Akansha and Yash Gupta, siblings hailing from Indore, are making sure nobody in and around the city goes to sleep without food and have all their basic necessities met amidst this time of crisis. Through their online platform Daanpatra, the duo collects donations of all sorts - from food and ration to clothes, which is basically anything except cash - from the donors' doorstep and ensures these reach the people in need.

They have over 5,000 volunteers in and around Indore, who travel to the deepest corners and interiors of Madhya Pradesh to provide aid. "If you have anything at home that is of no use to you anymore or is in excess, you can sit in the comfort of your homes and donate it to the Daanpatra platform. We have an app that allows you to register and provide details of the things you wish to donate. You can also provide your address and our volunteers will go collect the stuff from your doorstep. During COVID, the plight of the underprivileged has deteriorated even further and some were going to sleep without a minimum of two meals a day. So, we are trying to help out as much as possible," says Yash.

Food, clothes being given to people | Pic: Daanpatra

Daanpatra wasn't started recently but has been there as an online platform and app since 2018. The idea was born at Yash's brother’s wedding when they saw a massive wastage of food but didn't know how to send the leftovers to people who actually needed it. "My sister Akanksha, who helped me set up Daanpatra, had studied software engineering and she came up with the idea of developing an app to facilitate the transfer of food to the needy. So, we were already connecting donors and receivers through the app to help out with basic essentials. Post the COVID outbreak, we have been using our platform to reach smaller villages, districts in and Indore," adds the 19-year-old.

Yash Gupta, Founder, Daanpatra

The Daanpatra platform has so far connected with around 50,000 to 70,000 donors helping more than seven lakh locals. So, how do they collect all the stuff? Yash goes to on explain, "We have requests, enquiries, help coming in the through the app and our helpline numbers or even our social media platforms. We have volunteers at the back end who handle these and let the on-ground ones know where to collect what from. As people cannot step out of their houses during the lockdown, our volunteers go to their houses to collect the materials. Following this, they are segregated and given to the needy such as beggars, homeless, daily wage labourers and others. We have a robust and connected team of volunteers who were already working since 2018 and know the locals. They also get requests in person while distribution or locals come to us asking for help. We have ensured that we follow all COVID protocols while interacting with people."

Yash, who is currently pursuing his graduation in engineering, says that the Daanpatra team wishes to reach more people and more cities across India in the days to come.