May 2021 – Covid19 Update

News reports show the heavy toll that Covid-19 is taking on families and communities right now in India. While the focus of current media is the worst-hit areas in Delhi and Maharashtra, the devastating effects of Covid-19 are being felt across the country, as hospitals are overrun with patients and experiencing a severe shortage of essential oxygen supplies.

Our partners in India describe the huge pressure on hospitals in Tamil Nadu, where families are mourning the loss of loved ones who were unable to access the care that would have saved their lives, either due to a lack of money to pay for it, or shortage of supplies at medical facilities. 

As we all continue to distance ourselves as protection again the virus, in the communities we support self-isolating means no work and no money. The food and hygiene parcels our partners in India have been taking directly to families in these communities have been essential to their survival for months, and even more so now. 

As a charity, we would love to do more for poor children and their families in India, but we are limited by the cost associated with delivering care remotely and have had to focus our diminished resources on providing basic essentials to the families of children already in our care. As a small local charity, we have seen our usual fundraising options in the UK significantly reduced by the ongoing Covid-19 restrictions, and have had to budget accordingly.

We are so incredibly grateful to all those who have found India Direct and donated to our cause for the first time. Your support for our charity in direct response to the news from India will enable us to do more than we have been able to so far: supporting more families in the community with food and hygiene parcels, enabling more children to access vital education for their future, and providing healthcare (including vaccines) for those who can’t access it. 

As always, every penny you donate to India Direct goes directly towards helping those in India who need it. Thank you. 

A Letter From Annie, Trustee of Our Indian Partner Charity (LCCT)

The Covid-19 second wave is causing disaster in our country, as you have known and seen on the BBC and other channels. You would have got a clear picture of the happenings in our country.

Every month we are providing the families of our children with rice and provisions. The parents are very happy and content with our ‘Joy Kit’ – providing food and hygiene supplies for the whole family. Awareness about the benefits of vaccination is conveyed through our staff to the parents in the villages and we have encouraged them to take the vaccination. As you know, the death rate is increasing and some of our children have single parents, so we explain to them the necessity of vaccination and social distancing.

Most of the children came into our care due to extreme poverty, unable to have three meals a day. We brought them into institutional care, away from their home. During the pandemic, one good thing happened. In spite of the clutches of poverty, the children are living with their parents and still have three meals a day. It’s all a gift of love from you. The parents are really happy about this and the children too. I hope you are able to understand their feeling. They live as a family and still their food is taken care of. There is so much emotion involved in this act.

But what worries us is their education being paused, their capability of memorising, writing, reading and their loss of knowledge about anything around. They are extremely below poverty line and far off from digital world to study online. Their parents are not literate.

So far, all the parents and children in our care are doing well and are not affected by the virus. Thank you for your support in midst of this pandemic. You’re a great hope for many little ones. Thank you for your prayers.

Many Blessings,

Annie