HYDERABAD : Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad is supporting villages adopted under Unnat Bharat Abhiyan programme with COVID-19-related activities and preparedness to prevent the spread of COVID-19 pandemic. The institute is also sharing awareness material in Telugu language to the Community stakeholders.
The Institute has undertaken relief programs in the five villages it had adopted under ‘Unnat Bharat Abhiyan,’ namely Bujarampet, Mohammed Nagar, Knnavaram, Anthram and Salabatpur in Medak District.
The faculty are constantly interacting with local stakeholders to ascertain their needs. During these interactions, the villagers informed that they have commenced work under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS).
Speaking about the Institute initiatives in the local community, Prof B.S. Murty, Director, IIT Hyderabad, said, “Since the outbreak of COVID-19, IITHyderabad has kept a strong focus on how best we can use our technical expertise to serve the nation, especially in the surrounding regions to IITH. In this direction, the Institute has worked with the villages adopted by it under the UBA program. IITH has been conducting COVID-19 awareness programs along with supply of basic safety needs like sanitizer and masks in these adopted villages. This will be continued until the situation comes to normal.”
The Mission of Unnat Bharat Abhiyan is to enable higher educational institutions to work with the people of rural India in identifying development challenges and evolving appropriate solutions for accelerating sustainable growth. It also aims to create a virtuous cycle between society and an inclusive academic system by providing knowledge and practices for emerging professions.
Dr. Prasad Onkar, UBA Coordinator and Assistant Professor, Department of Design, IIT Hyderabad, is coordinating the activities in the five villages. The faculty are also urging the village community to download ‘Arogya Setu’ App and ‘KisanRath’ App, which connects farmers and traders with transporters, as requested by Government of India, and Regional Coordinating Institute – National Institute of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj (NIRDPR), Hyderabad.
A team from IIT Hyderabad coordinated relief programs in Anthram village on 5thMay 2020. Dr. Neelakantan and Dr. Shiva Ji, Faculty, Design Department, IIT Hyderabad, spoke with the villagers about the precautions to protect themselves from COVID-19. They also distributed supplies of masks, gloves and food kits. The faculty also distributed hand sanitizers made in IIT Hyderabad under the guidance of Dr. JyotsnenduGiri, Associate Professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering, IIT Hyderabad.
