Women and children first
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COMMENTS 
Orissa's Mamta Gruhs, or temporary shelters, have identified and rehabilitated hundreds of women, children and old people left without families, following the 1999 supercyclone
Thirteen million people were displaced and otherwise affected by the supercyclone that hit Orissa in October 1999. 3.3 million of them were reportedly children. Of them, at least 1,500 were orphaned and thousands more were left with only one parent and no home.
Although there is no official count of the number of women and aged persons affected, media persons and activists working in the area claim the number is in the several thousands.
A study by the Orissa Disaster Mitigation Mission (ODMM) of 4,090 vulnerable and neglected families in 85 affected panchayats revealed that 90 per cent were women-headed households -- widows with no occupation. In the worst-affected block of Ersama alone, over 300 women from 35 villages were widowed and nearly 200 children were orphaned.
Just days after the cyclone, reports of the trafficking of women and young girls began to appear in the local press. Hundreds of children were handed over by desperate guardians to orphanages. There was no record of where the children were taken. Many were reportedly recruited by employees looking for child labour or domestic labour.
On November 4, 1999, international development agency, Action Aid, announced its programme for the community care of destitute women and children, and founded the Sneha Abhiyan Campaign, literally the Campaign of Love. This campaign was the only constructive campaign for the most vulnerable people of Orissa. Between December 1999 and July 2000, hundreds of women and children were rehabilitated in temporary shelters called Mamta Gruhs.
Under Sneha Abhiyan, 801 orphaned children and children at risk, 638 widows/single women at risk and 209 aged persons were identified and taken care of. The programme also focussed on longer-term rehabilitation through education and livelihood-generation. Educational support was provided to 360 children. A sum of Rs 4,76,000 was provided to restore the livelihoods of 170 families. Credit was provided to 99 families. These families would have to repay their loans to their self-help groups after a gestation period of one year, at an interest rate of 12 per cent per annum.
Sneha Abhiyan was implemented by Action Aid in collaboration with the Government of India, government of Orissa, Nature's Club, UNICEF and local NGOs. The state government initiated 35 temporary tent shelters in Ersama and Action Aid took over the management of the Mamta Gruhs. Subsequently, Action Aid also constructed four Mamta Gruhs in Astarang Puri district, two in Mahakalpada, Kendrapada district, two in the Paradeep NAC slums and one at Potenal in Jagatsinghpur district.
In an attempt to recreate the community spirit, each shelter was supervised by a Sneha Karmi (community care volunteer), who in most cases was a young local girl. And one woman at each shelter was identified as the `link mother'.
But the Mamta Gruhs were only short-stay shelters. By July 2000, most of the inhabitants had moved back to their communities. At this point, Sneha Committees were formed in each village. Each committee consisted of 9-11 members including three village elders, one link mother, the gram panchayat coordinator, teacher, anganwadi worker and community care volunteer. The committees were responsible for reintegrating inmates with their extended families; they were expected to follow up each case for six months.
As part of the continuing rehabilitation process, concrete houses were constructed for members of the Mamta Gruhs. By December 2000, 288 Mamta Gruh members received confirmed pattas and 47 houses had been built for them. Action Aid has made a commitment to work in the area for the next 10 years.
Action Aid is an international development agency working with some of the poorest communities in 26 countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America. The organisation has been operating in India for the last 27 years.
Contact: Regional Manager
Action
Aid
331-A
Sahid Nagar
Bhubaneshwar,
Orissa
Tel:
91-674-522624, 514503