India’s first 100% visually impaired lady to join the Indian Foreign Service

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dreams, blind., Braille, encouragement, Challenges, inspire

The phone hasn’t stopped ringing since the night of June 12, 2017, for NL Beno Zephine. The 25-year-old from Chennai was informed by the external affairs ministry on Friday that she has been inducted into the Indian Foreign Service, the first 100 percent visually-challenged person to gain entry into the 69-year-old service. She secured 343rd rank in the 2013-14 Civil Service examination but had to wait for a year for her appointment, as the government worked out the rules to accommodate her. She is presently working as a probationary officer with State Bank of India and is also pursuing a Ph.D. degree.

Zephine credits her parents for what she has achieved, saying her father took her wherever she wanted to go in pursuit of her dreams and managing to buy every book for this purpose. Her mother would assist her in studying the books, sometimes reading them aloud. She used to listen to the 9 o’clock news on All India Radio as a child. She said it helped a lot in her success in the Civil Service Examination.

Her father, Luke Anthony Charles, a railways employee, and mother Mary Padmaja, a homemaker, have been huge sources of inspiration for Beno. Born with the disability, she was educated at the Little Flower Convent for the blind. She transcended the dependence on Braille books by switching to Job Access with Speech (JAWS), a software that allows visually challenged to read from a computer screen, to scan Tamil and English books. She had a normal, happy childhood. Her only brother, Bruno Xavier, works as an engineer in Canada. No one in her family made a big fuss about her disability.

Talking about her love for talking she said,”I was a talkative girl then and I am a talkative woman now. I gave my first public speech when I was in upper KG; I spoke about Jawaharlal Nehru and won my first prize as a speaker – it was a steel plate. After that, there was no stopping me. Instead of wishing me good luck, my teachers used to tell me, ‘we know you are going to bring the cup to the school’. They were that confident about my oratorical skill and I thoroughly enjoyed speaking. The encouragement from my teachers and their confidence in me led to my success in public speaking. In college, I was often made Master of Ceremonies and I loved it.”

Till she was in the tenth standard, her ambition was to become a lawyer or a lecturer. In the eleventh standard, her dream was to be a civil servant, even though she didn’t know what it could offer her. It was just that she was interested in improving society. She didn’t like people wasting water – she used to make a big fuss when someone wasted water. People made fun of her, saying, ‘Here comes the collector.’ This triggered off a spark to prepare for the civil service.

When asked to give a message to youngsters, she said, “Challenges do come, but face them and devise your own strategies. Understand your strengths and weaknesses, “Beno draws her inspiration from American author Helen Adams Keller, who overcame the adversity of being blind and deaf to become one of the 20th century’s leading humanitarians.“I always like the words of Helen Keller where Madam had remarked, ‘I am only one, but I am still one. I cannot do everything, but still, I can do something. And because I cannot do everything I will not refuse to do the something that I can do’. These words really inspire me. Because I believed that I’d be able to clear civil services exam one day.”

Height of dedication

He was so hungry that he preferred to eat bananas worth four  rupees which was the tonga fare and walk all the way from his home town Dharuheda in the scorching heat of 40° C. He was carrying an iron equipment weighing 26 kg, which he had assembled, and was going to deliver it to the Company Continental Value at Sohna. This is how he delivered his first product.

Meet Mr. Ishwar Saini, Founder Director of Perfect Engineering Component Private Limited. Son of a teacher, Ishwar did B.Com in 1987 He wanted to do M.Com and then come a teacher, or take up some government job. His dreams were shattered when the was refused admission in M.Com. It was not easy for his father to meet the expenditure of four children, and the medical treatment of his ailing wife.

Educated in the village school and College, Ishwar was not confident of facing any job interview in English. Just when he was on the look out for some job, Dharuheda was declared an industrial area. Soon many industrial units and their ancillaries were set up there, Hero Honda was one of them.

He toyed with the idea of starting a small business, but no one had ever done any business in his family. Neither he had any money to invest, nor any technical qualification. His only asset was, a burning desire to do something better than others, and make it big.

Today his company can rightly boast of an annual turnover of Rs 18 crores. There are two production units in Haryana, and one in Rajasthan in which 120 satisfied workers are putting in their best. The quality of its products is so good, that it has bagged export orders.

Recalling his earlier days Ishwar says “I approached the Haryana Financial Corporation in Rewadi for a loan which was sanctioned.” He set up a workshop by installing two lathe machines, in his ancestral house in the village, and employed two operators. He managed to get maintenance jobs from some factories. In-spite of having no technical knowledge, Ishwar used to watch the work intently. He picked up some technical terms and used to work on the machines at night, to develop confidence. He took every work as a challenge.

Gradually Ishwar acquired knowledge about the functioning of machines in big companes. “I used to think of ways to make those machines more productive” he adds with a twinkle in his eyes. Meanwhile he found a life partner “Shakti” who true to her name has been a constant source of strength and support in all his ventures.

In 1992 Perfect Engineering got the contract of maintenance of wheel assembly machines of Hero Honda. It prepared a set of 1200 wheel assembly machines, whereas with the same resources, its competitor Bajaj Auto could make only 280 units. Saini employed 18 workers for this job as against 41 workers employed by his rival. This tilted the profits in his favor.

As luck would have it, the maintenance manager of the ancillary of Hero Honda, switched over to an ancillary of Bajaj Auto in Aurangabad. When he mentioned about the efficiency of Perfect Engineering, Saini was called upon to prepare a similar machine for Aurangabad Electrical, an ancillary of Bajaj, “I was foxed, because neither I had the capital nor the workshop to fabricate such a machine. To my surprise I was given a bank draft within a few minutes, to install the machine” says Saini with pride.

He accepted this big offer as a challenge, and delivered the machine ready in three months. Can you believe it, during these three months Saini did not leave the workshop even for a single day, he did not even meet his family. Such a level of dedication is difficult to find.This machine which produced more out put, with less manpower was one of its kind, and orders started pouring in. Ishwar Saini has travelled to China, Germany and Poland.

When asked about the secret of his success, Saini said “I maintain total transparency in the raw materials used, and never compromise on quality”, His products are about 30% costlier than those of his competitors, but still he never has to go to collect orders. They keep trickling in the auto system factory. Perfect Engineering Component Company is presently functioning from its new campus in Manesar (Haryana).

Joy of giving

It is a state function in Bhopal where the Minister of higher education, Government of Madhya Pradesh is conferring Laxman Singh Gaur awards to outstanding students, teachers and Principals. Professor Uttam Chand Jain is called upon to receive the award of Rs one lakh for the exceptional services rendered by him as the Principal of Maharani Laxmi Bai Autonomous PG College for girls, Bhopal during the year 2010-2011.

  Dr U.C. Jain 

The distinguished gathering of educationists claps to give him a standing ovation. It is not his being selected for the award, but his announcement thereafter that has made him larger than life. Dr U.C. Jain was quick to announce that he will not keep a single paisa of this amount for himself. In a generous move he decided to donate Rs fifty one thousand to Govt. MLB Girls College Bhopal. This money would be kept as corpus money and the yearly interest accrued would be given as prize to the toppers of B.A, B.Com, and B.Sc in rotation. After deduction of 30% income tax at source, Dr Jain decided to give away the remainder to four of his maid servants for the education of their children.

What a saintly gesture. In these days, when people are exploiting every available opportunity to fill their pockets, I wonder how angels like Dr. Jain appear on this earth! A soft spoken and cheerful person, he is man of few words. True to his name “Uttam” he turned out to be the best.

He had a very harrowing childhood, having lost his mother at the tender age of just one year, and his father, when he was ten years old. It is said those who don’t have anyone, have God on their side. It was his paternal aunt who played the role of God and brought him up like her own son. He took a lot of interest in studies and has always been a topper.

Having done M.Com and PhD from Sagar University,Dr. Jain applied for the post of a Lecturer. He got the appointment letter within a week. He joined at Govt College Bilaspur. During his illustrious career spanning over four decades, Dr. Jain has held many prestigious appointments, including 22 years as a Principal, and is presently the Additional Director in the Department of Higher Education. He is responsible for the coordination, supervision and inspection of as many as sixty six colleges of Bhopal and Hoshangabad region.

Dr. Jain feels he has got a lot from others. In fact he is reaping the fruits of helping others, at every possible opportunity. He wants to pay back to society always and in every way .With the blessings of God, his sons, daughters-in-law, daughter and son-in-law are all well settled. He said “instead of leaving fixed deposits for them, he would prefer to help the needy ones” What a noble thought, put into action.

When asked to give a message to the people he said “do your duty with full dedication and honesty”. He spells out his secret of success “hard work” and “there is no short cut to success” he adds. Two years to go for his retirement, he plans to continue his mission of helping people and making this world a better place. No one can feel the joy of giving ,better than him.

(The above success story is based on the interview of Prof. U C Jain by Maj Pradeep Khare)

A tailor’s son becomes an IAS officer.

                   Seventy two year old Virendra Rajput’s ramshackle house in a non-descript village in Bhind district has suddenly become the attraction of the entire neighborhood. An ordinary tailor by profession, he is popularly known as ustaad in the village for his hand-to-hand combat style in the Akharas. Virendra, a father of three sons and a daughter, had lived with only one dream – to give his children good education. It has paid rich dividends; his son Nirish has cleared the prestigious Civil Services examinations. Friends, relatives, and media people, are pouring in to catch a glimpse of Nirish, who has become the hero of the day.

It is difficult to believe that Nirish has been living in a 15 by 40 feet house in village Mau in Gohad tehsil of Bhind district. The economic condition of the family can be gauged from the fact that had to work at odd jobs, and even deliver newspapers door to door. He studied in a government school and went to a modest college in Gwalior. Financial constraints even forced him to take a two years break from his studies. His father and two elder brothers, who are contractual teachers, started investing most of their savings to support Nirish in achieving his big dream. His success has also cleared another myth “students from public schools alone can do well in these exams,”. After the demise of Nirish’s mother, it is the father who is keeping the children’s spirit alive. “My father has told me not be disheartened and to reappear in the exam in the next year”, he added.”Even when my mother was alive, I never saw them disgusted or heard them grumbling over money matters,” he said.

Nirish appeared in the civil services examination not once, but three times earlier but failed. It is not easy to face failure, more so if you are from a poor family. The pressure of taking up a job to supplement the income of the family is always mounting. He continued to chase his dream of becoming an IAS officer by putting his heart and soul into studies, undaunted by failures. With continued enthusiasm he appeared once again and sure enough, he passed with an all India rank of 370.

Life has posed many challenges in the path of Nirish.He happened to share his dream with a considerably rich and respected family friend, who was very shrewd. He lured Nirish to help him to set up a coaching institute in Uttarakhand, and promised that he would help him by providing material to prepare for his Civil Services examination. But two years later, after the coaching institute started paying rich dividends, he was insulted, disgraced and literally thrown out.”What is your worth? You are good for nothing. We no longer want you”, that were the last words I heard from the members of that educated and rich family, said Nirish. “Next moment, I was jobless, homeless, penniless and remained hungry for a week, till help came to me”, he narrated.

“I did not know how to become an IAS officer, but I knew that clearing the country’s top examinations can change my fortune”, he said, adding “that poverty cannot be a hurdle if one has determination and is willing work hard.”One day Nirish left for Delhi to study. “In Delhi, I became friendly with Ankit, who was preparing for competitive exams. I started living with him at Mukherjee Nagar and studied 18hours a day. I did not attend any coaching classes as I could not afford to pay the hefty fees. I studied from the books and notes of Ankit,” he said.

Nirish says the time has come to pay back to society. He plans to help and guide IAS aspirants from economically weak sections to achieve their dreams. He doesn’t want them to face the problems which he had to face. May his tribe increase!

Cancer could not scare him.

                        A fifty six year old Divisional Engineer of BSNL had been leading a very active life, following his daily routine of getting up early in the morning, doing regular practice of yoga. He is a staunch vegetarian, tee tottler and non smoker. He is jovial, with a good sense of humor, believes in enjoying life, living in the present and helping people. In his own words “even at fifty six, I used to feel like thirty six.”

He could not believe his ears, when the doctor told him that he had a malignant tumor in the esophagus which was cancerous. His mind was just not prepared to accept it. When the doctor found that he was not showing any signs of shock effect, and was continuing to behave in a light humored manner, he had to say “come on Mr. Panse, be serious now” Even this could not disturb his stable state of mind. He told the doctor “don’t worry about the biopsy report, just tell me what needs to be done now”

 Mr Shyam with his better half Shobha      

All this was happening in the clinic of Dr. Girish Naik, a surgeon in Indore. On the basis of the biopsy report the doctor advised surgery. Still not taking it seriously Mr. Panse said “what if I don’t go for surgery?”, “then you will not survive for more than two months” said the shocked doctor. Panse was not prepared to die in a month, so he asked the doctor to spell out the time frame of getting the surgery done.

In fact the signs of trouble started showing about two months earlier. Panse was having fever, burning sensation in his chest and lose motions. He felt decreasing appetite and increasing weakness. One day, he felt   so exhausted while in office that he dozed off to sleep. When his son came to know of it, he insisted on getting a medical checkup done.

To get a second opinion, Panse showed the endoscopy and biopsy report to Dr. A.K. Waghmare who was also his friend. So much so, that Panse would offer to help him with odd jobs, even in the operation theatre. Dr Waghmare was not prepared to do the operation himself, being a close aide. He referred him to Dr Sanjay Kumar Sharma a cancer surgeon of Mumbai.

It is said that behind every successful man there is woman. Mr. Shyam N Panse is singularly fortunate to have Mrs. Shobha as his better half. When she learnt about her husband being diagnosed of cancer. She was working with FCI Bhopal. She did not lose her calm, but decided to take him to Mumbai for treatment. Any other lady in her place would have wept, cursed everyone including God, gone in depression and become a liability for the family.

Before leaving for Mumbai in 2004 to get the operation done, Panse called his brothers and close relatives to meet him. “I arranged a party for everyone” he said with a twinkle in his eyes. Anyone else in his place would have been sulking, fuming fretting and making life miserable. “When the relatives were departing, they were hugging me as if, it was our last meeting” adds Panse.

After the surgery on 12 April 2004, he was discharged after 15 days. There were a lot of medicines to be taken daily. These resulted in acidity, lack of appetite and weakness. His weight reduced from 80 kg to 50 kg and his waist came down from 39 inches to 29 inches. It was difficult to take more than one biscuit or half a chapatti at any time. He could drink water slowly in sips, with pause in between. Even coconut water had to be taken in three installments.

After two months of bed rest, Panse joined duties. The diet restriction and weakness continued for about two years,. “I was advised by Dr Sharma to take one tablet of Imatinib 400mg thrice daily for the life time. This medicine was very costly and used to act like a bullet in the body” recalls Panse.

He used to go for six monthly checkups to Bombay hospital. After his retirement in 2008, Panse used to get the check up done in Navodaya Cancer Hospital Bhopal. In 2010 he was advised by one of the doctors of Jawaharlal Nehru Cancer Hospital to discontinue the dose of Imatinib because “if cancer has to strike again, it will, whether you take this medicine or not, but generally it doesn’t”. Trusting his advice, Panse discontinued it. His appetite became better and his weight increased to 57 kg. Just when he felt that the worst was over, he was put to another test.

He started having pain in the liver in March 2012. He consulted one doctor in Bhopal who was foreign return. His treatment was very expensive, but his condition deteriorated. When his weight and hemoglobin count decreased, the pain became very severe and he could not eat anything, he consulted another doctor. After endoscopy and CT-scan, Dr Upasini said” since you have got the earlier operation done in Mumbai you should get the next one done there only.” Panse contacted Dr Sharma in Mumbai and he asked him to come immediately.

The CT-scan and other tests revealed a 15 cm cancerous growth on the liver. Dr Sharma was surprised as to why the dose of Ematinid was discontinued and why he did not come to Mumbai four months earlier. Now that the liver had been infected a liver specialist had to be consulted. The surgeon said “ I will do the operation, but I don’t know the result, so you pray to God” Panse remained unperturbed as he thought “even if I die, there is nothing to lose, as I have lived long enough, and fulfilled all my responsibilities”. On 25 Aug 2012 the second operation for cancer was successfully performed in SL Raheja Hospital, Mumbai. With regular medication including the dose of Imatinib 400 mg Panse took one year to recover.

His strong will power coupled with a positive bent of mind, defeated cancer and he emerged victorious. He has no regrets. He is leading an almost normal life with few restrictions like lifting weight, running, exerting shouting etc. Panse is cancer survivor who is spreading awareness, and clearing myths about cancer. He addresses people on cancer day and is a living example to drive home the point “yes, cancer is curable, provided the patient doesn’t lose hope and maintains the will power to recover”

He takes his father who was an army personal as his role model. In spite of five heart attacks, he survived and always remained cheerful. His teacher Shri M R Abhyankar also acted as his guide and mentor. Panse remembers his words “it is not important how long you live, but it important how you live” It is the quality of life which is governed by your thoughts. He sums up his philosophy of life in these words “happiness is not at the end, it is on the way, so enjoy every moment of the day”.

(The above success story is based on the interview of Mr SN Panse by Maj Pradeep Khare)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kartik -not allowed to appear for IIT-JEE going to Stanford University .

         

                    Visually impaired Delhi student Kartik Sawhney has repeatedly been denied permission to appear for the IIT-JEE in the past three years because of his disability. However, in March 2013, he was awarded a fully funded scholarship to pursue engineering at Stanford University in the US. On May 27, 2013, when 18-year-old Kartik Sawhney who  scored 96 per cent in his Class XII CBSE examination, was denied permission to appear for the IIT-JEE three years in a row, just because he was blind, and there was no provision for blind students to take the exam.

                             Appearing from Delhi Public School, RK Puram, he scored 99 %in computer science (his favorite subject) and 95% each in English, Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry; his total is 479 out of 500.         

Talking about the challenges he faced when appearing for the CBSE exam Kartik said “Since no other blind student had pursued science in Class XI, I had to write several letters to the Controller of Examinations, CBSE, to make an exception. Along with my school principal Dr D R Saini, I must have written about 20 letters to the CBSE, after which they eventually considered my request.”In the absence of e books he used screen-reading software called JAWS, which converts text into audio. Till Class X he did not face so much difficulty because the textbooks were available in digital format. Only the classroom notes had to be keyed in separately.

                       “In Class XI, however, I had to seek help from my peers and family members, who would dictate the chapters from the textbook while I typed them into the computer. The syllabus for Class 11 and 12 was extensive, so I had to type about 100 to 200 pages every day before I could study them.” explained Kartik.Recalling some of the challenges, he says, “Studying with normal students wasn’t easy, and neither was choosing a stream of my choice.”Determination and perseverance are the key factors to his success — he simply would not take no for an answer.”A lot of people think that disabilities limit you from doing certain things. But I think success comes to those who believe in their strengths,” he states.

                        Sawhney, who comes from a middle class family — his father Ravinder Sawhney is a businessman and mother Indu Sawhney a homemaker — confesses that aiming high and making tough decisions at every stage was still easier than executing them. Prior to joining DPS, for two years he had undergone training at the National Association for the Blind, and was given special permission to use either a computer or a laptop to maintain notes.”But the transition from NAB to DPS wasn’t smooth. I continued to be dependent on digital material and since each session would not last beyond 45 minutes, I had to further sharpen my concentration so that I could take maximum notes. Both my teachers and friends at school were helpful. The teachers were kind enough to repeat themselves and also encouraged me to meet them after class if I had any doubts, but they could only do so much. I had to do the learning on my own, which was frustrating at times, especially because I would not understand simple descriptions.” adds Kartik.

                           During the examinations he was provided with a soft copy of the question paper, which he would install on my personal computer. The screen reading software would read out the questions. While others attempted them on paper, he had to type the responses on a computer. He was given the same time as the others, and he he had to take a printout and give it to the concerned faculty member for evaluation.

                              Surprisingly there was no provision for people like him to appear for the JEE, which is a highly competitive test. So between 2010 and 2012, he wrote several letters to the IITs in Madras, Kanpur and Delhi, respectively. Each time, they not only turned down his request, but were also rude to him. Although the IITs have a three per cent reservation for the physically handicapped; it is restricted to students with poor or low vision. Since he is totally blind he was not qualified to take the JEE.

                             Excited about going to Stanford for engineering Kartik says “Internationally, Stanford is the best place to pursue engineering. Ever since I understood computers, I have been passionate about computer science engineering. I have already designed this software called ‘STEM made easy’, which has two different applications and aims to help blind students like me study subjects like Mathematics and Science easily. With the benefit of a Stanford education, I think it’s not only possible to shape up my computing skills, but also try and develop applications that will improve the condition of the visually impaired back in India.”

                                Kartik draws inspiration from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, whom he met in 2005.He still remembers his words “son it is better to have vision and no eyesight” When asked to give a message he said “do not judge people based on what they lack; instead, focus on what they are capable of and if possible, help them get closer to their goals.”

 

 

 

 

 

He lost his sight but not his vision

                       Who says dreams can’t come true? Following the adage ‘Pursue your passion no matter what it takes’,  a small time musician Raju Rao seems to have set an example of sorts difficult for others to emulate. One hand on the synthesizer, the other on a keyboard, he works passionately in his home-studio in Bhopal. He makes his presence felt at light music shows here. Not only does he accompany visiting music stars, he also plays and sings solo in marriages and events where he solely gives out an enthralling performance. He never leaves an opportunity to make Bhopal hear a new song. Behind his shades are eyes that can’t see, yet behind the lyrics is a heart that never lets his visual impairment come in its way.

He rapidly scans sound files using a screen reader. The speed at which he works amazes those of us who have sight. “I used to waste a lot of time going to and coming from studios, technical problems in the system, and waiting “One day my wife said, ‘Don’t worry about the money. Let’s create a studio today.’’ ‘’That was seven years back and after that there was no turning back,” he says. When people came to know that he was planning to buy a computer, they used to make fun of him saying “how can you see the cursor and operate the mouse?”He used Jaws software to work on the computer, which he picked up all by himself. His dogged determination produced results in one year, when he recorded his own song and music. .“There were a lot of difficulties, but when you try and try again you succeed. His detractors cried in disbelief “you are feigning blindness “In fact Raju has memorized the position of all the keys on the keyboard. Surprisingly he did not get any formal training in music or Braille.

He prefers not to talk about his past. He says he learnt to play guitar as a child. His mother appreciated it and coaxed him to play better. One day, a priest named Franklin Rodriques heard him and invited him to play in a church somewhere near Bhopal. After that he became a professional. He moved to Bhopal after getting married to Pramila in 1998. It was an arranged marriage, in which Pramila with the support of her parents took the bold decision of accepting a visually impaired person as her husband, and supporting him wholeheartedly all his life. In her words “a blind person is also a human being” No wonder, behind every successful man there is a woman, and Raju attributes all his success to her. He counts the day he got married to Pramila, as the happiest day of his life.” My wife knew I loved music, and she did everything possible to help me in my work “says Raju with pride. Their daughter Sanjana has inherited musical talent from her father, and is giving voice to melodious songs, which are available on you tube.

Mr. Rao’s big break came in 2010 when he participated in a popular television talent hunt show. “Mumbai is an ocean of music,” he says, “I gained confidence. I began to sing ghazals and sufi

music. People liked it. It was Pramila who prompted me to compose songs, so I started doing lyrics, too. The multi talented independent musician also started penning down his thoughts in the form of songs, which have captured many hearts .Raju has made a place for himself by participating in reality shows like “India’s got talent “and “Mele ka big star season 2”on Big Magic TV. The judge’s comments in praise of Raju are fabulous. The videos are available at https://www.youtube.com/user/rajuraomusician

He has performed with noted singers like Ghulam Ali, Kavita Krishnamurthy and Anuradha Paudwal among others. Recollecting an interesting incident he says “I had composed a song for Kavita Krishnamurthy to sing, she came to the studio for recording, and took my advice how to sing it “His all time favourite remains Jagjit Singh whom he met in Indore once. He has also performed for Doordarshan’s Urdu ghazal programme.People have never been rude to me because I am blind. Most often, they don’t know who is playing in the shadows behind the lead singer. Nothing scares me more than an indifferent audience,” says Mr. Rao.In a message to upcoming artists, he says “don’t be scared of difficulties, have patience and don’t give up” “It’s been hard to come this far. If I need to go further, I must shift to Mumbai, but my roots are in Bhopal”

Going beyond the call of duty

It was about 4-15 pm on 19 Aug 2013 in a busy market place in Bhopal. Among the traffic was a mini bus which stopped and an elderly person holding his mobile phone got down. One miscreant snatched his mobile phone and started running away. The old man cried for help. A traffic havildar on duty nearby rushed to his rescue, and grabbed the mobile thief. He was struggling with all his might to set himself free. Finding him helpless his accomplices came on the scene in a drunken state, and pounced on the havildar with a knife. In the scuffle that ensued one of the veins of his hand got cut, which resulted in profuse bleeding. Unmindful of the pain and bleeding, he did not loosen his grip on the miscreant. Finally the thief was booked under attempt to murder.Sahaslal had to admitted to Apex hospital where he had to undergo surgery.

            This act of exceptional bravery shown by 45 years young Havildar Sahaslal Saryam has elevated him to a real life hero. He stretched himself beyond the call of duty, without bothering for his safety or that of his family, for which the Director General of Police Madhya Pradesh announced a prize of Rs 25,000 for him. About five years earlier Sahaslal helped a nurse retrieve a snatched chain, for which he earned cash reward of Rs 10,000.  Thoughts like” what can the miscreants do to take revenge against me and my family members in future” don’t come to his mind and hold him back from taking such bold and daring actions.

Hailing from a lower middle class family, he has three daughters and a son. He is leaving no stone unturned to give the best of education to his daughters, who are studying in College. Educated only up to class XI (which was the school leaving class during those days) Sahaslal aspired to be a teacher. He lives by the philosophy of Geeta “do your duties without bothering for the results. Punctuality and sincerity have been the hallmarks of his personality. When asked about the happiest day of his life he quipped, “When I get the police gold medal”

I am sure that day is not a off, when the gold medal will adorn his chest.

(The above success story is based on the interview of Havildar Sahaslal Saryam by Maj Pradeep Khare)

Franz Gastler -an American by birth,but a true Indian at heart!

One month ago a group of teenage girls from a village on the outskirts of Ranchi in Jharkhand achieved something that sportspersons with the best facilities and support in cities often aspire for, but don’t always succeed.On July 13, the 18 tribal girls representing Yuwa India under-14 all-girls team were placed third among 10 teams playing for the Gasteiz Cup in Victoria Gasteiz in Spain. The girls — a majority of whom played outside their village in Ormanjhi for the first time — were placed third after two wins, two losses, and one draw against international teams. Earlier during the Donosti Cup, Spain’s biggest football tournament, the girls made it to quarter finals from among 36 international teams.The credit for such incredible achievements goes to Franz Gastler,who came from America ,on a mission to India.

The young footballers wearing red and white sarees and sneakers, with plastic flowers adorning their hair and around their wrists, were ecstatic as they won the third prize in Gasteiz, Spain that Saturday night.“We had carried sarna sarees in our bags and some flowers too. When they announced our names we ran into the dressing room and took just five minutes to get dressed in our sarees, then we came out and accepted the prize and then we danced,” grinned Rinky Kumari, 13, the team’s captain back in Ormanjhi. “Yuwa yuwa hum hai yuwa, sab se juda; gendwa ko maarei, netwa ko phaade, mil ke bolo Jai Yuwa (We are young, so special; we are on the ball, we attack the net; all hail Yuwa),” the team breaks into chorus before practice.

The winners-dancing to glory

“They were cheered everywhere they went. They would break into song and dance always even doing the jhumar (traditional dance) with a team from Spain at San Sebastian. The only time I saw them nervous was the first game,” recounted Sandeep Chhetri Yuwa’s secretary and the team unofficial cheering songs writer.At the afternoon session at Yuwa’s centre at Hutup village, the older girls break into giggles when their peers’ Spain tour is mentioned. “They saw the sea!” the group exclaims. “They told us there was lots of meat , chicken, even pigs meat. There was bread, butter and jam. People there bathe in the sea,” Preeti Kumari, 9, sums up the buzz among the children in Hutup since the girls’ return.

Shivani Toppo, 12, who has played football since Franz Gastler, a 30-year old American founded Yuwa-India in this Jharkhand village in 2009 and was among two girls from Yuwa who had toured with India’s under-14 team in Sri Lanka last year, explains her interest in the game. “It keeps me healthy. If I stay home I do not feel good. Also, Franz sir got all of us ,to go to good schools. He helped my family pay the school fee and now the school has waived the fee off,” says the team’s second defender.Shivani’s family lives in a kutcha house in Hutup not far from the football field. On her way home after the two hour practice session everyday, neighbours would pass rude remarks, Shivani recalls. “They would say, why do you walk around in half-pants like boys. They would tell my parents that Franz will sell your daughter. My father died last year but I remember he would tell me that I should give it back to these people.I didn’t bother for them,and told them that they had no business to interfere in my life“She must study and sports make her happy. She helps me to lift dung and clean utensils every morning before she goes to school,” said Shivani’s mother Jhari Devi who supports the family working as a daily wage labourer in a plastic factory at Hudup since her husband died last year. “If she has to play football, she obviously has to wear these clothes,” says Shivani’s grandfather Dukhan Pahan.

Shivani Toppo with her mother Jhari Devi and grandfather

                 In the three weeks the girls were on tour, 40 new children have joined Yuwa’s practice session besides the 220 who are already regular. Yuwa-India’s Executive Director Franz Gastler who had first come to Jharkhand four years back to teach in villages, sounds excited about the team’s achievements, but at the same time is a bit concerned.“We applied for land on a long-term lease because the land we play on is disappearing right under our feet,as land mafia buy the land and put brick walls around it. Right now our proposal is pending with the Sports Secretary, we do not know what will happen,” says Gastler.

When asked ,”what was the biggest challenge you and the team faced to reach the tournaments in Spain?”Franz recounted,”Obtaining the documents to allow the girls to travel. After we were invited by Donosti Cup with the support of TZBZ a group of student entrepreneurs in the Basque country of Spain, the main challenge, funny enough, was obtaining birth certificates. Most of the girls did not have official birth certificates (as they were born at home)”.Yuwa doesn’t have the staff to get these for eighteen girls, so the girls and their parents took on the task . At first, mothers and fathers accompanied the girls to the local Panchayat office. But as the weeks dragged into months, the parents could not leave their fields and day labour jobs to follow up time and again. The girls reported to us that Dinesh Sahu, the panchayat sewak, had slapped several of them in the face when they arrived to follow up on the work. He made many of them sweep his office floor, and demanded bribes from each and every one of them. He told them that if they went to Spain, I would sell them into slavery.
“How did the parents of the girls respond to the girls participating in the tournament?”was the next question to which Franz replied”It was also a challenge getting support from the parents. While all of the parents wanted their daughters to get this opportunity, most could not fathom what a massive opportunity this really was. Most had never been outside Jharkhand, and going abroad was hard to imagine.”He added”We run classes and practices in three villages, and girls come from 10 villages to attend the program. My staff and I spent days tracking down parents in far-flung villages to sign documents — although they had been told to meet us and sign documents at a certain time and date, they would sometimes leave for weddings etc. far away, and with no means to contact them.”It was not an easy task as Franz narrates”the girls were often left to fend for themselves, against all the entrenched forces. working against them in society, family and government. Nothing that’s intended for them reaches them as it should. They have to fight for everything.But That’s one reason, I admire these girls so much. They take on the challenges in their lives with courage, devotion and team spirit. Their grit and determination to improve their lives and the lives of those around them often leaves me in awe.
Now last but not the least here’s something about the real hero of this story-Franz Gastler .He studied at Edina High School and graduated in 2000. He attended University Professors Program of Boston University, and received his bachelor of arts and master of arts in international political economy. He is certified in negotiation and mediation from the “university consortium” Program on Negotiation at the Harvard Law School. He underwent internship at the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit in Bogota, Colombia.

                    Franz-an American by birth but a true Indian at Heart
He participated in various sports. He received training in judo at the United States Olympic Training Center. He is experienced in coaching alpine skiing for 12 years, and played ice hockey as a goaltender.In 2008, he joined Krishi Gram Vikas Kendra,a Jharkhand based NGO, as an English teacher. During his time as a teacher, he lived in a “farmer’s mud hut”. He was asked by one of his students to teach her to play football. He founded Yuwa with the financial help of his high school friends, Greg Deming, Sephen Peterson, and Erik Odland, to teach football to slum girls.Surprisingly Franz, who never played or watched a football match before, started teaching the sport to girls between five to seventeen years of age.The program has been quite successful and has received endorsements from the United Nations Development Fund for Women, Nike, Coca-Cola India, and many others.

( Courtsey The Hindu and http://www.yuwa-india.org/)

No age bar for doing something new!

                Ordinary people relax after retirement at the age of 60 years, but someone who starts studying for LLB thereafter is bound to be extra ordinary. Meet Mr. Mohanlal Parmar of Rajkot, Gujrat who has started his legal practice at the ripe age of 63 years.

            Born, brought up and educated in Gujarati medium at Vadnagar the home town of Chief Minister Narendra Modi. He shares his first name with the father of the nation. Understanding English was challenge, which he overcame by using a dictionary and trying to read “The Times of India”. Early marriage forced him to take up a clerical job in the income tax department after matriculation.

He recollects his school days when he had to go 15 kms away, to the tehsildar to get his certificates attested. This inspired him to become an officer some day. Alongside his job, he continued his studies and did his graduation. After graduation he appeared for competitive examinations and was selected as direct recruit Inspector in the Income-tax Department. He had to study with the help of candle light and lantern because of lack of resources. He also mastered the nuances of accountancy and cleared the departmental examinations, which paved his way for promotion to the post of Income tax Inspector. Consistent hard work and sincerity led him to the coveted post of Additional commissioner of Income Tax.

The turning point in Mohanlal’s life come in 2004, when there was a theft in his son’s mobile shop. In spite of insurance cover, and the thief caught with some stolen items, the insurance company did not admit the claim. After his retirement in the following year, instead of relaxing, he enrolled for LLB Course and completed it in three years. He faced another hurdle because the maximum age limit for registration as an advocate was 45 years. Undaunted, he appealed against this provision and managed to get his registration done. Initially he filed his son’s case with the help of another advocate, as he was studying for LLB. After he won the case the insurance company filed an appeal in the National Consumer Court in Delhi. Parmar defended the case himself at Delhi and won.

One of Parmar’s acquaintances underwent treatment for mouth cancer, at a hospital in Mumbai. In spite of valid mediclaim for the past 15 years, the company refused to admit the claim on the pretext of smoking. He came forward to help, fought the case and finally not only won, but also managed to get a compensation of six lakhs.

A devotee of lord Hanuman, Parmar feels that one can acquire a good quality from each and everyone. A keen social activist, he helps poor students and villagers for which he earmarks 10% of his pension. A noble act indeed for which he deserves a salute. He also spreads awareness about health, yoga, civic sense, consumer protection and service matters.

Always ready to help people in need, he articulates his secret of success saying “there is no short cut to hard work” and “nothing is difficult, if you have a firm determination.”  Parmar follows Mahatma Gandhi’s ideology according to which there is no use of  “ politics without principles;  pleasure without conscience; wealth without work; knowledge without character ;  business without morality; science without humanity and worship without sacrifice.”

            (The above success story is based on interview of Shri Mohanlal Parmar (09824291510) by Maj Pradeep Khare.)