Winter can prove a nightmare for street dwellers. To keep them warm, Sulakshya Seva Samithi distributed blankets to them here on Saturday.
Speaking on the occasion, founder president of the Samithi, Santhosh Manduva, said, “Winter is a beautiful season for those who have a roof over their head. But for the homeless, its a struggle to survive in the extreme cold conditions. Keeping in view of their plight, we have been distributing blankets to them every year.”
The Samithi has distributed around 1,800 blankets worth ₹3.6 lakh since the last five years.
Starting at 11 p.m. in the night, the volunteers toured the tri-cities and distributed blankets to the pavement dwellers till 3 a.m. They have also been planning to donate blankets to the underprivileged children, municipal workers and others in the coming days. Expressing happiness over such a gesture, Komuraiah, a pavement dweller, said, “At a time when our family members have abandoned us, it’s overwhelming to receive such a help”.
“The government should build shelters and accommodate the homeless. It’s unfortunate to see many abandoned elderly on the road,” said Kaushik Bhupathi of Sulakshya Seva Samithi.
“We not just had immense satisfaction of helping someone, but could learn about the plight of many underprivileged,” said Tharun Nadipalli, managing director of Quality Group, who is one of the sponsors of blankets.
Members of the Samithi Kaushik Bhupathi, Tharun Nadipalli, Kodam Vinay, Sai Hruday Mudam, Sujith Raja, Vinay Tirupathi, Karthik and Chandrasekhar were present on the occasion.