Survival Kit

Rural India is witnessing a distressing COVID 2.0 surge. The tribal-dominated pockets are disproportionately affected due to the non-availability of healthcare services (lives) and steady fall in job opportunities and income levels (livelihoods) coupled with poor connectivity and challenging geographical terrain. Communities, especially the women breadwinners who make products and directly sell them in the market, are majorly impacted. It is also a significant challenge to step out and purchase a mask or even secure access to afford a decent meal. 

The disturbing situation of indigenous tribes and forest dwellers such as the Kui tribes, Bondas & Didayi tribes of Malkangiri district, Paudi Bhuyian of Angul district in the state of Orissa, and the Soligas of Karnataka without access to food availability and inadequacy of basic healthcare is a story of distress and fear with their lives and livelihood at risk. This pandemic and the consequent lockdowns have adversely affected and shut down every means of livelihood who earned a living by making innovative products through sustainable use of Natural Fibre and Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFP) like Siali leaves and bamboo fibre.

Since there lies an urgent need to focus on food security and strong health protection to help tribal communities minimize, CoLive, a consortium of grass-root level Covid response collectives, has initiated a survival kit targeting 200000 tribal families in 5000 villages in the states of Karnataka and Orissa. The survival kit for Rs 1,857 contains a month's supply for a family of five. It includes ration items of rice, dal, flour, oil, salt, and condiments. Additionally, masks, face shields, and personal hygiene kits (sanitary pads, sanitizer) for women and adolescent girls will also be provided. Stepping on a war footing, the campaign aims to reduce the vulnerabilities of the indigenous tribes and families, daily wage earners, and the migrants and assist in rebuilding their lives. 

Our collective solidarity, along with your contribution, can help us feed and protect these marginalized and underserved communities. The kits are critical to make rural communities feel further safe and put their worries at ease on the most vital aspect to survival - food. In addition, the safety kit will aid in curbing the transmission of the virus in the villages and resume livelihood activities in parallel without fear by following COVID appropriate social behavior.

Tiered on 2 of India’s largest existing Covid response collectives, Covid Livelihoods - CoLive aims to protect, recover and rebuild the lives and livelihoods of over 1400,000 families in 14,000 villages across India. 

Convened by Industree Foundation, the coalition, composed of the most dedicated and dynamic front-line organisation within India, is co-creating and collaborating on immediate emergency response areas to empathetically and respectfully impact the lives of those affected and stand by them in this time of crisis.