Action for Rural Rejuvenation
Encyclopedia
Action For Rural Rejuvenation (ARR) is a multi-phased program aimed towards improving the overall health and quality of life of the rural poor. ARR was established by the Isha Foundation
under the aegis of the foundation's social outreach wing Isha Outreach. ARR aims to benefit 70 million people in 54,000 villages across Tamil Nadu
, South India
. It will be implemented in two phases over a period of 15 years. Thereafter, it is envisaged that local communities will sustain the project activities independently. As of 2010, ARR has reached over 4,200 villages and a population of over 7 million people. The city of Columbus
in the state of Ohio
, USA has felicitated Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev the founder of ARR for the social programs and activities conducted by ARR.
in Erode
district, Tamil Nadu by Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev. In 2004, when the Asian Tsunami struck the coast of Tamil Nadu, ARR was involved in rehabilitation work and provided medical aid, support for the reconstruction of houses and boats, adoption of orphans, impartation of yoga as a means to overall physical and mental well-being and in community building efforts. ARR also adopted 120 affected villages in Cuddalore
and Nagapattinam
districts for long-term rehabilitation. Eight mobile health clinics with an allopathic physician and a paramedical support team of four each provided medical care every day to nearly 4,000 villages in the affected areas. ARR also provided aid and support in 2005, when Cuddalore, Chidambaram
and Trichy districts of Tamil Nadu were affected by monsoon floods.
, Tirupur
, Salem
and Velayuthampalayam. Each IRHC serves up to 30 surrounding villages and is equipped with a diagnostic lab, a subsidized pharmacy and minor surgery facilities and offers allopathic and alternative medical services at low cost, emergency medical services and minor surgeries. Apart from an in-house doctor, the clinic also have a team of visiting specialists for gynecology, ENT
and pediatrics
.
(SRMC) to improve the standard of health in rural areas in Thiruvallur district through telemedicine
. The MHCs in this area are equipped with teleconnectivity to provide online consultation to patients. SRMC provides technical support and telemedicine consultation by linking the MHC to its telemedicine centre.
have collaborated to established a community care center for treatment and counseling of people living with HIV/AIDS in Palladam
, Tamil Nadu in 2009. The centre offers medical treatment, consultations on illnesses related to HIV
and AIDS
, treatment of opportunistic infections, counselling services for patients on issues such as drug adherence, nutrition, use of contraceptives and positive living and a free ambulance service which serves as an emergency transport and for transporting patients for lab investigations. The 10-bed ward for in-patient care also acts as a link to other government and private hospitals, drop-in centres, clinics for sexually transmitted infection, family planning clinics, faith-based organisations and other service providers. The centre also advocates against social stigma, provides legal support, offers vocational guidance, recreational activities and spiritual and yoga programmes.
MHCs also refer patients exhibiting HIV related symptoms to the nearest Integrated Counseling and Testing Centre. IRHCs are equipped to test for HIV for consenting patients.
and Project Concern International
, India has launched an economic development program in Karumathampatti
and Kittamapalayam Panchayat areas of Tamil Nadu. Training and basic infrastructure are provided in vegetable cultivation, fish and poultry farming, handicrafts production and food processing, entrepreneurship, assistance in value addition and marketing of produce. Seminars on agriculture as an income generating profession are also conducted as part of this initiative.
, Karagattam and Tapattam. Handicrafts and traditional food from various regions are also displayed. Rural olympics are also conducted as a part of the Gramotsavam. The rural olympics includes competitions in rural sports such as rekla or bullock-cart races, tug of war
, Uri adi (hitting a pot strung on a height) and vazhuku maram or greasy pole
contests. Main stream sports such as throwball
, volleyball
and track and field
events are also conducted.
Isha Foundation
Isha Foundation is a non-profit, spiritual organization founded in 1992 by Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev. It is based at the Isha Yoga Center near Coimbatore, India and at the Isha Institute of Inner Sciences at McMinnville, Tennessee in the United States. The foundation offers various yoga programs...
under the aegis of the foundation's social outreach wing Isha Outreach. ARR aims to benefit 70 million people in 54,000 villages across Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
, South India
South India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...
. It will be implemented in two phases over a period of 15 years. Thereafter, it is envisaged that local communities will sustain the project activities independently. As of 2010, ARR has reached over 4,200 villages and a population of over 7 million people. The city of Columbus
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
in the state of Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, USA has felicitated Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev the founder of ARR for the social programs and activities conducted by ARR.
History
ARR was launched in August 2003 in the city of GobichettipalayamGobichettipalayam
Gobi or Gobichettipalayam is a Municipality in Erode District of Tamil Nadu state, India. A major part of present Gobichettipalayam was previously known as Veerapandi Gramam, and documents and records still use that name. Gobichettipalayam is an important city in the North- Western part of Erode...
in Erode
Erode
Erode is a city, a municipal corporation and the headquarters of Erode district in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu.It is situated at the center of the South Indian Peninsula, about southwest from the state capital Chennai and on the banks of the rivers Cauvery and Bhavani, between 11° 19.5"...
district, Tamil Nadu by Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev. In 2004, when the Asian Tsunami struck the coast of Tamil Nadu, ARR was involved in rehabilitation work and provided medical aid, support for the reconstruction of houses and boats, adoption of orphans, impartation of yoga as a means to overall physical and mental well-being and in community building efforts. ARR also adopted 120 affected villages in Cuddalore
Cuddalore
Cuddalore is a fast growing industrial city and headquarter of Cuddalore district in the Tamil Nadu state of southern India. Located south of Pondicherry on the coast of Bay of Bengal, Cuddalore has a large number of industries which employ a great deal of the city's population.Cuddalore is known...
and Nagapattinam
Nagapattinam
Nagapattinam is a town in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Nagapattinam District. It is a prominent seaport on the east coast of India and an important centre of trade and commerce.The town of Nagapattinam dates back to the Sangam period...
districts for long-term rehabilitation. Eight mobile health clinics with an allopathic physician and a paramedical support team of four each provided medical care every day to nearly 4,000 villages in the affected areas. ARR also provided aid and support in 2005, when Cuddalore, Chidambaram
Chidambaram
Chidambaram is a fast growing industrial city in Eastern part of Tamil Nadu and the taluk headquarters of the Cuddalore district. It is located in 58 km from Pondicherry, 60 km from Karaikal, and 240 km south of Chennai by rail...
and Trichy districts of Tamil Nadu were affected by monsoon floods.
Mobile health clinics
Mobile Health Clinics (MHCs) were launched by ARR in 2003 to service less accessible rural areas and provide timely medical care to people who would otherwise not have access due to financial constraints or the remoteness of the region. The clinics provide basic health care, distribute medicine and create health awareness among the rural public. The 20 MHCs in operation are accessible to 2.2 million people. The clinic is equipped with a medical laboratory, diagnostic equipment and a pharmacy and is staffed by a physician, two paramedical staff and a yoga teacher who provide health care services and yoga training to patients. The mobile clinics are capable of attending to around 100 patients a day. Service vehicles support the operation of the MHCs.Isha rural health clinics
Isha Rural Health Clinics (IRHCs) provide communities with round the clock affordable and expert healthcare services. Currently, four IRHCs are in operation in the districts of CoimbatoreCoimbatore District
Coimbatore District is one of the more affluent and industrially advanced districts of the state of Tamil Nadu in India. Coimbatore is known as the Manchester of South India. It one of the most industrialized towns of Tamil Nadu. It has the highest GDP among the districts of Tamil Nadu, even ahead...
, Tirupur
Tirupur district
Tiruppur District is a district of the Indian state Tamil Nadu, formed in October 2008. This district is formed with these taluks from Coimbatore district and Erode district: Tirupur, Avinashi, Palladam, Dharapuram, Kangeyam, Madathukulam and Udumalpet. Tirupur district is a well-developed and...
, Salem
Salem District
Salem District is a district of Tamil Nadu state in southern India. The city of Salem is the district headquarters. Other major towns in the district are Mettur, Omalur and Attur...
and Velayuthampalayam. Each IRHC serves up to 30 surrounding villages and is equipped with a diagnostic lab, a subsidized pharmacy and minor surgery facilities and offers allopathic and alternative medical services at low cost, emergency medical services and minor surgeries. Apart from an in-house doctor, the clinic also have a team of visiting specialists for gynecology, ENT
Otolaryngology
Otolaryngology or ENT is the branch of medicine and surgery that specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of ear, nose, throat, and head and neck disorders....
and pediatrics
Pediatrics
Pediatrics or paediatrics is the branch of medicine that deals with the medical care of infants, children, and adolescents. A medical practitioner who specializes in this area is known as a pediatrician or paediatrician...
.
Telemedicine
ARR has also signed an MoU with Sri Ramachandra Medical CollegeSri Ramachandra Medical College and Research Institute
Sri Ramachandra Medical College and Research Institute , now named Sri Ramachandra University , is a deemed university declared under Section 3 of the UGC at 1956, in Porur, Chennai, India...
(SRMC) to improve the standard of health in rural areas in Thiruvallur district through telemedicine
Telemedicine
Telemedicine is the use of telecommunication and information technologies in order to provide clinical health care at a distance. It helps eliminate distance barriers and can improve access to medical services that would often not be consistently available in distant rural communities...
. The MHCs in this area are equipped with teleconnectivity to provide online consultation to patients. SRMC provides technical support and telemedicine consultation by linking the MHC to its telemedicine centre.
Health awareness campaigns
ARR conducts health awareness events and medical camps across Tamil Nadu under the Isha Arogya Gramam Plan launched in 2008 in order to address the healthcare needs of people in rural areas. Patients are screened and treated for general health, eye, ENT and dental problems. The “Wave of Health” or Arokia Alai program also works to support this endeavor by spreading awareness on nutrition, disease prevention and hygiene and sanitation to the rural people through talks and media presentations. The Arokia Alai project provides free-of-cost, simple, healthy dietary solutions to help eradicate malnutrition in villagers. By providing knowledge on diseases and their symptoms, Arokia Alai seeks to make villagers proactive about their health and enable them to detect diseases early through the taught symptoms and thus take the necessary action.AIDS awareness
ARR and Tamil Nadu State AIDS Control SocietyTamil Nadu State AIDS Control Society
The Tamil Nadu State AIDS Control Society is a Government of Tamil Nadu organisation that was formed to spread awareness about AIDS, to care for AIDS patients and prevent their maltreatment in society...
have collaborated to established a community care center for treatment and counseling of people living with HIV/AIDS in Palladam
Palladam
Palladam is a suburb of the city Coimbatore in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is a town panchayat of Tirupur district of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.It was recently merged with the newly formed Tirupur district, but it is still considered to be associated with the Coimbatore city by a lot...
, Tamil Nadu in 2009. The centre offers medical treatment, consultations on illnesses related to HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
and AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
, treatment of opportunistic infections, counselling services for patients on issues such as drug adherence, nutrition, use of contraceptives and positive living and a free ambulance service which serves as an emergency transport and for transporting patients for lab investigations. The 10-bed ward for in-patient care also acts as a link to other government and private hospitals, drop-in centres, clinics for sexually transmitted infection, family planning clinics, faith-based organisations and other service providers. The centre also advocates against social stigma, provides legal support, offers vocational guidance, recreational activities and spiritual and yoga programmes.
MHCs also refer patients exhibiting HIV related symptoms to the nearest Integrated Counseling and Testing Centre. IRHCs are equipped to test for HIV for consenting patients.
Livelihood generation programs
ARR conducts awareness programs on livelihood generation options for rural people. Educational assistance in the form of tuition are offered to village children and training in vocations such as tailoring and computers is offered to villagers. ARR, in association with Suzlon Energy LimitedSuzlon Energy
Suzlon Energy is a global wind power company based in India. In terms of market share, the company is the fifth largest wind turbine manufacturer in Asia...
and Project Concern International
Project Concern International
PCI , , is a non-profit, humanitarian NGO is a San Diego, California-based non-profit health and humanitarian aid organization dedicated to preventing disease, improving community health, and promoting sustainable development...
, India has launched an economic development program in Karumathampatti
Karumathampatti
Karumathampatti is a suburb of Coimbatore city in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is also called as Karumcity which is one of the most developing suburb in Coimbatore about 28 km away from the city center...
and Kittamapalayam Panchayat areas of Tamil Nadu. Training and basic infrastructure are provided in vegetable cultivation, fish and poultry farming, handicrafts production and food processing, entrepreneurship, assistance in value addition and marketing of produce. Seminars on agriculture as an income generating profession are also conducted as part of this initiative.
Isha Gramotsavam
Isha Gramotsavam is an annual event conducted by ARR to showcase rural sports and art forms. Over 500,000 people from 900 villages attend this event. Performances are given in various rural art forms such as Silambattam, OyilattamOyilattam
Oyilattam is a folk dance with origins in the Madurai region of Tamil Nadu. The dance has its origins in southern Tamil Nadu and is primarily performed in Madurai district, Tirunelveli district and Tiruchirapalli district...
, Karagattam and Tapattam. Handicrafts and traditional food from various regions are also displayed. Rural olympics are also conducted as a part of the Gramotsavam. The rural olympics includes competitions in rural sports such as rekla or bullock-cart races, tug of war
Tug of war
Tug of war, also known as tug o' war, tug war, rope war or rope pulling, is a sport that directly pits two teams against each other in a test of strength. The term may also be used as a metaphor to describe a demonstration of brute strength by two opposing groups, such as a rivalry between two...
, Uri adi (hitting a pot strung on a height) and vazhuku maram or greasy pole
Greasy pole
Greasy pole or grease pole refers to a pole that has been made slippery and thus difficult to grip. More specifically, it is the name of several events that involve staying on, climbing up, walking over or otherwise traversing such a pole...
contests. Main stream sports such as throwball
Throwball
Throwball is a non-contact ball sport played across a net between two teams of seven players on a rectangular court. Throwball is popular in Asia, especially on the Indian subcontinent, and was first played in India as a women's sport in Chennai during the 1940s. Like volleyball, the game's roots...
, volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
and track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
events are also conducted.