India, the world’s fastest growing economy and most populous democracy, is a colorful mosaic of coexisting cultures and faiths. India’s Jews—who trace their roots as far as 2,000 years back—are among them, openly practicing in larger communities in Mumbai and Thane and much smaller ones in cities including Pune, Gujarat (Ahmedabad), Kerala (Cochin), Delhi, Kolkata and the Konkan Villages.
Because of India’s huge population and significant poverty, the country’s limited government-run social services are massively overloaded. The Jewish or Bene Israel community lack the welfare infrastructure to meet all of the needs of poor, elderly, and vulnerable Jews among them.
JDC, operational in India for over four decades, partners with various local organizations to ensure the development of critical care for Jews in need and a viable future for the community.
To address the myriad needs of the Indian Jewish community, JDC:
- Saves India's poorest Jews by caring for needy elderly at the Bayiti Home for the Aged, which provides a warm, homelike environment to destitute residents. JDC’s welfare assistance, health care, material support, and meals-on-wheels programs for indigent Jews offer a lifeline in a country with no social safety net to rely on.
- Develops tomorrow’s Jewish leaders by fostering volunteerism and providing leadership and Jewish educator training for young adults to ensure a new generation of Jewish continuity.
- Revitalizes Jewish life by offering all Jewish children access to a Jewish education, and supporting informal educational programs such as Jewish camping, social activities, and Jewish holiday celebrations. JDC also strengthens local Jewish life through social, religious, and cultural programs for children, youth, and adults offered by the Evelyn Peters Jewish Community Center (EPJCC) in Mumbai.
- Rescues victims of emergencies: Following the phase out of its tsunami relief activities in India, JDC has maintained its longtime local partnerships and hosted disaster mitigation seminars and preparedness workshops, convening practitioners in the field from eight countries in the region.
For a candid account of a young Jew in India’s transformation through JDC’s leadership development opportunities, read Meirah’s inspiring story.