BY EDWARD THEOPHILUS

Sri Lanka had been experienced the control of various human epidemics since its human history There are contrasting opinions on this matter.). All epidemics were in Sri Lanka had been controlled by the use of the most powerful technique, social distancing. The term has a different meaning in a practical situation and it should be adapted to an epidemic in which the actual nature was identified. Humans have specific wisdom and they use such wisdom to get out of an epidemic. The idea of social distancing naturally comes to each person when they were born. At the beginning of COVID-19, the public was instructed by Health Authorities to follow social distancing rules, health, and hygiene practices. In urban areas, social distancing is the most difficult role that makes many apprehensions in adhering to. The major reason is an excessive population in towns and the cultural habit of people and characteristics of people force them not to listen to instruction.

The excessive population has been created by ignoring population controls. Many factors that have been contributed to the increase in family members and religions discouraged family planning without logical reasons. The direct impact of over-population is the shortage of resources for people, especially land for housing, more people migrating to urban areas from rural areas, dividing lands into small pieces, fewer job opportunities in urban towns than the rural area, increase in need of transport facilities, a requirement of the location of education institutions in urban areas, and many other thousands of concussions. A large population has become an arduous factor in controlling the Covid pandemic and many people such as politicians, social activists, and religious guides are scared to talk about the truth as they will be unpopular among the public.

In the modern era, an additional issue has arisen with the increasing population that is relating to looking after elderly people. In Western countries, looking after elderly people or age care is an industry that provides many employment opportunities. Small age care business is in Sri Lanka, but value practice is children look after parents and it is not a business. It is observable a simple conflict of attitudes on age care in Sri Lanka and developed countries.

Developed countries use social integration as a strategy for the increase of employment opportunities in various ventures (sports, nightclubs, cinemas, dramas halls, party venues, restaurants, and many places) while attempting to give happiness to people, and social distancing treats against social integration for economic purposes and promotes business opportunities in service area. Not only in Sri Lanka but also people in other countries cry against social distance practices. It is observed that people in Sri Lanka manipulated minor issues and politicians jump into such situations and make the big pass on the issue. Mr. Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has explained the truth about the pandemic by his reason public address. He has a wonderful vision and mission. Covid it was not created by him and people think mistakenly, he handles it. It is wrong and blaming him for the global problem.

Disciplining has become a way of socialization and now, social distancing should be treated as a part of socialization. The major role of schools to train kids for socialization promoting values as parents have to take part in workplaces for earning money for living, and parents have less time to educate kids about socialization. Social distancing has become an essential part of controlling pandemics and people have relegated many obscure when social distance is effective.

Developed countries incorporated many aspects of disciplining kids, and the education in Sri Lanka and India failed to discipline people to understand issues and work consistently to the advice of authorities. This situation became the major reason to go covid out of control and the policymakers have not taken into consideration this side of epidemic control.

Historical information provides that Sri Lanka suffered from various epidemics, one of the major epidemics was smallpox that killed hierarchies of administration in the Kandyan kingdom.  Smallpox and all other epidemics were controlled by using the technique of social distance and in history, nobody went against social distancing practices, however, it shows now that people do not respect social distancing practice, and daily report of covid infection is going up and a considerable volume of people killed from the disease. 

Social distancing, general health, and hygiene practice, and value education are essential curriculum that should be educated in schools. Kids in Sri Lanka want to gain education to work overseas because they cannot find work in the country and young people have a mythical view that going overseas is the best option they have because opportunities in the country are less and when critically evaluate the idea it shows that those who have gone overseas are not spending a happy life because they achieved the wish and many use the achievement to make lies on a life of overseas.  

Australia, New Zealand, and many countries have successfully controlled the pandemic (1) population is lesser in those countries consistent with the land area, (2) people are disciplined and listen to authorities (3) governments quickly take action, politics did not become a barrier to implement instruction. It is showed that people were not disciplined in Sri Lanka, they broke social distance rule, health, and hygiene instruction.

In the policy development process, the government of Sri Lanka needs to stress the following areas.

• People should be motivated to maintain one child for a family, and like in China, this rule should be successfully implemented. Religions and races are immaterial in this practice.
• Sri Lanka should plan to reduce the population to 15.0 million in the country within the next 10 to 20 years without a racial and religious difference.

Large population in the world have created many problems, many economists look at this issue from market aspect but it creates many disadvantages. I can predict that if the population of Sri Lanka at the level of 1972 Covid will not spread like today.