In the old days, gurukul students donning saffron robes would go around town asking for dakshina for their school. In a complete reversal, a group of teachers in Jalgaon begs unashamedly in the streets for alms to help out students who lack the means to make it to a classroom.
The startling act of empathy began nine years ago when engineering aspirants from underprivileged families were admitted to the government college in Jalgaon, only to find that there was no hostel attached as claimed in the brochure. Four students started staying back in college till late and sleeping in the classrooms—till one day a clerk got wind of what was going on and threw them out.
“The students then started spending the night on the pavement outside the college,’’ says S S Rane, then rector of a hostel attached to the Bendele College of Arts. “When asked why they weren’t renting rooms, they said they couldn’t afford it.’’ Moved by their plight, Rane and several other teachers pooled in a part of their salaries and rented a place for the youngsters. Over time, however, as the number of needy students grew from the initial four to 115 today, Rane and other faculty members like Nemivant Dhande, Mahesh Joshi, Lekur Vale and D S Nemade realised that they would need financial help. That’s when Rane came up with the novel idea of begging.
The backlash was instantaneous, with whispers and accusations in the town that a bunch of teachers was into making easy money. The do-gooders’ horrified families urged them to look at other options. But the teachers remained steadfast.
“Initially people wondered why decently dressed men were holding begging bowls and asking for alms,’’ smiles Rane. “So we asked the students who we were supporting to stand beside us.’’
The experiment proved to be a stunning success, thanks to the army of contributors that materialised, many from the same economic class as the students. “Women vegetables vendors approached us. They told us it was difficult to give money, but they could give us vegetables for the students,’’ says Dhande.
The gurudwara in Jalgaon donated vessels. Soon, a barber came forward and offered his services for free. In no time, a flour mill, a supplier of cooking oil, a foodgrain trader and an LPG gas agency did their bit to run the mess (see box).
“If these poor kids go on and do well for themselves, we’ll feel so happy. I am not doing anything out of the way. We don’t have storage facilities for the vegetables we don’t manage to sell. So we give them to the children,’’ says Lata Yeshwant Nemade who sells vegetables and speaks on behalf of close to a dozen vendors who take turns to donate veggies. Two octogenarian women come by and cook bhakras and rotis for the students everyday.
In 2004, the four teachers decided to build a hostel, and a rupee was collected from every person in the city.
“Hawkers, rickshaw drivers, hamaals, everyone contributed. Some gave one rupee, some ten and some thousands,’’ says Rane, standing on the portico of the 16-room hostel. According to Dhande, the porters did their bit by collecting cement that fell from the gunny bags that were being loaded on trains from Jalgaon. An MNC that manufactures electrical fittings heard about the teachers and donated switches for the hostel.
Now, a library has come up in the basement of the hostel. Dhande coaches students who want to take entrance exams and an MSEB engineer D S Patil too comes by to help students with their lessons.
Nine years on, a lot has changed; some of the teachers have retired, some faculty members have been promoted and several students have gone on to join top companies. But more students have joined, and they continue to be supported. “Now we receive anonymous donations too. Last season, 24 boxes of mangoes came from an anonymous donor, and someone else sent a Matador full of fruits recently,’’ says Joshi.
This is probably why Ganesh Wagh from Wakdi village in Marathwada, Santosh Bhadarge from Andheri in Mumbai, Anand Ingale from Chalisgaon, Hanuman Aare from Hingoli, Vilas Bele from Jarud, Manorama Jadhav from Jawekhede, Roshan Bagul from Khamatane, Manoj Muneshwar from Warud, and several others, know their dreams will continue to live on.
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