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Swindon Hindus deliver food to NHS staff and volunteers

BBC Chef from Swindon Hindu TempleBBC
Volunteers from the temple cooked and packaged the meals ready for delivery

Volunteers from a Hindu temple delivered hundreds of hot meals to NHS staff working on Christmas Day.

Teams from the temple in Swindon prepared and delivered the food to medical staff and volunteers giving Covid-19 jabs in the town.

Nirupama Satish, a temple trustee and also a doctor, said it was important NHS staff were supported during their long shifts.

"They are working very, very hard under a lot of pressure," she said.

"They also don't always get to take breaks, so this provides them with a meal and helps cheer them up."

Dr Nirupama Satish from Swindon Hindu Temple
Dr Nirupama Satish said the Hindu community had been sending meals to NHS staff through the pandemic

She said volunteers from the temple had been delivering meals throughout the pandemic, including to GPs surgeries and hospitals.

Paul Miles, vaccination site manager at the STEAM museum in Swindon, said the meals were very welcome.

Swindon vaccination centre manager Paul Miles
Vaccination centre manager Paul Miles said staff and volunteers regularly worked 14-hour days

"The volunteers and all the staff are working from eight o'clock in the morning until 10 at night.

"Hot food is massively appreciated. Thank you very much to the guys from the temple, it's much appreciated by everybody."

Swindon's Hindu community has faced many challenges in 2021 due to multiple break-ins at its temple.

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