Jagdalpur Rotarians deliver meal boxes

In April 2021, RC Jagdalpur, RID 3261, set up a Rotary Rasoi in ­Jagdalpur in Bastar district of ­Chhattisgarh. “Our aim was to ­provide food to home quarantined people and others who are unable to cook such as the elderly, destitute, ­bedridden patients, migrant labourers and ­beggars,” says project chairman Ashok Lunkad. Freshly-cooked and neatly packed, the meal boxes included roti, sabzi, dal and chawal. “On the eve of Eid-ul-Fitr some sweets were added to the meals,” he adds.

PDG Paul Street and members of RC Canberra, RID 9710, Australia, contributed to the Rasoi Project. “We involved local politicians and administrative officers in packing over 20,000 meals,” says Satyanarain Agrawal, past president of the club.

Every day club members, Rotaractors and volunteers gathered at the kitchen to pack the meals and take care of the deliveries. “At a time when nobody wanted to step out of their houses our Rotaractors delivered food in Covid containment zones,” points out Agarwal.

Club member Sahil Narvaria who took care of the logistics says, “We planned the routes keeping in mind the timing and distance as we had to ­supply the meal boxes with just a handful of Rotaractors.” Agrawal adds, “They are not as experienced as Swiggy or Zomato staff and there is no monetary benefit involved but they did their best distributing the food boxes to needy families.”