Azhar says he was poor himself when he started the initiative. He is still working from Hyderabad because he feels that hunger has swelled after the lockdown.
Azhar Maqsusi, a social activist from the city, whose initiative ‘Hunger Has No Religion’ by Sani Welfare Foundation feeds about 1,500 people every day in five cities across the country was granted the United Kingdoms Commonwealth Points of Light Award recently. The award recognises outstanding individual volunteers – people who are making a change in their community.
“Azhar’s contribution to society is incredible and has meant the difference between a meal or no meal for millions. There are many similar missions of selfless sacrifice and service, some emerging as a result of the pandemic, but the powerful ‘Hunger has no Religion’ has run for eight years, reaching the most vulnerable and delivering a powerful underlying message to all. I cannot be happier for him and members of the Sani Welfare Foundation,” said Dr Andrew Fleming, British Deputy High Commissioner, Hyderabad.
“I am thankful that I have been chosen by the almighty to feed people. I have fed the poor for 10 years now and will continue this until hunger is eradicated,” Maqsusi said. “I am also thankful for the support of my family, friends and others who have recognised my service,” he added. Azhar says he was poor himself when he started the initiative. He is still working from Hyderabad because he feels that hunger has swelled after the lockdown.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Good News / by Express News Service / July 06th, 2021
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
Mohammed Shujatullah, a student of Pharm D from Sultan Ul Uloom College of Pharmacy, Hyderabad began serving free breakfast to the needy three years ago and is continuing to do so till date without a break of a single day.
Every morning he goes to three Government hospitals in Hyderabad – Nilofer Hospital, Government Maternity Hospital, Koti and Nizam Institute of medical sciences (NIMS) with hot Upma cooked in pure ghee and chutney to serve breakfast to the patients and their attendants. He finishes serving breakfast by 9.15-9.30 am in all the three hospitals feeding nearly a 1000 people.
How it began
Shujat spoke to TwoCircles.net about how his philanthropic journey that started in 2014 by serving food packets to just 10 people and by 2016 went on to reach 1000, “ When I was in my final year of bachelor’s degree I had failed in one subject. And as I was awaiting my results I sent up a prayer that I will feed 10 hungry people if my backlog is cleared. It was the day the results were to be declared.”
And luckily he passed. And so the same night, he went to the street with 10 packets of food. He woke up an old man to give the food, but the man declined by saying he had his fill and told Shujat to give the food packet to someone else.
Shujat did not expect this from a homeless poor person. He says, “ the old man could have taken the food and kept it for the morning. But he was so honest. And that touched a chord in me”.
People waiting in queue for the breakfast
The 10 packets were not enough as there more people who wanted food. Shujat came the next night again with more food packets and this time again the old man who had fallen asleep huddled in a corner due to the chilly winter said the same thing. Shujat asked the man to keep the food for the morning. And the man said, ‘God will feed me in the morning. For now, you give my share to someone else’. Shujat was impressed not just with the honesty of the old man but his belief in Providence.
Shujat says, he got to thinking, ‘here is a homeless beggar, who does not even know if he will get the next meal, yet he has such a firm belief in the Almighty who is the provider of one and all.’ And after this, he began serving food packets on a daily basis to the persons on the streets.
Serving breakfast at Niloufer Hospital
One day he had a chance to go to a Government Hospital where he saw people from different districts and villages come to Hyderabad for treatment and they lived in the hospital for days together with their attendants. They find it difficult to buy food due to monetary problems. So the idea of serving breakfast struck him. Mid-day Meals are available at the Telangana food centre at Rs.5/- which they could afford.
Mobilising funds
Fortunately for Shujat, his father has 12 siblings and all of them with their children are in a good position. He capitalised on this and made quick calls to all of them and asked them all to donate their one day’s salary to him. He explained to them what he would do with the funds. And soon he had enough money to enable him to serve breakfast twice a week in one Government Hospital. And soon friends and other extended family started donating. “As they say, little drops make a mighty ocean, funds started to come steadily and soon I was able to serve breakfast on a daily basis,” he told TwoCircles.net.
The daily expense for Upma for approximately 1000 persons with 25 kilos of semolina comes to Rs. 5000/- including the auto charges and the cost of disposable cutlery. On why he chose Upma, Shujat says, “ Upma is easy to make and if I attempt any other item there will be a difference in the planned budget.”
And when his service came to light through media, more people began to donate. And Shujat who was getting immense satisfaction from feeding the poor, decided to start a foundation for charity and service. So in 2016, he registered ‘Humanity First Foundation’.
Humanity First Foundation
Through the foundation, Shujat reached out to potential donors through friends, social media platforms and also crowdfunding via the internet. His activities also expanded gradually and he now distributes blankets to people on the streets; free supper in the nights to beggars, donates books and other things in orphanages, helps very poor families with their monthly ration.
Once the foundation was registered his contacts also grew. Other like-minded NGOs contacted him to work in collaboration. So now Shujat has extended his services to an old age home on the suburbs of Hyderabad where he supplies medicines, adult diapers and groceries, supports a livelihood program for women by running a tailoring centre in a neighbouring town and providing them sewing machines and conducting free medical camps. He even identifies homeless old people who have no one to take care of them and admits them in old age homes.
Sehri in Ramzan
This year for the month of Ramzan Shujat has gone one step ahead and made arrangements to provide saheri/ suhur (pre-dawn meal) for those attendants who want to observe Roza. Till now he has provided saheri meals to around 8000 -10,000 people. He has put up a board with his contact number so whoever wants to fast have to just call him up and the saheri will be provided to them between 2 and 3 am. For Ramazan, he has 15 volunteers who distribute the food. On other days his volunteers turn up for 2 days a week for the morning routine.
DIstributing sehri
What the future holds for him and the Foundation
Shujatullah shared with TwoCircles.net, that he is able to do all this not just because of the good values instilled by his parents but also because of the support his friends, family and donors have been rendering.
And he is one busy person juggling his internship at Aster prime Hospital after serving breakfast in the hospitals which he finishes by 9.15. After coming home from the hospital, after a quick bite, he goes to overlook the functioning of the small Urdu medium school started by his grandfather.
His father is a retired government employee and mother a homemaker. Shujat has no intention of going abroad or even out of Hyderabad even though he got several offers. For him, his foundation comes first.
“ I hope my life partner will have the same passion as me so I can continue my work with the same zeal”, he says laughingly when asked about the future. “ I am going to continue to serve the poor as long as I can” he added. He finishes his Pharma D (Doctor of Pharmacy) in about 2 months after which he intends to find work in Hyderabad itself.
Shujat and his team
Shujat has very few friends and does not indulge in any of the activities the youth of his age like watching movies, idle hanging out with friends and so on, which is why he has lots of time to follow his passion.
To know more about Shujat and his work and to help him, check out his website or mail him at humanityfirstfoundation2016@gmail.com call him at 9676054142
source: http://www.twocircles.net / TwoCircles.net / Home> Indian Muslim> Lead Story > TCN Positive / by Nikhat Fatima, TwoCircles.net / June 11th, 2019
