Yesterday evening when I reached home I found my father rather off colour. He seemed preoccupied and disturbed. I sat with him to find out what had disturbed him so much. Turns out it was the day to finalise admissions, specially at the junior level at the Institute for The Blind at Sector 26 Chandigarh. He has shepherded this institute in a purely honorary capacity ever since his retirement in September 1982 and built it up literally brick by brick. Now it has students upto Class XII and they are either totally blind or partially sighted. The students are housed in proper accommodation and the quality of food, teaching and care is considered very satisfactory. Financially, due to the generosity of citizens here and a most supportive administration, it’s very much stable.
What had actually disturbed Dad was the large number of parents, mostly from very poor backgrounds; who had come over yesterday and kept requesting very humbly to admit their children.
My father is of the view that his experience tells him poverty and related malnutrition, lack of literacy and proper awareness and limited access to health care in many rural areas are the main reasons for lack of sight amongst many students. Of course some are unfortunately medically so impacted since birth.
A fervent nationalist and positive in outlook, not surprising considering 35 years in his beloved Army (1947 Commission), he deeply feels the slow pace of progress in the nation since the past so many decades. The way I understood it yesterday, he acknowledges the economic progress but feels more would have been possible. As per him many seeking and pleading for admissions for their wards would not have required admission if the three factors I described had been attended to across the nation.
While ultimately he admitted all, understanding their condition, at 91 plus years of age it was not easy for him to absorb that so much still needed to be done in our nation. This disturbed him so much that he could not even go for his absolutely mandatory evening walk. Gradually we cheered him up and his positivity came back. Well all we can do and I certainly would try to would be to renew our commitment to whatever we do and to lead our lives with empathy and understanding. That is the minimum each one of us can do.
Good Night.
What had actually disturbed Dad was the large number of parents, mostly from very poor backgrounds; who had come over yesterday and kept requesting very humbly to admit their children.
My father is of the view that his experience tells him poverty and related malnutrition, lack of literacy and proper awareness and limited access to health care in many rural areas are the main reasons for lack of sight amongst many students. Of course some are unfortunately medically so impacted since birth.
A fervent nationalist and positive in outlook, not surprising considering 35 years in his beloved Army (1947 Commission), he deeply feels the slow pace of progress in the nation since the past so many decades. The way I understood it yesterday, he acknowledges the economic progress but feels more would have been possible. As per him many seeking and pleading for admissions for their wards would not have required admission if the three factors I described had been attended to across the nation.
While ultimately he admitted all, understanding their condition, at 91 plus years of age it was not easy for him to absorb that so much still needed to be done in our nation. This disturbed him so much that he could not even go for his absolutely mandatory evening walk. Gradually we cheered him up and his positivity came back. Well all we can do and I certainly would try to would be to renew our commitment to whatever we do and to lead our lives with empathy and understanding. That is the minimum each one of us can do.
Good Night.
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