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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.

Sibling love blooms for six decades in Worli

India’s tallest Christmas Tree touches skies, hearts

Douglas Saldanah with India's tallest, 72-feet high, Christmas Tree in Worli.
Douglas Saldanah with India's tallest, 72-feet high, Christmas Tree in Worli.

Mumbai: On a quiet by-lane in Worli, hemmed in by concrete towers and the ceaseless beats of Mumbai, rises a breath-taking spectacle that makes people stop in their tracks.  


A towering Pine Conifer, glowing with more than 12,000 twinkling fairy lights, smiling angels, glittering reindeers and lots of cotton snow, stretches 72 feet into the night sky – almost equal to a 7-storied building – the most famous ‘rooted resident’ of the area. 


By record books and repute, it is ranked “India’s tallest naturally growing, fully decorated, Christmas Tree” and by spirit, it is a living monument to love, loss and the lasting faith of a brother and sister. 


The lofty tree nestles in a modest garden at Adarsh Nagar, a private residential society, and belongs to Douglas Saldanha, 64, a soft-spoken financial consultant, who has reverently tended it for over 52 years. 


Joys And Sorrows

The story of the tree is entwined with the joys and sorrows of the Saldanhas – the deceased parents Henry (87) and Grace (86), their children Twila (died 2005) and now Douglas. They moved from Mangalore to Mumbai decades ago, and it was here that this enchanting tree entered their lives almost by accident. 


Saldanha recalls how in 1973, a neighbour was grappling to manage a five-foot sapling looming awkwardly on his verandah, and quickly offered to sell it for Rs 250 to the thrilled Douglas, 12, and his sister Twila, 14. 


“We both carefully replanted it in the ground outside the verandah of our home, watered it daily, watched it, and felt pleased as it majestically stretched horizontally and vertically season after season, like a shared childhood dream,” Saldanha told ‘The Perfect Voice’. 


Enchanting Spectacle

Weeks before December 25, the Saldanha siblings would transform it into an enchanting spectacle - streamers and bells, shiny baubles, cherubic angels, tiny crosses, snowmen and a smiling Santa, topping it with a large star.


Awestruck neighbours, friends and relatives joined in to spread joy and laughter, and as the three grew in stature, so did the scale of celebrations and life continued happily. 


Sparing no efforts or expenses, every year he strung thousands of lights higher and wider, increasing as the tree’s height and girth increased, the cherubs seem to hover in mid-air; a cheerful Santa waving from a shiny flying sleigh perched on a mound of soft cotton snow, enthralling the visitors. 


“Absolute strangers came in droves to marvel at the masterpiece, clicked selfies or photos, many were moved to learn of the story behind the tree, and departed as lifelong friends. The Christmas tree exudes warmth, love and peace that attracts all,” commented Saldanha.


For the Saldanha family, the tree apparently worked other miracles. Henry Saldanha, a retired engineer survived multiple cancers in the prostate and cheek, five heart attacks, an open heart surgery and seven other major surgeries before going to meet his Lord in 2017, aged 87; in 2022 his wife Grace followed suit, aged 86 - leaving Douglas as the sole guardian angel of the three.


As he spent a major part of his youth caring for his parents and nurturing the family tree, Saldanha, a financial consultant for a MNC, chose to remain a bachelor: “I just wanted to be a good son,” was his simple, shrugging and smiling refrain.

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