Fourth Aid to Destitute Families in Dungeshwari, India

JTS India has been providing food aid to destitute families in 15 villages of Dungeshwari. It has distributed 20kg or 25kg of rice (depending on the number of family members), 5kg of dals(lentils), and 1 liter of oil to the families that do not have any income for various reasons, such as poor health. In 2018, JTS has provided four rounds of food aid, in March, July, September, and December. On December 19th, the last food aid of 2018 was provided to 35 families living near Sujata Academy and 10 families Kanahol branch school living over the hill.

The houses in the villages have no heating. Since they don’t even own a small heater, the residents are exposed to cold droughts during the night. They don’t even have enough clothes, so women wear a shawl over their Sari (a traditional women’s clothing in India) to keep themselves warm. Therefore, in December, JTS provided a winter hat, a muffler, and a long-sleeved t-shirt in addition to the rice, 5kg of dal, and 1 bottle of cooking oil to each family.

Since it was the last aid for the year, JTS staff visited all the families in advance to check their situations thoroughly. They also made bags to hold dal in order to reduce the use of plastic bags. The bags will be returned to the leader of the town to be reused in the next food aid.

JTS staff were happy to prepare and share the food and other items with people who needed them.  The wind was cold, but the sun was warm. The residents looked very happy on their way home even though the rice and dal they carried on their heads were quite heavy.

JTS is thankful to all those who made donations. Thanks to the donors, Dungeshwari residents who are able to have a warm winter.