Hyderabad: Known as the Oxygen Man of Hyderabad, Mohammed Sujathullah has been waging a war against hunger for more than four years. People started calling him Oxygen Man following him providing free oxygen cylinders to more than 1000 persons suffering from coronavirus.
Mohammed Sujathullah has been arranging free breakfast for 1000 people for the last four and a half years without missing a single day, in three government hospitals–King Koti Maternity Hospital, Sultan Bazaar, Niloufer Hospital, Red Hills, and NIMS, Punjagutta. He has also been providing dinner to homeless people on the roadsides for the past year.
Mohammed Sujathullah spoke to siasat.com about his journey to help people. He also spoke about what motivated and inspired him. He also shared his future plans in the fight against hunger.
Journey
Though he studied up to fifth grade, he could learn only the use of English alphabets. “I don’t know whether it was a favor from the school to promote me from one class to another. I crawled up to the fifth standard but hardly learned anything,” he remembered.
Then came the turnaround. But he doesn’t know-how. He suddenly began focusing on studies and worked vigorously to get into B. Pharmacy in Sultan Uloom College. In the third year of the course in 2015, he realized that he has to clear an Organic Chemistry backlog which he was a tough subject for him.
He could somehow clear that subject in one of the re-examinations he wrote. Sujathullah had vowed that if he clears the examination he would feed 10 persons. Following the results remembered his vow and bought 10 food packets from his meager savings and gave them away.
“In 24 years of my life, I had never felt as happy as I did when I fed hungry persons,” Sujathullah said after his experience in charity. He went to distribute food at a railway station and found himself in a situation where he had only 4 packets and there were 15-20 hungry people looking at me expectantly.
“That’s when I realized what hunger is. I realized how privileged I was to have been born into a family where all my wishes were fulfilled by my parents,” Sujathullah added. He said that this was when he decided to start distributing food on a daily basis. That was the beginning of his journey.
Since he lived in a joint family, he told everyone what he was planning to do. His family members decided to pledge a part of their monthly earnings to feed the hungry. In 2015-16 he distributed food four times a week with the help of his friends. We started doing a supper distribution program beginning with 50 food packs and slowly reached up to 200.
During his years in Pharm. D, he wasn’t able to take time out for social service. Later he came up with the idea of organizing breakfasts. “I could benefit more people with a smaller budget,” he said.
He said that he started distributing food packets at a government hospital and later added more distribution points.
Until now he has completed 1700 days. Also, now he has been organizing breakfasts for people at three government hospitals without missing a single day.
Encouraged by the support and success of his work, Sujathullah founded an NGO, Humanity First Foundation. He is now working on various other issues.
He said that he manages the funds with the help of crown funding with a 100% donation system i.e., his NGO. At the same time, he doesn’t take any money for himself.
“Everyone has something special within himself or herself. They should recognize and use it. Pay attention to the life after death, and become a good human,” Sujathullah advises.
Future plans
“Currently we are organizing water camps at bus stops. Since the beginning of the pandemic we have arranged groceries and lunch for the migrant workers,” he informed.
Since the beginning of the pandemic last year his organization has bought 400 oxygen cylinders and 30 concentrators to benefit the people.
