Vision
“Assimilation of HIV+ People into the Society without any Stigma and offer them Equal Opportunities to Excel in life.”
Mission
“To provide residential care and rehabilitation of HIV/AIDS affected destitute-orphaned children and women”.
Manavya (Humanity in Marathi Language) is among the few pioneering Non-Government Organizations (NGO) in India, to understand the ramifications of HIV/AIDS outburst in India and to take necessary steps to rehabilitate the innocent children and women affected by this dreaded disease.
Rapid development of Pune city brought with it a turbulent rise of various issues, and among them was that of HIV/AIDS cases. Reports of deaths of family heads due to this dreaded disease, started to thrown out women and children out of their rightful house and were denied food, shelter or any sort of support. They were unwanted by the society and were treated inhumanly.
This plight of women and children was not neglected by Vijayatai Lawate, rather it made her determined to help them find solace by offering them a home, medical support and means to live a dignified life.
To fulfill all these requirements of children and women, Manavya started Gokul, a home for HIV+ children, which offers a safe shelter, educational and vocational opportunities, nutritional diet and medical treatment and assistance (ART) for all our children. Gokul is situated in Bhugaon, very close to Pune city. Currently we have 57 children from age group of -18 years who now constitute as one big Gokul family.
It is peculiar of HIV+ people to be prone to mild illness such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, rashes etc. Such symptoms were also shown by our children. At times they suffered from severe side effects of ART drugs and had to be rushed to the hospitals located in Pune. This consumed a lot of valuable time and the treatment used to get delayed. Manavya realized that in order to provide timely treatment to the children, some concrete steps needed to be taken. Manavya, in collaboration with Budrani trust established Krishnarpanam Niramay Medical Research Center in the premises of Gokul. Manavya has employed 2 full time nurses and part time doctors to look after the children's health.
Umed Mobile Clinic is a health project meant specially for village and slum families living with HIV in and around Pune city. The aim of this project is to provide poor families with low cost medical treatments and balance nutrition. Through this project, Manavya also aims to establish a good rapport with the communities and increase awareness regarding HIV/AIDS and reduce the stigma attached to it.
A need was felt to offer a complementing help when Umed Mobile Clinic offered medical services to poor HIV+ families. Manavya felt that if such families are offered high protein diet along with the medicines, the overall health of all the family members would significantly improve. Manavya then started with Home Based Care program, where HIV+ poor families are offered high protein nutrition every month.
Manavya does not have the legal authority to keep children under its protective wings once they turn 18. Such can be difficult time for many children as they now need to live in a community they are not so familiar with. To help children tackle and be prepared to face various situations of life, Unnati Suppport Group was born. Unnati offers our young adults with sessions for capacity building. It offers a safe platform to express and exchange their thoughts, views, opinion and even anxieties. Manavya also provides with vocational trainings through which our children can become financially independent and also become a valued contributor to the society.
Manavya believes that every person in the society has the right to live a complete and fulfilling life. Family constitutes to be a major factor for determining such complete life. Manavya was first to organize Matrimonial Meet for HIV+ people, and offered them the chance to select their life partner and establish their family.
At Manavya, we are optimistic that with all these efforts, society will change its perception towards HIV infected population and no discrimination would be done towards them. Manavya envisions a society that is free from the clutches of stigma, shame and discrimination and rather develop a society which encourages people to live a independent and dignified life.
Manavya is a registered NGO under Bombay Public Trust Act,1950 (BPT No. E/2485), Pune with Income Tax Certificate No PN/CIT-I/80G/63/1735.
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