Lockdown IIT-KGP alumni to provide financial aid to 10 500 unorganised sector workers

    Kolkata, Apr 23 (PTI) Alumni of the IIT-Kharagpur have
set up a fund to provide financial assistance to around 10,500
unorganised sector workers who are dependent on the campus for
livelihood and are now severely affected due to the lockdown,
the institute said in a release on Thursday.
    The beneficiaries, who will receive financial
assistance for six months, include daily wagers in eateries,
ward boys of the hostels, laundrymen, tea stall owners,
rickshaw-pullers, domestic workers and labourers engaged in
construction projects, it said.
    The fund was created by 1967-batch distinguished
alumnus Vinod Gupta, known for his philanthropic work, the
release said.
    "I thank Vinod Gupta for creating this fund to help
people who are in dire straits," IIT-Kharagpur Director
Professor Virendra K Tewari said.
    The donations are being collected by the IIT-KGP
Foundation in the United States under the leadership of the
group's president Ranbir Gupta, the release said.
    The Foundation has already raised Rs 1.85 crore,
including a pledge of Rs 76 lakh from Vinod Gupta, it said.
    Ranbir Gupta, Arjun Malhotra, R N Mukhija, Rakesh
Gupta and 100 more donors from the 1959 to 2017 batches have
contributed to the fund, the release said.
    The alumni in the US aim to raise around Rs 8 crore to
help the unorganised sector workers, it said.
    The director has urged every "IIT KGPian" to support
the initiative. "This is the time to reminisce your days at
the halls of residence and the mess dada's smile, your 'adda'
at the night canteens and the people who had served you that
cup of tea and paratha," Tewari said. PTI SUS
ACD ACD

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)