During my recent India visit one entire day was spent visiting institutes like Maher (an NGO run by Sister Lucy Kurien) and some institutes associated with Dr. Girish Kulkarni's Snehalaya. One of my mentors who is also a very close family friend Mr. Chandrashekhar Vairale made this journey possible for me. I wanted to visit these places during my last India visit but it didn't materialize because of so many reasons, but I am glad that I could find some time during this visit. I have no hesitation in accepting that this visit was one of the most revealing experiences for me.
We started our day by visiting an NGO Maher (which means mother's home), this organization provides shelter and support to women and their children who face various difficulties in society because of various reasons. The work done by this NGO in this area with limited resources at their disposal is really commendable. I was really impressed by the dedication and sincerity of the people involved in this work. The types of cases they handle are not easy, one should listen to the stories they tell about the victims it is not easy to listen to those stories without getting disturbed but these people deal with these things daily. My entire day was spent visiting various institutes run by dedicated people who believed in helping people in distress. Next, we visited an NGO run by a very young man Mr. Anant Zende which works towards the upliftment of kids from "pardhi samaj." This visit was also very memorable. People of this community are facing various problems, they are looked at with suspicion and many times forced to engage in acts like robbery because of social conditions. The work done by this NGO to rescue the children of these families from this vicious cycle is very commendable. It was inspiring to see that Anant is doing this work along with his regular job at school. His story and dedication were proof that if anyone wants to engage in such work it is possible under any circumstances. We all can give some reason not to do any such work but if we really want to do it is possible and Anant is an example of this.
Snehalaya is doing its work mainly to help women and children in distress. Their work in the area of helping HIV-positive people was highlighted in Amir Khan's show Satyamev Jayate. One needs to visit this place to witness the amazing work they are doing to help these people. They are not only helping them to survive but also trying to make them independent. They also have their own radio station, farms, and cows for milk production and are always looking for new ideas that can help them become self-sufficient. All these organizations receive very little or no government support, they mostly rely on people's donations to carry out their day-to-day activities. It is not easy to take care of so many people with so limited resources but all of them are doing a great job. I was really impressed to see their dedication and commitment towards their work. Hats off to Dr. Girish Kulkarni and his dedicated team.
I don't like traveling much. During my India visit, I rarely visit so-called popular tourist destinations, they don't attract me much. I have a long list of places recommended by various friends and relatives that I have not visited yet because of my reluctance to travel. I don't visit temples/churches or mosques to pray as I don't believe in the traditional concept of god or prayers but I go to see them for their architecture and history associated with them and I love this part, it fascinates me a lot. But institutes like 'Snehalaya' or 'Maher' are temples/churches/Mosques of humanity according to me. I visit them to pay my tribute and respect to great humans like Dr. Girish Kulkarni or Sister Lucy Kurien who work towards the welfare of underprivileged people in our society. My head bows to everyone who works there with so much dedication and love. These types of institutes and the people working in them care for people who are abandoned even by their own family members. They not only take care of them but also try to make them stand on their own feet and begin a new life. This all is very incredible stuff, a truly divine experience. One thing that I noticed was that most of these people were inspired by the life and work of Mr. Baba Amte. He was a great social worker who dedicated his entire life to working towards the rehabilitation of abandoned people from our society. His work for leprosy affected people in the era when they were treated like untouchables is legendary. It is really unfortunate that his work didn't get as much recognition as Mother Teresa's work in the same area but I was glad to see that he inspired so many people to work towards similar causes. His work and legacy have been carried forward by many people like his own sons Dr. Vikas and Prakash Amte, Dr. Girish Kulkarni, Anant Zende, and many others. One really needs to visit these places and see the work with their own eyes to experience it and then only one realizes the effect of Baba Amte's work and teachings on them.
It is my humble request to all my friends and readers of my blog that whenever you have time please go and visit these places to see their incredible work. Don't believe some hearsay or advertising, visit these places and get informed about their work and then decide whether to help or not. If you are convinced about their sincerity and relevance then please donate whenever possible in whatever way you can. They don't ask for money or anything when you visit them so don't worry about that but always remember that these types of institutes heavily depend on donations from people like you and me for their day-to-day activities so one should think of donating them something, it can be money, your time or clothes. Many people in our society are not fortunate enough to get many things that most of us take for granted. If we all all can chip in a little bit institutes like Snehalaya can work to make these people's lives as normal as possible.
Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.
Snehalaya is doing its work mainly to help women and children in distress. Their work in the area of helping HIV-positive people was highlighted in Amir Khan's show Satyamev Jayate. One needs to visit this place to witness the amazing work they are doing to help these people. They are not only helping them to survive but also trying to make them independent. They also have their own radio station, farms, and cows for milk production and are always looking for new ideas that can help them become self-sufficient. All these organizations receive very little or no government support, they mostly rely on people's donations to carry out their day-to-day activities. It is not easy to take care of so many people with so limited resources but all of them are doing a great job. I was really impressed to see their dedication and commitment towards their work. Hats off to Dr. Girish Kulkarni and his dedicated team.
I don't like traveling much. During my India visit, I rarely visit so-called popular tourist destinations, they don't attract me much. I have a long list of places recommended by various friends and relatives that I have not visited yet because of my reluctance to travel. I don't visit temples/churches or mosques to pray as I don't believe in the traditional concept of god or prayers but I go to see them for their architecture and history associated with them and I love this part, it fascinates me a lot. But institutes like 'Snehalaya' or 'Maher' are temples/churches/Mosques of humanity according to me. I visit them to pay my tribute and respect to great humans like Dr. Girish Kulkarni or Sister Lucy Kurien who work towards the welfare of underprivileged people in our society. My head bows to everyone who works there with so much dedication and love. These types of institutes and the people working in them care for people who are abandoned even by their own family members. They not only take care of them but also try to make them stand on their own feet and begin a new life. This all is very incredible stuff, a truly divine experience. One thing that I noticed was that most of these people were inspired by the life and work of Mr. Baba Amte. He was a great social worker who dedicated his entire life to working towards the rehabilitation of abandoned people from our society. His work for leprosy affected people in the era when they were treated like untouchables is legendary. It is really unfortunate that his work didn't get as much recognition as Mother Teresa's work in the same area but I was glad to see that he inspired so many people to work towards similar causes. His work and legacy have been carried forward by many people like his own sons Dr. Vikas and Prakash Amte, Dr. Girish Kulkarni, Anant Zende, and many others. One really needs to visit these places and see the work with their own eyes to experience it and then only one realizes the effect of Baba Amte's work and teachings on them.
It is my humble request to all my friends and readers of my blog that whenever you have time please go and visit these places to see their incredible work. Don't believe some hearsay or advertising, visit these places and get informed about their work and then decide whether to help or not. If you are convinced about their sincerity and relevance then please donate whenever possible in whatever way you can. They don't ask for money or anything when you visit them so don't worry about that but always remember that these types of institutes heavily depend on donations from people like you and me for their day-to-day activities so one should think of donating them something, it can be money, your time or clothes. Many people in our society are not fortunate enough to get many things that most of us take for granted. If we all all can chip in a little bit institutes like Snehalaya can work to make these people's lives as normal as possible.
Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.
[Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing]
Links:
1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pk4Q3n5rcmQ
2. http://vssanant.blogspot.com/p/about-us_14.html
Links:
1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pk4Q3n5rcmQ
2. http://vssanant.blogspot.com/p/about-us_14.html
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