Helpline to fight hunger in times of lockdown

TNN | Apr 16, 2020, 04:07 IST

Prayagraj: If you know someone in the city who is stuck in the lockdown without food, there’s a helpline you can call to ensure that they do not go hungry.
A local organisation, Om Namay Shiva has launched two helpline numbers — 7266920638 and 7266902603 — where people can call and get food packets delivered. The helpline team would ask for details like names, address and number of members in the caller’s family and then deliver cooked meals.
The organisation sets up community kitchens at Kumbh, Ardh and Magh Melas to serve devotees. A team of 250 volunteers are working round-the-clock cooking and distributing food among those in need during the second leg of the lockdown, which was enforced to curb the spread of novel coronavirus.
Divisional commissioner (Prayagra) R Ramesh Kumar also lauded the organisation’s efforts.
Shantanu, one of the members of the organisation, said the community kitchen set up at Gau Ghat was catering to around 15,000 people every day.
He said the volunteers were working under the supervision of district and police officials. “While cooking in the community kitchen and distributing the food packets, our volunteers are practising social distancing. They also use masks and sanitisers, and wash their hands with soap regularly,” he added.
The volunteers use up cereals and vegetables weighing up to 65 quintal every day to prepares these food packets.
At the organisation’s community kitchen, the team uses various machines for kneading flour and cutting vegetables.