USHAGRAM TRUST
Vill.- Ushagram, P.O.- Birnagar
Dist.- Nadia, Pin.- 741 127,
WEST BENGAL - INDIA
1. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ORGANISATION AND ITS ACTIVITIES
Ushagram Trust is a Non-Government, Non-Political Voluntary Organisation. It is not like so many NGO's now growing and functioning in this country. It runs on the ideology and line of thinking of Sri Aurobindo & the Mother though it is not a Unit of Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Pondicherry, India.
The management of the Trust is vested on a Board of Trustees. There is no blood relation amongst the Trustees.
It is a centre for experiment in the development of human consciousness and in the growth of self-confidence and self strength. In other words, we may call it a laboratory for study of the change in human mind and outlook.
It's root is to be sought in the years 1942 to the end of 1945 when the founder Sri Gopal Chandra Chakraborty was in prison during the Second World War. He was then highly influenced by NAI TALIM propounded by Mahatma Gandhi and TAPAVON VIDYALAY of Rabindra Nath Tagore along with rural reconstruction works.
After many hazards and failures, in the year 1970, rural reconstruction work was started in a very modest way in a place between two villages ? Nazirpur and Taherpur near Birnagar under P.S. Ranaghat, Dist. Nadia, West Bengal, India as a last effort.
First 10 years were horrible. In order to gain confidence of the people of the locality the Project Holder had to pass through many tests and trials.
The year 1980 was turning point and Ushagram Trust was formed with some like minded persons under the leadership of late Jyotirmoy Bose with three clear goals to build up harmonious and conscious community in a small rural area.
Further details and activities of the organisation may be seen in the enclosed recently printed Brochure, Folders etc.
1 (a) WHAT ARE THE OBJECTIVES OR GOALS OF THE ORGANISATION :
The objectives of the Organisation may be expressed in concrete forms :-
(i) Community Living, (ii) Spiritual Growth, (iii) Alround Rural Upliftment.
In order to achieve this goal following work plan has been chosen.
a) Education : Pre-Primary or Elementary, Primary, Secondary.
b) Skill-Training and Production for self-employment and Income Generation for Male and Female Youths
c) Primary Health care for Child & Mother (Sanitation, Nutrition & Clinic Service).
d) Sustainable Agriculture.
e) Non-Formal Mass Education through Public Rural Library.
f) To develop Herbal Gardens and impart Training to rural youths (Male & Female) on the uses of Herbal Plants and Medicines.
1 (b) WHEN THE ORGANISATION WAS STARTED :
This organisation was actually functioning in the year 1970 but Ushagram Trust was registered in the year 1980. Copy of the Trust Deed is attached.
1 (c) WHAT ARE THE PRESENT ACTIVITIES OF THE ORGANISATION AND HOW DO YOU GET FUNDING FOR YOUR CURRENT PROJECTS :
The enclosed Annual Report of 1997-98 & 1998-99 and the Brochure will show the present activities of the Organisation.
The organisation gets fund for its current projects on proir submission of project Proposal to various Funding Agencies, Government.
1 (d) DO YOU HAVE GOVT. OF INDIA CLEARANCE FOR RECEIVING FUNDS FROM ORGANISATIONS ABROAD :
Yes. This Organisation has already been registered under Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 1976. Registered Number is 147060034. Copy attached.
2. PLEASE DESCRIBE IN DETAIL THE GOALS OF THE ENTIRE, PROJECT, THE CURRENT CONDITIONS OF THE PROJECT AREA AND THE PEOPLE WHO MAY BENEFIT FROM THE PROJECT AND WHEN YOU EXPECT THE PROJECT TO BE COMPLETED- PLEASE, ALSO SPECIFY THE PARTS, OF THE PROJECTS THAT HAVE ALREADY BEEN DONE.
Most of the inhabitants of the project area came from Bangladesh as a displaced person. It was a heterogeneous settlement in a backward part of the boarder district (Nadia) of West Bengal. Most of the people were agricultural wage labourer, Marginal and small farmers. They were totally illeterate.There was no School, no Safe drinking water, no link road, no health care centre, no electricity no peace and harmony. At the beginning people were non-cooperating and hostile.
After constant negotiation, group meeting, awareness campaign, now almost all the families have become conscious of the need of education and other essentials. Now-a-days more than 12 hundreds children from those families are coming to education centres managed by Ushagram Trust. These Centres do not get any financial grants from the Government. The Centres are run by Ushagram Trust by collecting Donation etc.
Arrangement to supply safe drinking water installing deep hand pump tubewells has been made available. About 6 km. all weather village link road have been constructed. Proposal for further extension of sucy road has been submitted.
More than 1000 low cost sanitary home latrines have been constructed on the basis of co-finance by the beneficiaries.
3. DESCRIBE THE PART OF THE PROJECT FOR WHICH YOU ARE REQUESTING FUNDS FROM AID IN AS MUCH DETAIL AS POSSIBLE. PLEASE PROVIDE US WITH ALL THE FACTS ABOUT THE PROJECT
If education be the greatest need of India, formal approach to impart education can only meet up partial need. It is to be supplemented by well planned non-formal vigorous mass approach for rapid removal of illiteracy along with continued education to the door step of every inhabitants of rural area.
Keeping this view in mind, Board of Trustees of Ushagram Trust has been conducting 10 elementary education centres since 1986 in the villages around Ushagram Vikash Kendra within Barasat Gram Panchayet of District Nadia. Mother's meetings are going on at these centres or in some convenient places.
Trust Board has very recently decided to continue and extend this non-formal approach under the guidance of a Central Mass-Education Centre, named Ushagram Aurobindo-Rabindra Gramin Pathagar. In other works we can call this attempt as a study centre movement for all under a Central Rural Library.
Ushagram Trust has already constructed small infrastructure in 10 villages and one at Ushagram. A few steps have also been taken for conducting five-fold programme stated here as under :
(a) Main function of the Central Centre i.e. Public Library will be to give away suitable teaching materials regularly on loan to each of 10 study centres. After a certain period, those books will be returned and fresh books and magazines for neo-literates will be taken again and within 5 years the whole process will be extended to 15 villages covering entire area of a single gram panchyat.
(b) Folk Theatre - A folk theatre as well as dance and music wing will function to aware & animate the rural people about the problems - Primary Health Care, Sanitation, Personal Hygiene, Nutrition, Bad effect of using chemicals, insecticides, and pesticides, chemical fertilizer and of early marriage etc.
(c) Central Public Library ? Central Public Library will be a lending section and a reading room section along with a book bank for higher class students and skill-trainees of vocational classes.
(d) Internet Connection wing for the spread of standard education to students and up-to-date information to rural common people.
(e) A wing for developing an archive, consisting of research papers, manuscripts, books, etc. in connection with rural development plans and attempts and results etc. of India, Bangladesh and any other countries of the world.
These five fold activities of the Central Mass Education Centre will take the shape of a constructive and creative movement.
4. BUDGET SHEET : DESCRIBE IN FULL DETAIL EACH ACTIVITY AND THE COST ASSOCIATED WITH IT, SPLIT UP THE COSTS AS MUCH AS YOU CAN, PLEASE DO NOT GIVE ROUGH ESTIMATE, BECAUSE THIS WILL DELAY THE PROJECT APPROVAL.
BUDGET SHOWING RECURRING & NON-RECURRING EXPENDITURES FOR ONE YEAR REQUIRED FOR IMPLEMENTING THE FIVE-FOLD PROGRAMME OF THE PROJECT ?USHAGRAM AUROBINDO-RABINDRA GRAMIN PATHAGAR?
Item of Expenditure:
1. NON-RECURRING : ESTIMATED COST
Cost of Land & Building,Furniture & Books.
(Cost of aforesaid items has already Nil
been met by Ushagram Trust out of own
fund and fund received from other sources)
2. RECURRING
A) Honorarium of Workers
i) Librarian ? 1, who will look Rs. 18,000.00
after overall management of the Pathagar.
(i.e. Rs. 1500/- p.m. x 12 months)
ii) Library Assistant - 3 nos. Rs. 23,400.00
Each Library Assistant will remain in-charge
of each unit i.e. (a) Book lending Unit,
(b) Folk Theatre Unit, (c) trade-skill training Unit.
(Rs. 650/- pm/Assistant x 12 months, i.e. Rs. 650/- x 3 x 12)
iii) Accountant-cum-Store Keeper ? 1 Rs. 12,000.00
He will maintain accounts and stock of Pathaghar.
(i.e. Rs. 1000/- pm x 12 months)
B) CONTINGENCY
i) Contingency @ Rs.50/-p.m./Centre Rs. 6,000.00
for 10 centres already functioning
i.e. Rs. 50/- x 10 x 12 months.
ii) Honorarium of the Centre-in-Charge Rs.60,000.00
for 10 centres @ Rs. 500/- p.m./
centre i.e. Rs. 500/-x 10 x 12
iii) Contingency for main Pathagar @ Rs.3,000.00
Rs. 250/- p.m. i.e. Rs. 250/-x 12
iv) Reading materials such as Magazine, Rs.3,000.00
Journals,News Paper etc. @ Rs.250/-p.m.
i.e. Rs. 250/
v) Trade-Skill Training for drop-out students
5 nos. students in each course of 6 months
duration i.e. 10 students per year.
a) Raw-Materials @ Rs. 200/- p.m./ Rs.24,000.00
student i.e. Rs. 200/-x 10 x 12
b) Institutional charges for Trade Rs.6,000.00
skill training @ Rs. 500/-p.m i.e. Rs. 500/- x 12
TOTAL Rs. 1,55,400.00
Total Estimated Cost stands Rs. 1,55,400.00/- for 1 year