Seeing the COVID-19 pandemic rising to its peak, Wishes and Blessings NGO has again taken a step towards helping the unprivileged.

To help the unprivileged and elderly, Wishes and Blessings has carried out many projects since the pandemic started, emerging as a ray of hope to many such people during.

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The organization started by serving food to homeless and daily wagers from 25 March across Delhi/NCR and gradually expanded to distribute relief to beneficiaries in seven states across India. Now, Wishes and Blessings has come up with a new project of “Ambulance Service for those in Need.”

As the need of the hour calls for an increase in the number of ambulances, Wishes and Blessings have come forward to help those who aren’t getting the facility. The NGO aims to share the load with the government and other organizations working on the field and offer help to all those in need.

Recently, while undertaking relief in Delhi/NCR, the NGO team realized that there was an acute shortage of medical transportation facilities and many patients who were suspected of being COVID-19 positive could not get access to testing centres. In order to address this issue, the NGO has partnered with the Delhi government and has set up WB Ambulances for COVID Relief.

Under this initiative, free of cost transportation is provided to underprivileged COVID-19 patients. This involves transferring the beneficiaries to treatment centres, hospitals, quarantine centres, and back to their homes once the doctors deem fit. In addition, the ambulances are used to hold tests in containment zones. The vehicles are equipped with all necessary medical supplies and staff who have undergone intensive training to handle this precarious situation. Currently, the ambulances are operated for 12 hours a day, 7 days of the week.

Commenting on the project, Dr. Geetanjali Chopra, Founder and President, said, “Wishes and Blessings have always risen to the occasion when it has come to providing SOS as well as long-term relief. With the help of our kind-hearted donors, we have been able to reach out to beneficiaries in 7 states across India. As with other projects, we are focusing on qualitative change rather than quantitative change when it comes to the Ambulance Project. While the government has done a commendable job in setting up numerous quarantine centres across multiple locations, destitute patients cannot afford to hire a private vehicle to reach these centres, and using public transport is forbidden, for obvious reasons. It has been very heartwarming to be able to come to their aid and ensure that they are put into the right hands for their health and safety.”

The project was launched on 01 July on a trial basis and in the first week of operations itself, the organization has provided transportation to 35 patients and carried out tests for 20 beneficiaries. After a successful pilot and after ascertaining need on the ground, the organization has decided to formally execute and expand the project and will be launching 7 more vehicles in the month of August 2020. The ground situation will constantly be monitored and more ambulances will be added to the fleet as and when deemed necessary.