Howrah, India

Sustain for Life partnered with India-based Gloria Dayanand Seva Niketan (GDSN), an NGO situated in the slums of Howrah, twin city to Kolkata and situated on the left bank of the river Hooghly, to support a school for street children. The children associated with the school come from various backgrounds, e.g. the children of sex workers, orphans, deserted or have arrived in the Howrah district from an unhappy or abusive home life in rural locations in the hope of finding a better situation. They live by their wits and have no fixed abode, sleeping on the streets or within the railway station or wherever they can find a relatively safe location overnight. Despite India’s economic and social progress, some of these children still slip through the net and have no apparent access to care facilities or education. Currently, the GDSN school caters for around 100-120 children per day in a one-room establishment on the edge of the slum areas. From this room and with limited funds GDSN currently provides the children with a barely nutritious snack at breakfast and lunch-time and also delivers a primary level education. Sustain for Life stepped in to provide nutritious food for the children at the school, allowing GDSN some time to develop a more comprehensive and sustainable programme that would provide long-term benefit to the children.

Providing Medical Care in Howrah, India
Sustain for Life also worked with local partner Gloria Dayanand Sevaniketan (GDSN) in the slums of Howrah, India, to regenerate a dispensary for the poor. Initially Sustain for Life funded life saving drugs, diagnostic tests and critical surgery for those most in need.