When battle to fight with COVID-19, pandemic began, when nationwide lockdown threw life out of gear, when survival was the unprecedented challenge in 2020, real heroes emerged from our society to help those, who were badly affected by lockdown. And Covid-19 pandemic taught us to idolise and to pay gratitude to the real heroes for inspiring the current as well as coming generations, instead of fake heroes on cinema screen, who are mere entertainers. The real heroes are warriors on battlefield; doctors, soldiers, policemen, cleaners from municipality and our society’s unsung heroes, who risked their own lives exposing themselves for infections to help poor, needy and underprivileged. Covid-19 introduced many unsung heroes to the society, Arpit Mathur and Karan Sharma are two of them.
Meet 33 years old Arpit Mathur, who has been distributing freshly cooked food among poor and migrant workers in Mumbai and suburbs since the day lockdown began. Cooking fresh meal requires raw food grain, raw vegetables, spices as well as kitchen arrangements to cook. One man army Arpit Mathur started funding from his own pocket to distribute 250 food packets every day from March 25, after kitchen facilities provided by his community. Gradually, his friends from his school and his community initiated to pool funds for disbursing fresh cooked food for poor. Living in Thane, Arpit Mathur travelled to remote areas like Asangaon, Naygaon, Vasai, Virat, Nallasopara, Kalwa by road to feed those whose source of livelihood was heavily affected because of lockdown.
Arpit Mathur is also the secretary of “BJP Chitrapat Kamgar Aghadi, Maharashtra Pradesh.” Since shootings of films and TV serials have completely stopped, juniors artists have hardly any source of income to sustain during lockdown. Mathur took no time to fulfil his duty as Secretary of BJP CKA to extend his helping hand to film workers .His colleagues from BJP joined hand with Mathur to distribute 200 grocery kits that contained—a pouch of 5Kg Aashirvaad Atta, 3Kg India Gate Basmati Rice, one litre of Gemini Sunflower oil, 1 Kg of Toor Daal, 1 Kg of Tata Agni tea and 1 Kg of Sugar—to junior artists, spot boys, background dancers, hair dressers and others who come under Junior Artists Association.
Feeding hungry and helping the needy are healing and heartening for heart. But, up to what extent can one go to help others when risking of life is involved? While arranging raw material of foods, while transporting the food containers, while distributing food packets, Arpit Mathur exposed himself for Covid-19 infection. At present, Arpit Mathur is in quarantine not because he got infected, but one of his family members tested positive of COVID-19. Did Arpit Mathur being in quarantine cause the service to serve the poor to halt? The answer is NO. His humanitarian aid has continued even today by his dedicated team.
Meet 24 years old Swayamsevak from RSS, Karan Sharma, who has been not only serving migrant workers, but assisting policemen in Amaravati, Maharashtra during lockdown. Lockdown is a period, when a 24 years old boy would spend his time in front of TV set, chatting up with his friends daydreaming his fascinating world. But, Karan Sharma is a warrior on battlefield to provide help to his countrymen in needs.
When LOCKDOWN 1 was implemented, Karan Sharma distributed lemonade (Nimbu Paani), a rich source of Vitamin C, to passengers and policemen. What is heart warming is that lemonade in huge quantity was prepared by his mother at his home.
While supplying lemonade, Karan Sharma observed policemen were hesitant to buy sanitisers. Next, he swung into action to prepare herbal sanitisers using Neem leaves, camphor, turmeric, Aloe Vera and alum in huge quantity. Thereafter, he distributed 1 litre of herbal sanitisers among 250 policemen in seven Police Stations and several Police Beat Chowkis in Amaravati during lockdown 2.
When lockdown 3 was announced, heart rending plight of migrant workers were hitting headline. Their ordeal was emotionally draining. While a responsible citizen was serving the purpose of lockdown being quarantined at home, Karan Sharma began distributing freshly cooked food packets—which he prepared at one of his friends’s home—to migrant workers at National Highway 6, Amaravati at afternoon from 1 to 5, while he provided milk in the morning from 8 to 12 am.
When Karan Sharma extended his hands with food packets to travelling migrant workers, he witnessed a heavily pregnant woman holding hand of her toddler, another woman breastfeeding her newly born baby while making sure to hold her toddler’s hand, a father carrying his young child on his shoulder travelling by buses or by any means of transport to return their home towns in scorching heat. At the tender age of 24, he carried the weight of their suffering.
When leaders of opposition parties were playing petty politics during pandemic, young guns of BJP and RSS emerged as warriors at battle ground to help and underprivileged and needy citizens. Their helping hands served everyone in need irrespective of their cast, creed and religion.
Jai Hind
