By Jane Manson | Fundraising Director
The rag picker community in Topsia has had a very rough time over the last two months.
First, one of the tube wells upon which 1500 families rely for (reasonably) clean drinking water stopped pumping. The water supply dropped so far that the community was struggling to manage.Tiljala SHED’s weekly feeding programme needs a large quantity of water – to cook the vats of rice, dal and vegetable curry, and to boil the eggs. For a few weeks it wasn’t possible to cook in such large quantities so the programme was interrupted until the meagre water supply was back to normal.
On top of this, the Indian Government’s recent demonetisation has had a profound effect on the ultra poor and on the NGOs striving to help them. With 86% of circulating money (all the 500 and 1000 rupee notes) ceasing to be legal tender overnight, activities which relied heavily on cash transactions were put under enormous pressure.The obsolete notes could be exchanged or paid into bank accounts, but the banks had difficulty coping with the long queues and people who relied upon their daily labour (exactly these ragpickers and rickshaw pullers) found themselves standing in lines to ensure that money they had already earned didn’t become worthless and, at the same time, losing several days of work. Tiljala SHED was forced to reduce their activities and could only work with suppliers who would accept credit.This feeding programme has been a casualty of the demonetisation.
However, I am delighted to report that the Topsia community enjoyed a wonderful lunch today for the first time in two months. The water (such as it is) is running again and the cash crisis has eased enough for Tiljala SHED to resume business as usual.
Thank you as ever for your generosity. Every donation is carefully used and goes directly to the beneficiaries. This last two months have shown just how vulnerable the poor are when local infrastructure fails and also when there are decisions made at national level. This community needs Tiljala SHED and supporters like you more than ever.
Please consider a special donation this holiday season to help us ensure that our community can be fed at least once a week.
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