HYDERABAD: In a matter of minutes, 30-year-old Aliya Begum, a resident of the Al Jubail Colony in Falaknuma, lost everything in the recent floods. Aliya, her husband and three children, had to rush out of her house empty-handed in the middle of the night. The next day, her husband returned to their house to get their belongings but got stuck. Days later, his body was found on their verandah.
"My condition is no less than that of a beggar, I have absolutely nothing left in my hand." lamented Aliya.
For many like her, getting a coupon worth Rs 5,000 to pick up commodities of their choice from a flood relief mart, which was organised by city-based NGO Access Foundation, was a glimmer of hope in the dark night.
The members of the NGO, collected around Rs 13 lakh through fund-raising and then decided to disburse essentials to the flood-affected. "Since the floods, we have conducted several rescue and relief operations. At the time we were distributing kits with food and other essentials. But, soon we realised that many families have lost everything and they would require more than just the relief kit," said Access Foundation general-secretary Irfan Khan.
After surveying over 850 families, Access Foundation short-listed 270 worst-affected families of Al Jubail Colony and offered them Rs 5,000 coupons to pick up essential commodities. The families are given the choice to pick from 170 household items.
"In our list, we tried to include all most all household items such as electric fan, mattresses, utensils, toiletries among other articles. We put a wholesale price tag on the items as well. Gas stoves, plastic containers and buckets were in high demand at ‘Pick What You Need Mela," Irfan Khan added.