With free rations announced by the Central and state governments respectively proving inadequate for the underprivileged, the men and women in khaki in Uttar Pradesh have stepped up to deal with the shortfall. While the medical community is often praised for its work, the police force has not got the due plaudits for balancing its strict law enforcement with a human touch. In one such initiative in Varanasi, the Lok Sabha constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Banaras Zone ADG Braj Bhushan Sharma has created a Police Public Annapurna Bank to help the poor and the needy.
The bank accepts food and passes it onto the needy, who have lost their livelihoods in this crisis. The Annapurna Bank covers Banaras Zone’s 204 police stations over 10 districts. ADG Sharma said the police have distributed more than 10.1 lakh food packets in line with the instructions of PM Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. They have roped in social workers to help in the distribution drive. More than 11,000 quintals of ration have also been distributed in this drive.