Puri: Sahibhai, a voluntary outfit in the city here, has proved itself as a true friend of the destitute and stray animals during this troubled times.
Members of the outfit including Chandrasekhar Mishra, Brajabandhu Maharana, Surendra Kumar Mishra, Santosh Sekhar Mohanty, Gopinath Das and Suresh Kar have been providing cooked food to some destitute people in the city here. Similarly, they have been feeding monkeys, stray cattle and dogs for last several days.
“All the shops, hotels and roadside eateries in the city here have been closed to check the spread of coronavirus. Greengrocers are being allowed to open their stalls for a couple of hours in day. In this scenario, the destitute people and many stray animals are facing a lot of difficulties to get food,” said a member of Sahibhai.
Outfit sources said it has been providing roti and curry to the destitute, chicken biryani to stray dogs, hot gruel and husk to stray cattle, and biscuits and groundnuts to monkeys.
“We are feeding chicken biryani to at least 400 stray dogs in the city. Our members are carrying the biryani in a battery operated auto-rickshaw to feed dogs on various roads and streets in the city. We are also providing food to at least 50 destitute daily,” said Santosh Sekhar Mohanty, a member of Sahibhai.
Mohanty claimed that the outfit is depending upon public donations to feed the stray animals and homeless people. “Some benevolent persons of Puri are helping us in cash and kind to feed the needy,” he added.
According to Mohanty, Sahibhai outfit has been doing various social works in the city since last five years. Members of the outfit usually attend to stray cattle and provide service to the devotees during the annual Rath Yatra.
“Our organisation has been awarded by the district administration for its social work,” Mohanty said.