The Byrraju Foundation

Background
The Byrraju Foundation was set up in 2001 by the founders of the Satyam Group of Companies, and has since improved the lives of nearly a million people. The Foundation aims at "rural transformation", and operates in a unique manner - a village is adopted and its all-round development is taken care of. In the fields of healthcare, environment, sanitation, primary education, adult literacy and many others, the Byrraju Foundation bridges the gap between the services needed and those provided by the government.

Activities
The Foundation runs a clinic in each adopted village, which a doctor visits once a day. The schools are equipped with quality infrastructure, including computers. Drinking water is purified at water treatment plants set up for the purpose. Vocational training is given in areas such as carpentry and plumbing. Youth in villages are encouraged to become entrepreneurs and work within the village itself.

Strong emphasis is placed on participation from the villagers themselves in all developmental activities, which is the only way the programs can be made sustainable. The Foundation attempts to empower village-dwellers and make them feel responsible for their own welfare, rather than depend on the government or NGOs to take the initiative to bring about change.

Membership And Volunteer Opportunities
Volunteers of the Byrraju Foundation are known as "community change agents", and their role is to help implement each endeavor of the Foundation at the grassroots level.

NRIs, known in the Foundation as "NRVs" or "Non-Resident Villagers", often adopt their native villages and contribute money and ideas towards their upliftment. So all ye desis abroad, think patriotism, but also think practical! The next time you want to do your bit for the community, donate money not to the nearest temple/mosque, but to the tiny hamlet back in India that your grandma lived in.

If you live in Andhra Pradesh, and are willing to work in the Byrraju office, you could help the Foundation in your area of expertise. For instance, those with programming skills can develop a new software, and management students can help design a new service module.

If you would like to contribute but would prefer to work from home, please contact the Byrraju Foundation for further information.

To obtain funding for their activities, the Foundation makes alliances with other organizations and corporates across the world. Prominent alliance partners include UNICEF, IBM Foundation, Intel, TCS, IIIT, CARE Hospitals and others.

For more details, please contact T L S Bhaskar at the phone numbers given above.