INDIA MISSION COMES GOOD
THE High Commission of India, Kingston, Jamaica on Friday provided medical equipment including masks, sanitisers, swabs, among other items, for local schools in St Mary through social service group, Icons of Annotto Bay.
The donation also contained notebooks and other stationary items for the children. The total value of the gift was around $200,000.
Members of the high commission also accompanied Dr Nagendra Babu Chandolu, his wife Dr Alekya Daram, and Khaleen Edwards, all directors of Icons of Annotto Bay, to the schools for distributing the items. The schools visited were Hillside Primary and Infant School in Islington, and Annotto Bay Primary School and Infant School. Students from Belfield Primary also benefited by collecting items at the Annotto Bay stop, while articles were sent to Mount Angus Primary and Junior High School, Geddes Town, western St Mary.
Speaking on the occasion, second secretary at the high
commission, Girish Juneja said “Jamaica is now in the process of restarting faceto-face classes. We thought it best to contribute towards the prevention of COVID-19 spread by providing medical protective equipment to the schools. We will arrange and provide similar material in other parishes of Jamaica.”
He also commended the work of the Jamaica Government in minimising the spread of COVID-19 through strict implementation of protocols, even while managing to keep the country open and its economy functional.
The second secretary was also accompanied by Deepak Sharma and Chand Babu from the high commission.
Dr Babu Chandolu of Icons of Annotto Bay thanked the high commission for the gesture, saying that his organisation has been conducting regular medical camps and providing medical services and equipment in St Mary, particularly for the children and the elderly.
“We are grateful to the Indian high commission for being a part of our vision of making people’s lives better,” Dr Babu Chandolu said. “These items will go a far way in benefiting several children whose parents are struggling to stretch the dollar, and we at Icons hope that there can be greater collaboration between the high commission and Icons to make even more lives better.”
In recent weeks the Icons group, headed by Wyatt “Spur” Williams, a retired policeman who now lives in the United States, has assisted several individuals and groups with donations of various items, among them the St Mary Infirmary and several schools in the parish, in keeping with its motto of ‘Uplifting those in need’.