Making a difference

In the non-profit sector, we are often asked questions about outlays and outcomes. Funding agencies, government, the media and our partners demand to know what exactly we have achieved. Gone are the days when you could claim to wipe the brows of the sick, feed the hungry and shelter the homeless. These are ‘band-aid’ solutions. […]

Some basic lessons needed

Hurray! The outlay for education has been increased by 31.5 per cent. The government loves to play the ‘daatha’ (donor), but the ground reality rests with God. First of all, what does this mean in terms of GDP deployment? The FM has also proposed to start five lakh classrooms. Excellent, considering many of our children […]

Opportunity to raise people’s mind

I passionately believe that we need a public library system that is on par with the best in the world, and is accessible to all. I have not met any Indian who has not returned from the US, glowing with praise for the public library system there. I myself think most of my real education […]

Making the system respond

t’s been a good year in Bangalore and Karnataka for primary education. The Right to Education Bill will soon become law and the state is gearing up to put mechanisms and resources into place to get the last child into school. The numbers of children enrolling into class one, has shown continuous improvement. Some infrastructure […]

At Ashvasan it’s future perfect

WORLD Elders Day came and went as a feeble reminder that even though India as a whole is getting younger, senior citizens are growing rapidly in absolute numbers. Yet others, such as the ever-elegant 77-year-old Lalita Ubhayaker, are busy knitting safety nets for their less fortunate peers. Ashvasan Foundation, set up more than a decade […]