Whenever you go to India on visit, try to visit as many AID projects as you can. There are many reasons why one visits projects. You may have many personal reasons - a new experience which you can reminisce about later, new contacts from which you learn something different, a feel for the pulse of India... The experience you gain will be very useful for the movement but remember that your visit can also help AID directly.

Making sure that the group we are supporting are honest and the things are actually going on well. For groups that we have already funded, honesty is usually well-established- but when you visit a group that we are still are considering, it is very important to establish their integrity and capability.

Getting feedback and more information on the project supported (or being considered):
 

• Find out whether the funds we gave are being used for the purpose meant.
• What has the response to the project been? Are they facing any problems? If so, how are they tackling them (or plan to tackle them)?
•  Do they need any other help from us (in the form of ideas, information, etc. - example, in an AIDS awareness project they could use pamphlets from the US, or in a health care project, a visiting doctor could provide the health workers with some important medical help, for a school, children's books and teaching aids might be very useful)
•  Is there something special unique or striking about the way the project is progressing? Something we can learn from?
• Number of people being benefitted by our project. Talk to a few people being helped and ask them how they feel they have benefitted. take pictures of the people being helped (if possible in action). Try to take some pictures of yourself along with them.
• Try to think of different ways in which we can make use of photos for fund-raising and awareness. If you have a tape-recorder, you can record their voices (may be a response to your questions or just a piece from their life).

And in getting an overall picture of what the group is doing and its impact : How many people do they help, in what ways, what are the regular activities of the group, what inspires and motivates the group etc. What is the vision of the group and what have they done so far. What are the usual sources of funds for the organization? Anything special about it? Are they trying to raise local funds? How? What is the biggest problem they are facing? Do they feel they have made a break in some problem? What is it? You can also try to get a historic picture of the group- how did it start? Any interesting stories or important events in the past?

Try to find out how things were before the AID project began and how it is now. Also, find out how things were before the group started and now. (Find this both from the group and from the people benefitted.)

Does the group have a new proposal for AID? If so, you can discuss it with them in detail and find out answers to all the questions you can think of.

You should also try to get some general information about the people living in the near-by places. What education facilities are available? How are they being used? How are the health care facilities? Is clean drinking water available? Are there any open stagnating water sources? What are the toilet arrangements in the village? What are the main occupation of the village? Are there any special handicrafts that can be developed? What is the general awareness level of the village? Do they have access to the banks and other government machinery - how effective is it? What is the financial level of the village? What do children do? What do women do? How many people live in the village- basic demographics, caste politics etc.

A few things to keep in mind

When you visit you should neither be totally critical nor accept everything as being good and useful. try to be as objective as possible (which will be a tough thing to do under the circumstances). Be pleasant
when talking to the villagers and don't argue with anyone. And please do not make any promises on behalf of AID. You can of course make a token donation personally. Before leaving for India, call (301)513-0565 and talk to an AID volunteer there - He/She can suggest projects and groups you can visit, give you the address, more details on the project supported - information about what things you can look for and bring back, and whether you can take something for the project.

Checklist of things to do when visiting projects

• Take a notebook with you - write down how you went there, the directions, bus routes, the time it takes, any important observations, interesting statements made by the villagers and social workers, statistics about the project and about the village, answers to important questions etc.,
•  Get a copy of their annual report, as many newsletters and publications and and other information about the organization as you can.
•  Take a camera/tape-recorder/video-recorder with you. Take pictures or video the project and the group's other activities as well. If you have a tape-recorder you can tape something interesting (what the villagers feel... in general or in response to some question you ask)
•  If the project has some things you can buy and bring back, get them. You can buy some greeting cards (at least samples), any cloth, candles or other things that you can bring.
•  Be on the look out for ideas we can learn from and use!!