Ariful Islam / Guwahati

Free foods being distributed by Raindrops Initiative Assam at the Gauwhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) premises during evening time and midnight has become iftar and seheri for Muslims and delicious foods for the Hindus and people from other faiths.

In an interview with Awaz-The Voice, the office bearer of Raindrops Initiative Assam Abid Azad said; "We have been distributing free foods at GMCH since the lockdown in 2020. Since shops were completely closed during the lockdown, relatives attending patients at GMCH could not find any restaurant or eatery to have their lunch and dinner.

“ Our organization started distributing free foods among attendants at GMCH. After the lockdown many poor people at GMCH approached us for foods. These people have either the option of buying medicines or foods. They could not afford the both. So, our organization continued distributing free foods even after lockdown.”

Everyone in need eating from the stall of Raindrop Initiative

With starting of the holy month of Ramadan Abid Azad said the organization has seen the Muslim attendants at GMCH who are faced with difficulties of arranging iftar and seheri inside the hospital premises. He said 300 to 400 Muslim people at GMCH are fasting and Raindrops Initiative Assam has been distributing seheri and iftar among them.   

The members of Raindrops Initiative Assam cook foods on the spot and distribute immediately at the GMCH premises.  So the attendees can eat hot and refreshing food. Abid Azad said while the Muslims take our foods as seheri and Iftar, all other people who come to the GMCH can eat the same as normal foods.  

Apart from free food distribution, Raindrops Initiative Assam is doing various other social welfare activities. "Many patients in GMCH have to buy expensive medicines. Many patients die at GMCH during their treatment at GMCH and their expensive medicines remain unused.  We contact the family members of such deceased patients and take the medicines to the doctors so that other poor patients can get them free of charge," 

Volunteers of Raindrop Initiative cooking food for distribution

Abid Azad said. He said the NGO is also involved in plantation drive in different parts of Assam.

Ismail Hussain, a relative of the patient admitted to the GMCH, said: "I have brought patients from Morigaon district to the hospital. It is 2.30 am (on March 31). There is no hotel here, there is no good food. The initiative the NGO has taken for Seheri is certainly a very good initiative. In addition to Seheri, I have also got Iftar food here. I have been doing Seheri and Iftar here since the first day of Ramjan.”

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Sanjiv Das, an attendant of a patient at GMCH emergency ward said “I brought my patient at 1 am (on Mach 31) to the emergency ward. My patient is stable now and I am feeling hungry now. Not a single eatery is opened in and around the GMCH. Eventually I landed up at Raindrops Initiative to have my dinner.”