Achievements in 2004

We are happy to inform that on 26th Oct. 04 we completed sixth year working and providing care and services to the poor and vulnerable children, women and old of Gwalior and Chambal region and enter into 7th year now. We organised many multi-speciality and eye camps in the hospital and villages providing services for three weeks continuously to commemorate our annual celebrations with official inauguration of the mobile hospital-the real hospital on wheels and initiating our Orphanage-SNEHALAYA on 13th Nov. 04.

Since beginning in 1998, in spite of many hassles and teething problems with very limited resources without any support from local or central government, the charity has brought the work to this stage providing for poor, disabled, destitute and the underprivileged of the Gwalior and Chambal region in Central India.

The Hospitals –
223249 patients have been benefited with consultations, investigations, operations and treatment facilities inclusive of 64759 this year. With addition of another floor last year, the hospital; has been providing services to the mothers and children with ICU facilities and additional operation theatre and delivery room. Our OPD is open to anyone for free, manned by specialists in all disciplines. Other services are provided for free to poor, disabled, destitute and for nominal charges to others.

We are obliged for help by Dr. B. Misra from USA, one of GRMC alumni from Gwalior, to provide funds for another general ward in the maternity wing to provide hospitalisation care for poor people in the community. The ward has been named as “Dr. Anand Swaroop Misra memorial general ward” in the memory of his late father.

However demands are much more than our limited resources and funds available to provide these services. We wish that we should not refuse anyone for appropriate treatment for financial reasons, but sometimes we have to take hard decisions due to lack of funds. Our Trauma team & ambulances continue to provide emergency services 24 hrs / day throughout the year. We are hoping to build another floor to bring up a stroke centre with physiotherapy and rehabilitation facilities as our next target.

Volunteers –
372 volunteer experts including doctors, teachers, nurses, technicians etc. from UK, USA, Australia, France, Canada, Ireland, Switzerland, and UAE have visited and participated in our programme to help train our staff and provide services to the community. Many medical students from Australia, Canada and UK also joined us to gain valuable work experience and helped us by fundraising and publicising the needs and work.

Dr. Ranjana Sharma, Emma Callander, Ann Speed, Rajashree, Cathy, Lara, Bonny Squair, Vicky Sleet, Darshana Patel, Sarah, Hannah, Priya Desai, Joanne, Adam and Thomas Whitefield are few of the many, who have made all the difference to bring up this work this year.

MOBILE HOSPITAL, SLUMS AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT WORK
Our mobile hospital continues to provide health education, vaccinations and other services in slums and rural areas. 492 medical camps have been organised in slums and remote villages in addition to 15 regular rural health centres at Nonera, Jaurasi, Billowa, Nagor, Kalyani, Kothi, Neem Chandoba, Maucha, Banwar, Rudrapura, Susera Kothi, Pratap Singh Ka Pura, Beerpura, Gajipura and Ginawali.

Our “Real Hospital on Wheels” is ready and functional, but unfortunately for lack of funds, we could not make it work to full extent as envisaged. We need to have funds to engage full team to provide virtual hospital services at doorsteps to the poor in slums and villages, which we do not have.

Further, local road conditions do not allow us to visit some of such remote areas with these facilities. We are still waiting for funding from GRMC alumni in USA as promised causing further delay in organising this work. At present within our limited sources, we are providing these services twice a week. With your help, we are hoping to organise this work to provide such services as planned for 20 to 25 days a month, each day in a different remote area soon.

Eye Centre –
Our eye centre continues to work – aiming at prevention of blindness and saving sights. Dr. Marathe left us this year; however Dr. Abha Shukla has taken over and expanded these services. So far 11749 persons have been provided services through the centres, including 54 eye camps. 437 IOL operations have been carried out giving sight to these people. There is lot of scope to improve upon this work, but again lack of funds restricts us to use our potential to full extent. Our requests for help from Helpage, Sight Savers and other such big organisation still remain under consideration, but we continue to work as much as we can, within our limited resources.

On 31st Oct. Dr. Sharma was invited as Guest of honour at the annual meeting of the Prevention of Blindness Society. He was presented with plaque and certificate to recognise the work of these charities towards prevention of blindness in these areas.

Hospice, Schools and Orphanages –
981 children in various schools and orphanages continue to be supported by these charities. Adhar and Sunrise schools continue as main stream schools with special needs group providing education to 182 children. We are supporting children in schools and orphanages for blind (Boys and Girls), deaf & dumb children, Roshani (School for spastic children), Kedarpur School for tribal children, orphanage for homeless girls, Mother Teresa’s home for sick girls, Amar Jyoti (School for physically handicapped) and other children in slums and on street. We continue with support for educational needs and provide all health care needs to these children through our hospital. Our volunteers continue to work and care for the children in these places. Many of such children in these Orphanages are sponsored by us for their total care and all expenses.

Our volunteers continue to work for children in Mercy Home, in spite of all the hurdles and harassment, at the hands of the local government staff due to their negative attitudes. We have provided additional clothes, toys, and bed linen, milk, play & dining facilities with more carers to make it better for the children there. Our request for handover of total management has not come through and on that front it looks we are hitting our heads against a brick wall. We were successful in shifting 14 girls from Mercy Home to Mother Teresa Home, Deepak and Rakesh have been shifted to Vivekanand Ashram to give them home, education and care with our sponsorship. As you know, we had to take Radha with ourselves as an emergency situation initiating the hospice for children with HIV. Radha continues to live happily with us as our family member, getting education and care like any other normal child with ongoing treatment and maintenance regime.

Looking into all our problems in spite of our limitations, we have taken a bold decision and are going ahead with building work to establish our own orphanage, “Snehalaya – the home with love” with a school and vocational training centre for disabled street children aiming to provide them a life with love, an opportunity to become independent and lead life with dignity and self esteem. We request all of you to help us as much as possible to complete this work and we are sure that we can do it with your support.

Merit Scholarships, Poor Students’ Fund, Overseas Education and Training Programme –
Miss Namrata Gaikwad and Mr. Sandeep Singh Atwal were awarded with Dr. V. N. Sehgal and Dr. B. K. Sharma’s Merit Scholarships for standing 1st and 2nd in First Professional examination held in the year 2003 at GRMC, Gwalior with aims to encourage all students for studies and become disciplined good citizens of India, as these are the pillars for our future.

We shall support poor students with books, travel subsidiaries and scholarships for research and studies through established poor students fund. We continue to guide, advice and help to undertake training and education to Indian Students in UK, USA and Australia. We have supported 43 students so far under this programme.

FUND RAISING
Our colleagues, volunteers and supporters continue to help us in fundraising by organising various activities. Special names to mention for this year are Darshana Patel and Priya Desai from UCL, London, Michael Binnei from Surrey, Jacky Marsh, Stephanie Wolfe-Murray, Bonny Squair, Charles Drace-Francis from Edinburgh, Tony Sinclair from Glasgow, Sarah Hannah and Joanna from Leeds, Jamie Campbell and Thomas Whitfield from Cardiff, Mary-Louise Bush with other staff and pupils of Judgemeadow School from Leicester and many more. We were touched when Patricia Pawar asked all friends and relatives to donate to GCHC in lieu of flowers for her late husband Dr, Pratap Pawar, who had been a volunteer and supporter since the very beginning. Marion Ayling asked all guests attending her wedding to donate to GCHC rather than bringing gifts insisting that all gifts if brought will be put for auction to raise funds to help us. We wish that everyone takes a lead from these to help the poor and needy rather than wasting money in meaningless celebrations.

The Edinburgh Academy, one of the most prestigious schools in Edinburgh (UK) selected our charity as “Charity of the Year” out of many applicants. We are obliged to Jacky Marsh, the charity committee in-charge who organised many fund raising activities throughout the year, raising funds for the orphanage work with the help and support of all staff members, pupils and parents. We shall continue to develop this relationship to promote students’ exchange programme and we are expecting many volunteers among A- level students and staff members from there to work with us at Gwalior.

The charity celebrated its third volunteers’ day on 26th June ’04 at Telford. The annual raffle draw was held on the day at the hands of our chief guest Mr. S.S. Butalia, Deputy Consul General of India, in presence of our patron Rev. Bradley, volunteers and supporters. Mr. G. S. tamber won the first prize of £250 and Mr. Rod brown won the second prize of £100, but to our delight, both donated this money to the charity.

Michael Binnie, our fundraiser of the year 2003, presented the Honour with certificate of appreciation for Fundraiser of the year 2004 to Mrs. Stephanie Wolfe-Murray. Dr. Ranjana Sharma, Emma Callander, Darshana Patel, Priya Desai, Andrew Whitwood and Dr. Pratap Pawar received the certificates for their outstanding volunteering and fundraising work at the hands of our patron and chief guest. We are much obliged to Lynda and George McShane, Preritha Desikan, Madeleine Holland, Dorothy, members of Telford band, Jack Ashley and others for such a memorable evening and raising funds for the Hospice for children with HIV.

Bonny Squair, Anne Goring, Charles, Vicky organised Christmas Ball on 9th Dec 2004 at Assembly Halls in Edinburgh with help and support of our friends in Scotland. It turned out to be a fabulous evening with tasty food, entertainment, music and dance and also successful in raising much needed funds for the orphanage. We are hoping to make it a regular event every year in future. Madeleine Holland has launched the “Buy a brick appeal” for the Orphanage on 18th Dec. celebrating Christmas with music and entertainment at The Green Man in Birmingham with help of Debbie Hays and support of our friends there.

Honours and Awards-
Emma Callander, Michael Binnie, Edward and Amanda Nelson were honoured by Walsall Volunteering Bureau recognising their efforts and hard work for GCHC. Dr. B. K. Sharma, founder of these charities was honoured with Volunteer of the Year Award by Volunteering Bureau and National Volunteering Council in UK for his work.

Congratulations to our honorary Director in India, Prof. B. Shukla, who has been elected as President of the Ocular Trauma Society of India and awarded with the Air Marshall Dr. S. Boparai award and Sir Shreeram Memorial Award for the year 2004, recognising his work and contributions to ophthalmic services in India. We are proud to have a person of his stature associated with us.

Mrs. Madeleine Holland, our advisor has been honoured with “Mayor’s Good Citizen award for year 2004”, the Top Civic award of the year. She got selected out of 98 contenders recognising her outstanding exemplary work for the people in Walsall, through various charities including GCHC.

Our volunteer representative in Australia and editor of our news letter “Healing Hands”, Ian Foster has been honoured as the “Volunteer of the Year Award” by United Nations Volunteers Online, for his work for GCHC. Our two online UN volunteers have been highly commended for their work for GCHC. Mr. Robin Prentice for designing and maintenance of our website, www.helpchildrenofindia.org.uk and Mr. Lewis Smiler of USA for publishing our newsletter “Healing Hands” online and maintaining the same

We need to continue with fundraising activities more frequently to achieve our targets with involvement of more volunteers. We need all the help to publicise the needs and work of these charities and more volunteers with various skills to train our staff, trainees and students in India as well to provide services to the community as per their expertise in their chosen disciplines. We badly need funds to maintain and continue existing services (£5000/- pm) as well as expand to include the above (£500k).

We are extremely grateful to all our supporters, volunteers and all the donors towards helping us to achieve what has already been achieved. We hope for your continued support and commitment to continue with this work. We look for your extended help to complete the unfinished work and expand these facilities.

Please "donate" now.