It was a classic example of paying back to society when a migrant labourer from Rajasthan donated Rs 5,000 to the Kerala government for its efforts to contain the coronavirus virus spread in the state.
Vinod Jangid, a native of Veeranpura in Rajasthan, donated the amount to the Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF) on Wednesday after visiting Nileshwar police station in Kasaragod, the worst coronavirus-affected district in Kerala. Nileshwar lies 35km south of the district headquarters of Kasaragod.
Vinod, along with his friend Mukesh Chand Jangid, reached the police station in the evening with a request to the cops to help him donate the amount. He handed over the amount to Station House Officer M A Mathew. The police soon deposited the amount to the CMDRF via Google Pay.
"For the past few days, I have been thinking of doing something to help the government in my own way. But I didn't know what to do. When I told some police personnel on duty at my place about my plan to donate some money to CMDRF, they asked me to go to the police station," Vinod told Onmanorama over phone.
Vinod, 30, arrived in Kerala some 12 years ago. After doing odd jobs in different parts of the state, including Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi, Vinod has now settled at Koottappuna near Bangalam in Kasaragod district with his wife Jyothi and daughter Kanak. He works as a marble-granite contractor, with five persons working for him.
Asked if donating Rs 5,000 would derail his budget, Vinod answered '"no" with a smile. "I only did my duty," he said.
This is the first time he has donated to the CMDRF. However, he used to donate money for local temple festivals and other events.
Asked about the COVID-19 situation in his native place, he said four people have been tested positive in his tehsil. He is happy with the services provided by the Kerala government for migrant labourers during the lockdown. "Yesterday, some officials came to our house and gave us a food kit containing five kg rice and other essentials," he said.
SHO Mathew said he was surprised to see Vinod's gesture. "It's a great message. At a time when people only have complaints about everything, what Vinod did is a big thing. He said he came to the station because they only trusted the police," Mathew said.
The CMDRF has received a sum of Rs 111.15 crore from March 27 to April 9 to the fund for fighting COVID-19, according to the figures in the government website. Of this, Rs 8.54 crore has been paid through electronic mode.
