Fighting Malnutrition Through Child Care in India

Soniya, is a cheerful caretaker at one of our day-care centre (Balwadi) at Dewas. The children are less hesitant around her and over time, tend to develop a relish for her warm company.

Soniya recalls- her uncomplicated routine and the fun of group teaching before the pandemic hit. “The euphony of children singing aloud nursery rhymes in their own sweet voice, and playing with their animal themed flash cards- are some of my favourite moments that I hold in my bag of memories.” she says. She clearly remembers how a sense of togetherness helped the children groom into better individuals and develop self-confidence. She also recalls the ease with which the children would make friends and participate in activities together.

However, after COVID-19 hit India, nothing has remained the same.

Following the government’s safety guidelines and protocols, Centre-based Balwadi day-cares are not functional for the time being. But the caretakers of our Balwadis are now shifted to a new routine i.e. grouped day-care arrangement where they do activities with children in small groups. They can now entertain not more than five children in one sitting.

Our caretakers have also maintained a continuous supply of nutritious food for the children, helping lower the risk of malnutrition, especially during such trying times. Only parents are allowed to come to Balwadis and collect the food for their children in their own tiffin-boxes.

We hope that this situation will soon change and we will again see small children coming to Balwadis for their regular schedule. Times like these come with challenges of their own, yet caretakers like Soniya remains hopeful.

It is with the help from generous donors like you, that our committed caretakers are able to go beyond their role. We appreciate your acknowledgement of the fact that your donations can have such a profound impact on the lives of so many children. At present, Seva Mandir, in close collaboration with communities, is running 160 Balwadi centres catering to 4,451 children in Udaipur and Rajsamand districts of southern Rajasthan.Your support is invaluable to these children, and we dearly thank you for being with us.

Stay safe and healthy.

Regards

Atul Lekhra & the Seva Mandir Team

www.facebook.com/sevamandir 

Links:

• Seva Mandir's Website
• Seva Mandir's Facebook Page
• Seva Mandir's Friends Chapter in USA

Dear Friend,

The 2^nd wave of COVID-19 across India has hit us harder than the first one. The entire health system of the country is out of its breath, due to the large number of patients needing treatment. At Seva Mandir, we still believe in the importance of precaution and prevention, and the only way to reduce the burden on a health system that has already been pushed to the limits. But the worst-affected are always the underprivileged and vulnerable communities. For them prevention is very important, as treatment is a bigger challenge.

The state of Rajasthan is under strict lockdown. Udaipur and parts of southern Rajasthan are severely impacted. Unlike last year, this time the rural region has been hit hard and large numbers of patients are reported from the villages.

During this medical emergency, Seva Mandir team continues to work and support communities. We are working closely with health experts and organisations to understand needs and have taken up the response work ahead in the villages where Covid cases are surging at an unstoppable pace. Multitude of problems are witnessed causing spread of the virus such as rural patients struggling with home isolation, finding treatment close to home, arranging for food and basic amenities, misinformation and so on. An immediate and pressing need is to provide access to reliable information, counter dangerous myths regarding the disease, vaccination and treatment, and provide survival support to the vulnerable families in the rural and tribal parts of Udaipur and Rajsamand.

Seva Mandir is well placed to deliver this through its wide network of volunteers and community institutions. It is responding to this situation by undertaking the Covid Relief Work. The assessment of needs in areas of food, safety equipment, care, counselling, awareness and referral is being carried out continuously in consultation with communities and local institutions to help community withstand the adversity. Also, Seva Mandir is implementing robust measures to protect its staff and the team of front liners who are undertaking the implementation of the relief work.

We, hence, seek your continuous support to help the rural communities withstand the impacts of the pandemic. We are aiming to provide families in rural, tribal and urban slum communities with vital relief packs to ensure they can survive this crisis. We trust that you will continuously support us. We also believe that the world will soon come out with this situation.

Thank you so much.

Regards

Atul Lekhra & the Seva Mandir Team 

Links:

• Seva Mandir's Website
• Seva Mandir's Facebook Page
• Seva Mandir's Friends Chapter in USA