This Independence Day, the good work done by some individuals for society is a reminder that nation-building can happen at various levels
As India celebrates Independence Day, stories of service often remind us that contributing to the nation is not always about grand gestures. Sometimes, it is about standing beside people during their most difficult moments and ensuring they do not face them alone.
Pioneers Of Period Power
For Soumya Dabriwal and Aradhana Rai Gupta, co-founders of Baala, giving back to the nation begins with something deeply fundamental: ensuring that every girl and woman has the knowledge, confidence and dignity to live her life without being held back by something as natural as menstruation.
Their work goes far beyond making menstrual hygiene more accessible. At the heart of Baala is a belief that empowerment comes from helping people recognise their own potential. For Soumya, some of the most meaningful moments are found not in numbers or milestones, but in small, transformative changes in the lives of the women and girls they work with.
She recalls seeing girls who are now able to attend an extra day of school or participate in celebrations during their periods—things they may previously have missed because of stigma or a lack of understanding.
Equally powerful, she says, is watching women who had rarely ventured beyond their neighbourhoods begin searching for employment after participating in Baala’s training programmes.
“We initially thought Baala was about health, but it was also about dignity and confidence,” Soumya explains.
That philosophy is reflected in Baala’s community leadership programmes, where women are trained to become leaders and educators themselves.
These women go on to speak confidently with other girls and women about menstruation, anaemia and health, creating a ripple effect that extends far beyond the organisation itself. Their work is a reminder that service to a nation is not always about grand gestures. Sometimes, it is about holding someone’s hand until they are ready to walk forward on their own.
Man On A Mission
Helping orphans and street children with education and documentation
India has the world’s largest orphan population (approximately 30 million). While experts and policy makers debate over socio-economic challenges affecting child welfare, some silent do-gooders like Ashok Pujari, founder of Children’s Aadhar Foundation have helped thousands of street children with education and documentation. “I am an orphan myself. I know the importance of education and the hardships an orphan goes through when it comes to documentation and paperwork,” says Pujari.
Pujari and his team have been working actively since 2012. They provide not just immediate relief, but sustainable, long-term solutions including specialised medical care, formal education scholarships and safe shelters to street children and orphans. They have helped more than 6,000 orphans and street children so far. Pujari explains that till you are a minor orphan, you are taken care of by the state or government-run centres and orphanages. But after you turn 18, you are on your own. “Whether you want to pick up a job or pursue education, you need proper documentation (Aadhaar card, PAN card, certificates etc) in place. If you are an orphan who is going to sponsor your education? As a result, 90% of orphan kids pick up some odd job to be financially independent first and then pursue education. Hence, your documentation is of utmost importance,” he says. Pujari says that the reservation in GR made by the government has made life a little easier for orphans now, but it is still a long road ahead.
I am an orphan myself. I know the hardships an orphan goes through when it comes to documentation.”
Ashok Pujari,
founder, Children's Aadhar Foundation
Restoring Dignity in Life’s Most Difficult Moments
Independence is often understood as freedom from what holds us back. But for those living with a life-limiting illness, true freedom can sometimes mean something
much more intimate — the freedom to live one’s final days without unbearable suffering, with dignity, comfort and compassion.
For Dr Prasad Kamal Kumar Shelkay, a doctor at Dirghayu Hospital and Palliative Care Centre, caring for those facing life-limiting illnesses is about far more than medicine. It is about ensuring that people who have spent their lives being independent and caring for others do not feel that illness has taken away their dignity.
Dr Drishti Singh of Nivaran Palliative Care Centre says that service lies in bringing dignity, compassion and understanding to people living with life-limiting illnesses — and to the families who walk alongside them. She explains that palliative care is about helping families understand that when a patient is actively dying, endless hospital visits may not always be the answer. She believes caregivers, too, deserve to be seen and supported. “The caregiver is also going through grief,” she explains, highlighting a reality that is often left unspoken.
One of the hardest things to witness is an elderly person or a loved one who has lived their entire life with dignity and self-reliance suddenly becoming dependent on others because of an illness or accident.
For Pheroza Bilimoria, founder TJSBF and her dedicated team at PALCARE, this belief that freedom to live one’s final days without unbearable suffering, with dignity, comfort and compassion has become a life’s mission.
Through free palliative care, PALCARE has supported hundreds of terminally ill patients and their families. For Pheroza, there is perhaps no greater reward than seeing a patient smile after days of grimacing in pain, or receiving a heartfelt thank-you through tearful eyes. PALCARE has given her, in her words, “immeasurable relief and gratification.”
The contributions made by these individuals to society are deeply human. They remind us that caring for a nation also means caring for its most vulnerable people, especially when they can no longer care for themselves.
PALCARE has given immeasurable relief and gratification.”
Pheroza Bilimoria, founder TJSBF
Dr. Drishti Singh, Nivaran Palliative Care Centre
