Battling the human face of the COVID crisis: REC’s story

New Delhi: In the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, REC Limited, a Navratna Central PSU under the Ministry of Power and one of India's largest power project financiers, has donated Rs 150 crore to the Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM-CARES) fund, while its employees have also voluntarily contributed one day's salary to the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF).

The corporation has sanctioned funds to the tune of Rs 10 crore to the offices of distribution companies (discoms), collector or District Magistrates for distributing cooked food, ration kits, utility packs, masks, sanitizers and making shelter arrangements during the lockdown to about 1,00,000 beneficiaries. As of August 8, the corporation has distributed more than 4.83 lakh kilograms of food grains, 4.52 lakh meal packets, 10,007 liters of sanitizers, 4,690 PPE kits, 2,500 gloves and 87,300 masks to help combat the pandemic.

REC Foundation, the CSR arm of REC has distributed 5,000 customised packets, carrying essentials for laborers and the workers affected by the nationwide lockdown. These sustainable cloth bags contained a drinking water bottle, roasted chana, peanuts, glucose powder, footwear and reusable masks. The distribution of these bags was done by the employees of the corporation who volunteered to help in order to alleviate the pain of those in need. Moreover, to support the frontline corona warriors, REC Limited has also partnered with TajSATS (a joint venture of IHCL and SATS Ltd) to distribute specially-made nutritious meal packs to the medical staff in Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi on a daily basis. Every day, 350 food packets are being delivered as a gesture of gratitude to the healthcare workers in New Delhi.

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In continuation of their relentless measures to provide relief from the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak, REC has donated four ambulances (Maruti Suzuki AC Eeco Vans) to assist the Mamit district in Mizoram by strengthening its health service deliveries.

REC has also funded, through its CSR, contactless ticket checking at Mumbai Central. Master App was developed which is loaded on TC (Ticket Collector) mobile phone. The hard copy of the ticket or soft copy is sensed and gets converted to the required text on the mobile device of TC. This allows the TC to maintain social distancing with the passengers and yet carry out the task of ticket verification.

As India continues to fight against the coronavirus pandemic, REC has left no stone unturned in its attempt to help the nation and its citizens overcome the impediments caused by the pandemic.

The article first appeared in a special issue published by PSU Watch on Aatamnirbhar Bharat on October 30.

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