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Save the Children is among the first NGOs to provide relief in Uttarakhand. So far, Save the Children has reached out to more than 5,000 flood-affected families. ”This could not have been accomplished without with the timely support from committed individuals and institutions, for which we are extremely grateful,” said Thomas Chandy, CEO, Save the Children. Following a multi-sectoral assessment which has shown a dire need for sustained relief work, Save the Children is now launching an appeal to work with the government to support long-term recovery in the state of Uttarakhand. This appeal follows the sharing of a multi-sectoral assessment – done in partnership with Plan India and Aide-et Action –with government and civil society representatives. The assessment, which covers the Education, Child Protection and Life skills needs of the affected people, coupled with regular feedback to its teams in Uttarakhand, confirms that a lot more support is needed to enable civil society to work with the government to fulfill the myriad needs of the affected people, including children who face protection threats among other pressing concerns.
Overall, over 25,000 individuals and more than 25 corporate institutions have already come forward with heartfelt contributions. “We thank each and every one of our corporate donors and individuals who have supported our work. While we appreciate the contributions given so far, we do urge everyone for more support since this tragedy is far from over,” appealed Irwin Fernandes, Director, Resource Mobilisation, for Save the Children.
Fernandes pointed out that the committed support which has come from donors is an indication of the trust these individuals and corporations have in the efficacy of his organization’s work during emergencies. USAID, P&G, Reckitt Benckiser, HSBC and Care Today Fund of India Today Group are some of the donors who have repeatedly supported the work of the organization during such crises. Some of the notable contributions, from India and abroad, came from Aegis Foundation, Cadila Healthcare Ltd, Cox and Kings, GSK Consumer Healthcare, HSBC, Hempel Paints (India) Pvt Ltd., Konika Minolta Business Solutions Ltd, P&G, Reckitt Benckiser and Towers Watson.
Akhil Chandra MD, Reckitt Benckiser India said, “The unfortunate calamity in Uttarakhand has left numerous families devastated. While the rehabilitation efforts are ongoing, it is extremely important for the victims to be able to maintain personal hygiene levels and prevent the situation from getting worse. Our association with Save the Children is a step towards addressing this concern and an effort to rebuild a healthier and happier Uttarakhand.”
Similarly, Shweta Shukla, Country Head, Communications, P&G, commented, “One of the key pillars of P&G’s Corporate Social Responsibility is helping communities in disaster relief. Through our partnership with Save the Children, we have been able to reach out to over 5,000 families in Uttarakhand with sanitary napkins, toothbrushes, shampoo and detergent sachets and P&G safe drinking water. We will continue to extend our support to the region and hope to make a meaningful difference in the lives of the affected people”
Arun Sehgal, of GSKCH said that “Providing timely and relevant support to disaster impacted communities, is driven by GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare’s core value of helping others to do more, feel better and live longer. In conjunction with our partners Save the Children, GSKCH was able to help with medicines and nutritional beverages for the areas affected by the natural calamity at Uttarakhand. We will continue to support and nurture communities, in good times and bad, to improve the quality of their lives and wellbeing.”
Moved by the plight of the people, hundreds of individuals came forward and donated generously through the employee contribution funds setup by companies. Notable among such companies are, BOAML, DDB Mudra eBay India, Evalueserve, Goldman Sachs, HP, Juniper Networks and Starwood Hotels. “The aid we received was overwhelming not just in magnitude, but also because of the different innovative ways in which donors came forward,” added Fernandes.
And, of course, India’s leading eCommerce marketplace eBay India, organized a Charity Auction with Ranbir Kapoor for raising funds for our ongoing relief work in Uttarakhand.
Save the Children works across 15 states in India and along with its work during Emergencies it also covers education, protection and health rights of children, especially those from the most vulnerable communities.
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For further information, please contact Devendra Tak on 9811168488 or d.tak@savethechildren.in
