Help pours in from all possible corners

It is just a few days for the completion of the 40-day lockdown. The lockdown has various effects on various people. Pleasures, sufferings, and lending a helping hand, the people are completing the lockdown successfully. However, the effects of lockdown are bound to extend to a couple of months.

K V Ravikanth, a pre-university lecturer, said, "While the rich got a welcome break, to relax and enjoy the pleasures of life, the poor got support of the government and also philanthropists, but only middle-class people were left to fend for themselves."

Vijayendra Rao, a retired government employee said that the good and bad among the people came out during the lockdown.

“Help came to the needy from all corners. Even those with limited resources offered to help, which was a welcome gesture. However, most of the charity was a photo opportunity for some individuals and members of organisations. Most of the service was to gain publicity in the media or on social media,” he said.

Not all those who offered help were satisfied about their service. Nishanth, a volunteer who was busy serving food to the needy, along with a group of his friends, said, there were beneficiaries at some places, who used to grab food packets from all donors, who dropped by.

“Some beneficiaries would get up to 10 packets of food for one meal. But, they would consume one or two of the packets and waste the rest. Wastage of food is a crime, at least during a crisis like this,” he said.

In a rare gesture, Union Minister D V Sadananda Gowda presented Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) kits and N-95 masks for healthcare professionals in Mysuru. On behalf of Gowda, MLA L Nagendra handed over the safety gear to the district administration at the office of the District Health Officer on Tuesday.

Ex-corporator of Mysuru city P Prashanth Gowda reached to the tribal people on the fringes of the forests in Periyapatna taluk, to provide grocery kits on Tuesday. Under his PG Janaspandana Foundation, the ex-corporator handed over the kits to over 100 tribal people at Utenahalli in the presence of PDO Manjula of Panchavalli gram panchayat.

In Mandya, members of Human Rights Committee extended help to Banjara people at B T Lalitha Naik Layout. They presented nutrition food items and food supplements to needy residents. To mark Basava Jayanti, they had distributed fruits and vegetables to needy people recently.

Mysuru Hotel Owners' Association is raising funds to donate Rs 1,000 worth grocery kits, with 19 essential items, to a minimum of 2,000 families. C Narayana Gowda, president of the association, said, "The members are raising funds by circulating the poster of the appeal to deposit in the bank account."