Amid Panchkula violence, Samaritans in Sirsa toil to feed army, police and media persons

Sirsa: Sushil Kandoi and his neighbours wake up around 4 am every day to prepare breakfast for Army personnel, paramilitary forces, police and media persons, who are on the job near the Dera Sacha Sauda headquarters in Sirsa, popularly known as the “land of donators” in Haryana. [caption id=“attachment_3976985” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Army personnel take positions after deployment near Dera Sacha Sauda in Sirsa. PTI[/caption] Throughout the day, a group of people serves snacks, tea, lassi and food to security and Army personnel on motorbikes, gypsy cars and tractors. The Army is deployed in the vicinity of the Dera headquarters to maintain law and order in the nearby areas where curfew is in force since Thursday night. There are around 120 social organisations engaged in social work in the Sirsa Assembly constituency, which has a population of around 2.5 lakh. People have also constructed a long wall called “Neki ki diwar” on the Dabwali road where locals keep items they do not need so that the needy could use them. Also, a “Roti Bank”, which works on the principle of collecting food from do-gooders and distributing it among the poor, was launched here recently. Kandoi, who is a supplier of mustard oil, said there are 40 people in his group who serve tea, snacks, lunch and dinner to security personnel and media persons. “The people of Sirsa, popularly known as ’the land of donators’ in Haryana, believe in serving humanity. Thus, we decided to serve Army, paramilitary forces, police personnel and media persons when the administration imposed curfew in the area,” Kandoi said. Another resident, Mahender Kumar, said the residents come forward and donate money every day for the purpose of serving tea, snacks and food to security personnel. “We will continue to make such arrangements for security personnel till they are here,” Suresh Soni, a resident of the Beghu area, said.