The 24-year-old woman who returned home from hospital on Tuesday after being cured of Covid-19 is shocked at the blatant disregard for social distancing norms in her locality and elsewhere.

The resident of Habra, in North 24-Parganas, who had tested positive for the coronavirus after returning from Scotland earlier this month, said on Wednesday that everyone must stay indoors and step out only when it was an absolute necessity.

“None of you has gone through the agony of being tested positive for the coronavirus and then staying in isolation with the virus in your body,” the woman, who studies business administration at Edinburgh, told The Telegraph.

“That feeling when you first get to know that the test results are positive... it’s quite difficult. Most of us have no clue how fast this virus can spread and affect how many people,” she said.

“I can say from experience. When I was carrying the virus, doctors told me it would spread from every point that I touched. Every point. Aar saamney jodi keu thaakey without protection, tahole saathey saathey dhorey nebey (If someone is near me without any protective gear, he or she will immediately contract the virus). That is why it is so important to maintain distance among ourselves and clean our hands with sanitiser.”

At markets in some parts of Calcutta, people are violating social distancing norms in the morning. At Maniktala, Bagmari, Behala, Jadavpur and some other markets, people standing cheek by jowl in front of shops or makeshift stalls is a common sight.

This despite chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s repeated appeals to all to maintain social distancing. The chief minister had even drawn circles at Posta and Taltala to make people realise the distance they need to keep among themselves while queueing up for goods.

The tendency to violate social distancing is pronounced in districts, too, including in North and South 24-Parganas.

People turning up at markets and ration shops stand in close proximity despite instructions by police to keep distance.

“I watched buyers in the market near my home from my widow and was shocked. People stood beside each other chatting away, as if it was just another morning,” the woman from Habra said.

“Ei virus tar sommonddhey aapnader kono dharona nei. Aami jani eta ki. (You all have no idea about this virus. I know what it is)....

“Most people are thinking the virus has not yet infected any of their family members and they are safe. The virus is so powerful. It spreads really fast and therefore this lockdown and the advice to wash hands regularly.”

Since returning home on Tuesday, she has been flooded with congratulatory calls, half of them from unknown people.

Over the past 24 hours, among many she has spoken to includes officers from the local police station. She requested them to deploy more cops to enforce social distancing.

The woman had reached Calcutta from Scotland via Mumbai on March 19. Since she was running a temperature, health officials at the airport referred her to the Infectious Diseases and Beleghata General Hospital.

The same evening, she was at the isolation ward of the hospital.

Over the next 14 days, doctors would counsel her daily so that she didn’t slip into depression.