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When you hurt your knee, did you remember that old man by the lane with one foot? When you threw an old rotten fruit into the bin, did you realize there was someone out there whose limbs were being cut and thrown because they were rotten too? When you sang for your
picture-perfect partner, did you realize that there are thousands who have been painted in haste?

Yes, there is a world other than the perfect one etched out for you. There is a world of people that believe in carving out the best from what has been given to them. This little world, set out to make the impossible possible, taking the deaf and dumb, the blind and less fortunate along in the march, is a small abode of happiness we happened to take a peek into. It is Anandwan - the abode of joy.

Year after year, Anandwan has been inviting the students of S. P. Jain, silently though, through the special bonding both the organizations fondly share. When PGDM Batch of 2008 set out on a 20-hour journey, little did they know that they would bathe in bliss on reaching this little town. Anandvan is a noble initiative, started by Baba Amte, to treat and rehabilitate leprosy victims from the disadvantaged sections of society. Today, it is not just a shelter for these patients, but serves the livelihood of 3500 people, serving the blind, deaf and dumb. It is a self-sufficient village with people engaged in more than 100 different occupations. All they need from outside is oil, petrol, salt and sugar. It's only after this visit that we realized how handicapped we were.

S. P. Jain Students at Anandwan Ashram

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* Contributed by -
Sripradish Kapikad,
PR Committee,
S. P. Jain Institute of Management & Research, Mumbai.
Article posted on August 30, 2008.