The UK’s dynamic with other countries across Europe and the world has drastically changed in less than a week.
Because of concerns over a new strain of the coronavirus, almost 60 countries have now enforced travel bans on people entering from the UK.
Most notably, France closed its border with the UK, leaving truckers stranded from the Kent port all along the M20 motorway and beyond. Since drivers are left with nothing, kindhearted volunteers are making meals to make sure they don’t go hungry.
The Gravesend Gurdwara collaborated with Khalsa Aid —a Sikh humanitarian relief charity— to make hundreds of hot dishes at short notice in Gurdwara’s Langar kitchen, in cooperation with Kent Police and the county council.
On December 22, temple leaders had received the call at around12pm and quickly got to work as part of a collective effort with local authorities. A total of 500 chickpea curries and 300 mushroom and pasta dishes were made.
“[Khalsa Aid] got in touch this morning at about 12 o’clock and by 2.30 pm they came to collect the food. We made some phone calls to get volunteers together because we are already doing Langar, where we deliver to vulnerable people,” Jagdev Singh Virdee, spokesman for the Guru Nanak Darbar, told Kent Online.
The hot meals were then delivered throughout the day to truckers, with the assistance of a police escort to ensure smooth travel.
“That’s just part of Sikhism. It’s sharing your wealth with others. So we’ve got plenty of stock, and we’d love to share it with other people,” Manpreet Singh Dhaliwal, president of the Gurdwara, told ITV News.
More than 2,850 truck drivers have been waiting to leave the UK. After negotiations, rail, sea, and air travel to France have resumed, with any travelers required to show proof of a negative COVID-19 test within the previous 72 hours.
While travel to France has resumed, only essential travel will be permitted, including the stranded truck drivers, French citizens, and British citizens with French residency.