Covid-19: An app that connects donors, beneficiaries and grocery stores

People affected by the lockdown can call the Free Ration; which is manned by a 15-member call centre, or contact them through the app

At a time when social distancing is obstructing relief efforts to help migrant workers struggling without livelihoods, a young techie in Hyderabad has come up with an innovative solution.
 

“Initially, when we thought about doing some relief work, we realised that buying and distributing kits in different localities was impractical in the present conditions,” says Khalid Saifullah of Hyderabad-based Social Data Initiatives Forum.

“We thought that the best way to help people while maintaining social distancing was technology!” So he launched an app called FreeRation on April 1 to connects donors, beneficiaries and grocery stores on a single interface.
 

Here’s how it works: People affected by the lockdown can call the Free Ration helpline (9606046818) which is manned by a 15-member call centre, or contact them through the app. Saifullah’s team verifies the identity of each caller using the ID and address proof provided. Meanwhile, they look through their list of vendors to find the one closest to the beneficiary.

“Once the beneficiary has been verified, we pay the vendor online and ask the beneficiary to pick up ration worth Rs 600.” The ration pack consists of rice, dal, flour, oil, sugar, tea, salt, soap and even tamarind!
 

Setting up the app and creating a database of shopkeepers was simple, but took some time. They used JustDial to call vendors and identify the ones who accept online payments. Then, Saifullah and his team convinced shop owners to partner with them on this project. “This proved to be very easy,” he says. “When we explained our proposal to them, 99 per cent store owners agreed to join us!” Today, over 10,000 shopkeepers in 300-plus districts are on board.

The diversity of people who have benefited from the app so far shows how tough this lockdown has been and how vulnerable migrants are to economic stressors. To date, the app has been able to assist over 1,600 families, including 15 daily wage labourers from Jharkhand and a group from Sikkim that had been stranded in Hyderabad because of the lockdown.

“Now we’re receiving over 600 calls a day,” says Saifullah. “Since it is early days for us, most of these have come from Hyderabad and Secunderabad, although the app can be used all over India.”
 

Being online has several advantages. “Every aspect of the app is transparent,” says Saifullah.

“Donors receive online receipts from merchants directly so they know exactly how and when their donation is used.”

It has also enabled the team to verify beneficiaries and avoid duplication of claims. “Every potential beneficiary has to furnish some identity and address proof,” he says.

“This enables us to verify their claim.” Most importantly, the contactless nature of the Free Ration model restores dignity to people currently in need. “Many of our beneficiaries would never stand in a line to receive charity as it is very demeaning,” says he. “Whereas our app allows them to go to a store and get ration with the dignity they deserve.”
 

Saifullah,who has earlier developed apps to identify missing voters and helping find one’s name in the National Registry of Citizens, started Free Ration with a kitty of Rs 10 lakh raised from family and friends.

“Now we started getting donations through the app itself, which is great,” he says. “Presently, we have a sense of urgency to spread quickly to as many states as we can!”

With many states extending lockdowns and a general uncertainty about when the situation will finally normalise, the Free Ration model is a practical way to extend a helping hand — but from a distance.
 

To download the app or learn more, visit https://freeration.in/ or follow them on Facebook