Table 3:

Discussion themes and quotes from respondents (translated into English from regional language)

Discussion themes	Respondents’ quotes
Factual awareness of COVID-19/Coronavirus (knowledge of the pandemic)	Quotes from respondents ‘I know that it has come from China (“chin se aya hai”)’ ‘When you stay in the dirt, it spreads’. ‘It is spreading everywhere—Wash your hands every time with soap—Don’t let outsiders inside the house. Don’t go out often’. ‘Breathing problem… - Chest pain—Cough—Sardi (Cold), fever, body ache’. ‘I have heard more people are dying now, - One who is going to the hospital is never returning—There are so many patients in the nearby hospital. - It is overflowing with’. ‘Nobody in my locality has got it. I have not seen it happen. Therefore, I cannot understand. People say many things about the disease. Such as loss of appetite. Throat pain, etc. but I do not know’. ‘The disease causes many problems. Many problems outside. - You cannot go out. You have to stay at home. - Sometimes you get food other times you don’t food and water is an issue’. ‘Body becomes red. - Eyes water. Nose water. The body gets hot. Throat problem. Breathing problems’. ‘Government only (sic) is sending it as it is coming on the name of Pradhan Mantri (Prime Minister). It says the Pradhan Mantri is doing it for you, such as the Pradhan Mantri for 3 months (free) is giving ration, wheat, - we didn’t really get all the facilities—We used to get 2rupees/kg wheat now we got the wheat for free’. ‘If we cannot be careful. What can one person do? anything? Is the govt capable of taking note of everyone? Nobody knows how many people will die’. ‘Government, what do I say. There is a war. With China. Corona they only started. Therefore, they are killing. People got killed’ ‘I hear that it is scary when someone gets cold, snitching or fever because it is symptom of Corona’. ‘I heard that people died. I use Mask, hand wash. Try to stay safe. Keep safe distance from the people. Change Sari if go to outside then start work’.
Information conduit/channel utilized for COVID-19 awareness	’WhatsApp mei (in Whatsapp) people give right. No, I have never heard (Aarogya Setu)’. ‘It is told everyday, on news’. ‘News, tv, WhatsApp, they inform’. ‘This information is spreading everywhere. I work (as a domestic help) in the houses, the madams tell me. The madams tell about the spread of coronavirus and about taking precautions’. ‘There are many messages, stay safe from coronavirus. It is dangerous, there are no medicine for it’. ‘Yes, on my phone many SMS I get. No, I don’t know, as I don’t know the number (of governmental agencies)’. ‘In the lockdown, we used to see TV only, the news, - Foreign countries (bahar desho), the conditions are really bad’. ‘ (telephone messages) It only states … “stay safe from coronavirus”. - I don’t understand mostly…it is too fast’. ‘No. I do not know. They haven't told me anything. - In my workplace, there is a kid. Who told me about foreign countries. - He told me to be careful. He asked for my account no. - Do not go out from home’. ‘No I don’t quite know. Cause I can't see SMS by myself. I wouldn’t be able to understand’. ‘We got to know everything from news only, that’s all we know. - We take bath with soap and shampoo. - If we go out at all, we don’t enter the house, we take a bath in the well (kuoo) and then we enter. - We wash everything and then enter the house’. ‘Seen it on the television in the news’. ‘TV displayed. When I call, they inform about the coronavirus’. ‘TV, I can see it on the television on the news’. ‘Just news on the TV. - We don't go out anymore. After lockdown. We don’t out anymore’. ‘We got information from news about fever, cold, pain in foot and hands and other symptoms of COVID. Otherwise, how would we know?’ ‘We got news from Samachar (news channels) only during lockdown’.
Socio-economic distress (community and individual)	‘We did not get any money on the bank account only the people with Jan Dhan account got 500 rs in their account’. ‘So many people kid, big (elder) people are walking (on feet) for hours on the road, in the hot sun, without food, without water. They have not reached home for many days. Interviewer: So they are the shramik (worker) people’. ‘…the PM said to make them stay there, at their current location. Give them food and location to stay’. ‘Lockdown is there. Nothing is being done. No medicine. Its danger’. ‘No, we have to go but only the ration card benefit we got. - Other than this we got no other help’. ‘We have to physically go to the ration shop and collect the samaan (groceries), it is crowded, but what to do! The government never came to our doorstep to deliver food. We got no help from them (meaning the government)’. ‘We get wheat for ration. Not just lockdown, we get it regularly. We got it from ___ Even ___got it’. ‘Nothing reached our home. Government promised lots of things but did very little. If some leader was kind enough they came to us. The government stuffs never reached to us’.