Kochi  :

They are 30 in number. Compassion unites these like-minded people. With their inexhaustible love for mankind, the members of the Yuvadhara Arts and Sports Club, Kottooli, Kozhikode, have been rendering selfless service to the deserted people around them, quenching their thirst and hunger, for the past 16 years.

“We believe in the philosophy  ‘service to the poor is the best prayer to god.’ Even now, lots of people in our country are starving to death. If we are not in a position to understand the plight of those who are starving outside, and are not willing to extend our ‘sympathetic ears’ to the woes of the orphaned fellow beings around us, we are not worthy to be called human beings,” says club secretary Pramod K V.

He also says that as many as 200 residents in Kottooli are benign enough to extend their helping hand to the club members in their effort to serve the hapless.

Since its inception in 1998, the organisation has been witnessing a rapid flow of philanthropists from various parts of the district to offer their benevolent service.

“It’s really agonising to see that the vagabonds do not seem to have even one square meal or a roof over their head. Most of them sleep on the pavements of streets in complete vulnerability, especially the women among them. And never can we forget certain moments when they receive food packets from our hands with moistened eyes,” says club president K Vijesh, with an air of contentment. He also adds that the members of the club have become exemplary models for other people in Kottooli, which can be imbibed by the upcoming generations too.

It was in 2000 that the late Kozhikode Zamorin P K S Raja and the former Abbot of the CSI Church, Reverent Jose Peter, made a visit to Kottooli to meet the club members.

“As far as the club members were concerned, the day was really eventful. The Zamorin held the hands of each one of us and whole-heartedly thanked us for making him realise the pathetic condition of some of his subjects and also promised that he would extend his maximum help for the protection of the orphaned lives. Later, he seemed highly elated while taking the inmates of the Kottooli old age home out to the nearby beach for an evening walk conducted by the club,” says Bagyaraj, one of the club members.

He also says that the club is now looking forward to offering an ambulance by the name ‘Janakiya Ambulance’ to the residents of Kottooli with the intention of providing immediate medical facilities to them.

Apart from offering food to street-dwellers, the club has also organised various campaigns against pan masalas and also for the protection of widows in Kottooli.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Kochi / by Vimal Govind / May 16th, 2014