She's going back to India to improve life in the slums

Mass. woman to lead health group founded by medical student

She's been a Massachusetts resident since she was 5. Now, she's moving to Mumbai to take charge of Avsar, an organization which strives to improve the health of the underprivileged in the slums of Mumbai. She's also an established Kathak dancer and teacher.

Meet 27-year-old Meenakshi Verma, who is always trying to make a difference.

Verma was first introduced to the heart of India when she was in the Bhuj region of Gujarat for three months volunteering for Kala Raksha, an organization devoted to preserving traditional arts.

During that period, she organized a health seminar in association with the Gujarat State Government, and was very impressed with the response.

It was there, as an intern for her public health graduate course, that she realized the potential of empowerment of the people being served, as opposed to making them dependent on help.

After returning to Massachusetts, Verma took a position as program director of the Jamaica Plain Asthma Environmental Initiative, but was ready to move on in a couple of years.

"My experience in Gujarat was a life-changing one," she explains, talking about her decision to leave her position in Jamaica Plain. "And there was something pulling me to India."

"I knew that my skills would be better utilized in a setup that had more scope for growth," she says. "And Avsar, being a new initiative, is an exciting opportunity for me."

Avsar was similarly born out of medical student Ashish Goyal's month-long internship with the Niramaya Health Foundation, where he spent most of the time establishing a clinical forum and expanding its volunteer program. Avsar eventually branched out of Niramaya.

Avsar provides volunteers from all around the world, on an ongoing basis, to selected organizations in Mumbai, among them Niramaya, Pratham, Apnalaya and Path.

Avsar recruits about four volunteers a month, after a rigorous process of screening and interviews. About 80 percent of the group's 40 volunteers are non-resident Indians.

Though the volunteers are given a month-long assignment, they have the option of staying longer if they wish to.

Says Verma, who will be in charge of organizing, fundraising and managing the setup in India, "We hope to be able to streamline the process efficiently, so that the transitions between volunteers is simple and easy."

Though Avsar targets health care initiatives, the volunteers are a varied mix. They include doctors, management professionals, undergraduate students and even Web designers.

"I soon realized that for the kind of work in these organizations, doctors' skills are not easily utilized," says Goyal.

Avsar organizes everything for the volunteers including their tickets, accommodation and an orientation to Mumbai and its transportation.

The cost of the travel is borne by the volunteer, and Avsar collects $250 per month for accommodation and other amenities.

Verma says her decision to go to India was difficult, but a natural one.

"When I came back and told my parents I wanted to go back to India, they were shocked," she says.

For Verma, who has been learning Kathak for the past seven years, the thought of leaving dance is the more difficult one to face.

"If I have a bad day at work, I just dance it all away," she says.

Verma and Goyal have high ambitions for Avsar, among them expansion into eight cities in India, a corps of 500 volunteers, and starting a program for volunteers from within India.

"There is a lot of talent from within India, and it makes sense to recruit from within the country, and might be more efficient as well," Verma says.

Verma, for the present, has a one-year commitment with Avsar. After that, she says, "We'll take it as it comes."

Avsar is a nonprofit organization and accepts tax-deductible donations. Its Web site is www.avsarindia.org.

Courtesy: www.indianewengland.com