In early 2005, news came almost daily about starvation deaths in some parts of West Bengal. The majority of these deaths were reported from Jalangi, a part of Domkal subdivision of Murshidabad district. This was the time when Dr. Zafarul Islam Khan, Editor of  The Milli Gazette, decided to help.

In addition to mounting an international awareness campaign and legal intervention through a PIL in the Supreme Court of India, help in the shape of weekly ration packets to affected households was quickly organised and it continues to this day.

To formalise this work, a trust called Charity Alliance was registered at Delhi. To meet the urgent needs of the people of the affected area in Murshidabad, Charity Alliance first made a list of persons in need of immediate help after a physical survey, and started distributing rice (2 kg per person per week) to 365 persons every week, who were in immediate need, most of them being widows, elderly people and other destitutes. Charity Alliance also gave cash for medical treatment for minor and major ailments to those in emergency. 108 children of erosion-affected-people were admitted to schools with full fees paid by the trust and some of them were also given textbooks, exercise materials and uniforms. Charity Alliance maintains a branch office at Ghoshopara Panchayat at Jalangi with a full-time representative since May 2005. Later another person was employed when vocational training was started two years ago. Initially, many national and international organisations came to help, but today only Charity Alliance remains in the area.

Ration, Medical, financial & Educational Assistance in Murshidabad

Vocational Training Centre

It was found that the area lacked the means for normal economic life as only some people had adequate land. As there is no business activity, providing financial help to a few will not help. It was felt that people should be trained in some skills to enable them to engage in income-generating activities. For this reason, in March 2008 a vocational training centre was started in rented premises. The training was free while lunch too was provided by the Center as an incentive for them to attend the training sessions regularly. The response was overwhelming and the first batch of 78 trainees, 22 in tailoring and 56 in embroidery, mostly women, successfully completed six-month-long free training of tailoring and nine-month-long free embroidery (zari or zardozi) course. Many of the trained hands are now engaged in income generating activities taking care of their families. In the second tailoring batch, 28 persons successfully completed the course in December 2009. Currently, in the session which started in March 2010, 35 trainees are enrolled in six-month free tailoring course. Charity Alliance spent Rs 1,32,740 on vocational training during the financial year 2008-09 and Rs 1,97,862 during 2009-10.

Alliance School

Charity Alliance started Alliance School in May 2009 in response to local people's continuous demand, as the capacity of an existing school in the area was not sufficient and one  government primary school was washed away due to Padma river erosion (which is the main cause of all the problems in the region). Alliance School started in a rented premises with eight teaching and two non-teaching staff and 175 students from KG to standard III. Charity Alliance contributed  Rs 1,66,883 as initial setting up expenses and it regularly pays about 30,000 every month to meet the current monthly deficit which will rise as one higher class is opened every year. The school is mainly accepting the children of the river-erosion-affected people of the area who have lost all their land as a result of river Padma changing its course in the area.  In the current academic year, the school has 12 staff and 245 students from KG to Standard IV. One class will be added each year. The school still runs in a rented premises  but, alhamdulillah, 1.5 bigha+2 decimal land  for school premises has been bought costing rupees 261,410. Construction of the school buildings will start as soon as finance is secured.

Outside Murshidabad, Charity Alliance spent Rs 82820 during 2009-10 which is as follows:

Charity Alliance is registered under 80-G of I.T. Act which allows 50%  tax exemption to donors. Donations (zakat, saqadah, bank interest, fidiya) may be sent to the central office: Charity Alliance, D-84 Abul Fazl Enclave-I, Jamia Nagar, New Delhi 110025; Tel.: (+91-11) 26942883, 26947483 or paid online at our website: www.charityalliance.in (email:  info@charityalliance.in). For more information, please visit the website.