BENGALURU:Keralites residing in the city, who were looking forward to exuberant Onam celebrations this year, have turned away from it, instead giving up the festivities and diverting funds and material to help their brethren back in their flood-ravaged home state of Kerala.
The Rs 20 lakh raised by members of the Bengaluru Malayali Forum (BMF) for a grand Onam celebration has now been re-channelised to fund and mobilise relief material that could be of help for those needing rehabilitation in their flooded areas in Kerala. The members had begun elaborate preparations eight months in advance for the grand celebrations for Onam (August 15 to August 27 this year), which falls in the Malayalam calendar month of Chingam and is a rice harvest festival.
The unprecedented devastation in Kerala compelled them to cancel all their plans and make new ones instead. “We immediately decided to give the funds we raised to mobilise material to help our brothers in Kerala,” Mento Issac, president of BMF, said.
They cancelled the Onam celebrations fixed at Nimhans Convention Centre on August 16, just after symptoms of the deluge threatening most of Kerala started showing up. The forum decided to show solidarity with their brethren in their home state. On August 21, a truck carrying basic food supplies was sent to Kuttunadu, Alleppey. The supplies were handed over to around 300 affected families by BMF’s 15 volunteers who travelled there. “Two trucks will be sent to Chalkudy in Thrissur district and Paravur in Ernakulam district on August 26,” Issac said.
Akhil T Raman of the Malayalee Association of HAL, said, “The celebrations are cancelled. We have used the funds to send two trucks of supplies to Kerala and one to Kodagu. We are hopeful to have exuberant Onam festivities by New Year.”
Sathish Thallasery, vice-president, Kerala Samajam, Bengaluru South-West, said funds of Rs 7 lakh have already been raised and three truckloads of food items, medicines, mattresses, bedsheets, soaps, and sanitary napkins have been sent to Vaiphiri in Waynad district in Kerala.
Several Malayali socio-cultural societies, based in Bengaluru, like Karnataka Nair Services Society, have been involved in contributing to the resurrection of their devastated home state by sacrificing Onam celebrations.
Deccan Cultural Society has started Onam Chanda, a market dedicated to collect material otherwise required for Onam rituals, which will be sold to buy supplies that will be sent for relief purpose in Kerala.
20 Lorries from various Malayali organisations in Bengaluru are going to affected areas in Kerala every day