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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.

Ready to help, PM Modi tells Myanmar's Senior General as his country recovers from earthquake

  • PTI
  • Apr 4, 2025
  • 2 min read


BANGKOK: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday told Myanmar’s Senior General Min Aung Hlaing that India was doing everything possible to assist the nation in recovering from the aftermath of a massive earthquake that killed several thousand.


Modi met Senior General Min, the head of Myanmar’s military government, on the sidelines of the summit meeting of the leaders of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral and Technical Cooperation (BIMSTEC) grouping.


“Met Senior General Min Aung Hlaing of Myanmar on the sidelines of the BIMSTEC Summit in Bangkok. Once again expressed condolences on the loss of lives and damage to property in the wake of the recent earthquake. India is doing whatever is possible to assist our sisters and brothers of Myanmar in this critical time,” Modi wrote on X.


This was the Prime Minister’s first interaction with Senior General Min, who came to power in a military coup in February 2021.


“We also discussed bilateral relations between India and Myanmar, particularly in sectors like connectivity, capacity building, infrastructure development, and more,” he said.


Sources said the senior general thanked the prime minister for the relief assistance. He also appreciated the Prime Minister’s reconstruction work and leadership during the Bhuj earthquake in Gujarat and the learnings for Myanmar and others from it, sources said.


The BIMSTEC grouping is a regional initiative involving countries in India’s neighbourhood along the Bay of Bengal rim. India has launched Operation Brahma to help relief efforts in the earthquake-hit Myanmar, where a military coup in February 2021 brought Senior General Min to power. During the 35-minute meeting, the Myanmarese ruler appreciated the speed at which India sent in assistance immediately after the March 28 earthquake.


“We are ready to help,” the Prime Minister is learnt to have conveyed to Senior General Min. India has deployed military field hospitals in Mandalay, which was near the epicentre of the earthquake.


A senior official of the Myanmar administration also visited the hospital set up by India in Mandalay. India has also deployed its National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel, who are assisting in the relief work in Myanmar. Myanmar is considered a cog in the wheel for the success of BIMSTEC, whose key aim is to promote connectivity between the member nations. All the key projects to connect the member nations pass through Myanmar, where the local administration has little control in the different regions of the country.


The massive earthquake opened an opportunity for Myanmar to engage with the global community of nations as it seeks humanitarian assistance to recover from the earthquake. Over 3,000 people have died in the Myanmar earthquake, nearly 5,000 have been injured, and over 370 remain missing nationwide.


Senior General Min also attended an official dinner for leaders of the BIMSTEC nations that also includes Thailand, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal and Sri Lanka.


The Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs said BIMSTEC members discussed disaster management during ministerial meetings on Thursday.While China has quantified the aid it has despatched to Myanmar, India has maintained that it does not believe in putting a monetary value to the humanitarian aid it extends to countries in times of crisis.

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