'Didn't want to watch from sidelines': CK Vineeth joins COVID-19 helpline
CK Vineeth now works a 10-5 shift, seven days a week.
Vineeth, who plays as a forward for ISL side Jamshedpur FC, has been volunteering, for ten days now, as a call centre executive at the COVID-19 centre set up by the Kannur district administration and the Kerala state sports council. His duty brief primarily involves taking down requests of essential items from locals who call in and pass them on to delivery agents. "The centre has been functional since March 28," Vineeth tells ESPN, catching a break between calls. "When I was asked by the sports council vice president OK Vineesh if I'd be keen to help, I jumped right in."
Vineeth has already, through his bold stance on social issues, marked himself out as a rare, active Indian sportsperson who isn't afraid to use his voice. He'd famously listed his son's religion as 'NIL' on the birth certificate, expressed his protest and anger over the rape of two minor girls, came out in open support of a young man named Sreejith, who sat outside the Kerala secretariat for over two years demanding justice following his brother's custodial death, and played an active role in the Kerala flood relief operations two years ago.
"When a crisis strikes, we can either sit back or do our part," says Vineeth, on his current volunteering stint. "My state and my district (Kannur) are affected and I just didn't want to be the person watching from the sidelines." Out of over 250 confirmed coronavirus cases in Kerala, Kannur alone accounts for roughly 60 of them. The call centre Vineeth volunteers at has around 15 people answering an average of 200 calls a day. The district panchayat has tied up with grocery shops in the area, which allows for a system through which delivery agents pick up the items requested by households on credit, drop them off, collect cash and then pay vendors back. "We have five BSNL mobile numbers on which people can call. Earlier, kids would call and ask if we could bring them chocolates," says Vineeth. "Now it's mostly the grocery essentials and a lot of requests for medicines."
In addition to call centre volunteering, Vineeth also visited the Kannur district hospital earlier this month as part of a food packet distribution drive for patients. "My father has health complications and I have a young son at home as well, so the days I visited the hospital, I didn't return home," he says. "These days after my shift, once I get back, I shower in our outhouse before entering home."
To encourage people to stay indoors and call in for essentials, the district panchayat ropes in local stars, including politicians and actors among others, for a day's stint each. "I've stayed on the longest," Vineeth laughs. "It's just a way to cheer up people by having someone whom they may have heard of or seen on TV answer their calls and introduce themselves. I did it too on just the first day. Not since. People are struggling for essentials, so I don't want to be picking up the phone and saying, 'You know, I'm CK Vineeth, so are you a fan?' For now, I'm just Vineeth and I'm here to take their order."
‘How have we come down to this?,’ CK Vineeth posts powerful message on Wrestlers’ Protest
Former India international CK Vineeth has hit out at the brutality happening to the Indian Wrestlers amid their protest for the removal of the Indian Wrestling Federation’s head Brijbhushan Sharan Singh – who has been accused of harassing female athletes.
The wrestlers’ protests, led by Olympic bronze medal winners Sakshi Malik, Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia, has been going on for over a month in the streets of Delhi but took a shocking turn on Sunday, 28 May.
With the wrestlers trying to relocate their protests towards the inauguration of the New Parliament Building in New Delhi, some of them were wrongfully violated by the police. Some wrestlers were pictured being beaten and dragged by the police, with several being detained for staging a peaceful protest.
What did Vineeth say about the wrestlers’ protest?
This has really irked Vineeth, who took to Twitter to voice his utter dismay at how the decorated wrestlers of the nation are being treated. In a powerful series of tweets, he stated, “I watched on as a bystander for many days, thinking this will end. But this image has killed me inside. These are India’s daughters, who stood on podiums and waved our flag proudly, now being dragged on the floor with the same flag.
“Their accusation is against a man with a criminal background, and because he is an MP with the ruling party – a man of power – our solution is to forcefully silence their protests, hurt them and arrest those standing by their side, instead of taking action against the accused?
“How have we, as a nation, come down to this? Is this the India that was promised to us? Shame. On all of us.” Vineeth is the only Indian footballer to have made a public comment denouncing the latest case of police brutality towards the protesting wrestlers – who continue to seek justice amid all their troubles.
Disappointed with Vineeth..he does not understand the ground reality
What is the ground reality? When no many sportsperson has come up against a politician there is something to it. Why not investigate? Why are powerful people silent? Its a case against our daughters and that in any way should never be taken lightly
Everybody in the fraternity knows that it's a politically motivated protest..These wrestlers are not interested in competing in the nationals against young blood and want direct Olympic qualification..They may also get political party tickets after the protest is over..keep watching this drama and you will realize this sooner or later
Initially I believed these people, but I know a person who is an organiser of Kushti keshri in Maharashtra,he mentioned about what happened to a wrestler named Narsingh Yadav,who qualified to Olympics,He was an UPite from Maharashtra.Googled it,was shocked.It seems wrestlers from states other than Haryana are not tolerated in wrestling scene here.Maharashtra and other rural part of India has a big Wrestling scene,but a very less representation from India.Being neutral what I observed is many from wrestling fraternity belonging to other states don't have good opinion of these people, especially Vinesh phogat.Google about her antics during Olympics.
Entire country is being fooled by these goons..support is pouring in from unsuspecting people in the sports fraternity because they think this is a case of misconduct or something against women..They are working with the Left currently and plan to return with a bigger protest strategy over the next few days..more political drama to unfold. The acussed has said he's open to a narco test as long as these wrestlers do it too but the wrestlers refuse to entertain that lol
Comments
If some player miss Office match, then also problem. C K Vineeth.
'Didn't want to watch from sidelines': CK Vineeth joins COVID-19 helpline
CK Vineeth now works a 10-5 shift, seven days a week.
Vineeth, who plays as a forward for ISL side Jamshedpur FC, has been volunteering, for ten days now, as a call centre executive at the COVID-19 centre set up by the Kannur district administration and the Kerala state sports council. His duty brief primarily involves taking down requests of essential items from locals who call in and pass them on to delivery agents. "The centre has been functional since March 28," Vineeth tells ESPN, catching a break between calls. "When I was asked by the sports council vice president OK Vineesh if I'd be keen to help, I jumped right in."
Vineeth has already, through his bold stance on social issues, marked himself out as a rare, active Indian sportsperson who isn't afraid to use his voice. He'd famously listed his son's religion as 'NIL' on the birth certificate, expressed his protest and anger over the rape of two minor girls, came out in open support of a young man named Sreejith, who sat outside the Kerala secretariat for over two years demanding justice following his brother's custodial death, and played an active role in the Kerala flood relief operations two years ago.
"When a crisis strikes, we can either sit back or do our part," says Vineeth, on his current volunteering stint. "My state and my district (Kannur) are affected and I just didn't want to be the person watching from the sidelines." Out of over 250 confirmed coronavirus cases in Kerala, Kannur alone accounts for roughly 60 of them. The call centre Vineeth volunteers at has around 15 people answering an average of 200 calls a day. The district panchayat has tied up with grocery shops in the area, which allows for a system through which delivery agents pick up the items requested by households on credit, drop them off, collect cash and then pay vendors back. "We have five BSNL mobile numbers on which people can call. Earlier, kids would call and ask if we could bring them chocolates," says Vineeth. "Now it's mostly the grocery essentials and a lot of requests for medicines."
In addition to call centre volunteering, Vineeth also visited the Kannur district hospital earlier this month as part of a food packet distribution drive for patients. "My father has health complications and I have a young son at home as well, so the days I visited the hospital, I didn't return home," he says. "These days after my shift, once I get back, I shower in our outhouse before entering home."
To encourage people to stay indoors and call in for essentials, the district panchayat ropes in local stars, including politicians and actors among others, for a day's stint each. "I've stayed on the longest," Vineeth laughs. "It's just a way to cheer up people by having someone whom they may have heard of or seen on TV answer their calls and introduce themselves. I did it too on just the first day. Not since. People are struggling for essentials, so I don't want to be picking up the phone and saying, 'You know, I'm CK Vineeth, so are you a fan?' For now, I'm just Vineeth and I'm here to take their order."
https://www.espn.in/football/jamshedpur-fc/story/4084244/didnt-want-to-watch-from-sidelines-ck-vineeth-volunteers-at-call-centre-in-fight-against-covid-19
Kudos, Vineeth!
‘How have we come down to this?,’ CK Vineeth posts powerful message on Wrestlers’ Protest
Former India international CK Vineeth has hit out at the brutality happening to the Indian Wrestlers amid their protest for the removal of the Indian Wrestling Federation’s head Brijbhushan Sharan Singh – who has been accused of harassing female athletes.
The wrestlers’ protests, led by Olympic bronze medal winners Sakshi Malik, Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia, has been going on for over a month in the streets of Delhi but took a shocking turn on Sunday, 28 May.
With the wrestlers trying to relocate their protests towards the inauguration of the New Parliament Building in New Delhi, some of them were wrongfully violated by the police. Some wrestlers were pictured being beaten and dragged by the police, with several being detained for staging a peaceful protest.
What did Vineeth say about the wrestlers’ protest?
This has really irked Vineeth, who took to Twitter to voice his utter dismay at how the decorated wrestlers of the nation are being treated. In a powerful series of tweets, he stated, “I watched on as a bystander for many days, thinking this will end. But this image has killed me inside. These are India’s daughters, who stood on podiums and waved our flag proudly, now being dragged on the floor with the same flag.
“Their accusation is against a man with a criminal background, and because he is an MP with the ruling party – a man of power – our solution is to forcefully silence their protests, hurt them and arrest those standing by their side, instead of taking action against the accused?
“How have we, as a nation, come down to this? Is this the India that was promised to us? Shame. On all of us.” Vineeth is the only Indian footballer to have made a public comment denouncing the latest case of police brutality towards the protesting wrestlers – who continue to seek justice amid all their troubles.
https://khelnow.com/football/2023-05-ck-vineeth-on-wrestlers-vs-wfi