CFTI Empowering Rural India with Healthcare& Educational Facilities

 

Amidst the panic caused by the pandemic, a section of our society tends to be neglected – the underprivileged communities that are unable to fend for themselves, financially or economically. While the urban population is being confined to their homes and coerced into remote working, the rural population has been facing challenges of a different magnitude.

The first wave hit us bad. But the second wave was worse. It was during these challenging times, that numerous organizations stepped up to make a difference. One such non-government organization isthe Centre for Transforming India (CFTI) – From facilitating fumigation in villages, to arranging transport to help the migrant labourers reach home, supporting thousands of frontline workers with masks and PPE safety kits, to providing families with groceries, CFTI volunteers have left no stone unturned.

An inspiring youth icon in the state of Maharashtra, Chitralekha N Patil is a social worker, an educationalist and a political leader, consistently making efforts towards the upliftment of rural India. She is the Mentor Trustee at the NGO – Centre for Transforming India (CFTI). Working with the marginalized sections of the society to help raise their standards of living, CFTI aims to bring opportunities to rural India and urban slums by empowering the people through education, healthcare, and various other economic prospects.

“There are donors who want to associate with philanthropy – both MNC’s and or benevolentHNI’s. But what is missing is a structured medium to channelize these funds and direct them towards uplifting those in need. This led to the genesis of CFTI wherein, along with a few like-minded friends, we were able to take up grassroots level activities to ensure that money reached the appropriate beneficiaries ” says Chitralekha.

During the second wave of COVID this year, a strong network of 700+ on groundvolunteers at CFTI put together a COVID centre equipped with beds and oxygen supplies, within a month; whilesimultaneously supporting the patients with hygienically cooked meals. They also facilitated 15 ICU units, inclusive of 5 pediatric ICU’s; with state-of-art facilities, at the Raigad Civil hospital. CFTI has proved a credible partner for utilisation of CSR funds. Their activities are backed by strong utilisation data and rigorous mapping of beneficiaries.

“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.”

- Helen Keller.

“Through our CSR initiatives, we have consistently contributed towards multiplesocial activities as an organization.When the second wave hit, we collaborated with the Centre for Transforming India and supported them with a donation from our CSR funds. We are glad that we could help make a difference by establishing an ICU facility comprising quality medical equipment, for the underprivileged communities” says Ashish Goel, Founder & CEO at Ameya Logistics Pvt Ltd.

Good intentions always receive support from good patrons. Here’s what NamrataTanna, Director, Goldcrest Corporation Limited has to say “We have been a part of the Alibaug ecosystem and have interacted with the community over several decades. We have always wanted to participate in the development and well-being of our local community, but never found the right opportunities and partners, until CFTI came along. We are happy to be able to contribute to the development of the local and rural healthcare and infrastructure, in this grave time of need.”

CFTI has always been an active supporter of education for children and have not only provided scholarships to the economically weak students, right from the primary grade, until their graduation, but have also encouraged children of quarry labours and the tribal people, to enroll their children in schools. Education ranks high amongst their list of activities for the underprivileged.

“I am fortunate to have received a good education and I wish the same for the underprivileged children around me. At CFTI, our core objective is to enable the villagers to avail modern educational facilities at their doorsteps instead of their children having to walk for miles outside their homes. These children have the intent and the ability, the only lack the facilities. And providing them with a robust infrastructure will definitely enable them design a better future for their children” Chitralekha adds.

Further expressing that if the rural population does not have enough opportunities, it will lead to urban crowding and a disproportionate population spread; Chitralekha ascertains that the change must begin at the grassroots level, in the villages.Last year when COVID hit the country, millions of schools across the country were forced to shut down; leaving students stranded for basic means to continue with their schooling.

Thus, stepping in to bridge the digital need gap, CFTI decided to take the schools to the children who could not make it to school. “This June, CFTI will be implementing the ‘SCHOOL ON TAB’ initiative where 1000+ tabs will be distributed to the children in the Dharavi slumsalongside the commencement of the academic session in Government and Municipal schools” explains Chitralekha.

Passionate about creating impact, Chitralekha claims that our youth hold the power to make a difference, only if they determine to be the change, themselves. She therefore urges the youngsters to collaborate with social causes and work in the field hands-on to bring about a positive change in the society. “CFTI is looking for student volunteers to touch more lives and keep our initiatives going. If you resonate with our vision, do reach out to us. Because bringing about a transformation in our country will only happen when we empower people in the villages” she adds.