I first visited the slums of Hyderabad, India in 2007, at the invitation of an Indian Charity, Word in Action Outreach.
Nothing could prepare me for the terrible sights that I saw, I was profoundly shocked and moved to tears. The people are in desperate need of fresh clean water and sanitation, and earn their living by begging or sorting rubbish. Word in Action Outreach began a free Mid Day Meal outreach in 2009 for the children of the slums to give them at least one wholesome meal a day, as the death rate among the young children is very high. There are over 40,000 children living on the streets of Hyderabad alone. Many have been orphaned by the ravages of AIDS and are very vulnerable. Some of the children are forced into prostitution or thieving through their desperate need.

I am grateful to the makers of Slum Dog Millionaire who have  raised the profile of these wonderful, but very needy people.

I hope to raise money to support the free meal scheme through Word in Action Outreach UK which raises funds for the work in India, and eventually raise sufficient to provide for a Children s Home, a school teacher and training workshops for the adults to enable them to earn a living.