Chennai floods-help rebuild 3000 children's lives

Centre for Women’s Development and Research

Chennai Floods- Help rebuild the lives of 3000 children.

GlobalGiving Update September 2016

Last 3 months that is from July 2016 onwards our focus was more on girl children’s education and long term strategies to handle disaster situations.  Our relief activities have almost completed and stopped because of the funding crunch, that is with limited resources we could only reach out all the people in our working slums.  Mostly our focus was on adolescent girls and women who are part of our CBOs-Community Based Organizations.  Since the monsoons are nearing people are living with fear because nothing much to mitigate the floods were done by the government, waterways were not cleaned and deepened, rain water drainage system work is not completed and not reached to places vulnerable to floods. 1000 families severely affected by the floods are shifted to new rehabilitation housing centre at Ezhil nagar.  No additional support for their livelihood are not given by the government. In Ezhil Nagar the slum clearance board had allotted a place for us, even though it is small place we are running our recreational learning centre for adolescent girls here.  We can also organize small group of 10-15 women’s meeting.  This allotment is also recognition for our work in Ezhil Nagar.   As usual women are playing major roles in these situations like make sure children get food, goes to schools, medical help if family members are sick.  Most of their household’s things lost, work is lost but women make sure the family is running they find work, they collect ration and relief materials in short provide health, education and social security to their family members. 

We have organized regular meetings of our CBOs-Community Based Organizations, Manushi- the domestic worker’s association, Maithri-Single women’s association and Snehidhi-Adolescent girl’s association. Nearly 900 women participated in these slum level meetings from 32 slums. Mostly getting rehabilitation support, government schemes, children’s education and improving income were discussed in these meetings.  Another important issue discussed the coming monsoon and their expectations.   In Ezhil nagar a Kannagi nagar  Velacherry, Sholinganallur slums we have organized workshops of Entrepreneurship skill training for women and 62 women participated in these workshops.  Out of these 20 women were given financial support to start their own business like snacks selling, flower garland making, fruits and vegetable selling.  For other women we are exploring ways of getting finance support like loans to start some small business.

Ms.Jayanthi is a single mother actually deserted by her husband, she is just 27 years but has 3 daughters 9 years, 7 years and 4 years old.  She has no brothers and no support from her family.  She lives in Kannagi nagar slums. Her house is also affected by the floods.  In the morning she works as a domestic worker and earns Rs.1500per month, it is very hard for her to manage the family. During floods she also lost one month’s work because during that time she did not go for work. She is a member of our ‘Maithri’ single women’s association and active in helping other women.  So to improve her income we have provided her some help to buy a push cart with that she runs an evening snack shop.  With that now she earns additional Rs.3000 and somehow manages the family.  Apart from the financial support Maithri also provides psychosocial counseling for single women.

During this period, we have initiated 3 recreational learning centres. Nearly 180 girls benefit from these centres. There adolescent girls learn computer skill training, supplementary education support and life skill and sexuality education.  In addition to that they also play games, learn folk dance songs, do drawing painting, all these activities also serve as counselling for these children. Even after 8 months of floods, even today if we ask them to draw most of them draw about their flood experience.

In the Velachery centre girls learn folk dance Thappattam, and in Mylapore centre they learn street play. 48 girls participate in these workshops.  They are developing plays and songs to use it in the coming Campaign to eliminate violence against women.  Since it is college admission period we have also organized career guidance workshops for girls completed their 10^th and 12^th standards.  90 girls participated in these workshops.  3 girls were given full scholarships to join college degree courses one for B. Com course, one for BCA and another for B.Sc.(Bio-Chemistry) courses.  In addition to that 10 girls who scored above 90% were given Rs.3000 each as motivation support to continue their college education.

Since November month is nearing that is monsoon is nearing women already started worrying about the floods it is expressed in all the slum level meetings so we are planning to organize disaster management workshops for women.