Author: Mahesh Chandra Donia
Publication: India Today
Date: April 11, 2005
Introduction: A samaritan on a spiritual
quest brings hope and education to the leprosy-afflicted in Hardwar
After losing his father to AIDS
and his mother to another man, four-year-old Shubam could have ended up
as just another beggar on the ghats of Hardwar. But thanks to the
Divya Prem Seva Mission, Shubam is now studying in a residential school
and does not have to worry about his future Like 300 other children, most
of whom were born to leprosy patients.
Serving the most afflicted of mankind,
who exist in a haze of suffering and rejection, the mission was founded
by Ashish Gautam in 1997. An ardent follower of Swami Vivekananda,
Gautam's spiritual pursuit led him to the holy city in 1996. Here
he sought to serve the most needy and chose the leprosy-afflicted of Chandighat.
Gautam had no experience or resources,
only self-befief. So when the leprosy patients, who considered him
an intruder, welcomed him with the filthiest of invectives Gautam stood
his ground. It did not take him long to win them over as he began
nursing their wounds and set up a dispensary for them from donations of
well-wishers. "They have taught me what compassion really means,"
says the 40-year-old law graduate from Hamirpur, Uttar Pradesh.
After ensuring regular treatment
for the leprosy afflicted, he turned his attention to educating their children
and others who had no on to turn to. The school, which began with
26 children in a hut eight years ago, is now a full-fledged institution
with two campuses, including a residential school with 120 students from
13 states. Gautam also runs five single-teacher schools for the children
of Muslim Vangujjars living in the nearby Rajaji National Park.
"It is a genuine effort in nation
building," says Dr K.S. Dikshit, who has not only adopted a child from
the mission but also treats its wards free at his hospital in Hardwar.
Run by a team of 20 young volunteers, the mission aims to raise the children
to be good citizens.
However, the generosity comes at
a price. The mission spends about Rs 30 lakh annually on medicines,
clothes, groceries and salaries of its staff. Run through contributions
of well-wishers, it often faces severe financial crises. Says former
BSP MP from Hamirpur Ashok Chandel, whose two sons work for the mission
during their college vacations: "It's no mean task bringing hope to the
helpless when you don't know where their next meal will come from."
But for Gautam such difficulties
are part of the job for he is trying to "live up to his own highest ideals"
as his idol Vivekananda had exhorted.
