Blaze Kannan has been working towards the implementation of a smart panchayat through his NGO- Life Help Centre. Cuddalore is one of the most disaster-prone areas of Tamil Nadu and under the Life Help Centre for rural rehabilitation and development programme, the organisation is taking up this smart panchayat initiative.
Blaze shares his aspirations with DC, “We plan to adopt a panchayat in Cuddalore, work towards building a health centre, a learning centre for the needy children, install a purifying drinking water plant, provide street lights powered by solar energy, set up a vermipost (number will be in tune with population of the area), educate villagers on organic farming and provide the materials needed for it. We will also educate them on bio-toilets and how they can convert their house toilet into one”.
The programme will also look after the overall water, sanitation and hygiene of the village. It will also help with small loans (microfinance) for villagers so that they can set up a livelihood.
“The fund will be created and distributed by the knowledge hub. Those in need of money can avail themselves of the loan. This is just to ensure they have the minimum money required to start some business for a livelihood.”
Blaze says that once the panchayat becomes established and the programme works out, it will be considered a role model panchayat and the organisation will move on to taking up more panchayats in future.
Blaze is conducting a fund-raising event “Soul Mirror” in Lady Andal School on September 21. “We have a celeb group comprising various actors who came together for the two shows that we conducted in the US two months back”, says the man who is also a part of the federation of Tamil Sangam in North America.
“This is our third fund-raising event and this will be solely musical. Pravin Saivi and team will be performing”.
The organisation that has been working towards the welfare of the differently-abled and the needy children has a help centre for them in Chennai which imparts education, training and rehabilitation to the orthopaedically and the intellectually challenged.
It also has a residential facility for differently-abled kids in Neelankarai. The organisation has also set up a vocational training centre and an orthopaedic appliances unit.
Life Help Centre’s Cuddalore facility educates, trains and rehabilitates the intellectually challenged. There is also a home for orphan and destitute children with a health centre, besides the rural development and rehabilitation programmes in place. The organisation has also been instrumental in disaster relief and has rendered yeoman service during many natural calamities.
