Hindu bodies across Africa pool-in aid for COVID-hit India

Johannesburg, May 7

A number of Hindu organisations across the African continent have rallied to provide assistance to coronavirus-hit India, which has been recording over 400,000 new cases daily in recent days.

BAPS Charities South Africa, affiliated to the Swaminarayan organisation, has worked closely with their affiliations in Uganda, Kenya, the UAE and the UK to arrange an initial shipment of 123 oxygen concentrators to India.

India is experiencing a deadly second wave of the coronavirus. The country saw a record 4,187 fatalities due to virus in the last 24 hours, taking the country’s death toll to 2,38,270, while 4,01,078 new infections were reported in a day, pushing the tally to 2,18,92,676 cases, according to the Union health ministry data updated on Saturday.

A representative for BAPS Charities, South Africa, said while the different chapters of the organisation raised funds separately, the consignment had been shipped via the East African countries for logistical ease.

“We will work with the relevant South African authorities for the rest of our promised donation of at least 100 concentrators to be shipped directly from here. On the India end, our consignments are taken care of by BAPS Charities India. They have a working relationship with Indian authorities,” he said.

He said that they were looking at machines that could cater to two patients simultaneously as these were the most practical.

“But the truth is that they are scarce and we send machines that we know have the adequate concentration level of 90 per cent. These are often 10L machines, but sometimes and in emergency scenarios either 7L or 5L,” he said.

In a complementary effort, the South African Hindu Maha Sabha (SAHMS), a national body with scores of affiliates across the country, also plans to send 100 two-patient oxygen concentrators to India.

SAHMS has secured 20 oxygen concentrators at a cost of 300,000 rand from its own funds.

This has already been doubled by a contribution from the Surat Hindu Association, bringing the total to 40 of the 100 containers.

SAHMS President Ashwin Trikamjee said businesses and the public were responding well to the call for donation.

“I am confident that we will have the 100 concentrators by the end of next week,” Trikamjee said.

He said they had opted for the specific concentrators because not only can they serve two patients at a time, but were also portable and powered by both electricity and batteries.

Earlier, the internationally renowned South African relief agency ‘Gift of the Givers’, which has no religious affiliation, announced that it was finalising discussions with both the South African and Indian governments to provide oxygen machines and other medical supplies.

Besides the assistance of supplying concentrators, prayers were also held across South Africa this week for the crisis in India.

In Durban, SAHMS, the Purohit Mandal of South Africa and the World Hindu Priests Organisation, jointly hosted a ‘havan’ (fire prayer) on Saturday. It was live streamed on social media. PTI