The COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating effect not only in urban but rural communities the world over. Villages in India are struggling to restrict the spread of the virus as well as cope with the economic impact of the lockdowns. Realizing the magnitude of this issue, the Grundfos Foundation is funding two villages in Gujarat through its Community Engagement Grant.
This funding will support more than 17,000 residents of Vadsar and Moti Bhoyan villages, located near Grundfos India’s facility in Dantali, Gujarat. In partnership with Hand-in-Hand India, a leading non-profit organizational NGO, this funding will provide necessary food provisions for the underprivileged families and will also go towards improving the overall safety and health standards in these two villages.
There are 630 underprivileged families in Vadsar and Moti Bhoyan who received food kits with provisions for one month. This funding also provided face masks and soaps to all the residents in these villages. To further support local ventures, Jay Bheem, a self-help group, was identified to help make good quality, three fold face masks which are washable and reusable. Each resident received two masks, while each household also received disinfectant soaps to help improve their personal hygiene and protection.
Kim Nøhr Skibsted, Executive Director, Grundfos Foundation, said, “As we see the rural communities struggle to cope with the impact of this pandemic, our hearts go out to them. This funding will help support the residents of these two villages in Gujarat through these tough times. We are working closely with Grundfos India and the NGO to execute this project.”
Commenting on this initiative, Saravanan Panneer Selvam, General Manager, INDO Region, Grundfos said, “We are happy that the Grundfos Foundation has come forward to support the local communities that Grundfos India is part of. We provided the food and safety kits based on the request from the local authorities of Vadsar and Moti Bhoyan. This initiative is the result of all stakeholders coming together to help the community when it really matters.”
A few Grundfos India employees along with representatives from the respective NGO and local authorities were involved in the distribution of these food and safety kits, all while ensuring social distancing guidelines.
The Grundfos Foundation has also funded three other COVID-19 relief activities in Tamil Nadu.
