Hailed as one of the best seasons of the year, Delhi winters are usually extreme with the temperature dropping to as low as zero degree celsius. While this may be enjoyable for a few, the bone-chilling winters that Delhiites experience can prove deadly for vulnerable sections of society, that are unable to access proper shelter or woollen garments during this time of the year. Here’s a look at three organisations in Delhi-NCR that urge people to donate clothes and blankets this season to help fellow denizens combat the harsh months of winter.
Upcyling for a cause
Clothes Box Foundation, which was formed in 2014, attempts to provide clean clothing to all. Over the last seven years, the organisation has been donating clothes and blankets that have been created using fabric scraps. “We got a lot of rejected garments, which were unfit for use. Till four years ago, we would buy blankets [for donations] but then we realised that we could use discarded fabrics to make blankets. This led us to establish- Refresh, an in-house initiative to reuse clothes,” shares Sajan Veerr Abrol, founder. The blankets are made by women from marginalised backgrounds. Through this process of refurbishment, the team also ends up upcycling fabric waste thereby reducing the harm caused by textile pollution.
Sharing the warmth
Working for the welfare of old people in the country, Agewell Foundation- formed in 1999 - operates through a pan-India volunteer network. Under their ‘Share the Warmth’ campaign, the organisation stockpiles garments and blankets dropped off at various collection points installed in offices, RWAs, schools, malls etc.. The pieces are then distributed among the people from economically-stressed sections. The campaign, which begins in December, continues till February.
“We usually get about two-and-a-half lakh pieces of clothing every winter and we distribute them among the poor and needy in the slums, particularly the old people,” shares Himanshu Rath, founder of the organisation.
Years of service
HelpAge India has been working to support disadvantaged elderly people since 1978. As part of their extensive efforts to provide the underprivileged with proper care, the organisation conducts “night drives” through which their volunteers distribute blankets to old people residing in slums or on the streets. Currently operating in eight states, the organisation carries out donations through three channels- by reaching out to beneficiaries of their mobile healthcare units (MHUs), by reaching out to their partner agencies, and by carrying out random distributions at parts of Delhi. While HelpAge India does not take discarded blankets and garments as donations, one can reach out to them to organise bulk blanket donation drives.