When I decided to take Jeevani to Alagramam, it seemed like a very daunting task. Alagramam is a fairly big village, and how was I going to select the most needy of the children living there?
I decided to start with asking a few people about the economic status of the villagers. As word got around that we are thinking of implementing something that would improve nutrition amongst children, I got a call from the The Government Elementary School Headmaster, Mr. Ramamurthy who was very open to the idea and welcomed me into the school. He told me that most parents of the children who go there are daily wage labourers who work double shifts – from early morning till late night. He said anyone who can afford a little money send their children to one of five private schools in and around the village. So the Government school seemed like a good to place to start.
We first visited the Elementary School (ages 5 to 11). Most of the 118 children who study there, grow up without basic nutrition, who do not get a glass of milk daily, and who rely on the noon meal scheme for their mid day meal and egg everyday.
We decided right away that we will start with these 118 children. We met each and every one of them, and filled out our questionnaire about height, weight, along with symptoms of anaemia and malnourishment. We also found that most children drink only tea! We got the plan together, and one parent volunteered to boil the milk and mix the Ashwagandhadi and distribute it along with Dhatri Loha, an Ayurvedic Iron Supplement, daily.
My family who lives there was a great support, and immediately offered all the logistical help to run it smoothly. Once the logistics were in place, it was a matter of getting the funding and the medicines together! And how quickly that happened! No sooner than I messaged my family, we immediately got the money required to run it for more than a year! Thank you to all who responded so quickly!!
Valar 