Purkal Youth Development Society

The day before yesterday we visited a small, local NGO called Purkal Youth Development Society (for editing purposes I'm taking the freedom to use an acronym PYDS) www.purkal.org, strongly endorsed by our yoga teachers. The Swami couple created the first program 10 years ago when they started to help a few local children with their studying. Since then they have made it their full time occupation. It was introduced to us by Rajiv, our yoga teacher and Guy, an English teacher who came to Rajpur to study yoga a year ago and has been full time volunteer at Purkal for the past 6 months, involved in teaching, general project management and administration.

Twenty fellow yoga students signed up for the visit and congregated in the afternoon rain at the yoga hall. The PYDS school bus took us through the winding hills in the back country of Dehradun, crossing a couple of streams with half a foot of water before getting to the PYDS site. We were welcomed with South Indian cuisine and chai, before attending presentations, buying handicrafts and mingling with the children.



Purkal’s goal is “To provide opportunities for disadvantaged rural youth through education”, and “To empower rural women through skill development and training, giving them a chance to earn a wage comparable to those living in cities”. That’s pretty down to earth and easy to relate to.

Yuva Shakti project
Purkal has been taking care of 125 children ages 10 to 18 from the most disadvantaged families in the closest village, Purkal Goan. The children are provided with daily nutritious food, space for educational assistance, access to resources such as a library, computers with internet connection, exposure to the broader world through special guests or informational trips and skill-based career guidance. They have extended to more than twenty 9 year olds this year. The younger children are taught basic school topics and computer skills to prepare them for admission and success at the better junior, mid and high schools in Dehradun, 8 km away. The children are individually cared for to ensure that they are doing well and will be successful throughout their education… all the way through college.

Without PYDS, these children would never even dream of going to these schools, much less actually consider some day attending college! Some of these children are best of their class; one of the teenage girls has been selected to attend a two week youth leadership conference in Singapore.

By the time we were mid-way through the presentations a deluvian rainfall was pounding on the tin roof to the extent that it was difficult to hear the younggirl who was addressing us. The road to the center still being under , we had a 10 mn walk to get back to the bus; not to speak about driving in the deluge -including over the streams we had crossed on the way in... We were wondering how long we would be blocked when Sarah, another volunteer, from Oregon, told us that during the monsoon season they often needed to wait in the evening for the rain to calm down in order to get back home. In the past 3 months we've gotten quite used to the ways of the monsoon and were having a great time looking at the handicrafts and talking with the children, with Swami and Chinni and the staff.

Stree Shakti project
Purkal also created a women's professional development group that makes patchwork quilts and bags. It empowers local women with workspace, professional know how as well as management skills like basic accounting and administration. The women self-manage their finances, sales, costs etc… so nothing goes through the parent organization. This project generates economic stability for income starved families. The group is currently composed of 60 women and growing. Most of Swami and Chinni’s house has been used for years to produce the handicrafts; they have plans for a workshop/raw material storage/finished goods sales room that they are hoping to fund in the coming months. This will allow them to double the number of women working within the program.

Swami and Chinni believe they can help change the impoverished villagers’ powerless state of mind. Powerless because they feel there is no way to can change their condition - for example getting their kids into a good school (how and what for?), or finding a stable job (where and how?). The vicious circle of poverty has been at work, providing little or no resources to them, be it education, information, skills training or self confidence building.


The Swami’s are concretely demonstrating through PYDS that the villagers can actually get themselves out of the present condition with some help, determination and hard work. The emphasis is on creating ways to generate regular revenue, in contrast to the uncertain labor jobs in construction, carrying bricks or mortar for a few hours or a day at a time.

Swami explained to us that the self confidence is already improving around the community, with the success of the women’s quilt groups.


Swami and Chinni deem that community transformation will come mainly from the women, which is why PYDS is mostly focusing on them. I shared with Swami that the experiment of empowering women had been greatly successful in Africa, as they are weavers of the community and take the responsibility of building the future.






Another aspect of PYDS master plan is to provide basic hygienic living conditions to the all families in need. After having electricity brought to several hamlets, this past year they had 50 toilets and washrooms installed in houses and have the plan to install 300 more in the year to come. Women and children die every year, while using the fields for toilets, from Cobras that come out, especially during monsoon.

What an realization, for a single couple who 10 years ago started tutoring a few children, to grow the vision that they could change the world by starting at their doorstep. I wouldn’t even try to talk about accomplishments with them, knowing that their perspective is solely focused on what more they can get done tomorrow, or by the end of this year. We were totally inspired by both of them. They radiate compassionate care combined with knowledge and down to earth pragmatism.

This is a fantastic, locally created and run, low-overhead, high-output organization. Every cent goes to materials, projects, food, transportation etc.
So what do 140 children and 60 women represent in a land of 1 200 000 000 people? I think they are the proof that local grass root initiatives can change the world… one village at a time, for ever.





How can we help?
I have rarely had the opportunity to see first hand the efforts and the results of an organization like this, which I came across totally by chance. I know that my family and friends are very sensitive to the divide between our living conditions and those of many people in the world. Also, we know it’s tricky to choose where to send our contributions and be confident that they will be used effectively.

PYDS staff has many, many ideas of simple things to accomplish its vision; the main limitation is funding. If you are touched by what Swami and Chinni are doing, there are several ways to contribute. You can choose a full-child or a half-child sponsorship, or a donation for a project or school supplies. You too can be part of a hands-on rural development project that is changing people’s lives every day in Purkal Goan. Have a look at the website that has all the information and pass this along to people you think might like to help too.

Imagine how Purkal will be when just these 150 children have all gone to high school and college…



Contact information:
http://www.purkal.org/
purkalsociety@hotmail.com
Purkal.society@gmail.com







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