Anokhi Dukan helps poor get access to household items

Ajay Joshi

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, July 29

The concept of Anokhi Dukan, which started in the city with a unique idea to provide a range of items, (though used or donated) to the downtrodden at an affordable range, has worked well.

A month ago, the shop had opened up with a motto ‘It’s better to donate than accumulate’, encouraging well-off citizens not to stock extra clothes, crockery, furnishings, bed sheets, quilt covers, watches, toys, footwear, furniture, electrical goods, toiletries and other household items at their places and instead donate it so that it could be used and cherished by others. People from across the city are showing keen interest in donating their used stuff to Anokhi Dukan, which further sells the same to the underprivileged at a nominal cost, ranging from Rs 5 to Rs 100.

Nidhi Kohli, co-founder of Aaghaaz, an NGO, under whose supervision Anokhi Dukan has been running successfully, said as a matter of routine over 70-80 items were sold and approximately Rs 1,000 were earned daily.

Kohli said students studying in government schools visit the shop to buy books, stationery items and even school uniforms.

Even people from lower middle-class families used to come to the shop and buy furniture from them, she said.

Sunita Singh, a 16-year-old girl, said: “Anokhi Dukan was proving to be a great help for us. Earlier with the limited money, we could not afford to buy regular household items, but with the opening of this unusual shop, our family was not only saving money but also getting access to all daily need items.”

Kamaljit, a daily wage worker, said: “I came to the shop at the insistence of my neighbour and after realising that every other item was available at a damn cheap rate here, we are considering ourselves fortunate enough to get all things under one roof.”

Garima Gupta, a Model Town resident, also feels a sense of self-satisfaction.

“I just did not dispose off my several used items as they were precious or I did not want to see them going to scrap. But, such items are being used for a good cause now. Til now, I have donated some clothes, utensils, books and other household items to the shop,” she said.

Meanwhile, Kohli said she makes sure that one person could buy only three items at a time and twice a month. Also, the money earned would be used for building a recreation centre for poverty-stricken children.