Burans was founded in 2014 as a partnership initiative of the Emmanuel Hospital Association with the Uttarakhand Community Health and Global Network (CHGN) cluster. Herbertpur Christian Hospital administers Burans.
Central to governance is the participation of the Experts by Experience group. People with lived experience of mental health problems help us set programme priorities, develop acceptable and engaging resources and build strong relationships in communities.
Our Vision
We envision communities in Uttarakhand equipped with the knowledge and skills to maintain mental health and support others. People with mental health challenges are fully integrated into family and community life, with access to the necessary resources, services, and support to recover and lead fulfilling lives.
Our MISSION
Promoting Mental Health
Our community workers provide psychosocial care and support those experiencing mental distress in accessing government services.
Empowering Community Members
Through group interventions, we empower people with disabilities, caregivers, youth, parents, and prison inmates, fostering resilience and self-efficacy.
Co-Designing with Communities
We work closely with community-based Experts by Experience groups to ensure our programs are contextually relevant and prioritize community needs. This co-production fosters self-reliance and empowers communities to find their own solutions.
Strengthening Government Health Systems
We build strong relationships with government health systems to improve the availability, relevance, and quality of services and medication, particularly in hard-to-reach areas and among disadvantaged groups.
Our Values
Welcome (स्वागत)
We welcome each person as created in God’s image so we include and respect all regardless of ability, caste, religion, gender, ethnicity or income.
Fun (मज़ा)
Joy and playfulness are an undercurrent that we look for in our work, in our interactions and in the deeper meaning we find in our work to support and build mental health in communities.
Equality (समानता)
We work in participatory ways to bring outcomes that increase equity and justice for people who are systematically disadvantaged.
Opportunity (मौक़ा)
We work with disadvantaged people to open doors usually close to them. We identify and build on strengths and assets in the community and our team.
Adaptability (जुगाड़)
Working in a setting often colourfully chaotic, we keep fine-tuning and adjusting our work to meet the needs of each new day.
Responsive (उत्तरदायी)
We listen and respond to small voices (from people only heard if we are quiet ourselves) and emerging needs in the communities we work with.
Coordination Team
Dr. Kaaren Mathias
Senior Advisor
Kaaren is a public health physician and researcher, working between India and New Zealand. She focuses on work that strengthens social inclusion, gender equality, health systems and youth resilience.
Jeet Bahadur
Team Leader
Jeet is a social worker who has been part of Burans from the start. He builds collaborative relationships with Government and supports community members to access rights and mental health care.
Prerana Singh
Trainer
Prerana grew up in rural Garhwal (western Uttarakhand) and uses her multiple skills in cross-country scooter driving, leadership, and training to support Burans teams in the field.
Atul Goodwin Singh
Project Co-ordinator
Atul is a highly energetic Burans Project Coordinator. He is instrumental in networking and rapport building as well as in planning and implementing program activities in Dehradun field areas.
Mr. Robert Kumar
Project Director
Mr. Robert Kumar is the Director of HCH community health programs and the EHA community health department. He is the founder of Anugrah disability program at HCH. He is supporting Burans with administrative and finance leadership.
Sharon Stanly
Clinical Psychologist
Sharon is a TISS alum and a counselling psychologist. Her deep interest in listening amplifies her ability to guide others on their journeys to wellbeing.
Samson Rana
Administrator
Samson is a Dehradun enthusiast, who works as an administrator for Burans. He manages finances and logistics as well as his flair for Hindi-English translations and skill in creating graphics for our resources contribute to the growth of Burans.
Puangrai Liu Rongmei
Documentation Officer
Puangrai is working as a Research and Documentation Officer with Burans. Her experience as a content writer is a great contribution and is zealous to support the team in the community.
Advisory Group
Burans Advisory group has experts in mental health, community health and development, policy and research in mental health systems
Dr Alok Sarin
Consultant Psychiatrist
Sitaram Bhartia Institute of Science and Research, New Delhi.
Dr Sumeet Jain
Sr. Lecturer in Social Work
School of Social and Political Science, University of Edinburgh
Gracy Andrew
Vice President and Director
CorStone, India
Nathan Grills
Professor and
Public Health Physician, Melbourne School of Public Health
Raj Kamal
Project manager
SHIFA mental health project, HCH, Uttar Pradesh
Sushma Cornelius
Regional Coordinator
CHGN,Uttrakhand cluster
EXPERT BY EXPERIENCE Group
Burans programs and outputs are coproduced or endorsed by community-based Experts by Experience (EBE groups). These groups provided clear advice to us about what are the priorities they feel we should work on, and ensure that our programs are contextually relevant and acceptable.
EBE Group Session
Here is a group of energetic young women who were our Experts by experience to guide the development of our Gupshup and Games inclusive sports and wellbeing intervention.
Our Team
We are a team of 35 under 35!
Dehradun Team
The Dehradun team works in two key areas: Yakub leads the Selaqui team and Pooja Baluni leads the Kanwali road team (central Dehradun).
Uttarkashi Team
The Yamuna valley team work in Naugaon block (led by Manoj and Krishna) and also working in Purola block (led by Bhagirathi and Prakash).