About us
INFOCEM was envisaged by Mr. Mahesh way back in 2014 when one of his friends lost his life due to a lack of HIV-related services including the unavailability of a medical kit at the nearby facility center in Karimnagar. During the same period, he witnessed many similar cases in the district where people living with HIV and other key populations such as sexual minorities, Women in Sex Work, and their children were discriminated against and excluded due to lack of service availability at their neighboring centers. Influenced by these factors, Mr. Mahesh consulted with friends and like-minded people to register a community-based organization to promote the overall health status of vulnerable communities in Karimnagar. The organization was registered in 2020 at the same time when the second wave of the COVID pandemic was at its peak.
The CBO was registered on January 10, 2020, under the Telangana Societies Registration Act 2001. The INFOCEM family members have equal voting rights and have used their rights to make the organization inclusive, promoting new leadership by empowering the sexual minority community.
Today, the CBO with 5,126 community members has strengthened its strategy to reach out to the socially and sexually marginalized and discriminated communities across the districts. Since its inception, the organization has been focusing on target populations like sex workers (PLHIV), sexual minorities, and vulnerable women and children, and enhancing their skills to plan, manage, and implement HIV prevention initiatives.
INFOCEM facilitates skill enhancement initiatives on income generation for the neediest community members and works towards the inclusion of the marginalized community in government-supported safety-net schemes and programmes. Imparting quality education to underprivileged children is one of the focus areas of the organization. Further, the organization is creating linkages with like-minded organizations to advocate issues and concerns of marginalized communities.