A Sydney-based charity, Care One Care All Group (COCAG) has invited contact from pregnant international students from the Indian community who may be in need during the current fraught times of COVID-19.
COCAG put up a post on their Facebook page on earlier this month “to help out pregnant international students who lost their job, are on their own and are in need of help.”
Kanwaljeet Kaur, Director of COCAG says this thought struck her and her husband, Parmjit Singh, last month when their own daughter gave birth to their granddaughter on May 18.
“Our daughter was pregnant and that’s when we realised how much care and support is needed at that crucial time. We then thought about those female international students from India who may also benefit from such support especially during the current stressful times of coronavirus,” she says.
COCAG has offered to provide food, panjeeri, clothes, baby food, money or “any other kind of mental or physical support that a new mother may need”.
The highlight of this offer is the panjeeri, a long-life sweet dish made with semolina, nuts and ghee, considered a post-natal tonic in Punjabi culture.
Traditionally, panjeeri is gifted to an expectant mother by both sides of her family and she is encouraged to consume it daily, as it is believed to help recover from the stresses of childbirth.
Ms Kaur's 'kadhai' full of 'panjeeri'. Source: Supplied
Talking about the importance of not only panjeeri but also other essential care needed by new mothers, Mr Singh says that COCAG’s objective is to provide need-based help for four weeks to new parents.
“People have lost their livelihoods to COVID-19, especially international students. Due to the travel bans in Australia and India, parents of pregnant students can’t come here to support them during this demanding juncture in their lives,” says Mr Singh, whose organisation had also helped out troubled people during the bushfire crisis earlier this year.
Funding for this charitable outreach will come from community donations, Ms Kaur says.
Ms Kaur says that she prepared a large kadhai (traditional Indian wok) of panjeeri earlier this week, hoping to be able to send out some hampers soon. But they haven't received any calls yet.
'Panjeeri' hampers packed and ready for delivery. Source: Supplied
“Nobody has reached out to us so far to ask for help. Our people feel shy or embarrassed while asking for help. Punjabis are not habituated to that, we believe in hard work,” she adds.
For those who call for help in Sydney, will get to relish Ms Kaur’s panjeeri, but for those outside their city, she says, commercial arrangements will be made.
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