AASRA - Because They Need Us

(A real story which may bring a difference in you for a/an/your sec/min/hour/day/week/month/year/lifetime) “I am a student. I want to study and learn. But there is very little opportunity in our locality. Also the financial condition of my familyis not sound. I have completed my matriculation and now want to do my higher secondary education. Can I help my family and keep my studies going simultaneously? Can I? Yes, I can. I know stitching. I can earn something by using my leisure time for stitching.” This was the thought of a girl named Maithili Sahoo from a leprosy colony situated in sector-21, Rourkela. Finally she did what she was thinking and successfully passed +2 Arts exam from CHSE board scoring 52% marks with her own effort. Still she wanted to pursue higher studies which required some more financial assistant and then AASRA helped her in achieving her ambition. Currently she is doing her undergraduate (B.A.) with political science as hons. Now she has won the 1st prize in Rang...

संसार एक ऐसी अबूझ पहेली, जिसकी जड़ में ही भेदभाव की निर्मम ज्वाला धधक रही है, जिसकी लपटें हमें ही नही बल्कि हमारे पुरे समाज को ध्वस्त कर रही है| क्यूँ मैं ऐसी बोझिल बातें कर रहा हूँ जो जगजाहिर हैं ? ऐसा ही सवाल आपके मन में भी कौंध रहा होगा, परन्तु, इस सवाल का जवाब देने से पहले मैं आपको ये बता दूँ... " मैं आसरा का एक स्थाई सदस्य हूँ| " कहते हैं, नाम अपने अस्तित्व का बोधक होता है| इसलिए मुझे बताने की आवश्यकता ही नहीं की आसरा क्या है | फिर भी 'आसरा' का शाब्दिक अर्थ होता है 'आश्रय'| आश्रय उन तमाम लोगों का जिन्हें समाज ने तिरस्कृत कर अपने से अलग कर दिया है| उन्हें या तो समाज का कोढ़ मन जाता है या फिर हमारे " सभ्य समाज " की नजरों में उनका अस्तित्व नगण्य होता है| खैर, मैं आपको एक ऐसी जगह के बारे में बता रहा हूँ जहाँ इंसानों ने इंसानियत को लांघते हुए, इंसानों के बीच ही रेखाएं खींच दी हैं| लेप्रोसी कालोनी- देखने में एक आम गाँव की तरह - खेलते बच्चे, मुस्कुराते चेहरे...| मगर यह क्या, गाँव के किनारे ये पत्थर कैसे? पूछने पर पता चला इन्हें समाज से अलग कर द...

Far from the madding crowd on the Ring road, a right turn from the Space Chowk and half a mile into Chhend is a small abode of some cherubic lamps; whose light does not reach out in its totality to the outer world partly because Fate grins at them and partly because they are shrouded by clouds of neglect and poverty. They are a score plus five in all; some of them mischievous, some silent and some too young and innocent to comprehend why the place is for them!!And that place is called Shishu Bhavan because it is awfully heartrending and cold to call it an ‘orphange’ . The place, whatever it is, is a home to these lovely children and we at AASRA just help them see that it always remains a home to them. And we can claim that we are getting along successfully in our venture. The warm welcome we receive from them, their prompt handshakes, our participation in their game of cricket, their interest in the lessons we take for them, bursting crackers with them on Diwali’s eve, their keen e...

Aasra- a word that signifies shelter. A word that gives warmth when given to a lonely human being: let alone an orphan, a destitute who has lost everything he/she had in this world. For them, the world has become a cruel place, a living hell. They need someone who can become a calm breeze that touches their lives and makes everything around them as beautiful as it was before-as beautiful as spring, as calm as stillness of night. These aspirations and thoughts gave birth to AASRA whose sole objective is bringing smiles on the little ones. The brainchild of Prof. G.K. Roy (Dept. Of Chemical Engg.), Prof. K.R. Patel (Dept. of Mechanical Engg.) and some inspiring brains of 2004-2008 batch – AASRA... they set out to do something which was a need of the hour. Going to orphanages and leprosy colonies and reaching out to those hapless young ones, their aim was one. Within the thorns of life, the club wanted to bring about a sea change in the mindsets of students as well as the people in ...