Nagpur: Lokmangal Foundation delivered oxygen to 140 when it was hard to get

NAGPUR: After seeing corona patients struggling to get beds, medicines and oxygen during the second wave, four social workers came together to help. As they could not do much about beds and medicines, they decided to provide oxygen cylinders to the distressed patients at their homes.
So far, their group Lokmangal Foundation has provided oxygen cylinders to over 140 patients, sometimes even after midnight after receiving calls. They started with nine cylinders and now have over 150. After coming to know about their noble initiative, a United Arab Emirates-based community group 'Triveni' dispatched 100 empty cylinders to them. They reached city yesterday from Mumbai. Union minister Nitin Gadkari, while lauding their initiative, handed over the cylinders to them for distribution among patients.
Shripad Borikar, popularly known as Chhotu Bhaiyya, and his team have hired a vehicle for ferrying the cylinders which they procure from refilling plants and deliver them to the homes of needy patients.
“We didn’t stop at this. We also help patients instal those cylinders with the oxygen flowmeters, when hardly anyone dares to go near the patients due to risk of infection. We took all the precautions by wearing PPE kits while going to patients’ home. We decided to take the plunge rather than sit at home in the lockdown. We saw even relatives and neighbours of patients were reluctant to help due to fear of contracting the virus,” Amit Khot, one of the members, told TOI.
Their initiative started after Borikar received a distress call from a friend that a particular hospital was running short of oxygen and patients there may die if oxygen didn’t reach immediately. The members, also including Sachin Ingole and Vinod Mude, swung into action and arranged cylinders from refilling plant.
“We tried to help the patients in all possible ways. Even providing them medicine and other essentials, as they can’t move out. We also came across and helped people in urgent need of oxygen but couldn't get a bed in hospital. We received a lot of blessings from everyone and we are very happy to have helped so many. One thing we realised during this pandemic is that oxygen and time are two very important things in life,” Borikar said.
Mude and Ingole said they were receiving calls from not only the city, but also from places like Kamptee, Kalmeshwar, and Ramtek. “We feel very proud to have helped people there as well. It is very satisfactory experience,” they said.