Support to build Entrepreneurship Facilitation Center in A.P for 500 survivors of Trafficking & Sex workers livelihoods

The devastating flash flood in Budameru Rivulet on Saturday night (August 31) paralysed life in more than half of Vijayawada Town (Andhra Pradesh- India) and over 2.7 lakh people were stranded in the marooned houses. Death toll mounts to 64, expected to rise further. As several people remain missing, authorities have advised families to check for bodies at the mortuary in the Vijayawada Government General Hospital.

Even after four days, normalcy is yet to be restored. Budameru is a major drain has been flooding the city every rainy season earning the sobriquet ‘Sorrow of Vijayawada’. The discharge capacity of this major drain is 11,000 cusecs of water. To control the floods, it joins Krishna River upstream of the Prakasam Barrage in Vijayawada City through Budameru Diversion Canal (BDC). However, the discharge capacity of BDC is very low and its modernisation was never done. To release water into Krishna River from Budameru, the water levels of the Krishna River should be less than 12 feet, otherwise, the flood water will be pushed back with the same intensity as of the river water.

Since September 1, under the impact of the low-pressure in the Bay of Bengal, there were heavy rains in the upper reaches of the NTR and Krishna districts of Andhra Pradesh During 24 hours on 1st Sep 2024, there has been a record rainfall upstream of Prakasam Barrage leading to heavy inflows into various streams joining Budameru as well as the Krishna River that in turn fall up on the many slums in Vijayawada city which has been immersed almost all the households in to flood waters. Lakhs of people have remained helpless losing all the household material including basic amenities like drinking water and food. With each passing day, deaths caused by the floods and rains  have been rising for 3 days. Flood victims in Vijayawada have witnessed floating bodies in several areas over the past four days. As per government statistics on Wednesday, the total toll stands at 54. As several people remain missing, authorities have advised families to check for bodies at the mortuary in the Vijayawada Government General Hospital.  It is expected to surge once the floodwater recedes completely. As several people remain missing, authorities have advised families to check for bodies at the mortuary in the Vijayawada Government General Hospital. Subsequently, scores of people arrived at the GGH on Wednesday. However, identifying the deceased has become a daunting task as the bodies have been soaked in floodwaters for four days.

As per HELP’s study the people from the vulnerable community have taken loans with high interest (15-18%) per month where they do not had any plan of repayment and which in turn increase the risk of debt bondage. To overcome from this situation sustainable alternative livelihood generation is need of the hour. It is challenge for these communities to avail the knowledge & information of accessing the facilities. A barrier of access between the community and the Government centers is quite prevalent and not available in the location.

According to the State AIDS Control Society's 2020 figures, Andhra Pradesh has 130,000 victims of human trafficking and sex workers, with 209,000 people depending on them. In Vijayawada and its surrounding areas alone, there are 16,000 sex workers, and 36,000 people rely on them. Currently, these sex workers and victims of human trafficking residing in and around Vijayawada are suffering from hunger and distress due to the floods.

Society for Help Entire Lower & rural people - HELP  (https://helpap.org/) is working for the socio-economic empowerment of Sex workers and Survivors of human trafficking consists of more than 500 rescued survivors of human trafficking and victims of Commercial Sexual Exploitation (Sex Workers) in the three district of Andhra Pradesh including Prakasam, Guntur and Krishna (Vijayawada slums and adjacent villages where more than 300 Sex workers and Survivors of human trafficking are living). There are nearly 350 families of Sex workers and Survivors of human trafficking have been rigorously affected by the flashfloods in and around VIJAYAWADA city. Our Sex workers and Survivors of human trafficking affected by Vijayawada floods had to grapple for food and water to sustain themselves as they battled the wrath of rain for continuous three days. Even as government relief operations continued to reach the victims, the loss of lives and properties in combat with the wrath of water left a deep mark on the victims. However, humanity keeps afloat the flood-ravaged colonies of Vijayawada but not meeting the needs.

HELP Response:  

As of now, HELP and survivors collective VIMUKTHI teams are able to reach out 168 rescued survivors of human trafficking and victims of Commercial Sexual Exploitation (Sex Workers) for last 10 days and supplied food packets, drinking water, milk and nutritious biscuits to their children in Vijayawada city and surrounding villages. As a next step, HELP is promptly planned to reaching out to all the affected families of Sex workers and Survivors of human trafficking in and around Vijayawada to survive and rebuild their lives by providing relief services. While enhancing emergency supplies for basic needs including food, provisions, drinking water, and medicine, planned further to support for longer-term recovery assistance to help them rebuild their lives through facilitating trauma counseling services and alternative livelihood support.

Join your hands to HELP’s flood relief efforts by donating to rebuild the lives of Sex workers and Survivors of human trafficking, their families and their children. Your donation will go a long way in providing the following relief:

1.   Healthcare Relief – Health Check-ups and provision of free medicines for people suffering from communicable and non-communicable diseases and spraying of disinfectant in waterlogged area.

2.   Livelihood: Medium and longer term’s recovery work such as livelihood recovery, rehabilitation of damaged houses and public facilities, psychosocial support to floods affected communities 

3.   Working with small businesses run by micro-entrepreneurs who suffer the most and cannot sustain their livelihood due to the losses incurred.

4.   Continuous disaster preparedness work 

Linkage building  -

• Marketing & linkage for tie-up with business agencies, local market, e-marketing & government schemes.
• Awareness generation and knowledge build up on disaster preparedness and Government welfare & security scheme.

Educational support

• Promote Education through non-formal education centre, after school and leadership development of children and adults.

Ensuring access to services for at-risk children, migrant population, young women and survivors of human trafficking as a resource hub for their knowledge building, psycho-social, counseling, advisory, resilience building and livelihood.

• 500 families will be able to decide on livelihood options and start their businesses, entrepreneurships using local resources.
• Enabling community self sustenance and preparedness for taking action during disaster.
• 70 percent the participants will be linked with Government schemes.
• 100% of the Beneficiaries will get the scope of Business expansion, scale up and diversification.
• 60% of the trainees get the scope of tie up with small and big business agencies and expand their start ups.
• Adult education will be promoted within 5000 community people.
• 1500 children get access to technical, vocational courses depending on their individual abilities.
• Need of education to all will be promoted and immediate learning will be facilitated in the community.