Dear Supporters,

Thank you once again for all the support you have shown us at Swabhava. Here is a quick update.

The offices are still closed but work carries on through online meetings and phone counselling sessions.  We've received around 50 counselling calls and a few emails with requests for resources for transgender surgeries, handling family pressures to get married, relationships crises and other issues. The calls that stand out are about clients who've lost money (lakhs of rupees) to fraudsters claiming to be friends who've been arrested at the Delhi Airport with excess foreign exchange and needing an Indian friend to bail them out of customs officers custody. We are working with lawyers and local support groups to see how we can help these clients/callers. We are also contacting dating applications to see if they can do something to prevent these kind of exchanges, since most of these individuals are introduced to the fraudsters on their apps.

Also participated in online discussions: on the national education policy and it's impact on LGBT+ communities--with Bangalore University; and on adolescents and sexuality conversations with parents to learn how to handle various sexual health dialogues within families--with Dr Shekhar Seshadri from NIMHANS. A few awareness trainings for college students from a couple of schools and colleges are in schedule for the end of October, more details of that will follow.

As usual, despite not using the office, we are continuing to pay rent, BSNL landline bills (counselling helpline), Broadband for WFH, BESCOM, a salary/honorarium depending on availability of funds etc.

Do let us know if you need to know more details. And spread the word, there is a lot of work that is beginning anew that needs a lot of support from all of you.

Thank you,

Vinay Chandran

Dear Supporters,

Thank you for the support you have shown towards this campaign. Here is an update to inform you all about the recent activities that we have carried out.

Swabhava Trust has its offices in Sampangiramnagar, Bangalore. The current activities are the SAHAYA Counselling Services through the SAHAYA Helpline, Research Report (Book) on Healthcare Discrimination experienced by non-normative genders and sexualities in South India, Advocacy for diversity and inclusion (D&I) programmes in the corporate spaces, and education/awareness building on LGBTQIA+ communities for youth.

Since the initial days of the pandemic, the offices have been closed but work carries on in the residences of Vinay Chandran, Executive Director and Managing Trustee.  Phone calls have been redirected (forwarded) to a BSNL mobile number and received around 115 counselling requests in this period and included requests for crisis resolution (including finding accommodation and jobs for transgender women trapped in the lockdown without resources, lesbian couples seeking legal and other assistance to prevent violence against them from their families, gay men requesting legal assistance after being assaulted or extorted or blackmailed, and gay men being pressured to marriage and requiring assistance to prevent family violence against them).

The research report is being written up and we are hopeful to publish it as a book in the coming year. Both the D&I programme (mainly in June, celebrated as Pride Month around the world) and the education/awareness building (in April and May) was conducted online through Zoom, Microsoft Team and Google Meet/Duo apps.

There is a long list of payments that are being made every month. Despite not using the office, we are continuing to pay rent of INR 13,125. Besides this, we pay an average of INR 400 towards BSNL, approximately INR 1,200 towards ACT Broadband (office line has been disconnected and only residence line is being paid for due to work-from-home), an average of INR 400 towards BESCOM (even during lockdown), a salary/honorarium depending on availability of funds etc.

The last day for payment for each of the utilities is spread across the month. The withdrawal of funds is only done when the payment dates near. Roughly INR 15,000 to INR 20,000 is usually withdrawn every week depending on the payments being met.

We have transferred funds to the Swabhava current account as well as the personal bank account of Vinay Chandran. The recent withdrawal of ₹10,000 will be transferred to the bank account of Vinay Chandran, which will be used to take care of these payments.

We thank all of you once again for the love and support that you have shown for this campaign.

Continuing telephone counselling services during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. Linking community members who call with shelters and organisations who supported them.