This Daan Utsav, non-governmental organisations are receiving help from unexpected quarters. Children belonging to the Confederation of Arunodhaya Children Sangam are collecting sugar from their localities and donating it to organisations in need in the city.
The ‘Joy of Giving’ week is being celebrated between October 2 and October 8. What makes the initiative special is that non-governmental organisations are also involved in these efforts to support other organisations.
To make this Deepavali more sweeter for children at the Madras Society for Protection of Children, Washermenpet, members of Children Sangam collected sugar from areas, including slums in Ennore, Tiruvottiyur, Kodambakkam and Korukkupet, and donated about 10 kg on Wednesday.
Virgil D’Sami, executive director, Arunodhaya Centre for Street and Working Children, said about 500 members of children sangams were involved in the initiative. Another organisation was donated 10 kg on Thursday.
Learning of rights
“Children are trained in leadership skills and learn about their rights. It is not enough to receive alone. We wanted to introduce the habit of giving among children even in a small way,” she said. Vendors from Koyambedu wholesale market too donated vegetables on Thursday as part of the initiative by Sri Arunodayam. Aarti Madhusudan, a volunteer, said nearly 500 kg of vegetables were collected at the market within two hours. These vegetables would be used in various homes for the aged and children. On Friday, vendors would be donating fruits to NGOs.
