Kolkata Relief is a highly effective and radically transparent non-profit which cares for the homeless families of Kolkata, India. Welcome to our website.
Kolkata Relief started in 2017 with the delivery of a single tarp to protect a single homeless family from the rain. We continue to deliver these tarps which act as roofing and protection for the families and the few objects they own. Watch the first family we ever helped.
We provide a first aid kit complete with antiseptic liquid, bandages, band-aids, medical tape and sterilized gauze. These are essential to prevent small wounds, bites and scratches from infecting, thus preventing the escalation to disease and amputation. Watch the first aid kit video.
Every kit contains a family-sized mosquito-net for protection from malaria, dengue and other mosquito-related diseases. Apart from the preventive medical benefits, the mosquito net also provides an additional layer of comfort and security from the threats of the street.
In an attempt to combat illiteracy and provide street children with a better opportunity of becoming literate, we distribute a small waterproof book with basic Maths, English, Bengali, and Good Habits to every single child we find on our delivery route.
Cost of each relief kit, including delivery:
€5
For the price of a small drink you can save an entire family from rain, malaria, dengue, wound infection, and illiteracy.
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Homeless in Kolkata
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Kits Delivered So Far
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Make a Difference
Effective Altruism is a philosophy and rapidly growing movement about doing the most good possible. Effective altruists use both heart and mind in order to support cost-effective, sustainable and transparent interventions to improve the world. At Kolkata Relief we're effective altruists - you're probably one too. Watch the video and find out.
Feeding the Poor
Daily wagers all around India are in risk of famine due to the lockdown. We’ve partnered with Little Big Help, a Kolkata and Copenhagen based non-profit which shares our values of efficiency and transparency and with whom we have been distributing the follow relief kit in Kolkata’s slums:
COVID-19 FOOD AND HYGIENE KIT
– 4Kg of Rice
– 2Kg of Potatoes
– 1Kg of Lentils
– One Hand Sanitizer or Soap
The average price of THREE of these relief kits, which is enough food for 3 people for a week, is about 700 rupees (€10).
100% of your donations will go towards purchasing the life-saving items above.
If you wish to make a one-time donation you can do so in this section. However, we must tell you that a monthly donation (any amount) is always more impactful because it helps us know what we can count on in the future and grow sustainably. You can make that happen by becoming a part of the Homeless Heroes community in the section below!
Thank you for caring <3
Monthly, High-Impact Giving.
We set ourselves the goal of having 100 monthly donors in our fantastic community of Homeless Heroes before the start of the monsoon season.
If you’re one of these first 100 and stay onboard for at least a year you’ll be awarded the lifetime status of Kolkata Pioneer – an exclusive community which will go down in history as our first supporters and will receive a unique thank-you gift in the mail later on next year. The world needs people who are not only kind, but also believe in taking meaningful action – our Homeless Heroes tend to be both. 
SINGLE FAMILY HEROES
€0,16 / day
Single Family Heroes help a homeless family every month. This tier was built thinking of kids whose parents might want to teach them the joys of donating a small amount, making the world a better place, and witnessing their impact. (€5/month)
Reference: This is how much our average donor spends on chewing gum.
DOUBLE FAMILY HEROES
€0,33 / day
Double Family Heroes help two homeless families every month and are awesome. This tier was built mostly thinking about students who can identify that 33cents per day won’t make a big difference in their amazing lives. (€10/month)
Reference: This is how much our average donor spends on biscuits.
EURO CLUB
€1 / day
Our most popular choice. In the Euro Club what you’re doing is simple, easy, and quite beautiful – a single Euro per day helps a homeless family every week. We recommend this tier for young adults just getting into the workforce. (€30/month)
Reference: This is how much our average donor spends on coffee.
See more tiers
NIFTY FIFTY
€1,67 / day
Our Nifty Fifty club are amazing humans who help ten families every month for less than the price of a soup. Ever heard a story of disgrace about someone who was too generous to non-profits? Us neither! It’s all about giving according to what you can honestly do without! (€50/month)
Reference: This is how much our average donor spends on nightlife and drinks.
KOLKATA UNICORNS
€2,50 / day
Kolkata Unicorns rock (all our patrons do). They help a homeless family every two days. We might be tempted to say that unicorns are really generous – they are – but when you think about it €2.50 per day is actually quite doable for most people working in first world countries.(€75/month)
Reference: This is how much our average donor spends on tourism.
TRUE BOSSES
€5 / day
You guessed it – at this tier every night you go to bed proud for having donated enough to help one of the poorest families in the world. Every day will be charged with meaning. True Bosses give €5 a day and understand it doesn’t have any significant impact on their quality of life. (€150/month)
Reference: This is how much our average donor spends on eating out.
A monthly plan boosts the positive impact of your donations. Knowing what we can count on allows for better planning, sustainable job creation, and generally doing more good. Consider monthly donations – even if that means a smaller amount! You’re always free to cancel. If you still wish to make a one-time donation you can do so here. Thank you for caring!
I'm not rich enough.
Some people believe we can should all help each other out in life. Others believe only the the richest 10% should help the poorest 10%. Do you agree? Click below to find out how rich you are! You might be surprised at your luck.
I don't feel a moral obligation.
Moral philosophy is beautifully complicated. At Kolkata Relief we don't believe in making people feel bad about not giving. The quiz below makes some good arguments though! Worst case scenario you'll learn some nice philosophy.
We used to be donors too.
That’s why we’ve had two main driving forces since day one.
Efficiency and Transparency
When it comes to knowing what happened to your donation we want to be the most comfortable and crystal-clear non-profit you’ve ever been involved with.
View the spreadsheets below for purchasing and delivery costs of previous years, detailed until the very last penny. At Kolkata Relief transparency will always be our middle name. Feel free to ask us any questions, we’re a message away and eager to help 🙂
2017 Spreadsheet
2018 Spreadsheet
2019 Spreadsheet
At Kolkata Relief we conduct research regarding the pavement and slum dwellers of the city. Apart from registering each family, their size, GPS coordinates and other basic information, we are also getting to know their greatest problems in life, average income per day, occupation, education levels, and many other data points soon to be published. This also allows us to follow-up each family we have helped and measure the durability and real impact of our intervention.
Click the map above to see all our open-source data!
What You Can Do
Consider for a moment how lucky we are for being born into conditions far better than the homeless of India. For only €5 per month you can make an enormous difference in another human being’s life.
We guarantee full transparency, full accountability, and share every step of the way with our supporters. Click here to donate – the world needs your kindness today!
IBAN: PT50001000005726623000158
SWIFT: BBPIPTPL
Bank name: Banco BPI
Rua Tenente Valadim, 284, 4100-476 Porto
donations@kolkatar.org
Help us get the word out! Share our Facebook and Instagram content. If your sharing results in donations then that’s a high impact action at no financial cost whatsoever. If you are an influencer of any kind, whether amongst your close friends or for an entire country, then this is an opportunity for you to influence people for good. Roll up your sleeves and let’s get going! After all, you just might save a life.
Visit our Facebook Page
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Win a Sitar Concert
If you raise more than €500 within your community you win a free Sitar concert as a gesture of thanks from our founder, Tomás Magalhães. This could be your school, your company or even your charitable group of friends! We kindly ask that you assist with travel and accommodation. Use your talents to start a fundraiser in your community, help 100 street families who need our help, and win a free sitar concert along the way.
It’s a win-win-win.
Our Team
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Our corporate sponsors allow us to grow sustainably. They help pay for running and administrative costs. This is what keeps the price of helping a family so low! We also give them some very cool stuff in return. Get in touch, let’s talk!