Skip to main content

Sweden’s eccentric way of tackling the corona-virus.


Apart from being the country of origin of global brands like IKEA and H&M, Sweden is also known for housing one of the happiest populations in the world and why won’t you be happy when there are only 190 annual school days in your country! Personally, I think the Swedes are the most ‘chilled-out’ people in the world. Don’t trust me? Look at Sweden’s ‘radically different’ approach to handle the Covid-19 crisis. What if I told you that while the rest of Europe remains under strict lockdown, Sweden has not shut down its transportation systems, schools, and even restaurants and cafes remain functioning? Believe it or not, this is the truth, apparently, the Swedish government believes that social distancing is a matter of self-regulation and cannot be imposed by the government. This might well be true as we can see in India itself that despite severe government regulations, a lot of people are taking to the streets and trying to defy the lockdown. Although the Swedish ideology might seem very attractive, it can only practically work in places like Sweden where the society is built upon huge amounts of public trust and self-responsibility. Although some scientists argue that Sweden’s rather outrageous plan might backfire, Sweden has smilingly seen their coronavirus graph experiencing a sharp decline. This approach may well prove to be successful. Or will it?


People walking around in Stockholm, the Swedish Capital.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Bombay Stock Exchange: How was it formed?

Little would a stranger looking at the subtle Phiroze Jeejeebhoy tower in the old part of Bombay know that the building houses about US$2.87 trillion in public wealth! The Bombay Stock exchange is one of the most reputed and renowned stock exchanges in the world and the oldest stock exchange in Asia. It has delivered sizeable returns to the investors in its products and has directly, or indirectly, employed hundreds of thousands of people over the years.   The Story:  In the 1850s British India, five stockbrokers decided to conduct daily sale meetings under a banyan tree in front of the Bombay town hall. Over the years many people were attracted by the profitability of the business and started joining the stockbrokers' group. Due to its increasing size, the group had to constantly keep shifting venues. Stockbrokers in downtown Bombay, c.a. 1865  Finally, in 1874, the group relocated to the place presently known as Dalal (Hindi for broker) street in South Bombay. A ye...

The Story Of Hemu: A Grocer who became the King of India

 Hem Chandra Vikramaditya, or Hemu, was born in 1501 in the Alwar province of Rajputana(now Rajasthan) in a family of Dhusar Brahmins. Soon after his birth, his family shifted to the small town of Rewari(in present-day Haryana) in search of better prospects. Being a grocer's son, he was brought up to be a shopkeeper; but, of course, Hemu wasn't any ordinary tradesman--from a relatively young age, Hemu displayed remarkable intelligence and a fiery sense of ambition. During this time, following the death of the Afghan ruler Sher Shah Suri (the founder of the Suri dynasty in India), his son Islam Shah Suri took over the empire. However, Islam Shah's brother Adil Khan resisted his rise to power and rebelled against the empire. In the battle that followed, Adil Khan's army was routed by Islam Shah and he had to flee for his life. Giving notice to this political development, Hemu realized that the Imperial Army chasing the rebels would soon pass through Rewari, and would sure...

What was the Maginot line and why did it fail ?

    The Maginot line, named after the French Minister of War, André Maginot, was a chain of costly fortifications built along the Franco-German border. It was built by the French in the 1930's to prevent any German attack from the east such as the devastating German offensive during WWI. The line consisted of about 5000 blockhouses, 78 shelters , around 350  casemates  and approximately  142 ouvrages ( or defensive structures). The Maginot Line was designed to ensure that the French forces had enough time to mobilize, in case of a German attack. The French believed that the Maginot line was the 'work of genius' and was almost impenetrable. French troops along the line A plan for a fortification in the Maginot Line                                            The Question then arises why did such a strong chain of fortifications fail to st...