The COVID-19 pandemic has had catastrophic impacts on various facets of life. The second wave, in particular, has had much severe impact on the communities with the daily cases peaking to about 4 lakhs including more than 5000 deaths. The brutality of the crisis not only pressurized the existing health systems, but the growing number of uncatered patients called for reinforcing the healthcare units and responding to the need for critical care support for these patients, beyond the institutional boundaries.

Additionally, the crisis has also impacted the global food insecurity, affecting vulnerable households in almost every country. It has exacerbated existing inequalities, pushing millions of people into the vicious cycle of economic stagnation, loss of livelihood and worsening food insecurity.

The low-income households engaged in unorganised sectors who are dependent on daily wages are specifically the ones facing challenges. The loss of livelihood due to the COVID-19 enforcements and loss of life of earning members, further widen the existing equity gaps in the community. These needs further deepen as we move towards the rural landscapes.

BharatCares, in association with SHARADA Trust (an initiative of Arvind Ltd.), stepped up to undertake multiple initiatives in Gujarat to support 500+ families facing severe health and socio-economic impacts of COVID 2.0.

Following a three pronged-strategy of 1) Oxygen Centre, 2) Rural Healthcare Preparedness and 3) Fighting Hunger, the initiative touched the lives of more than 2000+ beneficiaries. In total, the initiative extended support of 200+ oxygen cylinders with necessary accessories and 250+ ration kits.

A) Oxygen Centre at Ahmedabad
“ World needs more people like you! Thank you BharatCares”
Mr. Jatin Sonara (receipient of the support from Ahmedabad Cares Oxygen Centre)
The lack of capacity of hospitals and increasing number of patients in home-isolation highlights the need for access to oxygen cylinders and re-filling facility for these patients. Considering the challenges of home-isolated patients, a best-in-class oxygen centre was setup in Ahmedabad on 1st May, 2021. Establishing a 24x7 helpline, along with a home-delivery facility, the Centre catered to more than 150+ critical COVID-19 patients.

B) Equipping Rural Healthcare Units with Oxygen Cylinders & Other Necessary Material

Primary health centers (PHCs), Community Healthcare Centres (CHCs) and public charitable hospitals in rural areas represent the primary tier of the Indian health care system, providing a range of essential outpatient services to people living in the rural, suburban, and hard-to- reach areas. To enhance the COVID-19 preparedness of these units to cater to the increasing inflow of patients, support for Oxygen Cylinders & other necessary material was provided by BharatCares to 7 PHCs & 3 CHCs in Kalol, and the SethSri Kasturbhai Lalbhai Hospital in Laxmipura, Khedbramha.

C) Distribution of Ration Kits

Ration kits were supplied to 250+ families across 6 villages in Kalol block of Gandhinagar district, namely - Bhimasan, Bhoyan Moti, Hajipur, Jethalaj, Khatraj and Sabaspur. About 64% of the households supported under this initiative were with larger family sizes, having more number of elderly and children & lesser earning members. Specific focus was towards supporting the families being led by women/ specially-abled members and elderly with few livelihood alternatives at disposal.
Going forward, BharatCares will continue to further expand its initiatives towards Covid-19 relief across the country by partnering with healthcare centres, corporates, non-profits, state governments and local authorities.

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