Dr. Luqman Ahmed Khan offered consultations to around 4,000 Covid patient and 2,000 other patients.
Dr. Luqman Khan
New Delhi :
An MBBS doctor in Telangana’s Karimnagar offered online consultation to thousands of Covid patients throughout the country during the recent lockdown. He also trained around 100 doctors for Telangana Covid Task Force.
Dr. Luqman Ahmed Khan, who is a specialist in social and family medicine and diagnosis, has provided consultation through direct Whatsapp Call, video consultation, writing the prescription online and sharing its soft copy. He has also been following up each case for 10 days with Covid-orientated diet and exercise to improvise post-Covid complications.
Khan, who provides online service through his personal contact number, received thousands of calls from all over India. He offered consultations to around 4,000 Covid patients and 2,000 other patients. Currently, he is receiving less requests of Covid patients and more of other ailments, a sign that cases of Covid have come down.
Khan also runs a YouTube channel named ‘Health Tube Dr. Luqman, for medical awareness.
Talking to Clarion India, Khan said he used to run a trust-based hospital for poor people in 2017-18. He later handed over the hospital to the trust and started his own clinic. When the first lockdown was declared in 2020, his clinic was shut down. He took to online consultation. When hospitals were overwhelmed with patients, he developed his own system of online consultation with the help of a task force at his disposal.
He observed that there are multiple reasons why people consult very late, even though with clear associated illness, such as
Some patients were so afraid to confront the disease (seeing the way pandemic caused deaths in hospitals) that they decided not to get properly diagnosed and instead went to quacks.
Some people still argue that corona is a conspiracy and not a disease to worry about
Some patients’ primary concern is their impoverished situation to get treated
Some people opted for some remedial medicines which guarantee treatment of corona without hospitalisation; I believe it’s not just a grave mockery of medicine and health system but a punishable offence especially in times of pandemic
source: http://www.clarionindia.net / Clarion India / Home> India / by Waquar Hussain, Clarion India / July 01st, 2021
Karnataka Beary Sahitya Academy has chosen nine persons with considerable achievements to their credit in their respective fields, for the honorary awards and honorary felicitations pertaining to the year 2021.
Harekala Hajabba has been chosen for his achievements in the field of Beary language and education sector. Hussain Katipalla, a famous singer, has been chosen for his contribution to the field of Beary art and literary fields. Dr E K A Siddique Addoor has been picked for enriching Beary culture and social service fields.
Honorary awards comprise Rs 50,000 cash component, felicitation, and award plaque.
Ashraf Apolo from Beary music sector, Dr K A Muneer Bava from Beary organizational sector, Mariam Fauzia B W, Beary woman achiever, Zulphi Beary from Beary Youth talent sector, Muhammed Basheer Ustad from Beary Duf field, Mohammed Faraz Ali from Beary young talent sector, have been selected for the Beary honorary felicitation. The felicitation comprises Rs 10,000 in cash, felicitation, and citation.
Academy president, Rahim Uchil, said that the awards function will be held at Shivamogga after fixing a date of the chief minister, Shivamogga district in-charge minister, and Kannada and culture department minister, after the Covid situation eases substantially.
source: http://www.daijiworld.com / DaijiWorld.com / Home> Karnataka / by Daijiworld Media News Network (SP) – June 30th, 2021
NSS programme officer Dr Rehana Sheikh said that due to the initiative of the students many people came forward for vaccination.
NSS volunteers of Bhartiya College present at the Corona Vaccination Centre along with villagers FP PHOTO
Ujjain:
During the Tika Utsav, the girl students of the NSS unit of the Bhartiya College spread awareness on Covid-19 vaccine among people in the rural and urban areas of the district.
They toured Kharsodkhurd, Lekoda, Javasia, to make people aware about the importance of vaccination and provided information about their nearest vaccine centre.
B Sc student Seema Sediwal said that we helped many people get rid of misconceptions about vaccination.
BA student Pooja Patel lead the residents of village Lekoda to the nearest vaccine centre.
B Com student Anjali Porwal told that people in the Mahakal Vanijya area said that they are waiting for the people around them to get vaccinated.
Porwal asked them to lead from the front, get vaccinated and then encourage people around them for getting jabs and contribute in the fight against corona.
NSS programme officer Dr Rehana Sheikh said that due to the initiative of the students many people came forward for vaccination.
source: http://www.freepressjournal.in / Free Press Journal / Home> Indore / by FP News Service / April 17th, 2021
Mujeeb (left) and Aslam share a laugh with locals along the highway | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
The two will cover a distance of 600-odd kilometres on foot, to raise money for children’s education
Ambling through the streets of Kozhikode, a visibly tired Aslam TP and his childhood friend Mujeeb Rahman are intercepted by an auto driver.
He wants to know where they are heading, and why they looked so drained. When Aslam tells him about the cause they are trying to raise money for, the auto driver promptly pulls out ₹100 from his pocket and hands it over.
In just seven days of their walk, Aslam and Mujeeb have been met with overwhelming tales of generosity, and as a result, 62% of their target amount (₹7 lakh) has been raised. They are covering a distance of 600-odd kilometres on foot, from Kasargod in Kerala to Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu, to raise money for children’s education in Kasargod for the Najath Educational and Charitable Society. With the amount raised, they will buy smartphones for online classes. “We walked from Vadakara to Kozhikode on Monday, covering around 49 kilometres, the longest stretch so far,” say Aslam over a call from Kozhikode, Kerala. A serial fund raiser, Aslam took up a similar challenge in Bali last year, where he cycled 397 kilometres to support the education of 45 Balinese children. Currently, he runs a company called Yourfitrip in Bali, which encourages fitness holidays. These include surfing, kayaking, volcano trekking… activities that have helped Aslam stay fit over the years.
He also runs a community called Cause is Life that connects blood donors to receivers. It kept him and his pan-India volunteers busy through the second wave of COVID-19. Just before the lockdown this year, Aslam was in Nagaland, setting up Yourfitrip there, running up hills and walking from one village to another meeting the locals.
“For this walk, Mujeeb and I trained in Kasargod, our hometown, walking 15 to 18 kilometres everyday. We are training our brain to know that we are good to go, even when we are tired,” he laughs. They prepare a chart, based on which their daily route is fixed. “We average about 30-35 kilometres a day. On somedays, it goes up to 45 to 48.”
They start walking at 6.30am and wind up for the night by 7pm. “In case of emergency, we have a backup car that stays 15 kilometres ahead of us,” he adds. They take the highway, spilling into Tamil Nadu from Nagercoil before heading to Kanyakumari. With everything functional in Kerala and food available for takeaway, things have so far been under control.
Aslam says he will complete the walk in 21 to 23 days. Though planned as a 21-day project, the end date is uncertain as they get enveloped by hospitality from people they come across. So far, the duo has been pleasantly surprised by receptions planned in their honour, invites for meals from strangers, and the willingness of people to contribute even if it means handing over the last penny in their pocket. At one of the villages, a group followed them in a car as they wanted to be part of this mission. “I want people to know that we are collectively strong and can do so many things to give others a better future,” he says as he and Mujeeb stretch, lunge and soldier on, with the rain for company.
For details, check out Aslam’s Instagram handle @aslucha
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Society / by Priyadarshini Paitandy / June 30th, 2021
When his friends were busy playing with toy guns, Mohammed Mubin Mallick was building robots like a pro. For Mubin, robotics was a passion that eventually became his profession.
From an amateur innovator to a global leader in robot solutions, 39-year-old Mubin has come a long way to earn a sobriquet of `Robotman’ of India and middle east. A native of Kolkata, he holds MBA degree from Cardiff University, United Kingdom.
Being the school captain, Mubin grew up as an achiever, bagging awards in various recreational activities like sports, dance, speech, etc. He continues to be an achiever even today. Recently, he received Agata Lo Tauro Special International Award 2020 and a certificate for being the Mentor for ROBOCON 2020.
Mubin ventured into digital solutions and robotics solutions with his IT service company `Kiran Smart’. Always on the lookout to cater to the market’s needs, he set out to innovate and take steps beyond what others already offered.
Since the time he realized that he had the power to think out-of-the-box and innovate, Mubin dreamt of building a company that he could run depending on his ideas. The cradle for his innovation comes from very munificent thoughts of wanting to create job opportunities and donating the profits. It is for this reason that Mubin doesn’t want to leave any stone unturned to make his firm a global leading light.
“Our company Kiran Smart is into IT Solutions and Services for the past 15 years. We have been looking for diversification in our business portfolio. We did diversification into Digital Transformation and then recently we launched and started Robotics and Artificial Intelligence. Our market research on Humanoid Service Robots indicated a considerable demand for Robots. Therefore, our company decided to launch a brand Called Mi-Robots,” he said.
The pandemic, however, came as a blessing in disguise for Mubin and his company. “One of our delivery Robots serving food in China in 2019 December to COVID 19 quarantine centre became breaking news around the world. This news around the world helped us gained the trust of the people,” he said.
It was in 2017 that he came across a humanoid robot. He invested time in GITEX technology and ultimately made his passion and childhood dream come true. Understanding the working of robots and offering solutions related to them is Mubin’s only focus now.
“To be very honest, there were many challenges which cannot be listed here. Apparently, the major aspect was the financial crunch. Firstly, it is very crucial to survive in the local market. Secondly, we need smart and loyal team members who can run the company,” he said.
Over the years, Mubin learned both professional and personal lives play a considerable role in making an achiever or a failure. According to him, success in personal lives has a direct and positive impact on professional lives.
“To overcome these challenges, we adopted different strategies like inviting investors locally and globally. Apart from in-house human resources, we tied up with international firms to induct more innovative people to work with us remotely. Finally, our satisfied customers are our revenue. We do the regular follow-ups and technology updates with our customers so that we can fulfill their needs as per their growing needs,” he said.
Mubin is dealing with different kinds of Robots. These include Delivery Robots for restaurant and hotels, Educational Robots for Schools, hospitality Robots for hotels, UVC Disinfection Robots for all, Spray Dry Mist Disinfection Robot, Humidifier Robots for Home and Office, and Robots for children.
“Robots have played a major role during the pandemic as they helped people tremendously. For example, Disinfection robots are used to disinfect the places and those robots are UVC Lights Robots and Dry Mist Spray Robots. Many robots are used to check the temperature of people. Robots are used in hospitals to carry hand sanitizer, masks, and gloves in hospitals, hotels, shopping malls, restaurants, and many places,” he said.
Even corporates are using to communicate with their remote employees so that managers and team leaders can stay focused on live meetings. “Many universities across the globe have launched courses for Robotics and Machine Learning. There is data supporting the popularity of Robot installation in restaurants, hotels, hospitals, warehouses, home delivery, and schools,” he said.
Headquartered in Kuwait, Mubin’s Robots are going places. From all GCC to Africa, UK, Canada, Mexico and few European countries, Mubin is trying to introduce technology for making the life of the common man easy.
“It is really difficult to define the demand or maximum interest was shown by any specific country in this future technology because most of the countries are working on all the innovative technologies to lead the world. So, according to me, I see South Korea, China, Japan, Singapore, Canada, and UAE from the Middle East. The global market for robots is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of around 26 percent to reach just under 210 billion U.S. dollars by 2025,” he said.
His company, `Kiran Smart’, is a reflection of Mubin’s achievements. It has been recognized as the Top Most Robotics Company of 2020. The firm also received awards from the Ministry of Awqaf as the Most Innovative Company. KISR honored Kiran Smart for being their Most Innovative Supporter in Science and Technology for their Children’s Exhibition.
His message for the youth who aspire to reach as far as he has is boosting, “Don’t give up even if you fail. Failure teaches you a lesson and makes you stronger. Accept the reality, believe in yourself, and try again! Caring for humanity and seeing a smile on people’s faces keeps us motivated in life. People should be thankful to God, respectful to their parents, and be humble,” he said.
*The author is a Bengaluru-based freelance journalist.
source: http://www.indiatomorrow.net / India Tomorrow / Home> Education> Featured / by Rashida Bakait / February 10th, 2021
Left Dr Jasna Jamal with family. Right Dr Shyam Vishwanathan
Abu Dhabi:
Two Ayurveda doctors, who are originally from India’s Kerala state and now based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), have received the Gulf nation’s coveted Golden Visa, according to a media report on Saturday.
A Golden Visa enables foreigners to live, work and study in the country without the need of a national sponsor and with 100 per cent ownership of their business on the UAE mainland.
They are issued for five or 10 years and are renewed automatically.
Both Shyam Vishwanathan Pillai and Jasna Jamal were granted the Golden Visas by the UAE’s Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship (ICA).
Vishwanathan, CEO of Vaidyashala at the Burjeel Day Surgery Centre in Abu Dhabi, received it under the medical professionals and doctors category on June 17, the Khaleej Times report said.
“My sincere gratitude to the rulers and policymakers of UAE for the kind support to Ayurveda and Ayurveda practitioners,” Shyam, from Kollam, told the newspaper.
“I truly appreciate their vision in integrating the Ayurveda for the wellbeing of UAE residents and at the same time keeping in place strong measures to ensure the quality delivery of Ayurveda practice,” he added.
Shyam came to Dubai in 2002.
A resident of Al Mamzar in Dubai, Jamal, from Thrissur, was given the Golden Visa on June 24.
She moved to the UAE 12 years ago soon after getting married.
With over 16 years of experience in Ayurveda, Jamal established her own Ayurveda clinic in Al Mamzar.
source: http://www.siasat.com / The Siasat Daily / Home> News> Middle East / by IANS/ June 26th, 2021
However, the Social Data Initiatives Forum (SDIF) of Hyderabad helped those from rural and tribal places of Telangana.
Khalid Saifullah, a member of SDIF (Photo/ANI) / aninews.in
Hyderabad:
Keeping in view the limited access of medical facilities in the rural and tribal parts of the society amid the COVID pandemic, a Hyderabad based non-profit organization (NGO) has combined both the fields of service and technology together to extend their help to those from inaccessible areas of the state.
While there are several NGOs and individuals who have stepped forward to do their part in the pandemic, most have limited themselves to the cities and urban establishments.
However, the Social Data Initiatives Forum (SDIF) of Hyderabad helped those from rural and tribal places of Telangana.
Speaking about the initiative, Mohammad Azam Khan, the Founder and Director of SDIF said that since the inception of the COVID-19 Pandemic, the organisation had been working at several hospitals and couldn’t help but notice that many people admitted in Hyderabad were from nearby rural areas.
“Looking at the condition of people from rural areas that came to Hyderabad in search of proper medical treatment but were unable to find a bed or Oxygen while their health deteriorated, we decided that medical assistance like oxygen should be provided to them at their place instead of them having to look for it in the cities,” he said.
Azam further mentioned that to achieve this, the NGO publicised their contact and helpline numbers and was able to set up Oxygen banks at several district headquarters and Government hospitals from where those who were in need could collect oxygen free of cost.
“To further speed up the supply of oxygen we requested the people to place a request of their requirement through the organisation’s website so that we can deliver oxygen to their doorstep,” he said. SDIF has recently started collaborating with several other NGOs of other states and at the district, levels to ensure support to the people from the rural backdrop.
Khalid Saifullah, a member of SDIF he mentioned that the organisation developed a digital program that interacts with the Application Programming Interface (API) of Twitter, which works on Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to identify tweets that have words like ‘Need Help, Oxygen’.
“Those people are contacted to cross-check the requirement and then we help them in receiving Oxygen from the nearest available source”, he added.
Khalid said, “During the peak days of the pandemic, there were about 150 to 200 requests; we ensured all requests were fulfilled.”
source: http://www.siasat.com / The Siasat Daily / Home> News> Hyderabad News / by ANI / posted by Sakina Fatima/ June 17th, 2021
Volunteers distributing food | Photo Credit: special arrangement
Mohd. Abdul Yousuf and his team of volunteers networked across the nation to help tackle the second wave of the pandemic
When Hyderabad-based Mohd. Abdul Yousuf, a fourth-year student of Symbiosis Law School in Hyderabad and his friends wanted to feed the needy hit by COVID-19, they could not afford to hire a chef at ₹1,200 per day to prepare a meal with 25 kilograms of rice. Undeterred, the boys watched cookery channels to learn to prepare it themselves. Now, the team of volunteers of Helping Humans Hyderabad founded by Abdul, packs 400 dinner boxes and distributes them at Tadbun, Charminar, Government Maternity Hospital in Afzal Gunj, Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station, Osmania General Hospital, Hyderabad Railway Station at Nampally, Public Gardens, MNJ̥ Cancer Hospital and Niloufer Hospital. “We make kaju, lemon and jeera rice and even made chicken biriyani sponsored by a friend,” says Abdul.
Mohd. Abdul Yousuf | Photo Credit: special arrangement
Helping Humans Hyderabad is among several voluntary organisations helmed by youngsters to verify leads, identify and share information on hospital resources and medical supplies to help tackle the second wave of the pandemic. However, Abdul’s organisation reached out beyond Hyderabad to Bengaluru, Gujarat, Delhi, Patna and Kerala as he networked from his contacts across India.
It started when Abdul posted a friend’s plasma request on his Instagram account. Buoyed by the response and backed by his associates: Lamya Hussaini, Molshree Totla and Ismail Zabiullah, he launched Helping Humans on April 16, his birthday, to amplify appeals for help. “We launched the page at 9 pm and at 1.30 am, we got a request for an oxygen cylinder,” he recalls.
Abdul and four core members of Helping Humans pooled ₹20,000 from their pockets to steer the network. With friends across India, he created a network of individuals to provide info from their cities; volunteers then verified the leads and updated the information on a Google spreadsheet. ‘If you are sitting idle at home, give your time to us,’ was their message on social media, inviting volunteers to be part of the initiative which had more than 200 members from across India. The office of Kavitha Kalvakuntla responded to their tweets for hospital resources; which not only helped in closing the requests, but also airlifting a passenger from Bihar to Hyderabad.
“Oxygen shortage was a major one during those dreadful two months,” shares Abdul, adding that his phone has not stopped ringing since April. Most of the 400 to 500 calls used to be for oxygen cylinders. The team purchased these cylinders for ₹60,000 from their own pockets. “Now the calls for cylinders have reduced to 50; and enquiries now are for oxygen concentrators.”
Abdul hopes to find more sponsors for their free food distribution programme. “We are glad we were able to make at least a small difference,” he concludes.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Society – Relief Work / by Neerja Murthy / Hyderabad – June 18th, 2021
A doting father and husband, a selfless community worker, our dear friend, and a beautiful human being,” is how one message circulating on social media remembers Tippu Adam Khan, a 42-year-old man who volunteered to help many people in different ways during this pandemic. He succumbed to COVID-19 on Friday. Tippu, a former Vice President at J.P. Morgan played an immense role as a community worker leaving a lasting impact on his family, friends, and even on people who had never met him.
Tippu, along with his friends, had set up ‘Oxygen Helpline‘, a volunteer network to help procure and supply oxygen cylinders for free to people in need across the city.
Humer Khan, who started ‘Oxygen Helpline’ with Tippu Adam Khan says they started the service after he saw the crippling health situation in the city and people dying due to shortage of oxygen supply.
The group has helped more than 500 people across the city so far to procure oxygen cylinders, besides educating people and rendering other assistance to patients.
“Tippu bhai was an inspiration to work with. He worked day and night to help people get oxygen cylinders. He had no fixed timings. You could find him on a call with volunteers at 3 in the night trying to procure cylinders. I have not seen another person like him,” he said.
Mohammed Kaif, co-founder of the NGO Small Appeal, and a friend of Tippu says, he was a relentless and an altruistic individual. Days before he was tested positive for COVID, Tippu had arranged for 9000 masks and dispatched them to Lakshadweep. “When he got to know that there was a rise in Covid cases in the islands, and there was a lack of essential medical supply. He jumped right into it and formed a team to procure medical supplies. He got in touch with people in each island in Lakshadweep to try to understand the needs of people there”.
But friends and associates of Tippu say his work goes beyond providing relief during the pandemic.
Abdullah Raj, a revert and a friend describes Tippu as a genuinely loving person, who was passionate about spreading the message of Islam to the world. “He would talk endlessly about Islam to people trying to clear their misconceptions about the faith”.
Raj said Tippu even left his job as a vice president at J.P. Morgan because it wasn’t complying with Islam, which prohibits interest-based banking. “He was committed to Islam, even at the cost of personal loss,” he said.
In an online condolence meet that was organized in Tippu’s memory on Friday by his friend Imtiaz Chowdhry, more than a hundred people gathered to share their memories of him. One friend Aslam, shared an incident of how Tippu had arranged for monthly groceries for a few widows when he heard that they had no one to support them. Aslam said the families wept when they heard of Tippu’s passing away.
From his children’s school teachers to colleagues, there were tens of people who shared their stories of how Tippu had touched their lives and had helped people. One friend mentioned that he was the grandson of Muslim Vellori (Mohammed Abdul Wahid Khan), a freedom fighter, and a prominent social activist of his time, who took part in many anti-colonial struggles and was jailed several times.
The meeting that was started at 11 pm went on till 2 am. His friends said they had to organize another online meeting the next day to accommodate those who couldn’t attend due to Zoom’s participant limitations.
Tippu was admitted to the city’s Shifa Hospital on June 8th, his brother Tippu Ahmed Khan said. But within days, his condition started worsening and his oxygen level started fluctuating. But even in the hospital bed, Tippu did not stop going out of his to help people in need.
“He was texting and calling people to arrange for oxygen cylinders for other patients when his own health was fast deteriorating,” his brother said.
He was put on ventilator on Friday and he passed away in the evening.
Ameen-E-Mudassar, a Covid warrior who started the Covid Helpline Bangalore website said, in his last message to him, Tippu said that he wanted to start a school, as he had seen many people unable to afford school fees during the pandemic.
“If I come back alive, I want you to work with me on a plan for a school,” he had messaged Ameen. He never came back.
For Tippu’s friends, his silent efforts to help people, without letting anyone know about it is an inspiration they say they would carry forward for the rest of their lives. In the online condolence meeting, one constant statement everyone made about him was how despite knowing him for years there were facets of his life they were not aware of. He had touched the lives of many people in so many ways.
His friends are now planning to bring up a biography of Tippu, highlighting his life and contributions. “It will serve as an inspiration to friends and family and it will serve as a memory to his young children on what a selfless and beautiful man their father was,” said Ameen.
Tippu is survived by his wife and three children.
source: http://www.thecognate.com / The Cognate / Home> News / by Shaik Zakeer Hussain / June 20th, 2021
Relief organizations of Hyderabad, run by Muslims, have come to the rescue of the state and offered help to fight the shortage of Oxygen.
A TCN Ground Report features some of them.
Amid a surge in Covid-19 cases in Hyderabad in the southern Indian state of Telangana and rise in deaths due to the virus, the severe shortage of oxygen, ventilators and beds in both the government and private-run hospitals exposed the shortfalls of the healthcare system of the state.
Reports said that many patients were turned away from the hospitals due to a shortage of beds and died in their homes. Those admitted to the hospitals died due to lack of oxygen supply and delay in oxygen tankers reaching them. This lead to hundreds of deaths in Hyderabad alone.
Reports also said that hospitals were overcharging Covid-19 patients. These factors contributed to many people choosing to opt for home treatment.
It was then that the relief organizations of the state, run by Muslims, came to the rescue and offered help to fight the shortage of Oxygen.
Talking to TwoCircles.net, Shiba Minai, an activist said, “I make at least 50 to 60 calls to get a bed for a patient”.
Shiba helps people by connecting them with groups, hospitals and organizations that have been helping patients with beds and oxygen facilities.
Shiba has been doing relief work since the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic by providing food for the homeless, migrants, poor people in the slums. She has also helped with the funeral services of the victims.
She said that a lot of people reach out to her during crisis time. To help these desperate families, she would seek financial help from friends and family members.
“I get calls from people who are unable to find a bed or oxygen if they are already in the hospital or are under home treatment. Then, I call up hospitals and once I get the right hospital, I then connect the patient or the attendant to that hospital,” she said.
Shiba said the work she does is exhausting. “Making several calls to hospitals that want to know how much can the patient be able to pay and meanwhile handling calls from attendants of patients is taxing,”.
Talking about an incident wherein a 45-year-old woman whose saturation levels dipped low and her family could not find a hospital with a bed, Shiba said that she tried her best but “the hospitals refused to admit her after coming to know that her oxygen levels were quite low and she had fewer chances of survival.”
The family of the patient roamed to 6 hospitals, who earlier had assured of the availability of bed refused to admit her once they saw the saturation levels. The woman was taken home where she later succumbed.
“I tried to help this lady from 9 p.m. till the wee hours of the morning when it was time for Suhoor (early morning meal during the Muslim month of Ramadan). Sadly, she could not be saved,” Shiba said in a sad tone.
Although Shiba has helped sixty persons with beds with oxygen facilities, what makes her sad is that the “number of patients who I could not help is higher than the ones I helped.”
Shiba is not alone in doing Covid-19 relief work. Like her, several organizations have helped Hyderabad overcome the Covid-19 crisis from the last year. This year too they have come forward to battle the oxygen shortage in the state.
‘Oxygen on Wheels’
Mohammed Asif Hussain Sohail, the chairperson of Sakina Foundation, who is popularly known as the ‘Hyderabad Hunger Warrior’ for feeding the hungry for more than 10 years, has been receiving close to 200 calls every day from patients who are being treated at home. He also gets calls from hospitals especially Osmania and Gandhi General Hospitals requesting him for oxygen facilities.
“The price of oxygen cylinders is quite high at Rs 30,000 and the cost of refilling has gone up to Rs 2500 which a common man cannot afford,” Sohail said.
Md Asif Hussain Sohail of Sakina Foundation
Sohail said that as hospitals are running out of oxygen and due to black marketing, he has to verify if the patient needs oxygen or not before helping.
“Sometimes, they don’t need oxygen and we have to counsel and advise them not to give in to their fear and explain to them that a needier person requires it more,” he explained.
Sohail claims that he has “spent more than Rs 10 lakhs from his pocket to buy cylinders and send them to the homes of the needy.”
“Every day, in Hyderabad itself, my Foundation has provided more than 200 free cylinders. We have reached out to at least 2000 people so far,” he said.
Oxygen on Wheels is another initiative of the Sakina Foundation. As part of this initiative, oxygen cylinders are provided to patients who are on their way to the city for treatment from their towns and villages.
“Many people were dying on the way to Hyderabad. Not being able to get proper treatment in their villages they would travel to advanced hospitals in the city. The patients would only be saved if they arrived on time and if the hospital had oxygen,” he said.
“I wanted to save lives so I came up with this idea to provide emergency oxygen cylinders on the highway,” Sohail said.
As soon as they receive an SOS call, his volunteers drive to the spot where the patient is and help him/her with the oxygen.
Sohail said that they have driven up to 200 kilometers to provide oxygen to a patient on the highway.
“Patients were coming not just from the districts of Telangana state but also from Bhopal, Maharashtra, Karnataka. We met them all on the highway and immediately helped them with the oxygen if their saturation levels were low,” Sohail said, adding, “Nearly 150 persons were helped on the highway.”
Sohail said that “love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries.” “Without it, humanity cannot survive,” he added.
700 people given oxygen aid by Helping Hand Foundation
With the oxygen crisis in the state, volunteers of the relief organization Helping Hand Foundation (HHF), headed by Mujtaba Aksari, have been at the forefront.
The group distributed a flyer with their contact numbers for people to seek help in cases of Covid-19 emergency. The group also provide help with giving decent funeral services to Covid-19 victims deaths irrespective of religion.
Mohammed Fareedullah, who heads the project told TwoCircles.net, “When we receive a call for help, our doctors consult them online and based on the doctor’s recommendation, if the patient needs oxygen, we advise the attendant to come to our godown and take the oxygen cylinder without paying any advance or rent.
A patient receiving oxygen help from HHF | Photo by HHF
Fareedullah said that the families of the patients just have “to pay the refilling charges.”
“The plant where we get the cylinders refilled have begun to charge double of what they used to charge earlier. But we charge the people a nominal amount,” he said.
“The cylinders provided by HHF are usually for home patients but if the patient develops complications and their saturation level drops despite the oxygen therapy then we help them reach the hospital where again our counsellors in the hospital help them with other needs. When the patient recovers and is discharged we ferry them home in HHF ambulances. If they do not recover the volunteers help the family with the last rites too,” explained Fareedullah.
Helping Hands Foundation owns about 15 ambulances which are free for all patients. The group has 100 cylinders and a luggage trolley to transport the cylinders to the houses of people who cannot come to their go down.
To date, HHF claims to have helped more than 700 people covering the entire old city and many other localities.
Humanity First Foundation: from feeding hungry to procuring Oxygen
Mohammed Shujatullah,founder of relief organization Humanity First Foundation has been feeding patients and their attendants at three government hospitals for the last 5 years.
One day when Shujatallah received a call requesting help with oxygen, he decided to buy cylinders and give them for free to patients and then refill the empty ones and help whoever needed them. “Prices had doubled for both the oxygen cylinders and for refilling but through donations to Humanity First, I continued helping people every day with the 110 cylinders we have,” he said.
Md Shujatullah of Humanity First Foundation checking oxygen cylinders | Photo by HFF
His organization has an ambulance, which carries the oxygen cylinders to hospitals and homes of patients.
In the month of Ramadan, Shujatallah said that his foundation received good donations and he managed to help as many people as was possible for him.
Patients at the gate of a hospital supported by SDIF | Picture: SDIF
‘Our motive to save lives keeps us going’
Another local initiative known as Social Data Initiative Forum (SDIF)founded by Azam Khan and Khalid Saifullah started oxygen services during the first wave of the pandemic with their stock of 15 cylinders.
During the second wave, as the oxygen crisis has only gone worse, the group has been adding to their stockpile of oxygen cylinders.
The founders said that they had to pay more than the normal price for both purchasing and refilling the cylinders.
“Our services are not restricted to just providing oxygen cylinders. We also set up an oxygen bank at Government notified Covid-19 hospitals where usually the poorest of the poor come to access health care. People from the rural parts come to Hyderabad with hopes of quality treatment and they face a lot of hurdles waiting to get admitted after already having travelled a long distance,” Azam Khan said.
“The waiting period at the hospital and the travel time further delays the process of the treatment, which is why we opted to help in the government hospitals,” he clarified.
In Gandhi Hospital alone, which is the largest Covid-19 hospital of Hyderabad, Azam Khan said they have “20 oxygen cylinders in circulation which are serving at least 400 patients per day.”
“This supply of oxygen is crucial to their recovery,” Khalid added.
Apart from the 20 cylinders, they have 100 more cylinders at the other two government-run Covid-19 hospitals of Hyderabad.
They said they have helped more than 100 people so far.
Azam Khan narrated an experience that made them realise the significance of their work.
The King Kothi Government hospital had requested SDIF to set up an oxygen bank.
“I felt we had to start the work immediately and even though it was Sunday, our team went to the hospital. As soon as we reached the hospital, we saw four dead bodies being carried away. We were told the hospital had run out of oxygen causing the death of these four persons. We immediately set up our oxygen cylinders. Later the doctors informed us that our timely help had saved three persons who were critical and would not have survived had we not reached on time. This experience both saddened us and also made us feel happy that we could at least save the lives of other three persons,” he said.
“Our motive to save lives keeps us going,” the duo said.
The SDIF is helped by two other charity organizations from Hyderabad namely Safa Baitul Maal and Access Foundation, who work in close collaboration with them.
Pre and post-Covid care given by Al Hamd Foundation
Al Hamd Foundation, a charitable trust that helps widows, students and the poor, took up Covid-19 relief operations during the last year’s lockdown.
Amid the ongoing second wave, the foundation is continuing with online consultations of patients with doctors.
When patients contact them online, they are connected to doctors who advise home treatment keeping in view the severe crunch in the hospitals and also the fact that many cases can be treated at home with proper medications and care.
Al Hamd Foundation Covid relief services
The foundation has provided home treatment to fifty-two patients, who had reported low oxygen levels.
The founder of Al Hamd Abdul Azeem Mohammed told TwoCircles.net that the treatment cost they incurred for each patient would have run up to Rs. 7 to 8 lakhs had they been treated in a hospital.
“The team of AL Hamd ensures that the patient does not panic and develops a strong will to fight the disease and survive. The team also helps with the oxygen cylinders, the medicines and regular monitoring by the doctor who visits the patient. At times when the patients are poor and the team notices that they need provisions apart from the medical assistance, Al Hamd provides the family members with rations as well,” Azeem said.
Al Hamd has given 300 oxygen cylinders and 6 oxygen concentrators to other organizations that are helping people affected with Covid-19.
They have four oxygen hubs and seven ambulances in Hyderabad-Secunderabad and a fifth one is coming up soon.
“We have ordered 25 oxygen concentrators from the UK which is likely to arrive by in the last week of May. Each oxygen concentrator of 5-6 litres costs around Rs 46,000. We have also ordered 5 C PAP machines that cure respiratory disorders. And since we are not a hospital, we intend to donate these C PAP machines to the hospitals where there are facilities to treat patient with respiratory disorders that are linked to Covid” explained Azeem.
“We also give post-Covid care by giving immunity-boosting drugs and foodstuff,” he added.
Al Hamd is run with funds from family and close friends.
50-bed oxygen therapy centre set up by Jamaat-e-Islami Hind
Well-known socio-religious organization Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) Telangana has also set up a 50-bed oxygen therapy centre in Wadi-e-Huda near Shaheen Nagar, Hyderabad. JIH’s sister concern Students Islamic Organisation (SIO) supports recycling the cylinders, rifling them, coordinating with other organisations for availability.
Post Script
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