What we do
Organisational Status
- Society registration (Registration No. S/1L/84977of 2011–2012)
- Niti Aayog Govt. registration (NITI Aayog Id: WB/2018/0191418)
- 12 A & 80G TAX EXEMPTION
- CSR Accreditation GOVT. OF INDIA
- FCRA APPLIED
- Trade License of CWF LABS
CWF uses education, sensitization campaigns, sports, & skill development programs as a vehicle for combating violence against women & transgender individuals.
Established in May 2011, Civilian Welfare Foundation is a research-based youth organization. We are a non-profit, non-government organization which works for the empowerment of the marginalized sections of the society & enables them in finding their identity. Founded by a few like minded motivated individuals in their mid-20s, CWF is a non-hierarchical organization. The focus of our work is to integrate different social issues like disability rights, LGBTIQ rights, healthcare & sports, and child rights, and to adopt an inclusive approach towards equity & equality. CWF is not just an organization but more of a belief, an ideology where we believe that it is our responsibility to contribute & give back to the society in whichever way we can. In this rollercoaster journey of almost a decade we have faced many a hurdle, however the undying and unflinching spirit of our family remains unscathed because of which we have managed to get much done even without much resources. In 2022, CWF opened the first transdisciplinary lab in Eastern India in Bolpur: CWF Labs Transdisciplinary Healthcare and Research. The focus will be on providing low-cost healthcare facilities to the tribal population and making of individualised health profiles for each individual.
Our Approach
Disability
CWF is the only organization in India which brought Paralympics to Indian television for the first time in 40 years. We have been instrumental in setting up of the National Para-triathlon Federation. We were also the organizers of the first Tri Nation Wheelchair Cricket Tournament in eastern India. Sports we feel is a means by which confidence & self-belief can be instilled in people hence we conduct psychological empowerment & inclusion workshops for persons with disabilities using sports as a model with a special focus on women with disabilities. Through an extensive outreach program, we have been able to run our “Adopt a Para-athlete” program successfully for many years now, where we are able to provide these athletes with proper nutrition, training kit & coaching. Through our desktop calendar called Verve we were able to feature some of our most talented regional Paralympians to the country who despite winning so many medals and accolades for the nation, still remain undeservedly unknown to most of the nation and the world. in 2021, we launched Unified Theatre for the first time in India, where children with and without Intellectual Disability perform theatre together. We also introduced Multiple Disability Football Tournament for the first time in India and in 2023 we organised it for the first time at the state-level and screened athletes to form the state team. The world's only 'Walk for Paralympics' is also organised by CWF where every year on 28th August, people from different walks of life gatherto raisse awareness about disability sports and rights. To know more, download our leaflet.
Gender
While working on gender rights we have done an extensive research where we have highlighted how a fundamental right like basic healthcare has been denied to Transgender people in India. We have made a documentary based on our research which got extensive media attention as it was the first of its kind in the country in collaboration with United Nations Global Youth Empowerment. We have also worked on a research on the scaling of Transphobia among doctors in India along with the University of California, Stony Brook & Stanford, USA. Our efforts have always been to empower people & hence CWF has extensively worked on skill development for Transgender individuals which thereby can create a means of livelihood for them. Right to healthcare, we feel, is a fundamental right & hence we conduct inclusive healthcare check up camps where free health check-ups are given to all individuals irrespective of their gender. Our annual gender sensitization program is called “Call Against Patriarchy” where we try & sensitize the masses on what is patriarchy, gender & sexuality. We also organise queer-friendly fashion shows and events to make entertainment spaces more inclusive. To know more about our work in this sector, you can download our leaflet here:
Education
We have successfully been running an alternative education session for Pyarabagan slum children, child labourers & school dropouts. Around 100 drop out children and child labourers are currently studying at ''Icchedanar Pathsala" - an inclusive bridgeschool for child labourers and dropouts. Our focus area has been to socially sensitize these children through an open movie screening as well as Menstruation workshop. In addition, we are practising worksheet based education along with maintenance of their progress through reports since July, 2021. Ours was the only school which held regular classes in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, taking proper precautions. Every year we conduct an annual interactive event with slum children & govt schools around Pyarabagan. We have also taken innitiatives to get those children back to mainstream education after a long gap.To understand the malaise of child labour and what has been the role of our society in the lives of our slum children, we have also made a documentary on it in association with CRY. We have also collaborated with several mainstream schools to enroll several such child labours into them. Moreover, they were also part of a short film based on Right to Education. To know more about our work in this sector, you can download our leaflet here:
Updates from CWF
Achievements in last 10 years
Established in May 2011, Civilian Welfare Foundation is a women led organisation consisting of 96% of the work force. CWF runs with less than 2.5% management costs and dependent on the volunteers, interns, advisors, consultants and members for work. Some of our major work in the past 8 years include :
1. Reaching over 35 thousand people in pandemic and Amphan in 7 districts in West Bengal with rations, menstrual hygiene kits and sanitisation.
2. Introduction of mixed disability football in India
3. Broadcasting of paralympic games from Rio Paralympics 2016 for the first time in 4 decades in Indian Television.
4. Organising and establishing National Para-Triathlon Federation.
5. Introduction of alternative make-shift schools for 75 child labourers and dropouts in Kolkata’s 2nd largest slum Pyarabagan
6. India’s first research on Transgender Basic Healthcare Organising World’s only Walk for Paralympics continuously for last 8 years.
7. Organising World’s only Walk for Paralympics continuously for last 8 years.
8. Individual adoption of 32 para-athletes
9. Advocating National Policy for Systematic Sports for People with disabilities
10. Improved accessibility for PWDs in Durga Puja
11. Documentary on Healthcare access for at risk population .
12. Systematic Training of Para-Athletes in West Bengal
13. First Tri-Nation Wheel Chair Cricket in eastern India
14.Short film on Right to Education
15. Mentoring of 20 Healthcare professionals on Trans Health
16. First Transdisciplinary research lab in India
17. Introduction of Unified Theatre in India
18. Started queer-disability fashion show in India