Visually impaired civic staffer builds volunteer network
MUMBAI: When the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) asked its employees who are persons with disabilities (PWD) to avoid travelling to work during the lockdown, 40-year-old Dilip Zanwar, a BMC control room operator from G-North municipal ward (Dharavi, Dadar and Mahim), wondered how visually impaired people whose sources of income including playing music, singing or selling stationery in Mumbai’s suburban trains, would sustain themselves.
Zanwar, who is visually impaired too, took matters in his own hands. In the first week of the lockdown itself, he built a network of eight volunteers to create ration kits with essential items that could be distributed. Some helped collect funds and coordinate with grocers, others made a database of families in need and the number of kits they would require. Over five distribution drives in April, which Zanwar was also part of, the team managed to reach 272 families spread out over Vangani, 70 km from Mumbai — where he lives as a paying guest —as well as other towns like Shelu and Badlapur in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. At least 248 of them had visually impaired members.
The volunteers put together 301 kits, which comprised five kilo flour, five kilo rice, one litre oil, two kilo sugar, 250g tea powder, chili powder and 500g washing powder. Each kit would last a family of five for at least a month.
“Even in normal circumstances, physically challenged persons regularly face hunger as their income is not stable. This is just one of the various challenges they face while travelling on local trains. When the lockdown started, my first thought was how they will fend for themselves.”
Soon, others chipped in. A Kandivli-based businessman and a local insurance company offered help. Kshitij Hirlekar, a businessman, coordinated with local grocers to procure dry ration. “Zanwar has ensured not even a single person with disability in Vangani has suffered due to loss of livelihood. When I came to know about his plans, I had to put in everything to ensure his efforts were completed.”
Mumbai-based New India Assurance Company, helped out with permissions for vehicles. “Almost 100 staff members and agents contributed from their salaries, and we collected ~1.6 lakh. We used this money to buy ration kits and hired vehicles... On May 8, our office team carried out a distribution drive. We will see to it that these families do not face any problems,” said Rekha Punse, divisional manager.
“Travelling has been difficult with the local police stopping us from time to time but after learning about what we were trying to do, they allowed us to go ahead,” said Zanwar.
Senior BMC officials said they were aware about the efforts. “This pandemic has revealed the true intent of some who are willing to go to any lengths to ensure those that are suffering are protected,” said Kiran Dighavkar, assistant municipal commissioner, G-North ward.