# Ashvin - Notes about Janastu rural activity

1st we start with the ongoing work that Ashvin also can associate with in spirit.

## e-rickshaw

We started with mobility support for the aged in the nearby dalit village Thimmanayakanahalli. A e-rickshaw was purchased (Dec 2021) to help community to organise the transport of PDS to their village which is 2km away. Also to use as mobile computation unit.

- [ ] update on learnings and status

We bought an e-auto last Dec (Shalini has forwarded the money until Ashvin funds could be transferred 1.3k and some 30k for buying parts and some for maintenance engineer over the year). We are also training one boy to help with learning the ropes of this.

Now we want to complement this with another easy to manuver electric auto but also with a modularised motor that can be handled and maintained by women. We are designing and want to make it with the support of local team who can maintain it too. Later we can promote replication of this.

## Health and Nutrition

- [ ] TODO need to update on diabetes work and festival

Likely due to low nutrition PDS and lack of general care. A number of older people (esp, women) feel fatigued and ill. There is a lack of active care by neighborhood girls as they feel the PHS and the hospitals in nearby towns can be used.

- [ ] update on this vicious cycle
- [ ] the PDS (ration) gives free white rice and many villagers are not buying more nutritous food. Over the years this has caused deterioration of their health. Ashvin: How about we swap their rice for something more nutritious and sell the rice. So essentially we would be paying for the difference between rice and somethign healthier. Not sure if that can be done but just a thought
- [ ] Ragi (which they grow!) and especially fruits need to be added to their diet. We are can think of promoting local home scale fruit growing of fruit trees
- [x] Nursing programs
We started the nursing college, home care program. Planned to send 8 young women for training. Arranged an Omni. After 5 days, the college took xmas and NY break. After that only 3 went. The college concluded the training that day!
- [ ] community care centers (incl food and nutrition)
- [ ] Ashvin: would it be possible to create and disseminate small brochures (also downloadable pdfs) on nutrition and diabetes prevention and comntrol? I am creating some points. We could also have community reinforcment around healthy eating - like logging healthy eating and getting points and support from each other and getting the points towards something for the community (like healthy food, lightbulbs, first aid kits etc)
- [ ] Ashvin: We could aso create and disseminate basic health info - like what to check if you are feeling sick, basic dehydration, heart trouble and stroke awareness etc

Done. See above.
x We have spoken to the Tumkur Nursing Collage and Hospital
- it's an ayurveda institute.
They are going to come up with a month long training
of 2 hours each day (2pm to 4pm) to train the women on
home care and nutrition diets and first care.
Later we can help monetise thier care activity by possibly subsidising the cost of their labor where the patients also are asked to pay for their visits.

We are gathering women who can come to be trained. And waiting for the college to provide a curriculum. We are hoping that would be willing to take 6 students.

## Water

Availability of cleaned driking water is changing in the rural areas. While there are water purifiers in a number of villages, they are again at the "main" villages. The school is restarting at Thimmanayakanahalli and needs a water filter.

- [x] update on non-RO purifiers and alternatives
- We are working on provisioning water purifier for the school. (20k to 30k)
Rotary club here seems to have a program to subsidise this activity.
More soon.
- We would like to take this forward after the water purifier is installed to help harvest rain water for drinking needs (its softer and tastes better too).
- Rotary came and installed a steel tank and a little filter. Now they are still to send us the RO tubes. We are working on it.

## Self care

Activated Charcoal, Community nutrition, Maintenance, bio-fertilisers etc, crafts for secondary income and meeting spaces.

We have started this work. We spoke to a group in Bangalore who are willing to come train the women to become enterprenuers in making and marketing bio-enzymes this coming month.

We are giving the product sample for mineral and nutrition analysis at the KVK center at Hirehalli, Tumkur Dist

## Secondary Income activities

Crafts (block printing, tailoring and design activities) has started 4 months ago where some 20 women participated. We would like to bring out 3 products for them to make and market. This is an ongoing work (waiting for funds to get it moving*). The numun.fund proposal did not come through so we would like to use some money to keep the continuity until another ones comes through.

A decent kitchen with training cum resturant would be a good way to proceed when it comes to an integrated space that bring women together to meet and discuss issues and take charge in the small on activities related to overall well being. Some professional kitchen equipment is available for us to use for such facility.

We will be using the COWMesh wifi network in the area to promote and advocate the local actitivies.

15k visitors come to the hill next to these villages that are set in a green valley. This is bringing in lots of possibilities of hope post COVID lockdown.

## The Community Space

The floods and water need to be managed. The Craft center space is ideally suited as it is a large area next to the road.
However, for it to become a safe and nice usable space we will need to restructure a bit and extend the current room that was built long ago and is aging. The land is very expensive now but luckily we have this for our use.