiquitous security cameras, Shanghai is spectacularly safe.

Yet below the surface lurks a sense of malaise. In this famously cosmopolitan city, there are weirdly few foreigners compared to before, many having left due to the stifling policies during the pandemic or because international companies have pulled out staff, or other reasons. Clothing shops are empty and many other stores have closed. The Nanjing West Road shopping district, previously a sea of humans, is strangely underpopulated.

Shanghainese are still outraged at having been locked down for two months in the spring of 2022 to stem a surge in Covid-19 cases with little time to prepare. Such were the shortages of essentials that Tylenol was for sale by the pill. And so heavy-handed were even the post-lockdown policies that residents took to the streets in protest .

But for many, the pandemic debacle only capped a series of governmental blunders starting with Premier Li Keqiang urging young people to open their own businesses in 2014. This and other missteps cost wave after wave of people their life savings and many Chinese now blame government ineptitude and erraticism for bringing the economy to a standstill. As a Shanghainese friend put it, the government has turned China around and around until, like spinning cars, people’s engines have stalled and their wheels have locked up.

The result has been so steep and unrelenting a fall in real estate prices that elderly people, like my friend’s parents, can’t sell their apartments to pay for nursing or assisted living. And they are hardly the only ones affected by the downturn. Doctors find themselves squeezed — many patients don’t have money for operations — while businesspeople sit on their hands, unwilling to make investments in so unpredictable an environment. Many college graduates, faced with a grim job market, are essentially dropping out, or “lying flat,” as it’s called in China. Not even schoolchildren, it seems, have been spared the general despondency. As one teacher I spoke to observed, when the society is sick, the children pay the price. Too many parents know a child who has had to leave school because of depression.

Of course, for all of this the West is scapegoated — having opposed, people say, China’s rise — as is China’s other favorite enemy, Japan, whose brutal 1930s invasion and ensuing occupation of China still rankles. (One sequence of a CGI video shown in my recent Shanghai spin class featured huge coronaviruses studded with Japanese temples.)

Whoever is to blame, emigration is on the rise . According to U.N. figures, more than 310,000 Chinese left the country in each of the past two years, a 62 percent increase from the earlier average of around 191,000 per year over the decade through 2019. Those in Shanghai with the means to do so talk endlessly about “running away,” even to officially reviled countries like the United States .

This is not always an answer. One friend of mine has come back to China to stay, having spent six years attending graduate school in Boston, saying she missed the warmth of Chinese family life. And no one has illusions about the difficulty of getting established in another country. People in China speak of a whole new class of emigrants, women who have left high-powered careers to accompany their children to the United States early enough for them to assimilate — ideally, in middle or high school. As for the fruits of their sacrifice, it’s too early to say. Can the children really become Westerners? Will they — like me decades earlier — become the foreigners?

Things in China could change. Those “lying flat” are not asleep. They are watching and could someday rise up. But in the meantime, people in Shanghai are simply, as they put it, “xin lei ”: Their hearts are tired.

Gish Jen is an American novelist and the author of “Thank You, Mr. Nixon.” She is currently teaching at N.Y.U. Shanghai.

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Essay: Where Global Governance Went Wrong—and How to Fix It

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Where Global Governance Went Wrong—and How to Fix It

International agreements have not balanced our freedoms in the way that they should..

Global governance, never really settled, has recently been having an especially hard time. Everyone believes in a rules-based system, but everyone wants to make the rules and dislikes it when the rules work against them, saying that they infringe on their sovereignty and their freedom. There are deep asymmetries, with the powerful countries not only making the rules but also breaking them almost at will, which raises the question: Do we even have a rules-based system, or is it just a facade? Of course, in such circumstances, those who break the rules say they only do so because others are, too.

The current moment is a good illustration. It is the product of longstanding beliefs and power relations. Under this system, industrial subsidies were a no-no, forbidden (so it was thought) not just by World Trade Organization rules, but also by the dictates of what was considered sound economics. “Sound economics” was that set of doctrines known as neoliberal economics, which promised growth and prosperity through, mostly, supposedly freeing the economy by allowing so-called free enterprise to flourish. The “liberal” in neoliberalism stood for freedom and “neo” for new, suggesting that it was a different and updated version of 19 th -century liberalism.

This essay is adapted from the book T he Road to Freedom: Economics and the Good Society by Joseph E. Stiglitz, W.W. Norton, 384 pp., $29.99, April 2024

In fact, it was neither really new nor really liberating. True, it gave firms more rights to pollute, but in doing so, it took away the freedom to breathe clean air—or in the case of those with asthma, sometimes even the most fundamental of all freedoms, the freedom to live.

“Freedom” meant freedom for the monopolists to exploit consumers, for the monopsonists (the large number of firms that have market power over labor) to exploit workers, and freedom for the banks to exploit all of us—engineering the most massive financial crisis in history, which required taxpayers to fork out trillions of dollars in bailouts, often hidden, to ensure that the so-called free enterprise system could survive.

The promise that this liberalization would lead to faster growth from which all would benefit never materialized. Under these doctrines that have prevailed for more than four decades, growth has actually slowed in most advanced countries. For instance, real growth in GDP per capita (average percent increase per annum) according to data compiled by the St. Louis Fed, was 2.5% from 1960 to 1990, but slowed to 1.5% from 1990 to 2018. Instead of trickle-down economics, where everyone would benefit, we had trickle-up economics, where the top 1 percent and especially the top 0.1 percent, got a larger and larger slice of the pie.

These are illustrations of British political theorist Isaiah Berlin’s dictum that “total liberty for wolves is death to the lambs”; or, as I have sometimes put it less gracefully, freedom for some has meant the unfreedom of others—their loss of freedom.

Just as individuals rightly cherish their freedom, countries do, too, often under the name “sovereignty.” But while these words are easily uttered, there is too little thought about their deeper meanings. Economics has weighed into the debate about what freedom and sovereignty mean, with John Stuart Mill’s contribution in the 19th century ( On Liberty ), and Milton Friedman’s and Friedrich Hayek’s works in the mid-20th ( Capitalism and Freedom and The Road to Serfdom ).

But contrary to what Hayek and Friedman asserted, free and unfettered markets do not lead to efficiency and the well-being of society; that should be obvious to anyone looking around. Just think of the inequality crisis, the climate crisis, the opioid crisis, the childhood diabetes crisis, or the 2008 financial crisis.  These are crises created by the market, exacerbated by the market, and/or crises which the market hasn’t been able to deal with adequately.

Economic theorists (including me) have shown that whenever there is imperfect information or imperfect markets (that is to say, always), there is a presumption that markets are not efficient. Even a very little bit of imperfection can have big effects.

The problem is that much of the global economic architecture designed over recent decades has been based on neoliberalism—the kinds of ideas that Hayek and Friedman put forward. The system of rules that evolved from there must be fundamentally rethought.

U.S. President Donald Trump arrives at the G-20 economic summit in Hamburg, Germany, on July 8, 2017. Sean Gallup/Getty Images

From an economist’s perspective, freedom is the “freedom to do,” meaning the size of the opportunity set of what a person can do, or the range of the choices that are available.

Someone on the verge of starvation has no real freedom—she does what she must to survive. A rich person obviously has more freedom to choose. “Freedom to do” is also constrained when an individual is harmed. Obviously, if an individual is killed by a gunman or a virus, or even hospitalized by COVID-19, he has lost freedom in a meaningful sense, and we then have a dramatic illustration of Berlin’s dictum: Freedom for some—the freedom to carry guns, or to not be masked, or to be unvaccinated—may entail a large loss of freedom for others.

The same principle applies to the international arena. The rules-based trade system consists of a set of rules intended to expand the freedoms of all in a meaningful way by imposing constraints. The idea that constraints can be freeing, while seemingly self-contradictory, is obvious: Stoplights force us to take turns going through intersections, but without this seeming constraint, there would be gridlock and no one would be able to move.

All contracts are agreements about constraints—with one party agreeing to do or not do something in return for another person making other promises—with the belief that in doing so, all parties will be better off. Of course, if one party cheats and doesn’t deliver on its promise, then that party gains at the expense of others. And there is always the temptation to do so, which is why we require governments to enforce contracts, so that promises mean something. No government could enforce all contracts, and the so-called free market would crash if all participants were grifters.

But while there are similarities between discussions of freedom at the individual level and the country level, there are also a couple of big differences. Most importantly, there is no global government to ensure that the powerful countries obey an agreement, as we are seeing today in the case of U.S. industrial subsidies. The World Trade Organization (WTO) generally forbids such subsidies and especially disapproves of some of the provisions—such as requiring domestic manufacturing (“Made in America”)—in legislation passed recently by the U.S. Congress, including the CHIPS and Science Act .

Big Tech Is Trying to Prevent Debate About Its Social Harms

The industry’s “digital trade” strategy seeks to preemptively constrain governments.

The Global Credibility Gap

No one power or group can uphold the international order anymore—and that means much more geopolitical uncertainty ahead.

Moreover, within democratic countries, the role of power in the making and enforcement of the rules is often obscure; we know that inequalities in wealth and income get translated into inequalities in political power, which determines who gets to design the rules and how they are enforced. An imbalance of power means that the powerful within a country determine the rules in ways that benefit them, often at the expense of the weak.

Still, the democratic context means that every once in a while, power is checked—as it was when the antitrust laws were passed in the United States in the latter part of the 19th century, or the Wagner Act was passed during the New Deal of the 1930s, giving workers more power.

In an international setting, power is even more concentrated, and democratic forces are even weaker. What has happened in the past few years illustrates this. The United States was at the center in constructing the rules-based system, in both designing the rules and how they were to be enforced, including dispute resolutions through the WTO’s Appellate Body.  But when the rules—such as those concerning industrial subsidies—were inconvenient, it decided to ignore them, knowing that there was little, if anything, that any country could or would do about it. So much for the rules-based system.

And the United States’ confidence that nothing could or would be done was reinforced by the fact that it had effectively defenestrated the Appellate Body, because that Body had made decisions it didn’t like, and the U.S. thought that the Body was guilty of overreaching, going beyond what it was entitled to do. But rather than going back to the WTO and clarifying what the Body’s role should be, the U.S. simply hamstrung any adjudication within the WTO. The situation would be like suspending the U.S. Supreme Court while figuring out how to bring the justices back to a reasonable theory of jurisprudence.

This imbalance of power has played out repeatedly in recent years. When developed countries attempted to implement industrial policies—even mild policies, such as Brazil’s effort to provide capital to aerospace corporation Embraer at reasonable interest rates through that country’s development bank (as opposed to the outlandishly high rates then prevailing in its financial markets)—they were attacked . When Indonesia tried to ensure that more of the added value associated with its rich nickel deposits remained in Indonesia, it was attacked .

People line up to receive the Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccination at a local hospital in in Harare, Zimbabwe, on March 29, 2021. Tafadzwa Ufumeli/Getty Images

Even worse, when more than 100 countries proposed a waiver of intellectual property related to COVID-19—in the spirit of the compulsory licenses already seemingly part of the WTO framework, but given the urgency of the moment, a less bureaucratic process was of the essence—they were denied. The result: vaccine apartheid , where the advanced countries had all the vaccines they wanted, and the developing countries had almost zero access. This almost surely resulted in thousands of unnecessary deaths and tens of thousands of unnecessary hospitalizations in the poorer countries.

These are obviously no small matters in the well-being of citizens around the world, especially not for developing countries and emerging markets. Nor are they small matters in geoeconomics and geopolitics. The neoliberal rules forbidding subsidies effectively meant that developing countries couldn’t catch up to the advanced countries; the rules condemned them to being commodity producers, reserving the higher value-added production for the advanced countries.

This tariff structure has been rightly criticized as a crucial tool in the preservation of colonial trade patterns—aided and abetted by other unfair aspects of the trade regime, such as escalating tariffs. As economist Ha-Joon Chang has put it , the advanced countries “kicked away the ladder” from which they themselves had used.

It should be clear, too, that there are geopolitical consequences in refusing to play by the rules. The United States and the advanced countries are losing support for some of the most important issues requiring global cooperation, including climate change , global health, and the support needed to resolve the conflict in Ukraine as well as Washington’s apparent battle for democracy and hegemony with China.

The global south may yet steer the ship of international rules back on course. When the United States was the hegemon, it could do as it wanted, but its influence is now being challenged. China has provided more infrastructure than the United States has; early on in the pandemic, both China and Russia seemed more generous in providing vaccines.

Washington told the developing countries to open their doors to its multinationals, but when those countries asked that the rich corporations pay the taxes they owed, the United States was not supportive—reforms under an Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development initiative called BEPS (Base Erosion and Profit Shifting) generated sparse revenues for the poorer countries, and in return, the developing countries were asked to forego digital taxation. When, accordingly, the African Union asked for a change in venue of the discussions of global tax reform to the United Nations, the United States not only opposed it , but also tried to strong-arm others to do so. Last November, the United States lost the vote overwhelmingly at the U.N.

So whither goes global governance? In the absence of rules, the law of the jungle prevails. While the United States might win that fight, it would simultaneously lose the cooperation it needs so badly in a host of arenas. Overall, it would lose.

It is in the interests of the United States to abandon the corporate-driven rules-based system and work instead to create a set of at least basic rules that would reflect common interests. For instance, instead of the comprehensive so-called free trade agreements, such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership , that were really managed trade agreements (and managed specifically in the interests of Big Pharma and some of the big polluters), the United States should have narrow agreements—say, a green agreement to share knowledge and technology, promote sustainable forests, and work together to save the planet.

We need agreements that do more to constrain the large countries—whose actions can hurt the global economy—and do less to constrain the small, whose actions have little global consequences.

For instance, we need rules that would constrain the European Union and the United States from using monetary policy in ways that benefit their economies at the expense of others, as the United States has repeatedly done. Today, even the United States recognizes that investment agreements (such as NAFTA’s infamous Chapter 11 ) that allow corporations to sue states actually exert constraints on sovereignty without commensurate benefits. A key difference between NAFTA and the trade agreement that succeeded it is the effective dropping of Chapter 11. But the United States should go further, strengthening the ability of any government party to an agreement to sue corporations when terms of the agreement have been violated.

To win the hearts and minds in the new cold war brewing between the United States and China, the United States needs to do more. Washington needs to use the money it has to provide assistance to the poor, and the power that it possesses to construct rules that are fair. Nowhere is that more evident than in response to the debt crisis that the United States faces today and the recent pandemic, another of which the world will almost surely face in the future.

An aerial view shows open graves, left, near recent burials at a cemetery in São Paulo, Brazil, on May 22, 2021, during a surge of deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic. Mario Tama/Getty Images

With most sovereign debt contracts written in the United States, Washington has the power to change the legal framework governing these contracts in ways that make the resolution of crises—where countries can’t pay back what they owe—faster and better. This approach would address the “too little, too late” problem by which one crisis is followed by another, which has plagued the world for so long. With more creditors entering the field, debt resolution is becoming ever more difficult. There are important proposals currently before the New York legislature (where most of the money is raised), but support from the Biden administration would be enormously helpful.

The world has just gone through a terrible pandemic, and the recognition that there will be another has spurred work on a proposed pandemic preparedness treaty. Unfortunately, under the influence of Big Pharma, there are no provisions in the treaty for the kind of intellectual property waiver that the world so badly needs, let alone the technology transfer that would allow the production of all the products—protective gear, vaccines, and therapeutics—necessary to fight the next disease that strikes.

The freedom to live is the most important freedom that we have. Our global agreements have not balanced our freedoms in the way they should. Better global agreements can benefit all countries, though not necessarily all people within them: Such agreements would constrain the power of the exploiters to exploit the rest of us, thereby making a dent on their bottom line, but they would benefit society more generally.

Striving to create global agreements that are fair and generous to the poor would, I believe, be in the United States’ self-interest—in its “enlightened” self-interest, taking into account the new geoeconomics and geopolitics. It was never in the United States’ self-interest to pursue a corporatist global agenda, even when it was the hegemon. But it is especially not so today.

Books are independently selected by FP editors. FP earns an affiliate commission on anything purchased through links to Amazon.com on this page.

Joseph E. Stiglitz is a Nobel laureate in economics and a professor at Columbia University. Twitter:  @JosephEStiglitz

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IMF Working Papers

Public debt dynamics and the impact of fiscal policy.

Author/Editor:

Nikhil Patel ; Adrian Peralta Alva

Publication Date:

April 26, 2024

Electronic Access:

Free Download . Use the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to view this PDF file

Disclaimer: IMF Working Papers describe research in progress by the author(s) and are published to elicit comments and to encourage debate. The views expressed in IMF Working Papers are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF, its Executive Board, or IMF management.

Public debt-to-GDP ratios have undergone substantial fluctuations over both the short and long term. Most recently, global debt-to-GDP ratios peaked at 100% on average in 2020 due to COVID-19, retracting substantially by 2022. To understand what drives these movements, we propose a structural approach to debt decompositions based on a SVAR identified with narrative sign restrictions. We find that GDP growth shocks and the corresponding comovements of macroeconomic variables are the key drivers of debt to GDP, accounting for 40% of the observed yearly variation in 17 advanced economies since the 1980s. Discretionary fiscal policy changes, in turn, account for less than 20% of the observed changes. The analysis also finds the primary balance multiplier on GDP to be very small. We reconcile our results with the literature, underscoring the importance of accurate shock identification and accounting for cross-country heterogeneity.

Working Paper No. 2024/087

9798400273476/1018-5941

WPIEA2024087

Please address any questions about this title to [email protected]