Besides a series of initiatives to help citizens of Odisha and providing support to the state government in the battle against COVID-19, KIIT and KISS have extended a helping hand to the Tibetan communities in Chandragiri of Gajapati district in Odisha. Though the COVID-19 Pandemic is not an immediate concern in this far flung area of Odisha, hunger and poverty remain an issue in many settlements in and around Chandragiri.
The KIIT and KISS family have provided basic essentials and groceries for at least a month to the Tibetan families settled in Chandragiri and to the monks of Padmasambhava Mahavihara Monastery in Jirang, the largest Buddhist monastery in Eastern India. Besides food, a kit containing essential items like sanitisers, hand wash, sanitary napkins and masks were also provided by KIIT and KISS facilitated under the visionary leadership of Prof. Achyuta Samanta, MP from Lok Sabha (Kandhamal) and Founder or KIIT & KISS. It is pertinent to mention here that feminine hygiene products were handed over to District Administration for distribution to women and girls in Ganjam as well.
Notably, KIIT and KISS have provided grocery for two old age homes in Chandragiri and have pledged to adopt both and take care of all finances henceforth. “This crisis is not going to pass soon, it will take its time. Each one of us is inextricably connected to each other. Only together we will be able to fight through these difficult and unimaginable days. The real war with Corona is not now, it is also the aftermath.” said Prof. Samanta while remarking that their contact with the Monastery goes a decade back. Guru Gyetrul Jigme Rinpoche, the head Lama of the Monastery has congratulated Prof. Samanta for his thoughtful leadership and compassion.