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Author: Smile Editorial Team

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Smile

Women Empowerment: Need of the hour

Women Empowerment: Need of the hour

8.1 million! That’s the number of children that drop out of school in India. Out of which 57% are girls. Most of these girls drop out of school because of financial reasons; difficulties faced during menstruation, early marriages, domestic chores or because of the mindset that educating a girl/woman would yield no return.

 

Among all these young women is the story of Anita, a 28-year-old woman full of spark and energy from Bangalore. Born in Bagepalli in rural Bangalore, her parents were farmers who earned a meagre 10,000 rupees annually by raising groundnuts. Anita was forced to quit her education when she was 18, and had barely completed class XII to work to supplement her family’s income.

 

In a culture that gives priority to a boy’s education instead of a girl’s, Anita was married off at the age of 21 to one of her relative’s son. That was when all her dreams came shattering down. “I always wanted to work towards women empowerment. I had a dream to put all my efforts into bringing equality and stability in lives of women. But the same could not happen when I had to leave school just after 2nd pre-university, (equivalent to class 12). Matters became worse after I was married, as more and more domestic as well as financial responsibilities dawned on me,.” said Anita with a sly smile on her face.

 

Domestic violence at the hands of her husband became an everyday event. “Beating started soon after our marriage. My husband, a car driver in a travel agency is a habitual alcoholic. Every time he comes home drunk, he beats me. It has now been 7 years since our wedding and I still get beaten by him almost every week.” she lamented.

 

In October 2018, Anita came across a community mobilizer from Smile Foundation who told her about STeP. She was intrigued by the free computer, English and personality development program that STeP offered and signed up for the same.

 

“I have been working at RMZ mall at an upmarket clothing store for past three months as a sales executive. All of 15000 rupees that I earn in a month belongs to me. I still stay with my husband but I feel more empowered now knowing that if things get completely out of hand someday, I can leave him without fear of not being able to fend for myself.” said Anita.

 

STeP’s four month course trained Anita in skills, crucial for most jobs in the modern world – computer, financial literacy and English speaking. “The course also helped me gain confidence as a woman and refine my personality. The classes on financial literacy were an added bonus. I don’t just earn but also know how to handle my finances more efficiently now.”

 

As per National Crime Records Bureau, every year over 90,000 cases of violence and cruelty by husbands and in-laws are reported by women in India. The actual number would be even higher since most cases go unreported.

 

Lack of adequate education, employability skills and support from family, leave women like Anita susceptible to domestic violence. That is why it is imperative to empower every woman with enough skills so that they never have to depend on anyone, especially financially.

 

According to UN Women, when more women work, economies grow. Women’s economic empowerment boosts productivity, increases economic diversification and income equality in addition to other positive development outcomes. A 2018 study by International Monetary Fund titled Pursuing Women’s Economic Empowerment shows, increasing the female employment rates in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries to match that of Sweden, could boost GDP by over USD 6 trillion. Another 2016, research shows that gender gaps cost the economy some 15 percent of GDP.

 

In a rapidly evolving world, women equality and empowerment must be given priority not just through initiatives by governments and non-profits but also individual efforts. A girl is no less deserving of education and efficient at fulfilling their dreams than a boy, if given the right opportunities.

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Insights

Is it time to look beyond foreign funding for NGOs?

Problems of Girl Child Education in India
Problems of Girl Child Education in India

Over the past decade or so dependence on foreign funding for national NGOs has been erratic and is on a slow down. As per a recent report there has been a decline of 40 percent in foreign funds for NGOs over the past five years. This coupled with global economic slowdown and emergence of corporate social responsibility and individual giving, is making local organisation look for ways to raise resources and support for the cause they champion within the national markets. Is it time to look beyond foreign funding for NGOs?

 

But this is easier said than done as most organization that are working at state level and rooted in the community also called community-based organizations or (CBOs) lack resources, mentoring and skills to leverage this opportunity.

 

Various new ideas and tools that are being tried out to raise funds and Change the Game Academy (CtGA) is one such programme, funded by the Wild Geese Foundation to empower the smaller non-government organizations in methods to become self reliant and sustainable.

 

“Funds from foreign are shrinking due to valid reasons, corporate sectors are more systematic and in better control to invest, NGOs by and large lack with the skills and mainly the attitude to complement the policies of Government in place by either improving or setting them anew. As a result ‘Self-Sustainability’ is a big question for them,” said Mukesh George, a trainer working with Smile Foundation, who is part of the CtGA programme.

 

 

“Change the Game Academy (CtGA) addresses these issues through its Classroom Course approach by focusing on the aspect of Local Fundraising. The course brings forth the paradigm shift to the participants that Local Fundraising is more sustainable option in a longer run and they leave the room equipped with skill-set, ready with an event plan to fundraise,” he explained.

 

“We have seen that the Indian’s are giving, hence we are seeing a growing trend in donations by individual philanthropists. They have ensured that the role of private funding continues to grow despite slowing foreign fund inflows. Similarly, funding under Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is maturing, which has seen a growth of 12 percent the recent times, but a lot more needs to be done,” said Gargi Kapoor, In-charge, CtGA, India.

 

“These workshops help the civil society to rethink their business models, think strategically about its financial models and adopt new and innovative approaches that will help the sector maintain its independence and still be sustainable. The idea exchanges that happen through the workshops empower these smaller units with long term and short-term fundraising goals,” she explained.

 

The legislative environment and the policies related, economic downturn in the top-tier funding countries and changing donor priorities have made dependence on foreign funding a very tricky option. The need for smaller NGO’s is about finding financial stability, by diversifying their resources to have a healthy mix of long and short term funding, Financial sustainability is about diversifying financial resources in order to have a healthy mix of long and short-term funding, CSR donations, foreign and local donors as well as  internally generated resources by events, fundraisers etc.

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In The Spotlight

Mother- A child’s first teacher

Mother- A child’s first teacher

“The mother is the first teacher of the child. The message she gives that child, that child gives to the world.”— Malcolm X

 

Mothers are life givers, they are the ones who are there to hold our hands when we take our first steps, they help us understand the world around us but most of all a mother plays the role of a child’s first teacher. The child looks at her and tries to impersonate her, they learn to distinguish between the good and bad.

 

A mother in her journey of bringing up the child makes many sacrifices on the way and it is through those instances a child learns to grow up to be sensible, caring and compassionate towards other human beings. This Teacher’s Day let us look at a few stories of sacrifice, courage and joy that mothers bring to our lives as some one who teaches us to go forward in life and fight all obstacles.

 

 

“My children are going to grow up having everything I did not have. Apart from the usual mischief they listen to their father and me. My eldest one is going to be in class VI this year and my other daughter is going to be in class III. I work in the nearby households to send my children to school. I have taught them to be hardworking and dedicated. When the teacher praises them it makes me very happy.”– Minati, Sanjit’s mother

 

 

“The other day Nisha asked me, “Mummy why don’t you ever get tired? You sleep so late. From tomorrow I am going to tie my own hair.” It was the sweetest thing, but whatever sleep I lose does not matter because I want the best for her. She goes to a good school run by Smile Foundation, she looks so good in her little dress and she is very good in her studies. I work for her to become successful and happy in the future. Her teacher says she is doing excellent in school, what can be better than this?” – Meena, Nisha’s mother

 

 

“My daughter Shobha was four years old when my husband died. It was a difficult phase. We had nothing with us, no money, no belongings. Even the food we were carrying with us ran out in a few days. I do labour work on daily wages – whatever work I can get, carrying bricks, cooking, cleaning dishes, even sweeping. But I do not feel bad about it because I do it for Shobha. She goes to school now. People say she has taken after me, there is nothing she cannot do.” – Padma, Shobha’s mother

 

 

“I taught Preeti to count from 1 to 12. We were laughing at how funny it was that I looked at the clock in my house and taught her the numbers. But now she goes to school. She studies in class III. I am so proud of her. Her teacher says she is quiet the dancer. I already know this because she keeps on performing for me all the time.”– Meena, Preeti’s mother

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Insights

Reflection on the Healthcare services in India

Reflection on the Healthcare services in India

Is the doctor’s fee unusually heavy on your pocket?

 

For the privileged of the society, this question barely affects the peace of mind but for the poor, falling sick and not being able to afford healthcare is among their scariest nightmares. I am not talking about critical or chronic diseases like cancer, cardiovascular, and kidney diseases which cost a fortune to treat. I am speaking of easily treatable ones like viral fever, stomach flu, diarrhoea, etc.

 

When a person survives hand to mouth, visiting a doctor becomes a luxury. Not only because he/she must pay the consultation fee but the cost of travel, medicine, pathology test (if any), and of course loss of a day’s wage, all add up to out of pocket expense.

 

India is among those countries in the world that provide free or low-cost healthcare to all its citizens. Most developed countries even though have a universal healthcare system in place do not offer free healthcare service to its citizens. For example, in the US, if one does not have a medical insurance, one may end up paying up to $250 just for an x-ray. While the same in India costs just 200 rupees at a private lab and nothing at a government one. A person does not compulsorily need insurance to access healthcare without bleeding their wallets dry in India.

 

The problem is the population. The number of people seeking medical treatments is overwhelming. Most government hospitals in the country are not equipped to provide adequate aid to these people. With 23.6% of 1.3 billion people below the Line of Poverty just 28,000 government run primary health care centers and 35,000 government hospitals (of which only 2% are in the rural India) with 1.3 million beds is not enough.

 

The doctors are almost always overworked. When I recently sought getting my mother operated in a government hospital, I was simply dumbfounded how much load the doctors and the nurses at the hospital faced.

 

The doctor who was to operate on my mother had conducted 3 surgeries before my mother’s. One of them was of a woman with ovarian cancer that took over 3 hours. One of the doctors from the team also had to do a night shift after having worked in the OT since 10 in the morning. One nurse was assigned to take care of 40 patients in a single ward. Three women with their new born babies in their hands were being shifted to post-natal ward on a single stretcher.

 

The condition is bad, yes, but all these people are also doing the amazing work of providing treatments like that of cancer completely free of cost. Affordable healthcare is available in the country. It is just not enough to deal with the blatantly high number of people seeking it.

 

The rich can easily access both a medical insurance and health-care in private hospitals. Private hospitals do provide world class medical facilities so much so that it has started flourishing through medical tourism. But with 276 million people still below line of poverty, it is not something that the majority of India’s population can afford.

 

 

And that’s what I loved about Smile on Wheels when I first visited one. Bringing quality primary healthcare at the doorsteps of people who cannot afford to seek healthcare at private clinics or have no time to spare to go to a government one, SoW is an attempt to help people get basic medical aid which is their right – people who can’t afford or can’t easily reach primary healthcare clinics.

It was heart-warming to see people wait for the van to receive their medicines, to get their sugar level diagnosed and pregnant women get the crucial supplements they needed for ante natal care which they wouldn’t generally have cared for.

 

My favorite moment of all was when the doctor went to the house of a woman who couldn’t come to the van to get her medicines and sugar levels checks because she didn’t have a leg. The dedication of these doctors, nurses, pharmacists, community mobilizers, and coordinators who work on each of these vans is what is required to bring the greater change.

 

An incident from another assignment came to my mind as I saw the doctor dress a massive wound on a man foot – a 60 year old who got injured and lost his life in the cyclone because he could not be brought to the nearest clinic in time which was 7 kms from the village. If only, something like SoW van was available or even a basic clinic with a first aid box with some medicines, some gauze, some cotton, some betadine and some thread to stitch a wound. A life that was lost because of excessive loss of blood from a head wound could have been saved.

 

It all starts with basics and that is what SoW is all about. Providing paracetamol for fever; ORS for diarrhea; insulin for sugar control; iron folic acid, calcium and multivitamins for ANC and pain relief gel for joint and muscle pain. It all about creating awareness, inculcating health seeking behavior, about maintaining proper hygiene, teaching importance of breastfeeding for infants and kangaroo care technique to new mothers and more.

 

There is a dire need of affordable and quality primary healthcare being easily accessible to the poor of this country. Of the total GDP, a marginal 1.02% of it being spent on health care, is not enough. Even the 42 SoW vans that serve over a million people in a year, is just a drop in the ocean.

 

Yes, it is not much but it definitely is a lot. A step towards bringing quality healthcare within the reach of the poor is a lot. After all, an ocean is eventually made by water drops coming together.

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Partners In Change

A brief discussion on periods

A brief discussion on periods

I was 12 and in grade 6 when I first got to know that the word “period” is also used for something other than subject class hours. All the girls talked about it hushed voices and most of us, including myself, didn’t know what the fuss was about. I had asked my mom about it at the time but she just smiled and didn’t say much.

 

Ten per cent of India’s population is adolescent girls of menstruating age. A review of Indian studies showed that 52 per cent of these 120 million girls do not know how and why periods happen. A survey done by United Nations showed that a third of school going girls do not finish school due to limited or no access to sanitation during periods. An United Nations Development Program study also showed that 60 per cent out of the 355 million menstruating women in India suffered from common reproductive infections due to poor menstrual hygiene.

 

With periods come nausea, mood swings, and abdominal cramps of which over 66 per cent of these adolescent girls have no knowledge about until they first experience them. Lack of awareness and stigma associated with menstruation not only leaves young girls unprepared to deal with both physical and mental changes in their bodies but also robs them of opportunities in a number of ways.

 

Over my schooling years the behavior of staying quiet about the monthly shedding of endometrium layer stayed with me. Or so I was taught by my mother, my cousins, my aunts and so many other women in my life at the time.

 

Years after breaking free of all the period related taboos and furtive actions associated with menstruation, I experienced it again. Not in myself but in the young girls I came across at a Swabhiman center, (a Smile Foundation initiative where adolescent girls are trained in confidence and personality development) in Bangalore.

 

Discussing the process of mensuration with women and girls

 

In a small room in Nandini Layout, Bangalore — gathered 15 adolescent girls for an interaction with me on their day to day lives – their struggles, achievements, dreams and hopes. All these girls lived in the nearby slum and had excelled in their education defying all economic and social odds. So here we all were, a bunch of girls and some women looking forward to some fun and interesting discussions.

 

After a lively conversation about how these girls were handling everything; braving the social and financial barriers, the discussion veered towards menstruation. Having given sessions on menstruation and hygiene, my colleague Pushpanjali asked them speak about it. A silenced followed by shy whispers filled the room.  When I asked the group at large to talk to me about periods, not even a single girl spoke. They all started laughing and giggling among themselves when prompted.

 

Pushpanjali asked one of the girls, 19 years old Krishnavani, to speak about it.  She got so shy that the entire time she kept her eyes down and didn’t speak at all, let alone about periods. For a tall, impressive girl who had displayed immense confidence during the rest of our session, she couldn’t even bring herself to say the word “period”. I asked her if she was so shy to talk to me about it, how did she ask for sanitary pads from shop. Her answer, “I don’t. My mother gets it for me.”  

 

It was not a surprise to get such a response from these girls, just a little disheartening that all these young vibrant girls with glowing faces, bright smiles and shining eyes full of big dreams, were bound by aeons old taboos. These girls were unable to freely talk about periods, which is a natural part of their life cycle.

 

My day with them wrapped up in high spirits; with conversations about everything – their lives, education, career and ambitions. We all danced to a few Kannada songs (or were they Telugu?), led by a convivial little 10 years old, who took my heart away. 

 

On my way back from there, I realised that as hard as people are working towards empowering women; trying to make them comfortable and proud of themselves and their bodies; aiding them to take initiative to seek their needs and rights; there still is a long way to go to break through this barrier for women built by generations of patriarchy.

 

Periods are as natural part of a woman’s life as breathing. Every woman has a right to adequate reproductive healthcare. Stigmatisation of menstruation leads to violation of these rights. Presently, only 18% of women in India have access to sanitary hygiene. 66% girls and women have no access to toilets to use during menstruation. Girls and women are even asked to stay in isolation during 5 days of menstruation as 70% of mothers associate menstruation with impurity.

 

In some cultures, first menstruation is also taken as the sign that the girl has reached child bearing age. This results in the girl suffering due to early pregnancy which is dangerous for both the girl and her child. All these practices and so many others are just blatant violation of rights to sexual and reproductive health of women.

 

My upbringing as a girl was similar as of most these girls I had met. It’s what I made of myself after I started turning into woman that was different from theirs. I had the means, sources and exposure to people and environment that made me feel free and confident in being a woman; to know that nothing about myself is anything to be ashamed of or shy away from.

 

To sensitise young girls about periods and related changes in the body is the first step against periods being termed a taboo. We need to talk more, have discussions and encourage one and all to embrace it as a natural part of our lives, only then can we bring change in the mindsets of the people.

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From The People, For The People

Friends of Smile Foundation: School children turn good Samaritans

Friends of Smile Foundation: School children turn good Samaritans

One is never too young to start being a good Samaritan and giving back to those in need as is being demonstrated by eight students from elite schools of Mumbai who have raised a substantial amount to fund health camp being conducted by Smile Foundation, an NGO for less privileged students.

 

Dhirubhai Ambani International School student, Siddharth Makharia, XIth grader spends his weekends organizing football tournaments; Krrish Jain and his sister Diya, XIth graders from Cathedral School organize basketball matches, Shiv Kampani also from Dhirubhai Ambani school hosts robotic workshops for young children, Elisha Parikh, an VIIIth grader sells her fresh bakes during these different games and workshops, while the younger lot Azad Parikh, Avantika Kampani and Devarya organize weekly housie games for the community.

 

These eight kids have come together under the banner – HelpOut –to help the children from the underserved communities get access to better quality education and health.

 

“This year, they have raised close to Rs 80,000 to support a health camp for the children and families of the school in Ladiwali, Karjat. This is being conducted with qualified doctors and staff of Smile Foundation,” said Rakhi Makharia, Siddharth’s mother.

 

“They don’t go door-to-door for raising money, instead use innovative ways to involve the community to create these funds. So, in the end, everyone has added value to the fundraising effort,” she said.

 

“I’m so glad I am a part of HelpOut as it’s a great platform for us to contribute to the society in our own small but effective way,” said Diya, 15.

 

Elisha said, “I contribute to fundraising with my baking skills. For many of the events, I have baked several cakes, cookies, and cupcakes, which have sold rapidly. I am happy I am able to do something for people around us.”

 

“These are a bunch of extraordinary school going children, who believe in service before self. Earlier this year, they approached Smile Foundation with the idea of doing a health camp for school children in Ladiwali School,” said Santanu Mishra, Co-founder and executive trustee, Smile Foundation.

 

“We were surprised that this enthusiastic bunch of teenagers already had raised money and thought of organizing a health camp they just needed an organization to partner with. We are convinced that children are the future and have a strong sense of empathy. We just need to nurture this and encourage them to enable them to give back to the society,” he said.

 

The health camp for children and their families will include doctor consultation, medicine distribution, basic pathological tests, anemia screening, awareness camps and health workshops on sanitation and hygiene.

 

In the last two years, the teenagers have together raised about Rs 400,000 from these ‘weekend activities.  They have “adopted” Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) run school in Karjat village, where they distribute free books, bags, stationery and also furniture to help the school children and management.

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Insights

Time to empower the youth with the “right” skill set

Disguised Unemployment vs. Seasonal Unemployment Explained
Disguised Unemployment vs. Seasonal Unemployment Explained

Even as the government is talking about skilling and increasing jobs, the difficulty is that a big population of the adult workforce in India is severely under-equipped to perform skilled and semi-skilled jobs. It is time to empower the youth with the “right” skill set.

 

The government has been pushing to provide more job opportunities to the youth especially in the wake of rising unemployment. Unemployment rate in December 2018 rose to 7.38% from 6.62% in November 2018 and 4.78% in December 2017, highest since September 2016 when it stood at a high of 8.46%.

 

Statistics from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) show that in December 2017, a total of 26.94 crore people were employed in rural parts of the country, which dropped to 26.03 crores in the month of December 2018. Remaining about 18 lakh jobs were lost in urban parts of the country with the overall numbers of employed declining to 13.66 crores from 13.84 crores.

 

With fast-growing market size and expanding digital infrastructure, it is only positive to hopeful about more jobs but the big question arises that are we as a country prepared for jobs?

 

The big challenge in India is not that so much of the youth is unemployed; the problem is that there are just a lot of people who are simply ‘unemployable.’ Even as the government is talking about skilling and increasing jobs, the difficulty is that a big population of the adult workforce in India is severely under-equipped to perform skilled and semi-skilled jobs, let alone the “white-collared” jobs.

 

Before we talk about jobs — we need to focus on strengthening our education system—the foundation. Big improvements in basic and primary education are a critical area of investment and should be the focus if India wants to sustain its economic growth and utilise its young workforce. 

 

A weak foundation in primary education is already derailing young lives, families, careers and productivity of tens of millions of Indians. In their youth, children grow disappointed stemming from a lack of skills and quality education.

 

Education remains passport for success but even then the government continues to ignore its importance. There is an urgent need for examining and analysing the present education system and introducing of new reforms accordingly for offering quality education.

 

While India is among the 135 countries to make education a fundamental right, by ensuring free and compulsory education for children between the age of 6 to 14 years under Right to Education Act (RTE) but the problem lies not just in implementation but also quality.

 

If we study closely, we will find that there are multiple challenges in implementing and monitoring high standards in teaching across public schools in India, which are directly affecting the learning outcomes. Plus the regional, cultural and socio-economic factors ingrained in the texture of our society further prevent India from fully achieving this quality education goal.

 

In addition, teacher availability, trainings and scalability of high-performing teaching professionals in villages, funding allocation for schools, basic infrastructure in remote districts and negligible use of technology in the classroom remain constant hurdles to reforming primary education.

 

Most youth lack basic skills required for a job

 

Another gap which needs to be addressed to strengthen primary and secondary education, and prepare a future ready workforce is to boost ‘pre-primary education’ in the country. Even as the world is hailing the need for access to quality early childhood development, which is for introduction to education to under five-year olds, we are far behind in the race.

 

The World Bank has prioritised Early Childhood Development as “one of the smartest investments a country can make in its future” and even world leaders added a target to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to ensure access to quality early childhood development and pre-primary education so that the under five-year olds are prepared for primary education.

 

Of the 193 countries that currently committed to the SDGs only 38 provide free, compulsory pre-primary education. While we have a mandate of imparting early education through our angadwadi’s workers in the rural and semi-rural centres, but by and large it is a half-hearted measure, which is clearly not translating into results.

 

Enhanced public investment in early education and human capacity building are key requirements for boosting up the education infrastructure.

 

Increasingly, world economies are recognising the importance of equipping every child with a strong learning foundation to help them cope with a future and manage families and communities around them.

 

One study estimates that every dollar (Rs 70) invested in quality early childhood education for disadvantaged children provides are turn of 7-10% per child, per annum. Several studies have shown that investing in pre-primary education or say early childhood programmes for the poor and marginalised empowers them to break the inter generational transmission of poverty.

 

Several governments in countries like Peru, Liberia, Angola, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland, Zambia, and Zimbabwe are offering programmes for early education. It is time that we as a nation put our priorities right and discussed education, before we demanding or creating more jobs. We sure need an “educated” and not just “literate” workforce to fill in the jobs.

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In The Spotlight

Assam Flood fury leaves millions in need

Assam Flood fury leaves millions in need

Two weeks ago, in the wee hours, I heard my mother speaking in a hushed tone over the phone, afraid her voice might wake us up. But I was awake and as I tiptoed closer, I saw my mother with a dazed expression on her face and the only word I heard her speak out loud was ‘everything’!

 

I knew what that look meant at this time of the year in Assam, the monsoons had arrived and with it, it brought fury. The Assam flood are an annual affair. The mighty Brahmaputra and its many tributaries had flooded 30 of the 33 districts in the state. The friend my mother was speaking to had her house in the village washed away; not a straw was to be seen.

 

Assam flood victim in his water-logged home

 

Two weeks of incessant rains has displaced 54 lakh people, the death toll has climbed to 64, and more are in the counting, 90% of the Kaziranga National Park was underwater until recently and more than 100 animals have fallen prey to the floodwaters. The mighty Brahmaputra and its tributaries are still flowing above the danger mark in Guwahati and other parts of the state. This is one of the worst floods that the Assam has ever seen.

 

Houses have been washed away; schools have been inundated with several feet high muddy waters, notebooks with washed away pen marks float in the water alongside clanking utensils. Banana trunk rafts and bamboo rafts have turned into homes for people; people are living and wading through muddy waters, food grains have been washed away and people are trying to salvage whatever they can. These are images that one is seeing on social media and WhatsApp messages. But to me coming from the state, these are very real.

 

Threats of water-borne diseases and fevers have begun to manifest into reality and people have nowhere and no one to turn too after all hospitals is either flooded or over-crowded. Little children, women and old people are the worst sufferers. Diarrhoea, dysentery, fever and severe skin infections have begun to spread in the relief camps along with Japanese Encephalitis, a mosquito-borne viral infection. New-born babies and expectant mothers are in severe need of help.

 

Homeless flood victims prone to diseases

 

As my mother’s friend along with lakhs of people at the relief camps, there are hundreds more who are waiting for water to recede with limited access to clean drinking water, some food, a place to rest in and wait for the water to recede.

 

The Assam flood survivors need our help and each one of us in whatever small ways we can, should make an effort to provide some care and lend our support.   

 

The Smile Foundation Disaster Response team is on the ground assessing the needs of the survivors and mobilising resources to extend support. The immediate needs of the Assam flood as per the reports from the ground include drinking water, food, hygiene kits, chlorine tablets, and medical assistance. Every step matters. Every contribution matters.

 

Click to support https://www.smilefoundationindia.org/assam-flood/

Photographs by- Himagshu Sarma (https://www.facebook.com/spiritofhimangshu )

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From The People, For The People

Food and care bringing ‘tea garden children’ back to school

Food and care bringing ‘tea garden children’ back to school

Most students, who earlier came to class empty stomach, now go to schools after having a complete breakfast at the Mission Education centre. This introduction of meals was planned not only to keep the children well-nourished, but also to keeps the attendance high at the centres and at schools.

 

Just being in Tripura, one the mountainous states in the northeast of India, fills me with fresh energy. I work with families and communities in the state who face day-to-day struggle as daily wage labourers.

Surrounded by lush green tea estates, and clean blue skies, popular with tourists, the state is also home to a large community of daily wagers who are struggling to make ends meet.

 

The daily life of the people of Adarani Tea Garden in Agartala, Tripura is nothing but a challenge. In plain words, it is a fight for survival.

 

I work as a regional programme manager for eastern states of India with Smile Foundation. Recently, I re-visited the schools in and around tea estates to understand and do an impact analysis of an education project we had introduced children of tea garden workers some years ago and went home happy. But three years ago, the story was a little different.

 

Perception and stigma creating barriers

 

I remember visiting a school in Agartala three years ago. I was perturbed to learn about the poor attendance by children from tea gardens. On deeper research, I found that the local teachers were largely prejudiced against the children from tea gardens and had made up their minds that these kids didn’t want to study.

 

One of the teachers also told me that that despite several efforts made by government and local private bodies to mainstream these kids, nothing seems to be working. All efforts to get these children to school have failed.

 

As part of the education project- Mission Education, we hired some local teachers from the community. I met with children and parents to understand their dilemmas and issues and asked them to come up with solutions.

 

Most labourers in tea gardens had migrated from different village areas of the state. While they wanted to educate their children, poor wages, distance of schools from tea estates, illiteracy among parents were reasons which had kept them away from attending regular schools.

 

After some discussion, I learnt that they did need a school, and there came an opportunity for me to open up a new Mission Education centre for me. Since these kids, almost 30 of them – all primary school level— had had fractured education we thought of starting a ‘remedial school’ for them in the tea estate itself.

 

With help from a local NGO named JUST, we opened the center in the tea garden itself and it has been running successfully in the locality for last three years.

 

So, this remedial centre which is supplement to the main school starts early morning before the actual school hours. The teachers at the remedial centre guide the kids, tutor them, give them extra personalized coaching to help them cope with regular school education.

 

Customised and contextual hand-holding

 

Our three years of learning shows that this daily connection through this Mission Education centre is also helping kids to remain in school education system. While their academics graph has shown betterment, attendance and behaviour towards education has also improved.

 

Most students, who earlier came to the centre with an empty stomach in the morning, now go to schools after having a complete breakfast at the centre. This introduction of meals was planned with a dual motive – to keep the children well nourished and happy and also to keep the attendance high at the centre and at schools. And yes, this strategy worked really well.

 

I came back really happy after my recent visit to the centre this month. While their behaviour towards school and education had changed for the good, they looked enthusiastic and hopeful about building a more promising future for themselves.

 

With a heart swelling with pride, and I can say for sure that it is this motivation that keep me going.  These happy kids, with a purpose, give me my strength and motivation to keep striving for the betterment of these communities.

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In The Spotlight

Thanking ‘doctors on wheels’ on National Doctor’s Day

How Child Healthcare is the Foundation for Adult Success?
How Child Healthcare is the Foundation for Adult Success?

Smile on Wheels provides doorstep quality and affordable healthcare services across 585 villages of the country.

 

Qualified doctors are the most important part of any healthcare infrastructure. Today on the National Doctor’s Day observed on 1st July every year, we at Smile Foundation on behalf of the communities we serve, together would like to acknowledge the dedication and passion with which they drive Smile on Wheels (SoW) mobile healthcare programme.  

 

There are two aspects to the SoW programme, one is reaching the unreached and the second is providing quality and affordable or free healthcare service to the poor.

 

A Lancet Study as of March 31, 2015 shows that more than 8% of 25,300 India’s primary health centres were without a doctor, 38% were without a laboratory technician, and 22% had no pharmacist. Nearly 50% of posts for female health assistants and 61% for male health assistants remain vacant.

 

The reality is that only handful of doctors in the country want to work in the rural parts of the country. Lack of infrastructure, poor and uncertain wages, bad connectivity and little or no growth are major reasons for this demand supply gap, which is only increasing with time.

 

“The shortage of doctors in rural belts is also aiding the rise of quacks, who often make a killing at the expense of these poor vulnerable people who avoid going to bigger towns for treatment for fear of expense and loss of wages,” Dr. Shivkumar Ajwani from SoW Surat

 

“This free-of-cost door step health service is an honest effort to reduce out of pocket expenses for the poor, thereby helping them allocate their little resources to other critical needs like food and education,” he explained.

 

According to a study released by Public health Foundation of India in 2018, out-of-pocket health expenses drove 55 million Indians–more than the population of South Korea, Spain or Kenya–into poverty in 2017; and of these, 38 million (69%) were impoverished by expenditure on medicines alone. The study also showed that about 68% of the Indian population had limited or no access to essential medicines.

 

Under the Smile on Wheels initiative fully equipped medical vans – including an MBBS doctor and a qualified paramedic – travel to various corners of the country to meet the immediate health needs of the under-served populations. It looks like a definite measure to help bridge this gap.

 

These medical vans, about 40 so far, provide regular health check-ups, basic pathological tests and doctor consultation. As part of the mandate, the doctors and paramedics also hold awareness sessions in the community to sensitise the locals on health and hygiene issues.

 

“Poor or no access to medical needs and prohibitive costs attached are two important factors that are pushing poor communities deeper into poverty,” said Dr. Purabi Dutta from Kolkata, who handles Eastern Region for Smile on Wheels programme.

 

“When we go into the villages we find that for many even a manageable illness like diabetes or a blood pressure becomes a life inhibiting challenges, because of lack of timely intervention,” she said.

 

Data shows that even in the community health centres, the shortfall of doctors is huge—surgeons (83%), obstetricians and gynaecologists (76%), physicians (83%), and paediatricians (82%). Even in health facilities where doctors, specialists, and paramedic staff have been posted, their availability remains in question because of high rates of absenteeism.

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