Wish you a Happy New Year
Bye Bye 2020 – A year that turned out to be everything that one doesn’t hope for. It has been a tough year for all of us and needless to say, it tested our resilience more than ever. Our project partners, catering to some of the most vulnerable sections of the society, faced unprecedented challenges during this year.
The year also witnessed some heart-warming incidents of people stepping out of their comfort zones to help each other. Mukti, our project partner in Sundarbans, West Bengal, and Nandlal Master, an Asha Fellow, in Varanasi worked extensively for the migrant workers when they returned back to their hometowns. The Sunderbans area was also devastated by Cyclone Ampan in the month of May, causing further woes to the people living there. Support from donors like you was another reason for us to stay optimistic and look for the future.
While our project-related commitments went up during the year, our fund raising took a big hit due to the absence of our regular fund raising events like Team Asha Running program, and other events. The economic downturn also impacted the funds from corporate organisations. We look forward to your continued support for our activities in the New Year.
News from Project Partners
Nandlal Master’s Fellowship: In early December, Nandlal Master, with the help of Asha Trust and Lok Samiti, organised a rally to highlight the cause of equal rights for women. Hundreds of teenage girls from Nagepur, Benipur, Ganeshpur, Sabalpur, and Maheshpatti participated in the rally to voice their concerns against Child marriage and in favour of closing liquor shops. Nandlal’s work empowers these girls with the courage to take a stand.
Thulir: You can view the half-yearly newsletter from Thulir here.
Mukti: DJ & Electronic Music Producer, “Oceantide” chose Mukti as a recipient of support and the BBC highlighted Mukti’s work in this 3 minute segment. Watch from 2:10 to 5:13.
Timbuktu: In Andhra Pradesh’s Timbuktu, Asha project partners have worked with local authorities to create MNREGA funded work via re-afforestation. During early lockdown they created saplings in their nursery and were ready for discussions with local Forestry offices to provide these for planting, thus providing employment to returning migrants and local farmers whose crop planting & harvesting cycles were disrupted by the pandemic.
Interaction with Project Partners
Due to the Pandemic, it was not possible to undertake site visits. We organised two video conferences with our project partners – one with Thulir and another one with Sankar Haldar of Mukti. Both these conferences helped our volunteers understand some of the difficulties faced at the grassroots.
Annual Report for 2019-20
Our Annual Report for the year 2019-20 is now available online. Do read and share your views with bangalore.pr@ashanet.org