COVID-19 hits the poor the most
Hope Unlimited supports 44 families across Tamil Nadu and Puducherry for two months
After supporting 44 families across 11 districts in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry with a cash transfer for two months, in April and May, Hope Unlimited is now extending support to 24 families in June too.
The nationwide lockdown necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic has brought to a halt normal life as we know it. For millions of people working in the unorganised sector, staying at home however, has meant a loss of income. Already leading a precarious existence and struggling to feed their families, many, especially socially marginalised communities, are now looking at a considerable period of time where they have little or no means of income. Families where women are single parents and the only breadwinner are particularly vulnerable. Children are looking at an extended period away from school. In vulnerable communities already struggling to keep their children in school, this extended period without income could mean that some families decide not to send their children, especially girls back to school once the lockdown is lifted but to work.
Hope Unlimited is supporting 44 families across 11 districts in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. These families are not numbers; each family has their own story but one common thread connects them: their poverty has become unbearable with the lockdown. Most of them are families headed by women, some with medical conditions. Before the lockdown, they were working in the informal sector with no permanent jobs but earning some money barely enough to sustain their families. Now that has stopped completely.
The families were identified with the help of community based organisations in these districts. Special thanks are due to Action Aid, Vidiyal and Abhithi Foundation.
Loss of income a bigger worry
“We are not directly affected by the Corona virus but economically, my family is suffering. Also, we are affected psychologically with all the stress and we don’t know how we can overcome this,” says Pothum Ponnu, from Kallamanaickenpatti in Virudhunagar district, Tamil Nadu.
The 38-year-old-woman’s name literally means ‘enough girl’ (in some rural areas, when a family gets girls in succession, they name the last one podhum ponnu to indicate they don’t want a girl to be born anymore). Pothum Ponnu, who has two daughters, works as a construction worker. Her first daughter, Vaitheeswari is in Grade 11 and the second, Hema is in Grade 8. Their father, who was HIV positive, died in 2016. Pothum Ponnu is also HIV positive.
With the lockdown, construction work has come to a standstill and the family, already struggling to live, has no income. “The government is giving Rs.1000 per ration card, which is helpful. But it is not enough to meet my family’s requirements. Besides, with my medical condition, I cannot even buy medicines,” says Pothum Ponnu.
Vijaya was already struggling to provide food for her family with her meagre monthly income of Rs.4000. Now with the lockdown, the thirty-year-old mother of four is beset by worry. Vijaya, who is from Coimbatore district, was working in a textile unit in Somanur. With the lockdown, she has no job and no wages. After her husband died of tuberculosis a few years ago, Vijaya moved in with her mother-in-law, who is unwell. Her eldest son, who is aged 14, works part-time in a textile mill earning around Rs.2000 a month. The family is already in debt and Vijaya is unable to pay for the mother-in-law’s medical expenses.
Hope Unlimited is supporting 24 families in June too
After supporting 44 families across 11 districts in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry with a cash transfer for two months, in April and May, Hope Unlimited extends support to 24 families for June too. Ezhilarasi is one of them.
K. Gopika is a Grade 3 student in Puducherry. When she was aged two, her father died of cancer. Gopika’s mother, Ezhilarasi, who belongs to a socially marginalised community, works as a domestic help. Now, due to the lockdown, Ezhilarasi has lost her income as her employers told her not to come to work. Worse, they have not paid her during this period. Despite the uncertain future, the 32-year-old is keen that her daughter can continue to go to school.
(June 2020)
