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It was in 1987, that Sri Ram Charitable Trust, a charitable foundation was established by Thermo Group of companies to undertake social responsibilities. . Since then all group companies have been contributing 10% of their annual profits to the Foundation.
Health care and alternative livelihood training programs in Rural India are the focus areas of activity of the Trust. In line with this overall objective, the Foundation is actively involved in the following major activities.
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| I. Healthcare |
| Under Health care, the Foundation is working towards providing safe drinking water, medical care and nutrition. |
| A. Providing safe drinking water in rural areas : |
Fluoride level in the drinking water in several villages in Nalgonda district of Andhra Pradesh is far in excess of recommended safe levels. Many villagers have become victims of dental, skeletal and neurological deformities. To help such villagers, the foundation has installed two water treatment plants in two worst affected villages. Plans are underway to install three more such water treatment plans in needy villages for supply of drinking water.
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| A defluoridation work installed by the foundation |
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Villagers collecting safe drinking water |
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| B. Medical Treatment |
The Trust regularly conducts medical camps in fluoride affected villages in coordination with Government and private Hospitals. Medicines are supplied free to all deserving cases. Every patient who requires surgery or other specialized treatment are admitted in Hospitals and provided necessary treatment. |
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| C. Nutrition |
Most of the villagers now eat food items that do not adequately supplement calcium, magnesium and vitamin-C, hastening the crippling effects of fluoride. Malnutrition of adults and children is thus a major cause for the ill-health of most of the villagers. Plans are underway to implement a program covering 15 villages covering select groups to bring about food habits among them as recommended by National Institute of Nutrition. The program involves trainings, awareness programs and continuous monitoring of selected groups for a period of about 2 years so that improvements gradually become visible and it becomes easy to replicate such programs in other villages. |
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| II. Livelihood Training Programs |
Apart from agriculture, alternative livelihood sources in rural areas are almost negligible. To help educated rural youth, the Trust has started Computer Training centers, skills in spoken and written English language, Training in tailoring, Public telephone centers for physically challenged persons, etc. |
| 1. Public telephone centers to physically challenged : |
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| 2. Training in Computer literacy : |
To enable rural youth acquire computer literacy, the foundation has started three Computer Training Centers in three backward areas and the response has been most encouraging. |
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Computer training classes in progress |
The foundation has drawn up plans to start 10 computer training centers in rural areas by end of the year 2008. Efforts will also be made to find suitable employment on completion of training. |
| 3. Tailoring Training: |
| The Trust is running a training center in Tailoring in a poor colony to enable women living there to become self-supporting. |
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| III. Other activities |
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Young women undergoing training in tailoring |
| IV. Other programs under implementation: |
1. Tree Plantation: To cover an area of 5 kms from the Marriguda cross roads for a distance of about 1 km on all four directions.
2. Yoga Training: Training in Yoga for school children, teachers and others.
3. Conduct trainings in spoken and written English for needy students attending computer trainings.
4. Eye Hospital Project at Jaisalmer: The foundation has partly financed the establishment of the Hospital for eye ailments. It is proposed to undertake the administration of the Eye wing of the Hospital independently.
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