In a small lane in Hari Om Nagar, Thane East, a gate sharply divides two worlds: one with swanky high-rises and the other devoid of even drinking water or electricity, surrounded by mounds of garbage.
When Chinu Kwatra, who describes himself as a social activist, and who runs an NGO and is the district secretary of All India Council of Human Rights, Liberties & Social Justice, first saw the area, he was deeply disturbed. “I had gone to visit my friend in Thane,” he says. “I saw a few children in tattered clothes playing in an enclosed area, which cannot even be described as a slum.” The children looked pale and weak. “Just behind the hutments are mounds of garbage letting off a foul smell. It is difficult to stand there after dawn not only due to the stench but also due to mosquitoes and swarms of flies.” The people who live in this informal settlement at Thane’s dumping ground eke out a living as ragpickers, scavenging in the garbage, leaving their children to their own devices. “The families have minimal or no access to food, let alone healthy food.”
Mr. Kwatra decided he would find a way to provide children and women in the locality with food at least once a day.
A good, clean meal
In December 2017, he started Roti Ghar, which distributes free meals: a basic dal, rice and pickle, sometimes supplemented with milk, and now and then treats like cake and chocolates. Since February, each child gets a boiled egg once a week too. “We try to change the menu once in a while, and include pav bhaji, sabzi-roti, and so on,” Mr. Kwatra says.
The food is prepared in a dhaba Mr. Kwatra’s father runs in Thane, and a few volunteers — mostly college students who have worked with him in some of his social uplift projects — help by going to the dumping ground every evening to distribute the food. It costs ₹2,500 a day to cook the 100 meals.
Mr. Kwatra funded it initially, and now, via Roti Ghar’s Facebook page, he is also requesting the general public to help with donations too. Swaroop Tokal, a volunteer, who is a second-year college student, says, “A person can even sponsor a single meal by donating ₹35”. Another volunteer, Akshay Mandhare, a third-year college student, explains how they keep costs very low: “There is no fixed cost on renting the shop or on labour, so we are able to prepare food at a minimal cost. The raw material is bought in the wholesale market, so it is cheaper.”
The kids here look forward eagerly to the evening visits of their bhaiyas and didis. Laxmi Waghe, 11, whose father died two years ago, and whose mother is ragpicker at the dumping ground, says, “I love all food served to us, but my favourite is pav bhaji!” Jyoti Gaikwad, another of the kids, is just 12, but looks after her younger siblings while her parents scour the garbage. She says, “We never ate this kind of food before. I love the cakes they sometimes bring.”
More than food
Roti Ghar’s work has expanded in just the few months it has been around. Given the nature of the work the adults do, and the surroundings the children play in, they seem unconcerned about basic hygiene, so the volunteers also try and raise awareness on the issue.
Akshay Mandare says that they ensure that children wash their hands, using liquid soap or hand sanitisers. They also ask the recipients to each bring a clean plate or some other eating utensil from their homes, and the volunteers inspect these before serving the food. To spread awareness on oral hygiene, they recently distributed toothpaste and toothbrushes. Suraksha Shetty, a second-year college student, says, “One of us spoke to the children about the importance of brushing and staying away from gutka’ and other such practices.” Feminine hygiene is another area they help with, Ms. Shetty says, with volunteers distributing free sanitary napkins to the women.
“We have also started mentoring sessions for children,” Mr. Kwatra says. After distributing food, each volunteer does some basic teaching with groups of three to four kids. He wants the group to grow, and serve not just the people who make a living at the dumping ground, with a goal of covering 1,000 underprivileged people by the end of the year. Aside from the food and the hygiene lessons, he also wants to conduct periodic medical camps, if the group can manage to generate enough funds. The mission stays clear: “We want to serve as many people as possible.”
Roti Ghar
Founder: Chinu Kwatra
Founded: December 2017
Funding: Donations
Employees: Five volunteers
Website:facebook.com/rotigharofficial
