SRIKAKULAM: A 42-member team led by a professional artist has been serving food, groceries to destitutes under the Save Girl Foundation banner during pandemic in Srikakulam district. The organisation, which came into existence to educate girl children on sexual harassment, is now feeding the poor.
Harish Gangarapu, a professional modern artist from Palakonda in Srikakulam district, had started Save Girl Foundation in 2013 after the Nirbhaya incident to educate the girl child on girl’s rights and protection.
Bike mechanics to software engineers, college students to university scholars are the members of the foundation. The team members have been participating in awareness and other charity programmes with their own earnings. They have organised more than 300 awareness programmes in north coastal districts.
He also started the Gorumudda programme in 2014 for tribals in Seethampeta Agency to educate them on nutritious food. He provided nine varieties of nutrient food to poor pregnant women. The foundation adopted 30 Hudhud cyclone-affected families from Venkampeta of Palakonda mandal in 2014. They have been providing food, grocery every month till today. Recently, they adopted 30 families from Kosta village in Ranastalam mandal, another 80 families in Sankili and Singupuram.
Speaking to TNIE, Harish said, “During the second wave, we had planned to provide food for 20 days with the funds pooled by the team members. As the partial curfew was extended, our team also extended the food distribution. Due to the limited financial resources of the team members, we started a fundraising campaign through social media in the name of ‘Donate Rs 45 for one plate meal’.”