DREAMS CAN BE TRUE ALSO

Born in a poor family in a remote rural area I do not know how and wherefrom I got big dreams and lofty ideals. Such dreams are easy to fulfill for a resourceful, wealthy person but the god of dreams does not realize that the dreams of a person of meager resources, can be ‘Mungeri Lal ke sapne’. They were about to be so in my case also but the god of resources smiled at me on occasions.

After struggling hard for my education in childhood, I dreamt of a decent school in my village. Strangely the comfortable life in the Oil and Natural Gas Commission or the position of the Head of Department in the Kanya Kubja Degree College in Lucknow or riches of Canada could not deter me from the dream. Even the fame received from the discovery of 565 million years old fossils of animals on earth could not stop me from working on the dream. This was nothing short of a miracle, may be God’s will.

I started the school with mud walls and thatch roofing in a village 12 km from railway station and bus stand, 15 km from the post office and 50 km from the nearest bank. Even for a second I did not miss the luxury of my four years’ stay in Canada or comfortable life in Lucknow, Sibsagar and Baroda where I had lived. My wife Nirmala and I came in contact with a saint Swami Pathik Ji who had a trust to encourage the efforts on rural education. A few rooms and those we thought was a leap forward. Indeed it was.

We undertook many socio-economic-educational programmes. My wife encouraged the village youth to work hard in the fields and in homes, of course in a symbolic manner. Our aim was to make good foundation of education in children, particularly female children.

Then came an organization by name C.T.D. Foundation through the contacts of Swami Chidanand Saraswati of Rishikesh to our help and we could have a decent building.

Things are looking up with great efforts of Karan Dalal from Mumbai and my son Neelesh, the journalist in his own right. How true it is that God helps those who help themselves !!

We are trying to give quality education to the rural poor, imparting computer education to them, giving them exposure to scientists and educationalists. Poor man’s dream is fulfilled to an extent and I should have been contented. But I feel there still are miles to go and I am racing against time.

In the end, I can sense that my dream will come true in totality through the friends and colleagues of Karan and Neelesh who are consistent and thorough. Ham rahen na rahen kaam chalata rahe.