As an organisation of global and national relevance, working for both social development and humanitarian outcomes, Plan India is committed to making its best efforts to promote mass awareness particularly in children, youth and women, against the spread of the Novel Coronavirus in India. Presently, Plan India through its programmes has a reach to around 5,500 villages and slums with 3 million families, and we are working with our field-level workers to spread awareness and behaviour change in the communities we work. In doing so, Plan India will work closely with the government agencies at the local and district level and healthcare experts to ensure the right messages and knowledge is available to the children, youths and women to keep them protected from the Coronavirus outbreak and be healthy.
in communities we work
We are working to ensure girls, young women, children and vulnerable groups are protected and supported as the COVID-19 crisis unfolds. Our response focuses on communicating public health information, distributing hygiene kits and personal protective equipment (PPE) while ensuring that the needs and rights of girls and young women are addressed.
Extending support to Around 100,000 people in 7 Aspirational Districts
Continuing our partnership with Niti Aayog, Plan India team members are working closely in 7 Aspirational Districts and supporting District Collectors in their initiatives to combat COVID-19. Major activities include:
Awareness generation on COVID-19 among girls, young women, children, their families and other stakeholders’ through telephonic and online media platforms reaching 100,000 people
Distribution of need-based dry ration for the marginalised sections
Medical Consumables (PPE, Hand Hygiene, Materials, infra-red thermometers) to district Udham Singh Nagar – Uttarakhand,
Two motorised ICU beds for district hospital of Udham Singh Nagar
The aspirational districts where Plan India is working include Siddharth Nagar (Uttar Pradesh), Haridwar (Uttarakhand), Hazaribagh, West Singhbhum, and Khunti (Jharkhand), Karauli (Rajasthan), Muzaffarpur (Bihar).
Reaching out to 3000 families in Pune and Bhubaneswar
Supported by Eicher Motors Limited, we are reaching out 1500 vulnerable families whose livelihoods have been severely impacted by the lockdown across Pune and BBSR each with dry ration and PPE kits.
Supplying protection kits in Nandurbar and Amravati, Maharashtra
Supported by Reckitt Benckiser Plan India’s Nutrition India Programme is supporting the district administration of Nandurbar and Amravati by supplying Personal Protection Equipments (PPEs) and hand hygiene materials to fight COVID-19.
The PPEs include protective clothing, coverall/gowns (with or without aprons), goggles, mask, face-shield, gloves, head-cover and shoe cover. The project will also supply thermal scanner/Infra-red thermometer which is used to measure body temperature from a distance, hand sanitizers and liquid soaps.
Reaching out to 1184 vulnerable families in Alwar, Rajasthan
Supported by Metso India Plan India has initiated distribution of dry ration kits and hygiene kits to 1184 vulnerable families; and personal protection equipment (PPE) and hygiene kits to 10 partner frontline workers in Alwar who will be assisting in the distribution.
Ensuring uninterrupted HIV treatment for pregnant mothers
The lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic is adversely impacting pregnant women who have tested HIV positive as they are not able to visit the health facilities due to non-functioning of transport system and the testing of other pregnant women as part of their antenatal care has also been disrupted. The footfall in health facilities has fallen very low as some of them have been identified as COVID-19 isolation centres and normal health services have been stopped. This has put pregnant women in a vulnerable spot.
Plan India’s flagship project Ahana is working relentlessly to serve as a bridge between mothers and HIV drugs in this crisis situation to ensure that the treatment to HIV infected pregnant women is not stopped. Ahana’s outreach team has mapped the health facilities where HIV tests are conducted and whenever any pregnant women is found to be reactive, the team facilitates the HIV confirmation test at the Stand Alone Integrated Counselling and Testing Centres. The team’s field officers is also regularly monitoring the availability of drugs with positive pregnant women in their areas and delivering them to their homes with special permission from the State AIDS Control Society and the district administration.
VOICES OF YOUTH ON COVID-19
From missing on education to facing a lack of sanitary pads Plan India’s young girl changemakers share their experiences of living in the times of COVID-19. These videos are a part of series curated by Plan India to bring to fore the perspectives of Youth especially girls living in the times of COVID-19. Do watch and share!
As the lockdown continues amidst Coronavirus pandemic, Chanda, Plan India’s National Youth Advisory Panel member shares her experience of living in the times of COVID-19.
Meet Komal, Plan India’s young girl changemaker, who is worried about her education due to college shutdown amidst COVID-19.
do’s and don’t’s as art
Plan India’s Youth Advisory Panel members have been creatively using their time to create drawings in an effort to raise awareness on Coronavirus pandemic. A look at their work:
safety of staff
We are closely monitoring the current situation of Coronavirus pandemic with regards to our operations in India as the safety and well-being of our staff and communities we work in is of paramount importance to us. We have constituted a quick response team to monitor and initiate actions to reduce risk to employees. The response team is available 24×7 for swift decision-making and guidance to all staff and line managers as the situation develops. Frequent office sanitisation and fumigation practices are put in place along with alcohol-based sanitisers and awareness messages across all locations. In a slew of measures to avoid the spread of COVID, Plan India has cancelled or deferred all travel, events and in-person meetings encouraging staff to use digital meeting tools. The staff have also been advised to work from home till April 14 after which a further review of the situation will be done. We are providing regular information to critical stakeholders like donors, sponsors and partners and regular updates and detailed advisories are being shared through emails, website and WhatsApp groups.
Uttar Pradesh
A 15-day awareness drive was held in 202 villages of Plan India’s program areas in Uttar Pradesh on the symptoms and preventive measures from Coronavirus that has become a threat to human life across the world. Over 30,000 community members and more than 6500 school children were indirectly reached out through various activities of mass awareness on coronavirus and hand washing demonstration as a preventive strategy. The awareness activities included training to partner staff and youth members in order to enable them to implement the drives in their respective areas and orientation of frontline workers to identify the symptoms and take preventive measures.
Plan India also trained 35 key officials of Sashtra Seema Bal (SSB) who are posted on Saunauli border in district Maharajganj (UP) on the identification of symptoms of infectious person to prevent cross-broader transmission of Coronavirus. Additionally, Plan India re-printed the standard posters published by the Department of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India on preventive measures from Coronavirus. These were put up in strategic places like schools, Anganwadi centres, sub-centre, Primary Health Centres and Community Health Centres and were used as a tool during sensitization meetings and mass awareness campaigns.
Bihar
We are regularly following up with our partners in Bihar to monitor the updates from the Plan India’s programme communities. We initiated mass awareness activities on COVID-19 in our Child Centred Community Development Project areas in February and held community meetings to sensitise people about its symptoms and how to keep themselves safe. An eight-day awareness campaign was organized in five districts of the states including Muzaffarpur, Sitamarhi, Saran, Samastipur, Vaishali and Jamui. Considering the severity of COVID-19, the team carried out mass awareness programs by setting up kiosks at interstate bus terminus and railway stations where pamphlets related to do’s and don’ts on Coronavirus were distributed. The awareness campaign was also carried out at Integrated Child Development Services centres and schools.
