Dhaat Healthcare Initiative

The Challenge

Roughly 3,000 Pakistani Hindu refugees live in and around Jodhpur — 70% of them still non-citizens — with women, children, and the elderly bearing the brunt of poor access to healthcare, low hygiene awareness, and psychological stress carried over from displacement.

Our Response

Backed by the Hindu American Foundation (HAF), in association with the Alliance of Global Sindhi Associations, UJAS’s Dhaat Healthcare Initiative combined regular medical camps (twice a month, run with volunteer refugee doctors) with a standing health clinic staffed by a nurse or health advocate, at least one day of volunteer doctor consultations a week, and a structured programme of hygiene education, vaccination drives against hepatitis-C and polio, and psycho-social counselling for stressed and trauma-affected migrants.

The initiative issued migrants health cards accepted at local facilities, worked with the District Health Department to build a referral mechanism so the local health system would absorb migrant patients, and trained health workers toward a self-sustaining community healthcare system — including a community health fund, blood bank, and health insurance.

Through the Pandemic

When COVID-19 reached the settlements, the same health infrastructure pivoted to testing, mask and hygiene awareness campaigns, and mobile outreach vans like “Jodhpur Sarthak,” bringing information and protective guidance directly to families who would otherwise have had little access to it.