Football fans raise £20k for Punjab flood relief
Aston Villa fan group Punjabi Villans raise money for flood relief efforts in just a few months [Punjabi Villans]
A group of football fans have raised £20,000 for a charity’s flood relief efforts in Punjab.
Aston Villa supporters group Punjabi Villans will present a check to the Midland Langar Seva Society (MLSS) outside Premier League ground Villa Park ahead of their match against Bournemouth on Sunday.
Randhir Singh, chief executive of MLSS, which distributes aid in the northern Indian state, offered his “heartfelt” thanks to the group for their support.
Monsoon rains left Punjab in a difficult situation Biggest flood since 1988 Hundreds of thousands of people were affected by the flood.
Millions of people in Punjab make a living from agriculture [AFP via Getty Images]
“We didn’t think we would reach £20,000,” said Nim Gill of Punjabi Villans, but within hours of starting fundraising around three months ago they donated £2,000.
Many of the supporter group members have large families, so they approached them first to ask for money.
“The response has been phenomenal; there are incredibly generous people,” he said, describing the group’s emotional connection to the affected area.
“Our grandparents are from Punjab. Families there earn their living through farming and the land will not be usable for years,” he said.
He added that it was “very satisfying” to be able to do something to help the region from thousands of miles away, and that the group was “overflowing with pride” to hand over the check.
Punjabi Villans was founded in 2012 and has between 50 and 60 members.
It was created to bring together fans from all backgrounds and “provide a welcoming space for the British South Asian community at Villa Park”.
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