Small Volunteer Groups Help Poor in Kashmir

Srinagar, MINA – Small volunteer groups in the Indian-administered Kashmir region are trying to rise up amid the crisis that hit the region due to the pandemic and the blockage of foreign aid.

Help Poor Voluntary Trust (HPVT), a volunteer group based in the main city of Srinagar, is trying to help poor patients, even though foreign aid has not been able to reach them, Anadolu Agency reported on Thursday.

The aid group has been at the forefront of providing free medicines and medical assistance to the poor since the pandemic hit the region.

Over the past two years, the group has helped more than 3,000 patients with free medicines and health services.

With foreign aid to the Jammu and Kashmir region blocked, small groups of volunteers struggle despite few donations coming in.

“I have never seen a crisis like that in my entire life where working class people seek help for food and medical assistance,” Manzoor Ahmad, a volunteer who works with the Athout Organization, said.

Caught in an endless cycle of violence and now in the grip of a pandemic, many people in Indian-administered Kashmir continue to be restless, especially the poor.

More than 100 lives have been lost in the disputed Himalayan region this year due to violence by government forces and militants, according to police figures. Nearly 28 civilians were also killed in the alleged militant attack.

In addition, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, 4,426 people have died, putting the already fragile community in even worse condition. (T/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)