BENGALURU: Earlier this week, when people started advocating social distancing, some NRI friends of Mahita Nagaraj wanted assistance in helping their parents who reside here get the essentials they needed. Nagaraj decided to help out and subsequently put up a post letting her Facebook friends know that they too could reach out to her for help. “A lot of people came forward to do the same thing. We realised there were many who are willing to help, and also a bunch of people who need help,” says Nagaraj, a digital marketing professional who started a Facebook group called Caremongers for all the volunteers.
As the city and country have come under lockdown, several Bengalureans are confined to the safety of their homes – this after many have indulged in panic purchases. But there are a few like Nagaraj, who are venturing out and offering help to those who need medicines and groceries but are not in a position to step out. In South Bengaluru, Aishwarya Subramanian, a content writer for IT sector, tweeted her intentions of helping out – a thought that struck her while thinking of her mother in Chennai. “My mother is over 60 and lives alone.
I realised there would be many people living away from their parents who would be worried. It would be nice to have someone to check in on them and help them out with supplies. So even the kids feel much better,” says Subramanian, who drops off medicines and supplies for people on her cycle, usually within a 10-km radius. While Nagaraj started the initiative on March 16 and has close to 900 volunteers across the country, Tanya Ballal, a student of Srishti Institute of Art, Design and Technology, has a network of 20 volunteers – 1-2 per locality – who are keeping in touch with shopkeepers and are willing to pick up medicines or food items. She aims to help senior citizens or people with disabilities as they are being hard hit by this. “We are yet to receive requests. We will ensure all safety precautions, such as sanitisation while buying supplies and post delivery, are taken,” says the 21-year-old. (With inputs from Simran Ahuja and Tanya Savkoor)
Reach out here:
Mahita Nagaraj
Areas covered: Any area in Bengaluru
Charges: No charges for the services provided. Only price of the products delivered.
Payment method: Online payment-Paytm, UPI, etc
Contact: 95911 68886
Tanya Ballal
Areas covered: Has a network of volunteers in BTM Layout, Banashankari, Kumaraswamy Layout, Basvangudi, Jeevan Bima Nagar, Yelahanka New Town,
Bannerghatta Road, JP Nagar, Jayanagar, Frazer Town, Cook Town, HSR Layout
Charges: No charges for the services provided. Only price of the products delivered
Payment method: Bank transfer, GPay, Paytm
Contact: 9611256441,9742541845
Aishwarya Subramanian
Areas covered: Lives in Jayanagar, can help people within 10 km radius.
Charges: None
Contact: 95911 68886