24-07-2018 - 24-07-2018

On the 24th July, we visited 'Punarutthan Samarsata Gurukulam' in Chinchwad. This is a school for children of people who who have no stable home. Most of them are from nomadic families. It is a Residential School which houses 375 children. There are several small huts with red roof tiles. The brick walls are painted red and gave a very pleasant appearance. When we went there we saw children with clean clothes sitting in classes and engaged in activities. This school was started 12 years ago by Shri Girish Prabhune with the objective to impart trade skills in these children so that they could earn a livelihood. After 12 years of patient grooming, today, 80 children have passed the levels of 10th and 12th standard. Some of them have got placements in industries and some are being encouraged to start their own small business! This is the proof of the success of the transformational social experiment! There is a long road ahead, but with a Gurukul like this, we can hope that one day the country will succeed bringing the neglected sections of the society into the mainstream of the nation. Mr Girish prabhune was with us for 2 hours. During our meeting with him some people came with a request to give shelter to a 3 year old daughter of vegetables seller whose wife had died. Accepting a 3 year old child would not fit into the policy of the Gurukul. Still Mr Prabhune was very sympathetic. He talked very softly with those persons and promised to see what he could do for them. Here, we got a glimpse of his compassionate personality. We visited several rooms which housed the kitchen, the classes and the workshop. Their location is right on the bank of the river and every alternate day snakes to find their way into the school. Mr Pranay, the manager at the Gurukul, said that it is only due to God's grace that they have not had any snake bite incident so far. Of course, they have to take extreme care to lock the dormitories at night. The Gurukul does receive help from some organisations. But, their requirements are also quite large because of the large number of children. All of us felt that our Rotary Club of Pune Pride should help them by giving them a gift which will leave a permanent presence with them. What stands out is that this is a unique project aimed at enabling the unstable tribal population to become stable and live dignified life free from hunger. I feel that here the seeds are being sown for a greater revolution which will ultimately bring all the tribal population into the mainfold of the nation.

Project Details

Start Date 24-07-2018
End Date 24-07-2018
Project Cost 10000
Rotary Volunteer Hours 40
No of direct Beneficiaries 350
Partner Clubs
Non Rotary Partners
Project Category Basic education and literacy, Others