The Gurkha Welfare Trust - Established for the relief of poverty stricken Gurkhas and their dependants.

The Trust is delighted to learn that Hon Lt (QGO) Tulbahadur Pun VC has been granted a visa to visit UK and apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR). As a holder of the Victoria Cross he is well known to the Trust and is highly respected by the ex-service community in both Britain and Nepal.

Tulbahadur's arrival in the UK comes after considerable public pressure for a review of his unsuccessful application for ILR. The Trust has been overwhelmed with telephone calls of support for Tulbahadur and expressions of concern and we thank our supporters for making their views known. We equally thank them for understanding that it is not the Trust's remit to engage in matters of Government immigration policy. Nonetheless, the Trust has been very heartened to receive this reminder of the public's fondness and affection for the Gurkha soldier. It no doubt reflects the debt of honour felt by the public for the sacrifice and contribution countless men like Tulbahadur Pun VC have made to the Crown.

As a Service Pensioner, Tulbahadur and his family have been entitled to use the Trust's medical scheme in Nepal and it has been our pleasure and privilege to provide this essential support. The Trust's work has also extended to the provision of a water project in Tulbahadur's hill village in 1999 and the establishment of temporary dental and medical camps in 2004 and 2006 in support of his wider village community.

While the primary focus of the Trust's work is Nepal, it has worldwide responsibility for all ex Gurkhas who find themselves in need of welfare support. Outside Nepal the Trust works with in-country agencies to pursue these aims.

In the United Kingdom, welfare support for ex-members of the Brigade in distress is, in the first instance, co-ordinated through the Headquarters Brigade of Gurkhas (HQBG). HQBG in turn liaise with existing Service charities. This procedure avoids the need for the Trust to establish a network of costly welfare centres and welfare staff in UK - and ensures we retain our focus on the plight of the welfare pensioners in Nepal.

In recognition of this support the Trust makes an annual grant to the Army Benevolent Fund, the Army's leading charity. For the last two years the Trust has made a grant of £50,000 in acknowledgement of the Army Benevolent fund's tremendous support.

As the only charity in the world dedicated to welfare support for Gurkha ex-servicemen living in poverty and distress in Nepal, the Trust will take an active interest in supporting Tulbahadur Pun VC during his stay in this country.

The Trust welcomes donations towards its work with Gurkha ex-servicemen in Nepal and appreciates the ongoing generosity of the British public.

However the Trust cannot, sadly, accept donations specifically for Tulbahadur Pun VC. This is because a special collection and subsequent dispersal of tied funds for a specific individual is outside the Trust's objects. This policy does not affect the Trust's sponsored welfare pension program where members of the public sponsor a nominal beneficiary who in turn receives a monthly welfare pension from the Trust's allocated funds.

Make a donation in support of the Trust's work in Nepal with all Gurkha ex servicemen in need.

While the Trust welcomes Tulbahadur's arrival, it hopes the current attention will remain equally focused on the plight of other Gurkha ex-servicemen in Nepal, especially those without a service pension who, but for the work of the Trust and the generosity of our supporters, would live in poverty and distress. Today, the Trust cares for 10,500 welfare pensioners or their widows in Nepal who, unlike Tulbahadur, did not serve the minimum 15 years required to qualify for a service pension. The vast majority of these welfare pensioners are veterans of WWII and are more than 80 years of age. Each month we provide them with a welfare pension of 3,333 Nepalese Rupees (about £24). We also provide free primary medical care at our network of Area Welfare Centres and secondary medical care in Nepal's very best hospitals.