Complementing the State government’s COVID-19 containment initiatives, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] has launched an online awareness drive for resuming production in all sectors and reviewing the experience the State had gained in fighting the pandemic.
Considering the social distancing norms and the need for maintaining a regular stream of interaction with the public as well as party cadres, the campaign ‘Nammal Onnichu’ (we together) through the CPI(M) Facebook page, was launched by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday.
Kerala has come a long way from being the first State to report a COVID-19 case in the country to reducing the number of cases and containing the death toll. The attainment could be attributed to the general awareness and cooperation of the public that stemmed from their democratic and secular views and the creative interventions of the government, he said.
He explained how the crisis had battered the State’s economy and the persistent efforts needed for rebuilding it brick by brick through self-reliance in all sectors, mainly agriculture and industries. The State should evolve its own development alternative, he said.
Party State committee member V. Sivadasan told The Hindu that the online platform would help maintain a regular stream of interaction with the public and party workers and also a source for deterring the fake news being churned out to stymie the government’s bid against the virus.
Senior party leaders would interact through the platform on different issues regularly. The ultimate aim is to stave off false campaigns and make the public aware of the fact. The platform would also serve as a fact-checking mechanism, he said.