OmanPride: Maithri, providing to the needy in Nizwa

Maithri, a charitable organisation, was started in 2009 with the aim to cater to the needs of the underprivileged in Nizwa. “Maithri started its operations eight years ago with Suresh Kumar as president and Prabhakar as secretary. It has been continuing its charity work since then,” said Renjith Murali, the newly appointed secretary of Maithri.

Maithri conducts a wide range of activities that don’t just help in collecting funds for the needy, but also promotes local talent. “We conduct blood donation camps, cultural and sports competitions during every quarter in order to raise funds to provide help to people who suffer from diseases and poverty,” he said.

While all the funds collected during such events go to families and individuals in Nizwa who are in need of money, the amount incurred while conducting the event is raised by members of the organisation.

“The contribution, both in cash and kind (clothes, books, and many other things), goes to the people in Nizwa. All the expenses that are incurred during the aforementioned charity work are borne by Maithri members and some well-wishers,” he added.

Over the years, the organisation and its members have helped a number of people, irrespective of their background or needs. Their aim is to provide to people what they need, whatever it may be. “Maithri has helped more than 20 people in different categories.” He added, “Maithri had discovered a lot of talented people by conducting cultural fests and given them opportunities and training to perform at other stages,” he said.

They have also been extremely active and instrumental in dealing with cases of injuries and deaths of expats in Oman. “Maithri has been involved in many hospital cases and has succeeded to repatriate bodies to their home country in different circumstances,” he said.
They have in turn received a lot of love and support from people in Nizwa, who have either come forward to help them in their initiatives or have expressed their gratitude on being helped by the organisation.

“We would like to continue doing such activities. In fact, we just hosted a cricket tournament last week, which was held to raise funds for an orphanage.” They are currently in the process of reorganising Maithri in order to be more efficient and participate in and conduct more charitable events in Nizwa.
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