Dr. Tipu Alam, a distinguished recipient of the Human Welfare Foundation (HWF) scholarship, has qualified for post-doctoral research in the United States. A native of Banshthupi, Salaidanga in Gazol, Malda, West Bengal, Dr. Alam’s academic journey was once supported by HWF, and he has since made remarkable strides in his field.
Born to Dilsad Sekh, a cultivator, and Manjila Bibi, Dr. Alam comes from a modest background but has always demonstrated exceptional academic prowess. He completed his early education at Salaidanga High School and Danogram High School, later earning a B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Chemistry (Honors) from Aligarh Muslim University in 2015 and 2017, respectively. He went on to pursue a Ph.D. in Chemistry at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati, which he completed in 2024. His doctoral research centered on Photo and Electrochemical Strategies for C-N Bond Formation.
Dr. Alam’s academic journey is further highlighted by his impressive performance in national-level examinations. In 2017, he secured an All-India Rank (AIR) of 97 in the CSIR-Junior Research Fellowship (NET), alongside an AIR-580 in the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) and an AIR-846 in the Joint Admission Test for M.Sc. (JAM) in 2015.
Now, as he embarks on post-doctoral research in the United States, Dr. Alam continues to push the boundaries of chemistry with his innovative work. The Human Welfare Foundation expresses its pride in his achievements and extends its heartfelt congratulations to Dr. Alam for this remarkable milestone. HWF wishes him continued success in all his future endeavors and remains committed to supporting students like him in reaching their full potential.
Dr. Alam’s success story exemplifies the impact of HWF’s scholarship initiative, which empowers bright and deserving students to achieve their academic and research aspirations, ultimately contributing to the advancement of society.
Human Welfare Foundation has officially kicked off its School Kit Distribution program for the academic year 2023-24. The launch events took place in two selected villages in Madhya Pradesh.
Under the ambit of the School Kit Project, the foundation is committed to aiding students hailing from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. These are individuals who are at a heightened risk of discontinuing their education or have siblings and neighbors who have already dropped out or are on the verge of doing so. The core objective of this initiative is to mitigate the incidence of school dropouts by offering crucial support to underprivileged students and their families. This support is materialized through the distribution of comprehensive school kits, comprising backpacks and essential stationary supplies.
The issue of school dropout is inherently complex and perilous, given its tendency to occur all too easily and frequently. A single variable among the mentioned factors can lead a student to falter in their academic journey and eventually abandon schooling altogether. The risk of school dropout is particularly pronounced in families grappling with a low standard of living, compounded by the challenges of poverty and marginalization. The School Kit Distribution program endeavors to break this cycle by providing tangible assistance to those in need, thereby fostering a conducive environment for sustained education.
Human Welfare Foundation’s skill development and vocational training projects aims at helping underprivileged segments of the society improve their technical skills, enhance their employability level and enable them for employment and entrepreneurship. Such institutes are set up in most backward regions in the country.
HWF establishes Vocational Training Centres (VTC) and Skill Development Centres (SDC) to provide short-term job-oriented courses. These courses are designed to make youth especially from backward communities capable of securing decent jobs in various industries. Currently, HWF runs seven such centres in Delhi, Haryana, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Manipur, and Rajasthan.
This program intends at supporting poor households with opportunities for income enhancement leading towards economic mobility. Under the program, we provide individuals and communities with training in small-scale skills and interest-free business loans which offer them dignified and well sustainable ways to make a living.
During this year, we implemented 114 projects in the states of Delhi, Bihar, Assam, Jharkhand, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Rajasthan providing livelihood means such as e-rickshaw, wheel cart, small business shop, service centre, production unit, goat farm, etc.
Human Welfare Foundation is dedicated to making a positive impact on the lives of underprivileged individuals. We firmly believe that everyone deserves the opportunity to improve their circumstances and access better opportunities. To this end, we have taken the initiative to conduct vocational training workshops that are specifically designed to empower those who might not have had access to formal education or technical training.
The primary objective of these workshops is to equip participants with the technical skills necessary to enhance their employability and encourage entrepreneurial endeavors. We recognize that gaining proficiency in various trades and technical fields is crucial for individuals to secure stable employment and even potentially start their own businesses.
In recent times, we have successfully organized a series of workshops covering a wide range of technical disciplines. These workshops have been meticulously crafted to cater to the diverse needs of the participants. Some of the key areas we have focused on include automobile repair, electrical work, solar technology, and the operation of heavy machinery like JCBs.
As we move forward, our goal is to continue expanding and diversifying our vocational training initiatives. We are committed to providing more individuals with the tools they need to create a better future for themselves and their families. By doing so, we aim to uplift the underprivileged segments of our society, fostering economic independence and self-sufficiency. Through these efforts, we hope to build a stronger and more equitable community, where everyone has the chance to realize their full potential.
COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdowns have adversely impacted individual lives of the middle class and lower middle class irrespective of their caste, creed, and gender. It has brought economical and financial challenges for the marginalized and low-income groups from the unorganized sector. ‘COVID-19 Handholding Project’ is an initiative by HWF to brave this unprecedented situation, to ensure our contribution in handholding of the needy in their challenging times and to play our part in the nation-building.
The project aims at providing financial assistance in the form of loans to the individuals whose livelihood activities got adversely affected due to the COVID pandemic and related restrictions. This project also addresses the issues of micro and small livelihood activities. So far, as the first phase, we have implemented 500+ livelihood projects in different parts of the country.
We commenced ‘Project Ehsas’ in October 2021 by setting up community kitchens in the city of Kolkata and Delhi where a large number of migrant workers and slum dwellers struggle to manage the expenses for essentials. The project is to serve the cooked meal to the downtrodden and was initiated in the wake of worsening hunger crisis due to the Corona- 19 induced lockdowns and consequent loss of jobs in India. We have set-up kitchens Jogeswari in Mumbai and Lucknow in UP.
We are planning to set up more kitchens in other cities as well. Under the program, in one year from the commencement, we have distributed more than 200,000 food packets.
For details on Project Ehsaas click, https://projectehsas.org/
India has slipped to 102nd position (among 117 countries) in the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2019, slipping from its 2018 position of 95 and behind its neighbors Nepal, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. Poverty is a major hindrance to the growth of any society. Keeping this in mind, HWF implements the Hunger Relief Program helping thousands of people fight hunger. Under the program, we provide food kits to the neediest twice a year.
HWF’s Ramadan food program has been instrumental in getting food aid to vulnerable people in poverty ridden areas throughout the country in the blessed month of fasting. We ensure that those who receive this aid are among the most vulnerable in their communities, including widows, orphans, the elderly, internally displaced persons, refugees and the poor.
Every year HWF celebrates Eid-ul-Adha with the poor and needy people across the country. Last year, we distributed Udhiya Food Packets at several places in different states such as Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Assam, Haryana, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh. and Punjab. We ensure that those who receive Udhiya food aid are among the most vulnerable in their communities, which include widows, orphans, the elderly, internally displaced persons, refugees and the poor.
Human Welfare Foundation recognizes the critical importance of the issue and focuses on the most-affected areas to tackle water poverty, by providing people with crucial amenities like Hand-pumps. We believe that everyone should be able to access clean water and that this access underpins all other aspects of development. These have gone a long way in improving the lives of many people across India.
Another crucial amenity that helps in providing water in the remote areas with water scarcity is the bore well with submersible pump. HWF has established submersible pumps in various places across India helping establishments like schools and communities to avail clean and healthy water.
Addressing the critical issue of the lack of piped water supply in villages and rural areas is a pressing challenge that affects the daily lives and well-being of countless people. In response to this challenge, HWF (Human Welfare Foundation) has undertaken a proactive approach, focusing on the establishment of open wells in these rural communities.
The impact of these open wells cannot be overstated. Specifically, in the Barmer region of Rajasthan, which is characterized by its arid and desert-like conditions, the construction of open wells has brought about a profound transformation in the lives of the desert settlers. The consequences of this initiative are vividly illustrated in a study conducted by us in the Barmer region.
Prior to the construction of these open wells, it was a daily ordeal for thousands of women in this region. These women, often the backbone of their households, were forced to spend an astonishing 4 to 6 hours every day just to fetch water from distant wells. This arduous and time-consuming task not only took a physical toll but also had a significant impact on the trajectory of their lives. Their childhood, youth, and adult years were consumed by the relentless struggle for access to water. This precious resource was so scarce that it had the power to shape the life experiences of an entire community, particularly its women.
HWF has implemented open well projects in 9 north Indian states, including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, and Assam. These projects aim to alleviate the water scarcity issue and improve the quality of life for communities across these regions.
Under HWF’s Drinking Water Project, six Reverse Osmosis (RO) Water Purification Plants have been set up to solve the drinking water crisis of the people in the most marginalized regions of the country. From the RO Plants, 4 villages, with an average of 500 households in each village, have been benefitted. The projects have made huge impact reducing the water crisis of the affected villages and localities in the states of Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
HWF constructs cost effective and user-friendly toilets at household level to help rural communities get full access to the ‘Right to Sanitation’ and develop open defecation free villages. It also helps in significantly reducing diseases linked with poor sanitation and hygiene practices.
HWF’s concept of an ‘Open Defecation Free (ODF) village’ is a village where all residents have access to and regularly use sanitary toilets for their personal hygiene needs, eliminating the practice of open defecation. Open defecation is the practice of relieving oneself outdoors in fields, bushes, or other open areas, which can lead to numerous health and environmental problems.
Achieving ODF status typically involves a combination of infrastructure development, behavior change communication, and community mobilization efforts. HWF constructs cost-effective and user-friendly toilets at the household and community levels to develop open defecation-free villages.
Sanitation and cleanliness is the key to a healthy community. HWF through its associate partners conducts grassroot level awareness programmes among the public on the importance of clean and safe sanitation and to bring behavioural change among them.