Dear Well Wishers and Benefactors,

It gives me great pleasure to present the Annual_Report_2008 of Lok Seva Sangam which is in its 32nd year. Lok Seva Sangam has for the past two years been also associated with the treatment of Tuberculosis. We have achieved a diagnosis rate of positivity of 11.6 %– 17%, well above the 4%-5% required rate. Our cure rate has increased from 72% – 75% and we have a minimum number of defaulters thanks to our dedicated paramedical team. 

For those to whom the cause of leprosy is still very dear, I wish to say that we have not given up on leprosy patients.  This year our case detection increased because of sample surveys conducted in high endemic areas and statistics showed that we had detected more child cases proving that leprosy is still not a disease of the past and requires our attention to stop its spread in the future. Integration with the public health system has only reduced the numbers on paper. For Lok Seva Sangam it is a priority to see that no leprosy case goes undetected or untreated and hence we have continued with our dermatological clinics which still prove extremely beneficial in the detection of new cases.

The community development project that we started a year ago has yielded good results. There were no outbreaks of dengue and chikunguinea this year because of the outreach programmes organized by the self help groups. Income generating activities benefitted all those who wished to participate.

In conclusion, we have had a successful year. This makes us strive harder to reach the unreached and we can only do so with your valuable support.

We owe our continued existence to our Funding Agencies and donors:

• German Leprosy and TB Relief Association (GLRA) and
• Associazione Italiana Amici di Raoul Follereau,
• Inter Aide France
• Swiss-Emmaus
• Pontificio Istituto Missioni Estere (PIME)
• School for Children (Dr. Filippo Binaghi, Helen Nonini, Lara Meroni)
• Antonio Santa Maria, Fabio Lucheroni and Patrizia Costa
• And all our local and foreign donors.

Our grateful thanks to the BMC, Dr. Badra, Nirmaya Foundation, Apnalaya and Dr. Anjum Khan for allowing us the use of their premises free of cost and also to Fabio Lucheroni for setting up and updating the website of Lok Seva Sangam (LSS). It is with your help that we have been able to make this outreach programme of ours a resounding success.

As Lok Seva Sangam has always been an inclusive project we wished to reflect this in our report and hence this year’s report has been written by the heads of the different departments involved.

Thank you very much!

Paul Alemao

Director