St Timothy’s Church Visit to the Christian project, ASHA

and Anna Nagar, a Slum colony in Delhi

Automatic slide show – or mouse click to speed up

India, February 2010

5 of St Tim’s members with folk from Anna Nagar and with Dr Kiram Martin, the founder of Asha (2nd from left)

Taken just outside the Asha Centre in Anna Nagar, Delhi (Phil was there too – behind the camera!)

Members of our team painting the Asha Centre at Anna Nagar!

Josh

James

Chris

Kate

Helper!

Paint mixer!

Two of the Murals we painted. Kate is our budding Rembrandt!

Kate

Josh

James

Niramla

Mina

Nemo

OK… What is so great about Asha and why do we want to support the work there?

To answer the question take a look at another slum colony in Delhi which has only just come under the umbrella of Asha – this one is Peera Garni in North West Delhi…

Notice that this dwelling is very makeshift – just plastic and other materials stretched over poles etc.

The slum us very basic…

Notice how full of rubbish the place is…

Not a good environment in which to live…

Would you like to be living here?

The roads and pathways between the houses are dirt tracks. Ok in the summer

– but when it pours with rain…

This “stream” is in fact the main drainage of the slum – blocked by rubbish, stagnant and full of harmful bugs.

Kids play in this water, and some use it to wash… and even drink. Would you?

Women (who else…) come to fill up water containers from the tanker that visits once per day. All water has to

be carried to their homes. For cooking, cleaning washing, drinking. We use 16 ltrs just to flush the loo.

This shows why the drains are blocked – no running water for the 3000 families

living in Peera Garhi slum.

There is no water spare to flush out the drains.

They just become stagnant – and full of disease.

And mosquitoes

We take electricity for granted – but there is no supply to Peera Garhi.

The only way they can get power is to throw wires over the pylons that run through the slum – and pray not to get electrocuted in the process.

Next time you put the kettle on think of the folk who live here…

THE difference

makes…

This is a picture of Mina in Anna Nagar – a slum colony organised by Asha – can you spot any differences?

Here are five…

1. Concrete paths

2. Clean drains

3. Brick Homes

4. Lots of water

5. Smiling faces!

No more waiting for the water tanker to arrive!

Here is one of many taps on each lane – this one just outside the Asha Centre.

This young lady will only have to carry the water a few metres to her home.

And this the reason why Anna Nagar has running water and Peera Garnhi doesn’t: here is Dr Kiran Martin, the

founder of Asha, leading a session with the women’s group, helping them to know how to fight for their rights.

Asha runs women and children’s groups to help them organise the slum and improve the infrastructure and environment.

They are full of confidence and hope. Asha is Hindi for HOPE.

Asha trains women to become Community Health Volunteers (CHVs) who are able to conduct basic medical examinations, give advice, conduct health checks on children and give all the immunisations to prevent disease.This is Mina with Jonathan when he came out last year.

Infant mortality is half the national average and every woman giving birth is supported by a birth attendant.

There have been no maternal deaths for many years.

Another method of empowerment is to help Asha members to become educated. Here is an English class underway in the Centre. Only 20% of slum children normally attend school. From age 10 they will then have to earn a living.

100% of Asha kids have access to school and now 177 are going to uni or college.

They will be able to get good jobs at last. Asha pays for their books, past exam papers and extra tuition.

Here are 2 proud Asha students – one clutching an English course text book. In fact most of the books you can see behind are also school and college books. It’s not easy to study for 5 A levels when 6 of you live together in one room the size of a bathroom. Talk about sheer determination!

Another way that Asha empowers people is to give them access to computers and the Internet. Here is the computer

room at Anna Nagar. They are well used! Notice the webcam ready to help them link up with us through Skype!

Here are some more female students, meeting up with Dr Kiran Martin who has just been encouraging them to keep

up the hard work. They have been telling her about the jobs they plan to do – teaching & accounting. A few years back, they said, before Asha came, they were playing in

the dirt, with no future. Now look at them.

So many young people

Full of Hope

Thanks to Asha

OR THIS?OR THIS?OR THIS?OR THIS?OR THIS?OR THIS?

The LIFE SAVING and LIFE CHANGING

difference that ASHA makes

THIS?

Food for thought…

14 million live in Delhi

4 million live in SLUMS

Asha now works with 350,000 people in 48

slum colonies.

Will you help us to help Asha to grow to 500,000?

Think of the difference we could make.

If you might like to be a partner with ASHA please

see the options available on our website.