By Special Correspondent

New Delhi : Amidst the public health emergency caused by the second wave of Covid-19, Muslim socio—religio organizations have once again come forward to help the fellow countrymen in this hour of human crisis. They are offering all sorts of help and services to Covid patients irrespective of their religion and creed.

Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) and its student wing the Students Islamic Organisation (SIO) on Sunday launched a countrywide network – ‘Covid Relief Task Force’. Another outfit, Popular Front of India also intensified its ongoing Corona-related relief and volunteering activities.  PFI has played a stellar role during the first wave of Covid 19 pandemic.

At a time when people are dying due to paucity of oxygen and black marketing of life-saving drugs, the attempts are being made to cover up the government’s all round failures by under-reporting the Covid-related deaths and cases in the country.

In the wake of such a grim situation, PFI general secretary, Anis Ahmed said the organization has decided to step up its services across the country.

Expressing serious concern over the situation spiralling out of control, Ahmed said any government agencies that require volunteer services for hospitals, Covid centers, and burial services can contact our local units.

Popular Front will also coordinate with NGOs that are working in Covid related relief services as its volunteers have good experience to serve the people during the first wave of pandemic.

From the very beginning of the lockdown in March 2020, the organization volunteers have been on the ground helping people stranded in the lockdown, providing medical service to covid patients, and ensuring dignified burial to the dead, he said.

Now the country is having a calamitous situation. Popular Front is deeply concerned and pained by the reports coming from various parts of the country of hospitals being overcrowded, health workers struggling to meet the needs of the patients, and the bodies having to be cremated on open grounds and throughout this entire struggle, the organization will stand with the country, he said.

Meanwhile,  Jamaat  President Syed Sadatullah Husaini along with the SIO President  launched  ‘Covid Relief Task Force’ for timely providing help to Covid-19 affected people. Through this network, the SIO will provide information related to oxygen, hospital beds, plasma, medicines and other health requirements to Corona patients quickly. For this purpose, a 24/7 helpline has been set up. It will connect Covid patients with the verified resources fulfilling their health requirements in a timely manner.

In a joint video message, they appealed to their cadres as well as other concerned citizens to join in this effort. Husaini said the Jamaat has formed a nationwide 8-point programme to assist COVID patients and their families.

“Now our state and local units spread over the country have been active in implementing this programme. One of the points is Resource Identification and Guidance Centre (RIGC) which will be run under the SIO. It will provide information about the availability of oxygen, hospital beds, plasma donors and medicines to the needy Covid patients. For this purpose a 24/7 call centre is being set up here at the JIH headquarters. Its sub centres will be set up in prime cities of the country.”

The SIO has announced that if anyone needs oxygen, plasma, hospital bed or medicines, Covid Relief Task Force can connect patients with verified resource providers across India in a timely manner.Giving details, the SIO president has stated that Covid Relief Task Force will consist of more than one thousand volunteers from across the country to work 24/7. “Under this task force, a plasma donor registration drive will be conducted to connect them with patients,” he added.