are we MAD?

Take A Stand…

“Five days ago two young girls that were students of Splendour High School were run over by a truck and died on the spot. The incident happened after school hours, and very close to where the school is located. However the tragedy did not end there, a handful of the most notorious anti social elements who have nothing to do with either the school or the deceased girls broke into the school with sharp tools and weapons and started breaking and smashing every thing that they could possibly lay their hands on and they tried hitting and harming my parents as well. My mom had to literally fall on their feet and beg them not to harm my dad. The school that took them 20 years of sheer hard work and dedication to build and nurture came to ruins within a couple of hours within their very own eyes. They had not spared anything including the school buses, the staff vehicles the window panes, the doors, the computers, the library and every other asset that the school had was shattered and broken to bits. The walls are only remaining.”

The above is an extract from a newsletter that was released after the incident. The reason why I am taking the onus of letting people know of an event 2000 km away is because I am a student of that school. I spent amongst the most enlightening years of my life in that school.

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Life, what is it but a dream?

A Saturday morning took us to that relatively small building which we would have easily missed on any other day, with the road leading to Forum in one direction, and M.G. Road in the opposite direction…

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We spent our first few years frolicking and running around; we ate and studied and slept and played and dreamed about being pilots and bus drivers and astronauts and bikers… but have you ever wondered what a childhood without dreams would be like?

There are many homes in Bangalore providing innumerable children with their basic needs. However, they are usually not able to provide too much more, as their focus is on providing these to more children. The children normally grow up in a protective environment, with limited exposure to the outside world, which limits their growth. When they have to leave the institution and face the world, often they are unprepared.

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“I would rather be a forest than a street”…

Yes, global warming, and everything else we get for free along with urban development. All of us hear about it, few of us do more.

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Exploring madness…

Dear Reader,

There is a Make A Donation page on LifeStraw.com. As even this is long for MAD, we thought we will give it a try

If you want to give it a try as well, start by clicking here. If you choose what we chose, you will reach here.

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‘We told the blood bank the next time you have to say “No” to someone asking for blood, please send the person to us’

We got the chance to interact with a Sankalp Volunteer. This article is essentially our conversation with him. Though it is rather long, we recommend you get through it some time. You will not regret it…

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How was the Sankalp Blood Donation Organization born?

One night we jumped out of the engineering college hostel to have a cup of coffee at around 11.30 at night, and we ended up at the emergency section of the hospital. Apparently, that is the only place where you get coffee at night in this area. A person from Kolar had come there. This person was begging people for blood. He was saying “raktha kodi raktha kodi“. We asked for a translation. People told us that he had been hunting for blood donors since 8. The patient was brought in at 8.

Nearly 4 hours?

Yeah. We went into the blood bank and tried to figure out. They said “We do have blood but we cannot give him because he cannot arrange for replacement”. Three of us were there. We called a senior from the hostel and the four of us donated. After finishing the donation, we visited him and found out that he was no more.

The question was that if there is blood in the blood bank and if so many people donate blood, then when a person requires blood why doesn’t he get it?

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In need of blood…

October 19, 2007.

Maarakka, a 45 year old woman, was struggling with Dengue fever in the ICU of MSR Memorial Hospital. Her platelet count was extremely low. She had no contact in Bangalore. Her body required blood, and it required blood soon. The blood donation had to be done through apheresis.

The ICU counselor, Sujata, knew exactly whom she could rely on to handle this emergency. She took her phone, and dialed the Sankalp Emergency Hotline number. In hardly any time, a Sankalp volunteer was attending to the case. Less than an hour and half had passed, and another volunteer was available for the blood test done before donating blood.

In a while, it was all done. Sankalp India Foundation had handled yet another blood request successfully.

To be continued…

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Can I have some water please?

“Water, water, everywhere, Nor any drop to drink.”
- The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner, Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Think about this:

Over a billion people lack access to safe drinking water - approximately one in every six people on earth.

More than 50% of the hospital beds the world over are occupied by patients suffering from a water-related disease.

For children under age five, water-related diseases are the leading cause of death.

Every 15 seconds, a child dies from a water-related disease.

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Like a post? Tell a friend!

Dear Reader,

Do you know someone who will find a post on this site interesting? We have a new feature to make this simpler for you. Now you can send a post to a friend by using the “Send this post to a friend” link below every post. Please use it generously

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A new melody…

The noon is bright. The night, dark. Being a bridge between the two, evening was the appropriate time to leave the comfort of office and visit the Anuraga NFE center.

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As per the Census of India 2001, there were 1,402,971 people living in slums in Karnataka, 207,912 of whom were children in the age group of 0 to 6. Bangalore alone accounted for 61,978 such children. Many of them are involved in some form of labour, and do not get to attend school.

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Change is constant.

Dear intrepid reader,

This site is new, and like all things new it will take a short time to stabilize. This means you may see a few changes in the site’s design and layout over the next few days, till we reach the initial “identity” that we want to create. Please don’t adjust your monitors

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