SRINAGAR, Apr 1:
A PhD student, a fashion designer and a 10-year-old girl have come forward to produce enough masks for the residents of Kashmir Valley after they found that there was inadequate number of protective gears to tackle the deadly coronavirus.
Meet Bilal Ahmad Malla, who was selected for a PhD programme in Physical Education in a university of Madhya Pradesh.
The 30-year-old student, a resident of Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir, was supposed to join the Rabindranath Tagore University, but had to abort his plans due to the COVID-19 emergency.
Instead of concentrating on his studies, Malla has chosen to make around 40-50 masks daily and later distributes these free of cost.
“I do not want anything. I am doing my bit for the sake of Allah. Let Allah have mercy on all of us,” he said.
“I had a sewing machine at home, so I thought why not utilise the same for something productive. However, for the first couple of days, I could only make about a dozen masks. I faced difficulties as it was something I had not done before,” he said.
It was his sister – who works at the machine for some stitching works — who gave Malla some lessons at the craft. His father, who is into fruit business, also lent his hand.
“My sister helped me and at times, my father also pitched in. My father does ironing of the masks. I now make around 40-50 masks a day,” Malla said.
He first distributed the masks among his neighbours, and as the word of mouth spread, he started receiving inquiries from the neighbouring villages.
“Several trusts and volunteer organisations have approached me and I provide them the masks without charging anything,” he said.
However, Malla said procuring raw material was an arduous job in the prevailing circumstances.
“I use my savings for buying the raw material and my father also supports me. However, it is very difficult to get the raw material. The other day I had to travel to (neighbouring) Kulgam (district) to get some material,” he said.
The PhD student said he would continue to make masks till the situation demanded.
“I hope God will have mercy on us and we get rid of this disease very soon. But, till that happens, I will continue doing it,” he said.
Aayat Tanweer (10), a resident of Karan Nagar area of the city here, not only turned to mask making, but also made a video tutorial on how to make them. (PTI)
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