Ambedkar Nagar, a village compromising of Dalits (landless laborers), located adjacent to a backwater in Cuddalore, has been selected as an appropriate site to provide a community center. This village, while it did not sustain heavy loss of life during the tsunami, has victims of trauma, and has suffered loss of livelihood due to salt water flooding of leased farms. The tsunami was responsible for loss of their crops, which were due for harvesting. These villagers were not handed much retribution from the government or by the other NGO's that have been working in this region post tsunami. The project outcome involves the building of a community center. Using the Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) method, Architecture for Humanity and the League of Education and Development (LEAD) assisted the community in identifying their needs, evaluating the grants available, and created a program for design, Architecture for Humanity developed the design based upon the program, and LEAD has engineered and built it. Tied into the program is a Balwadi i.e. a children's day care center. Grants were received by the community for this through Terre Des Hommes, Germany. The Balwadi funds untilized toward the kitchen, and the multipurpose room.
As the first public building for the community, the center serves as a focal point of celebration and learning for the community.
LEAD will continue its relationship with the community by monitoring and supporting the WSHGs and the micro lending programs.
CHALLENGES
Some of the challenges faced along the way included project delays due to inclement weather; high inflation; shortage of materials (bricks,cement); shortage of labor; unreliability of labor and the contractor; and having on the team non-local contractors who could not ensure continous work delivery. However, overall, the built project reflects the central design concepts.
