About the Project

ParticiPlan is a social initiative established in August 2024 to help address the infrastructural needs of individuals living without permanent housing in Indian cities. The initiative takes its name from the fact that it is driven by a participatory approach directly involving the affected community in identifying their greatest challenges and ascertaining what types of interventions would have the largest impacts. As such, instead of interventions based on incomplete knowledge or assumptions, it will be based on the real needs and priority as dictated by homeless people as well as some community leaders.

Some of the primary deliverables of the project include the QuestAid Survey, which will collect information regarding the daily issues that Kolkata’s homeless people undergo, as well as the RaiseAid Fundraiser, an online fundraiser which will enable the installment of low-cost, environmentally friendly toilets in some parts of the city. ParticiPlan will design and implement the HomeAid Distribution Drive, giving away portable biodegradable toilets in specific areas of Kolkata to address these urgent sanitation needs. The projects will be conducted alongside Kolkata-based NGO, Dakshini Prayash. ParticiPlan will aim at improving the quality of life, dignity, hygiene, and health for India's most disadvantaged people through sustainable approaches prioritizing sanitation and community-building.