Together they change

With medicine being practiced since decades in the family the hospital has been born out of Shree Clinic,a well-known maternity hospital of late Dr H N Phadnis. The first tertiary level NICU in the city in 1992,known then as Neo Clinic was established by Dr Amita Phadnis. “I feel the maternity homes are still a cottage industry with 10 to 20 beds and it must advance with time. Besides there is a need for work in new born care,infertility,high-risk pregnancies and so on. Personally I have always liked to work with children,” adds Amita,who has around 17 years of expertise in Neonatology and Pediatrics.

The 10-storied,110-bedded hospital has an obstetric ICU that is also the first in the city,a neonatal and pediatric ICU for critical care,and much more with surgeries from lumpectomy to radical mastectomy being conducted and a separate clinic for breast care.

With a belief in the need for medical expertise and a strong infrastructure to go together the couple has several plans ahead. “A lot needs to be done in cancer detection in women since diagnoses is better than cure. However it has been a satisfying journey. We complement each other since our specialisations are different” adds Avinash,a gynecologist with 22 years experience.

Devika Nadig and Vijay Gupta
Teaching is certainly more than just a profession; and to a few it is no less than an art form. Working towards improvement and imparting that skill among the teachers,this couple has been implementing education techniques through a unique way. Started exactly a year back Devika Nadig and Vijay Gupta through their Shikshangan Foundation impart programmes to improve the methodology of teaching.

Residing at their resource center,based at around 30 kilometres from Chandni Chowk,the couple trains them through two-day workshop that revolves around specific modules,dealing with subjects from emotional intelligence to mathematics “We have been trying to improvise the instruction practice and move children away from memorising and reproducing subjects. Our experience in the educational field made us come together for this initiative. Our techniques are completely home grown,and we have also developed an idea according to the need of the teachers in addition to a few readymade modules. The response has been overwhelming with eight out of 10 people,who approached us,went ahead with the training,” adds Nadig,who has worked as a school head in Kalmadi School and partnered Wipro in their teacher empowerment programmes.

Vijay Gupta is an alumnii of IIT Kanpur and IIM Bangalore,and has led the Wipro and Azim Premji Foundation Educational Initiatives. They also have an MOU with the Australian Council Of Educational Research for professional development in India.

The couple has been training almost all teachers in the government schools in the city under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan.

“While everyone blames the system of examination I feel the fault lies in the institution head,who fail to implement the innovative methodologies in their classes. It is a laborious process and the results would not be seen soon but there is definitely a need and we are looking forward to a change,” adds Gupta.

Pallavi and Bastu Rege
When Bastu Rege saw a child killed by a dumper in 1997 the horrifying sight made him follow the dumper finding himself amidst people living a life of desolation. That site at Wagholi was the first cluster and responsible of his foundation Santulan that is now active in five districts in the state. Reaching out to stone quarry workers,particularly the women and children Bastu and his wife Pallavi Rege have been working towards their empowerment,development and transformation through various series.

Based in Wagholi,working incessantly at the grass root level,the major pogrammes include pashan shalas an innovative educational programme,community health,women empowerment,legal aid and counseling and so on. “This year we have started a residential school from standard eight to 12 in Wagholi assembling students from all our clusters. They are migrant workers extremely marginalised and ignored. Surviving in dust they are totally ignored and excluded even from the population surveys. Pashan Shalas are the most important initiative since liberation is best achieved through education,” adds Bastu Rege,who has faced innumerous obstructions working in the interest of mine workers,with even their house being put on fire. The couple always dedicated towards bringing a social change began this after finishing their MSW. “I have been working towards social causes since my childhood and somehow the quality is imbibed in me. We had to quit several things on the personal front to be with these people. Their hardships are unbelievable,” adds Pallavi Rege.

Bastu Rege,an advocate by profession calls it a silent revolution addressing their problems 24×7. “They are treated as dust by the villagers,the stone they broke literally was valued more than them,We are glad we could give them the dignity they deserve and acts as a major motivational force for both of us,” he adds.