www.sifeiitd.

org

PROJECT
Over a century ago Rudyard Kipling visited Burma and said it was “quite unlike any land you know
about.” The Golden land of Burma has been always famous for its rich culture and heritage. But today its
virtuousness is under attack. While Burma is fortunate to have a mix of friendly, neutral and indifferent
neighbours, it is most unfortunate that the aggressors are not outsiders, but the country's very own
tyrant military regime that threatens to crumble the entire sanctity of the nation. Burma has been
entrenched in political and armed conflict between the repressive ruling military regime, political
opponents, and ethnic groups, resulting in the displacement of over 3.5 million people.

India being a neighboring country hosts a large and growing number of 100,000 Burmese refugees. Here
in New Delhi, a nearly 10,000 strong community continues to exist in the obscure margins of our lives
without anyone taking much notice. Almost the entire community is settled in West Delhi near Boudela
market, Vikaspuri, Asalatpur and in the nearby areas of Janakpuri and Uttam Nagar. Even with Burma
attracting international attention and the President of the United States acknowledging the plight of the
Burmese community settled in West Delhi, there are very few Delhites, let alone Indians who know of
their existence.

This large number still does not afford them any legal protection, leaving them vulnerable to
harassment, discrimination, and deportation. India is NOT a signatory of the 1951 Refugee Convention,
which is the cornerstone of UNHCR's work around the world. Hence the present situation is such, that
the govt. takes no responsibility as such of these refuges and the onus is on UNHCR to provide for their
sustenance. As a result, the Indian community is almost apathetic to the cause of these refuges – be it
matters of protection, health, education, administration, legal or general social factors.

The Indian Government does not issue work permit to them even if they are UNHCR-recognised. As a
result; they are relegated to the informal work sector where job opportunities are limited, low-paying,
and sometimes labour-intensive. Hence these people, not supported by any organisation, as such are
forced to live in the shadows and not allowed to join mainstream society and formal sectors for better
job prospects. While protection and permanent solutions are long in coming for the Burmese
community in Delhi, their wait is made more urgent by untenable living conditions, a lack of adequate
and acceptable livelihoods, poor health, an inability for their children to receive an education, and the
impossibility of integrating with the local community. Integration with the local population in Delhi is
extremely difficult for the Burmese. In general, they speak a different language, share different physical
attributes, practice a different religion, and come from a different culture than the local population in
Delhi. The general lack of resources in India further heightens tension between the Burmese and the
local communities in Delhi, particularly among the local poor who see the refugees as competition for
the scarce resources. But the Burmese community’s resilience and strength to fight all odds and hope
for a brighter future remains upbeat.

The need of the hour is to help Burmese refugees avail economic opportunity and at the same time
make them feel at home in a foreign land. Here is where a student group from IIT Delhi, believes that
they could help make a difference. The 23 member strong student group, SIFE IIT Delhi, aims to play a
proactive role in helping the development and economic sustainability of a group of people so far
neglected. SIFE-IIT Delhi has been working with and for the community since November 2010. Our
project got initiated when we interacted with members of the Burmese community at a conference in
October. Under the guidance of Dr. Achan Mungleng from Euro Burma Organisation and the overall
support of charter organizations such as UNHCR, we have been able to familiarize ourselves with the
community and start our project. As we learned more about the community, we came to understand
that each day is a challenge for many of them. A lack of legal protection, lack of work permits,
discrimination, lack of education, abject living conditions and exploitation are just some of the
challenges faced everyday by the Burmese. As we witnessed their struggle to survive in this home away
from home, we wanted to dedicate ourselves to this cause.

This was the birth of Project AARAMBH. True to its name, we saw this project as a new beginning - a
fresh attempt for the cause of overall human development of the Burmese refugees. What followed was
a spate of field visits to the community. We met the refugees, their organizations, their leaders and
other implementation partners working for the cause. Our attempt was to comprehensively cover all
avenues of information before we move into the action phase.

We started with organising the small scale entrepreneurial efforts within the community. There are a
number of centres and small organisations within the community that manufacture a variety of
handicrafts that boast of Burmese skill and culture. Even though they have an on and off market abroad
for their goods, but due to lack of awareness about the current market scenario in India, demand and
the hindrance they face in terms of language barrier and societal exclusion, their true potential has not
been realized. SIFE IIT Delhi has made efforts to bring such Burmese women organisations on the same
platform and create channels to market their goods. Our team has facilitated marketing of their goods
such as handbags, laptop bags, purses, woolens, coats, and shawls - all traditional Burmese handmade
designs; we have even organized corporate stalls to facilitate their sales. Furthermore, SIFE IIT Delhi is
facilitating professional support for improved skills, operations and scalability and has collaborated with
DASTKAAR, a national organization, for the same. Our efforts have been about engaging the women
and leaders of these small units in our marketing work to increase their awareness and network, thus
laying the base for sustainability.

With time, our efforts have grown to cater the needs of the others in the refuge community. Due to
their social and political circumstances, skilled and trained people are jobless or doing other petty work.
They have a very sporadic stream of income and live & work in pitiable conditions where they are often
exploited due to a lack of legal strength. The refuges suffer from trust issues with people from outside
their own community. This led us to establish a platform for the community (Placement Cell) to get
sustainable far pay work in the unorganized sector. The idea behind a placement cell was to create an
avenue to help people in Burmese community who are in need of a job. We work in collaboration with
several local organizations in the community. The cell works as a 2 way forum, an interface between the
people and the factories and shops which have job vacancies. The objective is to ensure just,
sustainable, fair pay work for the refugees while ensuring regularity and consistency for the employers.
We have seeked to represent the refuges at every step starting from referring them to a company for a
job to negotiating with employers for salary and other matters to representing them in cases of
disputes, exploitation etc. Our initiatives in this end have included innumerable meetings with nearby
workshops seeking fair employment opportunities, acting as a placement exchange by matching job
requirements with skill and conducting training sessions and workshops for the refuges enabling them
to blend into the new work culture.

Besides all this, our efforts have included initiatives for holistic development. We at SIFE IITD have a long
term vision with respect to our engagement with the Burmese refugee community. Our engagements
have included college outreach programs such as in St. Stephen’s College and community initiatives such
as Health Camps. Our aim is to make our project a completely self-sustaining entity. In the long run we
envisage that we exist as a facilitator having empowered the community to take charge of their lives.

As India is not a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention, which is the cornerstone of UNHCR's work
around the world, it more or less is indifferent to the plights of the refugees. This have given rise to an
Indian community who are unaware of the circumstances of these people and are largely apathetic to
their difficulties, be it matters of protection, health, education, administration, legal or general social
factors. Amidst the process of helping them develop a sustainable economic model for their community,
we want to start working on addressing their social and community needs. It is imperative to promote
the cause of societal inclusion to improve their status in society. Our plan aims at empowering them by
means of trainings and workshops for matters such as language, health, education, skill training and life
in India. It is of paramount importance to help them integrate and communicate with the Indian society
at large and to sensitize the Indian society by making them aware of the plethora of problems faced by
the Burmese community and the main reason as to why they seek asylum here . The Burma they fled
and hope to return to is carried in their hearts. Wherever they go, they create a little Burma. It is this
culture that we want the world to get a taste of. It is this spirit, we salute. It is their story that we want
the world to listen to.

About SIFE IIT Delhi

SIFE (Student in Free Enterprise www.sife.org) - is an international non-profit organization that aims to
mobilize university students to make a difference in their communities and become socially responsible
business leaders. SIFE IIT Delhi (www.sifeiitd.org) is the student chapter of SIFE in the Indian Institute of
Technology, Delhi. Established in July 2010, it comprises of a team of 23 dedicated students working
under faculty supervision, and has now grown into one of the most dynamic student initiatives while
working on its inaugural project.

Work at SIFE IIT Delhi involves research, field visits, associating with different organisations and
developing a sustainable business plan that can economically empower the community. This work
demands a lot of sincerity, commitment, innovation and team work. The current SIFE team has
members with different interests and experiences over different fields of work, which enables them to
think over and analyse a project idea from different angles.

SIFE IIT Delhi is one of the most comprehensive extra-curricular activities involving components from
societal knowledge and community sensitivity to building sustainable social enterprises to management
skills. In the long run it aims to create a pool of student leaders who use their technological and business
skills to make the world a better place.
SIFE IIT Delhi Team with some students from Burma

Refuge woman weaving on handloom

 SIFE IIT Delhi Team with Dastkaar and Burmese community

SIFE IIT Delhi Team with Dastkaar and Burmese community @ Dastkar Annual Bazaar
Project Aarambh - Health Camp

Project Aarambh - Health Camp

 Project Aarambh – Health Camp

SIFE IIT Delhi Team with Community leaders

Project Aarambh @ St. Stephen’s College

Project Aarambh @ St. Stephen’s College

Project Aarambh Corporate Stall at Videocon Office, Gurgaon

Project Aarambh Corporate Stall at Videocon Office, Gurgaon

Project Aarambh Corporate Stall at Videocon Office, Gurgaon