Settling in...

Arrived this morning after a long but easy journey,  The plane arrived early - but the delay waiting for the case more than made up for the gain!  Through exit number 5 - and there was the smiling face of Bimal waiting to pick me up.  Bimal has been driving for Asha for a long time - and over the years we have got to know him well.
He drove me to the apartment which will be my home for the next 4 weeks when my wife joins me [:-)]

Here's my bedroom, shared for a few days with Sam:

That bed was a welcome sight!  After rest and recuperation it felt like time to explore the neighbourhood (not least because my stomach was rumbling)  So here are some pics of the neighbourhood:

And here are some of the local shops where I managed to pick up a loaf of bread, 2 litres of water, a litre of lychee juice and some jam for INR 175 (2 pounds!)

Off to Freddy and Kiran's for dinner tonight!

Alternative title?

An alternative title to my blog has been suggested:

Slum Doc Debonaire

Hmmmm!

A little bit about Asha...

On June 29th 2012 I will be flying out to Delhi to work as a volunteer doctor with Asha (see link below my profile).  I will be in India for 5 weeks.  Most of that time I will be running clinics in the slum communities in Delhi which are adopted by Asha. 

Asha is an Indian Charity with affiliated charities in UK, Ireland and USA.  Dr Kiran Martin, Director, started working with the people living in one Delhi slum community in 1988, providing healthcare in a simple clinic - a borrowed table under a tree! Now Asha works in nearly 50 slums, providing services to a total population approaching half a million people.

Healthcare is only part of the care they provide for Delhi's urban poor.  Community Development is key to the wellbeing and dignity of these communities.  Encouraging the women and children to come together in associations to decide what services their community needs, Asha then shows them how to lobby local politicians to ensure that changes happen.  Examples of these developments include building and maintaining new toilet blocks or provision of more standpipes for clean water supply.

Education provides a route for children to take themselves and their families out of poverty.  This begins with encouraging children to attend and remain in school. 

 English and IT are important to enable young people to advance in education and get well paid jobs. Asha provides supplementary teaching in these subjects. 

 In recent years we have been excited to see the first young people from the slums enter University entirely through their own hard work and despite much discouragement and hindrance. 

 The first of these have now obtained their bachelor degrees and most are continuing to Masters and above!

Another hindrance to those caught in poverty is their inability to access banking and finance facilities.  Over the last few years, Asha has worked with politicians and bankers to establish a system of loans for the poor.  Many have been able to take out low interest loans for the first time which have enabled people to set up businesses, develop established businesses, or fund education.

Most recently Asha has started to develop two new programs for young people, providing mentoring for those facing the big wide world of education and business for the first time, and internships in local companies for those just starting out on their careers.

Asha is an exciting charity to be involved with.  Please visit the website www.asha-india.org if you would like to learn more.  You can also donate to Asha online if you would like to, by clicking on the "Donate Online Now" button