Equip Wayanad tribal colonies with radios

This is a joint effort of Care & Share, "Stand With Kerala" and Dallas Ace Lions Club. Thanks to Wayanad District Collector Dr. Adheela Abdhulla, District Health Officer Dr. Abhilash and Fr. Bijo Thomas for bringing up the dare need of an effective solution to reach communication to some of the most remote villages in India during an emergency.

Wayanad district in Kerala is home to more than 3000 tribal colonies (hamlets) with a total population of close to 1.5lakhs (150,000). August is the month that monsoon rain causes the most damage through floods, landslides, etc. Both in 2018 and 2019 the tribes were completely cut off from main stream without any mode of communication to reach them. This project is to equip these colonies with a radio through which instructions can be delivered to them. These instructions will include the safe places to which they can move, where the aid workers are, what areas they should avoid, how the weather look like in the coming days, where they should go for air lifting, etc. In 2018 and 2019 many lives were lost, and many colonies suffered a great deal, a simple $15 radio could have made a huge diff.

Each radio costs around $15. Would you support one colony by sponsoring a radio? August is the worst month, and radio distribution should happen before August.

We plan this in two phases:
Out of 3000 hamlets, around 500 do not need any support. 
Phase 1: Reach 1000 radios, 1 each, to the most remote 1000 colonies. Target $15,000
Phase 2: Equip rest of the 1500 colonies. Target $22,500

Here are some of points for your information:
1. Each hamlet has a population of 40 to 300 people including children
2. Main mode of reaching information to them is through the radio channel "mattoli"
3. "Mattoli" broadcasts in the tribal language, a mix of Malayalam/Tamil
4. Each hamlet has at least one "Asha" worker who is a trainer health worker by Govt health department. 
5. Radios are given to Asha worker who knows how to operate it. People in the hamlet will come to Asha workers' place for the information or worker himself/herself will spread the news in the colony.
6. Each radio will run on battery. Sufficient batteries to cover at least 2 months will be provided.
7. Asha workers maintaining the radio eliminates the risk of tribal exploiters who scavenge upon tribal benefits and accessories.
8. Most of the hamlets don't use electricity
9. Govt can not offer support in this kind of extended/precautionary projects. Govt focuses on larger infrastructure projects such as roads, electricity, health centers, schools, etc. During this COVID-19 time, Govt is currently providing free food, masks, and medicines for the tribes to survive.
10. SAM (Severe Acute Malnutrition) is a serious issue among tribal children of age 0 - 5. After the rainy season, this problem intensifies 10-15 times.


More info about organizers:
"Stand With Kerala" - A group of friends based in Dallas, TX to address pressing issues in Kerala

Dallas Ace Lions Club - A group of business people based in Dallas


Care & Share, Lockport IL: Care & Share tries to improve the living conditions of financially and educationally backward families in developing nations through partnerships with responsible and accountable local charitable organizations. www.careandshare.com 


Care & Share is a 501 (c) (3) charitable organization. Your donations are tax deductible and eligible for company matching if your employer extends the benefit.