“In 2016, while waiting to clear an examination paper, I made a promise that if I passed, I would feed 10 people. When the results came out and I had passed, I bought 10 food packets and stepped out onto the streets to distribute them.

As I handed out the food, I experienced a sense of peace and fulfilment I had never known before. I realised that helping people was something I wanted to dedicate my life to.

We initially distributed dinner to homeless people two or three nights a week. Soon, I began thinking about how we could make this a daily effort. Breakfast stood out because many people struggling to make ends meet go without a proper meal in the morning. We chose upma because it is nutritious, comforting and easy to prepare in large quantities. Adding pure ghee and milk made it more nourishing. By cooking in bulk, we could prepare breakfast for ₹5 per person, feeding 1,000 people a day for ₹5,000, entirely free of cost.

That idea led to the Humanity First Foundation in 2016. We began serving breakfast outside Niloufer Hospital, where patients and their attendants arrive from distant villages, often with little money for food. Later, we expanded to Koti Maternity Hospital and NIMS. Through rain, storms and the pandemic, we never stopped. Today, we have served over 10 million meals across 3,650 consecutive days without missing a morning.

Working outside hospitals also showed us how many patients delayed treatment or avoided surgery because they could not afford it. Some sought help only when their conditions became critical. I realised our work had to go beyond food.

Four years ago, we started Humanity Hospital, a 24-hour multi-specialty hospital built entirely through public donations. With an eight-bed ICU, three operation theatres and four dialysis machines, it follows a no-profit, no-loss model. Treatment costs are 40–50% lower than at corporate hospitals. Every month, we perform 50–60 major surgeries and handle 100–150 inpatient admissions.

Our work also includes medical camps, skill development and support for widows and orphans.
When I started Humanity First Foundation, I never imagined we would come this far. What began with feeding people has grown into work that also helps families access medical care and supports those who need it most. There is still so much I want to do, but my aim remains the same: to make sure no one goes hungry or is denied treatment simply because they cannot afford it.”

• Dr. Mohammad Sujathullah, Founder of Humanity First Foundation