VILLUPURAM: What started as a trial run of food distribution for 20 persons kicked off as a daily routine of feeding 100 persons for this group of youth from Villupuram.
These youngsters, who run a YouTube channel, have lent their hands to feed the poor and needy in Villupuram ever since the Covid-19 lockdown was imposed.
This group of 10-12 youngsters has been providing lunch for people sheltered on the roadsides, outside railway station and bus stand in Villupuram, using funds from their friends and relatives.
M Faizal, S Jeelani, M Selvam, A Praveen, M Dakshinamurthy, K Suresh, S Sadam Hussain, A Chinadurai, all in their 20s, were found riding their bikes across the town in a hot summer noon with buckets of food packets to be delivered to the homeless.
"We had been providing lunch for people who dwell on the streets and are homeless, with a pack of 'variety' rice with pickles. We gave chicken biryani during Eid. The money was funded by our friends and family, we spend about Rs 2,000 per day for the vegetables, rice, oil and packaging. We have been doing this non-stop for the past eight days. We fed over 150 people regularly" said the chief manager of the channel C Periyardasan.
P Sakthi, the executive manager of the channel, told The New Indian Express, "We wanted to feed a minimum of 20 on the first day, so we cooked at our friend's place and distributed them. But as we distributed the food, we realised so many others were in need of lunch and dinner."
Abandoned by family, a 35-year-old man living within the premises of the town railway station looked rather glad as he received the hot pack of tomato rice and said, "I used to do daily wage job before the lockdown and meet my basic needs. But now I have nowhere to go. More than the food, the boys really make me feel less lonely."
A 29-year-old cook, M Anandaraj, owns a mobile fast food centre near ES hospital, but due to the lockdown he had to shut it down.
"I now have nothing to do, so why not help the boys with their humanitarian gesture! They provide me the ingredients at around 8.00 am every morning and I finish cooking around 12.30 pm. It is a satisfaction that the food is able to feed someone in vain. This is my part to give back to the society in these dark hours" said a generous Anandaraj.
"The cooked food will be packed hot and distributed swiftly before it cools down. We split into two teams, take two different routes with two buckets of food packets" said V Ashok Kumar, a member of Villupuram '360° channel'.
"I feel like my lost son is living in these young boys, ensuring I don't starve when the world is shut down by the pandemic", said Krishnaveni, a 45 year-old destitute woman who lives on the street near old law college.
22-year-old S Jayakumar, another member said, "We have taken prior permission from the authorities to provide food. We all are geared properly with masks, gloves and sanitisers. We also maintain social distancing while distributing and avoid crowding."
The team had also planned to provide dinner along with the ongoing lunch plan.