HRDS INDIA’S humanitarian initiative to provide homes for the tribes

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The HRDS INDIA was formed in 1997 in Idukki District is committed to the cause of building houses for the tribals of India. Till now the HRDS has completed the work on 361 houses in the Attapadi area which comes under the Palakkad district of Kerala.


Mr. Aji Krishnan, founder and secretary of the HRDS INDIA said the NGO was now targeting around 10,00000 houses across the country in the coming years. Some of the states covered under this will be the state of Jharkhand, Tripura, Assam and the entire North East.


Currently, the tribal population of India, is about 8.6 per cent which is nearly 10 crores. Out of this, Kerala has around one per cent of the population which is nearly 3.5 lakhs. According to a survey done by Kerala, 24,500 houses are required to house this population.


When asked to how he got the idea to build houses for the tribals, Krishnan said,” that he wanted to see the tribals own a house of their own. Mr. Krishnan also pledged that he wanted the tribals to live in dignity. “For generations they didn’t have the self esteem and pride in themselves as a result of their poverty. I have taken a pledge to bring them into equal status with the other sections of the society,” said Mr. Krishnan.


When asked about his vision, Mr. Krishnan said that he wanted each and every tribal in the country to have a house of his own. “For a long time these people (tribals) have no proper housing and I want to ensure that they get a safe and comfortable house of their own,” he said.


When asked what sort of houses was being given, Mr. Krishnan said these houses were pre-fabricated. Explaining this, the material was fibre cement panels which were welded to steel channels. These houses were quite strong and besides being earthquake resistant, these are fire proof and water resistant.


Each house consists of a drawing room, two bedrooms and an open kitchen besides. There is a small verandah in the front of each house,” Mr. Krishnan said.


These houses which are called Sadhgraha have another advantage. These houses are eco friendly and they need limited cement to be constructed. “The entire concept has been copied from the Middle East,” said Mr. Krishnan.


Another interesting aspect of HRDS INDIA was that In the beginning we have done some of the projects related to agriculture which has supported tribal people in Idukki district of Kerala. However, our first major project was Jwalamukhi which came under the woman enmpowerment. This was done under the the coordination of Nobel prize winner, Dr. Muhammad Yunus, Bangladesh Grameen Trust.. This project was undertaken in Tamil Nadu immediately after the state was devastated by Tsunami in the year 2004.


After concentrating on building houses for the tribals in Kerala, Mr. Krishnan then felt the need to build houses for them across the country. “I travelled across certain parts of the country and was disturbed at the poor plight of the tribals. This is when I thought that I needed to do some housing for the tribals across the country,” said Mr. Krishnan.


Mr. Krishnan also praised the NDA government for helping the HRDS INDIA. “The current government has been helping us a lot. Whenever we have approached them, they have been quite receptive and they have helped us in getting CSR funds. These funds have helped our cause a lot,” said Mr. Krishnan.


Mr. Krishnan also pledged that he wanted the tribals to live in dignity. “For generations they didn’t have the self esteem and pride in themselves as a result of their poverty. I have taken a cpledge to bring them into equal status with the other sections of the society,” said Mr. Krishnan. PWR
PWR