The Gurkha Welfare Trust

Hilary Pearce on behalf of the Gurkha Welfare Trust receiving the Award from Dr Shini Somara with Master Engineer Eur Ing Penny Taylor, JP and Clerk Cdr Peter Gracey VR RN [photo courtesy of Mark Witter Photography] 

The Gurkha Welfare Trust provides financial, medical and development aid to Gurkha veterans, their families and communities.  In late 2024, the Engineers Trust awarded the fourth Engineering Outreach Grant of £5,000 to The Gurkha Welfare Trust for an engineering project that will deliver a year-round supply of clean water to 38 households in the neighbouring villages of Jhirbas and Sirandhara that are in Nepal’s Gulmi district, with a population of 172. They will build a tap on the doorstep of every home, which will prevent the need for women and children to walk hours daily to collect water from streams that become contaminated during monsoon season. In Jhirbas, one school teaching 141 students will also receive a tap and toilet block containing a male, female, and disabled toilet. Because it won’t be necessary for children to go and fetch water, they will spend more time in the classroom and practice safe hygiene at the school. The girls will have privacy in gender-separate toilets and so will not need to miss school.

Waste will be effectively managed using an incinerator. A community building and two temples will also receive taps, ensuring community participation in cultural activities is safe and hygienic. The Engineering Outreach grant will be a significant part of the remaining cost needed to deliver the project (estimated total project cost is £31,570.41, £20,000 already pledged) which is expected to complete in the summer 2025.

A grant launched in 2021 for a specific project or programme of work that uses engineering in the relief of poverty where the timeline and measurable outcomes are clearly defined. Applicant organisations are restricted to UK registered Charities, but the delivery can be world-wide.

The Worshipful Company of Engineers Charitable Trust (the Engineers Trust) acknowledges excellence in engineering, supports engineering education and research, gives grants and assists in the relief of hardship and poverty.