Donations to educate a child, to take care of the aged, to alleviate hunger, to provide shelter for the homeless etc may come in plenty. But have you ever thought of donating for in-patients in GH (Government Hospital), so they can spot a healthier look?

Not many pause to think on these lines. But N Deivaraj, Hair Stylist and Managing Trustee of New Deiva City Hair Arts Trust, underscores the importance of giving such patients a healthier look.

"Unkempt hair and overgrown beard can make the elderly and chronically ill-patients very miserable. Administering a clean cut and facial shave can make them look healthy and this is what we are attempting to do,'' he told Business Line .

Thanks to the efforts of the volunteers of this trust that over 100 in-patients at Coimbatore GH were given a makeover on Tuesday.

"We have been rendering this service for over 13 years now. We want to do much more than this, but mobilising funds, getting the authorities clearance, making patients understand the importance of spotting a clean look gobbles up our energy and time,'' says Deivaraj.

Besides helping the in-patients at Government Hospital in Tirupur, Erode, Salem and Coimbatore (once every three months), the team visits orphanages too.

Çhildren at such homes can ill-afford to maintain a healthy mane and the people running such homes do not give much importance to keeping the hair short and clean, says Deivaraj, who is supported by six hair stylists, all of them running saloons in Tirupur.

So how does the team find time and funds for this service?

"Ít’s not easy. We set apart 10 days in a month for rendering such service. Some of our customers pitch in to help the cause. Each visit to a GH costs us around ₹15,000. Both funds and volunteers for such service is hard to come by, let alone the permission from the district administration/ management,'' he says.

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