NGOs to build houses, feed the hungry

BIJAPUR: One obvious presence in every flood-affected village is that of NGOs. Many NGOs have gone to places that have remained out of reach for government officials.
NGOs of all colours, religious, social, community-based, charity wings of trade bodies and corporate social responsibility groups, are seen toiling hard in the villages of Bijapur and Bagalkot.
The Tumkur Siddhaganga Mutt has sent in 83,000 chapatis while Mysore Suttur Mutt has donated 500 quintals of rice. The Rajastani Yuvak Sangha will donate foodgrains and blankets to people in the flood-affected villages. The members also plan to provide books and stationery to students when schools re-open on October 23.
ITC's food division has begun distributing biscuits among the affected families. Biscuits worth Rs 1.5 lakh were distributed in a day across Bijapur district on Thursday. "We are bearing the cost of transport and distribution too," said Ullas Hiremath, who handles the company's carrying and forwarding (C&F) operations. "We will increase the amount of nutrition and the number of villages this week," company official Ritesh Jetva said.
The biggest contribution will come from the Mysore-based Swami Vivekananda Youth Movement. The NGO, founded by R Balasubramanyam, plans to build 10,000 houses __ each costing Rs 1,00,000. "We are working with the Mysore Citizens' Forum to achieve this goal," said SVYM CEO M A Balasubramanya.
SVYM has identified 37 flood-ravaged villages covering nearly 66,000 people in Bijapur. "We will take up mainstream rehabilitation work that includes sanitation, disease control and providing safe drinking water," Balasubramanya said. "Our 70 volunteers have gone door to door to get first-hand reports on the needs of the affected families. We are collecting foodgrains, blankets, medicines, books and other materials from various bodies and channelizing them to those who need them the most," Narasimha Raichur, SVYM regional co-ordinator said.
The organization will conduct health and hygiene awareness camps from Sunday. "We have tied up with medical colleges and the Karnatak University's department of social work," Raichur added.