The Azam campus masjid, which is one of the biggest in Pune, will be used as quarantine centre for Coronavirus COVID19 patients. The management of the mosque and Pune district administration has joined hands for the same.
Given the increasing prevalence of corona infection in the central suburbs of Pune, the management had indicated its readiness to hand over the premises of the Azam campus located in Camp area, which is adjacent to Bhavani Peth, Nana Peth, where most of the patients have been detected, to the administration for quarantine of suspected patients.
Dr PA Inamdar, president of Haji Gulam Mohammed Azam Education Trust, “After getting approval from the administration, we started preparation and have readied the floor. We will also provide food to people housed at the mosque. Corona is an international crisis and as a responsible citizen, we are ready to fulfil our duty as an organization in the government’s efforts to address it. It is time to lend our resources to the government.”
The management of Azam Campus had indicated its readiness to provide 9,000 square feet of space on the first floor of the place of worship with all electricity, fans, toilets and parking facilities. In a letter to the district collector, Inamdar said that he was ready to provide breakfast, meals, to the police and government officials as well as the patients.
There are 30 educational institutions of Maharashtra Cosmopolitan Education (MCE) society in Azam Campus and it is spread over 24 acres. One of them already has a mosque. The first floor of the mosque has a 9,000-square-foot hall-like floor. It can be converted into a quarantine ward. Schools and colleges in the educational buildings here are currently closed. The management is proposing to provide more space when needed, informed Dr Inamdar.
At present, 25 doctors of Unani Medical College on the campus and their five ambulances are serving patients in the central (Peth) areas of Pune. Also, Azam Campus has so far distributed groceries worth over Rs 25 lakh to the needy. Dr Inamdar has also appealed Muslims to perform prayers (namaz) at home without going to mosques during the holy month of Ramadan (Ramzan).
Azam Campus Masjid Pune
Due to the Coronavirus outbreak, all establishment including schools, colleges, shops, offices etc are closed across the country. Only essential commodities shops are allowed to function. In Pune, the number of Coronavirus positive patients has reached 800 and 56 of them have died while 122 have been cured till now.
source: http://www.punekarnews.in / Punekar News / Home> Pune / April 23rd, 2020
How an Assam lawyer became the source of reprieve for thousands of stranded migrants during the lockdown.
Guwahati :
A few days after the lockdown, when the plight of the stranded migrant first started making news, 27-year-old Aatifur Hussain remembered how some people from his village were in Haryana. An advocate from Assam’s Barpeta district, Hussain decided to give them a call. “They were panicking because they had run out of food,” recalls Hussain, who immediately touched base with a few local NGOs in Haryana. “They got their rations within 24 hours. The problem was solved.”
The next day, however, Hussain received another panic call from Noida. “I called up the local police station where the labourers were stuck, and they, too, received help,” says Hussain. Following that, the lawyer was suddenly receiving calls from all over the country — Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra etc. “Word had somehow spread that I was helping stranded migrant workers from Assam with rations.”
In the beginning, Hussain would meticulously note down details of each and every call in his diary, but now the pages have run out. “There were just too many calls,” says Hussain, “It was almost like I was a call centre.”
Hussain did not mind — two years back, after he passed his LLB exams, he began providing pro-bono services to people caught in legal citizenship battles in Assam. “I had started an NGO called ‘Insaaf’ to aid people who needed help with National Register of Citizens (NRC) hearings or had to face Foreigners’ Tribunals,” says Hussain. The latter referred to the quasi-judicial courts many in Assam have to defend their citizenship in.
In the first two weeks, Hussain’s ‘call centre’ provided at least 2,000 people with basic rations, but a month later, he has lost count. On his phone, contacts are saved as ‘Kerala’, ‘Noida’, ‘Mhr’ (Maharashtra) — “I don’t even remember their actual names now,” he says.
One of his very first beneficiaries was a man named Habejuddin, who was stuck in Ghaziabad, with about 200 people from Assam. “We got his number on Facebook ,” says Habejuddin, on the phone from Ghaziabad, “Someone had written that this was the man who had helped people in Gurgaon, so we took a chance and dialled his number. I do not know what exactly he did but we got rations the next day.”
Hussain says his job simply involved connecting the stranded to the “right people” — administration, police, NGOs or those who could amplify their distress on Facebook or Twitter. “The first thing I ask anyone who calls is how many people there are, their address, and I trace the police station nearest to them, and then make phone calls,” he says.
In the first two weeks, Hussain’s ‘call centre’ provided at least 2,000 people with basic rations but, a month later, he has lost count.
Over the last few weeks, Rahman’s role has changed too, as people’s requirements have. In mid-April, when the Assam government announced Rs 2,000 for those stranded, Rahman began teaching people how to apply for the aid. “Since many of these people are uneducated, they did not understand anything,” says Hussain, “I would explain to them that they have to give a missed call, click on the link, fill up a form etc.” Suresh Zaman, who is stranded in Maharashtra’s Pune district, said that is how many from their group availed the Rs 2,000 service. “Someone from Assam passed us his number,” says Zaman, who is still Maharashtra, “First, he helped us to get rations; later he was the one who told us about this scheme.”
Now, with the special shramik trains introduced, many are returning home. “They often call me agitated when they don’t have information about the trains. I try to give them as many details as possible,” he says, adding that he also ‘counsels’ people who are feeling low because of the lockdown. “I am used to this because I have helped a lot of people who had depression when they received notices from the Foreigners’ Tribunal,” he says.
Just last month, a man named Abdul, an Assam resident stranded in Arunachal Pradesh, reached out to Hussain, threatening to kill himself, if not brought back. “I was very sad as people told me I will never be able to go home,” says Abdul. On May 3, when the inter-state bus services started in the Northeast, Hussain put Abdul in touch with the authorities, who packed him off on a bus from Arunachal Pradesh.
“He used to call me 10 to 15 times a day,” says Hussain, “I have one sim but maybe it is now time to get two,” he says.
source: http://www.indianexpress.com / The Indian Express / Home> Facebook presents The Indian Express / Covid-19 stories of strength / by Tora Agarwala / May 20th, 2020
Burqa-clad volunteer wins praise for helping labourers at night in Hyderabad
Khalida Parveen has been in the forefront to help needy migrants during the lockdown in Hyderabad. / Image Credit: Supplied
Hyderabad:
A Muslim social activist in Hyderabad has earned kudos all around by quickly responding to an SOS from a woman BJP leader to save a stranded girl in Hyderabad.
Khalida Parveen, who is among individuals in the forefront to help the poor, needy and migrant workers during the lockdown, was the first to respond to a message from Linda Newmai, a national executive member of BJP’s tribal wing to help a girl from Manipur stranded without food in Hyderabad.
Though Newmai had tagged the state chief minister, a union minister and other officials, it was Khalid Parveen, working along with a handful of volunteers, who rushed to help the unnamed girl.
Linda Newmai had issued an appeal through Twitter for help but avoided publicly sharing the girl’s contact details. On receiving a positive response from Khalid Parveen she provided her the details enabling the good Samaritan to reach her with ration and other essentials.
As praise poured in for Khalid Parveen, who moves around in a burqa in the dead of night to spot needy migrant workers and provide them with food and water, Newmai sent her a message of thanks. “Thank you once again Didi (sister) Parveen @Kparveen2005 for your kind help to the distressed girl from Manipur. She is very happy now”.
“This Hindu Muslim card is for politicians. We activists see everybody as a human,” was how Khalida Parveen responded to the messages of thanks, adding that she was also available to any needy person irrespective of community and caste. “This is the teaching of Islam”.
Khalida Parveen is known for social service, especially among women in distress in Hyderabad, and was working tirelessly ever since the lockdown was imposed about two months ago.
She has served meals and dry ration to thousands of people, arranged shelter and also distributed masks to migrant labourers on the city streets.
Every night she takes a few volunteers in an SUV along with stocks of essentials to the points frequented by migrant labourers and provides them with food and water.
She waits at different entry points of Hyderabad – like Aramghar square, Medchal and Mehdipatnam – ready to provide relief.
Apart from providing food and water she also talks to each of them, listens to their stories and counsels them.
As day break approaches, she oversees the preparation of Sehri or predawn meals before the start of the day long fasting during Ramadan. She has been serving the Sehri every day since the start of Ramadan.
Khichdi Khatta, a favourite simple breakfast of Hyderabad, was on Sunday’s menu for the needy.
A group of migrants from Odisha had taken shelter at her place in the old city of Hyderabad and stayed with her till a transport facility was arranged to take them back home.
“There was a pregnant woman carrying a big bag on her head among them,” she said while recalling her interaction with a group of migrants at Mehdipatnam going towards Secunderabad. “I tried to arrange transport for them. But they were scared and did not stop”.
Terming the suffering of millions of migrant labourers across the country “a human disaster”, Khalida Parveen said that this was the result of an unplanned lockdown.
source: http://www.gulfnews.com / Gulf News / Home> Asia> India / by Mohammad Siddique, Correspondent / May 18th, 2020
Mumbai MFD Nikhat Ashraf Mohamedy has been offering home-cooked meals to underprivileged people during lockdown.
Maiñ akelā hī chalā thā jānib-e-manzil, magar log saath aate gae aur kārvāñ bantā gayā (I started a journey for the betterment of mankind alone but many people joined me and eventually it became a movement). By Mazrooh Sultanpuri, famous lyricist and poet.
This is what happened with Mumbai mutual fund distributor Nikhat Ashraf Mohamedy who started offering meals to those starving for food during lockdown and today many people have joined her in this noble cause.
It all started when Nikhat came across a child who did not eat food for two days. Nikhat took this child home and offered him homemade food. This episode made her realize that there must be many people around her vicinity starving for food due to the nationwide lockdown. She then started cooking food for 150 people on her own to distribute it among them.
Soon, her neighbour and friends joined her in this initiative and set up a group called Food-Ek Choti Si Asha (A ray of hope) to help people starving for food. Today, her group provides meal for 10,000 people every day.
Nikhat believes that it is her moral duty to take care of those who are less fortunate. “We have been providing food to daily wage earners as these people did not have money to arrange for food due to sudden lockdown.”
Today, 75 volunteers across the city work with Nikhat to ensure that nobody sleeps hungry.
You can help Nikhat by becoming a volunteer or making contribution to her group. You can contact her @9967322224.
source: http://www.cafemutual.com / CafeMutual / Home> Tarraki Corner / by Vidyut Deshpande / April 16th, 2020
A Hindu priest and a Muslim social worker have come together to promote harmony during times of polarisation and communal discord.
Mujtaba Hasan Askari with C.S. Rangarajan
Despite differences in their faith, culture, attire and, as some would see, calling, a Hindu priest and a Muslim social worker have been making a statement in humanity as they work together to foster love and goodwill. The polarisation they witness around them appears to be of no consequence to the duo.
C.S. Rangarajan, chief priest at the Chilkur Balaji Temple in the city, and Mujtaba Hasan Askari, of Helping Hand Foundation (HHF), have been working ceaselessly to give communal harmony a chance. They’ve been doing their best in promoting shared values and upholding the doctrine of ‘unity in diversity’ through well thought-out programmes.
“Our aim is to ensure that human values are placed above religion and faith. Humanity is the biggest religion,” they say in unison.
The divine intervention Both batch mates of the College of Engineering, Osmania University, Rangarajan and Askari quit their lucrative jobs at the peak of their career to bring about social change. While the former, a social reformer who wants to purge the society of caste-based prejudices, turned to spirituality and became the chief priest at the Chilkur Balaji Temple, the latter founded the NGO Helping Hand Foundation to serve humanity in his way.
Interestingly, what brought the duo together was a deaf Dalit woman named Kamalamma, who sells flowers at the Chilkur Temple. In 2018, she tied rakhi on Rangarajan’s wrist, but it would be much later that he learns about her handicap.
Rangarajan recounts how after he learnt of her deafness, with her rakhi on his wrist, he felt duty-bound to help the woman. He quickly took Kamalamma to the Gandhi Hospital in Hyderabad, where the ENT surgeon diagnosed her with profound hearing loss and recommended a hearing aid. The hearing aid, priced at `55,000, was expensive. The local newspaper reported the story, and as luck would have it, Askari read about it and got in touch with Rangarajan to let him know that his NGO would foot the bill. The hearing aid restored Kamalamma’s hearing. “There’s no doubt. Divine intervention has brought us together,” says Rangarajan, smiling. “God operates through human beings.”
Serving God through humanity Instead of parting ways after that incident, the good Samaritans stayed in touch. They met regularly to exchange ideas on the positive work they could do for a society caught in the whirlpool of political turmoil and religious polarisation.’
Then, sometime last year, Lucas — a Lallaguda-resident — approached Rangarajan, looking for support for his daughter’s education at the St Francis College, Begumpet. The priest immediately contacted Askari, who arranged the money from HHF. Here was a Muslim NGO reaching out to help a Christian girl on the recommendation of a Hindu priest.
Since then, the duo has been working closely to promote interfaith dialogue. Clearly, for the duo, humanity is an integral part of religion, while religion is a private thing. A few months ago, Rangarajan even visited the Masjid-e-Ishaq in the Old City, where HHF runs a primary healthcare centre. There, he addressed the community on the need for communal harmony.
Rangarajan and Askari plan to promote communal harmony in a visible manner, through social work and dialogue.
In fact, in the coming days, they intend to conduct health camps by Muslim doctors in some temples and by Hindu physicians in some mosques. The idea is simple-to make a difference through the work they do, and it’s heartening to watch just that restoring peaceful co-existence, one kind act at a time.
source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> Lifestyle & Trending / by J.S. Ifthekhar / January 23rd, 2020
Across India, Muslims have been as engaged in operations to help people worst affected by the crisis as anyone else.
People sit in Hyderabad as volunteers distribute relief material. Photo: PTI
By its very nature, hate destroys and tears down; by its very nature, love creates and builds up.”
– Martin Luther King Jr.
As India soldiers through its lockdown amid the COVID-19 crisis, it is clear that the devastation it has wrought on lives and livelihoods is unprecedented in living memory.
From living on the fringes of society to now struggling for survival, the lived reality of millions of Indians today is one of deprivation and desperation. Dominating the narrative is also a vile and hateful worldview that seeks to find opportunity in a humanitarian catastrophe, and reflects a willingness to advance a “nationalist” agenda, albeit at the cost of the nation.
Thankfully, the story of COVID-19 in India does not begin with deprivation and end in hate. An integral aspect of our collective situation today is that tragedy has engendered resolve, and for some noble souls, countering hate is an exercise in demonstrating love and compassion.
Initiatives across the country to provide relief to the most vulnerable segment of society reflect how civil society can make a difference even in the face of government inefficacy and ineptitude. Especially heartening is the work of organisations that are working to provide succour to all, regardless of religious or caste identities.
In Mumbai, “Food – Ek Chhoti Si Asha” is a broad community relief effort initiated by Nikhat Mohamedy, a Hijab-clad Muslim lady.
Now serving over 25,000 meals a day to the poor and destitute across the metropolitan city and far-flung suburbs, it all started with Mohamedy coming across a daily wage worker from the slums who had not eaten for two days. This led to her cooking food for 150 people in the vicinity of her home near Crawford Market.
The sheer extent of the need and Mohamedy’s passion for relieving hunger saw many more people join and contribute to the effort with their time and money. Today, the organisation has one main kitchen serving 15,000 meals a day and several “satellite kitchens” across the city serving an additional 10,000 to 15,000 people.
Volunteers, donors and beneficiaries come from every religious community and every sect. “This is about recognising the fact that we are all children of Adam and Eve, and feeding those brothers and sisters who are hungry and deprived is fundamental to expressing our humanity, ” says Mohamedy.
“For me, personally, this work is also an expression of my identity as a Muslim. Widespread prejudice against Muslims cannot be allowed to get in the way of serving all who are impacted by this crisis regardless of their religious identify or social status,” she adds.
Helping Hand Foundation, a nationwide NGO operating in the health sector is another organisation that has pivoted towards awareness campaigns and emergency assistance in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis.
A dedicated team of 100 volunteers including several ambulance drivers, nurses, paramedics, counsellors and patient care givers are working on a daily basis to reach out to areas where food and medical attention are urgently needed. This is in addition to awareness campaigns on social distancing and hygiene, in government hospitals as well as in slums, along with the efforts it takes in educating the masses on ways to safeguard their health at this time.
“We have been engaged in the mission to serve our fellow citizens even before COVID-19. The magnitude of the challenge facing our country and the sheer plight of those in need has only strengthened our resolve to do more,” says Mujtaba Askari, the organisation’s founder and trustee who is based in Hyderabad.
“As for the demonisation of Muslims, the antidote to hate can never be hate. It is love and compassion,” Askari adds.
Food packets to be distributed by the Helping Hand Foundation. Photo: Facebook
The phenomenon of individuals and organisations transcending religious differences to serve all is not limited to Muslims.
In Mumbai, a Bengali Welfare Association has reallocated the funds meant for Durga Puja celebrations towards COVID-19 relief efforts. From Gurdwaras to Buddhist monasteries hundreds of houses of worship of practically every religious community have recognised the existential nature of the crisis facing the country and the world, and have risen to the occasion by welcoming everyone who needs help.
The point of highlighting Muslims doing the same is not to take anything away from the magnanimity of these laudable efforts. In the current climate, however, of unending vitriol being poured on Muslims by some public figures and media outlets, there is something especially uplifting about so many Indian Muslims rising above anger and bitterness to stay focused on providing relief to fellow citizens.
Not only are Muslim-led efforts in various states working towards relief a common phenomenon, established nationwide organisations of Indian Muslims such as the Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) have a long track record of being in the forefront of relief efforts in the face of natural calamities. Their grassroots-based nationwide network is now being effectively leveraged to provide relief to Indians of every creed and caste, which the organisation plans to continue until the lockdown is in place.
Undoubtedly, the struggle to save India’s soul will be long and hard, and things will likely get worse before they get better.
However, it is the acts of kindness that so many people of every religious community are willing to extend to each other that keeps the hope alive for millions of Indians.
These acts already represent a triumph of pluralism over bigotry, and of compassion over cruelty.
Musaddique Thange is a project management professional based in the US. He has served as a board member of the Indian American Muslim Council and has been engaged in social services in San Diego, California for the last 10 years.
source: http://www.thewire.in / The Wire / Home> Analysis / by Musaddique Thange / April 27th, 2020
What do people like Jahanara Bibi, Zakir Hussain, Heera, Rebecca, Mansura, Reshma, Hassanujjaman, Akbar, Raju and Rahim have in common?
One, they all are residents of West Bengal; two, they are Muslim and three, immune to the communal strife reported all around, they have dedicated themselves to help the poor, the ignorant and the needy in these times of Covid-19 irrespective of their communal identity.
Some of them are making masks and distributing these free of cost among poor people who cannot afford to buy them, creating awareness in their respective neighbourhoods about the need for wearing masks, maintaining social distancing and staying indoors during the lockdown. They live in neighbourhoods in extended Kolkata where the majority is Muslim but Hindus live here too and there does not seem any communal strife raising its head here.
According to Arunakshya Bhattacharya of the Anandbazar Patrika (May 4, 2020), Jahanara Bibi, a housewife, who lives in the neighbourhood of Duttapukur Police Station, happened to chance upon a group of children moving about without masks during the lockdown. So, she asked them why they were not wearing masks. They chorused that they did not have the means to buy masks. She at once made up her mind to make masks herself at home with leftover pieces of cloth and distribute these for free among poor children. She personally distributed these masks to different localities in the neighbourhood. To end this happy story, her husband, Zakir Hussain, has joined her in this effort.
Explaining what motivated her, Jahanara says, “I know that people in these outskirts and suburbs areas are not aware of the importance of wearing masks and the ill effects of not wearing them. There are many who cannot afford to buy masks or know to make them, So, I took it upon myself not to make masks but also to visit homes from door to door and distribute the masks and also, if possible, to explain the importance of wearing masks when stepping out.”
Happily, other women of the community such as Heera, Rebecca and Mansura are distributing masks across neighbourhoods like Jagulia, Duttapukur, Golabadi, etc from one house to the next and also selling some masks to those who can pay.
Aamdanga is a neighbourhood crowded with people of the minority community. The same applies to Hadipur and Gorpara in Deganga. A group of women from the minority community noticed that the residents of these places were crowding needlessly in some areas, in violation of the rules of social distancing. Some were even seen chit-chatting at small tea shops.
A group of Muslim women took it upon themselves to form small groups and visit these crowded areas and counsel the locals against crowding needlessly and advising them to stay home. Reshma Tarafdar, a college student, went from door to door to advise them to stay at home and not step out during the lockdown. Some among these groups are also helping out in the distribution of free food among the poor and the very poor.
Hassanujjaman Choudhury, a young man who lives in Noornagar within Deganga, has invented an original “Food ATM” machine which carries the label “Please maintain social distancing” on its body. The very poor who cannot afford their daily meals are handed a metal token with the picture of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. They have to slip this token into a slot in the machine and at once, two packets of rice, potatoes, onions, soyabean and oil come out. Others involved in similar volunteer work are Akbar, Raju and Rahim who have vowed to stand beside the deprived and the downtrodden in these dark days.
These incidents come in the wake of the story of Abdul Rehman Sheikh, 30, a businessman, who, along with other Muslim neighbours, came to the aid of the sons of Draupadi Bai Verma when her sister refused to take care of her as she suspected the old woman of being a Covid-19 patient. No one was there to take her to a hospital and she died the following day. This happened in the beginning of April this year.
She lived with one son who is very poor while the other was away and could not come down when the mother was serious. They were very poor. The neighbours refused to even touch the body leave alone joining to help in the funeral rites. At this juncture, Sheikh brought ten Muslim men and came forward to arrange the cremation of the lady by Hindu rites both physically and financially.
This happened in South Toda in Indore. The old woman was suffering from paralysis for three months. According to Sheikh, her sister’s sons, who live just 100 metres away refused to step inside the house. “If she was taken to a hospital the same day, she probably wouldn’t have died,” said Sheikh. the 10 men, along with her two sons and their children, took out the procession to the cremation ground around a kilometre away.
Man-made schisms within two communities do not exist except when politicians try to ignite them for their own axe-grinding motives irrespective of the degree and intensity of the harm this igniting of hate can fall on the harmony and secular feelings the present situation demands. These are just a few examples that illustrate how Kolkata and its suburbs are being witness to the wonderful effort being put in by women of the minority community in volunteering to help people in distress, specially the economically deprived classes, with their help, without thinking about how their exposure in the public domain might place them at risk.
According to a Reuters Report in The Japan Times,(April 20, 2020), “There is no official breakdown of coronavirus cases by religion. But many Muslims feel unfairly blamed for spreading the disease after a cluster emerged at a gathering of Muslim missionaries in New Delhi last month. Sensational news coverage about the event, fanned by some Hindu nationalist politicians, helped spur the trending topic “Coronajihad” on social media.
source: http://www.thecitizen.in / The Citizen / Home / By Shoma A. Chatterji / West Bengal / May 06th, 2020
Every day at 9.00 am, three trucks loaded with ration kits leaves Khan’s godown to distribute ration kits to the villagers. These vehicles have essential pass provided by the local administration.
Narsulla Khan has supplied over 21,000 ration kits. (Express Photo)
A 40-year-old businessman from Valsad district has spent Rs 1.10 crore in more than a month to distribute ration kits to poor families in 35 villages in the district. Narsulla Khan who runs an electric panel manufacturing unit in Vapi GIDC has till date supplied over 21,000 ration kits.
Khan, a resident of Dungri falia in Vapi, began distributing the kits on March 27. He created a team of 70 people which included sarpanch of the 35 villages. Khan procured grocery items from wholesale traders in Valsad, Vapi, Navsari and Surat and the team helped put together the kits.
Every day at 9.00 am, three trucks loaded with ration kits leaves Khan’s godown to distribute ration kits to the villagers. These vehicles have essential pass provided by the local administration.
The kit comprises 10 kg rice, 5 kg wheat flour, 2 kg Tuver daal, 3 kg potato, 3 kg onion, 1 kg oil and 1 kg salt.
“The sarpanches and the team have the list of people who need help. So far we have covered or 35 villages and delivered 21,000 kits. I know what it feels like to sleep empty stomach. My father worked very hard to provide for us. By God’s grace, we have enough now. SO, I thought why not help the poor people during lockdown,” Khan said.
“We will continue supplying kits till the lockdown is lifted. The district administrations and even the police of Vapi have our numbers and they call us whenever anybody needs help,” he added.
Vapi taluka Mota Ponda village sarpanch Dhriubhai Ahir said, “The group helps whenever the delivery truck gets stuck anywhere or stopped by the police. Khan does not go out to deliver kits, it is distributed by his volunteers and sarpanches.”
source: http://www.indianexpress.com / The Indian Express / Home> India / by Kamaal Saiyed / Surat – May 01st, 2020
They load their vehicles with rice, pulses and spices as also medicines and hygiene kits for distribution in these villages, just 50km from Bengaluru.
Bengaluru :
Siddanapalya and Chinnaiahnapalya—two backward villages in Anekal taluk of Bengaluru Rural district—daily see a band of youngsters come there and give them gyaan on coronavirus and provide essentials.Murali Prabhas, a young startup entrepreneur, and three other fellow engineers, Thasneem Fathima, Sushmitha Singh and R Nisha, trudge every day from Whitefield to Anekal to provide succour to these affected villages due to the lockdown. Another member is Dr Raj Kumar who is busy with his medical duties but contributes to their volunteering programme in kind and cash.
They load their vehicles with rice, pulses and spices as also medicines and hygiene kits for distribution in these villages, just 50km from Bengaluru. The group tries to create awareness about the deadly Covid-19 disease and the need to maintain personal hygiene – hand washing and social distancing. However, it is easier said than done as the professionals from Bengaluru say the attention span of people is just five minutes when one talks about coronavirus and its deadly effect while the attraction for food and hygiene kits is more.
The ‘Humanity First’ group has been involved in social work for the last five years and they say the present work has not been easy as the villages with a population of 1,000-1,200 are completely unaware of what is happening in the world. Murali says, “None of them adheres to any rules of the national lockdown. As far as social distancing is concerned, it is an alien concept for them.”
Members of Humanity First distribute food at a village in Anekal taluk | Express
Presently, this group has been preparing food like pulao/tomato bhath/bisibele bhath/puliyogire at the villages itself as any packed food is not welcome here. The day’s menu is prepared taking help from a select band of 10 villagers while the vegetables are purchased from the farmers here. This makes it easy for the group to deal with them as they are highly suspicious, says a group member. “Only 4-5 of us go every day as we have to maintain social distancing. The villagers crowd around us as soon as we reach.”
Food is such an attraction that some residents bring vessels instead of plates. “We have been teaching them how to wash hands, wear masks and keep a distance of 12 feet from one another. For them, the kit is a big attraction apart from the food and within 5 minutes, we have to teach them about hygiene.”
The hygiene kit comprises a bottle of sanitiser, mask, bath and washing soaps, sanitary pads, shampoo and a strip of Dolo 650 – a paracetamol. Every day, kits worth Rs 12,000 are distributed to children who are above 14 years. For food preparation, they spend about Rs 6,000 per day.The group is managing this work from its own savings and small donations from their friends and relatives while one of the members brings his vehicle for distribution work.
In these villages, one can find migrant labourers from UP, Bihar and Odisha who work in the nearby iron and steel fabrication units, garment factories and a pharmaceutical company. Since the units are closed, the migrants have been managing with free rations from the government. For the migrants, these are hard times and even a single food item that they get from these youngsters is welcome.
The Humanity First has tied up with a women’s group who are making sanitisers and masks and they are helping them to market 2,000 masks and 10 litres of sanitiser.For this dedicated group of youngsters, it is with a prayer on their lips that they go to these villages to do their bit. “People await our arrival every day and we cannot miss it even for one day in such harsh times,” they say.
Service their motto
From 2014 onwards, Murali Prabhas has done a lot of backend work for charity trusts and Rotary. He and his friends built four washrooms for the Divine Blind School in 2016. After his visit to a school in Kolar district where children were wearing torn uniforms, Murali and his friends decided to take up social work and adopted two slums between Kadugodi and Whitefield in Bengaluru. For three years, they taught science and mathematics and distributed textbooks to Class 10 children in the slums.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Meera Bharadwaj / Express News Service / April 26th, 2020
Mohammadpur Village (Chintamani Taluk) / Kolar, KARNATAKA :
When Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the nation-wide lockdown to contain COVID-19 from March 25, brothers Tajamul and Muzamil Pasha in Kolar took an exceptional step. They sold a 30*40 plot of land they owned in the town.
This was not to meet their financial needs in times of crisis. But to support those who had lost their livelihoods owing to the lockdown.
The two brothers, who live in the Housing Board colony of Kolar, raised Rs 25 lakh from the sale. The money was used to purchase groceries and other essentials for the underprivileged.
“Isolation is key in the fight against COVID-19. Poor people venture outside if they don’t get food. The ideal way to keep them inside their houses is by supplying groceries and food at their doorstep,” Tajamul Pasha told DH.
The Pashas hail from Mohammadpur village in Chintamani taluk in Chikkaballapur district. Tajamul was an eight-year-old and Muzamil, just five, when their parents passed away. Soon after, they relocated to Kolar with their grandmother.
Compelled to earn their livelihood, they had to discontinue studies after Class IV.
“A kind-hearted man gave us a house near the masjid in Gauripet. Hindus, Muslims, a Sikh family and several others gave us food those days. Religion and caste were never a barrier. What brought us together was humanity and we are now attending the call of humanity,” Tajamul says.
“Those days taught us the value of food. This childhood experience drove us to serve the poor till the lockdown ends,” he adds.
Community initiative
After raising Rs 25 lakh, the brothers tapped into a close network of friends, which includes members from all communities, to start the relief work. First, they bought groceries in bulk and stored them at their residence. Ration packets containing essential items: 10 kg rice, 1 kg all-purpose flour, 2 kg wheat, 1 kg sugar, edible oil, tea powder, spice powders, a bottle of hand sanitiser and face masks were prepared.
Then, they erected a tent in an open space next to their house and set up a community kitchen to serve food to those who can’t cook meals in their houses.
The volunteers have also been given passes by the police, so they can make deliveries of the essential items on their bikes.
They sourced information about those in need of help by visiting the localities themselves and seeking details from the locals and elected representatives.
Their main aim is to ensure that each member of the family receives three meals a day.
So far, the Pashas have delivered free groceries to over 2,800 families, covering some 12,000 people. They have also served food to over 2,000 people. Now, the brothers are working with other like-minded people to continue serving those in need.
“I didn’t know that the government would extend the lockdown. I have done my best, using resources the God has given me. I plan to continue to serve the needy till the lockdown ends,” Tajamul says.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Specials / by Jagadish Angadi / April 22nd, 2020
