Smile Foundation launched tele-counselling on a pilot basis last week in Kolkata. Now it has proposed to reach out to 40,000 underprivileged families across 14 states that have reported the most cases of the infection. The lockdown to contain the spread of COVID-19 infection had hurt the migrant population the most giving rise to suicidal tendencies, fears and anxieties. We also inform them of the government schemes and applications,” said Shadrach, who works at the Chennai location of the Foundation. Last week, Smile Foundation started its first phase of ration distribution across 10 states.

Source: The Hindu April 15, 2020 11:11 UTC