DYFI’s Year-Round Hospital Meal Initiative Gains Spotlight During Onam

Pathanamthitta: On Thiruvonam day today, Communist Party of India (Marxist) All India General Secretary M.A. Baby served meals at a government hospital in Pathanamthitta, Kerala, as part of the ongoing mass initiative led by the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI). While the presence of a senior party leader rightly drew public attention, the real strength of this programme lies in its unbroken, year-round commitment—not merely a festival gesture.

Since 2017, the DYFI in Kerala has been tirelessly organising the daily distribution of home-cooked meals to patients in government hospitals throughout the state. What began as a local effort at Thiruvananthapuram Medical College with a few hundred food packets has grown into a robust state-wide movement delivering over 40,000 meals every day across 61 hospitals.

The programme, called Hridayapoorvam (From The Heart), was launched in, 2017, by the DYFI Vanchiyoor area committee in Thiruvananthapuram. Starting with just 300 meal packets, the initiative steadily expanded as more and more working-class families took ownership of this collective responsibility. By the end of that year, the effort spread to multiple districts, including Alappuzha, where the local DYFI now distributes around 4,000 meals daily.

Unlike top-down food aid programs controlled by the state or NGOs, Hridayapoorvam rejects institutional dependency. Instead, the power lies with the people—meals are prepared in individual homes and delivered directly to hospital wards. Each DYFI unit maintains a disciplined rotation, assigning daily responsibility to various local committees. The food, is one course of meal packed in banana leaves or newspapers, reaches patients.

The collective participation of thousands of households sustains this programme’s resilience. In Thiruvananthapuram alone, about 2,000 homes contribute daily. Importantly, no money changes hands—only food. This is direct action, where people reclaim the act of giving as their own, rather than handing it over to faceless institutions.

Because it does not rely on government funds or corporate sponsorship, the programme remains strong and uninterrupted—even during the harshest challenges like the COVID-19 pandemic, when public services faltered and mobility was restricted. DYFI volunteers went beyond food distribution to provide oxygen supply, ambulance services, and support for cremations, exemplifying the spirit of proletarian solidarity.

DYFI, founded in 1980 inspired by the revolutionary sacrifice and fighting spirit of Bhagat Singh, understands this programme as a form of working-class solidarity, an expression of collective strength rather than relief handed down from above.

A.A. Rahim, DYFI national president and Rajya Sabha MP, has said that,“It is not merely about feeding the hungry. It is about creating conditions where people actively participate in each other’s well-being.”

This emphasis on participation—on contribution and mutual aid, rather than passive consumption or simple distribution—reflects a revolutionary political approach distinct from the bureaucratic welfare schemes run by NGOs or the state.

In many government hospitals, especially in Thiruvananthapuram, Palakkad, Alappuzha, and Malappuram, the DYFI’s meal programme has become an essential, grassroots part of hospital life. Though it operates independently of government control, it has gained the support of hospital staff and administrators through its consistent and reliable service.

While the public’s attention understandably spikes during festivals such as Onam or Vishu—when DYFI organises grand sadyas (traditional feasts)—the real work continues quietly, without fanfare, every single day of the year.