Sanjay Bhavsar and Tula Patel

Nominated for : Giving a secure home to orphaned and
homeless children

Initiative - Adopted 18 orphaned children

The world has many ugly corners and it is indeed a tough place for or-phaned and homeless children to live in. One comes across many such children at Ahmedabad railway station. But many of them bumped into Sanjay Bhavsar, 49, and his wife Tula Patel, 46, their lives changed at a unique home the Amdavadi couple has built at Bansa village near Visnagar.When Sanjay and Tula met in Ahmedabad, Sanjay was pursuing BTech while Tula was studying commerce. They fell in love, got married and moved to the US. However, the desire to do something uncommon pushed them off the beaten track and brought them back to Ahmedabad. In 1993, they founded Vishwagram, an NGO, which aimed to serve the needy. In 2006, they took up the cause of the orphaned children and with the help of NGO Childline they built the orphanage at Basna.
Tula and Sanjay have adopted 18 orphaned kids wandering on the state’s railway stations, and are offering them upbringing, educa-tion and identity. They have given these kids the surname Bharatiya and celebrate a common birthday on December 25.
After investing almost two decades in social work in villages near Rajkot, Surat, Ahmedabad, Mehsana, Patan and Kutch, the couple set up their ashram-residence to house their big Bharatiya family.
It was an innocent question by a kid which once unnerved the cou-ple and led to the celebration of a common birthday. They were preparing for their biological daughter Gulal’s birthday celebration when their adopted son Vipul, now 14, asked, “When is my birth-day?”
“We felt sad,” said Sanjay. “We cancelled Gulal’s birthday celebration, and since then we have been celebrating birthday for all our 18 children on December 25,” he said.
Previously these kids begged on streets and stations, and had to work as carriers for drugs; they had witnessed gory crimes and suf-fered harshest of thrashings and brutal exploitation. Their traumatic stories of life at stations, addiction and sexual exploitation, are too grisly even for Bollywood. But the couple turned these children’s lives upside down, literally.
These young kids had been running away from criminals who wanted to use them for their illegal activities. Their travail came to end only after they met Tula and Sanjay. The latter took them home and officially adopted them to give them shelter, food, education and family.
Today, at their home Vishwagram, these kids learn to live with creative discipline in an unconventional set-up specially designed to bring back positive emotions of childhood, including naiveté, curiosity, trust and smile that the cruel system prevailing in outside world had once snatched away from them.
The children begin their day at 6 am with a ‘nature walk’. In natu-ral surroundings, they learn to identify bird species and also learn botany. Their routine starts with lessons in self-hygiene, and at breakfast they learn about healthy food habits. They learn to read and write and cook and clean. After lunch, these kids spin yarn and make about 75 metres of khadi cloth every year
During early evenings, the kids spend a few hours learning various arts. “Children learn painting, clay work, pottery, origami, puppet making, experiment to make various utensils like solar cooker or learn carpentry to make small wooden items,” said Tula.
“Innovative practical sessions like designing a newspaper or pam-phlet for the village, making pots and lamps for sale - these activi-ties arouse their curiosity. That helps to re-generate the sensitivities of these young hearts which were hurt and had withdrawn too deep inside,” added Sanjay.
“When we happen to rescue such a kid, it initially looks at us with distrust. After a few days, while taking a morning walk or doing art activities together the child starts opening up, and the distance gradually melts away. Being able to restore a gleam of hope and a smile within those tiny frightened eyes is the reward which keeps us go-ing,” says Sanjay.

Vishnu Patel

Nominated for : Helping the poor get food and medicines.

Initiative - Runs an NGO that provides food to the poor

62-year-old Vishnu Patel’s initiative to provide food to the needy, started 15 years ago, soon motivated the masses to rescue the poor from the clutches of hunger and deprivationYears ago, Vishnu Patel saw a scrawny boy, who seemed like he hadn’t eaten for days, clinging to the steps of a temple. Moved by the child’s plight, and the plea of help he saw in his eyes, Patel offered the boy some food. As he saw the boy scarf down the food, Patel was motivated to do something to help the hungry in the city. “I knew there were scores of people who went to bed on an empty stomach, who couldn’t afford one decent meal a day,” says Patel.
Hence, the seeds for NGO Gopi Annakshetra were sown. Not satisfied with his small effort to help, in 1999, Patel started feeding five hungry children every Sunday of the month. His act of kindness didn’t go unnoticed by his friends and neighbours who also joined him in his mission to feed the hungry. “Thus, annakshetra was born,” says Patel. Since then, Gopi Annakeshtra, near the Akhbarnagar Circle, has turned into an important philanthropic organisation providing food to the needy in the city. “Several people heard about my service to the poor and joined me in the initiative.
From a one-person initiative, it has now become a mass mission to help people get one proper meal a day.” According to Patel, it is the unstinting support of fresh recruits that has helped him in expanding his mission of ‘manav seva’. Gopi Annakshetra initially started as an organisation which concentrated on providing food to the needy. Over the time, the organisation has also started catering to other needs of people.
Patel says, “For 15 years, we had only one purpose -- to feed the hungry and poor people. Now, we want to attend to the other needs of poor, needy and lower income group families and help them in the best possible manner. We provide them with food and other requirements, irrespective of what caste, creed or religion they belong to.” Some of the facilities offered by the NGO are medical check-ups and medicines at a nominal rate of Rs 5, Senior citizen forums between 4 pm and 6.30 pm every day where discussions are held on healthy living, tiffin services to cancer hospital at Civil Hospital and free food for thousands of children and adult. Over the years, several people have joined the NGO and Patel is only happy to welcome volunteers to this noble cause.

Kishorbhai Gohil

Nominated for : Spreading Gandhian legacy

Initiative - Shows How to spin from charkha at Gandhi Ashram

When many people at his age would think of relaxing and leading quiet life, 75-year old Kishor Gohil is busy doing what comes closest to his heart – demonstrating to the visitors at Hriday Kunj in Gandhi Ashram the art of spinning the charkha. In the course of 10 years, he has shown and taught this skill to numerous people, including some high profile personalities like former president Pratibha Patil and Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan.
"I teach them, show them and also tell them about the virtues of spinning this wheel. The thread which comes out is uses in making khadi cloth. This task was very close to Bapu's heart. It feels great to be a part of all this," says Gohil.
As Gohil reflects on his past, he is more than amazed to discover his life's mission. "I retired as an income-tax inspector in 1997. Thereafter, I thought I would spend the rest of my life relaxing and enjoying the newly gained freedom. I did watch TV and tried to enjoy myself for some time, but then it just occurred to me that this was not being productive," he adds.
Gohil came to know from a relative about the work at Gandhi Ashram. "I suddenly felt the urge to work here. I wanted to work here voluntarily, without any remuneration. Initially, I was given the task of maintaining the register of new books in the library. I took up the task and started enjoying it."
Once when the work got over, Gohil visited Hriday Kunj where Gandhiji used to live. There he found Gandhiji's charkha in a damaged condition. "I mended it and gradually took upon the task of demonstrating the working of charkha to visitors," said Gohil.
Gradually, Gohil learnt the intricacies of spinning the charkha. "I had learnt it at school. That experience helped me. So in 2003, I started showing to all interested people the art of spinning this wheel," he adds.
Once he was given the responsibility, he took it with glee. He comes here daily around 11 am and goes back at 6.30 pm. Around seven lakh people visit Gandhi Ashram every year and it gives him immense pleasure to be doing this work. According to him, generally, people from Gujarat and north India are not very interested in charkha, but people from the south show a keen interest. They want to learn more about it and even practise it.
Visitors from Europe and North America also show keen interest in the charkha. "Some of them say, 'Oh its magic.' I say, it's not magic, it's truth. I tell them this was very close to the Father of the Nation and was a weapon in our freedom movement."
Gohil feels he enjoys good health because of charkha. "Before I came here, I was not so healthy. I even had had a heart attack. However, I have no health problem now. Spinning the wheel works like meditation. When I start running it, I forget everything else. It gives me real and lasting peace."
He spins around 10,000 metres of thread in a month and feels the urge to spin even when he is on leave

Ramesh and Nitin Patel

Nominated for : Helping needy patients.

Initiative - Providing coconut water to poor patients for free.

Resources matter the least to the ones who are committed to the good of others, believe Nitin and Ramesh Patel who have been distributing free coconut water to poor patients at V S Hospital for about a decade-and-a-half. Though the brothers own a shop ‘Garib dardi mate mafat nariyal’, their charity dates back to the days when the two used to sell the doctors’ most recommended liquid diet on a handcart outside one of the largest hospitals in the city.“This chain of charity began on the day we set up our small venture on a larri in 1999. After keeping aside a certain sum for business and household expenses, we would use the remaining to provide coconut water to the needy for free. This is the least we can do for those who cannot bear the cost of medicines. And God has been really kind that financial crunch has never been a hindrance in this small gesture,” says Nitin Patel. A coconut comes for Rs 30 only. But it does matter to people who cannot afford two meals a day, he adds. The Patels have become popular among the medical staff at V S Hospital. “Now, even doctors and nurses refer poor patients to us. It shows their trust in us,” says Ramesh Patel, the elder brother.
The Patels also keep a check on ‘beneficiaries’ so that others do not take advantage of the charity. This helps them to reach out to the deserving.
“The tag of ‘free’ attracts a lot of people. But not all of them are poor. The needy are identified easily but in dicey cases, we ask for medical papers of V S Hospital. We verify the papers and help only those who are genuine. Instead of naming our shop, we have kept a board that declares that any poor patient can get free coconut from here,” says Nitin Patel.
The service of the brothers has inspired several visitors at the hospital. They donate money to ensure that charity flows uninterrupted. “The board catches the attention of visitors. While some donate money in memory of their beloved, a few do charity to repay favours of the Almighty who has given them enough in life,” he adds.
The Patels have now started keeping a record of the donation they receive from people and patients’ kin. They also mention their contribution to it.
“People not just shower praises on us but also donate generously. We are overwhelmed by their gesture. But our achievement lies in the fact that our small effort has inspired people to come forward and help others. Ours was a small initiative which has now turned into a big leap,” says Ramesh.
The brothers, who own a house near the hospital, spend about Rs 7,000 every month for the charity. “We have also come across people who despite being poor insist on buying coconut. We convince them to take it for free without hurting their selfrespect. We also serve 25 different kind of juices to patients who are on strict liquid diet,” says Nitin.
The wholesalers give the Patels coconut at a discount so that more people can reap the benefit of their efforts. The brothers believe that their business has grown because of the charity they do.

Priyank Singh

Nominated For : Helping a vulnerable community lead a better life.

Initiative - Set up an NGO for truck drivers and their families welfare

Stability eludes nomadic and ever-wandering truck drivers until they finally bid adieu to the steering. While NGOs and individuals have been fighting for the rights of workers in the unorganised sector, little has been done for the community of truckers who spend most of their lives on the highways, yearning for a slice of decent family life.
Their extreme situation, however, moved 24-year-old Priyank Singh. He has set up an NGO, named Chalak, to help truck drivers and their families lead a quality life and bring happiness they deserve.
"They are vulnerable, socially and economically. I have travelled 300 km in a day when I was researching about them and their issues," says Priyank, a Satellite resident, who is pursuing his Master in Social Work at Anand Institute of Social Work (AISW).
"I still travel hundreds of km to gather as much information as possible," he chuckles.
"I was studying human rights in Delhi. One night, my friends and I were at a dhaba where a group of truck drivers were discussing their problems. The interaction with them provided me an insight into their miserable lives. I spent a restless night. Their haplessness kept hounding me. I was unable to seize the thought of their children and wives' pitiable lives," says Priyank who holds a BA in political science of Delhi University.
After this chance encounter, Priyank began researching about truck drivers. But he could hardly find any NGO, government agency or group committed to their welfare. This was the time when he started dreaming of an informal group for the benefit of truck drivers. He came to the city and established his NGO.
"It was my dad's idea to set up an informal group and name it. My mother suggested me to think in terms of their families, too," says Priyank who has done his schooling at HBK.
His parents, Ranendra Pratak and Pushpa Singh, recall how he as a child was sensitive to the plight of the poor in their area and would offer them food and woollen clothes.
"My son wanted to become an IAS officer and he is still preparing for it. But as I have seen him since childhood, chances of him becoming an activist are brighter. I am happy with whatever he does as his intention is to serve society, be it by being an IAS or an activist," says a smiling and proud mother.
Even as an adolescent, Priyank was concerned about child rights and child abuse. Social work was always on his mind, says his father, an English teacher.
"I have seen few dedicated students like Priyank in my 50-year teaching career. He is committed to the cause of truck drivers who are neglected by authorities and NGOs. He has a passion to serve society. Prikank's efforts, if supported, can definitely bring a sea change in the life of truckers and their families," said AISW Director R S Agarwal.
Priyank's hard work has impressed National Aids Control Organisation Deputy Director Jignasa Shah. "Someone told me about him. I called him for a meeting. His hard work left me stunned. He is doing the work of four people. It's his dedication to the cause that has won me. I am trying to help him in whatever way I can so that truckers' life can be improved. They should be made aware of the danger of HIV, AIDS and STD," says Shah.

Ranjit Gohil

Nominated for : Empowering the physically challenged.

Initiative - Founded disability advocacy group.

Awalk towards the cricket ground of St Xavier’s College leads one to Human Development and Research Centre. A workshop is on for the physically challenged people to train them in the right way to seek a donation. The focus is on each step -- from body language to paperwork. The workshop is being organised by Disability Advocacy Group (DAG) whose founder Ranjit Gohil is also getting trained along with others. Despite helping others for more than three decades, the modest man wants to learn all he could to train others like him. Gohil, who works with Railway Mail Service at Kalupur, is 40 per cent disabled since the age of three when he fell victim to polio.“My father didn’t make enough money, yet my parents ensured I got all treatment possible for my problem. They would take me to the doctors regularly. I remember my physiotherapist was blind and he would give me toffees and chana (roasted gram) before the therapy to encourage me as I was very scared of the exercise. It would stretch my nerves and therefore would hurt a lot,” recalls Gohil who, being educated only till class nine, had a tough time finding a job. He opened a public call office (PCO) at VS hospital in 1985 which changed the way he looked at life and had been living it.
“We lived in a chawl and our neighbours and classmates would make fun of me which made me very bitter. But then I overheard people speaking about their problems on telephone. Often they wouldn’t have money to buy medicines. It really shook me up, so I got in touch with Sadvichar Parivar to arrange medicines for the poor. I got in touch with hospital staff and requested them to collect the extra medicines they would get which we started giving to the poor as per the prescription. So I was helping others without spending any money. It was then that I realised that money was not always needed if one wanted to do something for society,” says the 43-year-old.
Gohil who runs a “Meet the international disability” helpline which connects disabled from all over the world and helps them in getting employment. Realising the problems a physically challenged person faces in terms of employment and their rights, he founded DAG which is currently working in 26 districts in Gujarat uniting the disabled people in urban and rural areas.
“I received help when I needed it. So, today I want to give it back. I see there are so many people like me out there who need help and I try to put them on the right path. My job is to act as a bridge, that is, to connect them to the right person or department so there problems can be resolved,” adds Gohil who has been mentioned in Limca Book of World Records. In 1996, he was felicitated with presidential recognition.
Gohil once visited a physically challenged tailor named Mohammed Asgar in a small room where he would cut the cloth at night and stitch them in day by lifting the table. Pitying him Gohil not only lent him Rs 10,000 but also opened a tailoring unit at Narol with seven sewing machines six years ago. Today, the same unit has 70 machines and employs over 100 people, including disabled, and many disabled buy from it to sell in the retail market. “The aim to start a garment unit was to enable the uneducated disabled to earn livelihood and the more people get involved, the more employment opportunities they create or others like them,” he adds.
Despite being physically challenged, he is a sports enthusiast. He has been to Australia and England to participate in swimming competitions and to London to participate in bicycle championships. He has won over 100 medals, including 30 gold medals in mountaineering, swimming and badminto

Mohit Shah and Kinnari Shah

Nominated for : Contributing towards creating a healthy society.

Initiative -Distributing vegetables,fruit to poor for free.

In a time when inflation-hit green veggies and fruit are disappearing from the platter of the common man, Mohit Shah and his family provide the daily dose of nutrition and vitamins for free to those who can’t afford them. The 54-year-old stands out in the crowd instantly while distributing the costly green component of a healthy diet on busy roads and market places in Ahmedabad. Shah, who lives in Navrangpura, has the dealership of a leading cement company.The idea of distribution came from his wife Kinnariben, 53, who once witnessed a group of labourers staring at her while she was buying vegetables. During interaction, she came to know that they were deprived of the vegetables as they could not afford them. She gave them the stuff she had bought for the family and discussed the episode with her husband. “My wife shared with me her idea of distributing veggies free to the needy. By God’s grace, we can afford to give some vegetables to the poor for free. We started with 200 kg of vegetables initially which has now reached to 1,500 kg a week,” says Shah whose initiative has turned six this year.
The couple buys vegetables from Jamalpur market and roam in Nehrunagar, Shivranjani, Jivraj Park, Vejalpur, Gujarat University, Thaltej gaam, Vastrapur and Drive-in Road areas for free distribution. On expenditure, the businessman says, “I buy vegetables worth Rs 3,000 to Rs 4,000 every day and distribute them thrice a week. We used to incur transportation cost. However, when the farmers learnt of our endeavour, they stopped charging us the transportation cost. This helps us buy more vegetables with the same money.” On the day of distribution, Shah reaches Jamalpur market in the wee hours to buy farm fresh veggies from the farmers.
His son Kushal, 24, and daughter Aashka, 21, are equally engaged in the activity. “I want the word to spread as I can’t visit all areas. If other people get inspired by it, we can cover entire Ahmedabad. We never say no to anyone. Our aim is to give vegetables to the poor, but if anyone on road approaches us, we don’t say no,” says Shah who is often seen on the Shivranjini-Helmet Circle stretch distributing the vegetables. As Shah came to know that papad is favourite among the poor, he has started distributing it along with cabbage, bottle gourd, tomato, cauliflower, carrot, radish, sugarcane, sweet lime, grapes and muskmelon.
They now plan to distribute mangoes. Shah donates in charity at least as much as he spends on his family annually. “We do not seek donation from people. Those who wish to distribute can do so in their own way in their own areas,” says Shah. Shah spends about Rs 10 lakh on vegetables and fruit for others while his total donation goes up to Rs 25 lakh annually.
He also helps needy students by paying their fee and buying them books. He often bears medical expenses of the poor and also provide food grain to families which hardly have income. “I want to help people in whatever way I can. The almighty has blessed me by giving me an opportunity to make others’ lives better,” Shah says.
Businessman Mohit Shah distributes free vegetables thrice a week. He does not want others to contribute to his causes, instead he wants other well-to-do to do the same in their areas.

Raghu Makwana

Nominated for : Ensuring food for destitute.

Initiative - Began free tiffin service for 18 very poor people.

He is the son that these old-age people never had. Living in despair, 18 of them and counting, these “parents” are destitute, helpless and abandoned by their own. Raghu Makwana is not only the man who provides for their daily meals, but also their son. Be it cold or energy-sapping heat, these meals unfailingly reach these 18 old-age people in Ranip twice a day. “It is not food that these people seek. It is love. Most of these people have no source of income, are childless, unable to cook by themselves or have been abandoned by their children,” Raghu tells Mirror.At a time when many children don’t look after their ageing parents, Raghu looks after these poor and deprived folks like they were his own. It is not just this selfless act of serving the old that is exceptional, neither is the fact that he serves these tiffins without any discrimination of community, caste or gender. What is remarkable is that Raghu does this despite losing both his legs to polio at the age of three. Polio has never been a handicap for him. “I have learnt to live with it and it does not deter me. If at all, it only adds to my determination to serve these people.”
So, how did the idea of helping out the old germinate? A Sai Baba devotee, Raghu regularly visits Sai Baba temple in Ranip. One day he came across an old woman beggar there. Raghu asked her if she needed anything. She gave him a prescription for medicine. “She was obviously unwell and needed medical help. I went to the drug store and got her the medicine.”
The next week when Raghu met her at the temple she cried when they met. “I do not have a son. You are my son,” she told him and then hugged him. It was this jadu ki jhappi that transformed Raghu. “If I was her son, I needed to take care of my mother. I decided she should get proper food.” So, about three years ago, Raghu started carrying a week’s supply of flour for her and her husband who begged at another temple. Once when Raghu did not visit the temple on a Thursday, he learnt that the old couple had gone hungry for three days as they were unwell and unable to beg. It is this that propelled Raghu to start a tiffin service not only for the couple but also for others like them.
Small hindrances, like lack of financial resources and limited income, did not matter to him. The spirit more than made up for it. Jayesh Patel, his employer at Gramshree, came to his aid. He provided the initial Rs 10,000 to start putting his idea into practice. A family living in Ranip — a woman and her two daughters-inlaw — cooked the food he needed to supply to these old-age people. Later, Patel also gave him a vehicle on which he now travels and delivers tiffins. The two sisters-in-law, Hansa and Monica Parmar, have been cooking meals for three years even as the mother-in-law is dead. They are all part of this venture now. As word got around, people started coming to his aid. Raghu did not know where the money for the next meal for his “parents” would come, but come it did. People from all walks of life started pooling in resources. Raghu has 50 volunteers, all labourers or from middle class, who give him Rs 100 a week by fasting once a week. He gets donations from people and supplies of cereals and other food stuff from all over Gujarat. Volunteers deliver the tiffins on the appointed day, Thursday, when he is not around.