Srinagar: Since the outbreak of the deadly Covid-19 pandemic, a group of youngsters from Jammu and Kashmir have been volunteering in saving the precious lives across the union territory by managing blood for patients in need.
It all started in 2020 when people were frightened and panicking over about the fast spread of the Covid virus. Nearly a dozen youths from different districts of Jammu and Kashmir then decided to assist the people in need.
“The people were quite upset and distressed as hardly a few were able to get the much-needed oxygen concentrators for their virus affected beloved,” Adnan Fayaz Dar, one of the founders of SOS Emergency group, from North Kashmir’s Sopore area in Baramulla district.
Adnan along with his couple of friends decided to assist the poor and needy patients amid the chaotic situation and thus spread wings to save the precious lives every day in Jammu and Kashmir.
The SOS group, presently having over 1000 members from different districts, are donating 10 blood pints every day to save the precious lives, Adnan said, adding that the volunteers and the blood donors are increasing almost every day.
Interestingly, the volunteers include both male and female. Adnan said that over 100 members are females, who have been at the forefront in the past two years to save lives by donating blood and ensuring other assistance to the needy people.
Most of our volunteers and donors belong to Srinagar, he said, adding that the number of members has increased from just 20 to over 1000 in the last over two years now.
“Our donors are always in a ready mode to save precious lives. We don’t have the exact figure available, but more than 2000 blood pints have been donated by the youngsters so far since its inception,” Adnan said.
Some of the volunteers are keen and enthusiastic in serving the needy people, he said and informed that four of the members including Yawar Najfi, Ibrahim, Aijaz and Abbas Kashmiri—all residents of Srinagar, donated 153 blood pints till date.
Ibrahim has donated 116 pints so far while Yawar, Aijaz and Abbas Kashmiri have donated 60, 57 and 20 blood pints to the needy till date.
“It’s a blessing, a proud and the happiest moment for us to save precious lives,” Adnan said, adding that it is always difficult to manage the blood for the needy patients as most of the time, there is no transportation available to reach the place where the patient is admitted.
“We contribute from our pockets maximum of times to help the donor to reach the place and save the precious life,” he said.
The two volunteers, Mir Huziaf from Baramulla and Muntazir Khan from Srinagar, manage all the things with ease as the duo play pivotal role in managing the donor and help them to reach the place for blood donation.
“We have named the group as SOS emergency. It has no president, no senior or junior. All the volunteers are equal and the group is there with an aim to serve the people in need,” he said.
In managing donors, the group is being assisted by one of the NGOs, Blessing Kashmir, headed by Muhammad Abbas Kath alias Abbas Kashmiri, Adnan said.
Besides saving precious lives, the group (SOS emergency) is assisting the poor students as well as families.
“We don’t only save lives by donating blood, but our endeavour is to save the future as well and thus have been helping poor families and students to get food, other mandatory things and especially the books and other stationeries to the students from the downtrodden section of the society.
“Jammu and Kashmir Police has from time to time helped us in the endeavour in serving the poor families and students. The police officials also help us in ensuring books, copies, pens and food to the needy students and families.
“We are aspiring to help people from all across the globe. We are trying to have members from everywhere to serve humanity,” Adnan said and appealed to the government to help them in bringing smiles on the faces of people.
Abbas Kashmiri of Saida Kadal, Srinagar, another volunteer of the SOS group and heads Blessing Kashmir, said that for donating blood, you don’t need to be poor or rich. “I believe almighty will ask me on the Day of Judgment what you have done to the gift (blood) I had given to you,” he said, adding that people have some phobia with regard to donating the blood and thus are avoiding it.
“Whenever I donate the blood, I feel I have been created by God for some purpose, which keeps me ready and enthusiastic to always help the needy,” Abbas Kashmiri said, adding that he was 17-years-old when he started donating the blood.
“Such is the phobia among the people that nobody gets ready to donate easily and in one such instance, we had to send a donor from Kashmir to donate AB-ve cells to a patient from Rajbagh area of Srinagar, who was admitted in Delhi hospital. We usually face tough times as the transportation always leads to the difficulties,” he said, adding that the need for blood donation is increasing rapidly given the growing cancer cases in Kashmir, kidney failure cases and other similar issues.
“The pressure is mounting and we have been trying our best to serve humanity.”
–IANS
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