25 years of
PARTNERSHIP
In 2021, when the Delta Variant crisis hit throughout India,
Dharma in Motion was ready to help. We partnered with close contacts at...
Mahatma Gandhi Canadian Foundation for World Peace (Edmonton)
International Gandhian Institute for Nonviolence and Peace (Madurai, India) International Gandhian Institute for Non-Violence and Peace-Canada
International Gandhian Foundation for NonViolence and Peace (Edmonton)
Women's Wing of Ekta Parishad
Mahatma Gandhi Seva Ashram
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“The situation is simply dire. Women's Wing of Ekta Parishad is looking for ways to get people food and safety. In every Crisis, women and children are most affected.”
—Shradhya Kashyap, Shoba Gautum and Katsuri Patel, Leaders of the Women's Wing and National Executives of Ekta Parishad
April 29, 2021
"It is health that is real wealth, and not pieces of gold and silver." -Mahatma Gandhi
To support frontline workers to distribute necessary items for survival Dharma in Motion formed a coalition with several Canada-based Gandhian organisations, and a partnership with frontline workers at the Women's Wing of Ekta Parishad and Mahatma Gandhi Seva Ashram (MGSA).
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During this period we saw the Dharma in Motion community in active compassion and100% of all donations went to this immediate relief response. Together with our partner organizations we raised over $100,000
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Here’s a quick look at our response to the Covid-19 Crisis in India, and how your donations were experienced:
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Critical ambulance services with vehicle equipped with Oxygen cylinders (cost of ea. $ 42 USD).
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Disburse prescribed medicines to 60 patients in isolation in 6 villages. ($81 USD)
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Disburse prescribed medicines to 600 patients in isolation ($810)
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300 nutrition packets for children and babies
$ 450 USD buys 300 nutrition packets
$225 USD buys 150 nutrition packets
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100 Food packets (rice, lentils)
$8.00 USD feeds one family for one month.
$80.00 USD feeds 10 families for one month.
$800.00 USD 100 families for one month, 200 families for 2 weeks.
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Production/distribution of 2000 face masks ($25 USD).
Frontline Work
AWARENESS CAMPAIGN/FOOD DISTRIBUTION
We undertook an awareness campaign to encourage vaccination once this became available, educating people to follow health guidelines, and connecting people with our front line women workers for emergency support.
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The Women’s Wing of Ekta Parishad did their part in providing an immediate relief response to migrant, landless and marginalized communities in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh Bihar, Jarkhand and Orissa. We also arranged alternative make-shift healthcare and community facilities for those severely affected by the overflooded hospitals.
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During this time, Covid spread to small towns and villages in a second wave, and health services were often scarce or overwhelmed with a large number of cases. So many were affected and they needed immediate relief.
100% of Donations during April-August 2021 went to India Covid Relief
Large parts of India faced massive crises dealing with an unparalleled surge of Covid-19 infections, making it difficult for women and families to access health care, oxygen, and vaccines. A large number of people were struggling with basic needs – food, ambulance and transportation, and medicine.
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Together, we raised over $100,000
What was amazing about this fundraising campaign is that all donations counted and these ranged from $5-$5000
This helped in 60 districts of India. Our friends at Ekta Parishad work across 150 districts.
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Every dollar counted in this crisis, and was received with gratitude. We were able to support so many thanks to the generosity of our donors and the hard work of the women at Ekta Parishad.
Hear Direct Messages
STORIES FROM THE FRONTLINES
We held public meetings on May 11 and on July 10, 2021 with some of the women and men affected by the Covid crisis in India, and also from those assisting on the ground. Below is a link to a short video on the work.
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You will see that the situation was dire. The Covid19 situation in the countryside was twofold: not only was there a lack of supplies and facilities, but also there was a massive food shortage in the places where we were assisting. The Lancet published a study showing that more than 1,000,000 people would die in India by August 2021. The WHO urged wealthy nations to give some of the surplus vaccines they purchased to help mitigate the situation.
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Please watch the short video if you can:
