Construction of care home for HIV infected/affected children in Rajasthan (India)

A home for HIV infected or affected children

Aashray Care Home is a residential care home with 37 children between the ages of 3 to 18 years. It is a home for children with special needs. Most of the children have acquired HIV from their HIV-infected mothers during pregnancy, birth or breastfeeding. The children living with HIV are under daily medication. HIV can not be cured but by regular check-ups, nutritious food, and good hygienic environment they can live a long and healthy life. The children do all of the things other people can do: go to school, exercise and work.

Due to expensive rent, inadequate facilities and changing and discriminating landlords (resulting in children often having to move home and schools), Aashray Care Home is in the process of building their own new home for the children in Nevta Gram (outside Jaipur), designed and built specifically for their needs. The home will be able to accommodate 50 children (13 more than at present) and will consist of a health care centre, library, counseling centre, skills development centre, entertainment space, garden, and of course basic home facilities (bedrooms, kitchen and bathrooms).

Previous donors have been able to ensure:

• The donation of land (anonymous local private donor)
• 20 lakh rupees of steel (Magdalena, private donor from Germany)
• Discount for cement (provided by Wonder Cement)

The land has been properly taken over and the design of a two story care home building is prepared through a consultant architect.

The money raised will now go towards cement, steel, sand, greet, brick, stone, windows, doors, tiles, lights, water pipelines, toilets, showers, labour costs etc. - and finally be a home for 50 children living with HIV, or whose parents have died from HIV/AIDS.

Aashray Care Home is getting means mainly from private donors and a small amount from the Rajasthani government. This is an attempt by their international volunteers to reach friends of friends across the world, and see if many small amounts can help Aashray Care Home realize their goal!