Mission is possible!

They say the biggest act of freedom is to serve your own countrymen, especially those who need it the most. This Independence Day, if you find youngsters hobbling about the streets in green t-shirts, feeding hungry, less fortunate mouths, don’t just give them a pat on the back, join in! Through #Mission100k, youngsters across the city and beyond are looking to serve 100,000 less fortunate people on both sides of the border over the weekend.

This initiative was concocted by the Robin Hood Army – a charitable organisation that has mobilised itself across the nation, working to get surplus food from restaurants and take it to the less fortunate in cities across India and Pakistan every night.

“We wanted to do something unique which would inspire students to give back to the community. Luckily, the folks from Uber and ScoopWhoop found the idea exciting and we managed to carve out an impactful partnership,” says founder of the Robin Hood Army, Neel Ghose, who hit upon this riveting jackpot as he himself served as a volunteer for a similar Refood programme in Lisbon, Portugal.

The programme has spread its helpful tentacles across New Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida, Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Jaipur, Faridabad, Jabalpur, Panipat, Karachi and Lahore with a simple goal – “Our mission is to feed 100,000 people over the Independence Day weekend in India and Pakistan and we are excited about what we think is a unique opportunity to engage people in the initiative to make a large impact in the fight against hunger by getting the student community involved,” says Pallavi Murali, namma Bengaluru’s city coordinator for the Army, adding that all that a person who wants to volunteer for them has to do is to reach out to them on Facebook or through their website.

It’s not just surplus food. Sometimes, the catering services whip up fresh food too. And now the youth brigade across the city is gearing up to do their bit, with students from the Christ University actively taking on the role of Robin Hood.

“The idea seemed unique, necessary and effective and I decided to join instantly. Since I joined it’s been an amazing experience working with like minded volunteers and I am personally satisfied that I can give something back to society as part of this wonderful group,” says Arunkumar Bojan, a regular volunteer.

“Nothing can compare to the feeling of satisfaction when we serve people and some bless us. It gives me the inspiration to do more and do better,” says 26-year-old Suyash Sharma, who believes that it helps him contribute to the betterment of the society at large. Most importantly, they hope that the impact they create will have a long lasting effect in all the lives they touch.