Role of Local Task Forces/Village Level task Forces (VLTFs) During the Novel Coronavirus Pandemic

In the midst of this coronavirus pandemic, it is mainly the local task forces that assumed the mantle of authority and the enforcer of law and order in their respective localities. In fact, the State Government imbued these local task forces with a much higher responsibility and operational power that they are more or less, the main internal defence mechanism for the state government against this Covid-19 pandemic. No civilian response force against any sort of natural calamity or disaster had ever been formed with so much of responsibility and authority as that of the Covid-19 local task forces in the history of the state. Henceforth, whatever the outcome caused by this pandemic, the role played by the local task forces in combating this Covid-19 disease would forever be noteworthy and worthy of re-visit time and again in the future.

Apart from devising local food supply chain and rationing of essential supplies, besides keeping a vigilant watch over the poorer sections of the localities, local task forces are authorized, or so it seems, to deliver instructions and guidelines at their own discretion within their respective local jurisdictions. Thus, within every towns and villages throughout the state, local task forces set up check points or road blocks to check vehicular traffic as well as civilian mobility in order to ensure that laws and regulations are being conformed to and that there are no defaulters. Apart from designated governmental officials and other few, who are exempted from such restrictions in the interests of public service, all other private vehicles and commercial passenger vehicles (excluding commercial vehicles transporting essential commodities) are required to obtain vehicle passes from their respective local task forces for movement beyond their locality and even within their own locality. The same rule also applies to the residents, who are required to obtain permits countersigned by the chairman of the local task force (the Chairman of the Village Council/Local Council) for any purpose of venturing out of their homes. Especially with regards to social distancing norms, local task forces imposed strict guidelines for the local people in all public places-markets,shops etc. If not for the local task forces, enforcement of social distancing procedures would surely prove to be a burdensome task for the governmental authorities. Local task forces also put restrictions on the timings for shop owners in opening their shops for the public in the same way as time frames are specified for the public to buy and stock their essential needs, while all along, maintaining social distancing procedures under the watchful eyes of the local task force volunteers.

Another notable role played by the local task forces on Covid-19 could be witnessed when it comes to dealing with the deceased in the community. In the pre-covid 19 period, whenever someone passes away, it was the responsibility of the young Mizo Association (YMA) and the church in which the deceased is a member, to perform all necessary burial functions and rituals. However, after the coronavirus outbreak, that responsibility and function has been undertaken by the local task force of the community of the deceased. As per Mizo custom and tradition, public condolences of the bereaved families are still allowed, but limitations are made and strictly enforced by the local task forces so as to conform to the governmental social distancing guidelines. Generally, apart from local task force volunteers, executive committee members and office bearers of the local branch YMA and church leaders, people of the locality are normally prohibited from going to the house of the deceased, except during the funeral ceremony. Even during that period, limited seats/benches are provided for those attending the ceremony by the local task forces and no additional seats are provided nor permitted to be made available at one’s own discretion. Thus, the occasion of death, which was truly a public affair in the pre-covid 19 period has become a highly limited and restricted endeavor under the management of the local task forces. Even digging of graves has become to be a restricted task, with the local task forces handpicking local youths to carry out the task.

Local task forces also somewhat possess financial autonomy within their own jurisdictions. Since Mizoram was placed under lockdown by the state government and eventually, by the Central Government from 25^th March, donations and contributions, mainly in the form of cash donations have been pouring in to the financial coffers of the various local task forces from philanthropists across the state. The financial amounts from these donations and contributions have doubled and tripled multiple times into the tens and thousands as time wares on and lockdowns extended again and again for quite a substantial period of time. However, there is no financial regulation and budgeting for such large sums of charity money nor does the state government issue financial guidelines or put in place auditing procedures to monitor the spending of the funds. Hence, it is up to the local task forces to devise and work out plans for effective financial management of these funds. It is basically these funds accumulated through donations and contributions that finance the activities of the local task forces in distributing aids to the poor and the needy, both in the form of financial and material assistance.

Local task forces also performed an important role in ensuring eatables and other essential commodities are equitably distributed to all sections of the community. Especially with regards to the vegetable supply chain, a mechanism procured by the state government to ensure steady and unabridged flow of vegetables from the countryside to the towns and particularly, to the residents of Aizawl, local task forces undertook the distribution of such essential commodities to all family members of their own localities. In the same way, especially in Aizawl, local task forces laid down restrictions and limitations for residents in buying eatables that arrived from various villages across the state. In short, the strict limitations and guidelines enforced by the state could be attributed to a great extent for the absence of ‘panic buying,’ a common feature in places elsewhere during epidemics or pandemics in Mizoram.

A particular noteworthy observation could be made with regards to the local task forces especially during the second extension of the lockdown period. The Central Government and state government, invoking the power conferred unto them by the Epidemic Diseases Act of 1897 and the Epidemic Diseases (Amendment) Ordinance, 2020, have provided certain laws, under which defaulters and law-breakers became punishable by monetary fines and even imprisonment. With regards to this, the Mizoram Government has further added another regulation that authorized the Chairman, Vice Chairman and Secretaries of each local task forces to impose monetary fines on anyone disobeying the rules. This is yet another new feature in the civil society-government nexus in the state.

Another important role and also controversial, in some cases, played by the local task forces has been in the enforcement of quarantine procedures. As per the state government guidelines, all residents travelling outside the state after the lockdown period are mandatorily required to be kept in government-provided quarantine centres or in self-isolation/self-quarantine within their own homes, if adequate and separate room is available. In this regard, it is up to the responsibility, yet again, of the local task forces to ensure that the self- quarantined individual strictly conform to the self-quarantine procedures during the quarantine period (It is interesting to note that while the government took charge of the quarantined in the government-provided quarantine facilities, not much is done by the government about self-quarantined individuals, apart from occasional visits by medical teams and magistrates. No security detailment has been provided unlike government-quarantined centres). In some isolated cases, local task forces often locked the entire family of a covid-19 suspected individual, providing their needs from outside, which created much controversies.

Local task forces also acted as liaison between the government authorities and the public. In each locality, public information centres are used by the local task force to announce and disseminate governmental declarations, issuing of updates, warnings, guidelines etc. Hence, they are the main source of information for the common people regarding covid-19 related informations.

Although, not a direct initiative of the local task forces, assisting the armed personnel along the international and state boundaries of Mizoram is where they have an indirect impact and contribution. Local task forces in border and near-border areas, particularly in Vairengte, Kanghmun, Zokhawthar, Tlabung etc have kept strict vigil round the clock to prevent any illegal cross border entry from outside the state. But, vigilance of border areas by the local task forces are normally confined to national highway entry points or other places within the confines of human habitation. However, with the initiative taken by the YMA, local task forces have been instrumental in protecting the length and breadth of the state’s international and state border areas, mainly through patrolling and setting up numerous camps in the wilderness.

One unanticipated role of the local task forces during this pandemic seems to be their efforts in checking illegal drug trafficking, smugglers and substance addicts. With entry points kept under strict vigilance by the state government and the local task forces, addicts have often tried to venture to neighboring states in search of drugs and drug smugglers now need to go to a great extent to smuggle drugs into the state. With most of vehicular and civilian movements restricted, these illegal smugglers and addicts are often unintentionally caught red handed by local task forces. As a result, apart from being a pandemic response force, local task forces have become an effective anti-drug squad in the state.

To conclude, local task forces have contributed immensely in the state’s response to and defence against the coronavirus pandemic. Well versed and well informed about the situations, people, needs and requirements of their respective localities, the local task forces proved to be a handy and effective ally of the state government in addressing the various difficulties and hardships caused by the pandemic. If not for the local task forces, maintenance of law and order as well as providing relief and assistance to the public, besides many other pandemic-related issues would severely drain manpower and financial resources of the state government. At the same time, lack of a standard operating procedure, a common procedure to be followed by the local task forces have often proved troublesome in some cases. Besides, without such common operational guidelines, local task forces statewide seemed to struggle to function as a cohesive and co-operative unit. Hence, this particular issue needs to be addressed promptly by the state government.