Previous Inspiring Stories

Mr. ACHYUT DAS


Mr. Achyut Das is a development activist with a passion for making the most underprivileged tribal communities in remote district of Rayagada - LITERATE. His dream for achieving total literacy for Tribal began in the early 1990s through Agragamee. He has been primarily engaged in people - centric, culturally-sensitive and ecologically-balanced sustainable development of remote tribal communities in Odisha for over three decades. He has been instrumental in ensuring 15000 children belonging to 250 tribal villages learn to read and write and pursue further education. Three schools for tribal girls, called Mukta Gyana Kutir for their further education have been established. The unique pedagogy of teaching developed by him for early intervention helps teachers teach and children to learn in fun and easy ways without stress. As he understands the several issues of poverty, he incorporated his knowledge and experience in the curriculum and teaching, so that children emerge as activists, understanding and responding to the developmental contradictions within their community.

Mr. KhimjiBhai Karsan Bhai Parajapati


Khimjibhai Karsan Bhai fondly known as 'The Bapu with Rug’. Left his home and family since the last 17-18 years & begs in Mehsana. As a beggar he doesn’t take anything for himself but begs for the education of poor children. Till date he has supported more than 2500 girls in 13-14 different schools with Books, Notebooks, School Bag, and Uniforms & Sweaters. Though he is physically handicapped, he with the help of his tricycle begs in front of religious and other populated places. He begs for 12-14 hours daily for these poor children. According to him it’s very unsure what he gets in begging. Sometimes he gets big amounts & sometimes he goes home empty handed. But very modestly he says that whatever he gets, distributes everything. He has never kept the track or details of the amount he has donated till Date for the Cause of making 2500 Girls - LITERATE.

Mr. Rajesh Sharma


Mr. Rajesh Sharma, the Enterprising 46 years old is a college dropout who owns a general store at Shakarpur, about 5 km from the school which he runs under a metro line which he started in 2007. He had moved to Delhi from Aligarh in 1955. Sharma could not complete his BSC degree from Aligarh University due to financial constraints in his family. His own inability to finish college became his inspiration to educate other poor children. The area under metro line used to be covered with undergrowth and bushes. He found a place to teach and started with just two children. In three months it took the shape of a full grown school. He approached the principal of a municipal school at Shakarpur and invited him to visit his school. The Principal visited the next day and was surprised to see so many children attending his classes. He later made arrangements to admit 60 of his children and this cycle continue ever since. He has taught about 1500 children over the years in this manner making them - LITERATE.

Ms. Shima Modak


Ms. Shima Modak ,for the last 12 years has been involved in working towards the development, protection and welfare of the distressed and deprived section of the society, especially on educational prospective. Since 2010, she started educational centres at a slum area called Anjali within a small space next to scrap dealers shop due to scarcity of place. It was initiated on individual basis for the children who were found to be aggressive, drug addicts, rag pickers and other distressed children working day and night to manage their Hunger. She addresses the educational and developmental needs of the deprived and distressed children. Her determination was to bring education to the doorstep of every child and hence, the study circle is located within the slum and community itself for easy accessibility and to make Education a Reality for Every Child. The understanding was that if children cannot reach out to educating themselves then why not Education reaching out to the children and make them - LITERATE.

M/S Aspire


ASPIRE, a registered non-profit organization, founded on 8th January 1997 is working towards making education inclusive and socially relevant to meet the 21st century challenges. It is a movement of like-minded people who strive to ensure high quality school education for all children within the Right to Education framework, by strengthening the mainstream / government school education system through improved school governance, introducing new pedagogic practices and empowering teachers and local communities. Their programs are based on four pillars – Access, Learning, Participation and Governance - a continuum that provides a cohesive framework for intervention and ensure the children are - LITERATE.

Mr. Sharath Kumar Puppala


Mr. Sharath Kumar Puppala ,the Dynamic 46 years old who is fondly called as Daddy by the children is a graduate who feels strongly about his social responsibility. He along with his wife started their Service Journey in an Organisation and served for 15 years before he started Manchikalalu an Orphanage for Boys in 2007. This orphanage is not only an orphanage it also serves a platform for out of school children to be brought back under the ambit of literacy. After the initial orientation about literacy he makes arrangements to admit the children to the local schools and this cycle continues ever since. He has given home and education to about 2000 children over the years and admitting them in Schools and Colleges and in this manner making them - LITERATE . He has helped them set up Homes for themselves as his Motto is ' Street to Society ' .