Help Atijeevan rebuild lives

As a PhD candidate studying acid attacks in India, I've had the opportunity to meet and work with Pragya Prasun Singh, the founder of Atijeevan, a foundation dedicated to the cause of acid attack victim-survivors in India.

Acid attacks are a fast growing phenomenon in the country. Women usually fall prey to this form of violence, but so do men and children. The physical impact of an acid attack is brutal and often very much permanent.  Acid burns are third or fourth degree burns that penetrate up to the fourth layer of the dermis damaging tissues and in some cases, bones. It usually takes the burn wound several months to heal properly. Once the wound heals, the scars that remain are permanent. The skin becomes extremely irritable in the sun or dry weather.  Usually, acid burns result in severe deformities, loss of either partial or full sight, loss of hearing and damage to vital organs which can all lead to multiple disabilities and a life dependent on surgeries. 

What Atijeevan does for acid attack and burn survivors

Without adequate and careful support, acid attack and other burn survivors can fall into a cycle of rejection, usually from society but sometimes even from family and self.  Sometimes survivors are treated like outcasts due to the severe physical disfigurement. Consequently, day-to-day living for acid attack and burn survivors can become a struggle.

This is where organisations like Atijeevan come into play. Atijeevan means survival and their mission is to welcome and care for severe burn patients and acid attack survivors under their wing. Atijeevan provides survivors with a fair and equal chance to make their place in society like any common, competent and independent individual would. Their work is absolutely crucial and cannot be underestimated.

In my time working with them, I had the opportunity to meet with 10 survivors being supported by Atijeevan and I experienced first hand how crucial their work was. The survivors, despite the many adversities, were beacons of resilience and hope due to their tenaicous willingness to move forward and rebuild their lives. Through the help of Atijeevan, they have had multiple reconstructive surgeries, had job opportunities open up, have enrolled into universities with scholarships and are pursuing their individual dreams with fervor. 

Why Atijeevan needs your support

In the last three years, Atijeevan has made their mark sponsoring surgeries, counselling sessions and providing job opportunities to several survivors across India. Atijeevan has also undertaken the task of procuring expensive medicines for those burn patients who cannot afford them. They work tirelessly to share their expertise with survivors and their families. They hold regular workshops with burn patients to help guide them in their treatment plans. 

So far, 24 surgeries have been conducted through Atijeevan's intervention and more than 50 burn patients have been helped through surgery, counselling and provision of medicines free of cost.  Atijeevan also aims at creating an empowering environment for survivors where they can develop and nourish their talents and make a living out of them. They continuously work to provide sustainable income for those survivors in dire need. 

All these things, however, take resources to move things forward. Any help towards the rehabilitation of survivors would have its weight in gold. While Atijeevan encourages direct donations to the hospitals for the surgeries, they require sufficient funds to meet the requirements of conducting workshops, supplying medicines, providing treatments and arranging accommodation and travel tickets for those survivors who need to travel across the country for treatment. 

What your money would go towards

The money raised through this platform will be used to support Atijeevan in the following ways: 

-Procuring silicon gel sheets, eye drops and contractubex gels.
-Purchasing travel tickets for those survivors who need to travel for surgeries and other treatments.
-Supporting survivors who are working as volunteers for Atijeevan in New Delhi.
-Supporting upcoming workshops for survivors.

Your contribution will also be used to support the following programmes initiated by Atijeevan:

'Exhume' dedicated to the medical rehabilitation of the survivors:

-Collaborating with renowned eye hospitals for vision restoration surgeries 
-Laser treatments and eyebrow tattoos for burn patients. 

“I am rising” dedicated to providing survivors with education and sources of income:

-Training in capital formation and marketing for Archana’s paper bag business and Kavita’s Quilling Jewellery business.
-Marketing for Shaina and her family’s stitching workshop and for the provision of materials for Mrinalini’s boutique.
-Exhibitions to showcase survivors' work at Pearl academy (Delhi),HSBC, L&T, KPIT. 
-Coordinating scholarships and funding for the education of 3 survivors at Satyabhama University, Chennai.

'Augment' dedicated to improving small but vital aspects of the foundation:

-Providing special camouflage make-up workshops to promote non-surgical ways of concealing scars.
-Developing awareness campaigns such, as Skin Donation and I am not my face. 
-Assisting family functions such as weddings by providing both monetary and non-monetary aid.

Any small contribution to fund this wonderful foundation will be of great support. I am proud to be working with Atijeevan and to be standing by its tremendous cause to help acid attack and burn survivors in India.

Thank you for your support and I sincerely hope this New Year is a good and prosperous one for all.

Irene Arputhartaj

Contact Atijeevan - http://www.atijeevanfoundation.org/