Community Organisation for Oppressed and Depressed Upliftment

Community Organisation for Oppressed and Depressed Upliftment (COODU – which in Tamil denotes “nest”), was initiated in 1995 by a group of Research Scholars in their early years of social work. The Organisation actually began as an answer to the thousands of street children and juvenile delinquents in the state’s rapidly growing cities. Studying their poor socio-economic conditions and providing insights to planners and policy makers through various forums, workshops and seminars paved the way for establishment of COODU. Gradually, the Organisation began to answer needs of all oppressed sections of society besides children. Women were the focus of several programmes, as they were marginalised, victimised and vulnerable to physical and economic exploitation. This ushered in the launch of large scale watershed projects aiming at improving the basic needs of the poor – food, clothing and shelter. Through the twenty five years of its vibrant existence, COODU has done pioneering work in the sectors of Agriculture and Allied Sectors, Environment, Health, Water and Sanitation, Public Health and HIV/AIDS care and support services......reaching out to more and more people, year on year.