Srinagar: While scrolling through his social media feed, Danish Malik, 29, stumbled upon a donation appeal video that tugged at his heartstrings. The video painted a moving picture, shedding light on the urgent financial need for a young boy’s critical operation. Without a second thought, Malik swiftly transferred Rs. 3000 to the family’s account, believing that every penny counts in making a difference.
“The nature of the appeal was so poignant that it had the power to bring tears to anyone’s eyes,” Malik said.
“If we’ve got the means to help someone, why not do it? He needed a huge amount for his treatment, but if we all come forward and donate whatever we can, it would surely make a difference,” he added.
Danish’s act not only contributed to the financial aspect of the cause, but also highlighted the profound influence of social media appeals in mobilizing compassionate response.
In the age of digital connectivity, social media platforms have become powerful tools for various purposes, including raising awareness and funds for individuals facing expensive medical treatments. Crowdfunding, facilitated by platforms such as Ketto, Milaap, Donatekart etc has emerged as a significant avenue for people to seek financial support from a global community.
Nowadays, people find it easy to share personal narratives, photos, and updates on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and it helps humanize the fundraising process, creating a direct connection between those in need and potential donors.
In Kashmir, the locally crowdfunding sites like KashmirZakat, crowdKash, SROKashmir etc have also helped become potential platforms to help the people in distress times.
In 2015, Jan Mohammad, a 47-year-old resident of North Kashmir’s Bandipora district, faced a life-altering diagnosis of kidney failure. The urgency of the situation demanded an immediate kidney transplantation to save his life. However, the financial hurdle of arranging 3 lakh rupees and finding a kidney donor presented an overwhelming challenge.
“Before that, we had exhausted all our resources, and I was also suffering from other ailments. So it was difficult to arrange money and donors quickly,” Jan Mohammad told Kashmir Observer.
A father of three, Jan Mohammad had been supporting his family by driving a load carrier, but his illness made it increasingly difficult to meet their needs.
Struggling in a dire situation, a neighbor’s suggestion of seeking donations from the community opened a new avenue for the family.
“At first, we were reluctant, considering certain issues, but with time running out, we had no choice,” he said. The family embarked on a journey, mounting a loudspeaker on a vehicle, and traversed different parts of the valley, appealing to people for contributions.
In about a week or two, they managed to collect over 90 thousand rupees, but the sum was insufficient. With the need still pressing, they turned to social media.
“We made a video and appealed to people through social media platforms, and within no time, we got our amount and successfully went through the kidney transplantation,” he said, while sitting outside his house on a wheelchair.
Jan Mohammad’s wife, displaying immense courage and love, stepped forward, offering one of her kidneys. The surgery was a success, and both of them are doing well.
His story is not an isolated incident; the valley is brimming with examples where individuals have generously donated with open hearts.
Dr. Raja Muzaffar Bhat, noted Right to Information (RTI) activist, says that Social media is helping a lot of people in distress as it has a huge reach in Kashmir. He said that the online banking and cashless transaction has also helped in this process as people can easily transfer money through their cell phones which was possible 4-5 years back .
“Only a few days back my 50 seconds reel about an old poverty stricken man who was unable to pay his electricity bill generated 4 lakh views and his 2 years electricity bill was paid by a Srinagar based businessman,” Bhat said, adding, “He has now decided to pay his electricity bill after completion of 2 years as well.”
In May last year, a 25-year-old girl Sadaf Ayoub, resident of Lassipora, Pulwama was suffering from blood cancer at Sher-I-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS). After sensing that the hospital was not capable of providing further treatment to their daughter, the family moved the young girl to Fortis Hospital Gurugram, Haryana for better treatment. However, the cost of treatment was said to be “too expensive”
The family sold 4 kanals of their agricultural land to meet the cost of treatment. However, it wasn’t enough and the family decided to go for crowdfunding through social media platforms.
A picture of sadaf was posted on social media platforms, detailing the plight of the girl suffering from blood cancer and went viral within no time.
Within 24 hours, the family managed a whopping one crore rupees.
“People from all parts of Kashmir donated with generosity. The response was overwhelming,” said Mohammad Ayoub Bhat, father of Sadaf.
However, even the massive crowdfunding couldn’t save the life of a girl, who lost her battle after a few weeks.
Over the years, the people of Kashmir have witnessed many ups-and downs and faced a number of challenges. However, the “resilience” that people have shown is what keeps them together. “Be it 2014 floods, uncertainty in different years, COVID-19 wave, or people in distress needing financial support, people of kashmir have overcome every difficult phase of life,” said Akthar Hussain, a retired headmaster who lives in Srinagar.
However, Dr. Suheel Rasool Mir, Senior Researcher at Kashmir University’s Sociology Department argues that the families are stigmatized in the “offline world” too and they are labeled and feel otherization once their videos get viral on social media.
“Being a traditional society, these social media appeals have significant repercussions, impacting various aspects such as the marriage process and verification. Families often encounter numerous difficulties,” Mir said, adding, “Not just this the self stigmatization of the families also hampers their social progress.”
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