From an academy that offers free coaching to disabled people to a programme that serves free meals, here are the top stories of the week
In our Catalysts of Hope series, we bring you uplifting, inspiring, and impactful stories of change.
Two years ago, Jobin S Kottaram, Founder of Absolute IAS Academy, started Project Chitrasalabham when he discovered that no coaching centres offered free classes for specially-abled individuals. Project Chitrasalabham aims to provide free UPSC coaching to these people.
At present, the institution offers free coaching, through a combination of offline and online batches, to 100 aspirants with various disabilities, including orthopaedic disabilities, cerebral palsy, and visual and hearing impairment. The students are from various states, including Kerala, Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh.
Project Chitrasalabham’s first batch had 25 students from Kerala. Sherin Sahana from this batch cleared the UPSC exam and the interview with a rank of 918.
The academy, staffed by a team of 30 educators, offers classes every day from 10 am to 1 pm.
More than a decade ago, Kottaram, had lost his chance to join the civil service by just two marks. With the aim to to serve society by helping others crack the examination, he started the academy in 2010, where he first taught optional subjects such as Malayalam and Sociology.
Read more about his work here
Meanwhile, in other news …
Providing free meals
The Prasadam Seva programme started by Vishal Singh, a 43-year-old first-generation entrepreneur, provides free food to those accompanying their critically ill kin at three Lucknow hospitals–King George’s Medical University, Balrampur Hospital, and Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital.
This mission was inspired by Singh’s own experience struggling to afford meals while caring for his ailing father at a hospital in Gurugram.
Currently, Prasadam Seva provides daily meals to more than 1,200 people free of cost, and this number increased to nearly 2,500 during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the second wave of the pandemic, the foundation distributed over 7.5 lakh food packets, according to a report in The New Indian Express (TNIE). The regular menu comprises roti, daal, rice, two vegetables, salad and papad.
Singh does not accept any monetary help but welcomes donations in terms of grains.
Celebrating wins
Anjanee Devi and her daughter Nikhitha Devi recently won gold and silver medals at the Third National Grappling (Wrestling) Championship 2023 in Rohtak, Haryana. The duo also qualified for the national-level grappling championship.
Devi secured a gold medal in the seniors' championship under the 89 kg weight category in the Gi/No Gi style, while her daughter clinched gold in the junior category, for under-19 participants, with a weight of 70 kg.
Devi, who was once an aspiring sportswoman, had to put her dreams in the backseat after marriage, but she found her way back to sports while training her daughter in grappling. She believes the intense practice for eight to nine months prepared her to compete at the state and national level competitions.
“I had won many medals in school. Later, I encouraged my daughter to become a sportswoman and, in the process, I became one, fulfilling my lifelong dream,” Devi told TNIE.
Building libraries
Youth in Gundrampally, Telangana, are establishing libraries in various villages across the state. They believe that access to books is essential for the education and preparation of unemployed youth, despite the prevalence of mobile phones and digital information.
According to TNIE, these youngsters spend their own money and raise donations to set up the libraries, providing infrastructure and a wide range of magazines and reading materials for those seeking knowledge and opportunities. The response to these libraries has been encouraging.
Edited by Swetha Kannan
