The Young Enthusiasts Who Use Surplus Food to Feed the Poor - Robin Hood Army

Blogger Amit Agarwal on his blog Safarnaamaa... सफ़रनामा... has written a terse poem on the topic I am about to discuss. Let me quote the poem here:

आस

रोटी खाऊँ मैं

या खा रही मुझको

रोटी की आस

The lines are a pungent take on hunger. Hunger is like a sharp-edged weapon that cuts you through but does not let you die. It is death in its living waking state. Harsh, unrelenting, brutal. The poet uses pun (यमक ) on the word 'खा' to drive home the point. That is great poetry - serving the purpose of a penetrating insight in the best literary form possible..

Food is a basic necessity. Even Buddha realized that he needed food to keep his body functioning. It was only through this body, that he could attain enlightenment. And when famished, even he could not concentrate. 

How long have you tried to remain hungry? A few hours, maybe. Or if you are a religion-driven, fast-keeping person, maybe a day or two. How has it felt? Have you heard the stomach grumble? Have you whined a bit? Have you felt tempted? Perhaps yes. But you always knew that this hunger was going to end soon.

But have you felt the stomach churn and make you writhe in pain? Have you felt the world going dark as you felt dizzy and fainted since you had not eaten for long - and how long, you know not, since you lost count of it? Have you known that the starvation that stabs you today is going to pierce you further tomorrow? Have you known how it feels to be killed every second of every minute of every day? Have you experienced the need to vomit out the emptiness that the stomach holds, if only you knew how? Perhaps no. I have not. I have been fortunate by an absurd stroke of fate to have been born lucky, raised well, fed well. My pantry is full, my kitchen smelling of delicious and nutritious food everyday. I do not know what hunger really means although I can sense the pain and anguish of the undernourished, famished people and children on the streets. I feel their torment and distress.

But there are others who feel the pain and take steps to alleviate it. And one such group of enthusiastic and passionate volunteers is the Robin Hood Army.

I don't remember how I chanced upon an article which described the work they were doing. I remember reading about the group being active in Faridabad, my city. I felt a sense of pride when I read it. I wanted to go and see them working, and perhaps join them when I went back home. Then, a few days later, I got to read another article on them which stated that they had spread not just in many Indian cities but in Pakistan too. This intrigued me further and I explored a bit more. I found out that Anand Sinha and Neel Ghose were the minds at work here. I discovered that they had modeled their work on something that was already being done in another country. It was Refood, an organization in Lisbon, Portugal that Neel Ghose had been attached to for some time that gave him the idea of starting an army of volunteers for his own country.

The logo of the Robin Hood Army - Image Source here

In a matter of a few days, their group had worked wonders. The motto of their work was to make surplus food available for the poor and the hungry. They did this by contacting restaurants. The response they got only egged them on. The owners of eateries were eager to help and in some cases would even prepare something extra to help them in their mission. As the volunteers did their bit, they learned that hunger problem was a monster that kept getting bigger and bigger. The menacing merciless beast of starvation needed to be dealt with urgently. There was no looking back now.

The uniqueness about the Robin Hood Army is stated in their own words. They do not need any 'monetary contributions'. They just need 'your time'. On Independence Day, 2015, they waged war against hunger in an exceptionally commendable way. They launched  #Mission100k which involved hundreds of students from India and Pakistan and fed more than one lakh people in both the countries. Independence does not only mean freedom from colonial domination. Independence also means freedom from the enemy within and hunger has emerged as the most powerful enemy in both the countries. What students learn from their participation in these efforts is way more valuable than what they might read in books of history, economics or sociology. 

The Robin Hood Army is currently active in more than 18 cities, with more than 1000 volunteers, as per the data on their website. They had started in 2014 with just 6 Robins, the name used by those actively involved in the work. They serve the poor, the homeless, those living in orphanages, night shelters and public hospitals. They are being helped by the youth in every city who collect food and manage the distribution of it to the needy too.

We have all read about the English Robin Hood who would rob the rich to feed the poor. He was a law-breaker, but he had good intentions. Choosing him as their icon speaks volumes about the Robin Hood Army. Their hero is someone who believes that there are riches which are lying around in surplus and if consumed will only do favor to the needy. The Robin Hood Army has waged their war against hunger without threatening or angering anyone. They have turned affluent people into allies and volunteers. They have raised awareness and spread the vibe of positive change. 

They are young, they are positive, they are an epitome of energy-driven force that hopes to make a difference every single night with every single edible grain that is edible. They are the Robins of today.


To access their Facebook page, please click here

To access their website, click here

Written for Indiblogger #SpreadTheVibe in association with http://www.youthkiawaaz.com/