Hunger Heroes – Serpentine queues even before free food counters open

Many donors come forward to donate cooked food packets to ease hunger pangs

Mysore/Mysuru: Times of crisis brings out the best in us.  As Karnataka goes through the COVID-induced curfew till May 12, every day people are turning into real life heroes — who are ensuring that the poor, migrant labourers and daily wage workers get food.   

With no work to do, no savings due to hand-to-mouth existence and an abrupt end to daily income, these people are often found near bus stands, hospitals and also bus shelters where they sleep over in cold nights. Their struggle to find food every day is moving and NGOs like Akshaya Aahara Foundation become their saviours by providing them three-time meal every day. 

On any other normal day, these workers find work — mostly hard manual labour like lifting sacks and containers — in markets and warehouses. But due to the curfew, their lone source of income is cut off. They come to Mysuru every day in search of work and ever since the curfew was declared, they are unable to go back to their homes as there is no public transport. 

With no money even to eat, they can hardly find any money to pay for other modes of transport and as such they prefer to sleep in front of shops and in the bus shelters. Without money and fearing starvation, they queue up before the free food counters opened by various voluntary organisations including the Akshaya Aahara Foundation. 

The Foundation has set up counters near K.R. Hospital Circle, City Railway Station and Jaganmohan Palace. Interestingly, queues can be found in front of these counters even before food arrives. Healthy and hygienic food is provided by the Foundation three times a day. While breakfast is served at 8.30 am, lunch is at 12.30 pm and dinner is served at 7.30 pm. 

As the curfew began in Mysuru, the word about the free food had not spread and there were limited crowds to eat the food supplied by the Foundation. But now, thanks to the word of mouth and photo-reports in  Star of Mysore and its sister concern Mysooru Mithra, most migrant labourers, daily wagers and even attendees of patients at K.R. Hospital and Cheluvamba Hospital visit the counters to have a grub. 

Donors pitch in Each day, food is cooked for 1,500 people three times a day and yesterday, the Foundation served Bisi-Bele-Bath, Pulav, Chitranna and Anna Sambar. Following reports in SOM,               several donors have come forward to donate food packets to the Foundation. 

Hema Rao, a resident of Srirampura who runs Indi Food is supplying over 50 food packets, 200 cooked food packets by Prakash Jewellers, a State Government employee who works in Bengaluru Auditor General Office (wants to remain anonymous) is donating 50 packets daily and Mansur, a city resident is donating 500 packets of Veg Pulav daily. The Foundation is distributing the donated food at slums at Sainagar and   Yellamma Colony. 

Shwetha, a resident of Tilaknagar is distributing over 50 packets of cooked food along with her brothers Chethan and Kiran near K.R. Hospital. She is doing this on her own and has been easing hunger pangs of migrants. 

Following increased food consumers, the Foundation has taken steps to enforce social distancing measures. Even the food has variety and not monotonous. The menu includes Upma, Puliyogare, Chitranna, Bisi-Bele-Bath, Rice Bath, Curd Rice and even a sweet dish. Apart from distributing free food at the counters, the Foundation also feeds target groups at slums, hospitals, bus stands, railway stations and other areas where economically weaker sections live.