KARACHI: The welfare organisations working in Karachi have undoubtedly created a model to ensure that no one sleeps hungry in the city. They believe that it is a privilege for them that God has made them the medium of service to the poor. Anyone can just walk in and benefit from the free food facility also known as ‘dastarkhwan’.
One can frequently see people lined up for free meals all day. The needy ones also seem sure that they will be fed as the dastarkhwan never runs out of food because the organisations cook enough to ensure that no one leaves without eating.
According to the World Food Programme, one in every nine people the world over sleeps without taking a meal. It is indeed encouraging to note that these charitable organisations are continuously striving to pull down the graph of hunger among the economically and socially backward sections of society within the metropolis in particular and the country as a whole. They make sure that hunger-stricken people, especially the daily wage workers, get at least two free meals daily.
The first ever survey of its kind in the country, the National Nutrition Survey 2018, has revealed that poverty keeps more than 50 per cent of Pakistani families from having two meals a day. Moreover, 36.9pc of Pakistani households remain food insecure and also lack reliable access to affordable nutritious food in sufficient quantity. Since Karachi is the most affluent city of the country, the poverty rate in the metropolis is only 8.9pc, which means if the population of Karachi is estimated to be 20 million there are more or less 1.8m people who are not in a position to afford two meals a day.
Therefore, the role of the charitable organizations in eradicating hunger from the city cannot be undermined. Though they may vary a bit in their strategies, the goal of these organizations remains the same, which is to serve humanity. They all agree that hunger and malnutrition are the main problems being faced by the poor in our society.
A generous nation
Here it’s encouraging to note that though Pakistan is one of the seven countries that do not have enough to eat, the country has also been recognised as the most generous in terms of giving away charity to the poor.
However, the charitable organisations say that despite this tradition of charity, most donations go directly to individuals in the form of zakat and ‘sadqa’, thus bypassing the charitable organisations. They argue that while supporting the needy individuals is a noble deed, there’s a need for helping the society as a whole. As such understanding the dynamics behind this preference of individual vs organization is essential to develop a hunger-free society.
It’s indeed heartening to note that Karachi is the most affluent and the most generous city of Pakistan and a number of welfare organizations are working hard to eliminate poverty and hunger in the city. To feed millions of hungry people these organisations, with the assistance and help of generous donors that include overseas Pakistanis also, prepare food in their well-equipped kitchens under the supervision of professional chefs. A number of organisations also collect leftover meals from marriage halls, hotels, restaurants and even some houses, pack it in boxes and distribute them among the people who are in dire need.
Though according to an estimate 16.5pc of households in the metropolis faced moderate to severe food insecurity during the fiscal year 2019-2020, fortunately Karachi, the largest city of Pakistan, has a fairly large number of welfare trusts, charitable organisations and individuals who are into philanthropic work.
Since many years now, the City of Lights has seen the welfare and charity organisations providing breakfast, lunch and dinner free of cost to the needy millions. Those who come for meals to the free dastarkhwans can even take packed food for their family members. Since everybody is welcomed here, one can safely say that at least in Karachi nobody sleeps on an empty stomach.
In these hard times of poverty, unemployment, low wages amid escalating inflation, the poor are suffering the most. They find it most difficult to earn enough to feed their kith and kin and provide them with clothing and education. The worst affected are the masons, painters, carpenters and other such workers who sit on the pavements of markets in the upscale localities in search of work. At times they have to pass the whole day sitting on the pavements waiting for work.
Good Samaritans
The people standing in a queue for their turn to get meals at the Saylani Dastarkhwan located in over 100 different points in Karachi is indeed a very common sight. Over 0.3 million people irrespective of caste, creed and colour are fed here on a daily basis. The free food centres open early in the morning to serve paratha, ‘chana’, halwa and tea so that the poor of society can start their day on a full stomach.
After breakfast, the volunteers at the centres then get ready to serve lunch that begins at 12 noon and ends in two to three hours’ time. While going back home after a hectic day people again flock to the food points to get a free dinner.
Talking about the Saylani Dastarkhwan Maulana Bashir Ahmed Farooqui informed Bol News that over Rs15 million are spent daily on food and water all across the country. “The best part is that we keep on changing the menu. It ranges from meat items to mixed vegetables and a variety of pulses. Some desserts are also part of the menu that include items like kheer, ‘doodh dulari’ etc. In the summer, mango juices are also served while during the winter, arrangements for live barbeque are also made. The idea behind the service is to feed the poor with those items that are consumed by the well-off class of our society”.
He said that apart from the dastarkhwan service, take-away arrangements have also been made as per the requirement of the needy persons. “Our enquiry officers visit every household that are below the poverty line and after thorough scrutiny, they issue cards, which are normally valid for six months, to the poor families that can receive packed meals at their doorsteps. After the expiry of the cards, the team again visit the families concerned and keeping in view the latest circumstances, the officers either renew or cancel the cards. More or less 25,000 families are benefited by this system”, he explained.
Maulana Farooqui informed that Saylani had also entered into a partnership with the federal government’s initiatives like the Ehsaas programme, Panahgah, Langarkhana and the Koi Bhooka Na Soye programmes.
“Only the premises of the initiatives have been provided to us and we are responsible for the arrangements of food to all the needy persons who come to the centres. This is indeed a noteworthy endeavour from the government in the area of providing the best quality shelter and food to the poor”, Maulana Farooqui said.
Briefing the media on the occasion of the Ehsaas-Saylani Langar partnership ceremony, Prime Minister’s Special Assistant on Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Dr Sania Nishtar said “Feeding the poor and the deserving is at the heart of the prime minister’s vision of the welfare state. The Ehsaas-Saylani Langar on Wheels is the dire need of the hour that will not only address the hunger and nutritional needs of the impoverished, but it will also provide us an opportunity to connect with them, respond to their needs and fight against hunger”.
Speaking at the ceremony, the Saylani president said “We are deeply honoured to partner with the Ehsaas programme and pledge full support for the tremendous cause to ease the food burden of urban poor with complete dignity and safety in difficult times”.
The welfare organisation is being run by a staff of over 5,000, and an estimated annual budget of over Rs8 billion was earmarked for 2021 while the annual budget of 2022 has been set at approximately Rs11bn. Saylani has overseas offices in the UK, USA, Turkey and the UAE. Their worldwide branches are operating under the guidance of a team of over 3,500 working professionals who help almost 150,000 people on a daily basis.
Established in May 1999 by the famous spiritual and religious scholar Maulana Bashir Ahmed Farooqui, the Saylani Welfare International Trust was built on the fundamentals of breaking the cycle of poverty, alleviating the financial troubles of the poor, giving people a chance to live a dignified life and spreading happiness. Its vast network of over 600 branches is spread across Pakistan.
The trust has established a state-of-the-art kitchen with fully automatic bread-baking plant, which works round the clock to ensure uninterrupted supply of cooked meals at hundreds of its centres and ambulance booths across Karachi where people in need gather. Tons of oil and meat are used in the cooking, while thousands of goats are slaughtered daily to feed the needy.
