Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was first identified in China in December 2019. Within a few months, the disease spread globally, resulting in the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.  In India, the outbreak of the disease  occurred in  March  and, to contain  the  spread of this  severely  infectious disease, the Government of India declared a 21-day  countrywide lockdown on 24 March.  This and other safety measures caused severe disruption to the normal lives of millions of people—the poor and daily-wage workers bearing the brunt of the situation.

Responding  to the  sufferings  of  common people,  the  Ramakrishna  Math  and Ramakrishna Mission launched relief operations through their branch centres in India and a few other countries. The relief  operations  are  mainly  in  the  form of distribution  of cooked  food and  groceries,  and hygiene/protection kits (with face masks, hand sanitizer bottles, etc) and health awareness campaigns.

Details of relief operations conducted until the filing of this Bulletin are given below.  Since this is an evolving crisis, and more reports of relief work are pouring in, further details will be given in the future bulletins.

View Detailed Reports from our Branch Centres

INDIA

(a) Kadapa centre distributed  600 breakfast  packets among  beggars and differently-abled persons in Kadapa district from 29 to 31 March.

(b) Vijayawada centre  distributed  1000 masks,  200 gloves  and  ration  kits  (each  kit containing 2.5 kg rice, 1 kg dal, 1 kg flour, 1 kg potatoes, 1 kg onions, 250 gram salt and 100 gram spices) among 262 persons in Guntur district on 26 and 30 March.

Aalo centre conducted a health awareness camp on 30 March.

(a) Guwahati centre distributed 172 kg rice, 35 kg dal, 69 kg potatoes, 44 kg salt, 44 hand sanitizer bottles and 100 face masks among 44 families in Guwahati on 29 March.

(b) Karimganj centre distributed ration kits (each kit containing 5 kg rice, 1 kg dal, 2 kg potatoes,  1 kg salt,  1 packet  of biscuit  and  1 bar  of soap)  among  270 families  in Karimganj district on 31 March.

New Delhi centre served 3391 plates of cooked food to the poor and needy in Delhi from 26 to 31 March.

(a) Limbdi centre conducted  an awareness campaign and distributed 100 face masks and ration  kits  (each kit containing  5 kg flour, 1 kg rice, 1 kg dal, 1 kg edible  oil, 1 kg potatoes, 500 gram onions, 1 kg jaggery, 1 kg sugar and 200 gram  tea leaves) to 50 families, and food packets to 1513 people from 28 to 30 March.

(b) Rajkot centre distributed 900 kg rice, 540 kg flour, 180 kg dal, 180 litres edible oil, 360 kg potatoes, 360 kg onions, 180 kg sugar, 9 kg assorted spices, 45 kg tea leaves, 180 packets of biscuits and 180 bars of soap among  180 families in Rajkot district on 30 March.

(c) Vadodara centre distributed 200 food packets and 1000 packets of farsan and biscuits on 31 March.

Jammu centre distributed ration kits (each kit containing 4 kg rice, 1 kg dal, 2 kg potatoes and 1 kg salt) among 25 families on 30 March.

(a) Jamshedpur centre distributed ration kits (each kit containing 5 kg rice, 1 kg dal, 2 kg potatoes, 500 gram salt, 1 bar of soap and 1 packet of soap powder) among 100 families in Jamshedpur district on 31 March.

(b) Ranchi  Morabadi   centre distributed  2000 leaflets  to spread awareness about  the coronavirus on 25 March.

(a) Mangaluru  centre is coordinating with the City Corporation in conducting awareness drives about the coronavirus.

(b) Mysuru centre served 1000 plates of cooked food to the needy from 26 to 31 March.

(c) Ponnampet  centre served 440 plates  of cooked food to poor people  from 29 to 31 March.  Further, the centre’s hospital has set up two wards exclusively for coronavirus patients.

(d) Shivanahalli  centre is  conducting  awareness campaigns  among the villagers  in  and around Shivanahalli. The centre served 20,000 plates of cooked food to 2500 local daily wagers from 27 to 30 March.

(a) Haripad centre distributed ration kits (each kit containing 5 kg rice, 1 kg dal and 1 kg salt) among 275 families in Alappuzha district on 29 March.

(b) Kalady centre distributed 1400 kg rice, 278 kg dal, 85 kg potatoes, 85 kg onions, 50 kg salt, 34 kg assorted spices, 120 litres of edible oil, 100 bars of soap, 10 kg washing powder and 10 litres of soap solution among affected people on 31 March.

(c) Kayamkulam  centre distributed ration kits (each kit containing 2 kg rice, 1 kg flour, 1 kg dal, 1 kg onions and 1 kg of salt) among 250 families on 29 March.

(d) Koyilandy centre distributed 200 kg rice, 40 kg flour, 80 kg dal, 4 kg spices, 10 kg tea leaves  and 40 kg sugar among 40 families  on 31 March,  and 150 gloves,  150 hand sanitizer bottles and 150 face masks among police personnel.

(e) Kozhikode  centre is providing temporary  board and lodging facilities to 21 stranded daily wagers from 26 March.

(f) Pala centre distributed 60 bars of soap, 60 packets of detergent powder, 60 bottles of hair oil, 180 packets of biscuits and 60 towels among 60 families of a Harijan colony in Kottayam district on 30 March.

(g) Thiruvananthapuram  centre set up an outpatient clinic in its hospital for suspected cases.

(a) Mumbai centre served 2975 plates of cooked food and distributed 2975 water bottles from 28 to 30 March.

(b) Pune  centre distributed  ration  kits  (each  kit containing  4 kg rice,  1 kg dal,  1.5 kg potatoes, 1 kg sugar, 500 gram edible oil and 3 kg firewood) among 32 families in Pune from 24 to 26 March.  The centre is also serving cooked food among 70 daily wagers in Kolhapur district from 29 March.

Sohra (Cherrapunjee) centre supplied ration kits (each kit containing 25 kg rice and 5 kg dal) to the doorsteps of 1068 families living in distant places.  The centre distributed 2000 face  masks,  essential  medicines  to 852 patients,  pamphlets  and banners, and arranged transportation of patients from villages to health centres from 25 to 30 March.

Kothar centre distributed 900 hand sanitizer bottles among villagers from 21 to 23 March.

(a) Chennai Math served 1500 plates of cooked food at Meyyur  village from 27 to 31 March, distributed  1000 face  masks, 500 hand gloves  and 2000 packets of biscuits among the sanitary workers of Chennai Corporation from 25 to 28 March and ration kits  (each kit containing  5 kg rice,  1 kg dal,  assorted spices  and 500 gram sugar) among 170 families in Thanjavur district from 27 to 31 March.

(b) Chennai Students’ Home distributed ration kits (each kit containing 1 kg rice, 2 kg semolina, 2 kg sugar, 4 kg dal, 1 litre edible oil, 1 kg salt and 30 gram assorted spices) among 317 families of daily wagers and 310 face masks, 3 litres of hand sanitizer and 1 thermal scanner to a government  hospital in Thiruvallur district on 30 and 31 March.

(c) Coimbatore Math served 550 plates of cooked food to municipality workers from 27 to 30 March and tea and biscuits to police personnel in Coimbatore on 30 March.

(d) Coimbatore Mission  centre conducted  awareness campaigns  on health and law & order in 4 panchayat areas on 25 March, distributed 1075 kg rice and 215 kg dal among 215 families and 320 food packets to roadside dwellers etc in Coimbatore district on 31 March.

(e) Kanchipuram centre distributed ration kits (each kit containing 5 kg rice, 500 gram flour, 500 gram semolina, 1.5 kg dal, 1 kg edible oil, 100 gram vermicelli, 850 gram assorted spices, 25 ml coconut oil, 1 bar of bathing soap and 2 bars of washing soap) among 50 auto-rickshaw drivers on 28 March and provided noon meals to 80 patient attendees in a cancer hospital from 28 to 31 March.

(f) Nattarampalli centre distributed  693 kg rice,  46 kg dal,  23 litres  edible  oil, 5 kg sambar powder and 46 kg salt among 46 families on 24 March.

(g) Salem centre distributed 1400 hand gloves to sanitary workers on 28 and 29 March. The centre is also serving lunch to 100 municipality workers from 27 March.

Kailashahar centre conducted health awareness campaigns among tea estate workers  in Unakoti district and distributed 218 bars of soap and 218 bottles of liquid soap among them on 16 March.

(a) Lucknow centre is distributing ration kits (each kit containing 5 kg flour, 5 kg rice, 2 kg dal, 2 kg potatoes, 1 litre edible oil, 1 kg salt, 50 gram coconut oil and 2 bars of soap) among the poor and needy in Lucknow  and Ayodhya  from 25 March.

(b) Vrindaban centre served 1800 plates of cooked food to the poor and needy from 27 to 30 March.  Further, the centre’s hospital has set up a clinic for suspected cases.

(a) Kankhal hospital started a flu clinic following the outbreak.

(b) Rishikesh centre distributed 1800 packets of bread from 25 to 30 March.

(a)  Asansol centre distributed 125 ration kits (each kit containing rice, flour, potatoes, dal, edible oil, packets of biscuits and bars of soap) among 150 people at a leprosy colony in Burnpur on 30 March.

(b)  Baghbazar centre distributed ration kits (each kit containing 5 kg rice, 1 kg dal, 1 kg soybeans,  3 kg potatoes  and  500 gram  milk powder)  among  2000 families  in Baghbazar on 27 and 28 March.

(c)  Bamunmura  centre distributed  1100 kg rice,  240 kg dal,  200 kg potatoes, 7 kg soybeans and 240 bars of soap among 247 families on 31 March.

(d)  Bankura centre served cooked food to 95 people and distributed 60 kg rice, 15 kg dal, 40 kg potatoes, 5 kg onions, 1 kg soybeans, 15 kg salt, 15 kg chira, 15 kg sugar and 30 bars of soap among 65 persons in Bankura district from 27 to 30 March.

(e)  Baranagar Mission centre distributed 2567 face masks, 2414 bars of soap and 153 hand sanitizer bottles among sanitary workers of the Baranagar and Kamarhati Municipalities in North  24 Parganas district on 28 and 29 March.

(f)    Belgharia centre distributed ration kits (each kit containing 5 kg rice, 1 kg flour, 1 kg dal, 5 kg potatoes, 2 kg onions, 1 litre edible oil, 1 packet of biscuits, 1 kg sugar and 1 bar of soap) among 200 families in Belgharia on 31 March.

(g)  Darjeeling  centre  distributed  50 kg rice,  assorted  vegetables  and  sanitary  items among 5 families in Darjeeling district in March.

(h)  Jhargram  centre conducted COVID-19 awareness camps on 14 & 15 March for school children and distributed ration kits (each kit containing 3 kg rice, 1 kg dal, 2 kg potatoes, 100 gram turmeric powder, 250 gram milk powder  and 2 packets of biscuits) among 1134 families in Jhargram district from 23 to 31 March.

(i)   Kasundia centre, Howrah, distributed ration kits (each kit containing 5 kg rice, 3 kg potatoes and 1 kg dal) among 350 families in Howrah from 28 to 31 March.

(j)   Kathamrita Bhavan, Kolkata, distributed 540 kg rice, 270 kg flour, 220 kg dal, 270 kg potatoes and 44 kg soybeans among 270 families from 28 to 31 March.

(k)  Malda centre distributed 101 ration kits (each kit containing 5 kg rice, 1 kg flour, 1 kg dal, 500 gram soybeans, 1 kg salt, 1 litre edible oil and 1 bar of soap), 101 shirts, 101 trousers and 101 face masks among needy families on 30 March.

(l)   Narendrapur  centre distributed ration kits (each kit containing 5 kg rice, 2 kg dal and 3 kg potatoes) among 1200 families in neighbouring areas on 30 and 31 March.

(m) Ramharipur  centre is distributing 50 litres of milk among 200 poor children from 24 March onwards.

(n)  Saradapitha held a rally and campaigned to raise awareness about the coronavirus pandemic in and around Belur on 16 and 23 March.  The centre also distributed 3710 kg rice,  985 kg dal,  1970 kg potatoes, 492 kg salt,  1855 litres  edible  oil, 1970 packets of biscuits,  4091 bars  of soap, 6212 face  masks  and  985 hand sanitizer bottles among 1136 families in Howrah district from 23 to 31 March.

(o)  Sargachhi centre distributed 5000 bars of soap among the inmates of Berhampur Correctional Home, 300 kg rice among 30 old persons, milk to 100 children and face masks, hand wash and sanitizer bottles to the local government authorities from 25 to 29 March.

OUTSIDE INDIA

(a) Bagerhat centre conducted health awareness campaigns and distributed ration kits (each kit containing 2 kg rice, 1 kg dal, 500 gm salt and edible oil), bars of soap and face masks among 60 families in Bagerhat district on 28 and 29 March.

(b) Chandpur centre distributed ration kits (each kit containing 5 kg rice, 3 kg potatoes, 1 kg dal, 1 kg salt, 500 ml edible oil and 2 bars of soap) among 200 families in the surrounding areas in March.

(c) Mymensingh centre conducted awareness campaigns and distributed face masks, hand wash and bars of soap in March.

Durban centre distributed  1100 hygiene  kits  (each  kit containing  a  hand sanitizer bottle, 3 bars of soap, a bottle of bleach and a pamphlet on coronavirus) to the needy in the last week of March.

Colombo centre, along with its sub-centre at Batticaloa, distributed 2569 kg rice, 215 kg flour, 343 kg dal, 148 kg soybeans, 275 kg potatoes, 245 kg onions, 12 kg noodles, 248 kg salt, 29 kg spices, 6 kg milk powder, 343 kg sugar and 483 packets of biscuits) among 381 families from 27 to 31 March.