Honorable Thiru. V. Vaithilingam, Chief Minister of Puducherry, Thiru. M. O. H. F. Shajahan, Hon’ble Public Works Minister of Puducherry, Distinguished guests, ladies & gentlemen & dear Children.
Let me at the very outset welcome Honorable Chief Minister & Honorable Public Works Minister of Pondicherry. I also welcome illustrious Arya Samajists who by their devotion & dedication have made a great contribution to the cause of Arya Samaj
I have a strong belief that when a natural calamity strikes any place, it brings the best among most of the people. Such was the case with the members & leaders of the Arya Samaj Gandhidam. When one of the worst earthquake hit our Gujarat State, besides providing best possible immediate help, they thought of long term care of the innocent orphaned children & poor widows. Thanks to the good-hearted leaders of the Arya Samaj Gandhidham, like Bhai Purshtam Patel ji & Acharya Vachonidhi ji, who originated the concept of Jeevan Prabhat. The concept is not just to give food & shelter, but to provide the children their childhood, education, moral values just like any other middle class family would do for their children so that they become model citizens.
When some of us Indians from various Arya Samajs in the U. S. visited Gandhidham & saw first hand the quality of life being provided to these children, we returned with such a long-lasting positive impression that when Tsunami hit India, the APSA decided that besides providing immediate help with food & shelter, we need to build another Jeevan Prabhat to take care of the orphans & the very poor children.
I am very happy to report to you that this project is a result of the union of two teams: APSA & Jeevan Prabhat Gandhidham. This project was launched with the understanding that APSA will provide all the necessary funds while Jeevan Prabhat Gandhidham will take the responsibility of the construction & the management of the children facility. Like any other project, we had our share of road bumps along the way & the construction of the project got delayed for about 9 months due to lack of permission to send funds to India through the Jeevan Prabhat Gandhidham. This delay raised the cost of construction from the original estimate of $135,000 to $250,000; a lofty difference of more than $115,000 due to a sharp increase in the cost of the building materials in India & the depreciation of the U. S. dollar value. My sincere thanks to my colleagues Joginder Kundra, Arun Kundra, Dr. Rajinder Gandhi, Shekhar Agrawal’s family, & my children & their cousins who made up the major part of the increased cost. The final total cost of this facility including land etc. is more than $ 350,000
I want to convey my sincere thanks to Gandhidham team led by Acharya Vachonidhi ji for their hard work & dedication to finish the project in a matter of 9 months once the construction started. I cannot say enough about Acharya Vachonidhi ji who, while carrying on his own job, managed JP Gandhidham as well as supervised the construction of the Pondicherry project. In fact, the Jeevan Prabhat USA team would not have committed to build this project unless Acharya ji gave his full personal commitment to build & manage this project. Let us all give a big round of applause for this great humanitarian. Thanks you Acyarya ji.
It is my strong belief, that when you do a good virtuous & noble work even God comes to your rescue. Such is the case that God sent us Madhu & Ranjan to take care of these children. On my previous two visits to Pondicherry, I have observed & seen with my own eyes the care & love showered on these children by this young couple. Since the facility is now complete, we will be adopting more children as time goes.
Most of us Indians residing in the U. S. may have left India long time ago, but our heart still beats for our motherland. It is those feelings that make us work hard, raise & donate money to provide education to the very poor & unfortunate children so that they may have similar opportunities as God has provided to us. It is not only the adults but our children also participate in this Yajna of fundraising. For example, children in Arya Samaj Greater Houston DAV Sanskriti & Montessori School participate every year in a Readathon to raise funds for the children of Jeevan Prabhat Pondicherry. The process works this way: the children take pledges like so many $ per book from their parents & other members, & Arya Samaj Library provides them with small religious & Indian cultural books to read. After the prescribed deadline, they submit the number of books they read & collect money accordingly. All the money they collect is lumped together & is sent for the children here. This is a win-win situation, as it encourages them to read their religious & cultural books & at the same they are taught the value of providing money for the needy. Any fund-raising event requires effort, time & energy, but it gives us a great satisfaction if 100 % the money is put to use to help the real needy.
The people like me, who are now devoting full time to charitable work, give assurance to the donors that100% of the funds will be used only for the betterment of the children & nothing else. All the travel & other expenses born by me & my colleagues are paid from our own pockets. Same way, the ultimate responsibility of managing the funds for Jeevan Prabhat Pondicherry lies with Acharya Vachonidhi ji who sends us detailed statements of expenses.
This transparency of the accounts is a must for the success of any project.
I want to convey my sincere thanks to Shri Devendra Sharma & Dr Madan Mohan ji, who have taken the lead of our Local team to help & manage this center. Their help & support is an essential part for the on-going success of this project. As is the case of Jeevan Prabhat Gandhidham, most of the construction expense has been borne by the Arya Samajs in the United States, but the local Arya Samaj team raises funds & provides service & management. So is our expectation from the Jeevan Prabhat Pondicherry local team.
Let me say a few words to the children of Jeevan Prabhat. You are the future of our motherland. Sky is the limit of your potential to grow. It is up to you how far you want to grow. Whether you want to be a doctor, a scientist, a businessman or an engineer, we will not let your progress slow down due to lack of any funds. It is up to you to work hard & reach for the stars.
On a personal note, I cannot help but remember my parents, who taught me & my brothers & sisters, the value of giving back to the society. It is because of that teaching that my sister & two of my brothers along with their spouse are present here for the ceremony today. The donation for this project has been made by all the grandchildren in fond memory of their beloved grandmother.
May I thank once again those who have made Jeevan Prabhat Pondicherry a reality? May I also thank the Honorable Chief Minister, & Honorable Public Works Minister for gracing this occasion? I am sure their patronage & encouragement will continue to be a source of great strength & will enable us to achieve our objectives. Let us all work together for the success of the disadvantaged children of our great motherland.
May God bless Bharat & these children!
