New Delhi

During the chaotic days of phase one of the Covid-19 pandemic when systems were not in place and the numbers of patients were alarmingly high, the Bengaluru based social worker and management guru Muhammad Ali Sharif took a major initiative of organizing the support and relief work of volunteers and organizations.

He made a conglomerate of 400 volunteers from the city's 25 NGOs and placed them under an umbrella - Mercy Mission - for an organized humanitarian relief and support system for all those who need it the most.

Vice President Venkiah Niadu spoke about Mercy Mission's work

The idea behind his endeavour was not to allow replication of the human efforts to reach out to the needy in times of crisis and to make a central command of the NGOs so that the delivery efforts are optimised.

The Mercy Mission was instrumental in providing food, rations, bedding, oxygen and also conducting funerals of the Covid-19 dead as their families were afraid to touch them.

The Mercy Mission comprising 400 volunteers and 25 big NGOs in March 2020, when the first epidemic struck and as a result of the lockdown, most of the people in the country were trapped in their homes. It rendered thousands homeless and forced a large number of migrant workers to walk long distances to their homes.

The Mercy Mission came to the aid of the people at this stage.

Mercy Mission volunteers wheeling a Covid-19 victom's body

Some prominent NGOs of Bengaluru like The Lifeline Foundation, The United Foundation, Project Smile, HBS Hospital, Charitable Foundation etc became part of the NGO conglomerate the Mercy Mission.

Muhammad Ali Sharif says that last year we saw a television scene from Italy where graves were JCBs were excavating the grave for the Covid-19 victims. This scene made him think that what will happen should a similar situation occur in India?

Initially, the Mercy mission was assignment itself the task of cremation and burying the Covid dead amidst the fears that attending to the bodies was risky. Initially, its volunteers conducted the last rites of the 100 Covid victims taking care to follow the religious practices of the dead person.

It continued this task for three months and then more NGOs chipped in. The Mercy Mission has been doing the same thing for about three months, after which other organizations joined in

For this, the Mercy Mission divided the city of Bangalore into 25 zones and 300 areas. A team was set up for distribution of food packets and dry rations among the needy.

This year too, The Mercy Mission activated itself on April 2 when the second wave of Covid-19 struck again.

Muhammad Ali Sharif’s efforts led to an unprecedented feat of providing relief to lakhs of people during the lockdown.

Vounteers providing oxygen cylinders

Muhammad Ali Sharif from Bengaluru is a highly qualified management professional educated from the London School of Economics the Harvard University and Cambridge University. Before going abroad he did his MBA from the Indian Institute of Management.

Muhammad Sharif Ali also earned a degree in Industrial engineering and Management from Bangalore University. He worked for four years as a supply chain management consultant at Entra Corporation. In this regard, he had the opportunity to work in the offices of the United States, the United Kingdom and India. Currently, he is working with Delight Touche Tohmatsu India Pvt as a management consultant,

Sharif Ali is also associated with various NGOs in Bangalore and has been working to identify and address the issues facing the city's deprived and marginalized citizens. He has also set up a non-profit bank, where small businesses are supported.

Muhammad Ali Sharif is the Secretary of the Mercy Mission and a Trustee of The Lifeline Foundation.