India News

Media Release

June 4, 2021 : Life has come to a grinding halt with the second wave of CoronaVirus. When we thought the virus had left us for good, it’s second wave hit us harder. The tragic visuals of patients struggling for medical oxygen and hospital beds and the pile of dead bodies and the cremation workers working overtime to perform the final rights, vehicle parking getting converted to cremation grounds and dead bodies floating in the rivers have left us all shocked and the memories of these images will linger in our minds for a long time to come.

In the midst of this untold tragedy, the Indian Catholic Youth Movement (ICYM), the youth wing of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India was at the forefront of relief services in different parts of our country. The youth threw themselves into the risk of getting infected with the virus and undertook slew relief efforts to help the needy, the poor and migrants through its units spread across the country.

The ICYM units, besides creating awareness campaigns through online digital content like with videos and posters to encourage people to go for vaccination, helped the people with relief efforts, physical help, moral support, monetary assistance and counselling.

The ICYM units in Chennai, Ranchi, Mangalore, Udupi, Guwahati, Tura, Ahmedabad, Agra, Vasai, Shimoga, Kolkata, Nongstoin, Jhabua, and Delhi have been providing dry ration, cooked food to stranded labourers, giving verified leads on availability of hospital beds with oxygen and ICU beds, finding plasma donors, and providing masks and sanitizers. Some of these groups are even helping people to pay their medical bills.

ICYM units in Karnataka, especially Bengaluru and Mysore have been helping people in the hospitals and with burials/cremation. Youth groups in Gujarat, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh regions were involved in spreading awareness, distributing dry ration to the poor and needy. Youth volunteers in Eluru, Vishakpatnam, Kadapa, Delhi and Hyderabad have been helping COVID affected people with medicines and counselling. Young people in Pune, Mangalore also are helping in isolation wards, providing ambulance service under their reach out programmes.

The YCS/YSM student movements in the Northeast, Mangalore and Udupi are helping people with ration and also giving monetary support.

The ICYM units in Imphal, Manipur under the banner of MCYO are helping the state government and DC's to render help and do various activities to reduce the pandemic. There are COVID Task Forces in most of the districts that are helping people in bringing awareness and also giving timely assistance.

In Mizoram youth volunteered under the banner of DCTP to help the affected people.

Many units of ICYM have informed that they are going to start post COVID relief-work very soon. As such, steps are being taken to extend the relief activities further.

Young people in India under the banner of Indian Catholic Youth Movement have come to help people with blood donation, plasma donation drives. Most of these volunteers are risking their lives to save others’ lives.

The National office is coordinating an awareness campaign on vaccination and alerting people to follow the norms on social distancing and wearing face masks and avoiding crowds.

The efforts of our young people have given a fresh lease of life to many. Along with the monetary support, a good number of volunteers are engaged in emotional support like spending time with patients in the hospitals, helping elderly to get admitted, helping families to bury/cremate their dead in a dignified manner. Our units have spent their time and resources generously during this time.

Indian Catholic Youth Movement has always taken the lead to help the affected people during all major disasters. During the flash floods in Kerala and Karnataka in 2018, Nepal earthquake, cyclones and floods, young people belonging to ICYM were always in the forefront to carry out the relief work. Having a membership of over 25 Lakh youth all over the country the ICYM has stood strong with the people in their difficult times. It continues to work for the people affected by COVID and if you need any help kindly contact the following numbers and email. Timely help is assured. As CCBI Commission for Youth is grateful to these youth workers and people of good will, they also thank all the Directors who are monitoring their selfless efforts.

Fr. Chetan Machado
Executive Secretary
CCBI Commission for Youth

Phone Numbers: 9891792505; 8390740706
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Website: www.ccbiyouth.in