Socio-economic & Community Development Activities

SETU Consortium carries out various projects & activities to accomplish their mission of helping the planet & its people.

To view our activities related to any of the following category, please click on the links below or simply scroll down to have a general view of our various activities.

 

Workshop on Spreading the importance of Health & hygiene for infants & Women: 
Venue: Amar Pradhar Lashkar, Gwalior (January 24-25, 2012)

SETU organized an awareness program on “The importance of Health & hygiene and providing the knowledge of iodine & ORS for infants & Women”. The area selected was a local slum inhabited mostly by uneducated, migrated & poor population of mixed communities. The locality is quite dirty and the people here were observed to have poor sanitary habits. The awareness level is low and the prevalent of diseases is high. Girl child education is low, contributing to further lower level of living standards. Most of these people have unreliable sources of regular income and are mostly laborers, artisans or are unemployed.

About 100 families attended the workshop.

Some of the points discussed in the program are as follows:

  • The ill effects of poor sanitation, that becomes the root cause of many diseases like typhoid & cholera.
  • Keeping the house & the surroundings clean & healthy
  • How to purify the water if someone is unable to afford the regular filters available in the market
  • Washing the hands before & after the meals
  • Cutting their nails regularly & keeping them clean
  • Brushing the teeth twice a day to keep teeth & gums health
  • Steps to be take for a person suffering from diarrhea and the importance of ORS.
  • Importance of iodine in our food.
  • They were explained about the nutritious food carry iodine and other important elements.
  • Importance of girl child education
Printed pamphlets containing information of the same were distributed among the crowd to make them well aware of healthy habits. The women & children were enthusiastic and they interacted with the speakers to clear their doubts about things they come across in daily life. Small health & hygiene kit comprising of toothbrushes, toothpastes, nail cutters, soaps, napkins, ORS pouches etc. were distributed to all the attendees who participated in discussion. Sweets were also distributed to all the children in the crowd as incentive. Some of the mothers decided to become strict with petty bad habits regarding self-cleanliness and explaining their children them about. It was encouraging to have a good feedback from the participants present as they expressed their wish to have such awareness programs every now and then.

NASHA MUKTI (De- Addiction) & EDUCATION AWARENESS (January 11, 2012)
Venue: Mandari Ki Mata Village, Gwalior
SETU organized a Nasha Mukti (De-addiction) & Education Awareness workshop at Mandari Ki Mata Village in Gwalior Area. There were approx 100 attendees with mixed ratio of male and female. SETU team members began the seminar by introducing the guests & briefly explaining the audience the gist of intoxication and its effects on human mind & body.

They spoke about, how in this contemporary world, a man for his corporeal satisfaction, falls for abhorrent and dangerous lifestyle like addiction to intoxicants in desire to acquire some peace of mind, to escape worldly troubles, to get an ecstatic feeling or to get rid of social embarrassment leads people to the use of drugs.

 

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Nasha or in layman’s language – drunkenness, inebriation or intoxication is an impermanent state resulting from excessive consumption of the following:

  • Alcohol (Yellow): all types of alcohol products like country liquor, beer, wine, laththa etc.
  •  Nicotine (Red): products like bidi, cigarettes, mava, tobacco chewing, snuff etc.
  • Drugs: this consists of Opium, Marijuana,Cocaine, Charas, Ganja, Bhang, Brown Sugar and so on.

An elaborated discussion on the evil effects of addiction on human body took place; some of the pointers explained to them are as follows:

  1. Alcohols have poisonous effects on the nerves, the heart as well as the digestive system.
  2. Nicotine is explicitly described in medical dictionaries as a powerful and active poison.
  3. Smoking brings in nicotine, as well as the highly poisonous gas, carbon monoxide, into the lungs. That is why even a pack of cigarette holds a statement saying “SMOKING IS INJURIOUS TO HEALTH”
  4. Nicotine causes increased discharge of adrenalin and noradrenalin into the blood stream, which leads to hardening of the blood vessels.
  5. The arteries also become crammed and frail, resulting in hypertension to angina pectoris and heart attacks.
  6. Persistent use of these drugs leads to severe damage to the liver, the heart, the kidneys, the brain and the nerves.

The crowd was also enlightened about how addiction not only leaves a negative effect on human body of the addict but the families of such individuals also suffer. This could lead to an unharmonious relation between husband & wife and in some cases their children too. We all have heard stories from our neighbors or our house cleaners for that matter that their husband beats them brutally after coming back home in a drunken & a state of intoxication. It puts a huge scar of depression for the whole family.  The children are neglected, emotionally scarred & witness the vulgar & violent nature of an addict (in this case, their own parents or related adults) and often fall prey to criminal activities. Such families suffer from economic crises and ultimately from social & financial stigmas, as they tend to splurge money on their addiction leaving them to struggle in making everyday’s expenditure along with hampering the basic need of food, health and education for their children.

Local volunteers were motivated to spread the word of knowledge whenever possible. Some of the wives decided to put an end towards this evil habits of their spouse and husbands took pledge to cope up with their problem of addiction towards alcohol & drugs.

International Day of persons with Disability (December 3, 2011)
Venue: SNEHALAYA- A Home with Love, Gwalior

SETU organized a workshop at ‘Snehalaya- A home with love’ on “International Day of Persons with Disability”.

Snehalaya is an orphanage cum care home for disabled and destitute children & adolescents with disorders or syndromes like Cerebral palsy, Tuber sclerosis, psoriasis, epilepsy and AIDS. The total strength of such children is sixty-three with mixed age groups. Snehalaya also runs a regular school for the poor children of the local vicinity with more emphasis on girl child education.

The workshop involved `painting’ as a therapeutic activity for these children. The regular kids also took part in the activities. The main motive of SETU behind organizing the whole event was to experience & interact with children, give them little happiness by spending time with them and pore over the problems that they undergo, so that we can be of help in any way they might necessitate in future. They were provided with sheets, painting colors and fresh vegetables cut into various shapes so that they could be used as blocks. The kids took part in the activities with a lot of enthusiasm, as for them block painting with vegetables was completely new; with this they learned new shapes, designs and colors. Students from the Nursing College of the city volunteered and helped us in conducting the competition. Various sweets, chips & Fruits were distributed among them at the end of the event.


Snehalaya on the other hand organized a small cultural program in the honor of SETU. In this event, kids suffering with Down Syndrome & Hepatitis- B with speech difficulties and CP with knee & ankle deformities gave an astonishing performance by dancing on the tunes of Bollywood film songs. It was heartening to see the kids so happy and the smile on their faces was simply precious.

Save the girl Child (November 27, 2011)
Venue: HFWTC,Gwalior

‘Child Right Observatory’ Bhopal (M.P.) organized a seminar on ‘Save the Girl Child’. The seminar was held at HFWTC,Gwalior, with the help of 15 supportive welfare societies, and SETU was one of the participatory members of the seminar. The members talked about an essential problem existing in the populace, the seminar enlighten the newly wed couples about the evil practices prevailing in the society in reference to female feticides & infanticide.


Conversation also included Gender Equality & other related issues. At the end lag of the whole seminar, the results seemed fruitful as the attendees took a pledge that they will make sure that will do their best to put a halt to this ill will in their surroundings and shall spread the word of wisdom in their vicinity and locality.

Celebration of International day of elimination of violence against women (November 27, 2011)
Venue: Mayur Nagar, Thatipur and “Family counselling Centre”Gwalior(M.P.)

SETU organized a local community meeting with women residing at Thatipur, Gwalior (M.P.) to draw attention to ‘eliminate violence against women’. These women belonged to the vulnerable section of society. Mr. L R Kaushal & Ms Gulmohar Matta (SETU team members) discussed the impact of this on the mental structure on women as well as on their children. They also enlightened them about some ways & solutions that can be thought off. Reasons on why the women are forced to suffer were discussed in details. Some of the points discussed were:

  • How apprehension of speaking out and confronting the society makes her suffer more.
  • Motivation to share and speak about what’s going wrong with one self or perhaps in one’s neighborhood.
  • To stand against such violence and those people who are committing crime
  • The ill effects on family members, etc.
  • How to seek professional help and support available from various Govt. & Non-Govt. Agencies.


SETU team also visited “Council Centre” Gwalior to interview some brave women who had guts to be bold enough to fight with their problems. These women are now combating for their rights and the government organizations are helping them with their court cases, schooling, clothing, and food along with training them to learn vocational trades so that they can be self-sustainable. SETU hopes to provide them with livelihood opportunities to make them self-sustainable.

 

Workshop on Capacity Building & Self-development for our artisans of Kutch, Gujarat (October 8, 2011 to October 10, 2011)
Venue: Bhuj, Kutch, Gujarat

A total of three workshops were organized by SETU for the artisans of Bhuj, Kutch with the help & co-operation of our partner NGOs viz. Khamir CRC, Qasab & VGS. The venues chosen were the artisan facilitation Centers of these three NGOs, in and around Bhuj, for maximum & easy accessibility of artisans. The three days long program was held from October 8, 2011 to October 10, 2011 at VGS, Khamir CRC and Qasab respectively.

Following programs were covered in the Workshops:

  • Capacity Building
  • Self-development
  • Food & Nutrition
  • Health, Hygiene & sanitation

The participant artisans included craft persons associated with bell making, batik printing, dyeing, tailoring, embroidery, weaving, door-to-door directly linked collective female workers, SHG (Self Help Group Members) etc. At Qasab, the participants were all women, at Khamir, they were all men and at VGS, both men & women participated. In all, 110 artisans benefitted from the workshops.

The workshop included various topics such as Time management, Quality improvement, increasing production capacity, risk taking capacity, innovative thinking, building positive attitude etc. Guidance was given on how to use effective procedures, how to absorb latest information and apply it.

As part of livelihood promotion, information on how to achieve self-employment and start own `Gruh Udyog’ i.e. domestic production was imparted. How to avail the facilities & support available for such ventures and how to manage these were informed.

Knowledge was given on how to achieve & retain the maximum nutrients from available local food substances and how to incorporate vital ingredients in their diet.

Health education for women was also provided. Special emphasis was laid on use of sanitary napkins for improving hygiene. SETU plans to provide them with sanitary napkins shortly to assist them in this regard.

Some additional issues for the betterment of day-to-day life such as equality amongst men and women, removing personal grudges & betterment of married life were also discussed.

In all, the motive was to guide them to adopt techniques that can help them to increase production and improve their skills along with upgrading their personal lives.

The workshops were highly interactive in nature. At the end, specially designed questionnaires were distributed among the participants to judge the knowledge grasped by them & to access the change in their attitude levels after the workshop.

The overall program was a huge success and SETU plans to conduct more such workshops for more artisans in future.

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PROGRAM: WORKSHOP ON FAIR TRADE/ CAMPUS OUTREACH PROGRAM
HELD ON: (October 17, 2011), VENUE: Institute of Hotel Management, GWALIOR (M.P.)

SETU conducted another ‘Workshop on Fair Trade’ on Oct 17, 2011 to spread awareness about Fair Trade among students. The campus was `IHM University’,Gwalior a renowned University in the sphere of Hospitality, Catering and Tourism. Our audiences were the future hoteliers, Managers and chefs hence our main motive was to enlighten them with the basics of Fair Trade & ways about how to alleviate poverty and promote sustainability through ethical practices along with the prospects available in their own field of edification and expertise.

SETU’s team leader was the speaker in this program. the presentation over lighted the idea of Fair Trade & ways to alleviate poverty and promote sustainability through ethical practices in their field of knowledge. She also enlightened the crowd on the initiatives of Fair Trade Forum- India and Fair Trade Movement in India and the globe. The aim of whole session was to share and disseminate the proper message to the students who in future can make difference by carrying the motive of Fair Trade to another Level & picking Fair Trade products over the ordinary ones and putting their bit to the society.

At the conclusion of the session, students excitedly participated during the puzzles round. Jute bags made from recycled material by Artisans Group in West Bengal were Distributed as prizes to those solving the puzzles right. The gathering liked and acknowledged the whole idea of Fair Trade.

 

PROGRAM:  WORKSHOP ON FAIR TRADE/ CAMPUS OUTREACH PROGRAM
HELD ON: (October 11, 2011), VENUE: Maharaja Pratap College of Technology, GWALIOR (M.P.)

SETU conducted ‘Campus outreach program’ to spread awareness about Fair Trade among the students of `MPCT University’, which is one of the renowned Universities in various sphere of edification including Engineering, Dental & Management. The audience was young crowd of sixty-seven students therefore; the motive behind conducting the program was to spread the message of Fair Trade and Sustainable development amongst our future leaders of the country.

A Team of SETU including Ms. Rashmi Dhariwal, Ms. Archana Chauhan and Ms. Gulmohar Matta addressed the gathering where its head Rashmi was the speaker in this program. The session threw light on the basics of Fair Trade & ways about how to alleviate poverty and promote sustainability through ethical practices along with the opportunities in this sector as well as ifs & buts and pros & cons. She also enlightened the crowd on the initiatives of Fair Trade Forum -India and the Fair Trade Movement all over the globe along with the ‘World Economic Pyramid’. The aim of the whole session was to share and disseminate the proper message to the students who in future can make difference by carrying the Fair Trade torch forward & choosing handcrafted and recycled products over the ordinary ones while shopping and knowingly or unknowingly putting their bit to this righteous work.

At the end lag of the lecture, students excitedly participated during the interactive puzzles and discussion round, by sharing their views on the need of Fair Trade in developing World. Eco-friendly bags were distributed as prizes to those answering the questions correctly. The session was liked and complimented by many and the organization was applauded for its efforts towards this noble cause.

Once the lecture was over, SETU Team organized Hi-Tea for the students and faculty. The lecture was only possible with the help of the Director of the College “Brig. J. Matta (Retd.)” and his Faculty members. The Head of Department Ms. Namrata Gupta assured SETU’s team for help in a manner where their students can act as Volunteers in future events of the organization.

Tailoring Workshop (24-27 September) , Ashok colony Gwalior

A four-day tailoring workshop was organized for the residents of `Nadi Par Taal’, Ashok colony,Gwalior. The people come from the underprivileged and downtrodden sections of the society who make a living by working as seasonal wage laborers and thus fall short of employment all the year round.The training programme was conducted to introduce tailoring as an alternate livelihood options to the beneficiaries thereby opening new avenues for them.Women across all age groups participated in the session where they were told how to efficiently cut and stitch a fabric. Tailoring expert Ms. Saroj Singh, was engaged by SETU to provided  training. Ms Saroj is an experienced trainer and has provided tailoring training to many women in the past.

In the 4 day programme, women learnt the basics of tailoring and stitched one one sample piece on their own. Women made blouses, salwar kameez and beautiful bags.. All the raw material to be used in the training programme like fabrics, laces, mirrors, elastics, bukram etc. was provided by SETU ( completely free of cost) . Also, SETU provided them with Sewing machines ( 3 nos.) for the training purpose.

The basic purpose was to train the semi-skilled women for all round tailoring so that they can not only stitch their own clothes but can also earn a livelihood by stitching clothes of their neighbors and local community.

Free health check up camp for artisans (16 September 2011)

A free health check up camp was organized by SETU on 16 September 2011 at Birla Nagar,Gwaliorfor the carpet weaving and embroidery artisans residing in the nearby slum areas.

The underlying aim of organizing the camp was to extend basic healthcare services to the artisan families who are otherwise devoid of it and consequently suffer from a range of health ailments that can be treated easily if provided with basic medical aid.

Camp registrations started at around 10 am and continued till 2 in the evening. A team of expert doctors was appointed for the camp. In addition to free health check up, awareness was generated on reproductive and child health issues and AIDS immune disorder. Medicines were distributed for free in the camp. A total of 110 families availed free health services.The venue chosen was the Health Centre at Birla Nagar.

Following facilities were provided for free in the camp:

  • Free medical check up
  • Distribution of medicines free of cost. The medicines included generic medicines, antibiotics,  multivitamins etc
  • Awareness on aids immune disorder
  • Awareness about reproductive & child health issues.
  • follow-up after the camp
Providing livelihoods training to the women artisans at Mehra slum Gwalior (5-11 September)

In the series of vocational training programmes for the urban poor, another week long livelihood training session was conducted for the residents of Mehra slum, an urban slum located in the suburbs ofGwaliorcity.

The artisan families here are indulged in embroidery work and make a living through it. But, the embroidery work alone is not sufficient to run a family as the opportunities are less, the agents are unable to provide them with the required volume of work, the wages are too less.. Consequently, the families are bound to live in poverty..

Diversified training on making other products for more than one livelihood option can improve the present condition of the artisan communities here. With this view, training was provided on designing & making of decorative items such as Wall arts, Door hangings, banderwaals, torans, dsecorative hair bands, bracelets etc. With festivals like Navratra, Dusshera & Diwali soon approaching, a huge market demand is expected for such products.

Training was provided under the expert guidance of our master trainers Mr. Layak Ram and Mr. Sunil. All the raw material for making the handicraft items like colorful beads, velvets, fabrics, laces, mirrors, elastics, bukram, glues etc. was provided by SETU ( completely free of cost).

In addition to making beautiful handicraft products, artisans were also given knowledge on how these products can prove to be a source of income for them. They were informed about how & where these products can be sold in the market thereby acting as a livelihood option. Details of vendors in the market where the products can be sold, were provided to the women. The participants very much liked the idea and were eager to try this out. The feedback on the training session was overwhelming. We hope to organize more such programmes in near future.

 Training workshop on Tailoring skills (6-8 August 2011) Location: Barmer, Rajasthan

Artisans produce beautiful designs, straight from their heart, sometimes unmatchable with even the classy fashion designers. Their designs are characteristic of the innocence and purity of their dedication towards the craft.  Artisans are excellent at the artistic part of the product but to increase the market demand, it is essential to add functionality to the product so that the art gets converted into a useful & desirable product. Most of the artisans are unable to create functional products out of their art forms which can be suitably used by end-consumers and therefore are unable to compete in the market. Here, we are talking about the tailoring skills i.e., creating neat and finely stitched useful products from their art to increase its salability.

Our women artisans, involved in embroidery & appliqué work, at Barmer, Rajasthan are expert in their art forms. The craft is a major source of their income as most of the artisan families practice the traditional art inherited from their forefathers.  Associated with our partner NGO SURE, these artisans have been creating different designs for SETU under SETU’s livelihood development initiatives.

With continuous interaction, it was realized that though being great with artistic designs, these artisans lack the efficient cutting and stitching skills required to give the product a proper finishing look i.e. they cannot do value addition to their craft. Consequently, the final product faces a decreased market demand for e.g. improperly stitched bags don’t find much buyers in comparison to well stitched bags. This is a serious issue which needs to be tackled with urgency as due to this very reason, the sale of products is getting adversely affected which in turn is affecting the employment opportunities of artisan communities.

Therefore, to impart requisite tailoring skills, a training workshop was conducted for the embroidery artisans of Barmer Rajasthan.

The programme was presided over by our master trainer Mr. Sunil Dutt.  An expert in tailoring, with past experience in large Export Houses, Sunil reached Barmer on 6 August 2011. Reaching there, he met the artisans at SURE and discussed with them the problems being faced. Taking an entire view of the situation, Sunil then met the centre coordinator Jairam Ji and updated him about the situation. He also found that some of the sewing machines are not properly working at the centre, leading to reduced & poor quality output. Therefore, at first the machine needed to be repaired. Jairam ji welcomed the suggestion and within a period of about 2-3 hours the machines got repaired.

At around 3 PM the training session got started. Sunil taught the artisans how to efficiently cut a bag out of a fabric thereby saving an adequate quantity of textile. Then he asked the artisans to cut the bag in the same way. Artisans also learnt how to make beautiful wallets in the session. The raw materials which are out of the reach of artisans like zippers, buckram etc. were provided by SETU, also they were made aware of the nearest sources from where the raw materials can be procured.

On 7 August 2011, the training session took a head start early in the morning at around 9 am.  Carrying forward the cutting of the bag and wallet pattern, Sunil now made the artisans learn efficient and quality stitching; thus providing a great look to the fabric. Emphasis was laid on how to stitch zippers, buckles etc to create contemporary look in the designs. The artisans were asked to stitch one sample of bag and wallet each on their own which were later evaluated by Sunil. He pointed out the stitching and cutting mistakes, if any and suggested measures on improving them.

The paper patterns for cutting the required styles were provided to the artisans for future reference . After the completion of the training on 8th august, Sunil met the Secretary of SURE, Smt Lata ji and discussed with her about the session and expressed an urgent need to have more good quality machines to improve the stitching ability of artisans. He also showed her the bag and wallet samples made by the artisans as part of the session. Lata ji observed the improved stitching in the fabric and appreciated Sunil for his efforts. She assured him about the maintenance of the machines. She also applauded the incredible work being done by SETU for the skill development of artisans.  All in all it was a great learning experience for the artisans and a satisfying one for us.

Free Health Check Up camp for artisans (30th June 2011)

With a view to aid the artisans with basic healthcare services, a free health check up camp was organized by SETU on 30th June 2011 at Jagnapura Laghedi, an urban slum at Gwalior.

The beneficiaries of the camp were carpet weaving and embroidery artisans residing in the slum area. These artisans are not able to access even the basic healthcare services and therefore suffer from a range of health ailments which can be treated easily if provided with basic medical aid.

Camp registrations started at around 11 am and continued till 3pm. A team of expert doctors consisting of two specialists and one gynecologist were appointed for the camp. All the testing and checkups were performed under their expert supervision. Medicines were distributed for free in the camp. A total of 200 families availed free health checkup.

“Say no to Polybags”- SETU observes World Environment day (5th June 2011)

World Environment day was observed at SETU with the theme “Say no to polythene”. On the occasion, a session spreading awareness about environmental issues was organized in City mall at Gwalior.

In the event, SETU team members made people aware of the ban on polythenes in Gwalior and asked them to share their views on it. Most of the people appreciated the ban and said that such steps are necessary to protect the environment but still many did not take any pro-active steps to minimize the use of polybags. SETU team told the harmful effects that polythene usage poses on the environment and requested people to carry their own reusable shopping bags like cotton and newspaper bags.. Also, the importance of using recycled eco-friendly products was explained. .A lot of eco-friendly alternatives were displayed which can replace polybags, such as recycled newspaper bags, re-usable cloth shopping bags, recycled fabric bags, natural fibre bags, recycled cassette tape bags etc.

Another topic discussed at length was vehicular pollution that occurs as a result of smoke generated from vehicles. People were told that proper maintenance of vehicles is one of the solutions to it.

The highlights of the occasion included an `environment day’ quiz featuring an eco questionnaire. Ecofriendly bags made from recycled material were given away as prizes to those with high environmental I.Q.!!

Generating awareness on sanitation and hygiene – (20 May 2011)

Poor sanitation is the root cause of many diseases like typhoid and cholera which can sometimes prove to be fatal. But not many people are aware of this and consequently suffer from a range of health ailments which can be easily prevented by taking a few precautionary hygiene measures. Thus, with a view to create awareness on the importance and need of sanitation and hygiene, a workshop was organized at an urban slum at Gwalior.

Making the world a fairer place!! Celebrating World Fair Trade Day!!! (14th May 2011)

On the occasion of World Fair Trade Day, a workshop explaining the ethical Business Model Fair Trade and its scope was organized for the students of Jiwaji University,Gwalior. The students were all from the stream of MSW (Master of Social Work)

The session aimed at introducing the concept of Fair Trade to the young audience whose lives otherwise remain untouched by this benevolent idea. SETU team started the session by throwing light on the basics of Fair Trade and its principles and how Fair Trade can lend a helping hand to the underprivileged communities. After discussing the world economic pyramid, Fair Trade was presented as a powerful tool for alleviating global poverty & as an ethical business alternative to the conventional trade stream.

As the session unfolded, need of Fair Trade in the developing world was discussed at length. The idea of Fair Trade “trade not aid” quite appealed to the students. Also, they appreciated the social impact that Fair Trade signifies. Students enthusiastically participated in the discussion and shared their views on how Fair Trade can be converted into a mainstream concept so that more and more people can benefit from it.

The session was a motivating and inspiring one as many students were seen taking interest in Fair Trade. Many of them are planning to start their careers with NGOs & co-operatives and work for socio-economic upliftment of the needy masses.

Food and nutrition workshop at Gwalior (7 April 2011)

On the occasion of “World Health Day”, a health and nutrition workshop was organized by SETU on 7th April 2011 at Huravali,Gwalior; for the residents of a slum area inhabited by people living below the poverty line. The workshop was conducted by Mr. L.R. Kaushal, social welfare manager at SETU.

The workshop was aimed at spreading awareness about healthy food practices and nutrition disorders like malnutrition, The session started with a brief overview on malnutrition, its ill effects and what can be done to prevent this disease.

Kaushal then asked the people about their eating habits i.e, what type of food they eat and in how much quantity. After listening, Kaushal told the audience about the typical ingredients of a balanced diet and revealed the fact that taking a balanced diet is the only cure to this nutritional disorder.

Pamphlets were distributed to the people specially designed at SETU to make them well aware of malnutrition and its consequences.

In the workshop, people were shown the ingredients of a balanced diet like fresh green leafy vegetables, seasonal fruits, pulses, and cereals. Arrangements were made to provide the people with nutritious food rich in proteins, carbohydrates, fat and all the essential vitamins.

Vocational training Course for Amar Jyoti kids

“Talent needs to be recognized and nurtured”. With this vision, SETU aims to organize vocational training workshops for the deserving and needy. As one such endeavour, vocational training is being provided as part of their routine curriculum to the physically and mentally challenged kids at Amar Jyoti,Gwalior. The aim of the workshop is to bring out inner creativity of the extremely able kids and at the same time to inculcate design skills in them. Around 225 kids are estimated to benefit from the programme.

The training programme is being carried out under the expert guidance of our master trainer, Sunil who is giving kids easy ideas on making attractive handicraft items from recycled cotton fabric. Kids are learning to make Bird toys, Wall hangings, Keychains, garlands, and much more.

“Illuminating lives”- Solar Light Project (24th March 2011)

 Installation of solar lights in 100 households in the desert areas of Rajasthan (near Indo- Pak Border)

 Our much awaited solar light project took final shape on 24th of March 2011. It was way back on our last visit to Rajasthan when the project was initialized.Under this project, 100 households were provided with solar lanterns in the remote villages of Rajasthan namely Bindani, Bijarad, Navtala and Sarupe ka tala. The beneficiaries of the project are all women artisans working with our partner NGO known as SURE who actively works for the upliftment of the rural population in that area.

With barren desert all around, this region is known for its traditional crafts like hand block printing, embroidery and appliqué .Situated on Indo Pakistan Border, it faces acute shortage of electricity and water supply.

Life comes to a standstill for these poor folks as soon as the sun sets! We have witnessed the problems faced by the residents there in the absence of electricity. The productivity rate of these artisans is low as the people are not able to work in the evenings owing to darkness. Children’s education is seriously hampered as they can’t study at night; Chances of getting bitten by dangerous nocturnal creatures such as snakes & scorpions are also very high among villagers. As a substitute to electricity, people try to make use of kerosene lamps but they are not within everyone’s reach with the fuel prices touching sky high. Some of the artisan families who make use of kerosene lamps have to suffer its side effects like smoky fumes leading to suffocation in poorly ventilated houses, These fall low on providing good light intensity and also give rise to serious health & fire hazards.

SETU did the ground level research and found that solar lamps could be a better alternative as they fall good on economic as well as safety aspects.

On 24th March 2011, a programme was organized to carry out the distribution of solar lanterns in the campus of SURE. Founder and Managing director of SURE, Ms. Lata Kachhawaha and entire SETU team consisting of team head Rashmi, team members Devendra Dhariwal and L.R. Kaushal and special volunteers Amaninder and Harpreet were present at the occasion. Amaninder and Harpreet have come down from all the way toCanadato witness the event. The beneficiaries, 100 women artisans belonging to the villages of Bindani, Bijarad, Sarupe ka tala and Navtala were called at SURE campus and were provided with solar lanterns. Detailed training on the usage & installation was also provided to the women by local experts.

The cost of each lantern comes out to around 3,000 Rs which SETU is providing free of cost.The solar panels are installed on the roofs of houses. The lanterns are portable and handy to use and thus offer complete mobility.

When asked how they feel on getting the lanterns, one of the women said that “ab mai chaar paise aur kamapaaongi raat ko kaam karke” (Now, I can earn some more money, working at night). Another was happy that now her children will get some extra time to study in the evenings & night! “ Ab to taabariya raat maine bhi padh – likh lenge”Some other artisans said that solar lights will help them in marriages and similar other functions as now they no more have to arrange for costly kerosone lanterns from cities as solar lanterns are much easily available within the village itself and don’t pose extra expenses.

It’s good to know that artisans are happy with the solar lights and will be using them for variety of purposes; this project tells us that we are moving in the right direction and surely the day is not too far away when we will achieve our goal of illuminating the world of every single artisan associated with SETU!!

“Workshop on Self development and Quality improvement, Barmer Rajasthan

SETU organized a “Workshop on Self development and Quality improvement” for our wood Block printing artisans in the desert areas near Barmer, Rajasthan on 23rd March 2011. Artisans here specialize in Ajrakh block printing, a form of block printing on cloth; characteristic of this region. These artisans belong to the Khatri community and are engaged in this craft for centuries. The word ‘Ajrakh’ means ‘keep it to-day’. It also means making beautiful and in Arabia, Ajrakh indicates the blue colour. This beautiful art form is thought to have originated in the twelfth century and was mainly produced in Jaiselmer, Rajasthan.

Now, production is almost entirely confined to the villages of Barmer in Rajasthan, and Dhamadka and Khavda in Kutch. Artisans practicing this art belong to the Khatri community and are engaged in this craft for centuries. The ancestors of Khatri community, migrated to Dhamadka, Kachchh from Sindh and Ajrakh printing began as a localized art. The art continues to rule the region with the technique handed down from father to son. In recent times, Harijan craftsmen qualified under Khatri craftsmen are also capturing this craft.

For majority of the artisan families residing here, art is the sole source of income. They not only enjoy the work but also earn decent sum of money, thus carving a dignified living for them and their families. However, recently SETU sensed a sort of insecurity in their minds as they are not able to envision a promising future in this art form. The main reason being the fast changing trends of today’s times & development of new technology with each passing day, resulting in faster & low-cost production. The artisans feel that owing to this mechanization after some years there will not be much takers to their hand-made work. And due to this insecurity, they do not encourage their next generation to follow their footsteps.

With an objective to address this serious issue and to give some easy tips on enhancing quality of products, SETU organized a workshop, which was attended by 25 wood Block printing artisans. In the workshop, SETU team consisting of team head Rashmi, team members Devendra Dhariwal and L.R. Kaushal , special volunteers Amininder and Harpreet from Canada presided the workshop.

It was a highly interactive session where artisans put forward their viewpoints.Printed resource materials were distributed amongst the participants & by means of questionnaires & strategic motivational talks, their fears were dissipated & their self-confidence boosted up. They were also made aware of the fact that more and more people are now realizing the importance of handmade eco-friendly products and the future lies in it. SETU team also told the ground realities of migrated labor doing odd jobs in big cities, their hardships & insecurities.

Celebrating womanhood- SETU observes International women’s day (8th March 2011)

SETU believes in empowering women for a dignified living and with this view on the occasion of International women’s day, SETU organized a “tailoring workshop for sustainability” for the underprivileged and marginalized women of an urban slum at Gwalior.

The workshop was attended by 42 women of the community. SETU team member L.R. Kaushal presided the workshop along with our master trainer Mr. Sunil Dutt. Other SETU team members were also present on the occasion. Sunil showed the women how to make environment friendly cotton/recycled sari bags. He gave some shorthand tips on how to efficiently use the fabric and get the perfect finish.

Women were made aware of the fact that use of polythenes are now banned in Gwalior and therefore making and selling of tailored bag from cotton fabric & recycled saris can prove to be a good source of sustainability .In addition to this, demonstrations on making recycled newspaper paper bags and some easy tips on marketing of the environment friendly bags were given.

In the workshop, issues of reproductive health of women were also discussed. The response to the workshop was overwhelming as women liked the concept of training and want the tailoring program to be extended over a period of 15 days. We will try our level best to fulfill their wish and provide them with vocational training.

“Health and nutrition workshop” at Barmer, Rajasthan (18th  February 2011)

An ill-fed child with his ribcage prominently on display, along with weak limbs and a pale dark skin is no eye candy but a reality for many of those who are suffering from Malnutrition, a nutritional disorder arising due to lack of balanced diet.

Malnutrition results from taking an unbalanced diet in which certain nutrients are lacking, in excess (too high an intake), or in the wrong proportions. A number of different nutrition disorders may arise, depending on which nutrients are under or overabundance in the diet. It is the gravest single threat to the world’s public health, says WHO.

A balanced diet consisting of all the essential nutrients acts as a precursor to be fit and fine and the only way to cure this health disorder. But sometimes, having access to proper nutrition is not always easy as it seems.

Here, we are talking about the poor people coming from the underprivileged and marginalized backgrounds who suffer from nutritional deficiencies mainly due to unaffordability of regular staples like wheat and grains. Another important factor contributing to malnutrition is lack of awareness on this issue. Therefore, making people aware about the right kind of food to eat can do wonders in this regard. As most of the time it happens that the diet contains only one type of nutrients in excess leading to incomplete nutrition. The basic need therefore is to educate people about the ill effects of this deadly condition and the changes to be done in the diet to make it a balanced one which is the only cure to it. To accomplish this a dedicated effort from the society is required. With this view, we recently organized a “Health and nutrition workshop” for our artisans of Barmer, Rajasthan throwing light on healthy food practices.

On 18th of February 2011, the workshop was organized at Barmer, Rajasthan. Artisans from Barmer and nearby villages registered their presence in huge numbers. SETU team member L.R. Kaushal started the session by first having a know how of the artisans eating habits. Upon interaction, it came to light that the artisans can’t afford to have wheat and pulses as staple food, in absence of which they have to totally depend on Bajra (pearl millet) as it is easily available and is also economical. This is a striking fact as bajra is not a regular staple and is consumed only in winters by most of the people. But here in Bramer, all the year round, the villagers feed solely on it, leading to incomplete nutrition in absence of other nutrients not being provided.

Kaushal explained to the people that it’s very important to have a balanced diet, lack of which can give rise to nutritional disorders like malnutrition. He comprehensively told the artisans about the ill effects of this condition, how grave it can be; sometimes leading to even death of the sufferer.

In the session, Kaushal said that a healthy and balanced diet consisting of all the essential nutrients can only help in getting away with malnutrition.

Kaushal suggested the artisans to take the following dietary changes:

  • As bajra is easily accessible, it can be used in different ways to get more of the nutrients from it like to make daliya from bajra.
  • Pulses are the best source of protein but they are expensive and therefore are not within the reach of poor rural people, Kaushal asked the artisans to take green gram which costs less than pulses and that too sprouted green gram which is an excellent source of protein. This will fulfill the protein requirement of diet.
  • The villagers were also asked to make “mahi“ from yoghurt (made from the yoghurts water) and to make daliya from mahi which serves as a rich source of calcium and vitamin C.

Amidst the session, the artisans were distributed pamphlets, designed by SETU giving a brief overview of malnutrition and how to take a balanced diet.

“Health is wealth”! – Free health check up camp for our wood carving artisans (13th-15th Feb 2011)

With a view to aid the artisans in healthcare, SETU organised a series of 2 free health check up camps for our wood carving artisans of Bijnour, U.P. on the 13th and 15th of february 2011.

Following facilities were provided in the camp:

  • Free health check up
  • Free medicine distribution
  • Free eye check up
  • Spectacles for free to those with weak eye sight

A team of highly qualified doctors consisting of Dr. Mukul Agarwal, Dr. Raees Baig, Dr. Muazaam Hussain Riyazi and Dr. Zaheer Ahmed were appointed for the camp.

Camp started at 10 am in the morning and continued till 4 pm in the evening.

A total of 500 artisans including men and women received free health check up. Out of which 375 artisans with weak eyesight were catered with spectacles free of cost.

Free Health Check up Camp at Reshampura Badnapura, Gwalior (13th Feb 2011)

Healthcare is still a luxury for many! It sounds rather obsolete but is a hardcore reality!! Even the basic medical facilities are not available to some; here we are talking about the underprivileged and marginalized people who can’t afford the highly priced healthcare services and consequently suffer from various health ailments. Therefore, with a view to help them in this regard, on the 13th of February 2011, we organized a free health check up camp for the residents of Reshampura Badnapura, an area located on the outskirts of Gwalior. The beneficiaries of the camp were mostly female sex workers, artisans, and poor laborers.

This was the second time when SETU organized a health camp at Reshampura Badnapura; earlier also we have organized a HIV/AIDS awareness & free health camp here.

The underlying purpose of the camp was to provide basic healthcare for free to the underprivileged people who otherwise are devoid of it. This time around we made arrangements for tuberculosis testing also as it was found that people in the area are suffering from Tuberculosis and in absence of any proper testing and checkups their condition is aggravating with each passing day.

About one week before the camp, SETU team started doing the ground level work & community mobilization. We teamed up with some of the key people in the community and went door to door to make people aware about the camp. Also, SETU enquired about the health ailments from which people are suffering frequently in the area.

On 13th of February 2011, camp started early in the morning at around 10 am. All the testing and checkups were performed under the supervision of an expert team of doctors consisting of one pediatrician, one gynecologist, one general physician and one tuberculosis testing expert.

Following facilities were provided in the camp:

  • Free health check up
  • Free medicine distribution
  • Free DOTS/ Tuberculosis testing
  • Family planning awareness
  • Awareness about reproductive & child health issues
  • Counseling about sanitation and hygiene issues

Around 150 families consisting of 320 people, out of which 255 women and men and 65 children received free health check up.

Unleashing inner creativity as a therapy – Workshop at Amar Jyoti – 12th Feb 2011

Nothing is more powerful than the smile on a child’s face. Now multiply this by 129, and you will get a small sense of what SETU staff and volunteers experienced on February 12th!

In order to interact with the kids and to help them discover themselves, SETU team conducted a workshop for the Amar Jyoti Charitable Trust’s kids on 12th of Feb 2011. One of our leading volunteers was Hetal Shah, fellow of indicorps, a USA based organization. Around 129 children ( inclusive of physically & mentally challenged kids) attended the highly interactive and fun-loving session.

The workshop consisted of two activities “Speak up!” and “vegetable block painting”. The first activity “Speak up” was an ice breaker activity, aimed at bringing the children out of their shells, to build up their confidence level and to make them aware about their inner self so that they can be clear about what they want to be in the future. As part of the activity, children were provided with small pieces of paper with numbers from 1 to 5 written on them. What the kids had to do was to open the paper and tell as many things about them as the number. Initially, the kids were a bit shy about the whole activity; to remove their hesitation SETU team and volunteers helped them out and also offered kids with chocolates as incentive.

A child’s imagination is full of colors, and to add more colors to it, especially in the lives of these differently-abled kids, we planned a “vegetable block painting” activity where the children were asked to paint using different vegetables and a brush. The basic purpose of carrying out this activity was to introduce the kids to their creative side which is necessary for a child’s all round development. For the task, they were provided with vegetables like, potatoes, okra, carrots etc. cut in different shapes, color plates and pastel colors. Kids were asked to dip vegetable in the color and make an impression of it on the paper. Result was incredible! Children made beautiful drawings, high above the expectations! With beautiful flowers, houses, faces, landscapes, we were thoroughly impressed by their creativity, one of them even made SETU’s logo!!

SETU team and volunteers along with teachers at Amar Jyoti, assisted children in the activities. In order to increase participation we distributed chocolates and snacks among the kids.

The best part, of course, was seeing the 129 smiles as each child left the room. We hope to do more activities like this with Amar Jyoti in the future. It was a day to cherish forever!

Food and nutrition workshop at Gwalior (9th February 2011)

To spread awareness about healthy food practices and nutrition disorders like malnutrition, a health and nutrition workshop was organized by SETU Society on 9th February 2011 at Huravali, Gwalior; a slum area inhabited by people living below the poverty line. The workshop was conducted by Mr. L.R. Kaushal, social welfare manager at SETU.

The session started with a brief overview on malnutrition, its ill effects and what can be done to prevent this disease.

Kaushal then asked the people about their eating habits i.e, what type of food they eat and in how much quantity. After listening, Kaushal told the audience about the typical ingredients of a balanced diet and revealed the fact that taking a balanced diet is the only cure to this nutritional disorder.

Pamphlets were distributed to the people specially designed at SETU to make them well aware of malnutrition and its consequences.

In the workshop, people were shown the ingredients of a balanced diet like fresh green leafy vegetables, seasonal fruits, pulses, and cereals. Arrangements were made to provide the people with nutritious food rich in proteins, carbohydrates, fat and all the essential vitamins.

Community development for Artisans at “Jagnapura Laghedi”- an urban slum at Gwalior (2nd Feb 2011)

Life is sometimes too harsh for some people. Food and water which are life’s basic necessities are not an easy affair for many. This is true for the people of Jagnapura Laghedi, an urban slum at Gwalior where SETU team made a visit.

The sole source of income for the residents here is embroidery on sarees which women of the family do from their homes. The male members work on daily wages and do not earn regularly. Consequently, it’s the art which makes the houses run.

It takes about 100-150 Rs. in doing embroidery on one saree, involving two mandays, out of which the artisans get only 50-60 Rs. as the remaining amount goes in buying raw materials for the work.

Artisans here do not have any loan facility available from the government; this is a matter of serious concern as many artisans said they need loans to start a new venture and wish to send their children to school with the money. Another area of grave concern is the fact that most of the houses don’t have any built-in toilets, in the absence of which people have to face inconvenience.

SETU is trying to provide the artisans with vocational training so that they can become self sustainable & increase their earning. Also, efforts are being made to create Self Help Groups (SHGs) among the community for their overall development. This will not only aid them economically but also generate self-confidence in them.

“Do boond zindagi ki” (Two drops of life) 23rd January 2011

Under the polio eradication program, an initiative of the government of India in collaboration with WHO, 23rd January 2011 was celebrated as `polio ravivar’ (Polio Sunday). SETU team observed the day by participating in the program along with the government health workers. In the program, Children of up to 5 years of age from birth are given polio vaccines. The program was carried out in five urban slums of Gwalior city.

Four booths were setup in different areas. On each booth two health workers, were appointed to do the job.

SETU team along with the workers of health department went to the houses of people and encouraged them to participate in the event. A total of 298 children were given polio drops. SETU team co-ordinator was Mr. L.R. Kaushal.

Helping artisans overcome product rejections (20-23rd January 2011)

As part of our efforts to bring about artisan development, we decided to provide training to our wood carving artisans in a bid to lessen their product rejections. These artisans make beautiful products but fall short on certain parameters of product design and quality, leading to rejections. To solve this problem and to polish their skills, we invited them at SETU. They were also asked to bring the required machines with them in order to give them a practical approach about the whole process. The rejected goods were shown to them and the defects explained. Our SETU team members assisted them in finding their weak points and simultaneously helped to work on them.

Eye refraction camp-II for the artisans of Tilonia, Rajasthan (20 December 2010)

As part of our efforts to provide artisans with basic medical facilities, last month on 20th December 2010, another eye refraction camp was organized for our women artisans at Tilonia. Tilonia is a place of traditional craft where people practice embroidery, stitching and similar craft work requiring intense use of eyes. With increasing age, artisans’ eyes become vulnerable to various eye ailments like short sightedness, glaucoma, general eye weakness etc.; this not only affects their health but also adversely affects their work leading to extended work hours which means more work and less wages. Basic eye treatment can solve the problem to a great extent but most of the artisans lack the awareness & funds for proper eye care and medical check up. Therefore, with a view to aid the artisans for eye care, we organized an eye refraction camp in association with health department, barefoot college social work and research centre, Tilonia.

In the camp, expert ophthalmologist Dr. M.S. Gaur from Gaur clinic, Ajmer was present along with technician Mr. Dinesh Kumar and optician Mr. Rajesh Khanna. All the testing and checkups were carried out under their supervision.

Following facilities were provided in the camp:

  • Free eye check up
  • Free medicine distribution
  • Free of cost spectacles to those with weak eyesight
  • Expert advice on regular maintenance of eyes

A total of 179 artisans (mostly women) were treated in the camp.

As a measure to check the eyesight of artisans after getting lenses, they were asked to put thread in the needle as this being a part of their work. Most of them performed the task successfully and felt that with lenses they will now be able to do their work more efficiently than earlier.

Guiding the artisans for quality improvement – visit to jewellery making and wood carving artisans of Moradabad and Bijnor (8-9 December 2010)

In an effort to implement our vision of overall artisan development, SETU team visited our jewellery making artisans at Moradabad and wood carving artisans of Bijnor.

Visit to Moradabad:

SETU team, consisting of team head Rashmi and product development manager Archna, visited the artisans. The group houses our jewellery making artisans. Our beautiful cuffs and earrings are made by this group. The process involves a lot of hardwork and determination but we were pleased to see that our artisans are doing a commendable job.

Majority of the artisans had poor education but are respectfully supporting their families, thanks to Fair Trade. However, children of almost all the artisans are receiving good education. Nasimji, their leader, told us that before getting introduced to Fair Trade the artisans were leading a miserable life as they had the expertise but didn’t know how to market their produce in order to make a living. Consequently, they were bound to lead a life full of hardships. Fair Trade has brought significant positive changes in their lives. Now, the artisans not only earn for themselves but have also become financially capable to support their families.

In the midst of interacting with artisans, SETU team member Archna inspected the quality of the jewellery and was quite satisfied with it. She gave them feedback on their workmanship & changes required. Desired improvements were incorporated. She was very happy to see that the artisans have made the exact designs; what we’re desired in the samples. This appears to be a good sign as the artisans now understand what the market wants and are able to make products according to the demand.

Visit to woodcarving artisans:

SETU team also visited our wood carving artisans of HSSS. Our beautiful earring stands, wood eyeglass holder and many other wooden products are made by this group.

We interacted with the artisans and tried to found out their problems while working. Most of the artisans are quite happy with their work reason being now they have more orders, i.e., more & regular work which was not the case earlier when they were not associated with SETU. Also, facilities like advance payments have changed their life for the better. Consequently, living standard has improved.

Various aspects of quality were discussed & guidance provided to improve quality.

2nd International Conference on Climate change and Sustainable Management of Natural resources (5- 7 December, 2010)

SETU team co-organized a conference on climate change and Green marketing with ITM Universe, a prestigious management school of Gwalior. The conference span over a period of 3 days from 5-7 Dec. 2010

In the session, SETU team head Rashmi explained the basic concepts of Fair Trade to the management students along with a heated debate on Green Marketing.

Keynote speakers in the conference were Mr. David Wittenberg (CEO, Innovation Workgroup); his clients include prestigious companies like Godrej, Ranbaxy, Infosys, etc.; Mr.N. Raghu Raman ( leading columnist and Journalist); Ms. Rashmi Dhariwal (Founder and CEO, SETU Consortium); and Swami Sarvanand Saraswati ji (Motivational speaker).

Corporate houses Godrej and JK Tyre gave case study presentations in the 3 day conference.

Green Marketing Session – 6 Dec. 2010

“Going green is the need of the hour” was the topic of discussion in the Green Marketing Session. In the present scenario, where customers re not much aware about the green concept and therefore show less inclination to buy green products; green Marketing has a long way to go. The speakers stressed on the fact that the future of green marketing is entirely in the hands of youth; only they can bring changes in people’s perception.

Mr. David Wittenberg addressing the green marketing session and SETU team head Rashmi speaking at the Green Marketing Session.

SETU shared its views on “going green”. Rashmi Dhariwal said that SETU envisions of a “self sustainable green world”, a world free of poverty and suffering and discussed about the various activities which SETU is carrying out to achieve this long-term vision. She revealed the fact that SETU believes in an ecofriendly tomorrow pertaining to which all products at SETU are sustainable & eco-friendly. In her opinion, fears of climate change can be a history only when sustainable practices are followed with commitment.

Reinforcing artisan talent!! (December 2010)

Nurturing talent is as important as recognizing it, only then the true mettle of an artisan can come out. With this view, in December 2010; SETU sponsored awards to the student women artisans of Kalaraksha Vidyalaya (a venture of Kalaraksha, one of our partner NGOs). Awards were given for showing excellence in respective art forms. These act as motivation to the artisans to perform up to their best of ability. Our main aim is to support artisan development & bring out their creativity.

Free Health Check up Camp at Chandrabadni Naka, Gwalior (28 Nov. 2010)

As part of our mission to improve the wellbeing and living standards of underprivileged and marginalized people; a health camp was organized by SETU for the stone carving and carpet making communities residing nearby Chandrabadni Naka, Gwalior on 28th November 2010. The underlying purpose for organizing the camp was to lend a helping hand to these less fortunate people who otherwise are not able to avail even the basic medical facilities.

These people due to improper working conditions and unhygienic lifestyle suffer from various ailments like skin diseases, respiratory problems, loss of appetite, muscle fatigue etc. Also, with the changing season i.e. with the onset of winter, fever, cough, cold etc. have become prevalent. Their poor financial conditions & lack of awareness worsen the situation, making even the basic medical amenities inaccessible to them; as a result their health keeps on detoriating day by day. Considering these facts, we organized the health camp in the selected area.

Camp registrations started from 11 am in the morning and continued till 3 in the afternoon. Expert team of doctors consisting of one pediatrician, one gynecologist, two general physicians and two dentists were appointed; under whose supervision all the testing and checkups were performed. A total of 400 people, consisting of 191 women, 138 men and 71 children were treated free of cost in the camp. All the prescribed medicines, multi-vitamins & contraceptives were distributed free of cost. Also, various pathological tests like blood sugar etc were conducted free while, tests like haemoglobin and malaria were conducted at minimal rates. In addition to the free medical checkups, SETU team explained the importance of hygiene to the masses and gave some easy tips on “how to remain fit and fine”.

Feedback of the camp was overwhelming as people want more such camps to be organized in the near future. On our part, this is just a small effort towards a big goal of “artisan health and safety”. Surely, we will achieve it one day!!!

Developing the craft skills of artisans – Trainer for artisans development (November 2010)

Artisans are experts in their various traditional art forms but sometimes lack efficiency in design skills, especially for contemporary & functional product development and need training to upgrade them. Keeping in view this fact, we at SETU has appointed a master trainer to develop the design skills of our artisans.

Mr. Sunit Dutt is a master designer and has got years of experience in cutting & tailoring for large export houses. He has already started working with our partner artisans at Amar Jyoti Delhi and in a short period of time has come up with positive results. He managed to bring the fabric consumption in bags down by 40% without any change in the design but only by teaching them ingenious methods of fabric cutting. He is teaching the artisans to cut economically & ingeniously and is also working to improve their stitching techniques.

Eye Refraction camp for the artisans of desert area of Dhanau, Barmer, Rajasthan (28th Nov. 2010)

We organized an eye camp for our artisans of Dhanau, Barmer, Rajasthan on 28th Nov. 2010. It was in association with `Viva Terra’, one of our special customers based in USA. It was organized for our artisans at `Social work and Research Centre’ (Barefoot College), social activity wing of our partner artisan Cooperative `Hatheli’, based in Tilonia Rajasthan.

The co-operative trains rural men and women in varied activities to make themselves sustainable; traditional crafts like embroidery, stitching and hand block printing being one of them.

Location of the eye camp was Dhanau, Rajasthan, a remote desert area situated near Indo- Pakistan border. Placed far away from the city, Dhanau is an economically weak area. The villagers here are very poor, struggling everyday to fulfill even the basic needs of food and water, healthcare an inaccessible thing for most of them. The sole source of income for these people is the craft in which they have got first hand expertise. The artisans at Dhanau practice appliqué, embroidery and stitching which involves minute eye work, requiring healthy eyesight. However, many of them suffer from one or the other eye ailments. Their poor vision affects the quality of work leading to low production volumes and increased work hours. We understand their problems and therefore felt the need of an eye camp.

An expert ophthalmologist along with a person for testing the eyes of patients for the correct eye-glass numbers were appointed at the camp. The camp took a head start at 9 in the morning and continued till 6 in the evening. A total of 223 people were treated in the camp. Out of which 111 were provided with free eye glasses and 112 were given free medicines.

Given below is a brief statistical data about the camp:

Total no. of people treated in the camp No. of people provided with free eye glasses No. of people provided with free medicines No. of men and women in the age group of 60-80 years
223 111 112 67

In addition to free eye checkup, people were told about the measures to keep their eyes healthy. They were advised to take diet rich in vitamin A and green leafy vegetables as this ensures healthy eyes, protect eyes from dust and direct sunlight, regular washing of eyes with cold water; also instructions were given on the maintenance of spectacles, people were told to clean them with soft cotton cloth and place them properly in the cover avoiding any kind of breakage.

People were very satisfied with the camp as now they can see clearly with the glasses. Also, their work will no more have to suffer owing to poor vision.

Design workshop for artisans of Bijnour (October 2010)

Design is the soul of a product. Updating artisans with contemporary trends in designs is essential for creating / maintaining the demand of a product among customers. This not only enables the artisan to make products in accordance with customers taste but also introduces them to latest techniques in the marketplace which is necessary for their overall development. With this view a design workshop was organized with our partner group HSSS in Bijnour , U.P.

The entire workshop was carried out over a span of two months with a total of 240 artisans registering their presence.

Artisans got in-depth lessons on the art of brass inlay and woodcarving from expert trainers. A total of 8 trainers attended the workshop out of which two were sent from Gwalior (M.P.)

In the workshop, artisans were given first hand tips on carving a product along with the know-how of designing. The techniques of brass inlay were explained. Throughout the workshop artisans were kept abreast of the latest trends in the marketplace in terms of designing. It was a very overwhelming experience as artisans want more such workshops to be organized in the future.

Celebrating Fair Trade month “Carry the torch forward” (21 October 2010)

October being a Fair Trade month is special for all Fair Traders. Throughout this month, series of activities took place at SETU. Recent being our workshop session titled “Carry the torch forward”. Underlying purpose for choosing this theme was to spread the word Fair Trade among the youth; as despite being a sustainable and ethical business concept, Fair Trade is not known to many, especially today’s youth who are more than willing to do something useful for the society but are not aware of it. With these views, a workshop was organized at ITM Universe, a premier management institute at Gwalior. Going with the theme, the audience consisted of young management graduates. Our team head Rashmi started the session by throwing light on the basics of Fair Trade along with the opportunities in this sector; the ifs and buts, pros and cons, everything which lies at the core of it, was delivered. As the session gained momentum, students showed more & more interest in Fair Trade. Some interactive puzzles & quizzes were also incorporated to make the session more indulging. At the end, eco-friendly bags made from recycled stuff were given away as prizes to those who got the solutions right. To sum up, it was a very good experience as students seem to be showing interest in this brilliant concept; even some are considering it as their career option!! We will be doing our best possible for them.

Safety kits distribution to Copper Bell Artisans (September 2010)

As part of our ongoing commitment to artisans’ health and safety, more safety kits were distributed to the bell making artisans of Kutch region in association with local NGO Khamir who is working towards revitalizing this craft since long.

Need for safety kits arises due to nature of this art form. The bell making art involves heating of iron structures coated with brass and copper powders, the process needing high temperature furnaces. Majority of the artisans still lack professional manufacturing infrastructure and work from their homes on local or homemade furnaces in absence of proper safety systems. Taking into consideration all these facts, SETU in association with Khamir provides the artisans with safety kits to ensure complete protection at workplace.

In a funfilled gathering the distribution of kits took place at Zura village, a remote area in Kutchh. A total of 25 safety kits including both basic and advance were distributed. Detailed demonstrations on using the kits were given by the Khamir team; in addition to this, the artisans were educated on health hazards that can arise in absence of any precautionary measures taken at workplace; safety kits being one of them. In the event, various other developmental issues were discussed. Artisans from nearby villages Bhuj, Zura, Kunariya (Bhuj Block), Nirona, Ratadiya (Nakhtrana block) participated in the event. The response was overwhelming as artisans want more such events to be organized in near future. Response to the safety kit equipments would be assessed on a regular basis.

Team head Rashmi speaking at TEDx JNTU Kakinada (21 Aug 2010)

TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas worth Spreading. TED Conference invites the world’s leading thinkers and doers to speak for 18 minutes. It has many versions in India under the name of TEDx One such event was organized at Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh accompanied with the theme “awakening young India” in Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, where Rashmi was invited as honorary speaker. To know more about TED visit www.tedxjntuk.com

SETU consortium team head Rashmi gave her presentation before 800+ engineering & management graduates of Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, Kakinada (Andhra Pradesh) on 21st August 2010. People from various fields attended the event. Rashmi’s presentation on social entrepreneurship & Fair Trade concept was a huge success as many students seem to be taking interest in Fair Trade.

Businesses are not only about making profits, they are supposed to fulfill a much bigger role of giving back to the society. This was the point which Rashmi made in her presentation titled “Doing good is good business”. She said that youth are tomorrow’s future and they should not only be concerned about making profits but should also be aware of their social responsibilities; only then a society can be benefited in the long run. Young entrepreneurs should develop the attitude of taking up social ventures as opposed to purely commercial ones. This results in a win-win situation for the business as well as for the society.

Workshop at SABALA – updating the artisans with latest color trends and enhancing their craft skills- (August 2010)

SETU organized a technical workshop at one of our artisan groups `SABALA’ in the arid villages of Bijapur, Karnataka. It is an all women’s organization dedicated to the empowerment of Women and Children.

With a view to improve the skills of artisans and to update them with the latest colour trends a workshop was organized at SABALA.

Highlights of the workshop:

  • Updating the artisans with Trend Forecasts for spring summer 2011
  • Quiz on colors
  • Rangoli competition
  • Embroidery competition
  • Discussion on
  • Women empowerment
  • Girl child education
  • Nutrition, health and hygiene

The women artisans produce beautiful designs, their only weakness being that they are not aware of the latest trends in the market place and therefore sometimes make products not in line with the taste of foreign consumers. Keeping in view this fact; a workshop was organized to make the artisans aware about the latest color trends. The basic components of color & design were discussed at length in the workshop. Artisans were given basic knowledge on trend forecasts, how the forecasts are made, who decides the trends for a particular year and how, which are the famous fashion houses and similar such stuff.

Artisans were given a questionnaire consisting of simple questions on colors. This was just to assess their knowledge about colors; more specifically their interpretation of colors and how they make use of it while designing a product.

Another fun-filled activity was the rangoli competition where the artisans were asked to make beautiful rangoli designs by deciding the colors on their own. Artisans made a variety of designs, each one different from the other. Those who made the best ones were given prizes at the end.

As a feedback to the workshop, an embroidery task was given to the artisans to know that to what an extent they have gained from the session. Results were positive as all artisans made beautiful designs and with proper color combinations.

Towards the end, artisans were asked to share their views on social issues related to women and child development. The following topics were discussed:

  • Women empowerment
  • Girl child education
  • Nutrition, health and hygiene

Some women artisans really surprised us with their protagonist views on such sensitive issues. One of the women speaking on the topic of women empowerment, when asked the real meaning of it replied “main aaj bahar kaam kar rahi hoon yahi women empowerment hai” (I am able to work out of my home that’s women empowerment). Listening to this, the entire house filled with applause.

To motivate the artisans a large number of prizes were distributed at the end of workshop.

Eye check up camp for women artisans of the desert areas (May 2010)

For artisans, art is their soul. It assumes the highest priority for them not only because it is their source of income but also something very close to their heart, being an inheritance of their forefathers which they cherish throughout their lives. Art is their identity. A majority of the art, be it embroidery, appliqué work, hand block printing, bell making or anything else requires intensive use of eyes. Eyes are the most important tools for an artisan and this is especially true for those who do minute work like embroidery. Most of the artisans lack the awareness for proper eye care and medical check up. Another reason for neglecting their eyes is the fact that artisans can’t afford the medical checkups and treatment and therefore sometimes continue to suffer from eye ailments. In many interior desert areas, artisans live in small & scattered hamlets with no medical facility available for many miles.

To help the artisans in this regard, we organized a free `eye checkup camp’ for the poor artisans living in the remote desert areas near Barmer, Rajasthan in association with our partner NGO known as SURE who actively works for the upliftment of the rural population in that area.

In the camp, around 326 poor rural women artisans and their families belonging to the remote villages of `Vindani’, `Gafan’, `Navatala’, `Sarupe ka tala’ and `Samelon ka tala’ in Rajasthan were given free eye check up by a qualified ophthalmologist.

Facilities provided in the camp were:

  • Free eye check up
  • Distribution of good quality spectacles
  • Distribution of free medicines
  • Identification of patients for eye-surgeries (these will be later operated upon at subsidized rates)
  • Follow up after the camp

Initially, the women were slightly skeptical of the whole process as for some it’s their very first time. But as some of them got their eyes checked, the slightest doubts were cleared.

A total of 120 people were diagnosed to have poor vision i.e. weak eyesight. Out of these, 110 were women artisans and the rest belonged to other categories. All these 120 patients were provided (free of cost) with good quality eye glasses, for their vision correction. In addition to this, around 54 people, diagnosed with acute eye ailments were advised to get operated. They will be helped to get eye surgeries at subsidised rates. Also, free medicines were distributed in the camp. The feedback of the camp was positive as people want more such camps to be organized.

Safety kits for Bell making artisans (June 2010)

Bell making is a traditional craft of the Muslim Luhar community residing in the Kutchh region of India. One section of the Luhar ironsmiths specialized in making copper & brass coated iron bells for cows, buffaloes, camels and sheep. Due to consecutive droughts, the cattle breeders could not buy bells regularly for their cattle over the years. The demand for these bells thus declined locally and the bell making craft came to the verge of dying. SETU has been trying to promote their bells in the international market. We have been able to provide them a global marketing platform & economic stability and thus also helped in preserving their traditional art. SETU partners with local NGOs like Khamir-CRC, who have been able to organize this artisan community towards practicing their art successfully.

The bell making art involves heating of iron structures coated with brass & copper powders, the process needing high temperature furnaces. Majority of these artisans still lack professional manufacturing infrastructure and work from their homes on local or home-made furnaces with no exhaust or proper safety systems. These processes require that the eyes, nose and hands of the bell making artisans be prevented from extreme temperature, fumes, dust and pollution. In the absence of proper safety precautions, the artisans can suffer serious health issues and that may also ultimately hamper their work.

Taking into consideration the seriousness of the matter, SETU in association with Khamir, in its constant endeavor towards improving the health of artisans, provided them safety kits that ensure complete protection of the metal bell making artisans at their workplace.

Brief details of the safety kits are as follows:

1) For Eye Safety :

  • Transparent borosil furnace glass for furnace observation and handling.
  • Normal transparent glass for buffing and grinding purpose.
  • Welder Glasses that are in Dark black color and are exclusively designed to protect eyes while welding.

2) For Mouth and Nose Safety :

  • Triple filter chemical protective nozzle mask for protection against the hazardous chemical effluents generated by acid wash and furnace use.
  • Normal mask for general-purpose use like buffing, grinding and welding.

3) Fingers and Palm Safety :

  • Leather gloves 12” of superior chrome quality that can withstand heat and are resistant to fire, to protect the artisans’ hands from burns & blemishes.

To make the artisans familiar with the use of safety kits, a three-day workshop was organized in which easy demonstrations on using the different components of safety kit was given. Artisans have started using these kits at the workplace and the feedback is positive.

They can now concentrate on work in a better way without the fear of getting exposed to any health risk.We aim to provide such safety kits to all the artisans in near future.

World Environment Day – 5th June 2010

This year, the World Environment Day was celebrated at SETU with an exciting theme “Know & save your environment” which is selected with a view to generate awareness on environment related issues. The whole activity took place in Dindayal city mall at Gwalior where the target participants were store owners, small shopkeepers/retailers & end customers. SETU team explained the importance of using eco-friendly products to the people. A lot of eco-friendly alternatives were displayed which can replace poly bags, such as recycled newspaper bags, re-usable cloth shopping bags, recycled fabric bags, natural fiber bags, recycled cassette tape bags etc. Customers were also requested to bring their own reusable shopping bags while shopping to reduce the use of poly bags.

The highlight of the occasion was an `environment day’ quiz featuring a simple questionnaire. Lots of prizes (which consisted of eco-friendly jute bags as well as lead free fashion jewelry) were also announced & distributed in the end to motivate people.

Many people admitted that they had never actually given a thought on how poly bags were ruining our environment and that they too had a significant contribution towards that. Many did introspection in this regard while it was quite an enlightening event for some.

We hope that with this endeavor of ours we have been able to generate at least some level of awareness towards environment and the motivation to protect it.

World Fair Trade Day Celebration-8th May 2010

Fair trade is market-based approach to alleviating poverty and promoting sustainability through ethical practices. It aims to educate and empower disadvantaged producers in the developing world and connect them to a market, so they too can participate in global trade. To know more about Fair Trade, click here.

World Fair Trade Day is observed annually on the second Saturday of the month of May. It is celebrated all over the world by the supporters of Fair Trade.

A lot many people are still unaware of the concept of Fair Trade, especially the youth. This is a serious issue as most of the subsequent change & development lies in the hands of today’s youth and therefore it is very important for them to be aware of a wonderful and practical concept as Fair Trade. Also in today’s times of recession, when the number of job cuts is more than the number of recruitment in case of corporate sector, the young people would be more keen to look for alternate streams and, Fair trade offers huge opportunities for growth. There are many areas in which an exciting career can be made like community development, sustainable development in rural areas, working for NGOs and Cooperatives or starting other mission-based activities. Young educated youth can join these groups & communities and can help them achieve their objectives by working with them at the grass root level. Also they can help promote SHGs, cooperatives or start their own Fair Trade businesses. The young catalysts of change can reinforce the underprivileged communities by their knowledge & vigor. Generally the artisan or farmer groups are not well exposed / educated and therefore fall short on various dimensions like marketing of products, knowing the latest trends & technologies in the market. etc. Their problem can be solved to a great extent if the young educated folks help them in this regard. With a view to promote Fair Trade and to create awareness among the youth, SETU celebrated World Fair Trade Day with a theme ‘Fair Trade and Youth’. To mark this theme, a workshop was organized in Aditya College, a leading Management Institute of Gwalior.

It was a highly interactive session where our President Rashmi told students the basics of Fair Trade; how it can bring a positive change in the life of artisans, career opportunities involving it, its basic principles and much more. In all, a comprehensive outlook on Fair Trade was given. To make the session more interesting quizzes were incorporated in the presentation and awards were given away to those who got the quizzes right. The session proved to be a huge success as many students were seen taking interest in Fair Trade. Some of them are even planning to make it their career. Looking at the positive response received we plan to organize more such sessions in near future.

Earth Day – 22nd April 2010

Planting trees not only reduces environmental pollution but it calms our minds too. With this view, SETU celebrated the 40th anniversary of “Earth Day” by doing plantation in a dilapidated park at Gwalior.. In the present scenario, where the environment is full of pollution and no. of trees are reducing day by day, it’s one of the most needed step to reduce our carbon footprints.

We also motivated the neighborhood children to join us. SETU team and the young saviors together planted trees. Since the future is in childrens hand, it is very important that green living habits are inculcated in them and they are made aware about such important events.

A small effort to replenish mother Earth! This exercise needs to be done as often as possible and one should not wait for an occasion like Earth Day to do such things. By celebrating Earth day in this simple manner, we just wanted to send a message to the people who it is easy to plan and participate in such events.

General Health check-up Camp at Gwalior-18th April 2010

SETU organized a health camp for the marginalized and downtrodden sections of the society at Gwalior. The target population consisted of below poverty Line people, Carpet weaving artisans and the like. Basic motive behind the camp was to lend a helping hand to the less fortunate people who otherwise are not able to get even the basic medical facilities. Location for the camp was a Community Center at Gendewali Sadak, Gwalior; it was selected as majority of the target population resided there.

A well qualified team of reputed doctors; Dr. Alok Pandey (MBBS DNB), Dr. Neelam Rajput Verma (MS gynecologist & Obstetrics ), Dr. Yogendra Verma (M.D Pediatrics), Dr. Mahi Pravesh Mishra,. (M.S., stri & Prasuti Rog.) Govt. Ayurveda College, Gwalior, Dr. Tushar Ghodke (Physioyherapist), Dr. Pravesh Mishra MS (Ayurveda) were appointed for the health checkup. Similar arrangement was done in the pathology department where a team of expert pathologists and lab technicians handled the various tests like Hb, Blood Sugar and the like. All medicines prescribed were distributed free of cost. These included antibiotics, general medicines, multivitamins, contraceptives etc.

Camp registrations started early in the morning at about 8 am. Our SETU team including our staff and volunteers reached the spot by 7 in the morning. Camp was a huge success as a total of 301 families were treated in the camp, free of cost. By about 2.30 P.M. the camp was wound up but the smiles and satisfaction on the faces of people didn’t. !!!

Taking Guard of artisan’s health

Artisans are experts in their respective skills but they do not care much about their health; one of the reason being that they can’t afford it and the other is their ignorance or lack of information on these matters. Working with a large number of artisans, we are aware of their sufferings and therefore consider it as our responsibility to support them. In one of our visits to a group of wood-carving artisans in Bijnour we were exposed to some ground realities. These artisans while working get exposed to wooden dust which poses severe health risks related to respiratory diseases like asthma, Tuberculosis, bronchitis and various allergies. Some of the artisans do try cover themselves with cloth to get protected from dust but this is not feasible as the cloth hampers their working. When our team head, Rashmi Dhariwal, saw the working condition of these people, she was taken aback and suggested them to use protection masks while working. She also explained the benefits of using masks to remove the slightest doubts and queries of artisans. The idea was accepted with open arms. Not only this, 600 masks were sent free of cost from SETU’s side to the wood craft artisans of HSSS, Nagina, Bijnour to avoid any economic burden on them.

Now all the artisans use masks while working. This is not only ensuring a healthy working environment but has also resulted in increased output. We are quite happy that our small effort has helped remove some health risks from our artisans lives.

Lending a helping hand to the differently abled: (Amar Jyoti Charitable Trust)

Amar Jyoti Charitable Trust is on of our partner artisan groups which work towards the rehabilitation of physically challenged people. We are very proud to be associated with it and always try to help them in their endeavors as and when possible. In one of such efforts SETU sponsored microscopes and lamination machines for Amar Jyoti.

Microscopes to be used in pathology department for testing purposes and lamination machines were to be used for art and craft related activities.

Workshop on Health Safety and Quality

SETU, as part of its policy, organizes workshops for the artisan groups on a regular basis. These are an effective way to interact with artisans and know about their problems in a short period of time. In one such effort, a workshop was organized for our artisans near Bijnour (U.P.). These artisans are basically wood carvers. The three basic topics covered in the workshop were safety, health and quality. The importance of all three were emphasized. Artisans were also distributed written material in which the tips related to these topics were given.

A quiz and slogan competition was also held in which the artisans participated enthusiastically. Lots of nice slogans regarding safety, health & quality were put forward by the artisans. High quality tool-kits were awarded as prizes to the artisans with the best slogans / write-ups.

Some of the prizes winning slogans are given below:

“Gunvatta karigar ki pehchan hain

Swasthya karigar ki reedh hai Suraksha karigar ka jeevan hai”

Meaning:

Quality is an artisan’s identity

Health is an artisan’s back-bone

Safety is an artisan’s life

”Suraksha manushaya jeeevan ki mahtwapoorna kunji hai

Yadi karigar suraksha ka dhyan na rakhe to durghtana ho sakti hai

Suraksha ko dhyan me rakhte hue karigar apne aujar thiye, motor ityadi ki niyamit janch karta hai

Karigar suraksha ko sabse mahtwapoorna manta hai.”

Meaning:

Safety is the most important key to a human being’s life.

If artisans don’t care about safety, accidents can take place.

Keeping safety in mind, an artisan tests his tools, motor, workshop regularly

An artisan considers safety to be the most important

Spreading the word “Fair Trade”
Fair trade is market-based approach to alleviating poverty and promoting sustainability through ethical practices. It aims to educate and empower disadvantaged producers in the developing world and connect them to a market, so they too can participate in global trade. To know more about Fair Trade, click here.

As part of our commitment for spreading awareness on Fair Trade, a one day workshop was organized at Jiwaji University, Gwalior with the target audience consisting of management and commerce graduates. The opening session was delivered by our President Mrs. Rashmi Dhariwal who explained how Fair Trade can be used as a business model for the upliftment of the poor masses. She gave the idea of “Trade not aid”.

Management concepts and programme co-coordinator for development projects from Chennai) proceeded the session further and emphasized the dimensions and importance of fair trade along with other related concepts. In addition to this, role of youth in uplifting the underprivileged and marginalized communities was discussed at length. To make the session more indulging, easy tips on improving personality development skills were given to those present.

A step forward towards preserving the environment

Pollution prevention day is observed annually on 2nd December with a motive to create awareness on environment related issues. SETU, going by its green policy, observed this day by holding a workshop among the management students of Jiwaji University, Gwalior. The session started with a power packed presentation by our President Rashmi, explaining the various contributors in polluting the environment.

The highlight of the presentation was solving environmental issues through fair Trade. Many topics were discussed like Greenhouse effect, climate change, recycling of products and the like. Several quizzes were set in between the session to increase student participation and for monitoring the level of awareness present in the students about the environment. Students were asked in advance to bring at least one practical tip to prevent pollution, a day before. Several green prizes were given for the best tips and the quiz winners.

The students were suggested to adopt the “Go Green” lifestyle. The advice was accepted by students with open arms. They committed to plan some green activities in close association with SETU society along with the campaign of promoting green living.

Creating AIDS awareness among youth

Youth are the present and future, they are the ones who can bring an era of change. Therefore it is very important for them to be aware about AIDS. India is a conservative society where children are not given proper education on STDs like AIDS. Whatever knowledge they gain is from the outer world like from their friends, media etc. but this information is not sufficient as it may create confusions on the topic rather than clarify the doubts. SETU realized this fact and organized an interactive session on AIDS awareness. This event took place in the campus of Jiwaji University, among the students of M.B.A wing. Dr. Yogesh Upadhyay (head of the Department) along with the faculty contributed a lot in organizing the sessions. The interactive session was delivered by the president of the Society, Mrs. Rashmi Dhariwal.

Few minutes before the session, red ribbon logo badges were distributed among the students to create a platform and make them a part of the campaign against AIDS.

Myths related to AIDS were set to rest in the young minds who gathered there and enthusiastically participated in a Quiz- cum- dialogue on related issues. The session was aimed to spread awareness among the young people and to increase acceptance in the attitude of sensible youth of modern era for HIV/AIDS victims.

Beside AIDS and HIV awareness, other health related topics like` thalassemia’ were also discussed.

The interactive session was followed by the quizzes along with the prizes, which consisted of the Fair Trade best seller items of the Year. Prizes are distributed to several students for motivating the participation in the session.

Universal Children’s day at Madhav Bal Niketan
SETU had organized a two days program on the occasion of Universal Children Day / Child Rights Day. These were conducted on 18th & 20th November’09. Children’s Day is an event celebrated on various days in many places around the world. Universal Childrens Day is on November 20 (although other countries celebrate a local childrens day on other dates). On 20th November, United Nations General Assembly adopted the `Declaration of the Rights of the Child’ in 1959. The Convention on the Rights of the Child was then signed on the same day in 1989, which has since been ratified by 191 states. That is why this day is also well-known as “Child Rights’ Day”.

Education is essential to every child and every child has a right to it, is what SETU believes in. `Madhav Bal Niketan’, a local orphanage, also emphasizes on the importance of education, that is why they manage to send all their children to school and they were happy to be a part of our campaign of creating awareness for education. The orphan children in our program have faced many difficulties in their young lives. SETU initiated to offer them some support and encouragement they need to develop and grow.The basic aim of organizing the camp was to make children and their guardians aware of their right to education; make them realize that education is a way to achieve their dreams.

Following objectives were covered in the camp:

  • To motivate children towards education.
  • To develop Social interaction skills within them.
  • To involve them in Fun activities.
  • To spend time with the orphan kids and make them all feel special.
  • To extend their exposure to outer world.
  • To motivate them to enhance their imaginative power.

The orphanage houses 30 children including both girls and boys. Out of which only two are boys and the rest girls portraying the real picture of the Indian society. SETU Team including Society’s President Mrs. Rashmi Dhariwal and a special guest from Brazil, Ms.Mariana Oliviera, spent time with the orphan children on this day.

The sessions were designed more as a fun interaction and the concepts were delivered in playful ways for better understanding of children. In the beginning, children felt shy in opening up, they showed a kind of resistance in answering the questions about them and their likes & dislikes.

This was due to their limited exposure to social interaction. But with continued dialogue, they soon developed interest and started opening up.

They were asked to think & depict “what they want to become in their life”, all of them actively participated in the theme and showed their beautiful and colorful dream worlds in response. In between the session, prizes were distributed for motivating them to increase their participation in the session, which of course results in the desired outcome. They were also asked the ways they would like to opt to achieve their dreams. The whole session made them think and set the goals for them and to perceive education as a basic necessity for achieving their goals. The aim to fill them with zeal was achieved to a great extent.

Chocolates and fruits were served in the breaks in-between sessions.

We had distributed Coloring books and other vocational books like mehandi design books along with water paints and wax crayons. Children were encouraged to draw & paint to unleash their imagination and have fun. All of them loved coloring the brand new books which were hardly accessible to them otherwise.

HIV/AIDS awareness camp for sex workers at Reshampura-Badnapura on 12th Nov. 2009

The villages of Badnapura and Reshampura are inhabited by the people of Bedia community. Bedia is a traditional sex worker community. They have been living here for more than 50 years. The history of this community shows that in olden times, the Royal families and local lords, promoted this community for their entertainment because of their expertise in signing and dancing. With time, this became a profession for this community and developed into full-fledged prostitution trade.

Further, this village is very near to Gwalior Transport Nagar through which about 3500 trucks pass everyday. Of these, about 500-700 trucks halt here every day and their stay could vary between 5 hours to 3 days

The aim of the one day health camp was to make the rural areas aware of the issues like “HIV/AIDS’ and ‘Family Planning’ and to provide them with best medical treatment & expertise health check-up , free of cost , at their door step.

We had distributed Coloring books and other vocational books like mehandi design books along with water paints and wax crayons. Children were encouraged to draw & paint to unleash their imagination and have fun. All of them loved coloring the brand new books which were hardly accessible to them otherwise.

  1. To provide free medicines and medical treatment for the people..
  2. Identification, testing for HIV/AIDS.
  3. Motivating women and make them aware of their health related issues.
  4. Uplift the community through awareness generation, health education, and strength building.
  5. We also aimed to connect the schools and Anganwadis with the community by taking them along with us for promoting education, health awareness and sanitary issues.
  6. Emphasizing on Information Education and Communication resulting in generation of awareness and change in the social scenario for women.
  7. Address entire population to bring about the relevant behavioral changes for improved health practices.

Following facilities were provided in the camp:

  • Free Gynecological check up
  • Distribution of medicines free of cost. The medicines included generic medicines, antibiotics, contraceptives, multivitamins etc
  • Free AIDS testing, maintaining confidentiality of reports
  • Awareness about reproductive & child health issues.
  • Follow up after the camp

In the camp, it was found that many of the women were ignorantly suffering from serious gynecological problems for many years (some were suffering even from last 20 years) The main reasons being illiteracy and the lack of access to avail medical treatment. All the check ups were done under the supervision of an expert gynecologist, Dr. Pooja Mundra (M.S., gynae & obstetrics) and the medicines prescribed were given free of cost . Also, the women were assured of free follow up after the camp.

AIDS testing was not an easy one to carry out. Initially the people were skeptical of being tested for AIDS but when they were assured of confidentiality about their reports, they opened up. “Prevention is better than cure”, following this phrase, condoms and contraceptives were distributed free of cost among the target population.

Promoting abilympics

Abilympics are vocational skill competitions for persons with disabilities to enable them to showcase and enhance their talent. Abilympics empower the contestants and help create public awareness about their abilities. National Abilympic Association of India is the official organizer for the event along with Amar Jyoti Charitable Trust, one of groups working with us. It is a member of the International Abilympic Federation.

SETU gave donations for purchase of sewing machines for the regional abilympics –north zone. The experience was a satisfying one as we were able to do something for these extremely able people. We hope to promote more such events in the future.

Health camp for orphan children in Arunachal Pradesh

Children are tomorrow’s future. Most of the kids have their parent’s unconditional love to take care of them but there are some unfortunate ones who lack such support and require a helping hand from the privileged society. SETU team clearly understands this and on a timely basis tries to help these little angels. In one such effort, SETU sponsored a health check up Camp for orphanage children at one of our artisan groups ( OJU welfare association) in Arunachal Pradesh. General medical checkup of kids was done in the camp. Also free medicines were distributed. We were successful in our efforts as a large number of children got treated in the camp.

Girl child awareness programme at Dahod, Gujarat

SETU sponsored an educational awareness program for the education of `Girl child’ amongst tribal community the villages of Dahod District.

The program was brought into action through one of our artisan groups in Gujarat. In the program, the campaigning team interacted with various girls where the team explained the benefits of girl child education not only to the girls but also to their mothers. Initially the mothers were slightly skeptical about the idea of girl child education and were not sure about it as they were of the view that its better that girls should do household work as this only will help them once they get married and there’s no use of educating them. Also if the girls get educated, it would be difficult to find a suitable match for them. These all doubts were cleared by the team and ultimately the team got them convinced.

Medical benefits for the artisans – Meeting basic health needs

SETU is working with over 20000 artisans spread over various regions of India. Many lack access to potable water, electricity, and other basic services. Their villages are sometimes in hostile environments (such as deserts), far away from metropolitan areas. A major challenge of living in a remote location is the lack of health care facilities.

Our goal is to provide this basic facility to all of our artisans and their families. We are currently working in association with various organizations namely `Khamir’, “SURE” and “HSSS” to achieve this basic health care development. Every year, we provide a no. of artisans in different areas with health insurance cover.

Solar Panels Illuminate Desert Villages – Meeting the energy needs of rural, desert villages

The artisan group that creates all of our appliquéd products is scattered throughout several desert villages, far away from cities. Living away from modern infrastructure is challenging because there are no energy plants or cables for distributing energy nearby. This means that our artisans in these areas have no access to electricity.

SETU consortium has an ongoing project to provide each house in at least 2 of the villages with a solar panel. The total cost of each solar lamp (installation one per house) is be $120.00. We are aiming to install 100 solar panels (50 houses per village).

Providing a household with electricity greatly improves the artisans’ families’ quality of life. Children can study at night, mothers can cook, and everyone won’t have to wander in the dark anymore.

Amar Jyoti

Development & Education Project: The [candle] flame that never extinguishes

This project revolves around the organization whose main purpose is to provide education and health care to underprivileged children. The school also provides vocational education to help them become self-sustainable when they grow up. The school raises some income by making the newspaper & jute bags which have been developed for them by SETU as a part of fostering self-sustainability, but they need more help.

Half of the children they work with have some kind of disability (hearing impaired, sight problems, missing limbs, mentally challenged, neurological disorder, and so on). The other half come from very poor families. This creates an integrated environment where the physically impaired children can interact with the “normal” children, and where all of them can have a positive education environment. The organization has their own clinic that helps the children with disabilities. They also take care of special surgeries, and even have a workshop that makes the prosthetic limbs that some children use.

The school is constantly in need to buy or upgrade computers, ocular implants, water purifiers, motor-run sewing machines (to teach the physically impaired children how to sew), furniture and building maintenance. However, their biggest need at the moment is money to cover the vocational training. The programs that are available for them to study are: Art & Craft, Textile Design and Jute Bag Making, Computer Applications, Cutting & Tailoring, Electrician. For now, each student needs $150.00 (about Rs 7000) a year to cover for education costs.

SETU not only tries to develop products that these special needs people can create, but also helps them improve product quality, optimize the costs and choose eco-friendly raw materials. In addition, SETU provides them market for their products. They can thus be self-sustainable and live their lives in a dignified manner without being dependent on others.

Kala Raksha Vidyalaya

“Kala Raksha” means “Protecting art”. At SETU consortium, we greatly value the conservation of handmade, cultural and artistic talents.

In our experiences, we have noticed that many art forms are becoming extinct. Unfair trade practices make artisans go out of business, provide mundane work at factories that doesn’t require artistic skills, and ultimately stop the passing of knowledge from one generation to the next. Thus, younger people do not inherit the artistic skills their forefathers created, since they render it useless in a “modern” world.

SETU is committed to keep art alive. Kala Raksha Vidyalaya is a school in Gujarat, India that provides vocational training in the traditional art forms to the local women. The aim is for rural people to practice and preserve the art of this region. We provide direct financial help to support this project, which nurtures many of the art forms used to create our products. Furthermore, we provide the artisans with information necessary to create more fashionable and marketable products, so they have a better chance to compete against big factories.

DSS Flood Relief

Towards the end of October, 2008, there was massive flooding due to heavy rains in the Mahanadi basin in Orissa and Chhatisgarh. The flooding affected mostly the districts of Puri, Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Khurda, Nayagarh, Boudh, Kalahandi, and Rayagara. 2 million people were displaced as a result.

SETU consortium donated money to their cause and arranged for medical care of the victims through their partner NGO (Darabar Sahitya Sansad (DSS) in Orissa. They immediately started attending to the needs of the affected people, including dry food, baby food, drinking water, cattle feed, medicines, and temporary shelter.

Dolls & Toys Distribution – Mercy Kits

SETU distributed dolls and toys to children in different orphanages in India. Most of these kids are girls. This is a sad reality in India & many Asian countries, where families rejoice when a boy is born but mourn the birth of a girl. Many kids have suffered from malnutrition or severe illness since before they got there. This has affected them to the point where they have permanent physical or mental disabilities. Overall, the orphanages don’t have enough resources to support many children, especially ones that need extra medical care and good nourishment.

In the past, we have purchased big-sized Candy dolls that can wrap their hands around the kids, for the girls, and cuddly Winnie the Pooh Teddy dolls for the small boys. Older boys got Laser Tops and pull-back cars, and the infants got rotating musical toys. “The children were ecstatic to have them, especially since the brand new and fresh, colorful dolls were uncommon for them,” comments Rashmi Dhariwal, President SETU Society. In addition to the toys, we gave the children ice-creams, biscuit packs and bananas.

The greatest challenge the kids face is that of being placed in a safe home. Many of them are just “dumped” by their parents at the orphanages when they are very young, without any legal papers. The parents may come back, even years later, and demand them back. The orphanage authorities cannot afford to fall victims of any legal/controversial cases, so they have to give them back to the parents.

Vidya Archana

A compound word, “Vidya Archana” stands for worshiping knowledge. Its meaning is derived from the Hindi language words “Vidya”, which means knowledge, and “Archana”, which means worship.

We believe that education is the key to a better life and a better society. Therefore, Vidya_Archana was started as an effort by SETU to share and spread knowledge. This program is aimed for the children of the underprivileged section of society who have all the will but no means to fulfill their education needs.The program focuses on collecting used books and stationary from donations and raising funds. They are then redistributed to economically disadvantaged children who want to study but don’t have the resources to continue their education. Financial aid is also given to students in terms of scholarships, merit awards and sponsorship for higher education. Vidya_Archana is currently being undertaken in northern India, helping more and more kids each year.

<strong><span style=”color: #993300;”>Workshop on Capacity Building &amp; Self-development for our artisans of Kutch, Gujarat (October 8, 2011 to October 10, 2011)</span>
Venue: Bhuj, Kutch, Gujarat.

A total of three workshops were organized by SETU for the artisans of Bhuj, Kutch with the help & co-operation of our partner NGOs viz. Khamir CRC, Qasab & VGS. The venues chosen were the artisan facilitation Centers of these three NGOs, in and around Bhuj, for maximum & easy accessibility of artisans. The three days long program was held from October 8, 2011 to October 10, 2011 at VGS, Khamir CRC and Qasab respectively.

Following programs were covered in the Workshops:

  1. Capacity Building
  2. Self-development
  3. Food & Nutrition
  4. Health, Hygiene & Sanitation

The participant artisans included craft persons associated with bell making, batik printing, dyeing, tailoring, embroidery, weaving, door-to-door directly linked collective female workers, SHG (Self Help Group Members) etc. At Qasab, the participants were all women, at Khamir, they were all men and at VGS, both men & women participated. In all, 110 artisans benefitted from the workshops.

The workshop included various topics such as Time management, Quality improvement, increasing production capacity, risk taking capacity, innovative thinking, building positive attitude etc. Guidance was given on how to use effective procedures, how to absorb latest information and apply it.

As part of livelihood promotion, information on how to achieve self-employment and start own `Gruh Udyog’ i.e. domestic production was imparted. How to avail the facilities &amp; support available for such ventures and how to manage these were informed.

Knowledge was given on how to achieve &amp; retain the maximum nutrients from available local food substances and how to incorporate vital ingredients in their diet.

Health education for women was also provided. Special emphasis was laid on use of sanitary napkins for improving hygiene. SETU plans to provide them with sanitary napkins shortly to assist them in this regard.

Some additional issues for the betterment of day-to-day life such as equality amongst men and women, removing personal grudges &amp; betterment of married life were also discussed.

In all, the motive was to guide them to adopt techniques that can help them to increase production and improve their skills along with upgrading their personal lives.

The workshops were highly interactive in nature. At the end, specially designed questionnaires were distributed among the participants to judge the knowledge grasped by them &amp; to assess the change in their attitude levels after the workshop.

The overall program was a huge success and SETU plans to conduct more such workshops for more artisans in future.

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