Mysore/Mysuru: Tribals who live on the edge of forests away from cities and towns and other human habitations are among the worst sufferers in this Corona pandemic. They have been completely forgotten. 

Around 500 families of tribals in Doranakatte, Kottanahalli and Chilakahalli haadis (tribal hamlets) in Nanjangud are completely cut off from the outside world. Since they no longer depend on forest produce, all the needs of these people come from outside.

Unfortunately for them, the largest cluster of Coronavirus positive patients is detected in Nanjangud and the town has been completely isolated. With no one to reach out to the tribal people, actor and producer Shruti Naidu took extreme risk to help them. Last Monday, 150 families of the tribals were provided with dry rations that would help them tide over the crisis for one month.

Shruti Naidu has been involved in protecting wildlife through her Save Wildlife Campaign initiative for some years now. She had visited some of these tribal haadis too.

“I have visited these haadis earlier. The reason was different then. Now it is only our duty to help them when they need help. On April 1, there was a newspaper report on how the tribals in these haadis were struggling to survive. It took me a couple of days to arrange these rations. I am doing the best I can. There are more tribals here who need help. I request the authorities and volunteers to help them. I can provide details to anyone who wants to help them,” she said adding that 350 more tribal families need rations.