KOZHIKODE:Meeting a Class VIII boy in front of a school who asked for a lift and Rs 3 made all the difference in the life of the boy as well as 100 people from Maranchery, a village near Ponnani in Malappuram district.
The boy, Ajmal, asked for Rs 3 to buy soda from the man who offered him a lift. The man, incidentally, was one of the admins of the WhatsApp group - 2015MRY (short form of Maranchery) that had been doing charity with contributions from members residing in the village and abroad. The boy said his father died a month ago due to liver disease and there was none to support the family.
In a dramatic revelation, it came out that the same group had raised funds for the treatment of Ajmal’s father Subair when another group member found him in a pathetic condition. A Qatar-based member of the group, Sameer Kannachamkuzhi, came forward to take care of the boy and his studies.
“Started as a platform for better things in society, the village-bound WhatsApp group in just 10 months raised over Rs 14.35 lakh, solely for the needy and unfortunate people from the village,” said group admin Abdu Rahiman Pocker.
The group, formed in January this year, has 100 members - 50 from Maranchery and 50 residing abroad, especially in the Gulf countries. Though many are eager to join the group, WhatsApp restrictions do not allow further expansion, said Abdu Rahiman.
The group regularly raises and donates Rs 15,000 to Rs 25,000 to those undergoing treatment. When such a donation was brought to a patient, Subaida and her husband Rafi, his plight moved the group that they helped him construct a house in Maranchery.
What’s special about the group is that it does not accept funds from outside. Rather, funding is from within the group. Posts are made only as voice clips. One or two members of the group visit houses of the needy and post their pictures and a voice report on them before taking the next step. The group will be registered as a society once the election fever dies down.
Apart from charity, there are innovative programmes like ‘Swaralaya,’ a music programme where upcoming singers can voice their talent. The group has now started a music institute where various instruments are taught. There is also a slot to ask questions to doctors. Dr Riyas K Yousaf and Dr Lais Mohammed will answer the queries. The group plants seedlings on the premises of all the schools in the village.
