The world has come to a practical standstill with Coronavirus outbreak wreaking havoc across continents.
As of July 23, the pandemic has claimed more than 630,000 lives and infected over 15,000,000 people globally.
In India, around 12,39,000 confirmed cases have been reported thus far while 29,000+ people have lost their lives.
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Amid the crisis, many of India’s former and current cricketers are doing their bit to help the needy. Former pacer Munaf Patel is also playing his part in this fight against the deadly disease.
As per a TOI report, Munaf is currently in Ikhar, a village in the Bharuch district of Gujarat. He visited his native village in April, i.e. just few weeks after the Indian government announced a nationwide lockdown and asked the citizens to maintain the norms of social distancing.
The 2011 World Cup-winner is educating the villagers about the importance of social distancing and is leading the fight against the epidemic ever since five of their people tested positive for COVID-19 in April.
“When the lockdown was announced, Ikhar did not have much idea about the virus. It was when five persons, who had arrived from Tamil Nadu to Ikhar, tested positive in April, that there was a sudden scare,” Munaf told TOI.
“It was an alien concept for villagers used to maintaining regular social contact. They felt they were being targeted. I had to explain to them the perils of the virus,” he added.
“One of the challenging moments was when farmers in my village wanted to harvest their crop in April. They were not allowed to go out under the lockdown as there was risk of infection if they gathered in large groups,” he continued.
Hailing Munaf Patel’s crucial role in this battle, Ikhar sarpanch Haroon Haindi said: “It was only after Munaf convinced the local police and health officials that farmers will maintain social distancing that they were allowed to harvest crops.”
“During the lockdown, Munaf visited the panchayat office daily and spent hours discussing and planning ways to prevent the virus spread. Villagers followed his instructions and it proved to be a blessing for us,” he added.
Munir Patel, who works for the health centre in Ikhar, said: “Initially, many locals were reluctant to even get tested when they got fever or cough as they were scared of getting quarantined. But after Munaf’s interactions, they came forward for tests.”
Munaf Patal represented India in 13 Tests, 70 ODIs and 3 T20Is, claiming 35, 86 and 4 wickets respectively.
