RATION DISTRIBUTION:
CHEPANG COMMUNITIES, MAKWANPUR
with sano paila
Almost 4% of the total population in Makwanpur is made up of the Chepang community.[1] This is one of the most backward communities of Nepal in terms of quality of life. And even before the COVID pandemic due to the serious deprivation of proper health facilities, they were constantly battling health problems like malnutrition, pneumonia, and typhoid, etc, making them one of the most vulnerable ethnic groups facing population bottleneck due to the COVID-19 lockdown.
Unfortunately, just when life was going back to normal for the marginalized communities of Makwanpur after a massive earthquake in 2015, it had to kneel yet again to an even more devastating crisis i.e. the COVID-19 pandemic. Keeping these facts in mind, Metal for Nepal found it important that we contribute to the cause of helping these communities.
[1] (n.d.). Makwanpur - Profile data - NepalMap. Retrieved August 1, 2020, from https://nepalmap.org/profiles/district-41-makwanpur/
To further fortify this cause of ours we partnered up with Sanopaila, which is a non-profit organization that is committed to redefining the development sector, inspire disenfranchised communities in Nepal and work with them through education, youth volunteerism, and grassroots organizing to solve challenges with homegrown local solutions that ensure a degree of sustainability built into the projects since 2006.
As a part of, Ration Supply Distribution Project, a team from Metal for Nepal alongside Sanopaila visited two Villages, Pechen-(6), and Polaghari-(7), located at Manahari Municipality in Makwanpur district to distribute Ration Supply packages on Monday, 6th of July, 2020. The group consisted of 2 volunteers from Metal for Nepal and a team from Sanopaila. With the help of Sanopaila's resources and the assistance of local governing bodies at Makwanpur district, we were able to identify more than 85 Chepang, Dalit, and disadvantaged community families totaling up to more than 400 individuals who were in dire need of support. Through the help of these resources, we were able to provide each of these 85 families with nutrition-balanced packages for over 45 days. Every package consisted of:
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30kg of rice
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2kg of lentil
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2 packets of salt
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2 liters oil
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1kg Soya Chunks
As John D. Rockefeller said, “Think of giving not as a duty but as a privilege”, it was our utmost privilege that during this hour of crisis we were able to aid the needy and help them fight the crisis together. And heartfelt gratitude to our partners Sanopaila and other bodies involved in this cause for the effective operation of the project.
- Aayush Subedi for Metal for Nepal, 8/1/2020