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By:

Shoumojit Banerjee

27 August 2024 at 9:57:52 am

Classroom of Courage

In drought-scarred Maharashtra, a couple’s experiment in democratic schooling is turning child beggars into model citizens In the parched stretches of Maharashtra, from Solapur to the drought-hit villages of Marathwada, a modest social experiment has quietly unfolded for nearly two decades. It is neither a grand government scheme nor a corporate-backed charity. Since 2007, the Ajit Foundation, founded by Mahesh and Vinaya Nimbalkar, has worked with children living at the sharpest edges of...

Classroom of Courage

In drought-scarred Maharashtra, a couple’s experiment in democratic schooling is turning child beggars into model citizens In the parched stretches of Maharashtra, from Solapur to the drought-hit villages of Marathwada, a modest social experiment has quietly unfolded for nearly two decades. It is neither a grand government scheme nor a corporate-backed charity. Since 2007, the Ajit Foundation, founded by Mahesh and Vinaya Nimbalkar, has worked with children living at the sharpest edges of society in Maharashtra. The foundation has become a home for out-of-school children, those who have never enrolled, the children of migrant labourers and single parents, and those who scavenge at garbage dumps or drift between odd jobs. To call their foundation an “NGO” is to miss the point. Vinaya Nimbalkar describes it as a “democratic laboratory”, where education is not merely instruction but an initiation into citizenship. The couple were once government schoolteachers with the Solapur Zilla Parishad, leading stable lives. Yet what they witnessed unsettled them: children who had never held a pencil, begging at traffic signals or sorting refuse for a living. Prompted by this reality, the Nimbalkars resigned their jobs to work full-time for the education of such children. Leap of Faith They began modestly, teaching children in migrant settlements in Solapur and using their own salaries to pay small honorariums to activists. Funds soon ran dry, and volunteers drifted away. Forced out of their home because of their commitment to the cause, they started a one-room school where Vinaya, Mahesh, their infant son Srijan and forty children aged six to fourteen lived together as an unlikely family. The experiment later moved to Barshi in the Solapur district with support from Anandvan. Rural hardship, financial uncertainty and the pandemic repeatedly tested their resolve. At one stage, they assumed educational guardianship of nearly 200 children from families that survived by collecting scrap on the village outskirts. Eventually, the foundation relocated to Talegaon Dabhade near Pune, where it now runs a residential hostel. Twenty-five children currently live and study there. The numbers may seem modest, but the ambition is not. Democracy in Practice What distinguishes the Ajit Foundation is not only who it serves but also how it operates. Within its walls, democracy is practised through a Children’s Gram Panchayat and a miniature Municipal Council elected by the children themselves. Young candidates canvass, hold meetings and present their budgets. Children maintain accounts and share decisions about chores, activities and certain disciplinary matters. In a country where democratic culture is often reduced to voting, the foundation’s approach is quietly radical. It treats children from marginalised backgrounds as citizens in formation. The right to choose — whether to focus on sport, cooking, mathematics or cultural activities — is respected. “We try never to take away what is their own,” says Vinaya Nimbalkar. Rather than forcing every child into a uniform academic mould, individual abilities are encouraged. A boy skilled in daily calculations may not be pushed into hours of bookish study; a girl who excels in cooking may lead the kitchen team. For children who have known only precarity, standing for election, managing a budget or speaking at a meeting can be transformative. On International Women’s Day, the foundation seeks visibility not just for praise but for partnership. If you are inspired by their mission, consider supporting or collaborating—your involvement can help extend opportunities to more children in need.

Bihar’s verdict and the politics of precision

From Amit Shah’s silent calculus to the steady hands of Modi and Nitish, the NDA’s unity became its greatest campaign message.

Union Minister and LJP (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan being garlanded by the party's winning MLAs during a press conference in Patna on Saturday. Pic: PTI
Union Minister and LJP (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan being garlanded by the party's winning MLAs during a press conference in Patna on Saturday. Pic: PTI

Bihar’s recent election results tell a story much larger than the numbers on the scoreboard. The NDA’s historic mandate is, in many ways, a reflection of the state’s evolving political consciousness, and notably of the growing influence of women voters who have reshaped the contours of power in the heartland. Their participation added strength and direction to the NDA's sweeping victory, turning the election into a referendum not just on governance, but on trust. 


Behind the scenes of this outcome stood three decisive figures Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Modi's mass appeal and Nitish's administrative experience offered the face and foundation of the campaign, but it was Amit Shah's precise, quietly executed strategy that transformed the momentum into victory. For three relentless months, Shah stayed in constant motion-building bridges among alliance partners, listening to restless cadres, and ensuring that the NDA spoke in one unified voice.


Personal engagement

Seat-sharing, often the source of bitter infighting in any coalition, was handled not through diktats but through dialogue Shah’s personal engagement with the leaders of every constituent party, and his willingness to resolve friction with patient negotiation, became the invisible glue that held the alliance together. In sharp contrast, the Mahagathbandhan seemed to stumble under its own contradictions, unable to project coherence or confidence. Bihar, known for its acute political sensitivity, read this contrast with clarity. 


Another of Shah’s quiet masterstrokes was his outreach to disgruntled BJP aspirants who had been left out of ticket distribution. Rather than allowing resentment to fester, he chose engagement over exclusion-meeting them, listening to their concerns, and bringing them back into the fold. This prevented internal fragmentation and projected a disciplined image of the party machinery. A team of leaders including Dharmendra Pradhan, Nityanand Rai, Vinod Tawde and Samrat Choudhary added force to this strategy, ensuring its effective groundwork across regions. The NDA constituent parties also extended full cooperation and Nitish Kumar, in particular, played a key role in establishing coordination. 


The NDA’s victory, therefore, is not merely an electoral success but a study in political orchestration-a blend of leadership, timing, and understanding of voter psychology. It captures the mature dynamics of Bihar’s electorate, who responded to cohesion over confusion, steadiness over rhetoric. The alliance now faces its real test which is to translate this trust into governance that deepens development and strengthens faith in democratic accountability. Bihar’s verdict is both a reward and a reminder that strategy wins elections, but sincerity sustains power.

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