Hon CM of Goa Dr Pramod Sawant on the eve of The New Year ie 30.12.24 , signs a file which he had promised to do & with this signature , our food allowance increases from Rs 33 per day to Rs 200 per day for poor goan homeless women with mental disabilities in our shelter homes.

On behalf of STREET PROVIDENCE, I wish each and everyone a Very Happy and Blessed New Year 2025.

2024 has been a fantastic year at our NGO both at Street Providence shelter homes & Food Bank Sangolda. 

Our struggle started exactly a year back at WCD over in December 2023 :

We took :

We even sat in the WCD office one night with a strong police force from Panjim Police station sent by my good friend PI Vijay Chondankar.

But the fight was not in Vain & I did not give up.

During this struggle , between me and the Deputy Director , many Angels came to the rescue and 90% of them were from The Government of Goa.

I am publicily thanking all those who stood with us for a worthy cause :

☆ 4. Mr Arun Kumar Mishra IAS, Secretary WCD for doing his best to sign and move ASAP all and any file connected to the our NGO regarding shelter homes for women on the streets.

Not once, not twice but many times.

☆ 6. Disability Commissioner, Sir Guru Pawaskar who listened to all my unending complaints and threats and worked towards getting the actual ground reality issues of disabilities on the streets to the ears of The Hon CM of Goa.

☆ 7. Add Finance Secretary, Mr Vikas Gaunker, the most important link who has always understood the problems faced by our NGO towards caring for poor goan ladies on the streets with mental disabilities.

Without his signature on any file – it's next to impossible to get any grants from the Government.

☆ 8. Dysp Tushar Vernekar incharge of Hon CM security for giving us appointments as and when we were in a need to raise our grievances infront of The Hon CM and being a link to get the signature on the file even though the file in the CMO.

In the last 6 years of taking grants from WCD, I  am yet to be invited by the Hon WCD Minister neither have I met personally the Hon WCD Minister.

A big thanks to Mr Vishwajeet Rane, 

WCD Minister for all the support given in the  last 6 years towards our NGO from his department ie WOMEN & CHILD ( WCD ) 

Finally to Dr Pramod Sawant who has been a true brother / son to the homeless goan ladies with mental disabilities in our homes.

JAN 24 funds released & MAR 24 funds released which was due for 22-23 & 23-24.

July 24 funds released in advance for 24-25 which usually was not happening for the last 6 years of we getting grants from WCD. 

July 24 First tranche released = 30%

Sept 24 second tranche released for 24-25 = 30%

So total we got 60% 

30.12.24 file signed and that is another 30%.

That too in the middle of the year to get approval is not an easy task. But Hon CM kept his word.

We still have another 10% to get which the Dept has to move quickly the file as Hon CM,  I am confident will sign that too.

My New Year Resolution :

Help another 60 goan homeless ladies with mental disabilities to get off the streets and into our homes.

Hon CM has helped us get connected through the above Minister , Secretaries & Other officers & it's better to sit on a table and raise the point rather than shout on a street.

Last I thank our COOL & CALM volunteer for all occasions and all problems, former DIG of Goa Police, Sir Bosco George retd IPS for all the networking , co ordinating, follow up on my behalf in the Secretariat.

Sir Bosco has taught me and guided me how to deal with the right people in the Government.

Sir Bosco is our fire fighting man between Street Providence and The Government of Goa regarding poor goan homeless abandoned women on the streets with mental disabilities.

We are committed to doubling our intake from the current sanctioned grant for 60 ladies to 120 ladies as no goan lady should be on the streets of Goa.

Overall The Government of Goa has not been troubling our work either at The Food Bank or at the Shelter homes.

HARD WORK PAYS & PAYS THOSE WHO ARE COMMITTED INSPITE OF THE OBSTACLES.

We are committed to ending Hunger and homelessness in Goa in 2025.

All communications strictly through whatsapp messages only on 8380097564.

Www.streetprovidencegoa.com 

God bless you all

FOOD BANK SANGOLDA GOA from 1.1.2025,  has been providing A BIRTHDAY CAKE to any senior citizen with disabilities, right to the door step free of cost, only in GOA.

This project is from 1st Jan 25 to 31st Dec 25.

We have identified 2000 goans who are senior citizens, registered with the Government, having a disability Certificate/ UDID Card and suffering from disabilities and on their birthday, we are providing a Free cake or a basket of fruits or Vegetables.

We employed on a Salary basis , a middle aged goan girl who is herself totally physical challenged without hands and legs and yet able to use a phone and a laptop who does the tele calling for the project from her home.

We have confirmed data of these senior citizens with disabilities and their birthdays.

The girl calls these senior citizens, introduces herself and our NGO.

Then the girl inquires whether their birthday is on the day the data is showing & asks if they would like to receive a Free birthday cake.

Some say yes while others say no.

Then the girl inquires of they would like Fruits or vegetables.

Once the girl gets the details with address, Landmark and time of delivery , she posts on a WhatsApp group where our volunteers are present.

We have volunteers right from :

We are covering all 12 takukas in Goa.

Imagine the planning, coordination &  implementation only through whatsapp messages.

All this took alot of time & effort.

Ultimately all the team members feel that joy and satisfaction when they visit a senior citizen with disabilities on their birthday.

You must be wondering who is footing the bills & why is a small NGO like us doing this ?

Reaching out for the full year, to over 2000 senior citizens with disabilities for their birthday is going to cost us Rs 10 lacs to Rs 12 lacs.

We @ Street Providence are doing this as no one understands ” disabilities ” better than us as we prefer to get the work done rather than see them just left alone and suffering.

In our shelter homes last 7 years, we celebrate each resident birthday with a nice cake and good food and that's when I decided to go beyond our homes.

We all including me celebrate our birthdays and our children / spouse / parents birthday where thousands if not lacs are spent.

Last one month we have seen really poor goans with disabilites who no one might or rather there is no one to celebrate their birthday.

Each birthday gift is between Rs 400 to Rs 600.

Depending on the location.

So next time you are celebrating your birthday or of a family members birthday, do think about our poor senior citizen Goans who through your donations also feel that joy and happiness as we reach them at their door step.

This is where and how we intend to raise the resources.

But 1st we decided to put in our funds, set up the project, sort out the likely issues, get the team members into the system and now after 1 month make this project public through our social media post.

Infact in the coming week there will be a press conference with all our team members connected to this project along with The Social Welfare Minister and The Social Welfare Director who has been very supportive of this innitative.

One of its kind across India.

Well this entire month of January 2025 I took a complete break from all platforms of social media to recharge my body and that's the reason you did not receive any whatsapp updates on our work at our NGO.

We ended the year 2024 on a very high note, thanks to our benefactors, staff and volunteers who have supported our mission of ” ending Hunger and homelessness “.

Beginning of 2025 right from 1st Jan we :

We have planned another 4 projects which will be implemented in the month of February / March namely :

For those who missed my posts and wondered what happened, I apologize for not informing earlier that I was on a recharge break.

Our donations took a big dive as many assumptions arise in minds of benefactors when they did not receive any posts for over a month.

It's the 1st time in 7 years, that there was no posts about our work for a full month.

We are active , working and doing work as always so please do get in touch with me thru WhatsApp messages on 8380087564.

Www.streetprovidencegoa.com 

God bless you all

This post is about 2 food bank projects :

☆ 1. FOOD BANK SANGOLDA GOA collects 55000 kgs or 55 tonnes of good Cooked food in the last 10 months from 9 factories at Verna , which were surely going to the landfills if not for a department called FACTORIES & BOILERS. 

Details attached in a poster.

Both these officials studied and understood the concept last year Jan 2024 and results are here for all to see as they implemented the project from 1.4.24 with these 9 companies.

Yes our mission of ending Hunger and homelessness is about shelter homes & Food Banks.

It's called INTEGRATION for those who understand.

Without food it's impossible to feed the poor and run shelter homes.

We have 9 big factories whose details are in the poster attached who were part of a program to save Food from reaching the landfills and channelised to feed the poor and needy through our Food bank.

Of course there is a small monthly charge per factory which enables us to move the food daily.

6 factories faithfully pay us the agreed amount.

● 1 factory we don't take any charges as they have been a good CSR partner for many years.

● 1 factory made us tie up with their canteen contractor who assured us in front of the officials of Factories and Boilers to pay us the assured monthly charges but for the last 10 months is refusing to honour the commitment & purposely before our truck reaches the kitchen, sends the food to the dumps that's why if you minutely look at the chart the food from a 1000 kgs a month has reached 70 kgs a month.

● 1 company assured us a product which they manufacture in their place, in place of their monthly charges, which we use in our homes, we agreed, gave for 4 months the particular product but now refuses.

Says we can't honour the commitment and  wrote a mail saying ” take the food if you want or we will throw it out “. And mind you it's 1000 kgs a month food wasted.

It's like they are giving away their food to beggars and one of those beggars they assume is me based on the attitude of this company officials.

Still we collect the food free of cost.

If everyone expects a food bank to collect food free of cost then who will bear the expenses ?

That's why we are having wet waste issues and The Hon Chief Minister of Goa is not doing his part to look into our model which is already TRIED , TESTED , IMPLEMENTED & WORKING.

There are 2 other departments which the Hon CM of Goa should put into this project :

Labour Department &

Environment Department. 

I have handed over a presentation to The office of The Labour Minister few months back, no reply.

Why labour Department?

Because all factories use canteen contractors and these contractors are registered with the labour Department.

Just like Factories and Boilers Dept have instructed these 9 factories to give away their extra canteen cooked food to the Food bank in the same way , the labour Minister through his Labour Secretary & Labour Director should enforce all canteen contractors to give away their extra cooked food to the food bank.

The Labour Minister is also the Minister for Solid waste management. 

It's a ideal way for the Labour Minister to reduce the wet waste but not sure if The Minister cares for my letter.

Last week Secretary Of Factories and Boilers took a review meeting in the Secretariat which was attended by The Chief Inspector of Factories and Boilers and almost 15 companies which included the 9 existing Factories and 6 more additional Factories who have understood the need to join this program of saving good Cooked canteen food going waste.

Factories & boilers dept has set a target of 8 tonnes a month to collect for the year 25 -26 from these 16 Factories.

Currently we are collecting 5 tonnes a month from these 9 Factories.

Overall all, Factories in Goa throw out cooked food of this volume :

5000 kgs or 5 tonnes a day or 

150000 kgs or 150 tonnes a month.

And we in Goa keep shouting wet waste.

If Factories and Boilers Dept Government of Goa can take a lead to reduce wet waste then WHY can't Environment Dept and Labour Department not join in .

Hon CM of Goa you need to look into this burning issue of Wet waste and the solution is in front of you.

☆ 2. From 1st January 2025 , food bank is providing Free cake / basket of fruits / bag of fresh  vegetables to 2000 GOANs senior citizens suffering from disabilities with a UDID Card and registered with the Government of Goa, on their birthday right at their door step.

Entire month of January 2025 our team visited 60 homes of goans with disabilites on their birthday.  A small video attached with this post.

The proceeds that we get by collecting factory food goes partly into funding the free cake project for senior citizens with disabilities, along with potential donnors who are also sponsoring Cake for the project.

All communications strictly through whatsapp messages only on 8380097564

Www.streetprovidencegoa.com 

God bless you all 

Hon Social Welfare Minister of Goa ,

Shri Subhash Phal Dessai & along with our Volunteer Mr Akash Pednekar distributed new blankets and new monkey caps in a Government primary school @ NERTAVALI , which is an interior part of SANGUEM.

STREET PROVIDENCE GOA this week also reached out to a goan widow & her family in mungul Margao & provided financial aid to pay the labourers towards repairing the house roof work as the bills were way beyond the quoted amount & desperation had set in how to foot the bills.

Well on Wednesday 5th February 2025, our NGO donated new blankets & monkey caps to 260+ students at a Government school in one of the remote areas of Sanguem ie at NETRAVALI.

It's not that the parents can't afford but as an outreach program and to beat the chill which Goa Is facing this February we undertook this warm drive.

Hon Social Welfare Minister took time out of his busy schedule and distributed these warm items to the students.

Also present was Our long term volunteer incharge of Sanguem, Quepem & Curchorem constituencies Mr Akash Pednekar , who was responsible in planning and implemented this new blankets and monkey cap distribution at this school in Netravali Sanguem.

Last week 29thJan 2025 there was a video on social media where by an elderly goan widow and her daughter in Mungul Margao were in a bit of a spot as they had opened their wooden roof of their home and to their surprise the roof was eaten up beyond their expectations by termites.

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/15umUoQZnS/ 

( This was the link asking for help )

The local church had arranged an amount which was handed over to them but once they opened the roof the work costs increased as more laborers were required to fix the roof.

Mr John Baptist our longest volunteer who is the incharge of Salcette Taluka , went to verify the details and suggested that this goan widow and her family should be helped ASAP.

5th February 2025, John Baptist on behalf of our NGO handed over the the envelope which covered 80% of the increased labour costs which brought cheer and smiles to this goan poor family.

( this was the link after we gave the help )

All projects in Salcette Taluka is handled by John Baptist on our behalf.

In both these programs, you will not see any faces either of me or my Trustees as we don't belive in personal publicity but rather we see that relief is provided to those who need relief.

Our volunteers need to be appreciated for they spend their time and energy representing us In most of the projects across Goa.

We have full time volunteers in all the CONSTITUENCIES of South Goa especially in 

the Talukas of Canacona, Sanguem, quepem, Salcette , Marmagoa, Dharbandora & Ponda.

Lots of poor goan families in need of Help and we are only focusing on reaching out to the poorest of the poor who are our goans across all sections of society.

You can always support our NGO in any way you are comfortable with.

All communications strictly through whatsapp messages only on 8380097564

Www.streetprovidencegoa.com 

God bless you all

OLYMPIC DREAMS from Street Providence Goa is aimed at encouraging talented Goan children who have the potential to reach the Olympics in the future with focus on individual sport.

One form of disabilities is too much of screen time which is slowly cropping up in young children.

Today children are more on screen time and it's time to get them to the ground and arena.

Today young girls are diagnosed with thyroid at early ages.

Young boys are turning mobile mania as too much of screen time.

Outdoor activities are slowly getting pushed away & sports is one way to get children to play , sweat , exercise and be refreshed both at studies and sporting activities.

Goa and Goans are hardly competing at International events especially OLYMPICS & it's time to revive our sporting legacy which once Goans shined in the past.

Children if tapped at a young age and spotted at a young age can be molded into future champions.

In 8 years from now or may be 12 years from now , we can try to get our Goans to compete at the Olympics – possible & achievable hence the project name – OLYMPIC DREAMS.

Where there is a will there is a way.

Everything starts with a seed and I myself have planted a small seed in my 9 year old son about 2 years back by introducing him to Archery.

Due to Sir ZITO who spotted my son talent at his school , today we see a dream of him competing at the OLYMPICS.

Many children either with disabilities or from rural parts of Goa or from economical poorer sections of society etc may be good in sports but no one to support their dream.

We through our project OLYMPIC DREAMS will step in.

If I can do it for my son , i can do it for other children who might not have the opportunity especially those :

We are looking to help children in individual sports only and we will attempt to provide :

Just like we have projects like :

So also we now have OLYMPIC DREAMS.

Street Providence has recently sponsored a school in rural south Goa for a HOCKEY PROJECT which is the only group sport we are undertaking :

◇ 1 full set of hockey goalkeeper uniform.

With a commitment to back this school up every month through a hockey project being launched on 24th Feb 25 through our Goan OLYMPIAN MrJoaquim Carvalho , former captain of our Indian Hockey team.

Sports and music are two activities which will play a big role in the coming years in avoiding children or teenagers from developing disabilities due to excess screen time. 

We require your support to make OLYMPIC DREAMS a reality for children who have the potential but not the resources.

Join us as we reach out to those deserving. GOAN children who can one day make GOA & GOANS proud by delivering on the international stage.

It's not much but it has to be on a monthly basis over a period of time.

All communications strictly through whatsapp messages only on 8380097564

Www.streetprovidencegoa.com 

God bless you all