Hatibari Health Home

Leprosy has always been viewed with hatred and repulsion by the society as a whole. Persons affected with the Hansen’s disease are viewed as cursed souls punished for their misdeeds. Efforts have been made to bring the affected persons to the social mainstream. One such attempt was made by Padmashree Dr. Isaac Santra an eminent Gandhian social worker. Heestablished an Ashram for the persons affected by Hansen’s disease; leprosy; at Hatibari in the year 1951. The centre was named after the village; Hatibari Kusthashram which later came to be known as ‘Hatibari Health Home. After the demise of the great soul Dr. Santra in August 1968, the management of the Home came under the control of Hind Kustha Nibarini Sangha (HKNS), a national organisation working for identification, treatment and rehabilitation of leprosy cured persons having His Highness the President of India as its national Chairperson and His Excellency the Governor of Orissa as its Chairpersons for Orissa state.The Sambalpur chapter is chaired by the Collector & District Magistrate, Sambalpur with the District Social Welfare Officer as the Secretary cum Treasurer and the Chief District Medical Officer as members along with other eminent social workers. The Home provides an opportunity to the leprosy affected as well as cured persons to lead a normal life with self-respect, dignity and without a feeling of being socially excluded. The infrastructure available at the Home, viz. the cultivable land, the industrial sheds (for black smithy/ rope making/ tailoring/ handloom weaving), the Pisciculture ponds and the orchards provided them to work with confidence and an opportunity to lead a respectable and dignified life. However after the departure of the great soul, the maintenance of the infrastructure went down gradually with a deepening of morale, self confidence among the inmates. The situation was viewed seriously and discussed several time in a series of meetings of the management. Subsequently DHKNS advised BISWA to take over the productive idolization of the infrastructure available at the Home.

Candle Making Unit : This unit is working at Hatibari Health Home aiming at economic rehabilitation of the leprosy cured persons. Since 2002 (the year that BISWA took over the income generation unit of the Home) the unit has trained 33 persons in the trade. It produces fancy as well as utility candles to cater the local market.

Weaving Unit : Functioning at Hatibari Health Home, it provides training as well as employment opportunity as a rehabilitation measure to the dependents of original inmates. With a minimum input the inmates are able to produce clothing for the households e.g. lungi, gamchha and sarees at a very reasonably economic price.

Sisal Fiber Unit : At Hatibari Health Home BISWA has established one Training cum production unit on Sisal Fiber. Fiber is extracted from the Sisal by extractor and then many utility and decorative items are prodiced ouit of the fiber. The produce have a high demand in local as well as national markets.

Innovative Schools

Every Indian school child is taught about the unity in India’s diverse cultures. But few are taught why we have such diverse cultures. Cultural diversity is not a historical accident; it is the direct outcome of the country’s extraordinary biological diversity. Until the global “multinational culture” fuelled by the industrial revolution hit the world, each culture- in India, as much as in the rest of the world- was the result of the people trying to survive within their immediate environment and indeed of an attempt to optimize the resources of their environment.

Aims and Objectives:
Aiming at furthering the goal of education, change and social development in Sambalpur, BISWA with the help of Asha for Education: a philanthropic trust in USA and our friends from USA, lunched 20 numbers of schools in the rural parts of its home district Sambalpur titled as "Innovative Schools" with the intention of undertaking, support and sponsor study and spread of education in its different facets that include:

• All types of formal & non-formal education with constant search for innovative ideas & techniques.
• Facilitate total development, in body, mind and spirit through provision of external stimulation based on the inner urge and motivation of target groups.
• Development and strengthen the necessary institutional framework in rural & tribal areas which will initiate, promote & sustain the objective of education & social transformation.
• Establish open communication channel between people and policy makers.
• Equip children with the knowledge necessary to become active participants and positive contributors to their communities.
• Provide children with a joyful and creative school atmosphere that incorporates the education and skills relevant to a meaningful and dignified existence.

Our Activities:

These schools impart elementary education for class one to seven according to the state course curriculum around the area. An addition to it the traditional system in land-use, in water-use and water harvesting, in agriculture and animal care, in food preservation, herbal medicine and a host of other activities i. e. bamboo work, pottery, broom making have invariably proved to be ecologically sound and innovative for the students thus have found an important portion of teaching in these schools .

We take an attempt to prove that the traditional systems are extremely important even in the so called world of modern science and technology. Their ecological rationality remains valid even in the modern context. School children and the illiterate villagers know their environment very well and experts too must learn from the villager with respect. The students are made aware regarding their livelihood pattern and its impact on the environment and ways & means of regenerating the lost environment. The schools run from 7a.m to 10 a.m on every working day so the students are provided with a mid-day-meal consisting of a balanced diet for children as Healthier children are more effective learners.

Basic Need Program

Basic Needs Program has completed 3 years and has delivered satisfaction to its all stakeholders including the donors and end-users. In the remote parts of the Sambalpur district, many of the villages lack the basic amenities such as elementary education, primary health care, safe drinking water and access to resources to pursue income generating activities. These four are targeted under the Basic Needs Program. 48 villages are identified to be covered and by the end of this financial year 24 have been covered. BISWA entered into discussions with the District Administration and as a result of this triconed efforts Basic Needs program has successfully implemented the following activities against the background prevailing prior to commencement of the program. The Basic Needs Program represents a perfect example of participatory approach to community development with a holistic approach. The program has covered the most significant segment of community development: Basic Infrastructure Services, the health, education, safe drinking water, poverty alleviation, Women empowerment and Child care with active participation of the Government, the private donors, an NGO and the community as a whole. The pace of the planned intervention ensures a population gradually moving out of the dreaded poverty line; out of apathy to self esteem & self reliance.

Asha for Education with BISWA's help started non-formal education centers in four villages (Jhankarbahali, Rathipada, Budapada & Tangarjuri) near Sambalpur town in western Orissa. These villages were backward and remote areas. This project was initiated by Mrs. Joyashree Mahanti, a resident of East Lansing, MI USA during her stay in that area between Jan-Mar 2003. Innovative schools that Asha supports have been especially created to not only address the pitfalls in the conventional education system but also ensure that children from poor socio-economic backgrounds are not deprived of the opportunity for high quality education. Innovative schools assist children in taking the main stream government examinations.

GUIDING PRINCIPLES:

• Concept: The Basic Needs Program provides four basic needs: drinking water, food, basic education, and basic health care. But the most important aspect of this program is that all these four needs should be provided at the same time to bring the villagers to a basic standard of living. Just giving water or food or basic education or basic health care is not going to change the living standard or thinking of the villagers where they lack all four basic needs.
• A Team Effort: It is difficult to achieve this mission by one person. We need a team to work together to achieve our mission with trust, similar vision and concerned.
• Selection of Villages: We select villages which are remote and interior and lack water, food, education, infrastructure, health care, and have very limited choices for livelihood trades.
• Development in a cluster of villages: We prefer to implement the Basic Needs Program in a cluster of villages instead of putting all the resources into one village and make it a model.
• Villager’s financial participation is very important: Nothing should be given for free. The beneficiaries must contribute a minimum amount towards all the projects. This gets them involved and gives them a feeling of ownership.
• Low Budget Projects: One can take some risks with a low budget project. If the project is successful and sustains for a few years, it can be expanded. If not, we discontinue the project and learn from our mistakes. We prefer to use the same amount of money to help more people than to help a few. For example, with the same budget, We prefer to have many schools that provide basic education to many children, rather than having one big concrete school. Also, We prefer to start a production unit under a tree than waiting to have a proper building to start the unit.

PURPOSE:

• Non-formal education to the drop outs, children engaged in labour & other children of the school going age so that they become literate & become able to attend formal schools.
• To create a model for making other tribal people of the surrounding villages aware of benefits of the education.

VILLAGES COVERED :

Grain Bank Statistics

BISWA Gramyadevi Grain Bank, Jhankerbahali

SBI, Maltigundeipur
A/C No-NA

BISWA, Maa Mauli Grain Bank, Budapada

SBI, Maltigundeipur
A/C No-01170063140
Paddy Stock- 190 kg

BISWA, Maa Mauli Grain Bank, Budapada

SBI, Maltigundeipur
A/C No-01170063140
Paddy Stock- 190 kg

BISWA Bira bajrangbali Grain Bank,Tangerjuri

SBI, Maltigundeipur
A/c No-01170063143
Paddy-2 quintal 50 kg

BISWA Radhamadhaba Grain Bank,Antapali

SBI, Maltigundeipur
A/c No- 01170063142
Paddy stock- 187 kg

BISWA Ramji Grain Bank,Mahulpali

SBI, Maltigundeipur
A/C No-01170063168
Paddy stock-187 kg

BISWA Maa Jogipali Budharaja Grain Bank,Jogipali

SBI, Maltigundeipur
A/c No-01170063170
Paddy- NA

BISWA Maheswari Grain Bank,Mendhalipali

SBI, Maltigundeipur
A/c No-NA
Paddy- 190 kg

BISWA Laxmi Grain Bank,Rathipada

SBI, Maltigundeipur
A/c No- 01170063169
Paddy stock-190 kg