Delhi: The Cleaner City (Elizabeth)

Yes, Delhi is much cleaner than Mumbai and much calmer. Drivers do not honk their horns at every moment and I can step outside without smelling trash everywhere. It has been a packed day and a half in Delhi. Yesterday afternoon, we visited the US Embassy to meet with the NIH representative in India to learn about what research projects are being funded. The NIH has a large portfolio in India ranging from maternal and child health to new technology development. We discussed that many challenges that researchers face in India, both Indian and American. The Indian government is slow to process requests and it can take years for funding to be approved.


This morning we met with Operation ASHA (http://www.opasha.org/), an organization focused on treating TB patients in India. India has a growing problem with TB, which is complicated by the strict medical care needed to treat the disease. Operation ASHA uses innovative mobile technology to track patients using digital finger prints in slum areas to make sure they take their medication. All of the medication is provided by the government. The program uses the DOTS practice, meaning that patients must take their medication in front of an ASHA provider. If a patient does not show up for treatment, the mobile technology alerts the provider so that they can find the person and bring them their medication.

After a quick lunch, we had an incredible opportunity to meet with Kiran Bedi, the first female in India’s police and an activist who has become very famous for her work in government anti-corruption. She is an inspiring person to listen to. She has spent her entire life dedicated to making India the country she knows it can be. Her anti-corruption movement has grown into millions of people, and one of their goals is to change the political landscape of the country in the 2014 elections. On the side, she also has two foundations, one of which works with children living in the prisons because their mother is there. Yes, that is correct, in India children can live with their mothers in prison until the age of 6!

Part of the problem in trying to help fix problems in India is that corruption in the government takes money away from needed infrastructure. This is a theme that our group has seen with all of the organizations we have visited. Dr. Bedi has been working tirelessly to uncover proof of these schemes and bring them to the public. When we asked her if she plans on running for office she said no, but I suspect we will see her as Prime Minister one day soon.

It was a long day, but one that has brought me a great amount of respect for India and the people here working to help those in need in the face of tough political circumstances.