The Indian Institute of Management (IIM) alumnae raised Rs 59 lakh since May 11 to help migrant workers reach home. The amount was raised by the group IIM Women for Social Action Group (IIMWSA) on crowdfunding platform Milaap. They have managed to help over 1,000 labourers so far who were stranded in Mumbai. They sent more than 25 buses to 11 cities in four states – Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha and Jharkhand – with on-ground support from Sonu Sood.
The group is trying to arrange a few more buses in the next few weeks. Formed in March with a 10-member coordination team and 200 members who are graduates of different IIMs, the IIMWSA approached the other IIM alumni network across the world for support. Apart from making donations to help the migrant workers, many IIM alumnae helped by volunteering to collate data and coordinate with the details of migrants for documentation and processing. Ashu Tomar from IIM Indore coordination team told The Hindu that they decided to help the migrants reach their homes when they saw their plight during the lockdown period. “We quickly reached out to Mr. Sood, for collaboration on the on-ground logistics,” she said.
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Alka Tiwari, an IIM Calcutta alumna, has been coordinating with the migrants till they reach their hometowns and are either sent to a quarantine centre or home for self isolation. She said, “It has been a rewarding and gut-wrenching experience helping these distressed people reach home.”
The IIMWSA has also been running the Kitchen Project in Dharavi to feed the underprivileged and has been addressing the water shortage issue in Jawhar and other areas. Actor Sonu Sood said, “The agility with which the IIM women’s team has supported the cause and provided volunteer assistance has helped our on-ground efforts tremendously.”
Here’s the link to the online campaign: Help Migrants Reach Home with Dignity
Source: The Hindu
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