SATRA E-Newsletter Volume III Issue IX January 2017 Celebration of Global Handwashing Day in collaboration with Oxfam(India) & Tdh- Foundation,Lausanne. Global Handwashing Day Celebrated annually on October 15, the date was appointed by the UN General Assembly and was founded by the Global Public-Private Partnership for Handwashing in 2008. Steering Committee members of the PPPHW includes The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UNICEF, Unilever, USAID and world Bank among others. Global Handwashing Day is designed to raising awareness of handwashing with soap as a key approach to disease prevention. Handwashing with soap is estimated to reduce incidents of diarrhoea by 30% and respiratory infections by 21% in children under the age of five, which together accounts for 3.5 million child deaths annually. So it is do it yourself vaccine. The 2016 Global Handwashing Day theme is Make Handwashing a Habit! For handwashing to be effective it must be practiced consistently at key times, such as after using the toilet or before contact with food, and developed it as a habit for long-term sustainability.
Page 2 SATRA celebrated weeklong GHW in Darrang & Udalguri district of Assam & reached to around 36000 most vulnerable population. The report of SATRAs Celebration was published in www.globalhandwashing.org a website of PPPHW. Screenshot of www.globalhandwashing.org with news of SATRA Assessment of Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene in Tonganagaon Tea Garden Supported by: - Numi Foundation, Chamong group of companies & Women s Earth Alliance (WEA) USA. Tonganagaon Tea Estate is 70Km from Tinsukia town a very remote place. Numi Foundation and Women s Earth Alliance (WEA)USA, engaged SATRA to assess the WASH practice & WASH related infrastructure in the estate. We deputed an 8 member s WASH team in the estate to collect required data to analyse and understand the support needed to improve WASH practice. The assessment report submitted to Numi Foundation in December. According to the U.N. Joint Monitoring Programme, 2.4 billion people globally do not have access to a toilet, and of them, nearly 1 billion people defecate in the open & global economic loss due to poor WASH is estimated to be $260 billion annually. This report clearly reflect in the Tonganagaon Tea Estate. Tea tribes consist of around 20% of Assam total population even than they are the most backward community in Assam due to various reason The literacy rate of the community is one of the lowest in Assam particularly among the girls and women. Noneducation, poverty, addiction of males to country beer, poor standard of living & rising population makes the community most vulnerable. Major Findings A. 53.5% house hold either have less than 10m distance between latrine and source drinking water or defecating in open. So overall it can be assumed that at least 50% household are most vulnerable from the WASH point of view. B. Absence of skirt around the hand pump added to the vulnerability. C. Sanitary and Hygiene practice survey shows as much as 89.5% population are at high risk from WASH point of view. D. Out of 14 house hold shown positive for bacteriological contamination only 2 has more than 10m distance between latrine and source drinking water. E. The entire house hold showing the bacteriological contamination has Kaccha latrine and one house hold is defecating in open. Most of the latrine are of similar condition Tube-well are the only source of drinking water, Most of the hand pumps are of similar condition
Celebration of International Disaster Risk Reduction Day. Page 3 SATRA in Collaboration with Oxfam (India) & active cooperation from District Disaster Management Authority & Civil Defence under the project Brahmaputra River Basin Resilience Building Programme celebrated International Disaster Risk Reduction on 13 th October at Chira Seuj with day long programme, it was an occasion to celebrate how people and communities are reducing exposure to disaster. Beside Village DRR committee members & SATRA officials Shri Jagadish Bhattacharya DPO, DDMA and Shri Pankaj Hazarika I/C Civil Defense addressed the gathering. Highlighting the theme of 2016 International DRR day Live to Tell. The women of Chira Seuj Krishi Samabai (Mowamari) DRR committee demonstrated of making stilts house or Chang Ghar, the height of which can be keep raising according to the level of flood water by the members of Chira Seuj Krishi Samabai (Mowamari) DRR committee. Participants in the International DRR day Celebration Programme Demo on stilts house, a traditional copping mechanism Awareness meeting on the occasion of International DRR day Community contributing in building community resource center DPO, DDMA Inaugurating Community resource center Post Flood Veterinary camp Kitchen Garden support
Post flood response programme with the support from Tdh foundation Cash for Work The short-term post flood response programme of 5 months supported by Tdh foundation completed successfully on 31 st December 2016. Following is the Project completion report in brief. PROJECT AREA : 12 worst flood affected village of Darrang district. Intervention are- 1.EDUCATION KITS: Education kit consist of 1 School bag, 5 copies, 1 pencil box, 5 A site after flood While selecting the site pencils, 1 eraser & 1 Sharpener.1500 education kit distributed. Objective was to continuation of school after flood. For 98% student who received education kit, it was the first school bag. 2. UNCONDITIONAL CASH TRANSFER: One UCT consist of 8 pc tin pat & Rs 2300.100 UCT distributed. It was for most vulnerable in the community whose livelihood being lost due to flood. Work in progress On completion 3. HYGIENE KITS: One hygiene kit consists of 1 food grade plastic bucket, 1 mug, 3 pc Dettol soap, 3 pc Lifebuoy soap, 4pc washing soap, 200 gm Surf excel detergent powder, 2 m cotton cloth & 30 water purification tab. 1100 kit distributed. Objectives was to prevent water borne diseases, water borne disease may cause disaster after flood. 4. CONSTRUCTION OF HAND PUMP WITH RAISED PLATFORM: 8, as the source drinking water submerged during flood people drink flood water and often fall sick, water of these raised hand pump would be safe even during flood as the height of the platform is considered above the highest flood level shown by village elder. 5. RESTORATION OF HAND PUMP WITH RAISED PLATFORM: 3. 6. VETERINARY CAMP: 15. Livestock rearing is one of the prime livelihood activity for the people but due to lack of scientific knowledge they loss livestock particularly after flood. Beside treatment and free medicine this was an afford to create awareness on the symptoms and preventive measures for the common diseases generally occur after flood 7. DISINFECTION OF COMMUNITY HAND PUMP: 450. 8. AWARENESS ON WASH: 15 9. CASH FOR WORK: Rs.250/day for 200 person for 20 days/person, Total human days generated is 4000. Construction of Hand pumps in progress
Sericulture Under the Intensification of Sericulture & promotion of producer company-a women livelihood programme. SATRA successfully promoted the producer company in the month of November with legal identity as SATRA Silk Producer Company. Encouraging by the outcome of reeling machine installed last year we furthered explore the possibility to add value to the yarn which is already uniform and fetching a price of Rs.3000-Rs.3200 earlier it was just Rs.1000-Rs.1200. Expert including principal from Sowalkushi Institute of Fashion Technology visited SATRA several times and recommended for degumming, natural dye of the yarn and go for weaving to generate even better income for the women and with larger objective to promote Sipajhar another Silk hub of Assam. In the month of December 2016 NEDFi extended support for a Skill development training programme of degumming, natural dye and weaving and under the support 25 women are attending training programme. An Appeal Community Mental Health Programme supported by NRTT through Ashadeep completed in the month of July 2016. Following are the lesson learned : 1.A project highly relevant in the present scenario of Global Mental Health. 2. Mental Health Problem in the society is very complex & much beyond we assumed at the beginning of the project. Still miles to go to achieved its objectives De-stigmatize & de-mystify mental illness in the community and make people aware of opportunity of treatment for Mental illness & its prognosis. Project follow on:- Total no of targeted population: - 125000. No of patients identified: - 1200 No of patients under treatment and taking medicine:- 882 The requirement of low cost medicine for one patient is Rs.200/ month if anyone wish to donate can do it for any numbers of patients. To donate please contact Shri Nani Kr. Saikia, ED SATRA Ph: 9435185878, E-mail:-satrasipajhar02@gmail.com. Although project completed in the month of July 2016. The patients will get free medicine till January2017. SATRA has been advocating with the Government of Assam for supply of free medicine in the Govt. Hospital but it seems that it wont be possible within 4/5 months, we motivated all the patients to buy the medicine till it is available in the Govt. Hospital but there are around 200 patients who are poorest of the poor and can not afford to buy medicine. We are concern for these patients as without medicine it is almost certain to relapse. The only way out is that provide these patients free low cost medicine which will cost Rs. 40000/month for 200 patients. So, we appeal to individuals, corporate and organization to donate for these patients. The requirement of medicine for one patient is Rs.200/ month so, anyone wish to donate can do it for any numbers of patients. To donate please contact Shri Nani Kr. Saikia, Executive Director, SATRA Ph: 9435185878, E-mail:-satrasipajhar02@gmail.com. Visit SATRA at www.satra.ngo Contact: SATRA, Sipajhar, Darrang, Assam. E-mail: satrasipajhar02@gmail.com. Ph 9435185878.