Help is pouring in from different quarters even as Kerala continues to be battered by incessant rain that has inundated many parts of the State. With dams being opened all over the State, rivers are in spate, taking over roads and cities and marooning people in their homes and villages. Cities have been cut off and roads destroyed by the raging waters. However, every cloud has a silver lining.
And in this case, it has been thousands of volunteers from different walks of life who have pitched in to help on various fronts: to collect, sort, pack and transport the materials that are coming in truckloads from various places in the city. Individuals, organisations, media houses, FM stations, supermarkets, shopping establishments, NGOs, government and private establishments, corporates, educational institutions, residents’ associations, alumni groups, clubs and business enterprises are coming forward to contribute in cash and in kind. With the entire state on red alert since Wednesday, many of the volunteers are attending to desperate calls for help from many parts of the State as well.
With love from Trivandrum
It’s social media that has brought scores of good Samaritans together. One of the biggest initiatives is the Anbodu Trivandrum Whatsapp group with over 250 members in this platform with Sree Mulam Club (SMC), Weavers Village and B-hub as the main collection centres. From Thursday, Government Women’s College, Vazhuthacaud, replaced SMC as a centre for collection and dispatch of essentials. Four truckloads of relief materials have already been transported by them till date.
Volunteers at work at Government Women’s College auditorium
“We had collected materials as part of Anbodu Kochi when Chennai was inundated. So special officer M.G. Rajamanikyam contacted us to mobilise help for the flood-hit in Kerala, especially those in Wayanad and Idukki. A few of us spread the message via Whatsapp on Sunday and soon the campaign was in place. It was overwhelming to see how people came forward to donate things, coordinated with their friends, volunteered at the collection centres to pack the items and loaded them in trucks,” says Sobha Viswanath of Weavers Village.
The 20,000 sq ft wedding hall of SMC turned a warehouse for five days as the items that were collected were packed in cartons. “We were more than happy to give our space for such a noble initiative. It was overwhelming to see how people came forward to volunteer,” says Balan Madhavan, secretary of SMC.
The District Administration and Kerala Police joined hands with Anbodu Trivandrum. Ten policemen from Special Armed Police (SAP) camp were at work at SMC, as directed by Superintendent of Police R. Nishanthini, commandant of the all-woman battalion. Relief materials also came in from places such as Mumbai, Chennai and Bangalore.
“District Collector K. Vasuki, Sub-Collector K. Inbasekhar and Assistant Collector G. Priyanka have been extremely supportive. We have formed a separate group for flood relief in the district,” adds Sobha.
Collection centres:Women’s College, Vazhuthacaud, Weavers Village, Vazhuthacaud (0471-4013939, 9074103166), B-hub, Nalanchira (9633672957). This is on till August 19.
Joining hands
Wake Up Kerala is another Whatsapp platform that is involved in relief operations. “Some of us had worked together during the Chennai floods in 2015. Now we have started a collection point near Kannammoola junction. The entire floor of a new building is being used to collect essential items,” says Kavitha Niroop, a member of the group that has over 250 members. They are also attending to calls for help and coordinating rescue missions in different parts of the State. “We are sending essential items and arranging volunteers for relief camps. Food is being arranged as well,” adds Kavitha.
Collection centre: near Kannammoola junction (Contact: 9495933895, 8137987764)
RIGHTS, an NGO working out of Jagathy, is on a collection drive to help those living in the flood-affected areas. “I had posted a request on Facebook and within no time we were able to kickstart the campaign. A truck has already been sent to Adimaly. We will send the rest to different places as per the requirement,” says Ajay Kumar, executive director of RIGHTS. He talks of a mother and son who came to his office at Jagathy to donate two bottles of drinking water and essential supplies for flood relief. “They had come for cancer treatment at Regional Cancer Centre and wanted to do their bit for the cause,” says Ajay. They will collect relief materials till next week.
Contact:9895007171
On wheels
‘Jeepers’ ready for relief work
There are many who are contributing individually towards the relief work. ‘Jeepers’, a group of vehicle owners, were back in action. They had worked round the clock when Ockhi hit the Kerala coast. Now, they are in top gear for flood relief work, evacuation and rescue operations. They were busy ferrying relief supplies from Taluk offices to various camps. The key members are Ramesh Pillai, Abraham Joshua, Krishnakumar G.R., Anu Sankar, Prakash G.R., Amal Joy and Aravind Sathyan. “We have transported supplies to camps in Poozhikkunnam, Anayara, Pallippuram, Manacaud and Jagathy among other places,” says Ramesh. Contact:9846419222, 9895570810
Reaching out
For the team at Indus Cycling Embassy, the focus is on study materials for the children in flood-ravaged areas. They called upon each student to donate a notebook, pen/pencil and eraser. “By Wednesday, we got over 1,200 books and instrument boxes, crayons, school bags, tiffin boxes and the like. The best aspect about this mission is that it makes children understand the gravity of the situation,” says Prakash P. Gopinath of ICE. This will be on till August 18. Contact: 8089494442
Alive Foundation is collecting materials for those living in camps at its office at Pandit’s Colony, Kowdiar, and in Chennai. Contact: 0471-272001
Fine act
The theatre group Kanal Samksarika Vedi is chipping in by organising a staging of their play Veendum Bhagawante Maranam at Ganesham, Thycaud, on August 20 at 6.30 pm. “The proceeds from the show will be handed over to The Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund,” says Hazim Amaravila of the group.
Contact:9895577389
From the IT hub
Many companies at Technopark and elsewhere have done away with their Onam celebrations and are running campaigns for those affected by the deluge. While many IT majors were still mulling on whether they should cancel or go ahead with Onam celebrations, SunTec Business Solutions, one of the first to act, decided not to hold its Onam celebrations and instead donated relief materials worth ₹ 15 lakh towards the Anbodu Trivandrum campaign. The decision was taken after a survey conducted among the employees, said a statement from the company.
Many techie forums are already volunteering at relief camps in the city and also for the Anbodu Trivandrum campaign. “We are collecting new dresses and non-perishable goods to be supplied to a camp at Alappuzha. Members of the forum will be travelling to Wayanad to be part of relief activities. We are also mobilising funds to be handed over to the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund. The annual Rice Bucket Challenge, which we hold during Onam time, is in full swing till August 21. The rice will be distributed to a camp at Kuttanad and also to those non-IT employees in Technopark,” says Rajeev Krishnan of Prathidhwani, a forum of techies. The team supplied blankets, mats and essential items at Kaniyapuram and Kadinamkulam in the city on Wednesday night. In the event of the grim situation, they also cancelled the inter-company tug-of-war competition in connection with Onam celebration.
The members of Vivekananda Study Circle — Technopark are pitching in by collecting new clothes for the relief camps. “In association with Carnival group we are collecting funds. Drop boxes have been kept at Carnival Cinemas and at Technopark. For the last seven years, we have been celebrating Onam with students of Pothode Tribal School at Bonacaud. This time, we will be travelling to the area to be with the kids,” says Praveen Kumar, a member of the Circle. In addition, on Wednesday, two of their teams volunteered to help people at Kannammoola and Peroorkkada.
Even though many companies have decided to do away with the Onam celebrations, some have decided to go ahead with the celebrations but on a low-key.
Allianz Technology India has contributed ₹30 lakh to the Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund. CEO of the company Ashish Patel said in a statement that colleagues are collecting essentials for various relief camps for immediate distribution through the district administration networks. Hands of Hope, its charity arm, is running the relief campaign and a truckload of relief materials has already been sent to Kuttanad. Meanwhile, it has decided to forego the grand Onam celebrations.
Free service
J. Manikandan, who runs a catering unit at East Fort, came forward to recharge phones for free for those who are stuck in the flood. “It was heartening to see how people are unable to seek help after their phones run out of balance. This is the best I could do. On Wednesday night alone I could give help to nearly 300 people,” says Manikandan.
LIST OF ESSENTIALS
Relief camps are not the place to dump used goods. Among the important items needed are bedsheets, sleeping mats, blankets, nighties, lungi, bathing towel, rusk, biscuits, water, rice, provisions, tea dust, water purifying chlorine tablets, antiseptic wash, mosquito repellents, bleaching powder, baby and adult diapers, sanitary napkins, toothpaste, soap, brush, school kits for kids, candles and matchboxes.
