NGOs like FLO should volunteer to help senior citizens – Rubal Agarwal

Pune, June 25, 2020: “There are many senior citizens who stay alone in Pune having no one to care for them as most of the time their children stay abroad. I appeal to organizations like FLO to reach out to these elderlies and provide whatever help it can to them especially during these times of COVID pandemic,” said Rubal Agarwal, Additional Commissioner, PMC, while speaking during an online interaction recently organized by FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO) Pune Chapter Chairperson Dr. Aneeta Sanas along with and Sangeeta Lalwani, Past Chairperson of FLO Pune Chapter and Member of National Governing Body of FLO.

“We need help in this matter and along with the NGOs, we’ll be able to provide support to our seniors,” she said.

While speaking on women empowerment, Agarwal who has won the Best Collector Award for her campaign- Beti Padhao Beti Bacho in 2016-17 in Jalgaon said, “I come from a small village in Rajasthan where women were not allowed to study but with the support of my sister-in-law and mother I was able to complete my studies in IAS and served as a collector in various cities in Maharashtra. Parents in the village are inspired by me and are now sending their daughters out to study. It is an achievement as I have proved to the society that women are not lagging behind and they too can achieve whatever they want.”

Agarwal who is a CEO of Pune Smart City Development Corporation Limited (PSCDCL) has also been awarded with the Mahatma Gandhi Peace Award in 2016-17 for controlling riots in Jalgaon district during her tenure as a collector between 2014 and 2017.

While speaking on the recent COVID epidemic and the steps taken by the municipal authority to control the virus, she said, “The municipal corporation has taken necessary steps to stop the spread of the infection and have set up additional 80,000 beds at the COVID care centres. As per our analysis 80 percent of the patients are asymptomatic but we want people to take utmost care by following rules and not move out of their homes unnecessarily. We are also taking actions against the hospitals, which are charging exorbitant fees to the patients. Fortunately, the death rate in Pune is not very high but still we’ll have to improve, use our resources and create a platform to spread awareness among citizens.