“Horizons of hope”

"It has been very interesting, satisfying and rewarding not only in terms of donations received but also for opportunities that came our way to enlarge the activities of our Trusts… Our endeavors have been to combat the economic vulnerability… building bridges, guiding beneficiaries towards horizons of hope,” writes trustee Dinshaw Tamboly in his covering letter accompanying the report on the activities of the World Zoroastrian Organisation (WZO) Trust Funds, the WZO Trust for Women and Children and the WZO Trust for 2012.
In January 2012 they were invited by the Zoroastrian Association of Greater New York to participate in the XVI North American Zarathushti Congress in New York and make a presentation on "Combating poverty in our communities abroad” to create awareness of their multifarious welfare activities. This helped them showcase their activities and garnered many donations as well as support from volunteers in North America who were willing to make actual field trips to India.
Another significant development was that the P. E. Polson Charity Trust and the Minoo and Aloo Polson Charity Trust have now been amalgamated into WZO Trust Funds. Also, preparatory work for the construction of the ninth residential building in Navsari was finalized. The ancestral property of the late Pesi, Perin and Dara Deboo of UK, which was donated to WZO Trust Funds will, with generous funding from trustees of the Zoroastrian Charity Funds of Hong Kong, Canton and Macao, be transformed into a new building expected to be ready for occupation by May 2014. Soon thereafter came funding from the executors of the estate of Jehangir Burjor Marshall to purchase suitable property at Navsari for constructing a residential building for economically challenged and middle class Zoroastrians. Funding for this 10th residential building has come from the executors of the estate of Dina Burjor Kavarana and the Sanga family. This project will commence in the latter half of 2013, the report states.
In 2012 the Trusts undertook the rehabilitation of 14 Zoroastrian farmers in five villages, providing for their needs like bore wells, submersible pump sets, leveling fields, seeds and fertilizers, establishing a poultry farm and a brick kiln. Rs 35,66,895 was spent for this. The Trusts also replaced 28 mud and cow-dung huts with proper cottages, at a cost of Rs 3,50,000 per housing unit. To generate self-employment the Trusts provide interest free loans not exceeding Rs 3,00,000 per beneficiary. These have to be repaid in 40 monthly installments of Rs 7,500 each. Forty Zoroastrians at 11 locations were assisted in 2011 to set up various enterprises such as a graphic design studio, manufacturing soft drink powder concentrate, making school uniforms, a travel agency office, a workshop for repairing mixers, grinders, pressure cookers, a service station for trucks, a railway tickets collection center as well as auto-rickshaws, taxis and tempos for commercial use. A total of 827 Zoroastrians have been helped between 1995 and 2012 with an outlay of Rs 12,90,57,543, states the report.
In the field of education 83 students received an aggregate amount of Rs 52,39,884. Students doing well academically are felicitated at an annual function in Navsari, as are Zoroastrian teachers who have been in the profession for 25 years or more. An annual athletic meet is held there to encourage youth to excel in sports, and a cricket team has been sponsored to participate in various tournaments in Gujarat and Bombay. A week long summer camp at Navsari engages young ones in constructive hobbies, yoga, personality development and day trips where they have fun.
During 2012, Rs 1,78,38,686 was spent towards medical aid and hospitalization costs for 341 individuals. The report notes that though our community is considered affluent, there are vast pockets of poverty in urban, semi urban and rural settlements. Funds were raised by the Trusts to support 373 elderly/indigent Zoroastrians to the tune of Rs 1,20,76,766 during the last year. Food grains and other essential items are also distributed to around 120-150 poor Zoroastrian families residing in the rural areas of Gujarat.
Nor were mobeds overlooked. The Athornan Mandal – WZO scheme was launched in 1996 to encourage and motivate young athornans to take up mobedi as a full-time vocation with a corpus amount of Rs 1,00,00,000. The interest from this sum is presently being disbursed among 49 young priests in 13 different locations in India. Additional donations for this scheme amounting to Rs 6,50,000 were received during the year under review. Funds were also raised and financial support extended to 38 elderly mobeds living in penury who had retired or were about to do so. Rs 12,00,000 was raised by the Trusts for repairs to two agiaries — the Bardoli Jarthosti Anjuman Agiary and Patel Agiary in Mazgaon, Bombay.
Other initiatives of the Trusts that are flourishing are the senior citizens’ homes at Navsari — the Bai Maneckbai P. B. Jeejeebhoy Senior Citizens Center and Dolat and Hormusji Vandrewala Senior Citizens Centre — where residents are encouraged to lead a full and independent life. The Sir Ratan Tata Trust provided support from March 2000 to March 2009; Dinshaw Dossabhoy Mehta of Poona donated a generous amount in 2004; and in June 2008 a corpus donation of Rs 3,00,00,000 was received from the Navajbai Ratan Tata Trust, along with many individual donors who have provided support from time to time, the report reveals.
The well laid out Bai Maneckbai P. B. Jeejeebhoy — WZO Sanatorium at Sanjan, which offers comfortable room and board at a reasonable Rs 325 per head per day is a popular and affordable holiday destination. Free holidays are sponsored for elderly couples and widows in need of recuperation. An annual gahanbar from income generated from the generous corpus endowed by a non-Parsi who held the community in esteem, the late Muljibhai Narsi of Bombay, and a function at Navsari on every Khordad Sal where residents display their talents, participate in games and generally have a good time are other activities of the Trusts.
"Being open and transparent” in all their activities, the Trusts say they have endeared themselves to donors with the result that 25 major charities from Hong Kong, the UK and USA, Bombay and Poona are providing funds. However, much more needs to be done and donations for projects are welcome. Cheques/drafts may be sent to The World Zoroastrian Organisation Trust or The WZO Trust Funds, at Shanti, 5th Floor, 6, Banaji Street, Fort, Bombay 400001. Donors in India are eligible for exemption under Section 80G of the Income Tax Act 1961. Both Trusts are authorized to receive funds from overseas under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act 1976.