Gujarat

Giving up a fledgling career in Corporate Law, Sunayana K moved to a remote Gujarati village to work with a SHG. Here she helped the 18 women rejuvenate their failing restaurant business with innovative meal plans and recipes. She now hopes to use her experience and legal training to study issues faced by migrants and thus push for better and more inclusive policies for the rural poor.

What started with four students is now a huge residential school that is changing the lives of hundreds of visually impaired girls. It not only provides a safe haven and quality education, but also find suitable life partners for the girls when are of marriageable age!

Why are girls not given an equal opportunity to study and progress like their brothers? Watch this heartwarming and thought provoking video that answers all the questions and shows how educating girls can create a larger impact.

From using ashes to dirty clothes, women in rural India put their health at immense risk during menstruation. Swati Bedeker not only spread awareness about using sanitary pads but also enabled rural women to make a living out of it. To add to it, she got even men interested in the idea! Here is how she did it.

A man who is 84 years old now had decided in his younger days not to migrate from his village but to bring a wave of change and set his village as an example. He has been working tirelessly towards the upliftment of his village through education, livelihoods, awareness and more, and his spirit is undying as he plans to extend his programme to other villages too. Read more to know how he and his small team have been overcoming all challenges and changing the lives of thousands.

While showing pride in being an Indian, how many of us realize that preserving our country’s heritage and culture is also our responsibility? Vivek Modi has run from pillar to post to preserve the Bohri houses in Gujarat, a one-of-its kind architecture, from being demolished by the ‘increasing urbanization mania’. This article is an inspiring account of Vivek, an engineer by profession, who is doing his bit his way to preserve the heritage of Gujarat.

It can be seen from the examples below that when residents and stakeholders in a community come together to solve an issue, the results are not only positive, but also long-lasting. Here we learn of ordinary citizens and local NGOs who inspired people in their areas to keep their surroundings clean and free of diseases.

When one lives in the city and enjoys excellent health care at one’s beck and call, it is difficult to appreciate the hardships suffered by the poor in remote locations of India. SEWA Rural is an organization that aims at improving the lives of these very deprived people. From healthcare to vocational training, they have been providing holistic development to the needy in Gujarat for 33 years now, and even today, they continue to serve the poor with utmost enthusiasm.

Continuing our water series this week, today we profile a few remarkable people and organizations who have turned around several villages in Gujarat, a largely arid part of the country, into fertile agricultural land. This article demonstrates nicely what can be achieved when government agencies, non-governmental organizations and local governance bodies like water committees can work together and inspire community-level participation and ownership.

There are several people our society does not accept willingly. The leprosy-affected and the mentally handicapped are some of them. Imagine an entire village dedicated to them, where they can live freely and without prejudice, and receive loving care and attention from dedicated staff. This is what Sahyog Kushtha Yagna Trust in Gujarat attempts to achieve.