BHOPAL: As the city prepares for the vaccination against coronavirus, a group of women from the Jatkhedi area in Bhopal has come up with handmade safety gear to beat the deadly virus. The corona hygiene kits were distributed to 230 marginalised families in the slum who couldn’t afford mask and sanitisers. The hand-made kit comprises soaps, sanitizers, masks and cloth bags.
The10-member women committee of the Jatkhedi slums prepared corona hygiene kits with the help of such social service organizations as Water Aid India, Hindustan Unilever, UNICEF, Cerebral Palsy Association of India and Mahashakti Seva Kendra, which aided the women of the slums in their work.
Jatkhedi slum was a hotspot of the corona virus for a better part of April, May and June. It is one of the largest slums in the city. The residents of the Basti are marginalized and cannot afford the hygiene gear to keep them safe. So the women of the committee prepared the kits and distributed them for free.
The president of the women committee, Aalomati Rai, told Free Press that the people became quite casual and relaxed towards the Covid health protocols once the lockdown was lifted.
All the safety rules were being flouted, and so the committee decided to bring back their attention towards the need for carefully following all health protocols, she added.
A member of the committee, Raj Kumari, said the slum dwellers could not afford masks , sanitizers, and other necessary safety gear to keep safe from covid-19 infection so we have come up with a free of cost kit for them.
The state has received the vaccine, and it will be administered to one and all but it’ long way to go, she said, adding that people need to remain careful till they get the jab.
The women also promoted the idea of hygiene among the residents. They asked them to play safe until every single person is vaccinated.
Jitendra Parmar from Water Aid India said the women were working towards making India self-reliant. As the slum dwellers could not afford the kit, the women in the area came up with their own to beat the virus, he said.
