This Mumbai couple waived off their school fees, used personal savings to feed poor amidst pandemic
Migza Shaikh and Faiyaz used their personal savings to distribute food to the underprivileged during the COVID-19 crisis in the suburbs of Mumbai.
Mumbai-based Migza Shaikh and her husband Faiyaz run Zeal English Medium School in the suburbs of Malad in the city.
Recently, the couple waived off its school fees for over 300 students from Class 1 to 10, after some of the students expressed their inability to pay the money, owing to the pandemic, reported The Logical Indian.
Migza Shaikh and Faiyaz giving away food to the poor.
However, this did not stop them to distribute food to the needy. Migza and Faiyaz noticed that many unemployed individuals are struggling to buy even two square meals a day. And, that was when they decided to pitch in and do their bit for the society.
“Most people who stay here are migrant and daily wage workers. Looking at their condition, we got in touch with some NGOs and started distributing khichdi. But soon after, we felt that this was not enough. We came to know that the situation was far worse than we had thought. So, we decided to help people,” Migza told the Hindustan Times.
So far, the couple has distributed food to over 1,800 people by using their personal savings, which they had gathered to build a house.
Faiyaz said, “I also work for a company. When demand for resources increased, we decided to use my provident fund savings. I’ve spent about Rs 4.5 lakh till now.”
Once the couple started with their initiative, they received a lot of requests for food. They got some financial support from an NGO in the beginning, however, it died down in the later stages.
The couple's efforts garnered appreciation from netizens across the country, including industrialist Anand Mahindra, who took to Twitter, acknowledging the couple’s initiative. He also conveyed his willingness to contribute to the effort.
Edited by Suman Singh