NEW DELHI: Relief camps are not just the only need of the hour but rehabilitation is. Not completely relying on the government's initiatives, some individuals and groups have taken up the responsibility of rehabilitation of riot-affected victims in north-east Delhi by themselves. Professionals from across the country are pooling money to help the victims.
Rana Safvi, who is an author has teamed up with some of her friends on Facebook and started money collection after careful estimation of costs of the livelihood and property lost. She initiated pooling money for Aslam and Shabana, a couple with young kids who ran a ready-made suits business in north-east Delhi which got burnt in the riots. When they reached the required donation of 1.5 lakhs through various donors on Facebook, the request was closed with a Thanksgiving message.
Hana Mohsin Khan, an Airline pilot too visited the north-east Delhi, that too riding pillion on a scooty and meeting people who have been affected by the riots. She and her friends made a careful analysis of the damages to property, especially on livelihood caused by rioters and then played an instrumental role in pooling money for the start-up of their business. Presently they are pooling money for an auto driver Saleem who lost his livelihood in the riots. The group has set a maximum cap of 'Eighty thousand' for Saleem.
Some even took to twitter to generate money for those who lost their livelihood. Posting pictures of a man's shop who lost his mechanic shop to fire in the riots, a twitter user Hasiba Amin started pooling money for the same. Later, when the required amount was reached, she closed the donation with a 'Thanks' message. Hasiba even posted a picture of a man, Abdul Sattar, with a sewing machine with a message that a sewing machine was donated to him so that the man's daughter can start stitching again and earn a livelihood. The sewing machine was handed over by a concerned citizen Imtiyaz Warsi. Later,, the man Abdul Sattar was also helped with a battery rikshaw.
Abshar posted pictures of some men sitting in a room doing the embroidery work whose equipments were burnt in the violence. The money to buy these small tools were generated and handed over to the affected workers to restart their business. The initiatives of society as a whole has certainly helped the riot victims restart their life afresh. Though the loss of life cannot be compensated merely by money but generous donations from unexpected strangers have certainly brought relief in the life of some of the affected victims.