Manavaseva Dharma Samvardhani

Project Astitva empowers women and children from four tribal hamlets in the Nilgiris by raising awareness about health and nutrition. We implement a comprehensive education program for adolescent girls in these hamlets, equipping them to become confident agents of change, enabling them to spread their wings and soar.

These hamlets are among the most impoverished, with high rates of malnutrition and prevalent non-communicable diseases such as HIV and TB. They also face social challenges like child marriage, teenage pregnancies, and high fertility rates. Most women in these hamlets suffer from severe anemia and underweight, while children experience stunted growth and wasting.

The project provides millet-rich dry rations and recipes to all women, enabling them to cook nutritious meals using healthy ingredients. Expectant and lactating mothers and children receive hot cooked meals and nutritional supplements like nutri-laddoos, along with education on the importance of a diverse and hea

The Dal, Oil, and Sugar (DOS) scheme is a food distribution initiative managed entirely by volunteers under the purview of MSDS. It aims to provide essential commodities to numerous NGOs, shelters for the destitute, underprivileged individuals, orphanages, and facilities for the mentally challenged in Chennai and its surrounding areas. Established in 1998 with the assistance of five NGOs, the program has steadily grown and expanded its reach. The DOS program operates through several distribution and collection centers, each overseen and operated by dedicated women volunteers throughout different neighborhoods in Chennai. These centers gather and store donations of dal, oil, and sugar from various contributors, which are subsequently distributed to NGOs and shelters on a monthly basis.