PHA-Exchange> Small Changes make Big Changes...

[Aviva]

.From: "Balaji Sampath" <kb at eth.net>
.> Dear Friend,
>
> Happy New Year.
>
> It has been five years since I started working fulltime in India on health
> and education programmes.  I want to tell you briefly about a programme
that
> has taken up most of my time - the Hundred Block Plan.
>
> This programme is being done by TNSF, the Tamilnadu Science Forum (and our
> sister organization in Bihar), now with active support from the
Association
> for India's Development.
>
> We now work in 1700 villages reaching out to about 17 lakh people - in
> Tamilnadu and Bihar.  In each village we are working on community health
and
> women's savings groups.  In about 100 villages we have also started an
> education programme to prevent drop-out in primary school.
>
> I just want to tell you about two interesting incidents.
>
> A few weeks ago I was at a government meeting - an official was presenting
> some data. About 50 % of our children are malnourished. Govt programmes
have
> been reducing child malnutrition by 1 % every year, he said.  Then he
> mentioned that TNSF's health programme has managed to reduce malnutrition
by
> 10 % in one and a half years. That was nearly ten times more improvement
> than what otherwise happens. Everyone was very impressed.
>
> But statistics and numbers often obscure what really happens. Big changes
> come from a lot of small local changes.
>
> Almost a year ago I went with Mohan to Roja Ramani's village.  It was an
> interesting contrast - Mohan is a 60+ year old Physics Professor at the
Univ
> of Maryland.  Roja is a 20 year old dalit girl who has studied upto 10th
> std.
>
> At the bottom of the social ladder Roja has always been bossed around and
> made to feel weak and powerless.  Her family is extremely poor. She works
in
> fields all day as a coolie labour and comes back tired.  Then she starts
off
> on her rounds talking to mothers about child nutrition. She is not paid
for
> this work. She has been doing this voluntarily - day after day for almost
5
> years now !
>
> With so many personal problems to handle, why is Roja still so motivated ?
>
> The answer is hard to understand until you see Roja Ramani's beaming face
as
> she takes you to meet a child. "This child was severely malnourished - 3rd
> grade. I started visiting every day and now he is much better - 1st grade.
"
>
> Roja Ramani feels she can save a child - that is a wonderful feeling.  It
> does two things - it helps the child and it makes Roja Ramani feel
powerful
> and capable.
>
> Seeing this poor girl working so hard to improve the health of children in
> her village moved Mohan to tears.  Every time I think about it - I feel
this
> experience captures the essence of our work.
>
> It is the small changes people like Roja make in each family and in each
> child that finally adds up to the large changes we see in society.
>
> It is similar small contributions from people like you that adds up to
large
> contributions.
>
> Association for India's Development has been raising such contributions
from
> Indian students and professionals in the US to support programmes like the
> above.
>
> There are many ways by which you can help our work where ever you are.
> Please visit www.oneforindia.org to find out more about what you can do.
>
> We also need contributions from people like you.  To make a donation or
> pledge, please send a check to 'AID' and mail it to:
>
>                                     One for India Campaign
>                            Association for India's Development
>                                    P.O. Box F, College Park
>                                        MD - 20741, USA
>
> or you can contact
>
>                               Priya Ranjan at priya at eng.umd.edu
>
> Waiting to hear from you.
>
> Thanks.
> Balaji Sampath
> kb at eth.net
>
> --------------------------------------------------
> If each one reaches one, we will reach everyone.
> www.oneforindia.org
>
>