Diwali did not turn out to be happy and prosperous for residents of a low-income settlement in Jamshedpur (Tata Nagar).

8th November, 5.30 pm, Chaya Nagar (a slum in Jamshedpur): A stray firecracker leads to the explosion of an LPG cylinder in this congested area. This blast, in turn causes the explosion of a further 8 gas cylinders in the neighbouring houses. As soon as the fire broke out, Sri Ram Sharma, a Customer Relationship Staff from the Baridih branch informed Arvind Ram, Programme Manager who in turn made calls to the local fire station.

Within 30 minutes, over 104 houses caught fire which spread rapidly all through the congested slum area. The houses were burnt down nearly instantly. However, the firemen helped contain the fire soon. Thanks to the presence of mind of Sharma and Ram in mobilizing resources, further damage was avoided.

Near 180 families were affected in this tragic incident. They lost all their precious possessions and tried to salvage whatever they could all through the night. Nineteen of these families belonged to customers of Ujjivan. No other MFI worked in the area.

Several NGOs and local outfits turned up to help the victims with blankets and temporary shelter. Ujjivan’s staff arranged for snacks for the victims, some of who had not had anything to eat for over 18 hours.

Taking cognizance of this humanitarian crisis, Ujjivan donated Rs.2000 to each of the affected families. Further, we are providing a 2-month repayment holiday to our women customers who were impacted.

These women work as housemaids, have tailoring businesses, own petty shops, and undertake pottery and bamboo work. We at Ujjivan continue to be in constant touch with them, counselling them post-crisis and helping them get back on their feet as soon as possible, for their sake and their families.

We are proud of the social commitment shown by Sri Ram Sharma and Arvind Ram who went beyond the call of duty to help the people we serve.