Based on a careful cost accounting we did in the fall of 2006, the following are the typical monthly costs to care for the six ophans living at the Love God Home.  The US dollar amounts have been converted from India rupees at an exchange rate of 43.5 rupees to one dollar.

     Cost                Description

     $   97        Meals for six orphans

     $   57        Flat rent

     $   51        Caregiver's salary and meals

     $   39        Electricity, water, and l.p. gas

     $   12        Medical care reserve

     $     7        Government school tuition

     $ 263        Total of monthly costs

     Divide six into $ 263 and the average monthly cost for one orphan is about $ 44 during the school year, which runs from July-March.  There are also a few annual costs.

     Each child gets a new school uniform once a year.  The uniform costs $ 9.  The school textbooks cost $ 8.  A book bag to carry the textbooks costs $ 4.

     Each child also gets a bed, which is a thick mat that lays on the floor.  A bed costs $ 7.  We estimate that a bed will last two years before it needs to be replaced.

     The medical care reserve is set aside for prescription medicines.  Health care is free in India at the government-run hospitals.  But, prescription medicines and surgeries are not free.

     These are the actual costs to care for an orphan.  When the Love God Home has its own building there will be no rent to pay.  That should reduce the per-child cost a little.

     Inflation has been steadily increasing in India.  The prices for some food items, like cooking oil, have gone up considerably since the cost survey was done.  The prices in Maharashtra state are typically higher than elsewhere in India.  Mumbai (Bombay) is India's most expensive city.

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