Question

Inspiring story in lockdown​

Answer 1

The coronavirus lockdown has been a testing time for all of us. However, some have faced more difficulties than the rest of us. These include the elderly, daily wagers, low-income families, frontline workers, and the police. Many have faced a shortage of food supplies and many have gone through the anxiety of staying away from their families.

Volunteers of The Art of Living from across the country have been reaching out to those affected by the lockdown, braving the risk to their own safety. We call them the lockdown heroes! Here are a few stories of lockdown heroes who have fought every odd to reach out and make a difference.

“The walk was 1.5 hours long. With the ration kits slung on our shoulders, the walk, however, seemed longer. But we were driven. The agnihotra and yoga session last evening managed to keep our energies high. We were walking towards a village in the Kalchini block of West Bengal’s Alipurduar district - a cluster of remote villages sharing the border with Bhutan. Many of these villages are inaccessible by road. Due to their hilly terrain, these villages were once a destination for trekkers.

When the lockdown was announced, I was skeptical if the government would be able to reach there. I was, unfortunately, right. Shops were closed in many villages and the ones with little savings left had to walk long distances to buy basic things. Local volunteers assessed these villages and told us about the families who were in dire need.

One of them was a family of a 25-year-old mother of five kids. The youngest was just a month old. Her husband, a daily wager in Kerala, was unable to wire her money. She was short on supplies. When we provided her a month of ration, we were met with tears of gratitude. In all the thirty-two villages where we reached out, the simple village folk thought we were gods. But we are simple folks who didn’t want anyone in our near community to go hungry.”

Ram Kumar Lama’s team of volunteers reached out to 32 remote villages in the Kalchini block of West Bengal. It took them one day to reach a single village and provide help. Their day’s hard work was followed by their spiritual practices in the evening.

Sheetal, Delhi

“After the lockdown was announced, my mom began worrying about the daily wagers stranded in the city. Most migrant workers in the city do not have a roof on their heads. Many live in shelter homes and many manage on roads, in shaded corners. So dry rations are not of much help to them. My mom wanted to help and within a day of the lockdown, she got permission from local authorities to serve food.

She started cooking ten meals per day, then 7o meals. Soon, she was making 200 meals in big utensils borrowed from our caterer friends. The idea spread among my network of Art of Living volunteers and Project Annapoorna was born. Supported by The Art of Living, Rotary Club, and BLK hospitals, the project started serving meals in two shelter homes in Central Delhi. The word spread. The volunteers said yes to every new request; even at times of fewer resources. Somehow, the resources have come and the team is now serving eight shelter homes.

As it all happens, our family continues the tradition: my dad cuts the vegetables, my mom cooks, stirring with big ladles and I go out distributing the food. My distribution point is a spot of rickshaw pullers who are generally happy to see me. They make demands; telling me they want to eat this, eat that. We give in because we want to reduce their anxiety. Or else they could be breaking the lockdown rules and the virus could just be spreading more. But then my mom doesn't mind the demands. She is just happy, cooking for them. Sometimes I wonder how she cooks so much food without getting tired. With a smile, she says, “I don’t know.’ ”

Uptil now, Project Annapoorna with a team of 50 volunteers has served more than 60,000 meals to daily wagers stranded in the city. The entire Delhi team of volunteers has been serving 7,000 - 10,000 meals per day to daily wagers in the city.