Case Studies

A fighting chance for Anoma’s family

Anoma is a housewife living with 13-year-old son & her husband in Mahaehetuwewa village of Manuapa divisional secretariat in Anuradhapura. Her husband was a regular worker at a sand mining site in the area. A properly built house was far from their achievement. Thus Anoma’s family lived in a house made of clay walls. Things got even worse when Anoma’s husband met with an accident at his work place in March 2018. Due to the injuries succumbed from the accident, he was hospitalized for a long period & had undergone many surgeries. Due to the heavy rainfalls Anoma’s house was completely collapsed & she was homeless with her sick husband & schooling son. At the time BDS found this family they were living in a temporary house made with the support of neighbors. Anoma was having a really hard time as she had to find work for the survival of the family while looking after the treatments of her sick husband. Understanding the situation BDS started constructing a house for Anoma. Within six weeks construction was completed. It cost around LKR 361,500 Anoma’s neighbors & work place of her husband contributed 30% of cost. Anoma is relieved now. She is able to live under a safe shelter. Her son’s education is no longer disturbed. This is more than just a house to Anoma, this is a new opportunity to build her life.

It Creates Dual Benefits to the Families in Divulwewa Village

S. Dinapala (85) living in Diulwewa village (Kudapattiya GND in Kahatagasdigiliya GND of Anuradhapura District) with his wife Valli Ethana (82) & his differently abled son was diagnosed with Chronic Kidney Disease (CKDu). Unfortunately, with remorse, his wife along with the child was also diagnosed as CKDu patients since the past six years. Eight CKDu patients including this Dinapala’s were identified at Diulwewa Village by the end of 2019. According to the expertise of CKDu preventing programs, “using contaminated drinking water” has been discerned as the major fact to the increase in CKDu patients. In response to this, Berendina Development services (BDS) partnering with HSBC Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank Corporation (HSBC) installed a water purification plant in Diulwewa village by the end of 2019 creating accessibility to safe drinking water for 350 Families including this special family. As per the concept of the project, “Water Committee” has to allocate considerable amount (at least Rs.10,000) from the monthly profit of water project to support for CKDu affected families in Diulwewa village. Dinapal’s family has been selected to provide monthly allowance for their medical treatments & committee has decided to initially provide Rs. 500/- per month, 2021 onwards.

Water brings happiness

It is universally accepted that safe drinking water is a basic human need & now a days considered as a human right. However, nearly 115 families living at Fessifern division of Agarakanda estate were facing many difficulties in fulfilling this basic need. There was only one distribution post available for 12 line rooms in the common water scheme. They had to wait in long lines for their chance to fetch water causing late attendance to school & work. As a result, people had made their own arrangements to meet the water demand. They were using different sources scattered around the area to fulfil their water requirement. However, none of those sources were confirmed as safe for drinking purpose. Those sources got muddy during the rainy season & could have been contaminated with chemicals used in tea fields. In the absence of any type of filtration mechanism, those consumers were susceptible for water borne diseases, their children had stomach pains specially during rainy seasons. Moreover, during the dry season these sources got dried off causing more problems.

In addressing these issues & securing the right to have access to safe drinking water of this community BDS partnered with World Vision Lanka. A drinking water project worth nearly LKR 8 million was established in the Fessifern division to cater 115 families deprived of access to safe drinking water. The project ensured individual connections to all the families. As a result, people in Fessifern division of Agarakanda estate are now enjoying uninterrupted access to safe drinking water throughout the year.

Regulating for better production

Kovilady is a farming village located in Thambalagamuwa divisional secretariat. There are nearly 150 farmers engaged in paddy cultivation during both Yala & Maha seasons. These farmers had been facing difficulties in irrigating their paddy lands during both seasons for a long time. The main irrigation channel feeding nearly 200 acres of paddy fields was not functioning properly. Due to the absence of proper structures installed along the channel, the farmers were unable to regulate water flow & divert into the fields efficiently. As a result, these farmers faced difficulties during both cultivation seasons. Yala season caused them a loss of water without running in to their fields while Maha season caused flooding the fields during heavy rains. Attempts made by farmers themselves using sand bags to regulate water flow wasn’t a sustainable remedy as they had to re-mantle the structure very often.
Under these circumstances farmers reached BDS seeking for help. BDS took the matter to the department of irrigation in search for a feasible technical solution. Following the recommendations BDS constructed a gated regulator in the irrigation channel. The construction cost BDS LKR 403,200 while farmer organization also contributed LKR 183,800 of their funds. Since the establishment of the new structure farmers have been able to cultivate whole area which is about 50 acres more compared to past. And they also claim to a have increased their productivity as the fields are adequately irrigated even during the dry periods.

Rays of Hope

Anthony Palaniyamma waits outside alone with the hope of expecting a visit by BDS Officer to see how she is doing. 66 years old at present, she lives in a tin-sheet and thatched makeshift house at Kaively of Puthukudiyiruppu DS Division. Her painful past holds the memory of losing her husband and two of her children during the war in 2009. Her other two daughters are married and living in different districts, forcing Palaniyamma to live alone without any means. She is unable to involve in any income generation activity due to her severe leg pain and fragile body condition.
Her survival was basically depending on the government’s PAMA allowance of Rs 250 along with some on and off support from neighbours. Unfortunately, these supports could not meet her living expenses including medical requirements. Having identified her desperate situation through the Grama Niladari of the village, BDS has started supporting her with the monthly allowance of Rs 1,000, in order to make her able to meet at least her basic expenses.
Palaniyamma is happy to see the rays of hope on her autumn days thanks to the continuous financial support provided by BDS. She is taking care of herself and happy that she has mean for her meals without depending on others.

A Steady Income from Palmyra Products

Palmyra is widely available local resource in Batticaloa district. Palmyra Development Board (PDB) Batticaloa is the main government institution plays the most important role in converting it into economic value to enhance the economy of the district. They train interested individuals on Palmyra handcrafts in their villages and support them to market their products in a sustainable manner. So far, they have nearly 800 active producers throughout the district but the demand has been so higher than the products supplied to the market. According to the District Manager of PDB, they could only supply 15% – 20% of the total demand every month.
Kadukkamunai is one of the Grama Niladhari divisions in Manmunai Southwest DS Division. The GN and the neighbour villages are enriched with Palmyra trees. DS Office and PDB together trained a group of 31 women in Kadukkamunai on Palmyra handicrafts under Government’s “Grama Shakthi” project. They also built a new building to carry out their production activities too.
However, the producer group found difficulty to carry out their production on regularly basis due to Lack of capital. Although their payment was ensured by PDB, they were not paid on regular or fixed intervals. Since the payment got long delays, the producers had difficulty to find capital fund to buy required raw materials.
Since there is a huge demand for quality Palmyra products and producers can earn a substantial income, BDS created a revolving capital of LKR 81,000 and another LKR 7,500 to purchase much needed tools after the discussion had with the producer group. This has enabled smooth production flow and a steady income for the producers. Within a short period of time the producers were able to increase their income by additionally LKR 2000 per month. The industrial Development Officer and PDB officers are now directly monitoring production progress and requested to extend such support to the other producer groups too.

Rasitha has assisted to cultivate her home garden

Nirmalaranjan Rasitha living in Kaluwanchikudy was a seamstress in profession, married to a carpenter. Rasitha being a long-term client of BMIC was able to obtain a loan, and purchase a sewing machine to develop her business. It administered as the main source of income for the family. As Rasitha’s children were still schooling, she and her spouse had the responsibility of managing their living expenses, including the educational expenses of the three children. Due to the unfamiliar conditions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic that was prevailing in the country with extended lockdowns, they stumbled to survive as she was a piece rated worker. They were hit hard by the pandemic and found no way to mitigate the crisis.
Descrying the vulnerability of Rasitha’s family, BDS aided Rasitha with 30 plants of spine gourd to dilate the income and to cover the cost of living. With the cultivation in their home garden, they were able to bore a yield of 10-15 kilograms per month of spine gourd and sell them in the local market for LKR 300 per kilogram. On occasions the only meal for the entire family was spine gourd curry and a rice. She also expected to expand the cultivation further, as a sustainable approach to avoid any unpredicted crisis that may occur in the future.
BDS being the continuous pillar of support for Rasitha and her family, was able to sooth the monumental tragedy of COVID-19 and help them achieve a tranquil life.

From Paddy Fields to Engineering Faculty

Rasaratnam Sanjith hails from the picturesque village of Kanukkerny West situated in the Mullaitivu district. They are a family of four engaged in paddy and vegetable cultivation. His elder brother was a final year undergraduate in the Engineering Faculty at the South Eastern University of Sri Lanka.
Life was always challenging for them as they were severely affected by separatist war. After starting their life again after the war which ended in 2009, the family is dependent on the monthly income which was Rs 25,000 earned through paddy and vegetable cultivation, including the Samurdhi allowance they receive of Rs 2,000. His parents were committed in supporting their children with hope that they would find success in their lives, so their education was never neglected even through all their hardships.
Sanjith studied at Vidyananda College, Mulliyawalai, Mullaitivu district and got through his G. C. E. (O/L) Examinations in 2016 with flying colors obtaining 8A’s and 1C. His determination to continue with his Advanced Level studies in the Math Stream was challenged due to financial constraints as his brother was also pursuing his higher education simultaneously, and the father’s income was not just enough to support both children.
Berendina came to know about the financial challenges faced by the young talent, Sanjith and undertook him as one of the students of the Mullaitivu District to receive the Bright Students Scholarships fund. Sanjith received a monthly allowance of Rs. 1,500 which supported him to pay for his extra classes for his Advanced Level education. Berendina also provided him with mentoring and career guidance so that he would be able to pursue on achieving his dreams. This support motivated Sanjith to put aside all the financial shortcomings and concentrate strongly on his studies. His hard work achieved a fine outcome at the G. C. E. (A/L) examinations held in 2019, as he became the District first at the examination obtaining 3A’s in the Math stream, bringing glory and fame to his school and to his village.
After securing a slot at the Engineering faculty of University of Moratuwa to continue his university studies, Sanjith happily stated with gratitude “I wasn’t too sure to whether study my A/L examination in the Math stream because of my family conditions. But thanks to Berendina, I was able to continue my studies in my desired stream” said Sanjith, who shot to fame in his district after his success in the examination and presently he is conducting extra classes for students. He further states, “Berendina shaped up my future and provided me with timely support to realize my ambition of becoming a future Engineer.”

Employment creates hope to lives

Thangaraj Salath lived in Kelaniwatta village with her mother, father and sister. Her sister was working in the apparel trade as a machine operator and her father was a driver. Her disability was not a challenge to her with all the love she received from her family. But an unfortunate incident completely changed her life as she was impelled to play the role of the care taker of her family.
In 2016, Her father was found demised. With unexpected incident her sister’s mental health began to degrade causing her to lose her job. With the cease of both their income sources, the sister’s medical treatments became an additional burden to them.
Initially, they were fortunate to receive assistance from relations, but it was limited to a few months. Then after, Salath had to take a decision to start earning for her family, but as her disability was barrier it was difficult to find a job and was rejected from most.
In the meantime, she came to hear about the Yatiyanthota Multi Industrial Cooperative Society (YMICS), where she took the initiative to approach the office at Yatiyanthota to find a suitable employment opportunity. But, although she was 36 years old with no experience on a job also, the YMICS management decided to offer a job opportunity considering her situation. She was recruited as production helper of harness production center in 2016 and she is currently passing the fourth year of her career life with YMICS.
Currently, she earns around 17,000/- per month and she has been able to manage the living expenses of their family including the sister’s medical expenses utilizing her salary.

Families in Waltrim Estate Water Project Benefited with a Water Scheme

Safe water is an essential prerequisite for better health and socio-economic development. As water becomes more valuable and scarcity increases, conflict, death, and disease are by-products of water and its influence. In less fortunate countries, the battle is not just for water, but for safe and clean water, which is truly a matter of life and death. In the Nuwara Eliya district consisting of seven divisions with a total population of 4825 lies the Waltrim Estate. Water has been a major crisis to these plantation communities, as they either consumed water which was contaminated or the supply of water was inadequate. The plantation community faced snags in the consumption of safe drinking water and for their regular domestic usage. The existing water systems had leakages in the distribution and the water which was consumed for the drinking carried impurities and they had to reach the springs to get the water. Community of the Conon Division in Waltrim Estate faced struggles to manage their routine with the limited supply of water.
BDS, addressing the issues faced by the community of Conon Division at Waltrim Estate, renovated the existing water system which was worth of Rs 3.7 million, partnering with World Vision Lanka to cater to 90 families and forecasting 466 families by the year 2039. With the successful implementation of the renovation, the community now experience smooth flow of water supply to manage their domestic usage and as safe drinking water. They currently face minor health issues compared to the water consumption in their recent past.