06-19-2007, 08:11 AM
<!--emo&:cool--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/specool.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='specool.gif' /><!--endemo--> Mumbai's Rang de Basanti heroes
19 Jun, 2007 l 0015 hrs ISTlMadhavi Rajadhyaksha/TIMES NEWS NETWORK
FIRE IN MY BELLY: From mobilising funds for civic hospitals to doing relief work during calamities, these south Mumbai youngsters are on a selfless drive (TOI Photo)
MUMBAI: A doctor from a civic hospital describes them as the 'real Rang de Basanti heroes' and their school principal thinks society needs many more such youngsters.
But these six former students of Cathedral School, all from affluent backgrounds, simply want to do their bit for society. Tired of others blaming 'the system' for everything that goes wrong in the city, they put their heads together, loosened their purse-strings and decided to 'change the system'.
From mobilising funds for civic hospitals to doing relief work during calamities and drawing up plans to help HIV/AIDS patients, these south Mumbai youngsters are on a selfless drive. A new mammography machine recently installed at the civic-run Sion hospital is the latest example of their largesse. They organised the necessary Rs 10 lakh through a quick round of phone calls to family and friends.
"We are a privileged group and have the resources to mobilise funds," says 19-year-old Naman Pugalia as he matter-of-factly describes how quickly they were able to collect money for relief work during the 26/7 floods.
It all began with a single SMS during the deluge. "I think it was pent-up frustration against civil society, which always points fingers, but never really assists administration in a way it should," says Pugalia who put down Rs 5,000 of his own to begin with.
From then on, there was no looking back. They tied up with Thane police commissioner D Sivanandan, loaded trucks with relief material and set off way beyond city limits to help those in suburban Diva. Their thumb rule: 100% utilisation of funds. "We bear the administrative expenses from our own pockets. Whatever is donated goes for the cause," says Pugalia.
Mostly studying abroad, these teenagers could effortlessly spend their pocket money like other youngsters, but are conscious about their responsibilities.
"I guess it began with social work projects in school, but the philosophy just stuck on," says engineering student Param Gandhi.
On the day of the 7/11 serial blasts, they jumped on to a Red Cross vehicle and reached Sion hospital. Shocked by the poor infrastructure in the hospital, they returned a month later with state-of-art equipment for the paediatric intensive care unit.
From an incubator, noninvasive BP monitors and pulse oxymeters, their Rs 4-lakh donation proved to be a blessing for ailing infants. They are grateful to people like radiology head Dr S Merchant who guided their enthusiasm.
Their gung-ho spirit is only occasionally dampened. Still an informal effort, they have been struggling to register a formal trust for the past year. "It's certainly difficult to do good work in this country."
19 Jun, 2007 l 0015 hrs ISTlMadhavi Rajadhyaksha/TIMES NEWS NETWORK
FIRE IN MY BELLY: From mobilising funds for civic hospitals to doing relief work during calamities, these south Mumbai youngsters are on a selfless drive (TOI Photo)
MUMBAI: A doctor from a civic hospital describes them as the 'real Rang de Basanti heroes' and their school principal thinks society needs many more such youngsters.
But these six former students of Cathedral School, all from affluent backgrounds, simply want to do their bit for society. Tired of others blaming 'the system' for everything that goes wrong in the city, they put their heads together, loosened their purse-strings and decided to 'change the system'.
From mobilising funds for civic hospitals to doing relief work during calamities and drawing up plans to help HIV/AIDS patients, these south Mumbai youngsters are on a selfless drive. A new mammography machine recently installed at the civic-run Sion hospital is the latest example of their largesse. They organised the necessary Rs 10 lakh through a quick round of phone calls to family and friends.
"We are a privileged group and have the resources to mobilise funds," says 19-year-old Naman Pugalia as he matter-of-factly describes how quickly they were able to collect money for relief work during the 26/7 floods.
It all began with a single SMS during the deluge. "I think it was pent-up frustration against civil society, which always points fingers, but never really assists administration in a way it should," says Pugalia who put down Rs 5,000 of his own to begin with.
From then on, there was no looking back. They tied up with Thane police commissioner D Sivanandan, loaded trucks with relief material and set off way beyond city limits to help those in suburban Diva. Their thumb rule: 100% utilisation of funds. "We bear the administrative expenses from our own pockets. Whatever is donated goes for the cause," says Pugalia.
Mostly studying abroad, these teenagers could effortlessly spend their pocket money like other youngsters, but are conscious about their responsibilities.
"I guess it began with social work projects in school, but the philosophy just stuck on," says engineering student Param Gandhi.
On the day of the 7/11 serial blasts, they jumped on to a Red Cross vehicle and reached Sion hospital. Shocked by the poor infrastructure in the hospital, they returned a month later with state-of-art equipment for the paediatric intensive care unit.
From an incubator, noninvasive BP monitors and pulse oxymeters, their Rs 4-lakh donation proved to be a blessing for ailing infants. They are grateful to people like radiology head Dr S Merchant who guided their enthusiasm.
Their gung-ho spirit is only occasionally dampened. Still an informal effort, they have been struggling to register a formal trust for the past year. "It's certainly difficult to do good work in this country."