The year 2021 started off on a hopeful note, with India starting to breathe easy and bracing itself for a better, and pandemic-free tomorrow. However, the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic has caught pretty much everyone off-guard, with cases soaring high and citizens scrambling for hospital beds, medical care, oxygen cylinders and resources.

Since mid-march, the catastrophe has continued to shake the foundations of India's health infrastructure, and has given way to uncountable families losing their loved ones to the disease and the unpreparedness for it.

For sometime, hope fell to new lows because of the daunting task of provision of crucial supplies to treat Covid positive patients, from oxygen cylinders, plasma, medicines, ambulances to food for quarantined individuals. However, India's citizens have exhibited the power of unity and the synergy of community and social media by making a significant effort to equalize the demand and supply for these provisions.

The team at FamPay has been concerned about the happenings of the country since they came to light, and we have been proactively working towards setting a planned and informed covid-response system in place.

A quick survey within our GenZ community made it apparent that they wanted to do their bit as well. Hence, here's what FamPay came up with to respond to India's ongoing crisis while also giving GenZs an opportunity to get on-board.

Fund-raising

The biggest struggle of the hour for India's medical infrastructure is arranging sufficient medical equipment such as oxygen cylinders for the patients in need. Thus, it was imperative for FamPay to find a channel to extend help directly to hospitals quickly and efficiently.

What did we do?

FamPay found out NGOs in the limelight who are taking initiative and working tirelessly towards backing up hospitals and meeting the need of medical supplies.

These supplies and equipment include:

• Oxygen cylinders
• Ventilators
• Oxygen concentrators
• Collateral medical supplies

With things getting dire by the minute, an immediate joint-effort was crucial, and we are thankful to Give India, Impact Guru, and Milaap for responding and getting onboard as soon as possible. FamPay is raising funds by letting users donate via the FamPay app and extending the donations to these NGOs.

How does it work?

On the FamPay app, our initiative Let's heal India, lets users donate an amount of their choice, beginning from ₹50 to a cause and organisation of their choice. The thing that we kept in mind is that the Indian GenZ is eager to help in all ways possible, hence we tried to streamline the process and make it seamless on our part, so that they can lend a helping hand in the best manner possible.

After making a donation, the donor gets a certificate issued on behalf of the NGO and FamPay as a token of gratitude and appreciation. 🧡 🙌🏻

Community Initiative

FamPay's discord server, Friends of Fam is a 4.4K strong and tight-knit GenZ community. In these challenging times, we reached out to our 'Friends' to probe further into the ways they could help. Upon conducting polls, it was heartwarming to see many coming forward to volunteer and being up for arduous tasks.

What happened next?

Thanks to the zealous admins, moderators and volunteers within Friends of Fam, we managed to curate an exclusive channel category called Covid Resource Corner on our discord server. The category includes relevant channels with (number of) volunteers that remain on their toes throughout to distribute information and extend help whenever needed.

The Channels

The Covid Resource Corner on our discord server has four channels. Our volunteers constantly feed them requests that they come across online ➡️ find verified leads for those requests ➡️ verify them if they're unverified.

The specific channels are for:

• Hospital beds
• Plasma requests
• Covid meals
• Oxygen cylinders
• Other requirements

Social Media and Information Dissemination Initiative

Social Media has played a pivotal role in extending aid, conveying requests and digging up leads during the catastrophic second wave of the pandemic. Here at FamPay, we aimed to use our social media reach to help the population affected in all ways possible.

AMA: Addressing Questions

FamPay has conducted an eye-opening session of 'AMA - Ask Me Anything' with Dr. Shaonak Kolte, Lokmanya Tilak Municipal Medical College. During the session, our followers sent us questions and concerns they had about the ongoing pandemic, and we conveyed Dr. Shaonak's medical advice on our Instagram story. From choosing between vaccines to the dreaded black fungus, we covered a wide array of topics, that can still be accessed on our Instagram story highlights.

Sharing Brand Resources

Many brands have started their own initiative to help citizens in whichever way they find feasible. The biggest hurdle in this endeavor is a communication barrier between the brands and the people who might benefit from their efforts. FamPay has shared a cohesive list of all brands and their initiatives on its social media channel to help overcome that barrier and ensure that information and resources reach the right people at the right time.

Sharing Donation Stories

We have tried ardently to share stories that FamPay users have uploaded regarding their donations. Every donation is truly essential in facilitating provision of supplies and services to the ones who need it at this time. Uploading donation stories is just a small step by FamPay to thank and appreciate every FamPay user who has come forward to help the cause.

UNICEF Resources

Information dissemination is a challenge that has gotten reiterated throughout India's struggle to fight through the ongoing circumstances. We have shared information published by UNICEF under the Let's heal India section on the FamPay app. This information throws light on important Covid factoids, Frequently Asked Questions, and relevant information regarding Covid in children.

How far have we come, and what now?

Since Let's heal India went live on the FamPay app, these donations have helped to provide for medical supplies and equipment at a critical hour of the pandemic. FamPay wants to say a big thankyou to all the donors and volunteers who have come forward to help our medical infrastructure, front-line workers and country.

The fundraiser and other initiatives are up and running with as much zeal, care and concern as they were started with. Even though the second wave might soon be on the verge of being contained, we're not stopping till India makes a brilliant recovery. Wondering what can you do at the current moment? Here are some ideas:

1. Donate towards our Fundraiser through the FamPay app! It takes as little as ₹50
2. Volunteer with our Friends of Fam discord server to find and verify leads
3. Reach out to us on our social media channels to share attention-worthy information

To know more about the campaigns and find verified UNICEF resources to share and disseminate, head to the FamPay App and check out our Covid resources initiatives on FamPay's Instagram!