TOTAL MISMANAGEMENT @ DHADAK MOHIM – PART V

REACTION FROM THE WORLD ABOUT THE MISMANAGEMENT

Cathy Ritlaw said...

Oh, no, so very sorry! At least you have the courage to speak up and perhaps change things. Thank you.

September 3, 2011 1:23 AM

Johnny D said...

Catherine grateful for your kind support... I am very-very sad about the whole thing and most of the volunteers who were serving or had served in previous batches feel the same way but since they have come from respective colleges, they just cannot say anything...

The love and respect the villagers gave us are being betrayed in the name of help and that saddens me more than anything else... hope the scenario changes for better from the next batch and the management will take good care with full stock of medicines...

Cuidate :)

September 3, 2011 10:03 AM

Sanjiv said...

Johnny,

People like this need to be held accountable. It is rather unfortunate that in the name of serving others, that people abuse the position they are placed in. 

I was amongst one that sent medications out of concern, and am extremely disappointed to hear that there is such gross mismanagement. Again, just to reiterate, these people need to be held accountable, and I would strongly urge you to take some action. I am more than willing to assist you in your efforts.

Cheers,
Sanjiv

September 4, 2011 6:47 PM

Johnny D said...

Sanjiv you can imagine what I must have felt after the whole experience, giving my precious time, raise donations, raise medicines from all over India and also ask my friends to be part of the camp as volunteers and to be treated by the management in the most callous manner... I am more sad than angry because the love the villagers gave us... without knowing the reality... is hard to replace or pay back.

However, I am also glad that I came to know the reality soon and to make them accountable and the world to know, I am writing all my experience and the flaws of the management. I am extremely sorry Sanjiv but all the medicines which came in from individuals were used for the villagers to become alright... so I am grateful to you all who had send us medicines... so please don't feel otherwise. It is my duty to make the world know how the management has failed miserably and cheated everyone - the villagers, the volunteers, and the world...

If you can, please send this information to the media, so that they are exposed about all that has happened in the name of serving the poor villagers. My heart really boils when poor are exploited in such a fashion Sanjiv... I do hope you understand my plight for being treated by the management in such a manner... every volunteer feels cheated after realizing what the whole game was...

Grateful to you for all your kind support. Acchaka!

Cuidate :)

September 4, 2011 8:31 PM

Ajay Saklani said...

Dear Johnny,

Sorry for responding late to your article. I read the article in details and I understand that there were miss management during the Dhadak Mohim programme, BUT the problems are not as big as you have stated in your article. Working in 47 villages (much more than 16 villages in last camp) wasn't that easy task. Your expectations according to this article were much more than it should have been.
While working in this region of Melghat, if you are expecting a packaged mineral water, that won't be possible. 
You have also written about Rs. 700/- being charged from volunteers for 10 days. I won't be able to comment on this as I'm not aware of how much donations Melghat Mitra is getting.
Whatever I came to know during my work in Melghat is that they do not receive momentary support/funding from any individual or organization, rather they ask them to visit the region and then decide how can they support the tribals without donation money.

September 4, 2011 9:31 PM

Johnny D said...

Ajay thank you so much for enlightening me and the world about the inefficiency and mismanagement... while I was on ground, you were not. As stated by you 47 villages, sorry that the management once again has misled everyone, including you. The camp was held only in 30 villages and not 47 as confirmed by Chandrakant Jagdale in 9 batches because they didn't get enough volunteers because they were charging Rs. 700/- from each one... the Dictionary meaning: "In general terms, volunteering is the practice of people working on behalf of others or a particular cause without payment for their time and services. Volunteering is generally considered an altruistic activity, intended to promote good or improve human quality of life, but people also volunteer for their own skill development, to meet others, to make contacts for possible employment, to have fun, and a variety of other reasons that could be considered self-serving." If volunteers get sick drinking well water, who is responsible Ajay? If the volunteers get sick, tell me how will they serve the poor? No toilet facilities for the ladies and the management wanted the volunteers to generate awareness about Health & Hygiene... isn't this a hypocritical approach? Chandrakant himself told us that after an article was published in Pune newspapers, a business donated Rs. 25,000 and later another 1.25 lakhs... many of my friends too contributed money who couldn't send medicines... I am surprised that you say that the problems are not BIG after going through all the points of inefficiency and mismanagement... will you please enlighten all of us as to what according to you is THE BIG PROBLEM? I will be grateful to you, really...

September 5, 2011 1:03 AM

Priyanka Borpujari said...

Dear Johnny, nice to connect back with you again, albeit through this bitter post :-( I am extremely sad to hear this, considering that I have been telling people a lot about 'Dhadak Mohim'. But I tell you what: I do hope that the people who sent in money and medicines do not lose their hope in helping. Of course this was terrible, but there are a lot others too who are doing great work, and I fear that this one bad incident would scar the memories of donors for the rest of their lives. All the best with all that you are doing. Proud of you. 

priyanka borpujari
www.priyanka-borpujari.blogspot.com

September 5, 2011 12:54 AM

Johnny D said...

Priyanka acchaka and grateful for your kind support... most of the donors and volunteers do feel cheated for contributing with good intentions and serving the poor... the experience on ground has been very-very sad and I hate when people cheat the poor villagers for no fault of theirs... cuidate :)

September 5, 2011 1:07 AM

Priyanka Borpujari said...

Okay Johnny, I have read what Ajay has written in here, and guess i would like to ponder on some of the points more openly. 

In a village, one cannot expect a separate 'ladies' toilet. I think every time the volunteers are told that this will be a complete village experience. Forget toilets: there are hardly any toilets in most villages.

This should NOT be seen as serving the poor -- like, we the 'servers' are doing something great and thus look down on those in the villages. In fact, my idea of volunteerism is to stay with the villagers and live like them!

Instead of bothering about mismanagement, perhaps you and your friends could help out with that? I mean, not everyone have managerial skills, no? 

To me, the biggest problem is that we consider ourselves as too great souls who are doing others a favour. Hell, we are doing it for ourselves, and we complain when we are attempts have some other motive. That is the way I see it.

I cannot comment on the Rs 700 taken, for I need to know more.

Please Johnny, continue your good work, but let us all not jump into conclusions? It is veryyyy easy to do that and to point fingers. Let's remember that volunteers go in with their own will, and so did you. If we really want to help, we should live one day completely like a man who is trying hard to feed his dying children. Let's keep Mumbai outside when we leave Mumbai. All the best.

September 5, 2011 1:29 AM

Johnny D said...

Priyanka, I am not pointing a finger here because I have held Melghat Maitri in a very high pedestal before my experience @ Dhadak Mohim... and I sincerely request Ajay Saklani and you to realize and understand this FACT in the first place!

Along with Ajay, I had even gone to Mumbai to talk with JJ GMC students to request them to join Dhadak Mohim... I raised donations for them; I raised medicines worth 25 – 30,000 rupees in a short time; and I even raised volunteers for them and provided my service because I believed in them. I didn’t go for my personal benefits there because I have dedicated my life to serve the poor villagers in Vidarbha. So before writing – ‘Jumping to conclusion’ you should have thought about all these factors.

Secondly, is it my fault if so many flaws of the management are seen right in the front of your eyes? Will you keep your mouth SHUT like the world and turn a BLIND EYE?

Thirdly, it was MISMANAGEMENT at its BEST after conducting such camps since the last 14 years? They should have been flawless by 14th year, instead of so many flaws.

Fourthly, yes, separate Ladies Toilet is out of the question in villages but tell me how will you generate awareness of ‘Health & Hygiene’ if you are living their unhygienic life style? Will the villagers listen to you? One has to practice what one preaches or expect others to follow. What if poisonous snakes had bit lady volunteers? Obviously, since they made us to sign that in case of any casualties, the individual is responsible and not the Trust. So the management were smart enough to include this clause.

Fifth, only if Ajay and you had been on the grounds, would your eyes pop up with all the mismanagement and ground realities. Does one have to BEG for ‘Protein Supplements’ to be given to malnourished patients? They didn’t have STOCK, can you believe this? Two batches had to BEG them and it is only when I told Ram Phad that please send 20 Packets of ‘Protein Supplements’ and I shall pay the amount, it arrived late night... this essential supplement was missing and not available with them when they are serving in the region of malnutrition deaths?

Sixth, DETTOL the most essential antiseptic to clean the boils / injuries before applying the medicines was not at all given to any camps, WHY? In spite of repeated requests, only after four days, it was provided and that too not enough to distribute in four batches of one camp? This when I came to know that one volunteer from Pune by the name SARANG revealed they have enough stock of DETTOL. So why were the Base Camps deprived of the most essential antiseptic liquid?

There were many flaws that you and the world will read in coming days... and then may I suggest you to jump into your conclusion... the ground realities surely has opened my eyes.

September 5, 2011 10:09 AM

Catherine Ritlaw said...

Without honest, caring and organized people at the top, any organization will fail. Workers must have the support of the leaders, or all will fall apart.

September 3, 2011 9:22 PM

Anonymous said...

"When things go wrong as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all up hill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest if you must, but don't you quit.
Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don't give up though the pace seems slow--
You may succeed with another blow,
Success is failure turned inside out--
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far;
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit--
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit."

~ Unknown

September 3, 2011 10:13 PM

Johnny D said...

Acchaka ('Thank you' in Korku dialect) Catherine and you have rightly said...

Unknown acchaka for the inspiring poem... really appreciate your kind support and yes, i may quit only when death invites me in its arms... not otherwise!

cuidate :)

September 3, 2011 11:04 PM

Anonymous said...

Johnny my boy, my advice not only to you but to all the kind-hearted people out there who wish to contribute for some noble cause (God bless you all for that!), next time make sure you folks investigate first to find out the NGOs are genuine or fraudulent, trust me these days there are more fraudulent NGOs than the genuine ones, especially in India (sorry to say that!)! What you’re doing right now by writing about your bad experiences with them you’re already helping in fighting against the fraudulent NGOs. I think it’s about time that we should think about fighting this so-called-NGOs-making money by concealing their true colours. I cannot imagine 14 years in the business!! Come let us all uproot such NGOs so that the genuine ones can do their good work without these fraudulent NGOs putting dark patches on them. Keep writing my boy it’s worth the risks you folks took being their volunteers. May God bless you always!

September 4, 2011 11:04 PM

Johnny D said...

Acchaka ('Thank you' in Korku dialect) and grateful for your kind support and blessings Sir...

Sai Baba bless you always! - Cuidate :)

September 5, 2011 1:01 AM

TOTAL MISMANAGEMENT @ DHADAK MOHIM – PART IV

MANAGEMENT SHEDS ITS RESPONSIBILITIES IN CASE OF CASUALTIES WITH CLAUSE NO: 11

The Hindi translation was done by Dr. Ajit Roy...

Clause No: 11 - ‘Maitri’ has insurance covered for all volunteers. During your stay at the camp one must take good care of self. During the camp, if any untoward incident / accident occur I myself will be responsible. – Declaration signed by respective volunteer!

I am indeed very-very grateful to Dr. Priyadarsh Ture for telling me about this clause when he visited our Base Camp at Paankhalya while discussing all the mismanagement. He said, ‘I am surprised that there is short supply of medicines... I will make sure tomorrow you will get all the medicines before noon (for two consecutive days our camp received enough stock from Dr. Ture and later none till I was there), please give me a list of medicines that is required. I really don’t know about all the mismanagement... they have also made every volunteer to sign a declaration (above mentioned Clause No: 11) so that no one can blame them.’

In good faith, none of the volunteers including me read this Deadly Clause that would have been deadly in case of any casualties during our stay at the camps. Everyone was happy to be there to serve the poor tribal villagers and hence everyone signed the declaration without really reading it. Yes, it is our fault but was it not the Duty of the Management to inform all of us of this PARTICULAR CLAUSE, so that individuals would have been careful? If they had insured all the volunteers, why the Insurance Forms were not filled by respective individuals? Why was the copy of the Insurance Policy not given to each individual, if they have done it without our consent? It was very much mandatory on their part to do so to keep all the volunteers safe, who came there to work for the Trust!

Many of the volunteers from our base camp were surprised because none of them knew about such a clause... including Ms. Anil from Agra and me... they all have shown great surprise when they came to know about such a deadly clause that would have taken a toll had anyone really met with some untoward incident / accident. What if girl volunteers had met with something untoward? In fact, the day after Pola Festival (the management had ordered everyone to stay away from villages for two days Sunday & Monday 28^th & 29^th August) a girl volunteer named Prajakta (from Pune) from Khaari Base insisted to visit the village Salai on 29^th to see her patients. Two boys Rahul and Mahesh accompanied her but they were stalked by a drunkard villager throughout their stay... when they complained to villagers, they were told to bash the drunkard and the boys did... the three also had a verbal fight with some of the villagers the same very day.

The girl never reported this matter to the Group Leader at the camp or the management... it was one of the boys, who revealed what had happened at Salai Village later. Imagine what would have happened if the three were beaten by the villagers? Obviously, the Management would have quoted Clause No: 11 to be on their safe side.

Village politics is very-very dangerous and I know pretty well about this aspect. There are numerous invisible eyes that always follow you to record every action and your intention and who all you meet and interact. Even volunteers of our batch used to face opposition from certain villagers at Nagodhana Village... in fact, some of the youngsters in the village were trying their best to pick up a quarrel during our daily visit... you all will be surprised that an old villager aged 75 plus also tried to pick up quarrel with me and two others but we kept our cool smiling and agreeing to whatever he was stating so that he doesn’t get upset. I was very careful that none of the volunteers from our batch should get into any type of quarrel and always used to guide everyone to converse in a very low humble tone with villagers with a smile always on the face.

In fact, in one of the villages named Bhokarbhardi under Paankhalaya Base Camp, volunteers had to face unpleasant reception by village politicians and warned not to enter their village... so the management had to stop serving the villagers there... this was confirmed by Chandrakant too! Thankfully nothing untoward really happened there with the volunteers. We all feel the management has not guided us in a proper manner and once we reached there to serve, their duty seems to be over... what and how you do it in villages, they were not at all bothered as there was no DAILY FOLLOW UP by the management regarding our well-being or supply of medicines! Truly-truly, I am very sad and amazed at the unprofessional attitude of the management, for they have been conducting yearly camps since the last 14 years!

(... to be continued...)

TOTAL MISMANAGEMENT @ DHADAK MOHIM – PART III

VOLUNTEERS CHARGED Rs. 700/- FOR 10 DAYS’ CAMP

“1) A Volunteer requires 700rs for his/her Lodging, Food, Travelling Insurance,etc..You can adopt one or more volunteer and share this expenses. As due to student life, many volunteers find it difficult to arrange this money.” On their blog: www.dhadakmohim.wordpress.com

This is what one of the volunteers (from Khaari Base Camp) said to me while chatting on Facebook on 2^nd September:

Rutuja Shirole

·          really!

·          i do agree

·          rs.700 fr wt?

·          no toilts...

·        

Every volunteer and their parents were surprised to pay Rs. 700/- while working for the Trust as volunteers. This is for the very first time that I have come across such a system. Even when natural calamities like flood or during earthquake, the volunteers’ food, safe drinking water and accommodation, pick up and drop are mandatory duty of the Trust or Organization that requests volunteers to join them to work selflessly for humanity’s sake. So but obvious everyone who paid the amount (mainly students) felt this was not fair. One of the main reasons why they didn’t get enough volunteers to work for them in 11 Base Camps and they had to manage only 9 camps, instead of 11!

Even an individual like me who have been helping was asked by Chandrakant to pay and I refused and he didn’t insist on this aspect. After all medicines, donations and requesting volunteers to join (I travelled to Mumbai on my own money to be with Documentary Filmmaker Ajay Saklani to talk with Medical Students of JJ Govt Medical College to join Dhadak Mohim) and providing my service was on the larger scale.

Each volunteer was charged Rs. 700/- for the ten days’ volunteer work... volunteers travelling from all over India had to spend their own and the Trust which should have provided food, water & accommodation failed to do so. While the Trust will gain everything because of the volunteers, who will remain faceless and nameless, many felt they were taken for a ride by being charged Rs. 700/- since they were giving 10 precious days of theirs to serve on behalf of the Trust so why were they charged?

A deadly huge snake... from Rutuja Shirole's album on Facebook

No safe Drinking Water, No Proper Accommodation, No Toilets for Ladies, No Electricity... yes, we were supposed to live like villagers but then how will we convince the villagers to maintain ‘Health & Hygiene’ if all the volunteers are visiting nature’s call early morning in fields and jungles? What would happen if volunteers were bitten by poisonous snakes? One girl from Satara Gauri Jagtap became so serious that the panel doctors couldn’t even treat her and she had to be taken to a Private Nursing Home to administer two bottles of saline... the girl was so weak when she came to our Base Camp at Paankhalaya. Ms. Anil from Agra developed rashes on her arms because of unsafe polluted water... fortunately, not many of the volunteers got sick... but wasn’t it the duty of the Organization to provide everyone safe drinking water at least when they have charged everyone Rs. 700/-? We were drinking water from a well, which had huge frogs and what not... and everyone’s dirty buckets were in and out... I wonder why they never took any precaution regarding all these aspects!

Bright Shining Eyes of a Huge Frog in the well, we were drinking water...

Once the 10 days get over, the individual were left on their own to reach the Main Base Camp (MBC) at Dharni... the management didn’t bother to pick up girls and boys... those who were lucky, got the bus but those who didn’t, had to lift their heavy luggage and walk for 3 to 4 kms before getting any mode of transport. Wasn’t it the duty of the management to help the volunteers to reach the bus station and Main Base Camp after the 10 days get over? 7 (4 girls) volunteers from our base camp had to walk for 3 kms with their heavy luggage to reach the MBC... even Rutuja had to walk for 3 kms with her heavy bags before getting an auto...

The management mentions that Rs. 700/- is charged for Food, Lodging, Travelling & Insurance... Yes, Food was provided but the regular and that too the volunteers had to prepare... No special breakfast or fruits... as mentioned earlier no safe drinking water... Lodging was at the mercy of the village aanganwadis or school buildings... Travelling as mentioned above they did not bothered to pick up when the camp ended for a batch of volunteers... as for Insurance... this is surely misleading because they never told any of us and never gave any Insurance form to fill in our full details...

Above all, the Clause No: 11 state that ‘during the stay at the camp in case of any untoward unpleasant incident / accident, the individual is responsible.’ Most of the volunteers didn’t even know about it because everyone including me signed the form (in Marathi) at arrival in good faith. It was Dr. Priyadarsh Ture, who told me about such a clause when I projected the problems of shortage of medicines to him and he even insisted that I should write everything in my REPORT when I leave the camp. I am indeed grateful to Dr. Ture for telling me about the dangerous clause that we all had signed in good faith. I was shocked to know about such a clause... How can the management be so callous and unprofessional in their approach? So if some volunteer had died during the 10 days camp, s/he would have been responsible for her / his death... and not the management!

I am really very-very sad about the whole experience! I wish to thank Sai Baba that nothing untoward happened to any volunteer and HE protected all of us while the management had made sure to blame the individual if something had happened!

DHADAK MOHIM: TOTAL MISMANAGEMENT – PART II

INSUFFICIENT ORIENTATION TO VOLUNTEERS @ ARRIVAL

Little knowledge is dangerous – it has been said by our ancestors and rightly so... only a little knowledge was given to every volunteer who arrives from various parts of India by the management. A little information about what constitutes Melghat Region by Chandrakant Jagdale and a little information about how to recognise symptoms of Pneumonia, fever and malnourished patients by Dr. Ajit Roy... and the Dr. Declares to all volunteers – ‘No degree is required to treat the patients now that you all are doctors. If anyone wishes to learn how to give injections, we will teach it. It is very easy and simple.’ The Orientation was over!

In mere 20 minutes, the half baked information is passed onto volunteers and then we were dispatched to various base camps... and left to serve the poor tribal villagers in four villages at our own peril. Many volunteers including me were shocked to see that there were no qualified doctors leading the batch of volunteers... I was told earlier that qualified doctors would be available in each batch. So the Group Leader of the previous batch trains the new batch of volunteers with his devotion and we serve the villagers from the next day.

The half knowledge and insufficient supply of medicines surely created a lot of problems in the villages, which every volunteer faced during their stay... non-availability of dettol to clean up boils, injuries of infants again was a big handicap for all of us... Our Group Leader Suresh, a dedicated individual had built beautiful rapport with villagers – old or young, was a medical student from Pune. His leadership was very well executed by four volunteers – Harsha, Pooja (BSW), Rahul and Bhushan (Engineering students)... who guided us well. What surprised me was after they left us at the base camp, and there was no follow up as to what we needed or if there was any problem.

I did have a talk with Dr. Ture, Rajaram, Ram about shortage of medicines, and problems faced by volunteers in villages... It was through Dr. Ture I came to know that we had signed a declaration that the Trust (for whom all volunteers were working after paying Rs. 700/- for 10 days) is not responsible if anything happens to one of us. How disgusting it is because the declaration form was in Marathi and Ms. Anil and I couldn’t understand it... we were never told that such a clause was there... we were told just to write our names and addresses and sign it.

So when the 10 days ended, at the base camp I questioned to Dr. Ajit as to how can you send the volunteers without sufficient supply of medicines and this is what we all had to listen – ‘You all are here to counsel and generate awareness among the villagers to lead a clean and healthy life style. Medicines are not required but counselling is and that is what we are here for. There are enough medicines at PHC (Primary Health Centres) and the villagers should be told that they should visit PHC when they get sick... only serious infant patients should be treated with medicines.’ All of us sitting at Dharni Base were shocked to hear this... and since I was questioning their mismanagement, Dr. Roy even commented – ‘Johnny is a big critic.’ Chandrakant asked Ms. Anil if she faced any problems (she suffered from skin allergy) – all these happened when I had walked out of the hall. If it was only counselling, why did they ask people to donate medicines? Why the volunteers were not briefed at arrival that they will be only counselling the villagers? The Orientation and Training were insufficient and it shows that the management had really not planned a fool proof system for such a huge camp.

I had to leave to drop Ms. Anil to Khandwa because the management couldn’t convince me about their inefficiencies to run such a camp after conducting yearly camps since the last 14 years. When I returned back the next day at the camp, the situation was once again similar to what we all had experienced before. No supply or follow up of medicines status... thankfully a lot of medicines arrived from my friends, who had send to serve the poor tribal villagers. During my absence from the camp, our Group Leader Shambhaji (MSW) had had a talk with Chandrakant about all the problems and this is what he told me – ‘I had a talk with Chandu and he told if the Trust wants to run the camp in such a manner, what can he do?’

Volunteers from my batch were aghast that there is no proper system and management on the whole and did feel they were cheated by being charged Rs. 700/- to serve as a volunteer. More in my next post...

(... to be continued...)

TOTAL MISMANAGEMENT @ DHADAK MOHIM – PART I

INDISCIPLINE VOLUNTEER SUPPORTED BY MANAGEMENT WHILE DEDICATED SENIOR BLAMED FOR PROTECTING LIVES OF VOLUNTEERS

Since we all volunteers have signed blindly (our faults totally – Ms. Anil & I never knew since we don’t know how to read Marathi) the declaration form that we will be responsible for any casualties and not the Trust, it was my duty to protect the lives of the junior volunteers against any harm, natural or unwanted.

A new volunteer named Amol arrives from Buldhana and right from the beginning showed disrespect towards seniors – the Group Leader Shambhaji and me – the senior most in the batch. When I admonished him and another new volunteer Atul from Amravati, they showed as if they didn’t cared much. His act of disrespect continued the next day when he showed his disrespect towards food twice. Shambhaji and Sanjay (MSW from Satara) were preparing chicken and the moment Amol saw, he reacted with a disgusting ‘cheee’. I hate individuals who show disrespect towards food. So I made sure that he should know that nothing in this world is truly vegetarian because in everything that we eat, breathe or else drink... living micro-organisms are present. I enlightened him the water we drink of the well is filled with big-big frogs, snakes, crabs, fishes and plenty of insects and that every vegetarian is a living beings.

The next day, only five volunteers were left – Trupti, Vijaya, Sanjay, Amol, Shambhaji along with me at Paankhalaya Base Camp. Shambhaji had to go to Dharni to fetch Gauri’s (the sick girl) belongings from another base camp... so it was my duty to lead the team. The dark clouds early morning were dangerous as cloud burst and lightning strikes are very common in Vidarbha. So I told the four volunteers – Trupti, Sanjay, Vijaya and Amol that we all will go to Khaparkheda instead of dividing the batch. Other villages – Gambhiri and Nagorthana were far off and one had to walk through open fields (dangerous when lightning strikes) and also in two villages the atmosphere is a bit hostile in nature. We were walking towards the village, Amol and Trupti trailed behind and even after repeated requests were showing – ‘I don’t care a damn attitude and arrogance’ and walking leisurely as if they were strolling in Botannical Gardens.

When I reached the village, I gave a nice hearing to both of them for being so indiscipline and I messaged Chandrakant Jagdale (Chandu) to please shift Amol from the batch ASAP. Because of Amol, Trupti who had been working zealously all these days showed a relaxing attitude in his company. When Trupti came to know that I had messaged Chandu, she requested me to forgive Amol for the last time... I told her point blank – ‘When a person shows disrespect on and on, I wouldn’t like such person to work in the batch. And I even told her, the moment we reach the Base, I will call Chandu.’ I called and Chandu was already at the Base Camp waiting for us.

Instead of taking the right action, Chandu blamed me for taking everybody together... I couldn’t believe that in front of everybody he said this and further blamed Suresh, the group leader from previous batch. After doing everything good with a selfless devotion for the movement, such a treatment surely made me sad and angry. Suresh, a medical student from Pune had done a great work with just four volunteers to serve the four villages given to him with insufficient supply of medicines. His team had built such lovely rapport with villagers that it was sad to see them shedding tears when he was parting from them. And I was astonished that Chandu blamed us for doing our jobs well...

Amol came to me and said he is sorry and said – ‘Sir you stay here and I will go to another Base Camp... but I had given him enough chance to act, and since I was not respected by Chandu for doing everything in my capacity to help with medicines, donations and volunteers... it was time for me to leave. Chandu said only once that this is not done... while all the other volunteers kept requesting me to stay... I told them – ‘Where I am not respected and treated in such a manner, my self esteem doesn’t allow me to work for such an organization.’ So at 1400 hours on 1^st September I told Chandu I am leaving... and came back home, a sad but a relieved man for not supporting the mismanagement of the Trust!

I am truly shocked that instead of supporting the RIGHT, the management has supported the WRONG and blamed the RIGHT that it was WRONG to be RIGHT!

(... to be continued...)

TOTAL MISMANAGEMENT @ DHADAK MOHIM

I have disassociated self from DHADAK MOHIM w.e.f: 1^st September 1400 Hours!

It is indeed ironical and a very sad experience when you hold someone high for the good work they have done since years... however, a close association do reveal a lot about how things are on the grounds.

I came to know about Melghat Maitri from documentary filmmaker Ajay Saklani who made the documentary on Melghat Malnutrition UPAASMAR – The Taste of Hunger! In June, Melghat Maitri helped me greatly to conduct survey at villages in Melghat Region for three days. So when their DHADAK MOHIM (89 days medical camp during monsoon) was to start on July 16^th, it was my turn to lend my support and help them. Through my friends all around the nation, I managed to collect medicines worth 25 to 30,000 rupees for the camp (and more were expected to arrive but now I have requested everyone not to send them). I joined in as a volunteer along with my friend Ms. Anil from Agra on the 20^th August.

What I experienced in mere few days was a nightmare as many volunteers and I wondered how can someone who has held such camps since the last 14 years, be so unprofessional in their approach... if there is one flaw, one can say... – ‘we are humans and humans do make mistakes’. If there are two flaws... then one can presume it to be a coincidence but if there are number of flaws in the system, then it a case of total mismanagement... and that is what other volunteers and I experienced @ Dhadak Mohim...

Right from the word ‘go’ things were not as I had expected... a mere 30 minutes Orientation @ Arrival (of the volunteers) by Dr. Ajit Roy about how to detect Pneumonia, diarrhoea and treat the infants, and if required the volunteers would be taught how to administer injections...and yes... he declares you all are doctors now, who can treat patients with the medicines! Initially, I was told that every batch will have an able doctor, however, none of the batches (nine) had a qualified doctor to lead the team of volunteers, who come from various walks of life – some were engineering students, some medical, some BSW / MSW and some professionals from various sections...

It was the job of the Batch Head / Team Leader to explain the intricacies of various medicines to be given to patients and train the volunteers in mere 10 days’ time... so it depends on the respective individual to pick up things fast or just be the way one is... During the Orientation @ Arrival there is no mention that the volunteers are here only for Counselling the villagers and treat only the serious patients without medicines... but when I asked for the short supply of medicines and no dettol to clean the patients’s injuries / boils or body before applying medicines, I was told by Dr. Ajit Roy – ‘We are here not to treat the patients but only to counsel them and create awareness without medicines... we have to only treat serious patients with medicines’. How I wish they had put a placard on each volunteer’s chest saying – ‘We are here only for counselling and not treatment’. I really pity the approach!

The following points of DHADAK MOHIM’s management says it was a total mismanagement to lead the volunteers to believe that they are doing a great job without providing sufficient medicines, training and orientation sans able and qualified doctors, without proper accommodation, safe drinking water, proper toilets etc etc:

Each volunteer was charged Rs. 700/- for the ten days’ work... volunteers travelling from all over India had to spend their own and the Trust which should have provided food, water & accommodation failed to do so. While the Trust will gain everything because of the volunteers, who will remain faceless and nameless, many felt they were taken for a ride by being charged Rs. 700/- since they were giving 10 precious days of theirs to serve on behalf of the Trust so why were they charged?

No pick up from different base camp after the camp ends... girls and boys with heavy luggage were left on their own to walk for two to three kilometres from the interiors of the villages before getting transportation to arrive at the Main Base Camp @ Dharni.

Volunteers were asked to sign a declaration that in case of any casualties, it is not the Trust of the Management who will be responsible but the individual is responsible... it was the most bizarre clause because volunteers were working for the Trust and the Trust sheds its responsibilities with the signed declaration.

No proper stock of medicines provided at each base camp (Rajaram from Trust revealed in a personal conversation)... I had to literally beg for Dettol, Protein Supplements (the camp was actually meant to serve the malnourished patients but the main supplement was not available in the stock) for more than 4 days... for Protein Supplements I had to finally tell Ram Phad to send 20 packets and that I shall pay the amount... and only then it arrived late night...

The status of medicines’ stock was discussed with Dr. Priyadarsh Ture, who was shocked to hear... and the next two days, he made sure our Base Camp got what we requested him to provide but after two days, it was the same old story... no one bothered to ask what we required or what was our medicines stock’s status...

When I told Shambhaji (the Camp Leader of Paankhalya) that without all the medicines volunteers should not enter a village (to serve the patients) after repeated requests for medicines, that evening medicines arrived after four days of begging and repeated requests.

When I projected and expressed the inadequacies and inefficiency of the management, instead of accepting their inefficiencies, they blamed the volunteers for not doing the job properly.

The status of insufficient stock of medicines in all the 9 Base Camps covering 30 odd villages was confirmed by Rajaram of the Trust, who revealed that every Base Camp was facing the shortage of medicines...

Initially was told that they don’t have enough stock of medicines as they have not arrived from various donors... it was the duty of the Trust to keep enough stock of medicines before the camp starts even if the donors had not send them but such thing never happened and even the day I left, the shortage persists.

No stock taking or daily follow up by the management on a daily basis as to which Base Camp needs what medicines...

Orientation @ Arrival to volunteers very misleading by Dr. Ajit Roy, as first we were told that maximum deaths in the region is caused not because of Malnourishment but Pneumonia and medicines not reaching in time to respective patients... Death due to malnourishment was a rare and not the real cause... so is Malnorishment in Melghat Region a Demonic Myth created by the Media and Government, because while working in four villages, our batch witnessed less than 10 cases of malnourishment...

Volunteers were sent to villages without Dettol to treat the patients with boils / injuries... repeated request failed... Fortunately one of my friends from Mumbai sent me a 5 Litre can of Dettol and another sent me 5 bottles of Savlon... the management didn’t provide us any...

At respective Base Camps, no proper arrangements of Safe Drinking Water (when they have charged Rs. 700/- each), Electricity, Accommodation, and Toilets (for ladies & gents)... Volunteers were left to fend for self at the mercy of their own... Volunteers suffered from Skin diseases and one even became serious, so much that the Team doctors could not treat her and she was taken to Private Nursing Hospital and was administered saline bottles... imagine, if they cannot take care of their own volunteers, how will they treat the villagers? Volunteers were drinking water from wells full of frogs and other insects, fortunately not many fell sick... how can one create awareness and counsel the villagers when the management made the volunteers to go for nature’s call in the open in an unhygienic manner as the villagers live?

Short term vision of the Trust because after 3 months what? The villagers will be left at the mercy of God... what happens to them in the next 9 months if they get sick?

When donations were pouring in from many individual donors (many of my friends too contributed with cash who could not send medicines), why then there were so many inadequacies and shortage of medicines?

Wastage of vegetables were at the peak... as food stocks arrives only when the management is asked... it was not provided on a daily basis.... kilos of vegetables used to get waste and thrown in a region where the sole aim was to serve the malnourished infants... it shows the callousness and mismanagement at its best!

Non-Marathi Volunteers who came in from North were also given the declaration forms in Marathi instead of English or Hindi... when we asked, we were told they have not made it... mismanagement and misleading the volunteers.

Non availability of qualified doctors at each Base Camp, however, initially I was told that every centre will have one qualified doctor.

Improper Division of Number of volunteers in each Base Camp... some camps had 10 to 14 volunteers while some had just 5... it shows how the mismanagement was at its best!

All these points I will be discussing in more detail manner one by one in my blog as a series so that people are not misled to believe what they don’t know happens on the grounds. I am sad that such a thing happens in the name of serving the poor villagers to let the world believe a lot is being done... I am sad, really very sad... It is better not to serve the poor at all but to serve in the name of exploiting the situation of the poor... well, I have not slept properly even when I was serving the villagers there... 


(to be continued... )