In December last year, our co-founder Swati Goel Sharma came across a frantic call for help on Twitter. A good samaritan Vikram Kumar Bagde urged the chief minister of Madhya Pradesh for help to rescue a family of blacksmiths that had lost its only son. The man was also the family’s bread-earner as the father was terminally ill.
The son had died as a result of electrocution three years back, which put his old parents and sister in a precarious position. His father Ghisa Ram was fighting the last stage of cancer. The family, deprived of a breadwinner and burdened by Ghisa Ram’s mounting medical expenses, struggled to make ends meet.
After learning the pitiable plight of Ghisa Ram and his family members, Sharma got in touch with them through Bagde. Sewa Nyaya Utthan Foundation supported Ghisa Ram in his cancer treatment. Unfortunately, the killer disease had the last laugh despite our best efforts and that of the doctors. Ghisa Ram breathed his last on August 5.
Ghisa Ram’s teenage daughter Tina is now the only hope for her mother. The foundation helped the family set up a grocery shop in front of its home. We also helped in stocking the shop up as well. Bagde rendered exemplary support at every step, volunteering to steer our entire initiative while we provided monetary support.
We are not just thankful towards him, we are also extremely proud of him. It is such people who make all the difference in society with their humanitarian approach.
Sharma also offered to open a bank account in the name of Tina, so she could have financial security. Tina did not have a bank account initially but is in the process of getting one opened. Once that is done, Sharma had pledged to transfer a substantial amount. We not only sought to prop up Tina and her mother’s lives right now but has also strived to secure their future.
Our founders have always tried to make families self-reliant. We have gifted well-stocked kiosks to several women, who had thought they did not have anything left in their lives. From Rinku Devi in Bihar to physically-challenged Durga in Delhi, we have done our best to set up sources of livelihood for the ‘Lakshmis’ of their respective families.
Tina is another of the girls whom we have helped. The kiosks gifted by us could be turned into rich sources of income with adequate hard work, and we ardently hope that the women who have received them can really benefit from them.
The foundation has also sought to create human chains so that the poor and needy do not run out of support at any time whatsoever. Do support us so that we can continue to save lives.