Furnishing a new start

In the many brown carton boxes that Sarika Mehra had packed from her six-year-old bungalow were small antique pieces and vases collected over the years.

Through Snehalaya,one can donate old furniture and household goods for the underprivileged sections of society

In the many brown carton boxes that Sarika Mehra had packed from her six-year-old bungalow were small antique pieces and vases collected over the years. “We were moving into a smaller apartment and didn’t really need all these things,” she says. Two months back,when the Mehras had decided to move out,their biggest concern was the furniture and artefacts at their place. “We realised we had so many decorative pieces,small carpets,table cloths and plants that were in such good shape. We couldn’t fit it all into our new apartment. Luckily,I heard about Snehalaya,” she adds.

Mehra accidentally came across a post on a website which said that an NGO collects furniture,clothes and similar things from different homes and uses them for social service. She immediately got in touch with them and a week later,they arrived at her residence to collect her stuff.

This project is an initiative of Snehalaya,an NGO based in Ahmednagar since 1989. Started in Pune in September,the Snehalaya Support Group Trolley travels across the city from Bibvewadi to Deccan Gymkhana to Kothrud,visiting housing societies,housing complexes and bungalows,to collect material that can be used for the various causes that the NGO works for.

Furniture and used clothes are sorted out and then distributed to the children and people living in the slum areas as a part of the NGO’s Bal Bhavan Project which focuses on providing education and improving health conditions of children living in slums in and around Ahmednagar. The medicines that are collected from various places are given to Maitreya Foundation which is run by doctors who work for the underprivileged in Ahmednagar. Recently,a part of the materials collected was used for the newly set-up IT centre at Ahmedanagar.

Shares Jyoti Ekbote,deputy director,Snehalaya,”Sometimes,we repair certain furniture pieces and use them or if the condition is really bad,we use the material to make other furniture. Most of the furniture used in the IT centre of Snehalaya is made up of such pieces of furniture only.” At the weekly meeting of the Snehalaya Pune Support group,members decide on the next plan of action for their new project,Himmat Gram,a dream project of Snehalaya which is based on Baba Amte’s Anandwan. “We are in need of any type of construction material as well as all utensils and furniture to help families settle down. This project will initially help in the rehabilitation of a minimum of 20 HIV positive families,” says Ekbote. Last year,Snehalaya received permission to run its own school for HIV infected children and orphans for which it also needs donations in kind. “We are also looking for volunteers and hope we can extend our project to more areas,” she adds.

(One can contact Snehalaya at 9011637200 or snehalaya_pune@snehalaya.org)

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Deccan Gymkhana