Blossom will distribute emergency rations of essential items such as rice, flour, dahl, sugar, oil, spices and milk, as well as hygienic kits including soap, masks and sanitary pads. Each ration will be sufficient for one household for a period of one month. We will be distributing throughout the upcoming months, with recipient households quantified based on risk profiling criteria and vulnerability assessments. Blossom Trust is prioritising gendered interventions.
Tamil Nadu is registering a record number of COVID-19 cases, exceeding 67,000 as per the 25th of June. Chennai is currently the epicentre of the state. Furthermore, experts fear that there is unrecorded widespread community transmission. In addition to health risk, the pandemic puts significant pressure on economically vulnerable households. Restrictions on movement leaves many unable to generate income, and so unable purchase food, medication or other essential items.
The project will reduce vulnerability of the most disadvantaged social cohorts by providing nutritional security during lockdown. Beneficiaries will be selected based on risk profiling and focussing on female-headed households, daily wage earners, LGBTQI+ community members, families of migrant workers and women with acute health risk or evidence of domestic abuse. It aims to prevent malnutrition and secondary medical decline of those households.
The project has a significant short-term impact on individuals in the catchment area, mitigating against hunger and illness. In the long run, we aim to reduce inequalities that have been broadening during the COVID pandemic and help return to normal in the post-crisis period.
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).
