This month we were approached by Mr. Victor, the principal of Mandal Parishad Primary School in the rural village of Jonnavalasa, Vizianagaram district of Andhra Pradesh. He heard of our ashram's food distribution programs in Vizianagaram and requested us to do something for the children in his school. Already the children receive daily meals from the government, through the national mid-day meal program, so we asked in what way we could be of assistance. He replied that the children could use school uniforms, as their families cannot afford them. [Video Inside]

We are happy to inform you that the Bhaktivedanta Ashram has recently begun food distribution programs in Andhra Pradesh. Currently we are conducting the activities throughout Vizianagaram district based from our ashram located in Vizianagaram, in the North of Andhra Pradesh. In the initial stages we are planning to distribute food 15 times a month in various tribal villages within 100 kilometers of our ashram.

Enclosed are some recent photographs of a program for 300 children at Bhadrak Primary School. We have begun distribution of school supplies to poor students in rural areas who are unable to afford their own. We do not want children to feel discouraged from studying due to the expenses involved in purchasing basic things like notebooks, pens and school uniforms.

Below are a few recent photos of the food distribution program we are conducting in the village of Ulanga. Ulanga is a small village located around 5 km from our relief center in Randiya. Like Randiya, it is also an adivasi (tribal) village. We humbly request you to keep the children of Ulanga in your daily prayers.

In our previous newsletter we showed you pictures and a video of the children of Randiya and the weekly food distribution we conduct in that village. For the new year we thought it would be nice to give these children a small gift that they could really relate to, something that would allow them to just be children for a day. [Video Inside]

Randiya is a very poor rural village located around 20 km away from our main Ashram in Orissa. The village consists of people from the adivasi (tribal) community. Around two years ago, the Bhaktivedanta Ashram opened a relief center here and began regular distribution of free meals to more than 300 children of the village. Since that time we have been able to distribute over 44,000 meals to these wonderful children. [Video Inside]

Another village has been added to our food relief program in Orissa. The village of Ugalpur is located around 6 kilometers outside of Bhadrak. Here are a few photos of the children from this village and the recent food distribution. We have also included a three minute video clip at the top of the page. [Video Inside]

This month we have begun food distribution in a new village, Bagurai Leprosy Colony, located a few kilometers outside of Bhadrak, in Orissa. As the name implies, most of the children in the village have parents affected by leprosy. This makes it even harder for their families to earn money, and take care of the children properly. We are trying to provide a little help in the form of spiritual food, so that the children can at least receive a few nourishing meals.

The last few months have been a time of increased activity for us. In September, a renewal of monsoon rains led to severe flooding throughout Orissa, leaving more than 1.5 million people homeless in the state. Every year Orissa seems to bear the brunt of monsoon flooding in India, but this year it was even more so, with miles and miles of land submerged under water.

Recently the Bhaktivedanta Ashram opened a new rural relief center in Randiya, approximately 20 km away from our main Ashram in Orissa. With cooperation from the local villagers, a small piece of land was given to us for establishing a permanent relief center in the village. The village consists of people from the very poor adivasi (tribal) community. More than 300 children in the village attend regular programs at the new center.

Last week devotees in California donated a small piece of land in Chennai to be used for a new project, the Bhaktivedanta Ashram Community Center, which will be located in Taramani near the back gate of the Indian Institute of Technology. The community center will contain a 1300 square foot annadana hall on the ground floor where we plan to feed 300 needy children from the Taramani area every day.

Our team of volunteers in Tamil Nadu have been extremely busy over the last few months working tirelessly to help as many people as possible recover following the disaster.  Besides feeding thousands of people, we have also distributed over 1,000 blankets to families affected by the disaster. The emergency situation is now slowly returning to normal and we will begin focusing on more long term help for the children affected by this disaster.

In response to the recent tsunami, the Bhaktivedanta Ashram has sent a team of volunteers to Tamil Nadu to carry out relief work to help the victims. Due to the long term effects of this disaster, the Bhaktivedanta Ashram has opened a permanent relief center in Chennai so that relief activities can continue even after the immediate media attention dies down.

This month we have completed a new annadana hall at our Ashram in Bhadrak, Orissa where we are conducting the Nitya Annadana Seva program for daily feeding needy children with spiritual food. Below you can see some of the pictures of the hall from the beginning stages up to completion.

Last December, following completion of the rainy season, work commenced on the Bhaktivedanta Ashram's school project in Orissa. The first phase of work was to fill a number of large ponds on the land and then raise the total land above flood levels. The size of the present land is aproximately 20,000 square feet, or nearly half an acre. Over 1,300 tractor loads of dirt and sand were required to fill and raise the land. Immediately after filling the land, a 10 ton steam roller was used to compress the dirt, followed by building of a high compound wall around the entire school compound.

Recently we have started an informal school for poor children from nearby areas around our Ashram, and around 150 children are attending each day. Many of these children would previously spend their time begging, rummaging through garbage piles, and doing other such activities. One by one we have met with these children and spoken to them about the importance of their life and convinced them to change their lifestyle by taking interest in learning. To see the transformation of these children was amazing.

We would like to thank all of the donors who have helped sponsor the food relief activities in March. Below are some recent photos of the food relief activities conducted this month.  The photos below are from the Adivasi village of Ulanga. Previously in January we had also conducted distribution of blankets and clothes to all the children of the village. In the pictures below you can see some of the children wearing those clothes that were distributed in January. At present we are conducting food distribution programs in this village four times a month.

In our previous email newsletter we had mentioned the Ashram's desire to distribute clothes and blankets to the children of Ulanga village to protect them from the winter cold. Thanks to generous donations from many of our donors and friends we were able to raise the necessary funds to meet this goal. By Lord Krishna's grace, we were able to distribute blankets and clothes not only to the children of Ulanga village, but to children in three other villages as well. Thanks to all of you these children will be able sleep soundly and stay warm throughout the winter.

This month we have added the tribal village of Ulanga to our food distribution program. The photos above and below are from programs held in this village. Ulanga is the poorest village in the entire district of Bhadrak, and as you can see in the photos the children do not even have clothes to wear. Since winter is approaching and temperatures in Orissa will get very cold, our volunteers have requested that we distribute a free set of clothes and a warm blanket to every child in this village (there are approximately 300 children in this village).

We would like to thank all of the donors who have participated in the annadana seva organised by the Ashram. On this page you can see some of the photos of two of our recent food relief programs held last month in Orissa. Recently, Orissa was again affected by floods and as a result there was a great need for these relief activities to help feed the poor and displaced persons there.