MEPPADI: As relief materials are flowing to camps where victims of landslide in Wayanad are staying, 10 friends decided to help survivors who lost mobile phones during the tragedy to contact their dear ones. The group from Thiruvaly in Malappuram has put up a stall at Meppadi Government HSS camp to provide mobile phones and SIM cards to landslide victims who lost their phones.
“We have a WhatsApp group named ‘Changayees’ in which only our close friends are members. While discussing the landslide, we decided to help the victims according to our financial capacity. Also we wanted to give something that would be useful to them. We came to know that several victims had lost their mobile phones while rushing out of their houses when the landslide struck. Several victims cannot contact their relatives now. So we collected funds from our friends and decided to provide mobile phones and SIM cards to them,” Sajeesh A, a group member, said.
The group has sought the help of mobile phone network companies to make available SIM cards to the users. The verification procedure was completed at the stall set up at the camp. “We are providing normal phones, not smartphones, which cost around Rs 1,500. We have tied up with mobile network companies. By checking the Aadhaar card number, we are providing SIM card with the same mobile phone number which the victims were using. Currently, we are planning to give 400 mobile phones in different camps,” he said.
Meanwhile, the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA), Wayanad, has come forward to provide legal aid to the kin of landslide victims. A help desk has been started at the camp as part of the programme. “People who lost their documents and ID cards are approaching us for help. We facilitate in applying for new documents and ID cards,” a DLSA official at Meppadi GHSS camp said.