About AID

Evolution of AID :

Alternative for India Development (AID) is a national level NGO that emerged as an umbrella organisation for several small community organisations. AID was founded in the year 1982 by a group of Chatra Yuva Sangarsh Vahini ( Student Youth StruggleForce)

Further while working at the micro level, they faced threats and intimidation's from the local landlords, politicians and corrupt government officials. Further outside social moral and legal support to such groups were not forthcoming which frustrated many committed organisers. In the context of these factors and also to give an institutional, financial and social and technical support to the movement groups and also to propel the movement on the planned and systamatised basis the umbrella institution Alternative for India Development ( AID) was established.( SYSF) activists and social scientists who felt the need to have a registered institute to provide support and technical assistance to the volunteers and many other non-registered peoples organisations working for total transformation.

SYSF - the youth movement emerged in 1974 first in Bihar and later in other parts of India - under the banner of Chatra Yuva Sangarsh Vahini to fight against injustice, corruption, illiteracy, poverty, exploitation, unemployment and other social economic evils. The uniqueness of this movement is that functioned completely free of ties with any established political parties. It was strictly interested in spreading the message of peaceful total revolution to create an equalitarian and communitarian socio-economic order. It was committed to creating a mass movement for overhauling the social system to free the society from the grip of mass problems. Its ideological basis is grass roots democracy consisting of non-violence, decentralisation, egalitarianism and anti-casteism.

The volunteers of the movement were working without compensation or remuneration. They depended on the poor people for food and worked with them to fulfill their mission. They did commendable job in organising, mobilising and educating them to fight against the injustice meted out to them and their community. But the limiting factors were that they were neither trained nor having a broader analysis of the society with a national perspective. Many failed to link micro level realities to macro situation.

Vission, Mission & Goal :

The vision of AID is to achieve total transformation to create a society without poverty, illiteracy, sickness, child labor and gender and social inequality and oppression among tribal, dalit and other marginal communities.

The mission of AID is facilitating total empowerment of the poor and to work for an alternative development of the people, by the people and with the people towards achieving basic education, health and livelihood improvement for all with gender and social equality. AID has the following key missions.

Education for all and child labour elimination mission

Health for all mission

Livelihood improvement mission

Gender, tribal and dalit empowerment mission

The goal of AID is to create self-governing communities and their organisations for poverty reduction through achieving basic rights, basic education, health security, gender and social equality and livelihood security for the poor.

AID's Approach To Community Works :

AID works closely with the local community & the form of support given will vary depending on the needs of the community & its priorities.

It strongly believes in the following approach :

• Go to the people
• Live among the people
• Learn from the people
• Plan with the people
• Work with the people
• Start with what the people know
• Build on what the people know
• Teach by showing
• Learn by doing
• Not a showcase but a system pattern
• Not odds and ends but a system
• Not Piecemeal but Integrated approach
• Not to Conform but to Transform
• Not Relief but Release

AID is Working with the community based on the key mission such as:

• Education
• Health
• Women empowerment
• Livelihood
• Dalits and tribes empowerment

All the activities and projects are centering around these 5 core strategic themes

Over A Million Prople :

AID initially started its works in the states of Bihar which was then bifurcated into Jharkhand and the southern state of T.Nadu. Now it has expanded its activities covering the states of Jharkhand, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh,Chattisgarh, Orissa and T.Nadu.

It works in association with the community based organizations of youth, women and community organizations. It directly implements the programs with establishment of its own project offices and its own team of locally trained personnel.

It works in unison with other small credible NGOs to build the capacities of small NGOs and CBOs. AID now covers 3025 villages and a population of 1,636,350.

Commitment Of AID :

For strategic reasons the headquarters and central training center is based in Chennai. Its Zonal offices and training centers are located in Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Garwah and Palamau in Jharkhand state. It has 24 project offices all over its geographical zones of work.

The functioning of the organization is decentralized. The HO is basically responsible for Fund raising, Liason ,Operational planning, Financial management, Capacity building of key staff, research , documentation, Publication and Monitoring of the activities covering all the geographical zones.

It also directly implements the programs in Salem, Dharmapuri, Kancheepuram and Thiruvellore with respective project offices in those districts.

In the wake of Tsunami it has established offices in the worst hit tsunami districts of Cuddalore and Nagapattinam . Rebuilding the lives of the tsunami affected are in full swing in the region.

The state office of Jharkhand is located at Ranchi. This office is responsible to monitor the programs operating in the zones of Ranchi and Giridih district. It is also directly implementing programs. Local fund raising, networking, publications ,IT network and updating the organization websites . It also has a training center where time to time workshops, seminars and inhouse capacity building exercises takes place.

A new audio-video recording studio has been set up in Ranchi for enhance the activities of AID in this sector.

The zonal office located at Lesliganj in Palamau district implements and monitors the programs in the districts of Palamau and Lathehar.

The zonal office located at Meral in Garwah district implements and monitors the programs in the district of Garwah and the cross border regions of states of Uttar Pradesh ,Bihar and Chattisgarh .

The Zonal office located at Jamshedpur implements and monitors programs in the districts of East and West Singhbhum of Jharkhand.

The Interstate Zonal office located at Baharagora implements and monitors programs in the Orrisa and West Bengal State.

The Zonal office located at Bisoi implements and monitors programs in the districts of Mayubanj district of Orrisa .

Legal Status Of AID :

Alternative For India Development is registered under the Trust Act–333/IV

Alternative For India Development under Foreign Contributions Regulation Act FCRA No.075900456

Exempted under section 80-G of the Income Tax Act.