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Simmi Soni and Swati Singh
Students of Galgotias University creating awareness on Breast feeding and Malnutrition in an extension activity with Human Touch Foundation at Sakipur village, Greater Noida
In an exclusive interview with the President of the Human Touch Foundation Human Touch Foundation / NGO – Delhi & Greater Noida (htfngo.com), Dr. Upasana Singh, we got a glimpse into the workings of This non-profit organization and their efforts towards creating a better world for all.
Dr. Upasana Singh is a part of the All-India Conference and also a member of many internal Complaint Committees.
Dr. Upasana Singh, Founder, Human Touch Foundation
Q. Can you tell us about the history of NGO?
Ans. The Human Touch Foundation got registered in 2011, but was working for the welfare of society before 2011. The main focus of the NGO is Social Welfare for everybody, anyone in need, irrespective of gender and age. It mainly focuses on
•Education
•Health Care – works for various diseases such as Anemia, Menstrual Hygiene, Cancer, TB and many more. It mainly focuses on the huge diseases which get ignored by people in large amounts, especially in rural areas. Nowadays, there are many deaths due to Tuberculosis. Anemia is very prevalent. Pregnant women and teenage girls suffer from anemia. NGO mainly focuses on the rural areas, where people are not aware about health care issues.
• Empowerment -empowerment and its legal problem, domestic violence and many more. We are giving skill training to girls and boys such as stitching, digital literacy, beautician and many more things.
•Environmental – it includes Organic Farming and use of 3Rs.
Q. How does an organization fund its work? What are some of the key sources of the support?
Ans. The NGO prohibits CSR funding and clicking of the picture while doing social work for society. If you want to do any social work, the primary thing is the passion to create change and self-willingness to help others, then the secondary thing is money. We don’t get funding from anywhere; we generate our own funds. Various work has been done, such as crafts by the rural woman, and we are also focusing on the 3 R, s that is Reduce, Recycle and Reuse. We do lots of stuff with these 3 principles. We collect leftover clothes from boutiques, export houses, small tailors. Women in rural areas make various things from this waste, such as bags, covers and many useful things. We distribute these things for free or we sell them. We have been doing these things for the last 15 years. We sell these things: organic plants, herbal plants. All these are the sources of income.
Q. What motivated you to start this NGO? Did you get the idea of starting this NGO?
Ans. I was doing my research work for my PhD, at that time, I was approached by a person to do some research work on Women Participation in Panchayat Raj. In 1992, a doctrine was introduced by Rajiv Gandhi, which made women’s participation compulsory at grassroots level. During that time, many people opposed this law. They thought that women were not able to handle the panchayat, becoming a Pradhan. I was given this research project to find out the current positions of women. Being a student at that time. I was very young and I had my own mindset. I went to the field area, I found out that there are various uncertainties and many reasons that need to be solved and we should look at the things from another perspective also. This is how I got involved in social work and slowly I was drawn to village problems. Problems related to women, children, old people and the environment. In some areas there is a lot of contaminated water, scarcity of water, wet land and various issues in village areas. When you pay attention to one problem of society, eventually you will get involved in the whole circle because they are all connected to each other. This is how I got to know about various problems and started working for the welfare of society and started Human Touch Foundation and later got registered in 2011
Q. How do people connect to NGOs as volunteers?
Ans. People work with us on their own wish. Self-willing people get to connect with us. We do not pay anything to them.
Q. Did you face any challenges while working for this NGO?
Ans. Challenges are always there. The one foremost challenge is that people ask why you are doing this, because there is no source of income. What will you get by doing these things? This kind of attitude is always there in society. Ignorance in society is still present.
When we sometimes went to the village for good work, such as once, we were given free pulse polio. Some communities were not ready to allow their children to have pulse polio because they had their religious taboos with them, that they would not take that pulse polio.
In rural areas, we went for an anemia health checkup. People thought that we were draining them out of blood and we would sell them. There are a lot of things and they are still there. But we are still doing good things for society and we still face lots of challenges and struggles every day. When we go for a dental checkup in rural areas, when doctors give them supplements, some village women complain that after eating their supplement, we got ill and we have the side effects. Usually, people used to refuse if they didn’t want those medicines.
Q. What are the future plans for the Human Touch Foundation?
Ans. Our motto is very simple with we want to connect with more and more young people in society so that they can create a feeling of social welfare for all and that this is real social welfare, because when we go for a big thing, it is not. We need to start it at root level. If you find someone suffering and you are able to help them, then you can help them.
Simmi and Swati interviewing Dr. Upasana Singh
Student of Galgotias University (BBA , 2 year) with Dr. Upasana Singh exhibiting serious environmental concern
