VOCATIONAL SERVICE AWARDS 23rd April, 2016 In a ceremony at Poona Club on 23rd April, RC of Pune Central's Vocational Service Awards for 2016 were given to: • Dr Ganesh Adinath Rakh • Ms Diksha Dinde • Mrs Bebinanda & Mr Dattatrya Sakat. DR. GANESH RAKH Dr. Rakh's story is an inspiring one - from humble beginnings as the son of a hamal/coolie to a doctor who has devoted his life to bringing awareness of the importance of raising the female child. In 2007, he setup the Medicare Hospital in Hadapsar as a not for profit institution. He soon realized that mothers were primarily interested in the gender of the child being born as the birth of a male child would bring celebrations all around and there were no issues of not enough money to pay the hospital bills. On the other hand the birth of a baby girl would be met with tears and the doctor would be told that the family had no money to pay for the delivery. And if the girl child required admission to the Neonatal ICU, the choice would be to allow the child to die, diametrically opposite to the treatment of the boy child In 2012, Dr Rakh decided that that families of baby girls born at his hospital would not be charged any fees even if the child required NICU care. A total of 407 baby girls have been delivered free of cost so far. He is now setting up a 50 bed 'burns' unit aimed at helping women who have been subject to acid and dowry related attacks. His experience in that regards has not been different as parents of many women who are victims of dowry related violence say they have no money to pay for expenses. When we met him, he did indicate that it is difficult to run the hospital, because he does not make enough money. The good doctor is now organizing a 100 day Padyatra round the country to increase awareness about this troubling issue. We salute a doctor who has set a great example for us - a good cause for us to consider supporting monetarily as individuals. DIKSHA DINDE 23 year old Katraj resident, Ms Diksha Dinde, who is 84 percent disabled from birth was recently chosen to become a global ambassador for the United Nations 'A World at School Program' which is running in 85 countries around the globe. In fact, Ms Dinde is the only representative from India. The program goals are to provide a learning opportunity to every child. The selection norms say that the candidate must have keen interest, passion and dedication to be a part of a global education solution. Ms Diksha Dinde, has been working for the downtrodden and underprivileged, independently and also through the NGO, Roshini. Her disability has not deterred her. She has decided to run an adult literacy campaign and promote education for girls and underprivileged children, especially those who are differently abled. From a humble background, Ms Dinde, a Commerce graduate has appeared for her post graduation in history. She is also diligently preparing for her entry into the civil services, for she believes that once there she will be able to more effectively and efficiently pursue her dreams and bring about a change in the downtrodden and underprivileged. We salute a young woman of substance whose spirit has let her overcome adversity! BEBINADA and DATTATRAYA SAKAT The Z.P. Primary School, Kardelwadi is located in a rural area 60 km away from Pune. The school is run in its entirety by two teachers, Mrs. Bebinada and Mr. Dattatray Sakat. The specialty of the school is that it is open 365 days in a year. Mr. and Mrs. Sakat enjoy being with the children everyday and students too are happy at the school rather than at home. The school has instilled a sense of discipline & devotion while teaching subjects like Maths, English, Drawing and activities like dance, Yoga, sports etc. Nearly ninety thousand people, including many VIPs, have visited the school and are astonished by observing the splendid performance of the children. The fact which surprises them more is that the school is run by Z.P., like many other schools in the state, yet is transformational in nature. The school has won many awards: • Ideal school award from Z.P. Pune - 2004. • Clean and Tidy school award with a cash prize - 2005 & 2009 • Chairman of Z.P. Pune's trophy as the best school - 2006. • First prize in Quality Improvement and Development Program, Maharashtra Government - 2007. • Award for Educational support from Ideal village Education committee of Maharashtra Government - 2008. • First prize in Quality Improvement and Development in Education at the district level. • Award for Ideal Teacher from Z.P. Pune - 2006 & 2008 We salute these dedicated teachers who have through their dedication transformed the lives of many children.