War-war to chow-chow: On I-Day, another army will feed 1 lakh poor on both sides of Indo-Pak border

Even as there will be no exchange of sweets between the BSF and the Pak Rangers during this year’s Independence Day celebrations, there is an army of people that has pledged to feed at least 100,000 less fortunate ones on both sides of the border. The idea is to share the love and  unite India and Pakistan in this attempt to eradicate hunger. When it comes to feeding the less fortunate, are we not all on the same side? ‎Mission100k‬ is the war India and Pakistan are fighting together. There are 300 million hungry people in India and Pakistan and the Robin Hood Army, a volunteer-based organisation that works to get surplus food from restaurants to the less fortunate sections of society in cities across Pakistan and India, has launched an initiative to mobilise the youth in both countries to feed 100,000 homeless people. [caption id=“attachment_2390958” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  RHA army feeding homeless children in Faridabad.[/caption] The initiative is simple: Getting youngsters from both India and Pakistan to proactively go out there and feed at least one homeless person (whether by means of contacting a restaurant or by doing so on their own), take a photograph during the activity and upload on their social media profiles using the #Mission100k. “As the youth of Pakistan and India, we believe the biggest act of freedom is serving your own countrymen, especially those who need it most,” said Sarah Afridi and Sarfaraz Abid, who set up the RHA in Pakistan. “The aim is to guide students - who are the future of the country, to actively bridge these inequalities,” she added. Twenty seven-year old Neel Ghose, founder of the Robin Hood Army in India, agrees. “We are on a mission to curb food waste and stamp out hunger. It’s an unprecedented initiative and definitely not a one-time exersise. Mobilising people and redistributing food waste from restaurants and weddings to the hungry across the border is easy and can be sustained. We just have to take the initiative and spread the word and inspire students to give back to the community,” Ghose told Firstpost. This is why perhaps  three youth brands are now coming together to support each  other— Robin Hood Army will provide operational guidance and tie-ups to colleges, ScoopWhoop will push the movement to the masses, and Uber will help out with logistical support across all Indian cities. The team is in touch with students of colleges across cities like SRCC (Delhi), St. Xavier’s (Calcutta and Mumbai), ISB (Hyderabad), PEC (Chandigarh), LUMS (Lahore), and IBA (Karachi), who are all gearing up for the movement on 14 and 15 August. [caption id=“attachment_2390962” align=“aligncenter” width=“617”]  Robin Hood Army in Karachi[/caption] “Our students are chalking out plans to play their part in this unique cross-border movement. We believe this whole exercise will provide fantastic exposure to the younger generation.” said Priyanka Joshi, Assistant Professor, Shri Ram College of Commerce. Robin Hood Army consists of over 750 volunteers spread across 15 cities, who contribute food to almost 5,000 people every night. The volunteers are largely young working professionals  who undertake this activity in their free time, usually on Sunday evenings. There are currently 13 active chapters across India and Pakistan that run these  weekly distribution drives. Robin Hood Army is not an NGO and does not take any cash contributions. They simply work as a community that is trying to do its bit for the welfare of the masses. (To read more about the Robin Hood Army, click here and here.) How does #Mission100k work Robin Hood Army has put up d o-it-yourself (DIY) kits on its website, which contain all the information that the volunteers may need to get started. Titled ‘Restaurant Deck’, ‘Getting Started Guide’ and ‘Distribution 101’, the kits guide one on how to pitch to restaurants, the guidelines for the new joinees and how to coordinate a Robin Hood Army (RHA) drive with friends. Members of all three organisations will also join the students in this mega drive. Students are being encouraged to share their experiences on social media with the hashtag -# Mission100k. The initiative has already got a lot of social media love and even the support of Congress leader Shashi Tharoor.

The @RobinHood_Army aims to unite students across India-Pak to serve 1 lakh people across the border #Mission100k http://t.co/DaZPpfCtl7

— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) August 13, 2015

“Food spreads happiness and everyone can use a little happiness. So see you on the field soldier,” an optimistic Ghose tells Firstpost.