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	Relief & Rehab in Gujarat after the Communal Violence in early 2002
	The communal violence in Gujarat starting with the incident at Godhra has claimed over a thousand lives. It has also terrorized more than one lakh people into abandoning their homes for ill-equipped refugee camps. Many inmates of these refugee camps have endured extreme physical or sexual violence and other deeply traumatic experiences. In the wake of this disaster, there is an enormous amount of work that needs to be done in the affected areas. The damage caused by the violence has been compounded by the fact that Gujarat was barely recovering from last year's earthquake. AID had pledged to rebuild local communities in Gujarat that were devastated by the earthquake, and had supported several partner NGO's for this rebuilding in accordance with its philosophy of nurturing sustainable, participative, and equitable development. Many of these NGO’s (such as Behavioural Science Center, MARAG and Janvikas) are committed to a long-term presence in the area and responded promptly to the communal violence also. Since the violence shattered the very foundations of civil society, it was essential to continue the on-going efforts to rebuild Gujarat with a renewed vigour and urgency. In that light, AID is continuing to work with various groups in Gujarat to address relief and rehabilitation needs of the thousands of affected people. Confronted by the enormity of the human tragedy wreaked by the recent violence and by indifference of the administration, 34 NGOs organized themselves into a coalition called the Citizen's Initiative (CI). CI aims to provide both immediate relief for the riot-affected as well as long-term assistance to help the unfortunate victims rebuild their devastated lives. In the initial days of violence, it provided food and medicines to refugees of both communities in the camps. It continued to provide food assistance to daily labourers driven to starvation by the disruption of their livelihood. AID chapters at Boston, Charlotte, State College and Maryland supported these efforts of CI. Since many of the riot-affected victims lost not just assets but also their sources of livelihood, various organizations drew up programmes to facilitate the physical and economic rehabilitation of thousands of affected families living in several camps in Ahmedabad city and elsewhere. In addition, AID San Diego approved $15,000 for livelihood regeneration efforts by “Disha” in Sabarkantha district, and AID Bay Area a similar amount for relief work by “Anandi” in Panchmahals district. All these are NGO's with whom AID already has a working relationship because of the earthquake relief efforts. Rehabilitation efforts in Ahmedabad district by the Gujarat Lok Samiti, which is headed by the well-known Gandhian social worker Chunibhai Vaidya, are being supported by AID Austin. For more information about these projects, please click here. You can also contribute to these efforts monetarily, read about AID's actions towards long-term healing of communal fractures in Indian society, and take steps towards a harmonious India by using the resources we have compiled.

	A.I.D is registered with the US Federal Government as a non-profit charitable association under the category 501(C)(3). Its federal Tax-ID is 52-1863480. All donations to AID are tax-deductible in the U.S.A. *All receipts for the donations made through credit cards and checks towards Gujarat Earthquake Relief have been sent. If you have not received your receipt please call (888) TALK-2-AID.
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