On the afternoon of April 23, Devendra Ujle, 26, stood forlorn in front of Prakashchandra Sethi Government Hospital in Indore. He had been frantically trying to find a vehicle to shift his pregnant wife, Asha, to MY Hospital. An anaemic Asha was close to her due date, and had been at the government hospital for two days. But as her condition worsened even after blood transfusions, she was referred to MY Hospital for delivery. Being a Covid-19 hotspot, Indore was totally shut down, and Devendra could not find any mode of transport. That is when Lalita Ujle (not related to the couple) arrived. Lalita, 31, is a driving instructor with Samaan Society, an NGO. She was on her way home when she spotted the couple. “Lalita didi not only took Asha and me to MY Hospital, but also persuaded the blood bank officials to give a bottle of blood to Asha,” says Devendra. “She was with us till 11pm when my daughter was born. But for Lalita didi, I don’t know what would have become of my wife and daughter.”
When the Ujles were discharged, Lalita drove them home, about 10km from the hospital. “As part of Samaan Society, we do relief work in the city and therefore have curfew passes,” says Lalita. “So I simply helped when I saw them in trouble.”
Lalita is part of Samaan Society’s 'Sakha Cabs' for women. She and three other women drivers now deliver relief material to those in need. The organisation has been working in the most affected areas of Indore like Palda and Malwa Mills, providing ration kits to people who lost their livelihood during the lockdown. “We distributed grocery kits along with soaps to about 600 needy families,” says Rajendra Bandhu, executive director of Samaan Society.
This story is from the June 14, 2020 edition of THE WEEK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the June 14, 2020 edition of THE WEEK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
BIOPIC AND BEYOND
Randeep Hooda may have proved his acting credentials with biopics, but typecast him at your own peril
Flutter of flimsy wings
Butterfly Research Centre in Bhimtal boasts 3,500 butterfly and moth specimens
SIMILAR STATES, DIFFERENT BATTLES
The Congress seems to have the edge in Telangana while in Andhra Pradesh, Chandrababu Naidu and Jagan Mohan Reddy are locked in a bitter battle
A RIDE TO REMEMBER
On board Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy’s bus as he was attacked
Winning 14 of 17 seats is my target
Anumula Revanth Reddy is on a mission to demonstrate a democratic and egalitarian facet of power and leadership.
LOTUS TAKES ROOT
Buoyed by its slowly growing acceptance among the voters in Tamil Nadu, the BJP is mounting its fiercest offensive ever
BLANK CHECK
Several factors favour an increase in the BJP’s vote share in Kerala, but whether the party can win a seat remains uncertain
CONGRESS HAS A HISTORY OF MAKING ADJUSTMENTS WITH COMMUNAL FORCES
In April 2021, as Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan was leading the CPI(M)’s assembly poll campaign to win a second consecutive term, a spirited debate erupted in Kerala over an epithet that party workers had bestowed on him.
POLL PLOT
Congress hopes its five guarantees’ will blunt BJP’s aggressive push
MODI'S GUARANTEES REMAIN IN SPEECHES, MY GUARANTEES ARE FULFILLED
The transformation is unmissable. The old-school mass leader Siddaramaiah has suddenly switched into the new avatar of a master strategist.