You don’t need to be rich to experience joy of giving, prove NGOs

What happens when you say thank you to a farmer or fix a refrigerator for a stranger? Around 150 underprivileged kids from Delhi and a few repairmen from Mumbai are about to find out.

From October 2 to 8 this year, kids from the Delhibased NGO Project WHYthat is working towards educating underprivileged childrenand beneficiaries of Mumbaibased nonprofit MESCO (Modern Educational, Social and Cultural Organisation) will take part in the Daan Utsav festival which brings together Indians from all walks of life to celebrate and give.

Now in its 7th year of celebrations, Daan Utsav has moved closer to becoming a 'people's festival'. Volunteers are coming across individuals and groups who are inspiring others to celebrate the festival in their own way. These include the beneficiaries of these two NGOs who , through a series of benevolent gestures, will prove that you don't need to have deep pockets to be generous. A big heart will do.

"We want to use Daan Utsav as a platform to thank the families of over 100 children that we work with. Their parents work as daily-wage labourers near the Delhii-Noida highway. They subsist by growing and selling vegetables that ultimately feed us but never get anyacknowledgement," says Rani Bhardwaj, coordinator of the 16yearold Project WHY, whose 150 students will distribute 'Thank You' cards to the nondescript farmers. In the recent past too, the kids have undertaken similar activities, extending their gratitude to everyone from cobblers to shopkeepers by distributing chocolates and Parle G biscuits. "Many of them found it hard to believe that someone could actually thank them," says Bhardwaj.

Mumbaikars too can benefit from such gestures during the Daan Utsav week if they register for the various services and activities planned by MESCO, a non-profit in Mumbra working in the fields of education, medicine and poverty relief. This year, MESCO and its sister concern MESCO Education Society (MES) will conduct a host of free activities including an aptitude test and counseling session for roughly 120 students of tenth grade from municipal and other schools in Mumbra. "We all are born with an instinct to help others, only a reason, motivation and a platform is needed to showcase our sensitivity," says M A Khatkhatay, founder member of MES, whose members will conduct teaching aid, puppet making, and painting workshop for teachers from 10 schools.

Interestingly, alumni of MES's Vocational Training Centre—who have completed their electrician, AC and Refrigeration courses—will also provide their services free of cost to more than 75 families who will register. Twentytwoyearold Mumbra resident Shaikh Mohammed Irfan, who had supervised MESCO's repair and servicing activity last year, recallsover 20 satisfied customers of their free service. "We not only gained knowledge but also blessings.," he says.

On October 2, there will also be a career mela where over 300 students from eighth grade onwards will be given free career counselling by former students of MESCO, who are now into different professions. Besides, 12 doctors—including former students of MESCO and parents of MES's Crescent English High School—will conduct a medical checkup camp for 300 students from municipal schools. Other highlights include workshops on 'healthy tiffin', 'child and sexual abuse' and 'parenting'.

Also, girls who have completed beautician courses will offer free hair-cutting and eye brow threading services for women. For three days last year, kids, housewives and others had queued up for the free mehndi and haircutting service, recalls beautician Sayyed Mehrin Naaz, an alumnus of MESCO. "There was no time to sit. But good work yields a good name, right?" says Naaz.