BHUBANESWAR: When Nikita Ahya and three of her family members were infected by Covid-19 in December last year, they had faced immense difficulty in arranging grocery and medicines in Bhubaneswar.
So when the second wave hit the country, Nikita decided to help patients in home isolation in the State Capital with groceries and medicines for free.
Seven days back, she put up a post on her social media handles that she was willing to deliver grocery, medicines and cooked food free of cost to the patients under home isolation including senior citizens staying alone.
Since then, she has received 15 to 20 requests mostly for cooked food and groceries. Working with a private university, Nikita has roped in six of her friends to help her in cooking and supplying the food. Considering the noble gesture, the six women are also pitching in financially.
“Until now, we have been able to manage the whole thing financially from our own savings”, said Nikita. Although working from home, Nikita and her friends are using the morning hours to cook vegetarian food like khichdi, curry, dal, rice and curd to supply them to the patients.
Similarly, Sneha Senapati, another city-based woman has started providing home-cooked meals at a nominal rate of Rs 50 to patients in home isolation since April 20. Sneha who was working in an MNC in Mumbai returned to Bhubaneswar when things started worsening there.
She too put up posts on social media asking Covid-19 patients in isolation to get in touch if they require cooked food. Since April 20, she has provided meals in lunch and dinner to over 15 persons in the city.
“The meal box includes rice, dalma and bhajas and all the dishes are cooked with less oil and spices, considering the health condition of the patients”, said Palaspalli-based Sneha who provides it at just Rs 50 per meal and sends the food to the patients’ doorsteps through a company engaged in picking-up and dropping packages.
The money will be utilised to provide food to the needy patients in isolation, she added. Sneha has also been providing food to elderly people living alone in the city.