Mission to uplift the tribals

Having started the first English school in Walvanda village, Savali Charitable Trust aims to bring tribals at par with all Mumbai: Having worked for the cause of upliftment of the tribals residing in the remote villages around Jawhar in Palghar district of Maharashtra for years, Savali Charitable Trust has now started an English medium school in a remote village called Walvanda, with the sole aim of providing equal opportunities to the tribals who are convinced by the power of education, but...

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Having started the first English school in Walvanda village, Savali Charitable Trust aims to bring tribals at par with all Mumbai: Having worked for the cause of upliftment of the tribals residing in the remote villages around Jawhar in Palghar district of Maharashtra for years, Savali Charitable Trust has now started an English medium school in a remote village called Walvanda, with the sole aim of providing equal opportunities to the tribals who are convinced by the power of education, but suffer lack guidance and infrastructure. While Savali has been working in the tribal belt in Palghar since 2007 through scores of initiatives from nutrition program, to medical and health care initiatives to guiding the tribals on how to generate employment opportunities, the idea of starting Savali English School was suggested by local tribal families who have since long benefited by the initiatives of the Savali. Speaking to ‘The Perfect Voice’ , Madhavi Deodhar who conducted adult education program in Walvanda and wife of Savali’s founder Vinayak Deodhar said, “The inspiration came from the locals who were convinced by the need to have education in English. However, our initiative of conducting adult education also helped us to get a positive response. Women attended the education program in huge numbers. Fortunately, men did not oppose.” While Madhavi Deodhar patiently decided to educate the tribal residents on a basic level to make them self-reliant enough to be able to at least read and understand the documents they were blindly signing, her effort got tremendous response with most of the residents understanding the power of education. Less infrastructure There are few schools in Jawhar and Vikramgad area. However, they are very far and lack basic infrastructure and good teachers. Private schools in the area are expensive and unaffordable to the tribals. “A local tribal Suresh Nikule who helped us with land for our medical centre, urged us to build an English school and gave us his support. To our fortune, our 17 years of trust helped us gain support both from local govt authorities and local residents. We engaged teachers from Virar, Vasai area. We have also arranged a van with a driver for commuting”, said Manoj Borkar who has taken full charge of the school. Borkar who is a Chartered Accountant and has been a Trustee after quitting a leadership role in the corporate world. The school spanned across 12,000 sq.ft which was started in June 2025, includes 24 classrooms, catering to students from kindergarten to grade 10 with class sizes capped at 35 to ensure attention to each child. Vinayak Deodhar, a practicing Chartered Accountant and resident of Mumbai’s Vile Parle who established Savali in 2007, said, “What will the tribals do after they graduate from a normal school? We need to educate them so that they are truly independent. Hence, we have planned to include subjects that cover introduction to basic technology, like animal husbandry, electric engineering, technical training, agricultural training and home science. Our school will be unique in this area.” Health care Savali’s work in the tribal belt began with health care services and soon evolved into a full-fledged day care centre and 3 mobile medical vans with comprehensive facilities including pathology, digital x-ray, opthal to name a few, reaching nearly 200,000 tribal residents of 164 villages. Palghar district where Savali works is known for widespread malnutrition due to extreme poverty, lack of clean water, irregular electricity supply and poor transport facilities. For the last 9 years, Savali has supported 800 students in 27 govt schools with nutritional supplements and medication. Vinayak Deodhar said, “Government has already initiated plans on all that we are doing. If the execution happens, we won’t need to do anything. While some resisted, there were several helpful officers who allowed us to continue, because the locals trusted us.” Trust, the key When it comes to tribal areas, the biggest challenge is trust. Typically, tribal residents do not trust anyone out of fear of being duped of their lands. Savalee believed that action cultivates trust not promises. “Walvanda village is blessed with rainfall. However, the houses are built on hills and water doesn’t reach them. There is no electricity supply. Women who were nine months pregnant walked long stretches to fetch a pot full of water. We first involved experts and ensured that in 37 villages women received tap water in their homes, and electricity supply was established through solar panels in 30 schools to get E-Learning education. That helped win their trust.” Savali has also encouraged cultural events and celebrated Dahi Handi, Holi, Diwali. Deodhar said, “It’s very important to not impose any religion on them. They have long been victims of being helped in exchange for religious conversions. They are fed up with that. We celebrate cultural events and turn them into an earning also for them.For example, Mogra cultivation is ample in the area. We train them with the help of vendors in Mumbai to get them good return for their produce as they cultivate around 3.5 tonne mogara and earn rupees 2.5 crore every year.” Vinayak Deodhar explained that their expenses are much higher than what they get, and most of their initiatives are funded through donations and some from their own pockets. The idea of the Deodhars is to give what they have earned so far to the society in whatever way they can. (The trust can be reached out on savalitrust07@gmail.com and 9820223797).

India bears the brunt: Nifty crashes 1,100, Sensex nosedives 3,900 points after US trade shock

Correspondent
Apr 7
2 min read

India woke up to a financial jolt this morning as its equity markets suffered their steepest fall in nearly a year, shaken by the ripple effects of US President Donald Trump’s aggressive new tariff regime. The Sensex plunged over 3,900 points at opening bell, while the Nifty tumbled more than 1,100 points, dragging Indian stocks to a 10-month low.

This sharp decline follows a global equity rout triggered by Trump's protectionist measures, which have sent panic waves across Asia and raised the spectre of a global recession. Investors dumped shares in a massive sell-off, with Indian benchmarks reacting sharply in early trade. The Sensex dropped to 71,425.01 — down 3,939.68 points — while Nifty slipped to 21,743.65, marking a 3.5% slide from the last session.

Adding to the pressure, the Indian rupee depreciated 30 paise to open at 85.74 against the US dollar.

India Among the Hardest Hit

Trump’s latest tariff hike — framed as a push to restore fairness to global trade — has imposed country-specific duties that go as high as 50%. India has been slapped with a 26% tariff, while a 10% baseline duty applies to all nations. This has set alarm bells ringing among Indian exporters and traders already struggling with global demand volatility.

President Trump, unfazed by the financial carnage, likened the move to a bitter but necessary cure. “Sometimes you need the medicine to fix something,” he told reporters earlier today.

Analysts Urge Economic Safeguards

Market experts believe that India's current market turmoil isn't rooted in domestic issues but is rather a consequence of being tightly woven into global investment flows.

“India will face the heat, not due to domestic reasons, but as an interlinked chain in the global portfolio flows,” said Ajay Bagga, a noted market expert. “India will need a fiscal, monetary, and reform package to protect the domestic economy from this global economic winter that is threatening to settle in.”

Sunil Gurjar, SEBI-registered research analyst, warned that the Nifty50 index has breached its first support level and is approaching the next. "A further breakdown could worsen the trend and accelerate the fall," he cautioned.

Asian Markets Bleed

The tremors from Trump's announcement were first felt in Asia, with key markets suffering steep losses. China's stock markets fell over 4% amid retaliatory tariffs of 34% against the US. Hong Kong's Hang Seng nosedived more than 10%, while Japan’s Nikkei index fell 6.5% after plunging 8% earlier in the day. Taiwan saw a near-10% collapse, and Singapore dropped over 8%.

Wall Street Braces for Impact

US markets, though yet to open, appear set for a rough start. Futures contracts on the New York Stock Exchange are sharply down, suggesting heavy losses once trading resumes.

Market sentiment globally has turned bearish, with fears of a looming recession taking hold. Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management described the scene as “free-fall mode,” noting, “Trump’s team isn’t blinking. The tariffs are being treated as a victory lap, not a bargaining chip.”