The Tamil Nadu State AIDS Control Society (TANSACS) supported CHARDEP for establishing a Community Care Centre (CCC) for the benefit of people living with HIV/AIDs (PLHIV) and their families. This centre plays a critical role in providing treatment, care and support to people living with HIV/AIDs (PLHIV). The CCC is linked with the Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) Center at the Government Medical College and Hospital of Kanyakumari district, and ensures that People Living with HIV (PLHIV) are provided (a) counseling for ARV treatment preparedness and drug adherence, nutrition and prevention (b) treatment of Opportunistic Infections (c) referral and outreach services for follow up and (d) social support services. This center’s mandate is to seek better community and family response towards PLHIV through family counseling. For better treatment outcome, the center provides families of PLHIV counseling on the patient’s nutritional needs, treatment adherence and psychological needs. The centre has served 960 people who are living with HIV/AIDS.

TSUNAMI REHABILITATION HIGHLIGHTS

CHARDEP participated in the rehabilitation of the victims of the 1994 tsunami in Kanyakumari district.

One again CHARDEP refused to stick to the beaten track and join the hordes of agencies, local, national and international who were converging on the marine fisher folk community and duplicating each other’s efforts. CHARDEP could see that other communities living near the coast and directly or indirectly dependent on the sea for their livelihood were also made destitute by the tsunami, but were being ignored by the agencies offering rehabilitation support. It was these people that CHARDEP decided to help and did so in an innovative manner. Financial support for these interventions was provided by BAPS-CARE International.

Gaudhan (Donation of Cows)

The sea shell collecting community had lost their livelihood. They had lost their occupational assets and moreover, the changes brought about by the tsunami in the ocean bed’s topography resulted in shells not being washed ashore as before. Realizing that any help for them must be in the form of an acceptable alternative livelihood that would offer a substantial income, CHARDEP provided 250 milch cows with calves and in full yield to this community on the understanding that calves would be given to other families when older. In addition, the benefitting families were provided with a good stall for housing the cow, a month’s supply of feed and were provided training through the veterinary department.

Coir Rope Making

Another community hard hit by the tsunami were the coir rope makers. One hundred sets of coir rope making equipment were provided along with a supply of coir that would last them a month. This enabled the community to regain their livelihood.

Rubber Slipper Making

CHARDEP wanted the marine fishing community to not depend on free aid and lose their dignity in the process. Therefore, rubber slipper making was introduced to the women of the community. Five production units were set up and one hundred women were provided training in slipper making. Furthermore, marketing linkages were established for all the units.