It was a contraption the boys made to create a makeshift wood fired stove, three bricks placed in a way which could hold the bottom a pan or a griddle. This sight in the front yard of house caught my attention while I was passing through the lanes of Kakar’s Vadi settlement. It was around 2.30 in the afternoon, these three boys still dressed in their school uniforms were sitting around the stove. The eldest, who seemed to be around 14 years old was kneading dough in a paraat.
Curiosity took better of me and I decided to stepped into their yard.
“Why are you three cooking, where are your parents?” I inquired.
“They are travelling for work, will return after 3 months,” replied one of them.
“Why didn’t you join them?”
“Because we want to study.”
“Wonderful. But why are you cooking at this hour, don’t you get mid-day meal in the school?”
“They serve rice frequently. We do not like rice.”
“Do your parents give you money to buy food supplies?”
“Yes, they give us one-two hundred rupees when they leave.”
“How can such little amount last for 3 months?” was my obvious question.
“It doesn’t so I go and beg over the weekends, after the school closes on Saturday. I collect 100-200 rupees, that helps us pull through the week.”
“Did you have breakfast in the morning?”
“No. We shall have tea and rotla for lunch and vegetable and rotla for dinner.”
It was Vinu who was cooking for his two younger brothers Raju and Shailesh. It was his task to cook and beg over the weekends. The younger two siblings were assigned chores of collecting fire wood, fetching water, vegetables etc. I was amazed and impressed by their struggle to study. But did not like the fact that they had to beg to fill their bellies. And that they are required to sustain themselves on such meagre amount when for most of us 100-200 doesn’t even matter.
VSSM is building a residential facility in Kakar for children like Vinu, Raju, Shailesh to enable them to study at peace and not go begging. The construction of this hostel is expected to finish within a month. The hostel will provide them three full meals in a day and life skill education. . The kids will focus on their studies and not worry about their next meal.
We are grateful to respected Shri Piyushbhai Kothari and Shri Pravinbhai Shah for providing the financial assistance to help us build a much needed residential facility for the children of nomadic Vadi families.
Click the link below to know more about vinu :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sc4o7GtEJ4U&feature=share&fbclid=IwAR1OuEB-y68-iB_KrtbWgYTLKIDa_EVxaNQnfpterqfkgQmS1LJ6AnTHenI
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કાકરની વાદી વસાહતમાં હું ફરી રહી હતી. અચાનક મારુ ધ્યાન વસાહતના એક ઘરના આંગણામાં ગયું.
ત્રણ ઈંટના ચુલા માથે તાવડી મૂકેલી હતી અને એની ફરતે ત્રણ છોકરાં બેઠા હતા.
એક છોકરો તેર ચૌદ વર્ષનો જણાતો હતો. જે કથરોટમાં લોટ બાંધી રહ્યો હતો.
બપોરના લગભગ બે અઢી વાગ્યા હશે. ત્રણ છોકરાંમાંથી બે છોકરાંએ નિશાળનો ગણવેશ પહેર્યો હતો.
થોડી જીજ્ઞાષા સાથે હું એમના આંગણામાં પ્રવેશી.
એમની સાથે ઘણી વાત થઈ. ભણતર માટે આ ત્રણે બાળકો જે સંઘર્ષે કરી રહ્યા છે તે મને બહુ ગમ્યો.
દોઢસો રૃપિયામાં આ બાળકો આખા અઠવાડિયાનું રાશન ભેગું કરી લે છે
અને એ મર્યાદીત રૃપિયામાં પોતાનો ગુજારો કરે છે.
જ્યારે આપણી આસપાસ રહેતા ધનિક કે મધ્યમવર્ગના બાળકો માટે 100 કે 200 રૃપિયાની કોઈ વિસાત નથી.
વિનુ સાથે થયેલી વાતો સાંભળવા માટે નીચેની વિડીયો ક્લીક કરવા, સાથે આવા જ રસપ્રદ
આપણને પ્રેરણા આપે તેવા વિડીયો સાંભળવા મારી આ ચેનલને સબસ્ક્રાઈબ કરવા તેમજ
બેલ બટન કલ્કી કરવા વિનતી.
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