In and Through the Slums of Bangalore

“We used to go in the slums, sit on the streets and do satsang, children and some people used to gather to listen. Then one day they told us that they had a room which we could use for our programs, that’s how it all began.” There are 30 slums in Bangalore that have been adopted under the ‘Divine Karnataka Project,’ a YLTP (Youth Leadership Training Program) initiative. The YLTP teachers and ‘Yuvacharyas’ spread across these slums train the youth in computers, spoken English and soft skills, further, giving them job orientations and preparing them for employment. Put in yoga, meditation and ‘Sudarshan Kriya,’ these youth from the slums are being empowered, and the number is only increasing. I had a privilege to visit one of these slums. It was a warm and sunny noon; I got down at Majestic and took another bus to Okhlipuram, where I was to meet Rukmini ji, a YLTP teacher and a ‘seva’ warrior; one of the three women who started the work in the slums of Bangalore. Standing across the street in a pink kurta and white pajamas, salt pepper hair matured with service, she greets me with a smile. I sit behind on her scooter, and she takes me to Srirampuram. Dayananda Nagar, in Srirampuram didn’t come across as a slum in the literal sense. Closely crowded two to three storied buildings, narrow lanes cutting across shops and kiosks, children running around barefoot, it looked more like a concrete village. We stopped and parked in front of a three storied building, climbed up a narrow staircase to the second floor and entered the center. A group of over 20 people were sitting in the first room, listening attentively to Radha, who was teaching them English. As we entered they all greeted us with a Jai Gurudev! Rukmini ji took me into the second room inside. Over 20 computers were sitting on the table. “We teach computers to them too,” said Rukmini ji watching me looking around, “we have two batches, one in the morning and one in the evening.” Click here to read more...........
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