Khalsa Aid volunteers are traversing treacherous terrains to extend humanitarian aid to the people of the southern Indian state of Kerala whose livelihoods and houses have been inundated by catastrophic floods.
According to estimates by the government of Kerala, at least 410 people have lost their lives and over one million people have been displaced and are living in 3,200 relief camps in the state, since the monsoon that started in June.
The UK-based team of around 25 people is working in tandem, day in and day out, to ensure evacuees are fed, have shelter and are accommodated with hope and resilience, which the foundation believes they need the most to rebuild their lives.
Khalsa Aid volunteers are serving daily meals to at least 8,000 people in flood-hit Kerala Source: Supplied
One such relentless volunteer, Gurpreet Singh, who is a part of the second team of Khalsa Aid volunteers to make it to the affected region in Kochi told SBS Punjabi that the situation on the ground is much worse than what they had anticipated on the basis of media reports.
“People here are in a very bad state. They are traumatized and displaced. They have nothing to go back to; their houses have been swamped. Not days, but it will take them many-many months even to start to make a comeback,” said Mr Singh.
Mr Singh and his team of volunteers are currently providing daily meals to more than 8,000 people currently living out of relief camps set up by the government across the region.
“We have set up ‘Guru ka Langar’ (community kitchen) where we cook basic meals like daal, rice and sambhar. We pack it and then a team goes and distributes it in the camps.”
Thousands of people line-up for food being served by Khalsa Aid volunteers in flood-hit Kerala Source: Supplied
Khalsa Aid, which believes in the mantra of ‘humanity above all’, has meticulously divided its team into different groups to ensure the relief work is carried out systematically.
“There are three to four people who handle work in the kitchen, cook along with other local volunteers, then there is a team of at least five who goes out to distribute food in the camps, another five which travels to far-away areas in search of grocery and raw ingredients and a special planning team that goes out to affected areas to assess the damage so we can plan our future moves,” Mr Singh told SBS Punjabi.
"Rehabilitation will take months, but we are ready to do whatever it takes," said the volunteer.
The organisation is further planning to adopt a few villages to ensure rehabilitation in some of the worst affected areas. And to do that they are appealing to people to donate in cash or kind.
“Our team comprises of various volunteers, all from different states and walks of life. Some are doctors, government officials, students and most of them are professionals who have left their cushy jobs to reach out to the people of Kerala.”
Source: AAP
And in return, these volunteers are getting what they are there for-“countless blessings” of the Keralites “who never forget to say thanks,”, added Mr Singh.
