Sewa Sandesh 130: July 8, 2010

From Editor’s Desk
Participation of women in Sewa karya has grown phenomenally in last decade throughout the country. In many states, women activists are leading the Sewa organizations in the capacity of President or Secretary or Coordinators. Indicators clearly state that the rise in number of Sewa karyas of Sewa Bharati is some way related to this very factor. Units like Delhi Sewa Bharati have crossed the limit of 50-50, tilting towards Mahila participation, having Mahilas at all levels- from grassroots to the state level.
Any change in society can be effectively brought in provided this is supported by womenfolk. This phenomenon has to be carefully watched and understood as their contribution in Sewa activity is growing in leaps & bounds. Everyone is aware of women Seva Vratis of Hindu Seva Pratishtana, Karnataka but many are not aware of women Arogyarakshaks of North East or teachers in city of Delhi where participation of women is in good numbers.

Vidya Bharati Schools in Odisha Felicitated for Producing Excellent Results

SARASWATI Shishu Vidya Mandir schools run in Odisha by Shiksha Vikas Samiti, affiliated with Vidya Bharati, continued to perform exceptionally well in the Matriculation Examinations in the State. The Shishu Mandir students excelled in the State High School Certificate Examinations this year by notching up 56 ranks in the top 100 list, including the top five positions. Anupam Jena, a student of Cuttack Shishu Mandir, topped the exams in the State.
According to information received from Shiksha Vikas Samiti, students of 158 Saraswati Shishu Mandir schools appeared in the Board examinations. The Vidya Bharati schools recorded pass percentage of 98.58 which is much higher than the overall pass percentage of the State. This year the overall pass percentage of the State is 71.74.
Out of 158 schools, 102 schools recorded cent per cent results. There were two schools where all the students got first class.
Out of 7,911 Vidya Mandir students who appeared in the examinations, 5,635 students got first class. The percentage of students getting first class is 71.23.
The Shiksha Vikas Samiti organised a function, Medhabi Abhinandan 2010, at Rabindra Mandap in Bhubaneswar to felicitate 56 students, who secured place in the top hundred list.
Addressing the function Education Minister of the State Shri Pratap Jena, praised the role of the Shiksha Vikas Samiti for providing quality education to the students of the State. "Good management, dedication of Acharyas and the role of guardians are the keys to success for Saraswati Vidya Mandir Schools. The government schools have to learn many things from the Shishu Mandirs," he added.
Speaking on the function, national secretary of Vidya Bharati Shriram Araukar said the aim of the Shishu Mandirs is not only to provide quality education to the students but also to build their character so that they can contribute in the process of nation-building.
Shiksha Vikas Samiti secretary Dr Bijay Kumar Swain said the holistic and value based curriculum, an edifying atmosphere, strong teacher-student relationship and strict monitoring system are the main reasons for the success of the Saraswati Shishu Vidya Mandir schools. A souvenir, Krutitva Vartika was also released by chief guest Shri Pratap Jena on the occasion.
Shiksha Vikas Samiti president Shri Duryodhan Kathua presided over the meeting.

All India training camp of Bharat Sanskrit Parishad
Drive to prepare 11 lakh Sanskrit speaking families all over the country

Drive to develop 11 lakh Sanskrit speaking families all over the country BHARAT Sanskrit Parishad, a unit of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), has launched a campaign to develop at least 11 lakh Sanskrit speaking families all over the country. According to Shri Radha Krishna Manori, general secretary of Bharat Sanskrit Parishad, a concrete action plan has been formulated in this regard and such families are being prepared all over the country through Sanskrit training camps by the Parishad.
Speaking at the concluding ceremony of all India Sanskrit training camp organised in New Delhi from June 11 to 24, Shri Manori pointed out that Bharat Sanskrit Parishad is working on the agenda to connect the propagation of Sanskrit with employment generation and it is with this objective that training camps are being organised at different places of the country.
The shiksharthis are imparted training in language, Ayur Veda, astrology, Yogashastra, Gandharva Veda, writing, etc. This training in the camps is imparted by experts. A total of 75 shiksharthis attended the camp in Delhi.
Earlier, inaugurating the camp on June 11, joint secretary general of VHP Swami Vigyananand said the Sanskrit scholars would have to come forward to protect and promote the language. He said learning Sanskrit did not mean neglecting other languages. One may learn any language including English but negligence of Sanskrit would prove disastrous to India. He appealed to Sanskrit scholars to focus on science also through Sanskrit and explore new avenues of knowledge. He also apprised the gathering of the information regarding the Sanskrit gurukulas being run in America, England, Australia and New Zealand. He emphasised that Bharat can regain her glory only through the Sanskrit language.
Vice president of VHP Shri Balkrishna Naik said the Sanskrit still has worldwide influence. He appealed to each and every patriotic citizen of the country to learn Sanskrit and help in preparing Sanskrit families. Prominent among those who guided the shiksharthis at the camp in different sessions included Dr Shri Krishna Semwal of Delhi Sanskrit Academy, Sanskrit scholar Dr Ruby Verma, national working president of Bharat Sanskrit Parishad Dr Girija Shankar Sharma, general secretary of VHP (organisation) Shri Dinesh Chandra, Dr Madhu Gupta of Yoga and Naturopathy College and Prof. Deviprasad Tripathi of Lal Bahadur Shastri Sanskrit University.

Shree Chaitanya Maauli Trust Board, Sangali

Shree Chaitanya Maauli Trust Board has been rendering yeoman services to the down-trodden by running free cradle house, cultural education centre, etc. for children since 1982 with determination & perseverance.
The pious plant initially planted by Late Shri Balasaheb Joshi & Smt. Malutai Joshi with a motto of social service has now grown into a big tree. The institute is fortunate to have selfless workers, volunteers & because of support to this sacred cause from people at large more than 200 kids
of age ranging between 1 and 5 are receiving education at present.

Men and women from surrounding hut dwellings have full faith that when they leave their kids in the institute early morning at 7.30 a.m. while going away in search of work for earning livelihood, will be fully taken care of even upto late 8.00 p.m. by the institute and the kids also feel here like their own house. Thus, it can be imagined as to how much and what kind of care is required to these kids for 9-10 hrs daily.
Institute is also conducting cultural education centres at various places for children between the age-group of 9 to 14 for one or two hours once a week. About 250-300 children have benefited so far. Their mothers & sisters are also being empowered through Saving Groups and thereby making them self reliant. Shri Chaitnya Papad Home Industry is the fruit of these endeavours.

Purpose of conducting cultural centres
Every evil, unwanted destructive incident taking place in the present society is the outcome of depriving good cultural education to the large section of society. Even the honest straight forward person who believes in simple living finds it difficult to lead life and he helplessly turns to unfair means.
Unfortunately, these evils have reached our doors now and will enter in our house any moment. It can be imagined what our sweet and cultured children will have to face when they come out.

Children from rich and educated families are today following wrong path of vulgar language, unabated behaviour and that too, shamelessly. This leads unhealthy relations among youngsters.

People around us need to be religious, thankful, industrious and self respecting as well as responsible citizens so that their life can be peaceful. To uplift the society in general to a higher level of good thinking is the responsibility of the institute.

Sewa International’s Unique Water Project

In the rural areas of Nalagonda district in Andhra Pradesh, India, a village known as Mandanpally has received water filtration systems that is comparable to the ones in the mineral water plants in the country. This water filtration systems have greatly changed the lives of the villagers in this rural area, which lies in the mandal of Aleru. The population of Mandanpally is around1500 among 300 families. These water systems were kindly donated by an NRI residing in the United States. The cost of each system is approximately 1.5 lakh rupees.
The water filtration systems are located in 2 water tanks around the village. They can each produce around 500 litres of water per hour. This has made a gigantic impact on the people of Mandanpally.
The groundwater in the village has too much fluorine in it. This can cause diseases such as fluorisis. This disease can cause the teeth to become damaged. This high fluorine content can also cause paralysis. The filtered water is vital for children in early development because it affects their growth. The filtered water made available here is so good and clean that the villagers now do not prefer to drink the unfiltered water again.
One June 21st, Aditya Gande, Shashi Mutyala, Thirupathaiah Gande, and Shobhith Mathur visited the filtration systems. They talked with the village panchayat members, the president of the village and several other people residing there. They told how much it has positively impacted the community. They also examined the water filtration system and took pictures of the project.
Thus, Sewa International has made a tremendous impact on this village!

Youth For Seva Starts “Sponsor a Patient” Programme

Youth For Seva has started a new program called ‘Sponsor A Patient’, wherein it aims to provide financial, social and moral support and rehabilitation to patients with severely disabling illnesses who are unable to look after themselves and have no such support systems. This will be done by YFS volunteers during their routine field surveys as well as by word of mouth from its own social networks.
It will then include these patients in its ‘Sponsor a Patient’ database and subsequently match interested sponsors with such patients.
The sponsor can be any one above the age of 18 years who voluntarily wants to be a part of this program.
The sponsorship will be valid for 1 year. The sponsor can pay on a monthly or yearly basis. Further, the sponsor can decide whether he/she wants to pay the full amount or partial amount of the expenses for treatment, as the treatment cost for various illnesses may vary from a few thousand rupees to several lakhs.
The expected total cost of treatment will be put up along with other donor details on the website and the details will be regularly sent to the sponsors on the medical and overall social condition of the patient. The sponsor will also be allowed to communicate with the patient at any point of time, either personally, by phone, or in writing.
At the end of 1st year, the sponsor can choose to renew the sponsorship.

Seema Jagran Manch (S.J.M.) Plans to Build Schools on Indo-Nepal Border

The newly formed Seema Jagran Manch (S.J.M.) has decided to undertake the task of constructing schools and coaching centres in the border areas of India and Nepal, which is roughly 550 kilometer long. Through these schools the Manch would also be able to create an ‘army of patriots’ to check anti-national activity on this porous border.

Remember, your work may be only to sweep a railway crossing but it is your duty to keep it so clean that no other crossing in the world is as clean as yours. – Sir M. Vishweswaraiah.

More Smiles Than Worries: Baba Ramdev with Bhutanese Refugee children at Dallas Youth Camp, U.S.A. The Programme was organized by Sewa USA.