Association for India's Development, Bay Area Chapter

Projects and activities in 2012

Projects: • CEM: Community Environmental Monitoring (CEM) program

Area

Cuddalore, Tamilnadu

Budget

Rs. 250,000

Objective

CEM was initiated in December 2003 among the communities of SIPCOT Industrial Complex, Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu. CEM’s objective is to open up and strengthen the democratic space for pollution-impacted communities and communities fighting industrial pollution and corporate crime to voice their concerns and be heard. It pursues this objective by providing communities with capacity-enhancing resources (technical, legal, solidarity, strategic) through meetings, skills exchanges and trainings, and through interactions with others impacted communities similarly placed. CEM believes that for the environmental health work in the country to mature into a movement, alliances need to be promoted among pollution-impacted communities, between communities fighting same/similar adversaries and/or issues, and between such communities and other non-traditional partners such as labor, public interest professionals, and most importantly, middle-class city-dwellers. Given the global nature of businesses, and the relative isolation of many of the communities victimized by corporate abuses of environment and human rights, CEM also sees it as imperative to assist local communities in placing their struggles within a global context. In other words, CEM seeks to foster grassroots globalization by linking local struggles to allies in locations, including other countries, from where their corporate adversaries originate, and by introducing new tools for challenging corporations and polluting industries in a globalized world.

• Chetna Vikas

Area

Wardha District, Maharashtra

Budget

Rs. 400,000

Goals

• Productivity, Profitability, Stability, Sustainability & Quality of life for the farmer and the Agriculture sector.

• From Green to Evergreen Revolution. • Strengthening rural systems • Marching towards “Krishi Swaraj”

• SPS Bellary mining project 2012

Area

Bellary dist, Karnataka

Budget

Rs. 400,000

Objectives

• Community control over natural resources for protection, development and judicious utilization of these resources

• Focus on meeting livelihood needs of marginalized communities • Strengthening participation in local government (gram sabhas,

panchayati raj institutions)

• Rachana Society Area

Pune district, Maharashtra

Budget

Rs. 250,000

Objectives

Interactive methods of learning

• RTI on wheels project

Area

Gujarat

Budget

Rs. 360,000

Objectives

The idea of RTI on Wheels was envisaged as a vehicle that will

• Create Brand Identity of RTI(Right to Information) • Can reach to remote interior places in rural areas with technology • Can conduct film-screening, video shows at night • Can have outreach programs from the places we get maximum calls on

RTI helpline • Can have online RTI application drafting. • Can be invited by various campaigns

• JSS - tuberculosis

Area

Villages around Ganiyari in Bilaspur dist, Chattisgarh

Budget

Rs. 135,333

Objectives

More than 60% of people in the district experience scarcity of food, under nutrition prevalent amongst the population. Almost half of men and two thirds of women with pulmonary TB at JSS suffer from sever under nutrition. 10% of these face death because of under nutrition. The objective is to provide protein supplements to all TB patients so they can combat the disease.

• Agariyas maternal and child health care

Area

Little Rann of Kutch

Objectives

Every year from September to May, the Agariyas (traditional salt workers living on the periphery of the Little Rann of Kutch) migrate to the desert to make salt. During these 8-9 months they live in harsh conditions in temporary makeshift houses. The Agariyas are placed by low literacy, poverty, and evacuation threats by government and lots of health issues. They have very little potable water, bad nutrition and almost no access to doctors. Here we focus on the plight of women and children who are at maximum risk as part of solving the bigger problem. Objectives of this project are

• Inform women from the marginalized communities about the maternal health entitlements and motivate them to demand quality health services from the public health system

• Organize and participate along with marginalized Agariyas in advocacy activities

• Increase access to and influence on priority local/district/state level policy and programs which are targeted towards improvement of access to maternal health services of women from marginalized communities

• Build partners and advocate for continuum of maternal health and nutrition services at the local/block/district and collectively at the state and national levels

• Train Village Health and Sanitation Committee Members (VHSCs) to address the needs of the women

• Ensure improved access to quality health services to the Agariya women throughout the year through above activities

• Swanirvar Agriworks

Area

West Bengal

Budget

Rs. 296,502

Objectives

The fertile flat lands of southern West Bengal, rich in water, constitute the food basket of the 80 million people of the state. However, the chemical-intensive nature of the agriculture has pushed the area and economy into a crisis, characterized by: falling land productivity, toxic pollution, rising input prices, uncertain market prices, loss of control over seeds and contamination of ground water. The organization SWANIRVAR has been addressing the above problems since 1992, and has been providing viable alternatives to the people. Since 2007, SWARNIVAR has also been propagating successful techniques to other parts of the state with encouraging results. The successful work of SWARNIVAR has however involved lot of effort and accomplished over a long period of time. It has been learnt that solutions have to be tailored to the place and have to factor in considerations such as land and soil conditions, water levels, auxiliary facilities such as for composting, crop cycles etc. Going forward, the objective of SWANIRVAR is to refine current solutions and disseminates them to a wider area and population.

• Swanirvar KKB

Area

West Bengal

Objectives

To assist a visible number of government rural secondary schools to become high quality institutions for imparting holistic education. Guide them to gradually move towards a need-based, much more diversified curriculum catering to all kinds of children; and to see that these schools play an active role in enriching rural life in many ways. In a way this is an attempt to interpret Gandhi’s & Tagore’s ideas in today’s context.

• Eureka super kidz Area

10 districts across TN. Majority in North TN and a few in south and central TN. Covers 55 blocks and 626 villages.

Objectives

Provide supplemental educational programs to children from low-income families

Detailed information on our projects can be navigated from here http://bayarea.aidindia.org/projects/current

Talks and discussions:

• Tuesday, September 18th 7:30 pm - Cost of Development, a discussion with Aruna Roy and Nikhil Dev

• Thursday, August 30th 7:30 pm - An evening of discussion with Dr. Dhane about organic farming

• Thursday, 2nd Aug, 7:30pm onwards - Zero waste management in 21st century India - A talk by Dharmesh Shah

• Thursday, 26th July, 7:30pm onwards - A new form Advocacy Jhatkaa - Discussion with Deepa Gupta

• Monday, 23rd July, 7:30pm onwards - Waste Management and Beyond - Discussion with Anshu Gupta

• Saturday, 19th May 2012 - From Farm to Plate, A talk by AID Jeevan Saathi Kiran Vissa,

• Friday, 18th May 2012 - AID Jeevan Saathi Ravi Kuchimanchi Talk show on KLOK 1170 AM,

• Friday, 18th May 2012 - Hike with Jeevan Saathi Ravi Kuchimanchi and Aravinda Pillaramari

• Sunday, 6th May 2012, 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm - Annual Join Project Review, MLK Library, San Jose

Fundraising and outreaching Events:

• Thursday, 26th Jan 2012, 5:30 pm onwards - Demonstration at Palace of Fine Arts, SF

• Thursday, 15th Mar 2012, 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm - Run for India Orientation, Indian Cultural Center, Milpitas

• 28th May 2012 - AID Annual Conference 2012 • 29th July 2012 - Run for India annual Marathon Fund Raiser (@ SF

Marathon) • 11th & 12th August 2012 - Play for India, Caroms Open Tournament • 8th September 2012 - Play For India, Volleyball Open Tournament • 15th September 2012 - Play For India, Badminton Open Tournament • 7th Oct 2012 - Roobaroo annual musical concert More information on events can be found here http://bayarea.aidindia.org/events2012