Garib Mela beneficiaries donates funds for ‘Kanya Kelvani’

Garib Mela beneficiaries donate to CM’s fund

Rathin Das | Ahmedabad -Daily Pioneer

Political adversaries may be baying for Chief Minister Modi’s blood over the ‘Garib Kalyan Melas’, but some tangible results have already started accruing to the beneficiaries.

A classic case in point is a barber, in Sabarkantha district of north Gujarat, who has turned around his fortunes with the modest kits he received at one such ‘Garib Kalyan Mela’.

This young man , who barely made a living as a barber under a tree, was a beneficiary of the kits the Chief Minister distributed at the ‘Garib Kalyan Mela’ held at Himmatnagar on December 31.

On January 18 this year, the barber returned to the ‘Garib Kalyan Mela’ held at Modasa, some 45 kilometres east in the same district. But this time, as a donor to the Chief Minister’s fund for ‘Kanya Kelvani’ (girls’ education).

He donated Rs 250/- to the Chief Minister’s fund, declaring that his income had increased after using the kit he received three weeks back at Himmatnagar.

Confirming the incident, Sabarkantha District Collector Jai Prakash Shivhare told The Pioneer that the barber is a self-employed man who benefited from the tool kit given to him at the ‘Garib Kalyan Mela’.

“The donation to the Chief Minister’s fund was his token contribution as per his capacity”, the District Collector added. The barber told the Chief Minister at Modasa that his income has gone up due to the new tools and thus he wanted to donate some amount for a good cause like education of girls, Shivhare narrated the incident to this correspondent.

The turn-around of the barber’s fortune aptly demonstrates how a little help can boost the livelihood and morale, of such people in a dignified manner.

He used to run his ‘hair cutting’ business from under a tree and attracted customers accordingly. As a beneficiary of the ‘Garib Kalyan Mela’ at Himmatnagar, he received some new scissors, razors and, more importantly, a big mirror and a chair.

With the equipment in place, he upgraded his business to a make-shift ‘saloon’. The chair and the big mirror increased his daily clients from half-a-dozen to nearly 20, the barber told the Chief Minister at the Modasa meet where he made his modest contribution to the “Kanya Kelvani” fund.

Similarly, two more beneficiaries Pathan and Chandubhai Ravaliya who had earlier received tea stall equipment on December 31, had come to Modasa and donated Rs 251/- and Rs 151/- respectively, sources in Sabarkantha District Collector Office told The Pioneer on Monday.

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