Ghy Fights Covid

Role: Founder · Duration: Apr 2021 – Sep 2021 · Location: Guwahati, Assam, India · Stage: 0 → Live crisis response · Team: 25 volunteers

1. The Problem

Context

During the second wave of COVID-19, Guwahati faced a severe shortage of verified information around essential medical resources. Patients and families struggled to find real time availability of oxygen, hospital beds, ambulances, plasma, and medicines. Information was scattered across WhatsApp groups, social media posts, and word of mouth. Much of it was outdated or unverified. Time was critical. Misinformation could cost lives.

Problem Statement

How might we create a single, trusted platform for verified COVID resources so people in Guwahati could quickly find and act on critical information?

2. Signals and Insights

• Information was fragmented and unreliable
• Resource availability changed hourly
• People did not know whom to trust
• Volunteers were already collecting data manually but had no central system
• Speed and accuracy mattered more than polish

3. What We Considered

Static spreadsheets shared on WhatsApp (rejected due to lack of scale and updates), social media only coordination (rejected due to noise and misinformation), government dashboards (not granular or real time enough). The solution had to be community driven, continuously updated, and easy to access.

4. The Solution

Product Approach

Built a COVID resource aggregator app and website for Guwahati that acted as a single source of truth for essential services. The platform focused on verified data, fast updates, and ease of access.

What We Built

• Central database of verified resource providers
• Categories: Ambulance services, Hospital beds, Oxygen cylinders, Plasma and blood banks, Quarantine centers, Pharmacies, Meal services, Testing facilities, Medical equipment vendors
• Doctors and hospitals directory for consultation
• "Ask for Help" section to bridge real time supply demand gaps
• COVID news, case statistics, and nutritional advice
• Volunteer powered verification and updates

Website: ghyfightscovid.in

5. Execution and Ownership

I founded and led the initiative end to end: built and shipped the product during an active crisis, recruited and coordinated 25 volunteers from diverse backgrounds, set up data verification workflows, ensured the platform stayed updated round the clock, and balanced urgency with accuracy. Execution was driven by impact, not perfection.

6. Impact

Reach and Usage

• 21,000 visits in under one month
• Became a widely used resource during the second COVID wave in Guwahati

Community Impact

• Helped residents find critical resources faster
• Reduced dependence on unverified social media forwards
• Supported frontline volunteers with a structured system

Recognition

Covered by regional media. News article (Northeast Now)

7. What Didn't Work or Was Challenging

• Resource availability changed rapidly, making data freshness a constant challenge
• Verification required heavy manual effort from volunteers
• Scaling beyond Guwahati would have required significantly more coordination
• Emotional toll on volunteers working under crisis conditions

These were operational constraints of building during an emergency, not product intent failures.

8. What I'd Do Differently Today

• Automate parts of verification and expiry of resource data
• Build clearer status indicators for freshness of information
• Design for multi city expansion from day one
• Add stronger tooling for volunteer coordination

9. Key Takeaways

• In crisis products, speed and trust matter more than polish
• Community driven systems need strong verification workflows
• Clear information architecture can save critical time
• Product leadership also means emotional and operational leadership

10. Links and Presence

• Website: ghyfightscovid.in
• News coverage: Northeast Now
• Instagram: @ghyfightscovid
• X: @ghyfightscovid
• Facebook: ghyfightscovid