By Verghese V Joseph –
Mumbai’s businessman and philanthropist Mauris Noronha, fondly called as Mauris Bhai, was conferred with the 10th Bharat Ratna Dr Ambedkar Award 2020 on November 26 by Dr B R Ambedkar National Awards Committee for his philanthropic act of providing food and relief materials to lakhs of poor and needy in Mumbai during the Coronavirus pandemic this year.
A poker player by profession, Mauris dedicated himself to taking care of not just the underprivileged, but also helped COVID-19 warriors and also standing at traffic signals holding a placard asking people to help the needy. In doing so, he spent his life’s savings, and his relentless efforts during COVID-19 pandemic have been commendable.
The Dr. B.R. Ambedkar National Awards, instituted in the memory of Ex Law Minister and Founder of Constitution of India in the Year – 2013, recognises outstanding performers in the various fields. The annual award identifies and honors professionals who have contributed towards the society and nation, which inspires others also to follow suit.
As the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on society’s weakest sections became apparent early this year, Noronha has made it his mission to reach out to as many in need as possible, drawing solely from his savings that he accumulated to migrate to the USA. In addition, he was also planning to clear his housing loan, which had to be postponed.
Speaking to Indian Catholic Matters, Mauris said that he considers this opportunity as a blessing and that this is the only way to show Jesus’ love to others. He has taken it upon himself as a mission to support the poor from the slums for a year. In addition, he has aided nearly 250 women with sewing machines so that they learn stitching and sewing skills to support themselves. Also, having identified that since poor children from the slums cannot afford mobile phones or laptops to pursue their studies, he has been distributing school books to them along with daily food rations for the families.