How technology changed lives during COVID-19 lockdown

Today on March 24, the day when the COVID-induced national lockdown turns one year old, as I take a trip down the memory lanes, I realise how technology has played a pivotal role in our lives in the past one year.  

Before the first outbreak of the COVID-19 virus in China’s Wuhan, no one really knew that a deadly virus would drastically impact millions of lives across the globe and lead to an inevitable surge of various digital technologies. 

Having confined ourselves to the four walls of our home after the Prime Minister announced a 21-day national lockdown to break the chain of Covid-19 infections with a greater emphasis on social distancing measures last year, we all had a gloomy and apocalyptic vision of the future which looked uncertain. 

With the help of the technology, we started participating in virtual meetings, work from home became a new culture and we gradually became familiar with terms like “You are on mute” on Zoom, MS Teams and Skype meetings. 

However, this increased dependence on technology also led to unwanted stress as people were slowly getting used to the “new normal” as against the purported comfort of the conventional work from office culture.  

The situation saw people making adjustments as they dealt with issues like poor internet connectivity, power cuts, and, of course, a spike in app usage on mobile phones. 

The COVID-19 pandemic forced people to adopt internet and internet-based services to communicate, interact, and perform their official duties from home. It also brought a noticeable surge in the time people spent in watching content on various OTT platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime and Hotstar etc. This was obvious as more and more people relied on these OTT platforms for recreation after a hectic day. 

Like other sectors, the education sector too experienced a sea change and digital learning became a new trend. More teachers started taking online classes and several ed-tech start-ups like BYJU’s, Unacademy, upGrad, Vedantu flourished. 

Students as their parents were encouraged to adopt the online mode of education and they soon became familiar with Zoom video calls for receiving normal lectures and attending their exams online. 

Coming to the boom in the online gaming segment, the pandemic triggered exponential growth in online video games as the changing work-life patterns forced many to play online video games for relaxation. 

Several video games specially designed for children became hugely popular during these times, possibly due to lack of physical activity and the void created by the pandemic. 

The pandemic had a severe impact on human relationships since due to reduced physical contacts, people relied heavily on tech-fuelled diversions to stay in touch with their family and friends.  

Contrary to the tradition of visiting each other during festivals, people contacted each other through mobile phones and video calls, courtesy the lockdown and travel restrictions imposed during the pandemic. 

Physical interactions and social gatherings became impossible and people started utilizing technology to socialize with their near and dear ones. Virtual pub quizzes and live streaming of favourite sport became the new popcorn for people. 

Another segment that witnessed a major boom is the online retail market, for example, online grocery stores like Big Basket, Grofers, Biz Bazaar, Flipkart, Amazon, etc grew by leaps and bounds during the pandemic.  

Millions of families across the country chose to order groceries via online apps rather than visiting the nearby shops during the lockdown restrictions which further points to the role that the technology played during the pandemic. 

Big tech companies like Apple and Samsung resorted to online events for the launch, promotion, and sale of their flagship products and conducted webinars on Zoom calls and Google Meet. 

Even the banking sector was not untouched due to the pandemic and banks had to re-strategize to adapt to the new normal and brought in several online services for the customers. 

Looking at the health sector, online yoga and fitness sessions became very popular due to apps like Cure.fit and Fittr which brought in live workout sessions which helped fitness freaks to pursue their passion even during the lockdown. A lot of people purchased fitness equipment to exercise at home with the help of technology. 

As it is said that there are two faces of the coin, technology too can be an open-ended sword as we came across several instances of cybersecurity breaches during the pandemic.  

In the name of various sale offers made by the e-commerce platforms, hackers lured users by creating spurious links and there were phishing attacks that created a mess for these e-commerce companies. 

While there is no doubt that technology has become an integral part of our daily lives during the pandemic, it can be a boon if used wisely. But, at the same time, we need to understand that too much dependence on technology can also have a catastrophic impact on our health and general well-being.