FAQ’s

When based in India for media work, Mr Mathi Alagan saw the plight of occupants of some homes there and wanted to do something within his capacity to address this. Realising that a little bit of funds from Singapore could make a great difference in the lives of these people in need, he started approaching his close friends to join hands with him. We grew from strength to strength when more and more friends so readily came forward to lend a hand and be part of Project Arpana.

Most of us try to give back to society, within our own capacity. We can only do so much on our own. Project Arpana offers a platform for us to come together as one and pool our resources to make a considerable difference in the lives of our beneficiaries. Project Arpana advocates active giving. Instead of just writing a cheque, we have a system in place to maximise our funds by offering help to the most needy, in the best form, at the right time. Contributors and volunteers from Singapore and India come together as one to make this a reality.

Friends in Singapore and India come together to contribute a decent amount of funds annually. This forms our operating budget. Our volunteer team in India scour the many NGOs there to find the ones that are in need of immediate support. Our volunteers visit these NGOs, find out and assess these needs. Our volunteers propose the help that should be offered to these NGO to our Singapore team. The Singapore team finalises the work to be done based on our operating budget. Attention is given to spreading out funds to a variety of homes to address important needs first. Our volunteers source the best prices for these goods and services from contractors. The funds are released to volunteers in India to procure these goods and services. Our travel team from Singapore takes part in the final purchases, visits these NGOs to better understand the work they do, mingle with its occupants and officially handover these goods and services. Follow up visits are conducted by our volunteers on a regular basis to ensure proper utilization of the help rendered by us. Other pressing areas of need are identified and addressed if necessary. Our volunteers remain in constant contact with the homes supported and see through any other projects that we undertake at the NGOs. Team members visiting India make visits to the supported homes for any necessary follow ups.

We like to maintain a minimum individual or group contribution of $200. While being a reasonable amount for most of our friends to contribute, it is a considerable amount when converted to Indian Rupees. This allows more of our friends to be part of this Project. Of course, we also welcome larger contributions from friends, individually or collectively.E-receipts will be issued.