“Due to the lockdown, our situation has become much worse. I lost my job as a domestic worker due to the fear of the infection spreading. My elder son lost his livelihood too, and is sitting idle at home. My daughter’s school has been shut, and my younger son Karan who has been prepping to pursue his training with support from Railway Children India has stopped going to class due to the shutdown. Our income is dwindling and we have no security for tomorrow.” – 8 year old Karan’s mother.
When India went into a total lockdown last week, so did the livelihoods of millions of people. The story of Karan, is the story of countless children and their families in India, trying to make ends meet as the threat of the ongoing pandemic looms large and the lockdown moves from days into weeks. The future of these children in fragile circumstances, now hang in the balance, dependant on help from outside, dependant on help from YOU.
The world has never quite seen a crisis like this, but it is in times like these that we are reminded of why we came into being. For us, children always come first, and it is why we take on this challenge head on.
As Railway stations across the country remain closed, it is rapidly shutting the window of opportunity to reach out to children who live and reside within this space. However, in the last 2 weeks, we have ramped up our efforts in reaching out to children whom we have repatriated and reunified in the past, with the goal that they do not have to come back to a life on the streets.
We are happy to report, that along with assistance from our local on-ground partners, we have reached 1000+ children across India, across the 7 states – Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Orissa, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra & Chhattisgarh, many of whom were found to be in an extreme distress situation requiring food, groceries and basic essentials. With the available resources and network, we have supported close to 75 families and their children, with 3 meals per day. While these numbers appear as a blip in the current scale of the pandemic, our efforts are not.
OUR PLANS:
- To urgently reach out to 5000 vulnerable families and their children impacted by the COVID19 epidemic
- To deliver food and groceries across 7 states – Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Orissa, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra & Chhattisgarh
- To ensure all children within our ambit go back to school and are productively engaged as soon as the lockdown is lifted
- To connect and link families who have lost their livelihood to government employment schemes to avail of income opportunities
LET’S GET TO CHILDREN AND FAMILIES, BEFORE THE VIRUS DOES!
DONATE ONLY INR 2500/- TO SUPPORT A FAMILY WITH DAILY ESSENTIALS FOR ONE MONTH.
Groceries for 3 weeks/4-member family | |||
Sl.NO | Particulars | Unit | Amount |
1 | Wheat | 10kgs | 360 |
2 | Rice | 5 kgs | 250 |
3 | Arhar dal | 2 kgs | 200 |
4 | Moong dal | 1kg | 110 |
5 | Oil | 2 Ltr | 250 |
6 | Salt | 1kg | 20 |
7 | Sugar | 2kgs | 100 |
8 | Chili powder | 100 gms | 50 |
9 | Dania powder | 100 gms | 50 |
10 | Jeera powder | 100 gms | 50 |
11 | Haldi powder | 50 | |
12 | Tea powder | 500 gms | 100 |
13 | Aloo | 5 Kg | 200 |
14 | Onion | 5 kgs | 250 |
15 | Tooth paste | 250 gms | 100 |
16 | Soap – bathing soap | 5 | 150 |
17 | Hand sanitizer | 1 bottle | 75 |
18 | Dettol | 1 bottle | 100 |
19 | Washing soap – Detergent | 5 | 50 |
Total | 2515 |
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The Author is CEO of Railway Children India – S. Navin Sellaraju
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