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Providing clean drinking water to people is one of the best forms of charity in Islam and the Dar Al Ber Society (Dabs) has taken this task upon itself in a big way.
Dabs has begun installing electric water coolers at various locations in Dubai to provide free cold drinking water to the public, especially to the underprivileged section of the society - mainly construction and industrial labourers, gardeners and other blue collar workers.
On Thursday, officials installed about ten water coolers across Dubai - two in Al Garhoud, three at a labour accommodation in Al Qouz with about a 1,000 workers, two coolers at Philippines Overseas Labour Office at Philippines Consulate at Al Qusais Dubai, one at Zabeel Park (where a number of construction workers, gardeners take rest after working on different projects in neighbouring areas) and two water coolers at a mosque in Bur Dubai.
"Providing drinking water is one of the most important projects undertaken by us. We are installing the coolers at locations where it is needed most", said Dr Hisham Al Zahrani, deputy director of the social sector of Dabs, who was present during the installation.
The initiative is part of the charity's Zayed Happiness Caravan that aims to spread happiness among workers by distributing free meals and goody bags to workers.
"We have chosen the locations where cold drinking water is not readily available, especially in summer. We personally surveyed many areas and spoke to people across the city to spot places where such coolers are required. For example, we installed two water coolers with four taps each in an area in Al Garhoud where about 200-300 gardeners take rest after working in the scorching sun for hours. Many of them had to either go to a nearby school to ask for water," said, Juhi Yasmeen Khan, CSR and charity initiatives expert at Dabs.
"Also, this initiative is in line with 2019 being declared as Year of Tolerance, as we are focusing on people who are most deserving and needy in the community," Khan added.
She said: "This is mainly being done for construction workers, gardeners, and general public who are mostly working or out in the sun. Workers mostly have to carry their water with them, or walk many miles to look for a public water cooler to get free water. We have started now so that by the time we reach the peak summer season, thousands of workers can get access to cold drinking water."
Rasheed, a Pakistani gardener, said: "These water coolers have come as a blessing from Allah to us as earlier we had to walk for half an hour everyday during the hot season to fetch water from places like schools, offices, etc."
"Our aim is to install water coolers at a minimum of 100 locations in UAE before the start of the summer season," Dr. Hisham added.
saman@khaleejtimes.com
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