Time for a testing strategy

Private sector must also step up and contribute to effort

Re-opening the economy without having controlled the spread of the novel coronavirus was always going to be a gamble — albeit one that India cannot afford to lose. Ideally, a country should achieve such control through lockdowns, border closures, and contact tracing prior to re-opening. This is what has been achieved by some countries in Oceania and Europe, which have the advantage of being considerably smaller and better off than India. In this country, the government has clearly decided to go with another strategy, given that re-opening was determined to be necessary. But the only other alternative strategy available is