BENGALURU: On March 18 last year, when the pandemic was setting in, a group of volunteers,
coordinated by Mahita Nagaraj in Bengaluru, started networking and helping people in need. Initially known as Caremongerers India, Nagaraj’s team with more than 55,000 online volunteers, took over the mission to reach out to those in need during the Covid-19 crisis. A year later, the team is celebrating its first anniversary with a new name and new agenda.
They are now the Humankind Global, and have launched a mega campaign of documenting over 1 billion stories of kindness, assistance and humanity. Nagaraj, the chief coordinator, says, “Last year around this time, all of us experienced a panicked-filled month. That is when the voluntary initiative started with a single-minded intention to help. It is a march towards positivity.” She also believes that a lot of people are engaged in the act of kindness, but don’t come to the limelight. “Our intention is to document nice acts on a daily basis. Indians, as a community, are extremely giving,” she adds.
Some of the acts of kindness that the campaign includes are being a mentor, teaching, sharing a meal, sharing talent, animal welfare, cleaning neighbourhoods, among others. So far the pledges have clocked close to 5.8 million and the team is expecting to reach a billion by the end of March.
Speaking about the authenticity of the pledges, Nagaraj says, “With this kind of initiative, a lot of it is trust-based. A large part of this runs on trust because we are trying to network with strangers for help.” According to the voluntary organisation, the oldest pledger is an 88-year-old from Leeds, United Kingdom, who is growing vegetables in her home garden and donating it to the nearest soup kitchen.
In Bengaluru, Uma Pai, a 76-year-old social worker and cancer survivor has pledged to help underprivileged people. “We distribute food to pourakarmikas around Koramangala, help physically-challenged children and orphans by organising art and craft sessions,” says Pai. Young volunteer Karen Rejani, a 13-year-old student, has pledged to take his elderly neighbour’s dog for a walk every day. “We are a country with loads of niceness. I am confident of reaching our goal,” says Nagaraj.
Mahita Nagaraj, who led a group of 55,000 people to help the needy during the first wave of the Covid-19 outbreak, has started an initiative to document a billion acts of kindness from around the world