How The Pandemic Shifted The Most Important Things Online

ByAabidaha Shaikh

It is not a matter of debate that no other event in modern history has had such far-reaching repercussions as the Coronavirus pandemic. Almost overnight, it changed the way the world functioned, altering our patterns of work, study and recreation. It caused millions  of deaths worldwide, made healthcare systems and economies collapse, and pervaded our general sense of wellbeing and comfort.

However, mankind is nothing if not resilient. Even as things seemed to be at their bleakest, we came up with ways to cope, and cope well. A lot of it was down to the presence of the Internet in our lives, which helped us stay connected with our families and friends, get information about the world, and even carry out our work and official duties. In fact, a lot of the world as we knew it shifted focus to the digital space, since the offline space was suddenly out of bounds. Some things continue to function and flourish in the online space even today.

From taking instant personal loans to buying everyday essentials, the following things in our daily lives are now online:

  • Office work from home

There was a time when working from home was an occasional thing all of us did. You would take a day off to work from home if you were slightly under the weather, or if you had a presentation to work on that required you to stay alone and focus. But ever since the Coronavirus pandemic struck the world, WFH (Work From Home) became an official term in your lexicon. Today, a majority of the working population in India continues to conduct its office from their homes, even though workplaces are slowly opening after the dreaded second wave has ebbed. The WFH model has now become  commonplace for us all, that it feels strange to venture to the office even for a few hours. What was once a rare occurrence is today’s new normal.

  • Grocery shopping

Though most of us like to shop for things online, a vast majority of Indians prefer to buy their groceries in brick-and-mortar stores. Traditionally, Indians like to buy groceries after seeing and touching them, and mistrust online grocery stores even if they offer  excellent deals. However, this fundamental shopping ethos changed overnight when COVID-19 struck. With even essential commodity shops not being allowed to remain open as always and social distancing becoming the prevalent norm, long snaking lines outside grocery and pharmacy stores soon dwindled as people began to shop online. Online grocery shopping was much safer and more convenient, even as online grocery giants ensured timely delivery and sufficient inventory even during lockdowns across cities. From the daily quota of milk to medicines for the elderly in the home, everything began to be purchased online from the comfort of one’s home. This is a practice that continues in most homes today even as lockdown restrictions have been eased in many places.

  • Personal finance

Though we were all confined to our homes and forced to follow a WFH model, life still went on. This meant making loan repayments (after the August 31, 2020 moratorium was lifted by the RBI), financing children’s education, paying bills, buying groceries, etc. Some people faced salary cuts and had a tough time making insurance and loan payments. The pandemic era saw a dramatic rise in the number of people applying for short term instant personal loans. However, instead of approaching banks, they applied to online loan apps. Even as reputed online loan apps extended easy loans to salaried individuals, a lot of fake and unregistered apps also arose during this time. Thanks to a massive crackdown by investigation and financial agencies in India, these unscrupulous apps have now been weeded out. What hasn’t changed, however, is people’s enthusiasm for borrowing personal loans online from leading loan apps, for the ease and simplicity that they offer.

  • Entertainment

Forced to stay home and amuse themselves, people started watching content on OTT platforms in their spare time. OTT platforms saw a massive spike in viewership, spurred on by people finding themselves with more time to watch shows and films, a stoppage of film and TV show shoots which curtailed TV transmission, and theatres remaining shut to the public. Old shows were dredged out for fresh viewing, while just-released shows saw a huge jump in audience numbers. OTT platforms were quick to include more news and sporting action as part of their product offerings. Today, the habit of consuming entertainment and infotainment online continues across millions of Indian homes.

  • Upskilling

Before Coronavirus became an integral part of our lives, most of us liked to attend fun classes over the weekend to learn things as eclectic as mixology or generic as painting for beginners. Others went on weekend treks and runs, and still others took short term courses for professional development. The Coronavirus changed everything, but people still continued to learn and upgrade their skills during the pandemic. With everybody confined to their homes, companies and entrepreneurs began offering classes online across different subjects. Webinars and online workshops became a routine occurrence. Even hitherto unheard of concepts like ‘virtual runs’ and online workout sessions became part of the New Normal.

Conclusion

The pandemic has, perhaps irretrievably, changed the way we function and perceive the world. Most of us took a lot for granted, from our careers to the state of our bodies and finances, in the pre-COVID era.,? we’ve also discovered the power and utility of the online medium, and how it has helped ease our lives even during the most testing times.