IdeasOnNextSteps
Version 58, changed by zigzackly@gmail.com. 06/11/2007. Show version history
1. List small steps, things that you and I can do, things that the mass media and official machinery can't.
2. Try this format, it may help you focus your thinking.
Problem (state the problem in a few sentences, one sentence if you can):
Solution (clear, actionable steps, perhaps in point format):
3. please remember to leave contact information if you're hoping to rally support for your idea.
4. Please do no mess with this introductory text. Scroll down and add your text below.
This is a wiki. Anyone can edit it. But please, please, please, don't
abuse the freedom. If you see an idea you disagree with, don't
delete it. Just add your comment on it, or come up with something
better.
Please be constructive. This is not a space for blame exercises. This isn't a place for sermons either.
We will delete off-topic additions.~ The Mumbai Help team
This is also not a place for spam blogs. please be respectfulHi,
I've been following this site for a long time. I don't know how this hasn't occurred to me defore this, but I can offer to help as well. I own an adventure company called Wide Aware. I have plenty of able employees trained in rescue work as well as the husband and myself, who are trained and competent in dealing with emergencies and rescues. Volunteers are bound to be willing and available out of our plentiful network of mountaineers and adventure resource staff. It might be worthwhile to keep a link to us in the resources in case there is a situation where trained rescue people can make a difference.
Sincerely,
Vidyut Kale
From Shiladitya C.[addytorials[at]gmail[dot]com] can we do anything to help those who can't find their family/friends and are out there on the roads showing photographs to news reporters? there are quite a few of them. can we do anything to organise a search effort or at least compile data of the missing (with photographs and details of where seen last) and put it up so people in the area and those who are close to hospitals can do something about it?
I am
going to the nearby hospitals and blast sites with a digicam, cellphone
camera, pen and paper. I will try to get details and photographs from
people who are looking for the missing. If possible, I'm going to try
and get photographs of unidentified wounded and deceased at the
hospitals.
Will come back with details and mail them across so we can build a database asap.
There
might be others willing to do the same in their respective areas. Is
there any way to reach them and ask if they'd want to help out?
I agree on the first-aid course and that every police personnel should know what to do. But you cannot expect stations to have stretchers and other stuff, unless there is a hospital attached to it. The traffic plan for ambulances is a good idea! The same can be applied for fire brigades.
I think that the basic services in public area, like PA systems, medical and security services, chemist shops, emergency numbers and contacts, emergency exits and ramps, signage, cameras (if possible), etc should be established, maintained and have someone responsible for them.We have too many exit/entry points in our railway stations, how does one control that?
Basically Mumbai is going to have to rehaul it's entire service plan- keeping in mind the blasts, last year's flood and potential earthquake and tsunami.
Shiladitya- Read about what you are planning to do...Kudos to you and your initiative! :) If there can be a central place for the relatives'queries and searches to be addressed, it would be more convenient for them instead of running around with no clue where to go.
- Darpana
I wish to express my concerns for those who are hunting for the people and near dear ones not returned home.
my suggestion is that if the photos of people who are fit and fine can be posted because a lot of people are not educated, but will be able to recognize them by faces and locate them as in a bulletin board.
There was the case of a person searching for a boy whose mother said that he was dumb and deaf. systematic dispaly of photos of people in different hospitals who can be recognized may help. there should be kiosks operable for such kind of searches as you have put up.
Today I happen to cross a few stations on central railway and did not find any railway police on stations like Mumbra. I do not wish to label any people or religion but the police do know of the hot spots of mumbai and need to be more accountable.
-Ashima Deshmukh
12 July 2006
I think the biggest thing this forum can do is to provide a common place for collecting and disseminating information (as it's been doing so far). My understanding is that there is no shortage of people willing to help out, but there might be a lack of organization to ensure that these people find their way to all places that need help, be it hospitals or search parties. I think this is a good forum to do it because it's faster than newspapers and easier to collect information than it is for the television channels, since anyone can post information here. If we can get word of this site to enough people in Mumbai, they can use it as a bulletin board for families to look for missing relatives, for volunteers to find places that need help, for places that need help to let people know what they need, etc.
We need to use all available media to help organize the relief efforts and a bulleting board offers advantages that aren't available with other forms of communication. The best way to spread the way about this site is if it can get visibility in the print or television media. I'm not sure how feasible this might be, but I thought it was worth getting out there.
Andy
if there is information on victims relatives left without support (i.e. orphans/ loss of breadwinner of family etc) could there be some information on them and how we could help them in terms of getting jobs or training for jobs.. anything to make them independent wage earners. I am in UK and feel absolutely demoralised by the calamity that has fallen on Mumbai and would like to help. I can rally support among friends in UK and other places to contribute to education/ training/ post-traumatic stress counselling etc. Please let us know. - Swati- 12th July 2006. Email: swatindia@hotmail.com
Me and my wife live in Portland, OR and were in a meditation course when this occured. The incident is outrageous and it is agonizing to see our country go through the trauma of terrorism year after year. The world gave a deaf ear to this problem until it became theirs.
Shri Shri Ravi Shankar was heading the course we attended and guruji had this to say - "Inside every criminal there is a good person waiting to come out". Violence is not an answer to terrorism -while we put all our efforts on who did this we should not lose sight of the reason why this is happening. Every Indian should take this incident as an opportunity to reach out to anybody who feels alienated or has negative emotions that might lead to such acts. We need to start right this very second. Identify anybody who feels his/her religion is being threatened and harbours ill-feeeling. Talk to them, educate them, love them unconditionally and DO NOT allow them to stray. My heart goes out to the victims and their near and dear ones.
Ganesh Margabandhu.
I have got this from www.eastanglianambulance.com and I think all of us should do it and ensure that everyone that knows us does it. It will take a few seconds but might save a life or help a loved one find us faster.
This was also circulated after the London blasts, so cellfones found on the sites of the blasts might have these numbers. Is there some way of letting authorities know about this?
Rushina
| " visit www.icecontact.com |
A Cambridge-based paramedic has launched a national campaign with Vodafone to encourage people to store emergency contact details in their mobile phones.
Bob Brotchie, a clinical team leader for the East Anglian Ambulance NHS Trust, hatched the plan last year after struggling to get contact details from shocked or injured patients.
By entering the acronym ICE – for In Case of Emergency – into the mobile’s phone book, users can log the name and number of someone who should be contacted in an emergency.
The idea follows research carried out by Vodafone that shows more than 75 per cent of people carry no details of who they would like telephoned following a serious accident.
Bob, 41, who has been a paramedic for 13 years, said: “I was reflecting on some of the calls I’ve attended at the roadside where I had to look through the mobile phone contacts struggling for information on a shocked or injured person.
“It’s difficult to know who to call. Someone might have “mum” in their phone book but that doesn’t mean they’d want them contacted in an emergency.
“Almost everyone carries a mobile phone now, and with ICE we’d know immediately who to contact and what number to ring. The person may even know of their medical history.”
The campaign was launched this week by Bob and Falklands war hero Simon Weston in association with Vodafone’s annual Life Savers Awards.
Vodafone spokesperson Ally Stevens said: “The Life Savers Awards already demonstrate, through practical example, the important role a mobile phone can play when minutes matter in an emergency.
“By adopting the ICE advice, your mobile will now also help the rescue services quickly contact a friend or relative – which could be vital in a life or death situation.”
The campaign is also asking people to think carefully about who will be their ICE partner - with helpful advice on who to choose - particularly if that person has to give consent for emergency medical treatment.
Bob hopes that all emergency services will promote ICE in their area as part of a national awareness campaign to highlight the importance of carrying next of kin details at all times.
He said the idea was for the benefit of loved ones as well as the patient.
“Research suggests people recover quicker from the psychological effects of their loved one being hurt if they are involved at an earlier stage and they can reach them quickly," he added.
I got this from: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1733353.cms
The blasts in Mumbai have left many injured and dead with families left to
pick up the pieces. In the unfortunate event that you've been affected by
the blasts injured or lost a loved one here's the insurance procedure to
follow:
To begin with, railways and commuters are covered currently by public sector
insurance companies for such incidents. Affected parties need to file a
claim with the Railways Claims Tribunal, which will decide the compensation
based on the aggrieved party.
In the event, the government announces a compensation package, then there is
no need for affected families to approach the tribunal.
In case, your family member commuting by any of the trains involved in the
blasts was injured and is covered by an individual personal accident policy,
you need to approach your insurance company at the earliest with a letter
stating the policy number and in the case of accidental death, a death
certificate from the hospital or BMC.
Although, otherwise, insurance firms require post-mortem certificates, in
such incidents, these requirements are waived off.
The same holds true for those covered by life insurance. Companies typically
require a further proof of identity, which in such cases is issued by the
authority issuing the death certificate. All the other requirements of a
post-mortem, FIR, police report and such are waived off.
Patham Iyer from Bangalore
Still there are 29 bodies to be identified ! and numerous injured people that need to be united with their families . I request all the responsible good citizens do their bit to help unite them with their families. Software engineers and computer savvy personnels - please raise to the occasion and do some thing different that can help every victims
Not finding a single police men in MumbaiRailway station platforms are little scary !!Mumbai Train recreation clubs, Keertan groups should be educated about handling strange and unattended objects. Dubbawalahs can also help !!! Any human loss to Dubbawalah associations !!
ugly the terrorist thinks, bueatiful the indians makes.INDIA won the game, no..no..MUMBAI made INDIA win. Salam,Namastia,to all the people who helped the vitims of mumbai.INDIA'S people are one, inspite of various cultures, religions, races, or any othet differences WE ARE ALL INDIANS FIRST AND THEN AFTERWARDS WE BELONG TO OTHER VERITIES.All indians have same courage to face any kind of problem.
INDIA IS GREAT.
DURGA PRASAD (INDIAN)
All the praise goes to Mumbai People. I want to just point out few things...
1. we should have police trained common people on platform once a week on security checkup measures.
2. doctors should give some training to sports club near bus stations and stations on first aid
3. Every station should have First aid kit available at multiple locations
4. I heard that the phone network was down. I know bombay has many HAM user & people having walkie talkies. We should have more users and they should come out in this situation for communication infrastructure setup
5. And I think people of India has to be more alert and should take more responsibility rather than depending on Police and Politicians ...
and last but not least if anyone need any help please mail me at KI6CVD@gmail.com I will be happy to help ..
Soumit
Make Bombay safe. Remove slums and resttle people in housing projects. Make stations, malls and market safe by covering them with CCTV, making entry points secure. Remove homeless people form under the flyovers. For all u know the terrorists will blow up the flyovers next. Imagine a homeles guy who does not have a roof over his head living under a bridge with his wife and 4 kids, if someone gives him a box to keep for a night for Rs, 500. H e will do it without hesitation. Imagine Andheri flyover being blown up at 7 pm. So make flyovers safe. Make stations safe by removing unauthorised vendors ( guess the Railway and city police will lose their haftas). Aas long as we have slums and ghettos where houses and people are not on any record, we will be soft and sitting targets for terrorist. The administration has to weed out the corrupt officials who encourage slums and make maoney out of them. The government has to have a PLAN. We the citizens of Mumbai want a plan. And freinds its time to get up and show our feelings. We will nto be quiet. Dont mistake feeling not against any community. I am all for communal harmony, but feelings againt the administration for not providing a safe city to us
Can we have Photos of all the dead who are not identified. May be their relatives are not aware about the body. But there is chance that some of them may be identified by friends, neighbours, distant relatives and colleagues.
My dad was on the train. My concern is for the families affected by this in terms of support. I am sure there are a lot of women and children who do not have a strong support group in families and friends who could use help in conducting their daily affairs at this difficult time. Also with the red tape in India they will need help from competent lawyers who can render them services to complete necessary compensation. It will be great if the law community gets together and helps these families.
It is such a feeling of despair to see what has happened in our country. i like some of the other posters here live abroad but have a desire to help in anyway i can.
many of those who have survived have lost limbs and have been
left disabled -is it possible to create a list of those people and then
look into providing specific help to those people to rehabiliate their
disability. My fear is that once the furore has died down as it
inevitably will and once all the dead are identified and cremated,
people will forget about those survivors who may be living but are
living very difficult lives due to disability.
once a list is made , following could be done :
1) get orthopedic doctors to donate their time to evaluate people for prosthetic limbs
2) get physical therapists to help
3) get corporations to donate money for wheelchairs, crutches, prothesis
if there are any orthopedic doctors , occpational therapists, etc reading these pages --lets hear from you
please comment on these ideas and lets continue our support for our courymen
my prayers are with the people who are suffering so much anguish right now
United Way requests for volunteers on Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th July to
1. Visit all Mumbai bomb blast affected hospitals and set up a help desk
2. Visit Mumbai bomb blast affected Railway Stations
3. Visit Mumbai bomb blast affected Police Stations
4. Visit Mumbai bomb blast affected Slums
5. Visit TV stations
To spread the message to all those affected by Mumbai bomb blasts to attend a free Post Trauma Counselling sessions in partnership with the Art of Living Foundation from 21st - 23rd July, 2006.
Email : help@mumbaihelpline.org
Call : Anubhooti : 9869484189
Charu: 9819242822
Preeti: 9870260436
Shibani: 9821028854
Warm Regards
Preeti prabhu
Program Manager
United Way Mumbai
Landline : 00 91 22 2202 9658
Mobile : 00 91 98702 60436
Email : preeti@unitedwaymumbai.org
Website : www.unitedwaymumbai.org
United Way Mumbai, 39-40 Grant Annexe, Bhaskar Rao Kargutkar Marg, Behind Strand Cinema, Colaba, Mumbai 400 005., India
This information might be useful to disseminate:
LIC is easing norms for blast victims. LIC has also constituted special help desk at the divisional and branch offices to respond to the death claim inquiries and assist in expeditious settlement of claims.
A help desk has been set up at the Churchgate station, where people can approach the LIC officials
The LIC helpline numbers are:
* 9892590175
* 9869089079
* 9819059797
* 9870148947
* 9967221699
WESTERN RAILWAYS COMPENSATION CONTACT INFORMATION:
Claimants can contact the Compensation Claims Cell between 9 am and 7 pm on 22035516, 22122793, 22122593 or email at cco@wr.railnet.gov.in or dycco@wr.railnet.gov.in till July 22.
Anand Bala
[balasubramanyan[at]gmail[dot]com]y
I was a mute witness to the riots in Mumbai
A mute witness to the blasts of 93
A mute witness to the riots in Coimbatore
Sat and surfed the web when the Tsunami hit
All I could do for Latur was collect clothes
All I could do for Gujrat was collect money
And now work in my own imaginary castle in Bangalore
Here is what I have only been thinking about for a long time - (apologies if it sounds ridiculous)
we need a disaster response network that is not person, organization or Government dependent
People who are part of the network are trained and have very specific skill-sets
They know how to mobilize resources and how distribute resources when they are scarce
They can channelize resources (people, money, food, clothing etc etc) in a way that it is utilized optimally and quickly
The members of the disaster network need to be voluntary
It needs to be flat. A member should be able to coordinate work and/or work as a scavenger
They must not be an additional burden on the problem
They must be able to document (at a basic level) what has and is happening so that post-disaster recovery work can be made effecient
The disaster response network must have credibility
It must be mobilised when ever required in an instant
It must have people with diverse skill sets
No hidden agendas
Problem: The blasts not only resulted in many lives lost, and hundreds injured, but also affected many of us mentally and emotionally. Even though many hospitals did a commendable job at handling the physical injuries, mental rehabilitation has been lacking in our disaster management system.
Solution: Rotaract Club of the Caduceus ( a club of medical students and doctors from medical colleges of Mumbai), joined hands with the Bombay Psychiatric Society and the Rotary Club of Bombay Central to provide immediate psychiatric redressal to all those affected by the blasts, free of cost. This project, titled the 'healing yourself' project, has identified 20 centres across Mumbai, where people can go and recieve expert counselling and psychiatric help for free. To avail of this service, or for any more information, please contact us at 9820139158, 9820042450, 9820597763.
Together, we hope to help heal the wounds these blasts left us with.
More information on: http://epaper.timesofindia.com
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Comments (1000)
guest said, 07/12/2006:
I can help in the Andheri area - Cooper and Nanavati. Can take pictures and coordinate with TV channels. Is there someone out there who can direct this effort? Shiladitya? Please email me at shahlaraza@yahoo.com.
Shahla
guest said, 07/12/2006:
Shahla, thanks for offering the help. I have mailed you.
guest said, 07/12/2006:
commenting on Andy's post:
very true. using this website is the best way to mobilise an organised effort to collect and disseminate information in order to bring help at the ground level. there are people out there who are as yet unable to reach others for help and there are hospitals out there that lack the infrastructure or organisation to release important information through the media. this is where we come in to bridge the gap.
any publicity of this website and the information on it via tv/radio/print will definitely help a lot.
am happy to note that the information regarding the unknown survivor at Bhagwati Hospital has been taken up by at least two tv news channels.
guest said, 07/12/2006:
Hey from what you guys have been saying i can see that there are many who WANT to and CAN help.
But I can see we need to be organised if we are to make a difference and be effective.
As Andy, Shiladitya and Shahla have said we have the power and the ABILITY to make a difference if we are organised not emailing/commenting like loose cannons and leaving it there, someone has to tie up the loose ends
I am prepared to make the effort of doing some amount of organising..... To begin with posting a list of the important tel numbers and people to contact each time a disaster occurs. Of course I cant do this alone, I would need inputs/pointers from all of you as well. But I am prepared to be the HUB .
Am I talking sense ?
I have experienced firsthand the sombre politeness of the BMC/Railway/hospital officials today while searching for a missing neighbour.
Hats off to them.
The disaster management cell..... sorry to say was a disaster!. They could not locate someone at KEM hospital after 15 hours!
They BADLY need help in being effective
If you feel we can make a difference( sitting where we are) I am prepared to make the effort of contacting volunteers areawise each time a disaster occurs.
And of logging on the relevant info.
contact me at cassynaz@gmail.com, I believe helpful people CAN make a difference
guest said, 07/12/2006:
Sunrise_12feb, If you can donate, then donate to the government hospitals, they are BADLY in need of items.
I know Bhahba and Bhagwati hospital for one could do with clean sheets and Pillowcases.
( the medicines somehow get taken care of , it is the basic amenities that suffer)
Please dont give cash directly to these hospitals, i feel if you could personally visit any of the bigger public hospitals close to you, ask to meet the admin person, consult them,your donation would be effective.
Cassy
cassynaz@gmail.com
guest said, 07/12/2006:
Hello everyone:
One suggestion is that we have some kind of 'Shelter' set up in the key or easily reachable locations in the city. The idea is the victims (injured as well not injured who may be lost or old or disabled and are unable to reach home for some reasons) get the basics like food, drinking water, sanitation, place to rest and medical aid (most importantly first aid). Voluteers or anyone can get such people here so that their families can locate them easily and quickly without having to get worked up about where to look for them. The 'Shelter' can also be set up as part of Key Hospitals in the city however should be a separate section altogether.
I really like the way the link for www.mumbaihelp.blogspot.com provides the key details and list of names of injured and dead. Similarly one can look at listing the 'lost' category as well. This would cut the chase and anxiety of not knowing where to search your loved ones who have not reached home.
Another suggestion is that every keeps their PAN card (since its a photo id plus its laminated) and also ensure to keep your railway pass details completely filled out for address and contact numbers. Senior citizens must carry their Senior Citizen cards. Also its a good idea for people to keep your visting card which can help the volunteers reach your office incase one is unable to reach your residence address numbers.
We are so caught up with our fast lives that we forget to call our families before leaving for home and informing them of our whereabouts. This one call though a personal call it maybe! one must ensure.
Lastly and most importantly, don't forget to read your prays !!!
Kind regards
Sameera (samies_space@yahoo.com)
guest said, 07/13/2006:
I have been to Cooper and Nanavati hospitals. SPoken to people in charge there. No unidentified survivors or dead. Blood supply is also ample so not needed for the moment. Have been asked to get in touch after a week. No patients or relatives in need of help. Have left my name and number and have asked them to contact me whenever needed. Will post here if I am contacted.
Shahla
guest said, 07/13/2006:
Hi Shahla, Andy
I met up with Shiladitya at Bhagwati hospital around 12.30pm today. We were discussing the possibility of getting a core group of volunteers who would act a QUICK interface between the authorities and the public in times of disasters/unusual situations.
Basically a team of volunteers who could be called up at short notice to help in their respective areas as and when needed.
As of now we are just looking at getting info from the various govt agencies and channelling it on to the www. mumbaihelp.com site so people just have to look up/ask one site for info.
This is all at the planning /discussion stage but Both Shiladitya and myself believe it is possible.
We are looking for suggestions/ideas from you all to make this happen.
email either addytutorials@gmail.com
or cassynaz@gmail.com
Cassandra
guest said, 07/13/2006:
Shahla, there is one unidentified child patient at Bhagwati, Shiladitya managed to get the permission to flash his pic on NDTV and I have seen it. We need to try n locate someone who knows about this boy
Cassandra
guest said, 07/13/2006:
Hey , who was it who said yesterday on this site that we should make the corporates who have promised help pay up?
We need to find out and post on the blogsite site the procedure for claiming compensation/medical reimbursement from the govt.
Anyone has any inputs on this..... as you said...... we need to help the living
Cassandra
guest said, 07/13/2006:
Shahla,
yes he is the same boy on NDTV, he is not responding to anyone, in a semi coma of sorts.
Yes we could meet, meanwhile I have some volunteers from Navi mumbai and even gujarat who all want to be part of this link and would like to help.
How do we fix this meeting?
Maybe Shiladitya, u n me could first meet ( maybe saturday), brainstorm, have some kind of action plan in place
and then call for a bigger meeting with more volunteers?
What do you think?
Cassandra
guest said, 07/13/2006:
I do not know wheather my idea is of any relevence with the crrent situation but since it has been poping in my head for a long time and i happened to read this site, I might as well put it out over her n see if people think the same. I suggest that it would be made mandatory for each or our politicians to serve atleast a year at the border with the army and atleast for a month at Siachen border. Only then can they file nominations for any elections. Even they should know what it takes to serve the country in the true sense of the word. Hope somebody Powerful reads this and puts across the idea to the be alls
guest said, 07/13/2006:
Is there a way to channelise Monetary as well as Non-Monetary contributions to the victims of the Mumbai Blast? We are not stingy in opening our pockets but we don't want our sincere contributions to fill the coffers of politicians or bureaucrats either. It's very important to have a simple but a well defined way for channelling contributions (corporate and non-corporate) to victims in times of distress. NASCOM could formulate a procedure on that so that common people like me doesn't cut through a rampant and disgusting bureaucratic red tapism even to help people.
The common prosperous citizens of this country want to help more than anyone else but past experiences had been horrible. indifferent lot...absolutely not..give us a sincere organization who can actually help reach the needy, we are more than ready to help.
guest said, 07/13/2006:
Cassandara, Shiladitya, Shahla,
Great initiative shown by all of you. Like Shiladitya, I hope too that by now everyone has been accounted for.
I absolutely love the idea of setting up a group of volunteers to help organize relief efforts for situations such as this. In a city like Mumbai, where chaos is the norm, a group like this could do immeasurable good in the event of disasters, either natural or man-made (God knows Mumbai seems to be facing more than its share of both). Looks like you're getting a few people eager to join already. A great place to recruit would be on college forums on something like Orkut. I believe there's a large population of young idealists in Mumbai right now. It would be great if all of them could actually band together for a cause such as this.
I'm sure those of us living abroad can find a way to help. If nothing more, we should be able to advertise your intentions and try and get more people interested.
guest said, 07/13/2006:
Please let me know if there are any reputable NGOs who will take donations to help the victims of these attacks. I am from Bombay and really wish I could do more to help, but I am in the US. However if you can suggest any NGOs that will accept dollar donations online, I am happy to circulate the information and post it on US-based Indian blogs. Thank you to everyone in Bombay who is helping at this terrible time.
Yamini (yaminiohol@yahoo.com)
guest said, 07/13/2006:
Swati, I think your idea is great, not sure about the stress counselling bit though, but all the others would definitely be of use.
I have sent you, Shahla and Shiladitya a mail regarding this.
Cassandra
guest said, 07/13/2006:
Shiladitya, i am checking out the aapikiawaz@moneycontrol.com site for the compensation procedure etc
Cassandra
guest said, 07/13/2006:
I spoke with Rajshree ( she had posted an offer to help with her team of 25 volunteers), she is checking if we can get Zee to flash the 8yr old unidentified Bhagwati hospital boys picture inbetween their soap spots.
She is affliated with akansha, keeping my fingers crossed.
Cassandra
guest said, 07/14/2006:
Good news!! The 8 year old has been identified. His father has come to get him. Don' t know the details yet of how his father found him but his father is at the hospital. So we can heave a sigh of relief for that!!!!
Shahla
NDTV is flashing the story right now.
guest said, 07/14/2006:
my next step is to locate people who cannot afford artificial limbs,
Shiladitya, Shahla, while visiting the hospitals could you also shortlist recepients?
Swati, we will put your donation to use here!
Cassandra
guest said, 07/14/2006:
Just thought of this..
could you also identify people who are left without support.. i.e. father/mother/brother (earning) and what sort of abilities they have.. or aptitude for jobs. I am going to try and make contact with companies in Mumbai to see if they can absorb these persons while they are learning skills for jobs (like an internship), so any information on their educational background and or abilities/experience will be of immense help.
Thanks
Swati
guest said, 07/14/2006:
Great work! Impressed with the all the help. United we shall be.
But a request / opinion to the author of this page:
You do a fantastic job, but the words at the beginning of this page are hurting.
"This is not a space for blame exercises. This isn't a place for sermons either."
By this statement it seems you are putting some limitations on the freedom of expression.
Well a culprit or an organisation or a cult (whatever it is) who did this need to take the blame and we as the part of the democracy have every reason to do this (not by imagination, but considering evidences and commom sense) - and it is very difficult for anyone to just chat around this subject and absolutely refrain from reality of the cause. Sometimes it can only be justified by a detailed discussion (sermon in ur words). We cannot be 100% pragmatic or try pretend not to hurt someone. Everyone knows the truth. Please allow complete freedom of expression - I would like to see your response. Thank you. Bhasker
guest said, 07/14/2006:
I'm sure that is not what was meant by the statement on the top of the page. I read it as... this page is not for discussion about the causes of the event, but for ideas that will help to mitigate the suffering. I am sure there will be plenty of opportunities once the dust has settled to discuss how, what, why and how do we ensure it does not happen again. Freedom in every sense of the word is implied in the names 'India' and 'Mumbai'..
Swati
guest said, 07/14/2006:
Swati, we will try n get whatever info we can regarding the children and ensuring that these 200 odd people do have a furure.
Cassandra
guest said, 07/14/2006:
Thankyou Cassandra, Shahla..
Swati
zigzackly@gmail.com said, 07/14/2006:
Bhasker,
Shahla and Swati have answered, but you specifically wanted to hear the response of the "the author of this page." I assume you're referring to the introduction, because this page has, as you can see, multilple authors.
Anyway, let's not split hairs. I wrote the intro.
And I have no clue what you find hurtful about a request to stay on topic.
This page is clearly titled "Ideas On Next Steps." It goes on to request thoughts on small things that you and I can do to help each other move on.
Now, free speech. Sure. Go ahead. Start a blog. Write a letter to the editor,. Make a speech. I fully support your right to do so. I may disagree with you (in fact, going by your statements, I already do) but I support your right to say what you want. But rights come with responsibilities. Right now, Bhasker, there's a city full of traumatised people. There are people who died. People still in hospital. Families who are completely screwed. Let's heal first before we go about spreading more hurt and hot air, hm?
guest said, 07/14/2006:
SERIAL BLASTS IN MUMBAI. IT'S HIGH TIME INDIA FOLLOW THE EXAMPLE OF ISRAEL AND GETS INTO POK AND FINISH THE TERROISTS BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE!
What and when will India act ??? - Sent By : jatstheword
Thursday, July 13, 2006
Dear Sir.
As a young NRI, working in the UK on a short term assignment, it pains me to see that India, time and again, has failed to wield the hammer against the lowly terrorist, often letting its citizens down. And despite what our leaders would have us believe, we are a soft State: a fact fully understood and exploited by terrorists.
After every such attack, the political establishment makes some threatening noises, hails the spirit of the civilians, holds aloft the pennant of peace, even launches buses to inimical nations, and then sits tight on its backside till the next wave of bombs rips the stuffing out of its citizenry. Then it is back to the same idiotic idiom.
But the common man, who actually bears the brunt of terrorism, has a different view, as that train ride told me. India needs to hit them where it hurts the most: squeeze the breath out of their networks, starve them for funds, take out their leaders (who we claim to know are hiding in this country or that), smash their hideouts, terrorise their associates.
No sooner is such an opinion voiced than human rights groups, 'saner' elements in the political firmament, self-styled negotiators and strategists jump into the fray to say: 'No, no, we should engage these 'people' in a dialogue. We are a peace-loving nation and terrorism needs to be resolved through peaceful means, through tolerance, through negotiations, abiding by international laws.'
We are told: 'We need to fight terrorism by understanding what triggers it and then remedying the situation. And by making 'them see reason.' Reason, my foot! The next thing you know' that bloke will be stuffing a dynamite stick down your throat and lighting the fuse.
Many people agree that international terrorism cannot be brought to an end only by the use of bombs and military might, but neither can it be ended with mere talk. What is needed is a heavy dose of ruthless action to go hand in hand with tactical and strategic negotiations.
The nation should be ready to negotiate, with the underlying condition that if there is any terrorist act against its citizens, there will be hell to pay.
This is not some original thought. We hear it all the time. The common man says:
* Strengthen the infrastructure and the intelligence network.
* Educate the society on how to remain alert and control panic.
* Set up crack commando groups -- comprising snipers, specially trained and equipped assault teams, state-sponsored combatants -- who will engage in unconventional warfare.
* Dry up the terrorists' sources of funding: drug trafficking, robbery, extortion, playing on international stock markets, donations.
* Keep a hawk's eye on hostile locations and smash them up.
* Take out leaders of these organisations, no matter where they take refuge.
* Tighten the nation's borders even more, except maybe for trade.
Not an easy task, but not impossible either. The might of the Indian State is hardly something to scoff at. Disuse of power is worse than its misuse. It is time for Indians to roll up their sleeves, spit on their hands and get to work.
Best Regards
Praveen Kumar
Cranfield, UK
guest said, 07/14/2006:
I was wondering if there is any money collection drive started by any ngo/social organization for victims of mumbai blasts. If so, put up its name(s). thanks.
Regards
Raja
USA
guest said, 07/14/2006:
great work , everyone. It is such a feeling of despair to see what has happened in our country. i like some of the other posters here live abroad but have a desire to help in anyway i can.
many of those who have survived have lost limbs and have been left disabled -is it possible to create a list of those people and then look into providing specfic help to those people to rehabiliate their disabilty . My fear is that once the furore has died down as it inevitably will and once all the dead are identified and cremated, people will forget about those survivors who may be living but are living very difficlut lives due to disability.
once a list is made , following could be done :
1) get orthopedic doctors to donate their time to evaluate people for prosthetic limbs
2) get physical therapists to help
3) get corporations to donate money for wheelchairs, crutches, prothesis
please comment on these ideas and lets continue our support for our courymen
my prayers are with the people who are sufferigng so much anguish right now
My best regards to all
Rekha
guest said, 07/14/2006:
I Just noticed after posting my comment above that several of you have already talked about helping those people who have suffered limb loss. please let me know your thoughts and plans and I will be happy to help from a monetary standpoint
regards
rekha
guest said, 07/14/2006:
Hi Rekha,
yes, we have plans to make a list of the needy who will need the limbs. working towards it.
Cassandra
guest said, 07/14/2006:
Swati,
I would like you to give a more concrete outline in terms of actual monetary figures that you would be able to give.
a) for the limbs...Instead of us starrting yet another Charity fund, my feeling is that we would be more effective in giving the money to an organisation that is already committed to this area.
One such organisation is the Fellowship Of the Physically Handicapped at Haji Ali Mumbai. I know firsthand that they do wonderful work in rehabilation/prostethics ( I had a friend who lost a leg to cancer).
I will get in touch with them and ask for the procedure of how people can send money directly to them.
Maybe this is one place we could actually visit when you are in Mumbai end July?
b)on the vocational trainning/school fees...... I know organisations in each area already have a network in place, we will just have to ensure that the money is paid regularly untill the child graduates.
Cassandra
guest said, 07/15/2006:
Cassandra,
Yes of course. I will visit with you any place that you say do good work, and yes, we can put up an appeal for money to be channelled directly to them. Even so for the school fees etc. But in terms of the charitable organisation, I was thinking more in the longer term. Yes, people get training, jobs, children go to school, but is there any followup to see whether they have any problems readjusting to the world, or building trust? I think for this there needs to be continued contact with them, meetings, discussions, community gatherings to help them to become normal citizens once again and not anyone 'special' because of physical or mental disfigurement. True, in the short term we can use the existing network, but in the longer term for us to make appeals for money, at least in UK, we will have to be registered as a charitable organisation. Then I can go to corporates, individuals, indians living here and also publicise on the web. It will widen the audience that we get. I also firmly believe that this continued support is crucial to ensure that feelings of hatred do not find a place in the victims.. making Mumbai safer through the people.
Swati
guest said, 07/15/2006:
Cassandra,
For me to give you a concrete figure of the funds, right now I can only tell you what I have from my family. But I am sure the need is a lot more. Instead, can they give us a rough figure of how much a leg replacement, or hand replacement costs.. and the approximate number of such requirements (that you know)? This will give us an idea of the target figure and we can work towards it...
Does that sound possible?
Swati
guest said, 07/15/2006:
For the fees etc. Is it possible to have an arrangement with the school directly so that we can send them the fee money for a particular child. In this way they can send us reports on the progress.. and any hitches that might occur. It will take away the need for keeping a check that fees are being paid and make the school a part of the rehab process... just a thought.
Like adopt a child..for education.
Swati
guest said, 07/15/2006:
Hello
We urgently need some volunteers based in Mumbai to visit hospitals and identify survivors who are in need of aid. If anyone can volunteer please reply asap to me at shahlaraza@yahoo.com. Waiting to hear from all those wonderful people out there.
Shahla
guest said, 07/15/2006:
Peter/Zigzackly why am I not able to access the Mumbaihelp blogspot page? Everytime I try to log on it says page cannot be displayed. Cassandra had the same problem accessing it. Help!
Shahla
guest said, 07/15/2006:
Government has to take firm steps to stop this kind of instances. We have to live constantly in fear.
guest said, 07/15/2006:
Swati,
The Fellowship of the Hadicapped ( FPH) have a long term adjustment programme.
I was just thinking, it is so difficult for normal people to travel in Mumbai, how will amputees from the suburbs travel all the way to Tardeo?HajiAli? for long drawn out physiotheraphy sessions? Why not tap the doctors in each vicinity?
I spoke to one such lady Doctor at Goregoan West who welcomed the idea, she has volunteered to treat victims at 50%. She is going to talk to her network and has asked me to call her Monday. I will try and get a handle on the cost of recuperation/replacing a limb. Maybe the adopt an amputee would work here?
Yes, for the fees etc, I too think a direct link to the educational instution would be best, this way we do not have to be registered with the Charity Commissioner's office.
On your visit we could discuss the long term aspects of the charity you and your family want to do.
Thankyou Swati, it is your support that is giving me the strength to endeavour to push this forward.
Cassandra
guest said, 07/15/2006:
Hi Cassandra and Swati : I think you have hit the nail on the head when you have ideas regarding specifically reaching out to individuals such as contacting local doctors;specifically contacting educational institutions.That way we can assure that the help is definitely reaching people who need it the most.
there are so many doctors ----if we can contact all orthopedic doctors to just donate their time to see one patient each --many patients can be helped. is here a Bombay medical association of doctors who have a commom newsletter: fr example, an appeal for help may be published in the newsletter so it can reach as many doctors as possible?
so it sounds like there are three groups of people in terms of long term needs:
1) young familes who have lost bread winner and children needing educational support
2) senior citizens who have ost the young bread winner --and may have no where to turn and being older cannot work
3) people who have lost limbs
i agree with swati that the long term psychological trauma will also need to be addressed.
I am based in the US so the only way i could help is monetarily -- i would definitely like to help in terms of sponsoring education of a child or college student or paying costs of rehabilitation for an individual who cannot afford these types of costs
please keep me posted on your progress
rekha
guest said, 07/15/2006:
I am pleased that our plans are now looking as they are taking shape, a good progress from the first ideas that we threw together. Cassandra, Shiladitya and Shahla.. it is your initial selfless actions that have started this very good thing. I have spoken to some friends in UK who are also happy to join in. I have also contacted some of my friends in Mumbai who have their own businesses and introduced this idea of absorbing people as trainees while they train for proper jobs. This person is going to give me an introduction to other businesses and I will go and meet them and introduce our scheme. I think because the task is huge, and you have already been doing a lot with contacting victims, we should pool resouces instead of trying to do the same things. What I suggest is..
We meet and discuss the whole plan, have an idea of the scope of the whole effort and then delegate parts to each volunteer who is best placed to do the job.
e.g., I can meet businesses, introduce the scheme and make a list of such offices ready to participate in the scheme and the person to contact. Can also talk to victims and suggest training needs.
I can also do fundraising in UK.
Rekha, you can maybe publicise this effort in your area in the US.
Maybe someone can take up the task of contacting schools and identifying children who need assistance.
A third person can guide volunteers in each suburb to contact doctors and draw up a similar list.
Similarly for any other needs..senior citizens.. as you rightly pointed out rekha.. they will need the most psychological support.
In the common meeting, we can take information about the victims, how many need jobs, how many need schooling, or medical support and then target our own specific areas. I think you are the best person Cassandra, to give us this information since you have been in touch with hospitals, and victims families.
We should also see that we remain in touch with the school or office over the long term so that we know the progress of these people.
Well.. all I can say that we all have very good intentions, but need a trigger to put them into action. In this case its been this marvellous initial effort and true information that we got through this website. Keep it up all!
Best,
Swati
guest said, 07/15/2006:
hello,
I just want to say that there needs to be a practical response . Everyone abroad feels very helpless at not being present and also guilty in a way for having so much more than the common person in India.Realistically people have to be based in Bombay for the actual work....it is a long term process.
I think the best way forward is through established institutes...the artificial limb centre at haji Ali is a prime example.
I have reservations about asking local doctors to help...the treatment needs to be multidisciplinary...and private practitioners in India do not work in that way. Also, local doctors should be offering their service free...not be charging 50% so that all the money is used for patient care.
Excuse me if I seem to have reservations. I am a doctor who has trained in India and am now in UK and have knowledge about medical practice in India and abroad.
A.C
guest said, 07/15/2006:
Dear A.C. : As a medical doctor who has trained in India and abroad, perhaps you can come up with some practical suggestions as to how you can be of help at the same time that you express your reservations about suggestions put forth by different people on this forum.
if you have reservations about asking local othopedic doctors , local physical and occupational therapists to help--could you explain what you feel the limitations of their help would be and we can see where the efforts should be focused?
As you point out, this is a long term process and it may not be realistic to expect local doctors to offer their services for free on a long term basis as you suggest they should--surely doctors abroad do not offer their services for free on a long term basis.
the helplessness, guilt , reservations etc felt by people abroad as you describe; the knowledge and resources that people abroad feel they possess must be channelled constructively such that each person in their own small way can offer help--perhaps then the good intentions expressed by all on this forum will translate into actions that will be truly be of use.
Best
Rekha
guest said, 07/15/2006:
if there are any physical therapists, rehabilitaion specialists , local mumbai orthopedic doctors, etc reading this , please lets hear some concrete suggestions from you on the best way to move forward
rekha
guest said, 07/15/2006:
Hi Rekha,
A thought came to my mind..how do we know that the treatment offered by local doctors on a long term basis would be the correct treatment? Probably, we could use local doctors, but by referrals from the Haji Ali centre with a recommended treatment. That means we will have to have the patients assessed or initial treatment given at Haji Ali, with follow up physiotherapy at local doctors clinics. This might ensure that the whole treatment is following a plan that is best for the individual patient. Maybe the payments to local doctors could be channelled through the Haji Ali centre? That way there will not be waste of money on unnecessary treatments.
But I am purely speculating. We need, as you say opinions from the medical professionals out there.
Another thought about getting people into work. What happens say, if a person does not fit into a job or office for whatever reason. Should we have a declaration from him/her saying that this is not the responsibility of the office or of us volunteers and that he/she accept the risk..? or does that sound too onerous? Maybe its the UK environment has has got my mind working in this direction. What do you say legal professionals?
Swati
guest said, 07/15/2006:
Mamta,
Great to see you join ths forum. Perhaps you could pass on the information to Cassandra/ Shahla and get information about the boy/patient.. what he did before the accident, who is in the family, who is the earning member, who pays school fees etc.. background info so that we can assess their needs. I presume that if they are in hospital, they are being taken care of by their families?
Swati
guest said, 07/15/2006:
here are some of the costs that I have found regarding prosthetic limbs: (not sure if they are the most up to date but do represent ballpark figures) :
traditional artificial limb made in India costs Rs 6,000-8,000. An imported device is priced between Rs 65,000 and Rs 1 lakh. TAL’s(TAL Manufacturing Solutions, the Tata Group company) artificial limbs are available in the Rs 18,000-30,000 range.
thus these will be some significant costs for the average middle class families ---this will be an area of real need that we could try to come up with some concrete solutions for
Rekha
guest said, 07/15/2006:
Mamta I have emailed you on what specifically you can do. I, Shiladitya and Cassandra have sort of divided up the things that need to be done and are arranging for a meeting for next week where all of us can get together and chalk out a proper plan of action where we can then think of how to organize our efforts in a streamlined way. For now please see your mail for suggestions on what you can do right now. The time and place of the meeting will be posted here later. And others out there based in Mumbai please come forward and volunteer a little bit of your time. This is a huge effort and cannot be done by a handful of people.
Shahla
guest said, 07/16/2006:
hi Swati, Rekha and all the other wonderful people here with ideas,
rekha, thanks, u saved me the trouble of finding out the cost of limbs info.
Cassandra
guest said, 07/16/2006:
Hi Cassandra,
Is it possible that we can get the Haji Ali Centre or any other prime centre to assess the needs and recommend treatment that can be taken up by suburban doctors? Do you think they will agree? We can draw up an agreement that we send them the money and they pay it onwards to the local doctors. Do you have a contact name/ email out there who we can start corresponding with for this? There seem to be options regarding the cost and type of limbs. I suppose the government sponsored scheme would include the lowest cost option. Will the centre be able to tell us who needs which type of limb?
Maybe we should ask the suburban doctors as well if they will be ready to take part in this scheme, because I guess this will put the control of the patient out of their hands and into Haji Ali..
Swati
guest said, 07/16/2006:
Hi Swati, Cassandra: great to see you are keeping up the initial pace of ideas and and hats off to those based in Mumbai who are tirelessly volunteering their time. I happened to read in some news outlet that some private hospitals had actually refused to admit the injured right after the blast (but i must emphasize that i dont know how true this is). also, after gathering more information about how private docs function, it seems like an earlier point made by A.C. about staying with reputed instiutes instead of individual private practitioners is a very correct point.
the point had been raised about how people would be able to travel to this centralized location. perhaps we could tap into existing infrastructure such as rotary club etc who could maybe provide shuttles or different companies who could donate a company shuttle for a few hours per day once a week .--i dont know how feasible a suggestion this is,but am just throwing out ideas
Swati : it would be great if you contact tata about more info.
could someone based in Mumbai contact the Haji Ali institute to get info from them?
thanks to all
Rekha
guest said, 07/16/2006:
dear all: the more i try to find out info about how the medical system in india works, the more it seems that patients should go only to Haji ali institute for all the rehabilitation care and not to local docs. it appears that the best use of any money would be to send it only to the haji ali institute ( perhaps earmarked for a specific patient ) and not to forward the money on to local suburban docs
I will try emailing haji ali insititute to get info on how best to get started; perhaps a mumbai based person could call them as well.
Rekha
guest said, 07/16/2006:
Hi Swati : i will email the haji ali insitute and see what info I can find. perhaps, the ideal way in which we can offer long term help would be to tap into existing infrastructure as much as possible; and help specific families with specific issues --where we can make a dfference I think, would be in the long term. A few months from now, the politicans will stop visiting,everyone will be back to their daily lives and this event will be forgotten as one horrible thing that happened and the families will be by themselves picking up the pieces. I think this is where we could make a difference with "adopt a family" program-- even a little thing such as taking a meal to the family as the woman of the family is running around trying to now run the household, directing people towards jobs, donating towards education expenses --starting out with just simple things like helping with school books or college books for the coming academic year etc
just throwing out ideas--some may not be practical , others may be and i think as we all throw out ideas we should be able to come up with a long term plan
Rekha
guest said, 07/16/2006:
Shahla,
I haven't received your mail yet. I received mails from Rekha and Cassandra. I will get the required details of amputees from Bhagwati. Can you try re-sending your mail please?
-Mamta
guest said, 07/16/2006:
Hi Rekha,
I have sent the email to tata. I completely agree with you. Right now progress may seem a bit slow and agonising, but once we have the background work ready, like lists of institutes, contact names, discussions with them on the practicalities like sending money, follow up proceedures on each patient and basically get the structure of the system ready.. then once the patients start to be treated, hopefully there will be less running around. And long term is what is going to make the difference. We cannot take away the emotional trauma, but if monetary worries can be taken care of, or day to day jobs.. and moral support, it will make a huge difference. Yes I am thinking of all those mothers and wives and sisters out there who are left to face it alone.
Mamta, can we get the patients addresses as well, in case the phone numbers are C/o or out of order..if they are willing to give that is. I also thought of this - are there any other agencies that have approached them for extending medical help for giving artificial limbs.. it would be wise to at least know, even if we collect their contact details so that we can check at the proper time that effort is not duplicated.
Swati
guest said, 07/16/2006:
hi,
please do not take this this the wrong way. It seems to me that a lot of ideas are being generated and problems which might be faced by patients in Bombay are being anticipated . However I feel what is needed as a starting point is knowing from the Haji Ali centre about what would the standard procedure be for a patient who will need prosthesis. I do not know this. Perhaps it needs to be considered much much later...I don't know. How does the centre get its referrals...I assume government hospital doctors will send them at the appropriate time.maybe this is the point to help families.how long does the process take, what follow up do they need. Does the centre arrange for any follow up to be done at local govt. hospitals? perhaps they already do..Is there a way of helping patients through the hospital. i feel that getting information about different prosthesis etc is beyond our remit.perhaps we do not need to know..we just need to know from the Haji Ali centre How to help patients.
In response to readers comments. re. private practice ...unfortunately that is the way private practice is in India. all the stories will be true.Overall, good medical practice is followed in Govt. hospitals in Bombay...it may not appear to be so as they lack infrastructure like clean beds, pillows etc and so private hospitals seem better.
This is more or less that Rekha seemed to be suggesting I think and I completely agree with her.
I feel we need some suggestions from experienced people in bombay about what help will be useful and where to direct it and how. There may be existing schemes which are not publicised but a social worker who has experience working in Govt hospitals in Bombay will know.
Indian express has/had a fund for helping victims in the past. they work long term and apparently send out regular reports. maybe that is the way forward for immediate short term help.I don't have any details.
AC
guest said, 07/16/2006:
AC : I think it is reasonable to ask every question we can at this point. At this very early stage , we should not think that any question or info is beyond our remit ---that's how we will be sift through ideas, figure out what is practical, what is not and be able to go from idealistic blogging to a realistic plan.
i think it is a good idea to get suggestions from social workers or other experienced people ---how would we go about contacting them?
info about different prosthesis is useful i think becuase it helps us also to start thinking about what we should try to contribute from a monetary standpoint; also i think patients should be aware of all their choices and perhaps a government facility would directly only offer the cheapest and patients might go for the cheapest due to financial difficuty and perhaps thats where we could try to make some impact financially? perhaps for the street kids on the station who got injured in the blasts and have no families to take care of them?
AC---would you like to find out the details about the Indian express fund?
swati : excellent point about not duplicating effort -- i think that is very important
rekha
guest said, 07/16/2006:
Families will need help claiming compensation . Found thisnews item online:
R K Shetty, one of India’s leading insurance agents and financial advisers, while conveying his condolences to the families of those who have lost their lives in the serial train bomb blasts 2 days ago, has offered to help the families in a special way.
He has offered to assist the near and dear ones of those who were killed or injured, in making insurance or medical claims.
Those who need assistance can get in touch with him on the following numbers.
(022) 24360696 / 24371447 (Mumbai)
Email: rkshetty@bom8.vsnl.net.in
Volunteers visiting the hospitals could verify the accuracy of this information and whether a fee is beign charged for this and accordingly pass this information on to the families
P.S.
guest said, 07/16/2006:
Just wondering, as you have gone to the hospitals have you heard anything about the street children on the railway platforms who have no families and no support?
guest said, 07/17/2006:
Dear Friends,
Nice to know that Mumbai is full of good people. But good actions are required now. Some suggestions in this regard are:-
- Punish those who have let us down now to prevent a repeat in future.
- Don't pay cell phone bills for the month. Money so saved be used for welfare of deceased/injured.
- Don't buy tickets for local trains from 01 Aug till the time intelligence chief, Polce Chief and CM/Dy CM are removed from their posts.
_ Force railways by not buying tickets and wearing black arm bands to reduce congestion in trains.
_ Railways to consider relay system of running trains from Virar to Andheri and Andheri to Church Gate.
guest said, 07/17/2006:
Cassandra; i agree with the thoughts outlined by you --i will also work on getting more info as mentioned by you above.
A.C. --if you are still out there reading this blog--more thoughts, points/counterpoints are welcome--you seem to know a good deal about how the bombay medical system works and all suggestions are helpful as we try to move forward to acheive the things talked about here
thanks
Rekha
guest said, 07/18/2006:
Hi all,
Just thought about this: we have been focussing on amputees all along, but there must be people who have suffered burns as well? Are they in the same hospitals in some special wards? They will have a long way to go I suppose before being able to get back to work, even if thats a remote possibility. Cassandra/ Mamta/ Shahla have you come across any patients with burns and other injuries?
Swati
guest said, 07/18/2006:
i have heard that the government has blocked all blogs --? for apprent security reasons --just seeing if this blog will accpet my comments
guest said, 07/19/2006:
The blog is working fine isn't it?.. at least to my knowledge..
guest said, 07/19/2006:
A lot of useful info in the posts above and great to see so much inittiative on ur part..
My friends and I are organizing a fundraiser in NY for the blast victims. We were thinking of channeling our funds through TimesFoundation? (TOI) who got back to me with teh foll:
"The donations received by Times Foundation for the Mumbai blasts will be
utilised to :
a) Provide artificial limbs to bomb blast victims, as per their medically
determined needs (a package treatment inclusive of diagnosis, prescription,
purchasing,fixing and rehabilitation in the hospital after fixing.)
b) Announcement of scholarships to children of the bomb blast victims based
on merit cum means.
c) Donation of funds to the hospitals involved in Bomb Blast victims.
d) Providing finacial assistance to NGOS and organizations involved in
similar relief activities (based on the merit of the projects undertaken by
them) and also planning several other activities like counselling sessions
for the victims etc."
I just wanted to get your opinion on whether you think this is the best way to utilize our funds? Or should we give to Haji Ali Inst instead? or somewhere else - and myabe spread it out amongst a few? Dont wanna see the money be under-utilized.. so pls advise.
thanks,
Aditya
p.s. will post the details of the event and contact info once we finalize the venue. If anyone here is in NY, pls do get in touch with me at that point.
guest said, 07/20/2006:
Aditya : when are you planning to have this fundraiser in NY? (just a guestimate). its good to see more people come online. Cassandra, mamta , shahla and Swati : when are you guys planing to meet to brainstorm? once you guys have hammered out a plan, lets figure out what the best way forward is to utilize funds.
Rekha
guest said, 07/21/2006:
Rekha,
we are looking at either Aug 3rd or 4th. Will finalize a place by end of this week and then start spreading the word. Meanwhile I am trying to figure out who to donate to.
guest said, 07/21/2006:
Aditya.. hi,
We will post information on what we find out about the Haji Ali institute and any other sources of help for victims by next week. That may help you to make a decision..
Cheers
Swati
guest said, 07/25/2006:
hi rekha, swati, cassandra, mamtaand others
I am new to this blogs,dont know whether my message will reach you or not but i am a mumbai based person and would like to help out in some way. I am ready to volunteer monetary support to needy persons and also give my time on weekends if it is fruitful in anyway.
Prashant
guest said, 07/25/2006:
HI Swati, Mamta,Cassandra,Rekha others
My mobile # is 9820419913
may i have your mobile # & email ids too
Swati when r u in mumbai????
Prashant
guest said, 07/25/2006:
Prashant,
I will be in Mumbai on 29th July . We are planning to meet on Sunday 30th.
Will get in touch with all when I land up there!
Swati
guest said, 07/25/2006:
Mamta,
I have contacted the lady for tuitions required for Manoj and other children like him. She has agreed, She stays in Bandra (E) near Bandra-Kurla complex. We will have to figure out the logistics of a meeting point and how Manoj will travel etc.
Cheers
Swati
guest said, 07/25/2006:
hi all,
been busy with arranging the fundraise. i know we want the funds to go towards prosthetic limbs and rehab for victims .if poss, we want to be able to use the funds to purchase the supplies ourselves and tehn donate that to the haji ali center, so as to be able to cut down on poss. misuse.
I was sposed to visit haji ali center on Monday, but i have been sick over the weekend..
Cassandra,
i will wait for ur next update re. haji Ali.
meanwhil, pls cehck out http://bombayfundraiser.blogspot.com/ - a work in progress.
thks,
aditya
9920095795
guest said, 07/25/2006:
Hi Swati
i have read wat the message u left for mamta about this boy manoj, i am placed around 5 kms away from bandra kurla complex
can i do something for that boy.
prashant
guest said, 07/26/2006:
In Hyderabad and 50 towns of Andhra Pradesh the Emergency Management and Research Insitute is providing Emergency Response Services. The services provided are similar to 9-1-1 in US. The ambulance located at strategic locations would reach victims in no time and shift the patient to appropriate hospital. They have database of appropriate hospitals. Mumbai needs such service. Visit www.emri.in. See the presentation of CEO of EMRI by clicking this link http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6671271293722797569. Please keep me posted if you want more information on this. rvkreddy@hotmail.com - Vijay
guest said, 07/26/2006:
I have mailed everyone about the meeting on Sunday 30th July at 4.30 at Phoenix mills lower Parel, In case you have not received the mail or need any directions to get there, you could contact me at email mumbaihelp@gmail.com.
Cassandra
guest said, 07/27/2006:
Prashant, I will keep you informed. Plus there will be something posted on the wiki as well
Cassandra
guest said, 07/30/2006:
Hi Rekha, In response to the above, we did have the meeting, i will email you details and the action plan in a day or two, am a bit tied up today and tomorrow
Cassandra
guest said, 08/01/2006:
thanks Cassandra ; i will wait to hear from you the next steps and the action plan
Rekha
guest said, 08/06/2006:
yes casandra --got the email. sorry for the delayed ackowledgement. any news on your trip to the Haji Ali institute ,swati?
guest said, 08/11/2006:
NEED one centralised clearly-organised and simple website with contact info for various emergency services in disaster situation. does this exist? so many blogs, all with different information, with too much prose intervening and completely disorganised. let's create a collaborative website with add-on facility.
-kiran
guest said, 08/21/2006:
Hi Swati : thanks for the update. It has now been six weeks since the bomb blasts; already the pace at which people are blogging has slowed down; the enthusiaism and momentum to do some good work should not slow down as well. The next step would be to create a concrete plan to foucs our efforts to help a few people. Perhaps the boy Manoj could be someone we could focus our efforts on.
Cassandra and Mamta--your thoughts about focusing efforts on Manoj?
thanks
Rekha
guest said, 08/21/2006:
Hi Rekha,
Yes we seem to have lost momentum as a group. Will try and drum up enthu
guest said, 07/12/2006:
Hi, it is great to see Mumbaikars on their feet and voicing their concern and trying to do the best they can in these times of crisis. We would like to extend help. We need to know how to get monetary or medical help to the right hand. Please do get in touch with us if you know any organisation or hospital who have a setup and are providing relief to the victims and family.
Please write to us at sunrise_12feb@yahoo.co.in
Thanks.