Samaniya Bhat
BARAMULLA, March 29: At a time when while world is reeling under dangers of a deadly disease –COVID-19, there are volunteers across the globe who are contributing in their own ways to stem its spread in their respective areas.
While the corporate sectors associated with pharmaceutical business especially manufacturing of sanitizers and face masks, are allegedly indulging in an engineered shortage of these life essential products in markets, a lady tailor working in a Himayat Centre in Baramulla district has come out making her own masks and distributing them free of cost among people particularly the medical fraternity.
Asima Jan, the volunteer lady tailor, says that she was moved by the peoples’ woes about shortage of face masks in the market. “I saw shopkeepers looting people with exorbitant rates of face masks. A mask which should have been usually sold at the rate of Rs 5 or 10, is being sold to the desperate people for Rs 50 to Rs 100,” she told Kashmir Despatch.
She said that a week ago she went to the market where shopkeepers were selling face masks at exorbitant rates. “This touched my conscience and I decided to make and distribute face masks free of cost among masses,” Asima told Kashmir Despatch.
She said that in these pressing times, people should especially the businessmen and traders should have been helping each other especially the needy people out of their own free will and for the sake of humanity. “But I could see that spirit missing. Although I do not claim of doing anything big but I am providing this service within my limited resources. If I can not help in some big to protect the people I think I can contribute in my own way to prevent spread of this deadly disease which has eaten into vitals of the whole world,” she observed.
