Asha for Education

The short term goal is to construct a new building to accommodate all the students under one roof for classes which now take place in scattered manner within the main Ashram. The long term goal is to provide both formal secondary level education as well as to provide vocational education related to the need of the Ashram and the attached hospital to the students from surrounding villages along with mid-day meal for all students, full meal for residential students and study materials.

The main project of the organization has been the Netaji Eye Hospital which is a 250 bed eye hospital in a remote rural area of West Bengal bordering Jharkhand/Bihar and serving the vision related needs of patients from Jharkhand, Bihar and West Bengal. The hospital registers approximately 500-700 patients per day for outpatients services, many of whom eventually receive further in-patient services.
There are 24 rooms for outpatient services, 6 cabins and 6 general wards (separate ward for female patients). Over 24000 patients received eye surgery in FY 2003-2004, belonging to extremely poor economic strata of the population. There are two surgery rooms. 75% of the patients receive free treatments. 100 out-reach camps are held every year, treating 20,000 patients in the field.
The hospital has received grants from several donors from within and outside India over the years to establish the facilities being run today. Today, some revenues are generated through the fees charged for different services from the patients who are able to pay. However, various grants are still the main source of funding to run the hospital and train personnel.
In addition to the eye hospital, the Society also provides food and clothes to the extremely needy patients and provides formal education to the local children whose parents work as agricultural labors and who would otherwise never see the light of education.
There are total of four entities operated by the Society. They are:
a) Netaji Eye Hospital
b) Sri Sri Vijoy Krishna Vidyapith
c) All India Blind Welfare Clinic
d) Darbesh Homeo Chikitsalay


Due to the long history of the organization, various projects are now undertaken only if it becomes essential to serve the needy patients and/or the local village population which is the primary source for its workforce.
At this time, the Society has begun to upgrade the school system to provide up to secondary level education. In addition to providing the formal education, plan is being made to train the students in various vocational activities related to the operation of the hospital and providing first aid services to the villagers in their villages.

Registration Number (Public Trust Act):_Registered under Societies Act, XXI of 1960, Nos/5078 of 1961-62

FCRA# : 147070010.vide(11/21011/74/467)-85 III 29.3.85


Project location (urban, rural etc.): P.O. Ramchandrapur Dist.: Purulia, PIN 723 144 (rural).