A road accident that crippled her father Srinivas, pitchforked nine-year-old Gauri from childhood to the harsh edge of survival. As Srinivas was left bedridden, his wife left him, leaving Gauri to take care of him.
She dropped out of school and all her time was spent in household chores and caring for her father. The growing child had no one to confide in and worse, no privacy as she grew into womanhood. When Samuha, a local NGO, came forward to help Srinivas, Gauri’s life did not change, though the duo were moved into a pucca low-cost house under a government scheme.
The turning point for Gauri came when Carers Worldwide, a London-based NGO, stepped in and recognised the enormous burden of the young girl. Working through Samuha, they ensured that a woman staff member visited the family to provide emotional support and guidance. They also helped Srinivas start a small business selling mobile currency. After a year of counselling and monitoring, Gauri is now back in school, attending classes after completing her household chores.
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Carers Worldwide was born from the personal experiences of Bidar-based veterinarian Anil Patil. Fifteen years ago, Dr. Patil found himself jobless despite a degree from the Veterinary College in Bidar. Samuha asked him if would go to the Hyderabad-Karnataka region to monitor development activities. He describes the work in the districts of Koppal and Raichur “a soul searching journey”.
Turning point
“Once I saw a mentally challenged woman, running naked in a village and children throwing stones at her. It was deeply disturbing and I could not eat or sleep that day. I decided then to focus on mental health.” He got in touch with Basic Needs, a NGO working to address these issues, and became part of the founding team of Basic Needs India.
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In 2011, Carers Worldwide was born and today works in India, Africa and Nepal. “We are thinking of working with NGOs in Europe, after getting a good response in Sweden,” Dr. Patil said. The organisation was given consultative status by UNESCO in September this year.