As I make my way past the narrow
streets , skipping , hopping and in the process , driving away scores
of flies hovering above feces lying on the footpath , I think to
myself , how did it all come to this ?
Just minutes - literally minutes - less
than 10 , or if you would like to gauge it in distance , hardly half
a kilometer away lies one of the prime examples of urban development
in any city .
 |
| The skyscrapers are in stark contrast to the shanty streets just minutes away. |
Over here however , in what is without
a shadow of any doubt one of the most ugliest places - better still than so many others - to live in , it's an entirely different story .
The very meaning of life seems to differ vastly . It's totally
surreal to imagine of such vastly different faces to a city . A city
that is considered one among the best and promises to leave behind
many in it's trails . It is hard to comprehend that people call this
place their home .
As soon as you enter these streets ,
you too are gripped by an inexplicable fear , especially if you are
someone not affluent with Marathi and are brave enough to carry a
wallet and a laptop in your backpack . Suddenly , all eyes seem to
focus on you , as you move in , the streets get narrower and narrower
. The accent used is synonymous to that used by hooligans , you
wonder what you may encounter here . The uncertainty is enough to
drive into phobia .
To live in these habitats , is by no
means a piece of cake . There is the constant fear of something going
wrong . Children here play on the roads and footpaths , the same area
also functions as their lavatories . Women here seem to lead a
miserable life , not knowing what their better half – often the
sole earner of the family - is upto . Will he return for the night ?
Will they manage the next week ? . However , there is no doubt that
even these streets have gone substantial changes – changes for the
good . But when the comparison is relative , they take a battering !
On one corner of the street , I see two
drunken men fighting for some silly cause and I realize that I've to
cross them in order to reach the destination . I walk as casually as
possible , dripping sweat in the process , and as I near them , one
of them starts running towards me ! My fears come true , thankfully ,
he asks me to hold his sweater , while he takes care of his
counterpart . I somehow manage to escape the ordeal and make it to my
destination – Hutatma Rajguru School and College .
 |
| I had an unrestricted entry to the school |
As soon as I enter inside , or even
before I enter , what strikes me is the ease with which I was able to
break in . I for one , have never managed to enter even my own house
with such ease . You will always find someone overlooking the
proceedings. The security is non-existent , I see a sight which I
once used to part of . Children running and screaming and playing in
the open field . I never , not even in my wildest dreams , imagined
that this sight would make me Nostalgic . As I came to terms with the reality that my childhood was well and truly over , I look beyond the
playground and see a sight that gives me shivers – a shiver down my
spine . Where the playground ends , starts a huge cliff , where , in
my childhood days , had heard stories of how Leopards would stoop
down and hunt both humans and livestock alike and here were the
children playing carelessly . They were in their own world .It would
need nothing short of a miracle to change this place , to bring it to
level grounds with the city .
 |
| Shirish and Raju do the talking. |
Enter three fine gentlemen - Praveen
A , a software engineer and a graduate from the prestigious NIT
Calicut and hailing from Pallakad , Kerala . Shirish Agarwal ,
working actively in the FOSS and Pune Linux User Groups and finally
Raju Vindane , a local of Nagpur , currently pursuing his
engineering degree in a college in the city . These geeks , if you
will , have been doing their bit in helping the people of the slums realize their dreams . They are tackling one of the main problems in
our county head on – education or the lack of it . The children
here can't afford quality education due to numerous reasons . The
women here are expected to the household work and nothing else . But
all of that could change , thanks to this wonderful initiative .
 |
| Praveen keeps a watchful eye over the proceedings. |
Well , all of this doesn't answer one
question , not yet . What the hell am I doing in the middle of all
this ?? . Well , without going into the details , I was being
mentored by Praveen in my maiden opensource project . In the process
, I got acquainted to Shirish , Raju and others . So , when myself and Praveen were conversing on the phone , he invited me to join them in
this cause . Though I was a bit skeptic , I decided to give it a go
and here I was trying to find my footing in the middle of all the
hurly-burly ! I hope that answers the question .
Now , as we made our way in to the
school and into the principal's office for a perfunctory meet , on
our way , the excitement of the students on seeing their heroes was
palpable . Now I too was living it and loving it . It was my first
visit to a classroom in a school , since I last passed out of my
school (Which was one tenth of a decade ago !) . We were told that we
could use the e-learning class . Wow ! That sounds cool , I wasn't
expecting such a setting in this school and it came in as a pleasant
surprise , but soon all the initial excitement was put to bed when I
came to know that the “e-learning classroom” didn't even have a
projector screen but at least they had a working projector(The only
reason why it must be working is because it stays away from the
student's reach).
 |
| The guys poke fun at the state of the equipment |
I then connected Raju's net-book to the
projector and we were off and running . Raju was in charge of the
class as he captured the attention of the students with his friendly
and calm approach . Most importantly however , he was the one who
could best communicate in Marathi . That made the student's feel a
lot better and for the next hour they were shown a wonderful cartoon
. They enjoyed every bit of it .
 |
| The Cartoon that went something like "The Big Buck Bunny" |
Raju then emphasized the importance of
computer to these students by citing their most favorite example –
the cartoon ofcourse . While Raju went further , he was assisted by
Sirish from time to time and myself and Praveen took turns to
demonstrate Raju's commands . Throughout the hour students kept
peeking in with curiosity and showed their interest in learning . An introduction to typing was also given , even I learnt something new , as I tried my luck in typing Marathi .
Raju then tried to stretch their imagination to the next level as he showed them the various planets of the solar system and the students watched in awe . Raju put some of his knowledge gained during his visits to GMRT to good use as he stated a few interesting facts about different celestial bodies . In the end , it all bodes well for the future of these young minds and in turn the future of our country . Such activities should be promoted and supported , just as these people have no need as such to do all this . It has to come from within . Read how it all started [1].
 |
| Raju shows the students the world map and the solar system |
We were teaching a class of VIIIth
grade girls . The session for boys was to follow which would then be
followed by a session to empower women at the Shramik Mahila Morcha
office. Here women were taught the basics of computers and how it
could come to their aid . The Women even had the chance to work with
Raspberry Pi's[2] . This also takes care of another important topic , not just limited to our country - Women Empowerment .
Unfortunately , I couldn't stay back
for the next two sessions and had to bid adieu to my inspirational friends
and left them to continue this Noble Gesture ...
References :
