Love in Action #3: Free Medical Camp Sparks Hope for the Poorest of the Poor

In a world where isolation and distance often means silence, Project Help India proves that impact travels far. Our free medical camp held simultaneously at the office in Kotdwara, may seem distant from our work in Ferozepur, Punjab, where our flood relief work was also happening - (roughly a distance of 500 kilometres by road and a 9-hour drive without breaks) but the truth is different: compassionate action when it is guided by purpose and community is powerful and to put it bluntly - it saves lives.

This month, we opened our doors to those in need, offering a no-cost medical camp that brought hope and relief to hundreds. Two exceptional doctors joined us to provide comprehensive care: Dr. Jatin Chauhan, a laparoscopy and general surgeon from Bijnor, and Dr. Preeti Chauhan, a specialist in mental and neuro health. Together, they delivered free treatment and distributed medicines for a wide range of conditions, including stomach, intestine, liver, gallbladder issues, nasal problems, mental health concerns, and Parkinson’s-related symptoms. We cannot thank Drs Chauhan enough - for your kindness and generosity in volunteering to help.

“We cannot afford expensive treatment”

The response from attendees was a powerful reminder of why we do this work. Many patients spoke of the financial barriers that prevent access to quality care—barriers that force families to choose between essential needs and medical treatment. The relief of receiving care, simply because it’s offered with no cost, was evident in their gratitude. “We cannot afford expensive treatment,” one elder said, underscoring the necessity of such camps for economically vulnerable communities. Their words affirmed the impact of our community based model: healthcare that meets people where they are, with dignity and generosity - provided by locals who implicitly understand the needs and concerns of the community they serve.

Beyond the immediate treatments, our pop-up clinic highlighted a broader truth: health equity requires both access and continuity. Our team distributed free medicines, offered advice on prevention, and connected patients with follow-up resources for ongoing care. For many, this was the first step toward a longer journey of wellness, providing interventions and guidance that otherwise would be financially unattainable.

We are grateful for the local media coverage that amplified this message, helping more people understand that powerful care can be delivered from a single, well-planned event, especially when the community comes together. The media coverage also raises the credibility and profile of ‘Project Help India’ as a highly trusted and respected Nongovernmental Organisation (NGO - a non-profit organisation, that operates independently from a Government and has humanitarian or development objectives).

The photos captured the faces of relief, resilience, and renewed hope, a visual reminder that care is a shared duty, not a solitary act.

What’s next? Our commitment is ongoing. We will monitor the health needs of our communities in both Punjab and Uttarakhand, seeking opportunities to provide preventive care, vaccinations, and chronic-disease management through future camps and partnerships with other local volunteers and NGOs. We invite supporters, partners, and volunteers to join us in turning accessibility into action -so no one is left behind because of cost, distance, or circumstance.

Key points at a glance

• Free medical camp organised by Project Help India at our office.

• 200 patients treated; free medicines distributed.

• Doctors: Dr. Jatin Chauhan (laparoscopy & general surgery) and Dr. Preeti Chauhan (mental & neuro specialist).

• Treatments covered stomach, intestine, liver, gallbladder, nasal, mental health, and Parkinson’s-related issues.

• Camp underscores the need for affordable care for economically weaker sections.

Thank you to everyone who believes that health is a universal right, not a privilege. Your support—whether through donations, a local community member volunteering, or spreading the word -keeps the flame of Love in Action alive across miles. If you’d like to help us extend these lifesaving services, please consider joining our next camp, sharing this story, or connecting us with potential partners and sponsors who share our commitment to health equity and humanitarian aid for marginalised and highly vulnerable people.

Love in Action #2: Relief Work in the Flood-Affected Areas of Punjab

In the wake of the devastating floods in Punjab, thousands of families face loss and disruption, their homes damaged, belongings gone, and daily life upturned. At Project Help India we believe that love in action is not a slogan but a practiced commitment. When needs are vast, every small, deliberate act adds up to something transformative for communities in crisis.

Emergency Food Relief When floods cut off access to food and clean water, our team moved quickly to the affected villages with essential food supplies. These food kits sustained hundreds of families who had little other nourishment. For many, the gesture meant their first, hopeful meal in days. As one mother in Ferozepur shared;

“We had nothing left — not even drinking water. When the team brought food, it felt like God had heard our cries.”

Medical Aid and Health Support

As floodwaters receded, health challenges emerged -skin infections, fevers, and waterborne diseases. We organised a free medical camp where over 200 people, including all of our students received check-ups and treatment, and essential medicines were distributed at no cost. Yet the need remains high, with stagnant water and sanitation concerns continuing to threaten communities. We are planning additional medical camps and hygiene kit distributions to prevent outbreaks and safeguard health.

Clothing Distribution

Many families lost everything, including basic clothing. Our volunteers reached out to women and children, distributing seasonal garments to restore dignity and provide comfort in these trying times. The kids loved receiving something new and they were very excited and grateful.

Mosquito Control and Disease Prevention

Standing water boosted mosquito populations, raising the risk of malaria and dengue. To combat this, we launched fogging and mosquito-control campaigns across multiple villages, protecting hundreds of families from preventable suffering.

Our Ongoing Mission

Recovery is just beginning. The affected families still need our collective support, for food, medicine, clothing, and disease prevention. To sustain progress, we will monitor ongoing needs with a focus on the children and families who attend our six Punjab Education Centres, tracking health and welfare daily through school attendance, and responding to needs as they arise.

If you’d like to join us in this enduring act of love in action, your support, large or small, can move us closer to a safer, healthier future for Punjab’s most vulnerable. Together, we can turn compassion into concrete relief, one act at a time …this is love in action! Thank you everyone for helping us, with a special shout out to the many Punjabi volunteers who helped us with the relief efforts …you are all inspiring!

Power in a Small Smile: Our Pop-Up Dental Clinic for Kotdwara’s Children

Smiles all round led by our awesome Director, Mr Amit Samuel.

When a community gathers with a shared purpose, even the smallest act can ripple outward, brightening futures. Project Help India answered a quiet, urgent need in Kotdwara: a pop-up dental clinic for the children who attend our Slum Education Centre. What began as a simple examination became a beacon of care, learning, and hope for families facing daily challenges - and the kids enjoyed the moment, even if some were nervous at first, especially for those who had never been to the dentist before.

A heartfelt thank you to Dr. Nikita Singh and her team, whose compassion and expertise turned a routine check into trust and care. They listened to each child, explained what they saw, and identified 12 children needing follow-up treatment. The plan now includes free follow-up appointments at Dr. Singh’s clinic, ensuring timely care to prevent pain and longer-term health issues.

This camp was about more than dental care. It’s a celebration of dignity, encouragement, and practical support that builds lifelong healthy habits. The team gifted notebooks, pencils, stationery, toothpaste, biscuits, fruits, and medicines - tools that empower learning, nourishment, and well-being.

The smiles you see in the photos were more than gratitude; they were a promise that we will not turn away from the vulnerable and that small acts can lay the groundwork for lasting change. This story shows that it really does take a community to care ...and a powerful demonstration of love in action.

How you can help now

• Support paediatric health initiatives with a donation to fund follow-up care, education, and supplies.

• Share this positive news story to raise awareness about some of the most vulnerable children on the planet.

• Partner with us: If your organisation is looking to sponsor community health projects, we’d love to explore collaboration that scales impact.

If earlier this year you didn't see our story about our Pop Up Medical Clinic you might like to check it out HERE.

With thanks for your interest, love and support. We could not do what we do without you.

A heartfelt thank you to Dr. Nikita Singh and her team for your generous support and help.

After the floods, now for the smell of it all!

The floodwaters may have redeeded, but the crisis for many of Punjab’s remote and isolated communities is far from over.

Since our relief work began, we’ve been delivering monthly essential supplies to those hardest hit. See YouTube News clip HERE.

Today, with hearts full of gratitude for your recent generosity, we share a new, urgent need to protect health and restore hope for families trying to rebuild.

A new and urgent health challenge has taken root: stagnant water is producing a foul and strong odour, and the unfortunate deaths of many animals have contaminated the environment. Now coupled with daily temperatures exceeding 35 degrees, these conditions have heightened the risk of outbreaks of waterborne and vector-borne diseases, threatening the well-being of families already struggling to move forward. In response, we’re launching two focused initiatives to safeguard communities and prevent a broader health crisis:

We are Organising Pop-Up Medical Camps

We will provide urgent, compassionate healthcare with on-site doctor consultations, essential medicines, simple diagnostics, and referrals for follow-up care. This helps with early detection and treatment, eases the burden on local clinics, and speeds recovery for the vulnerable who are unable who need it most, and who cannot afford medical expenses. Our target to do this - INR 1,00,000 ($2000AUD): Organising medical camps, including doctors’ fees, medicines, transportation, and related expenses.

We hope to conduct Fogging and Spraying Operations

If we raise the funds, we will prevent disease outbreaks by tackling mosquitoes and other vectors and by spraying and disinfecting affected areas. We will deploy fogging machines, apply disinfectants safely, and work with health authorities to maximise impact. We will help families feel safer as they return to their homes and livelihoods. Our target to do this - INR 50,000 ($1000AUD): Purchase of two fogging machines to reach affected areas efficiently.

Why your support matters

Every contribution directly fuels life-saving health interventions at a moment when timely care can mean the difference between a manageable setback, reduced exposure to both high risk infectious deadly diseases and a lifelong health burden. By funding medical camps and disease-control operations, you’re not just addressing immediate needs - we are helping to prevent outbreaks, protect families, especially children and the elderly, and restore dignity and hope to those who have lost so much, and who are particularly at risk due to malnutrition and poor immune resistance.

How you can help now

• Donate today to fund these two critical programs.

• Share this appeal with your networks to amplify impact.

• If you’re a business or a partner, perhaps you could sponsor one of the medical camps or a fogging session

Together, we can transform a challenging post-flood landscape into a pathway to health and resilience. Your generosity is a lifeline for families facing these dire circumstances.

Thank you for standing with us in this next phase of Love in Action. Please let me know directly if you are able to donate.

With love and thanks for your ongoing kindness, compassion, interest, and support.

This is what love in action looks like

This is what an awesome team looks like …our gratitude and thanks go to each and every one who volunteered to help. May God bless you all!

During the fear and devastation that followed a constant week of flooding, a simple truth shone through: when people respond with urgency, every act of love and compassion becomes a thread weaving us back into one powerful fabric of hope, comfort and a message that says ‘you are not alone’. Within 24 hours of our urgent appeal, we reached our fundraising goal -just over $2000ASU -and the momentum carried us forward. Within another 24 hours, we were able to send funds to our team to purchase essential ration packs. And in the next 24 hours, local volunteers and the team activated, pushing through obstructed roads, wading through receding waters, and delivering relief where it was most needed.

We borrowed a tractor to cross the swollen rivers and navigate the floodwaters and ensure the safe distribution of supplies to more than 50 needy but incredibly grateful families. The gratitude in their eyes, the thanks they voiced, and the quiet resilience of a community facing loss reminded us all why we come together: not to change the world overnight, but to change the lives of those who need us now.

As the waters continue to recede, we stay vigilant, aware that these communities, mostly subsistence farmers and daily wage earners, have lost income for months. We know from experience that serious health and hygiene risks impact communities after flooding, and we have already commenced our planning for how we can continue to help.

Your generosity this week demonstrates that relief can arrive quickly, and that hope can spread just as fast when we act as one. This is a wonderful example of a small charity (NGO) directing 100% of funds directly to the need, ensuring every dollar works where it matters most.

If you’re reading this, know that you are part of something enduring: a lived belief that we are all connected, that love grows when we move toward others in need, and that each of us becomes a better person because we choose to respond. We would elevate humanity worldwide if more of us embraced this truth and if more of us acted on it - making small sacrifices that have significant impact to those who are very much in need.

Our only request: please share this story with others.

Let it be a message of hope and impact, inspiring generosity and reminding everyone that love, once in motion, endures far longer than any challenge we face.

Each kit containing 10 kg of flour, 5 kg of rice, cooking oil, 1 kg of ghee, 3-4 kg of various pulses, sugar, tea leaves, dry milk, and spices like salt, chilli, turmeric. We've also included soap, toothbrush, toothpaste, and other essentials. Additionally, we've provided water bottles to each family.

A heartfelt message of thanks from our Punjab Director - Mr Saleem Masih

If you would like to donate to our next phase of help and provision, please click the DONATE tab at the top of this page

Urgent appeal from Punjab: Stand with families facing devastating floods

Today, I write to you with a heavy heart and an urgent plea on behalf of families affected by the floods in Punjab. The situation is worsening by the hour. Rain continues, with predictions for at least another week, and flood levels are rising across a vast expanse of land. We have grave fears for the health and wellbeing of the most vulnerable and marginalised people, including many of the children who rely on our Project Help India Education Centres.

The devastation has been overwhelming. Entire villages are submerged, homes have been destroyed, and families are left stranded with nothing but the clothes on their backs. In Village Gatti Rajo Ke, where one of our centres stands at the border, the situation is especially dire. People who once had safe homes are now forced to live by the roadside, exposed to rain and hardship, without food, clean drinking water, or shelter.

Our immediate concern is ensuring that the families connected to Project Help India through our Education Centres receive the help they need. This way the children who attend our centres will be assured that we are standing by them. We want you to know that we stand alongside these families, easing their suffering and misery at this difficult time.

You must see these images to believe the extent of the flooding…

Right now, 50 families are in desperate need. To bring them relief, we aim to provide each family with a ration kit worth ₹2,500, containing groceries, sanitary pads, bottled water, dried milk, and other essentials to sustain them through these critical days. The total required is ₹1,25,000 (approx. AUD 2,180).

If we reach our target quickly, we will mobilise immediate relief—food that fills stomachs, hygiene items that protect dignity, and essentials that shield families from further hardship. Your timely support can mean the difference between hunger and nourishment, despair and hope. Every contribution—big or small—will go directly toward saving lives and restoring dignity to those who have lost everything.

In moments like these, compassion becomes the strongest form of action. Please extend your hand of kindness and stand with us in bringing relief to these suffering families. If you can, donate today and share this appeal with friends, colleagues, and networks across the world.

Together, we can be the reason someone sleeps with food tonight and wakes up with hope tomorrow. Please make your tax deductible donation by using the DONATE button at the top of this page.

With gratitude,

Saleem Masih

Director Project Help India, Punjab

A Beautiful Lesson from the Hindu Faith: Celebrating Raksha Bandhan

Last week across India, people of the Hindu faith celebrated Raksha Bandhan — a joyful and deeply meaningful festival honouring the bond between brothers and sisters. Raksha Bandhan means ‘safety promise.’ On this day, sisters tie a colourful thread, called a rakhi, on their brothers’ wrists as a symbol that their brother will protect them in every circumstance and not let harm come their way. Brothers, in turn, often give gifts to their sisters as a gesture of love and appreciation. If separated by distance, sisters will send their rakhis by mail, a tradition that continues no matter where life takes them.

This festival is more than a ritual. It is a heartfelt reminder of the unbreakable love between siblings — a love that protects, nurtures, and endures.

At our Project Help India centres, we embraced this celebration with our own students. Children learned about the tradition and then created their own “safety promise” bands by hand. They tied them to their siblings or friends, making heartfelt promises to look out for and care for one another. The classrooms were filled with joy, laughter, and an unmistakable sense of love and family bonding. It was a very special day.

For me, this experience was a powerful reminder that, when we choose to be open, we can learn so much from faiths and cultures different to our own. These moments can deepen our respect and empathy for one another as we share this world together.

The lesson of Raksha Bandhan is simple yet profound: love protects, promises matter, and family, in whatever form it takes, is worth cherishing and defending. Let us take what we have learned from this beautiful tradition and use it as an opportunity to reach out to our own brothers and sisters. May we choose to resolve conflict, heal old wounds, live in gratitude and remember the importance of family and the bonds that keep us together.

The smiles on the children's faces demonstrate their pride and happiness in having this opportunity to celebrate their brothers and sisters. At Project Help India, we think it's beautiful!​

Powerful Impact: Noisy Learning, and the Sound of Joy

Students at our Centre at Village Kadarganj - a traditional Islamic Village. Here the houses are mostly built of bamboo with thatched roofs, walls and floor of the village houses are painted by a mixture of dirt, grass and cow manure. Here there are no indoor toilets, and no electricity connected to the grid.

If you've ever heard the laughter of children as they sing and dance, you’ll know that music does more than entertain. It inspires, unites, and heals. In our 13 Project Help India education centres, where resources are few and life in extreme poverty is harsh, music is one of the most powerful tools we have.

For many of the children in our slum and jungle communities, music is the first learning “technology” they experience. It’s through simple speakers, YouTube clips and the like, that they learn songs, build confidence, and come alive, performing in class and on stage during cultural events. It’s how they learn, celebrate, and importantly for kids, they laugh and have loads of fun. .

Five years ago, thanks to the generosity of Australian donors, we equipped all our centres with music and PA systems. These brought joy and new opportunities to literally thousands of children. But after years of constant use in tough conditions, most of these systems are now broken or unreliable. With Indian Independence Day celebrations approaching on August 10, our staff and students are desperate to bring the music back.

We need to purchase 8 new good-quality music systems, each costing around ₹12,000 ($210AUD), for a total of ₹96,000 ($1,700AUD).

Your donation will go directly to:

• Replacing broken music equipment in 8 of our centres

• Supporting cultural education through dance, drama and song

• Giving children a voice - literally and figuratively

Our call for help isn’t just about sound systems. It’s about dignity, hope, celebration, and giving every child the chance to shine on stage and off.

If you’re in a position to help—even with a small gift—please consider supporting this appeal today. Let’s bring music, movement, and meaning back into these children's lives.

Donate now by clicking the DONATE button at the top of this page and help us make some beautiful noise for all the right reasons.

Our Lead photo is taken at Village Kadarganj is a traditional Islamic Village. Here the houses are mostly built of bamboo with thatched roofs, walls and floor of the village houses are painted by a mixture of dirt, grass and cow manure. Before and after rain, these houses need a maintenance every time. Most of the people who live in this village use to rear 2 or 3 cattle like cows or buffaloes for their milk and milk products, collectively they get 3 to 5 litres of milk every day. They travel 8 kms to the nearby towns to sell them in the market and get a fist full amount of money to buy some food. Selling milk is the only source of income for these people. One of the struggles these people face during monsoon is when it rains heavily they can’t reach to the town due to the flooded rivers that surround the village. There is no healthy water supply. River water, a well and a hand pump are the main source of water. There are no indoor toilets, and no electricity.

The educational status of the people in this village was not so good at all. ‘Project Help’ is the first organisation to think of their education and future. But now when we are running our child friendly education centre in this area, the kids are getting quality education and we have admitted them to government schools. As with the other villages, the government schools are 5 to 8 kms away and it is particularly dangerous for the girls to walk to school. Approximately 40 children attend this centre on a daily basis.