Team Madad, A Group Of COVID Volunteers In Uttar Pradesh’s Gorakhpur Emerge As Saviours | India’s Coronavirus Warriors

Highlights
- Team
- COVID warriors have been working since the first wave of the pandemic
- Team Madad has also received support from administrative officials
Gorakhpur: During the tough times when Gorakhpur witnessed deaths and sufferings due to COVID-19, a group of 15 young volunteers calling themselves ‘Team Madad’ have emerged as saviours, helping people with food, medicines and counselling. From providing information about vacant ICU beds and ventilators to delivering medicines and arranging transportation, the team which comprises students, professionals, social activists and journalists, has come to the rescue of the needy. One of the members, Satya Charan Rai, told PTI that the volunteers came in contact on social media during the first wave of coronavirus and formed a team.
We started holding online meetings and decided to feed migrant labourers. Each one of us started distributing food with the help of local volunteers in their respective areas, he said.
Team “Madad”, which means “help”, has seven women members and it has also been actively working towards arranging plasma and providing counselling.
We also contacted public representatives to strengthen our drive and circulated our phone numbers on social media after which we started getting calls round the clock, Mr Rai said.
“During the second wave of the pandemic, especially last month, many people were not getting medicines so we started contacting wholesalers and helped in delivering and providing information about the availability of medicines,” he said.
The team collected data on vacant beds with the help of patients as the hospitals did not cooperate, he said, adding that a list of COVID hospitals was also circulated on social media. Mr Rai further said that a WhatsApp group including the team members and administrative officials was formed which was very helpful in extending help to the needy. Talking about the support they received from officials, he mentioned that Sadar tehsildar went out of the way to help patients. On the team’s efforts in rural areas, he said,
The condition is now getting better in Gorakhpur and there is no crisis of oxygen and beds but there is a surge in COVID cases in rural areas which is a real challenge as the healthcare system is not strong there.
“We are also focusing on rural areas now. We are giving online counselling to people and trying to fill them up with positive energy,” he stressed.
Recognising the help extended to him by Team Madad, Shamshad Ansari, resident of Bishnupura village, said,
My 35-year-old wife Nafeesa Khatoon is suffering from chronic kidney disease and during the first week of May she tested COVID positive. When we failed to get an ICU bed, we contacted Team Madad and they not only informed us about a vacant ICU bed but also helped me in getting medicines.
“My wife is now out of danger and I am very thankful to Team Madad as they not only helped me but gave me counselling during these stressful days,” he added.
Also Read: 52-year-old COVID Warrior Maria Feels Blessed Being On The Frontlines
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
NDTV – Dettol Banega Swasth India campaign is an extension of the five-year-old Banega Swachh India initiative helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. It aims to spread awareness about critical health issues facing the country. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign highlights the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children to prevent maternal and child mortality, fight malnutrition, stunting, wasting, anaemia and disease prevention through vaccines. Importance of programmes like Public Distribution System (PDS), Mid-day Meal Scheme, POSHAN Abhiyan and the role of Aganwadis and ASHA workers are also covered. Only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and become a Swasth or healthy India. The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene.
World
16,55,19,102Cases
6,02,96,671Active
10,17,92,380Recovered
34,30,051Deaths
Coronavirus has spread to 192 countries. The total confirmed cases worldwide are 16,55,19,102 and 34,30,051 have died; 6,02,96,671 are active cases and 10,17,92,380 have recovered as on May 21, 2021 at 4:00 am.
India
2,60,31,991 2,59,551Cases
30,27,9251,01,953Active
2,27,12,735 3,57,295Recovered
2,91,331 4,209Deaths
In India, there are 2,60,31,991 confirmed cases including 2,91,331 deaths. The number of active cases is 30,27,925 and 2,27,12,735 have recovered as on May 21, 2021 at 2:30 am.
State Details
State | Cases | Active | Recovered | Deaths |
---|---|---|---|---|
Maharashtra |
54,97,448 29,911 |
3,85,785 18,444 |
50,26,308 47,371 |
85,355 984 |
Karnataka |
23,35,524 28,869 |
5,34,975 23,936 |
17,76,695 52,257 |
23,854 548 |
Kerala |
22,63,959 30,491 |
3,18,220 14,006 |
19,38,887 44,369 |
6,852 128 |
Tamil Nadu |
17,34,804 35,579 |
2,63,390 9,814 |
14,52,283 25,368 |
19,131 397 |
Uttar Pradesh |
16,51,530 6,681 |
1,16,434 7,145 |
15,16,508 13,590 |
18,588 236 |
Andhra Pradesh |
15,21,142 22,610 |
2,09,134 602 |
13,02,208 23,098 |
9,800 114 |
Delhi |
14,09,950 3,231 |
40,214 4,833 |
13,47,157 7,831 |
22,579 233 |
West Bengal |
12,09,958 19,091 |
1,31,510 19 |
10,64,553 18,910 |
13,895 162 |
Chhattisgarh |
9,36,423 5,212 |
81,466 4,402 |
8,42,662 9,501 |
12,295 113 |
Rajasthan |
8,97,193 7,680 |
1,43,974 9,152 |
7,45,873 16,705 |
7,346 127 |
Gujarat |
7,76,220 4,773 |
89,018 3,599 |
6,77,798 8,308 |
9,404 64 |
Madhya Pradesh |
7,52,735 4,952 |
72,725 4,882 |
6,72,695 9,746 |
7,315 88 |
Haryana |
7,22,964 6,457 |
62,352 8,406 |
6,53,407 14,734 |
7,205 129 |
Bihar |
6,76,045 5,871 |
54,407 4,204 |
6,17,397 9,977 |
4,241 98 |
Odisha |
6,55,899 11,498 |
96,995 1,603 |
5,56,501 9,870 |
2,403 25 |
Telangana |
5,44,263 3,660 |
45,757 1,189 |
4,95,446 4,826 |
3,060 23 |
Punjab |
5,23,423 5,469 |
67,041 3,458 |
4,43,666 8,736 |
12,716 191 |
Assam |
3,53,574 6,573 |
53,165 3,428 |
2,97,902 3,071 |
2,507 74 |
Jharkhand |
3,24,884 2,056 |
26,511 2,330 |
2,93,659 4,326 |
4,714 60 |
Uttarakhand |
3,03,940 3,658 |
68,643 4,529 |
2,29,813 8,028 |
5,484 159 |
Jammu And Kashmir |
2,60,057 4,169 |
50,554 60 |
2,06,081 4,042 |
3,422 67 |
Himachal Pradesh |
1,72,722 2,648 |
33,448 1,676 |
1,36,679 4,258 |
2,595 66 |
Goa |
1,41,567 1,582 |
20,808 2,156 |
1,18,487 3,694 |
2,272 44 |
Puducherry |
91,465 1,957 |
18,277 625 |
71,919 1,304 |
1,269 28 |
Chandigarh |
57,331 404 |
6,073 497 |
50,592 891 |
666 10 |
Tripura |
44,359 863 |
6,807 482 |
37,097 379 |
455 2 |
Manipur |
41,909 644 |
6,904 87 |
34,359 546 |
646 11 |
Meghalaya |
26,927 1,183 |
6,477 708 |
20,061 465 |
389 10 |
Arunachal Pradesh |
23,159 360 |
2,731 146 |
20,339 214 |
89 |
Nagaland |
19,284 326 |
4,519 93 |
14,520 222 |
245 11 |
Ladakh |
17,025 107 |
1,589 0 |
15,264 106 |
172 1 |
Sikkim |
12,204 249 |
3,122 30 |
8,865 216 |
217 3 |
Dadra And Nagar Haveli |
9,850 102 |
672 16 |
9,174 86 |
4 |
Mizoram |
9,740 296 |
2,303 160 |
7,407 136 |
30 |
Andaman And Nicobar Islands |
6,758 49 |
261 32 |
6,401 16 |
96 1 |
Lakshadweep |
5,756 290 |
1,664 190 |
4,072 98 |
20 2 |