40 minutes ago.

For many Indians even today, the Northeastern states of the country and its people are in the limelight most of the time for the wrong reasons. Be it news of violence, floods, insurgency and road blocks, the collective imagery of this part of our country in the national consciousness is still a region that is not just geographically remote but mentally alien.

The story of Natwarbhai Thakkar of Nagaland is refreshingly different. Thakkar came to Nagaland in 1955 to promote national and emotional integration through voluntary service on Gandhian principles and to conduct activities for all-round development of the people of Nagaland and Northeast India.

A Gujarati by birth, he chose to move from his hometown of Dahanu Road in Maharashtra in western India to Nagaland, inspired by the ideals of Mahatma Gandhis thoughts imbibed during the freedom movement and further mentored by late Kaka Kalelkar, freedom fighter and social reformer.

Since then, his efforts, along with those of his wife Lentina, an Ao Naga, and many volunteers and staff of Nagaland Gandhi Ashram are directed at peace-building efforts at the frontier in spite of all the odds.

When he arrived in 1955, the road from Amguri in Assam foothills into the mountains of Nagaland was just about 80 km but it too many hours to reach the Chuchuyimlang village due to the difficult terrain. Chuchuyimlang then had houses with thatched roofs. Over the years, these made way to houses with tinned sheets and later into concrete structures. Communication facilities were a distant dream as not even a post office existed then nor a telephone link with the outside world. Electricity was a luxury.

In his first week in the village, he saved a child who needed medical attention and care. Slowly and steadily, responding to the needs of the community, a number of development initiatives were pioneered by the Gandhi Ashram established by him. These included weaving, vocational education, primary education, a library, youth activities, livelihood training and so on. Some activities flourished while others did not. The government, taking a cue from the Ashram, started a number of initiatives serving the very purpose of pilot efforts undertaken by the Ashram.

However, the journey was treacherous and Natwarbhai faced many challenges. Those who did not believe in national integration did not see Ashram activities sympathetically. In early years of his coming to Nagaland, his house was attacked at night by forces hostile to his efforts in peace building. He and his family had a narrow escape. The government often found his work irksome as he took a principled stand against any injustice and unfair practices causing harm to the Naga community.

But Natwarbhai persisted and remained steadfast like a true karmayogi. As his work expanded and found acceptance amongst the community, Natwarbhai became a part of the local community. Visitors and dignitaries blessed his work and stood behind his efforts in solidarity. Awards, recognitions, and fame came his way, but it did not affect him personally. He remains to be the same humble person with a mischievous sparkle in his eyes.

After 1990, when the computer education movement began to roll out all over the country, not to be left behind, Nagaland Gandhi Ashram was the probably the first NGO to establish a center in Chuchuyimlang village with the help of Ministry of Communications of the Government of India.

The Ashram recently tied up with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences and is offering a postgraduate program in Human Development. The government has allocated land in the village and hopefully, a fully residential campus will come up in the coming years. As he says, That will be a farewell gift to me.

Natwarbhai is a living memoir and encyclopedia of the Northeast and especially Nagaland, the 16th state that was born in December 1963. I first met him in his Ashram in August 1987 when I was working as a volunteer with Jnana Prabodhini, a Pune-based NGO working in the field of education and national integration. I then lost contact with him and then got an opportunity to meet him almost after thirty years in November 2016.

When I had first met him, he had spoken of cultivating a sense of healthy curiosity. Those words stayed with me even now. Natwarbhai had continued on this journey of nurturing a healthy curiosity amidst changes that sometimes overpower the village life in remote regions. Natwarbhai at his young age of 85 is an active facebook user. Thanks to the facebook, I could reconnect with him.

During my visit, we talked about many things but I wanted to hear from him on what has changed and not changed in Nagaland in these 50 years. His observations are poignant.

At that time, there was not a single educated person in Chuchuyimlang village, he said. Now we can count a few IAS officers, teachers, government servants, and lawyers. There was neither a post office nor a telephone facility. Now the Nagaland Gandhi Ashram runs a computer center with over 60 computers offering several short and long duration courses for Naga youths.

Natwarbhai said he had observed several positive changes. We have now three local newspapers published from the state. There is a lot of debate on issues affecting the Naga society. I see a small beginning of the emergence of civil society. In our neighbourhood, someone recently started an orphanage. There is an active debate on issues impacting Naga society.

However, he is quick to point out that what is sorely missing is the moral foundation of the society. There has been a great erosion all around in our society. That to him is a worrisome trend.

On his long innings to build bridges between the Naga society and rest of the country, Natwarbhai is more circumspect in his reply. For me, it has been a long and sometimes tiring effort as also frustrating experience to build bridges among Nagas and citizens in other parts of the country, he said. I think that this connect is still very weak. It will take a long time to build strong linkages. But I am ever optimistic.

He added, There was an incident in the Raj Bhavan in Kohima where some miscreant removed the statue of Mahatma Gandhi. While this incident happened, around the same time, in my village Chuchuyimlang, the village council decided to felicitate me and honoured me with an award for lifetime achievement for community service. I am the only non-Naga to have received this honor.

What is that energy that continues to motivate him against all odds? He is modest in sharing, When I left for Nagaland, my mentor Kaka Kalelkar had advised me that you might believe or you may not believe. But try to continue to offer prayer at least every day as you get immersed in work. Thankfully, I have not missed my prayers all these years with only a few exceptions. The prayer is the Universal prayer that is sung in every Gandhi Ashram. OM tat sat sri narayan to purushottam guru tu.

As I returned to my workplace after a weeklong travel to the northeastern state, I continued to hum the universal prayer of peace that Natwarbhai and his fellow workers in the Ashram sang year after year, every single day, for spreading peace and promoting wellbeing, literally at the frontier. The Gandhi Ashram in Chuchuyimlang is the peace post at the frontier manned by a Gandhian volunteer almost single-handedly for the last 50 plus years.

Ajit Kanitkar is a Consultant for Tata Education and Development Trust and a Member of the research team at Centre for Development and Research in Pune. Prior to this, he was Programme Officer at Ford Foundation, India office, and Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, both in New Delhi. He taught at Institute of Rural Management, Anand, during 1992-1995.

This article first appeared on Village Square.

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A Gujarati man has spend 50 years advocating peace and Gandhian principles in Nagaland - Scroll.in

New Year, New Beginnings Hari Aum,

We hope that everyone has enjoyed a relaxing holiday season and some time in the sun now that the New Zealand summer has begun. New Year is often a time of new beginnings, we've welcomed 2017 with the re-launch of our Parnell studio and laid the foundations for many exciting things to come as we journey through the year. What new beginnings or intentions have you set out for yourself? What seeds of intention have you planted?

On February 1 we re-opened out doors of our new collaborative space that we share with fellow yogi's at Yogatech. We are super excited to plant our hands and feet back on the mat and it's been wonderful to see so many familiar and new faces. If you haven't been to visit our new studio join us this weekend 11-12 February for EXPLORE Yoga, a medley of classes from both studios. Or pop in for one of our regular weekly classes.

Coming Up in February & MarchWe've a whole host of exciting workshops and masterclasses happening in Auckland and some re-invigorating retreats taking place in Ohui. Scroll down to see what we've got in store. Level 1 Teacher Training Intensive has also kicked off in Ohui this month, with our Part-Time Teacher Trainings soon to follow. Want to know more about becoming a teacher or taking a teacher training to deepen your practice? Come to our TTC Intro where we'll give you a taster and answer all your burning questions.

Sannyas is being initiated into the process of developing freedom of mind, recognising the means to develop this through renunciation. For many people renunciation means to not have lots of acquisitions and attachments to these acquisitions. But sannyasin is not limited to the physical realm of attachment, so rather than working exclusively on this level it's within the mind where we free ourselves from attachments. There is nothing wrong with spiritual aspirants being fully involved in worldly life, but still be aware of their possessiveness and attachment to whatever and to be quietly working away towards realising their essential nature. Read more

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Ashram Yoga | Bringing People Together - Home

On this occasion of Krishi Unati Mela 2017 inaugurated in Delhi on Wednesday by the Union Minister Radha Mohan Singh Ramkrishna Ashram, Nimpith District South 24 Parganas, Sundarbans won the regional level Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay Rashtriya Krishi Vigyan Protsahan Puraskar.

The total sum of this award is Rs. 50 lakhs in which there is a provision of one award of Rs 25.00 lakh at national level and 11 awards of Rs. 2.25 lakh at regional level every year will be awarded.

The decision of winners of this award was taken by the selection committee on the basis of nominations received from all the Krishi Vigyan Kendras across the country.

The other winners at Krishi Unati Mela 2017 were Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVK) Dhanori Roorkee; KVK Badgaon, Vidya Bhawan, Udaipur; KVK Saharanpu; Divyayan Krishi Vigyan Kendra run by Ramakrishna Mission Aashram, Morabadi, Ranchi.

Awardees also included KVK, Mayurbhanj, Shamkhunta, Odisha; KVK Teok run by Assam Agricultural University Jorhat, CU; College of Horticulture & Forestry, Imphal; KVK run by College of Horticulture & Forestry, Pasighat, Arunachal Pradesh; KVK Baramati, Malegaon, Maharashtra; KVK Uttar Bastar, Kanker at KVK, IGKV, Raipur; KVK Virinjipuram, Vellore, (Tamil Nadu) run by Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) Coimbatore and KVK Malappuram (Kerala) run by Kerala University.

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Ramkrishna Ashram bags Pt Deen Dayal Award - Indian Cooperative

AHMEDABAD: A woman has filed a complaint with Gujarat University (GU) police for theft of her bag containing a laptop worth Rs 45,000 along with her passport. As per GU police, Sheetal Shah, currently residing of Sivanta Apartment near Gandhi Ashram on Ashram Road, had parked her car near Suchita Apartment at Vijay Crossroads at 9 pm on March 10. "As per her complaint, when she came back after one hour and fifteen minutes, she found that someone had broken the left-side window and had stolen the bag," said a police investigator, adding that search is on to ascertain whether the act is recorded in any nearby CCTV camera. City police officials said that with growing number of similar crimes, they are identifying specific gangs - some operating from the city and some coming from outside the city and state - with similar modus operandi. "The laptops and other valuables soon make way to grey market for one third of the market price. We are also keeping a watch on such dealers to curb the crime," said an official.

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ashram road theft: Woman loses money, passport in Navrangpura ... - Times of India

Prime Minister Modi | File- PTI

VARANASI: On the third day of back-to-back campaigning in his parliamentary constituency Varanasi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday visited the famous Gadwaghat Ashram, a place most revered by the Yadavs.

Modi drove to the ashram at around 10.30 a.m. Hundreds of people lined the route to the ashram and shouted "Modi, Modi" as the Prime Minister's cavalcade passed.

He was welcomed by the management of the ashram and many seers offered him garlands made of rudraksh beads.

Modi responded to his welcome by bowing to the saints and talking to them with folded hands.

The ashram has over a crore followers and is said to have a powerful say in the political decision making of the Yadav community.

The Prime Minister then walked up to the 'gaushala', the cattle shed where he fed the cows with fodder and 'gud' (jaggery).

After the 'gau seva', he took a round of the campus decorated with marigold and rose flowers for the high-profile visit.

Modi later met the head of the ashram Guru Sharandanand and was closeted with him for over ten minutes.

Since many years, former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and the Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav has been coming to the ashram to seek blessings during elections.

Modi last year visited the Sant Ravidas temple here on the saint's anniversary and had won hearts of many Dalits for whom Ravidas is a venerated spiritual guru.

The move was seen as a ploy by the Bharatiya Janata Party to dent the Dalit votebank of Mayawati.

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Modi visits Gadwaghat ashram in Varanasi - The New Indian Express

Written by Anand Mishra | Varanasi | Published:March 10, 2017 3:52 am Widows from Varanasi and Vrindavan at a programme in Kolkata in 2016. (Archive)

They were one section who went unheard during a loud election in Varanasi. For the widows of Varanasi, even Womens Day, coinciding with polling, passed uneventfully. Rejected by family or society, they come from India, Nepal and Bangladesh to live in vidhva ashrams, their home for the rest of their lives. Estimates put their number at 35,000 to 40,000. They follow a common faith, seeking salvation at the feet of Lord Vishwanath, another name for Shiva.

At Varanasis many ghats in the morning, they can be identified as widows from their white saris. Some came here after being driven out by in-laws, some after they lost a son supporting them, and some, like Rajkumari, because their parents shunned for having married outside their caste. At 29, Rajkumari, of Karnataka, is the youngest at Sarnath Ashram. And at Birla Ashram at Dashshwamedh ghat is Annapurna Sharma, 38, whose in-laws threw her out holding her responsible for her husbands death.

Far from taking up any issues concerning the widows, no party even visited them, says Annapurna. She recalls that she had gone with other widows to New Delhi with a raakhi for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Varanasi MP. She cannot recall any MLA or MP ever visiting them. NGOs Sulabh International and Birla Sanstha provide the widows with a roof and electricity.

In the bylanes of Vranasi, the widows are mostly at an advanced age, while those in Mahila Vridha Ashram Sarnath, 25 km from the city, are younger.

Most widows near age 60 seek Kashi Pravas and want to live in Varanasi for salvation as they feel they are close to death, says Chanchal Rawat, coordinator of Sulabh International Varanasi. In Sarnath, most want a roof over their head and some help to live. Sulabh International looks after five ashrams, which house 141 widows, over 100 of them elderly.

Pashupati Nah Nepali Ashram in Lalitaghaat houses widows mostly from Nepal while Rajkiya Vridha Ashram near Durgakunds residents are mostly from states outside UP, and many from Bangladesh. Birla Ashram is at Neelkanth Gali near Maithili Mandir at Dashashwamegh ghat, Ramkuti Ashram is near Manglagouri Mandir, and Mother Teresa Ashram run by the Missionares of Charity is at Shivala Ghat.

Geeta Mehra, caretaker of Birla Ashram, describes a change in the life of widows after a pension and medical welfare scheme launched by Sulabh International. Some of the younger women are engaged in sewing and making diyas, while the elder ones are engaged mainly in morning rituals at the ghat and reciting from the Bhagwad Gita. Many of them are aware about the need for social security, with applications filed regularly for Aadhar and voter cards, especially from among the younger widows. Last year, a dozen widows defied a centuries-old ban to celebrate Holi, part of an event organised by an NGO at Assi ghat.

Also last year, 5,000-odd widows under 40 were identified by the district administration for training in various skills under the UK-based Loomba Foundation; Modi launched the programme. The Loomba Foundations World Widows Report, unveiled at the United Nations last year, gives comprehensive data about discrimination and injustice faced by widows. Filmmaker Deepa Mehtas Canadian production Water highlights the plight of widows at a pre-Independence ashram, although it was shot in Sri Lanka following protests in Varanasi.

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Uttar Pradesh Elections 2017: Unaddressed in election din, the widows of Varanasi - The Indian Express

Luaka Bop will dial up the divine with a first-ever official anthology of devotional music recorded by Alice Coltrane Turiyasangitananda at the Sai Anantam Ashram. Culled from four private press cassette tapes Turiya Sings, Divine Songs, Infinite Chants and Glorious Chants recorded between 1982 and 1995 and distributed exclusively inside her spiritual community near Los Angeles, this vital Vedic soul balm of sacred tracks will finally be made available to the wider public on 5 May via cassette, CD, digital and deluxe double-vinyl formats.

Remastered from original tapes located in the Coltrane archive, World Spirituality Classics, Volume 1: The Ecstatic Music Of Alice Coltrane Turiyasangitananda showcases Alice's first vocal works, solo harp performances, small ensembles and a 24-piece choir, and is accompanied by extensive liner notes on the collection from Grammy-winning music historian Ashley Kahn, as well as a series of exclusive interviews.

World Spirituality Classics, Volume 1: The Ecstatic Music Of Alice Coltrane Turiyasangitananda constitutes the initial instalment in a planned series of spiritual music from around the globe, to be curated, compiled and distributed by Luaka Bop.

Spencer Grady

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Alice From The Ashram: Private Press Tapes Released - Jazzwise magazine

-Varanasi: Prime Minister Narendra Modion Monday vowed to double farmers' income by 2022 and provide gas connection to nearly 5crorefamilies in UP as he addresseda rally in Varanasi's Rohaniya on the last day of campaigning for assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh. PM earlier madea brief stopover at the Gadhwa Ghat Ashram where he offered prayers and fed cows. PMNarendra Modi then proceeded toRamnagarwhere he paid floral tributes to former PMLalBahadurShastri.Considered as BJP's Brahmastra the Prime Minister, who is camping in Varanasi, has campaigned vigorously for his party to make its victory appear inevitable in a tough, triangular contest with SP-Congress combine and Mayawati's BSP.

Forty seats spread across seven districts of Ghazipur, Varanasi, Chandauli, Mirzapur, Bhadohi, Sonbhadra and Jaunpur will go to the polls for the last phase on March 8.

Here are the updates:-

-PM Modi urges people to give absolute majority to BJP in UP, concludes his speech by chanting 'Jai Sri Ram, Bharat Mata ki Jai' thrice.

-It's time to empower women who live in fear in UP: PM

-It's time to think about welfare of our youth so that they can prosper: PM

-It's time to free Uttar Pradesh from misrule of Samajwadi Party, BSP and Congress: PM Modi.

-We want poor households to have access to clean fuel. We aim to provide 5 crore families with LPG connections in 3 years: PM

-55 lakh families have been provided with LPG gas connections in just three years. Wrong people do get the jobs in UP: PM Modi

-Being raised in a poor family, I am aware of the hardships they face. We would take every step that uplifts them: PM

-We have managed to end black marketing of urea. UP government only cares about vote bank and does not care about its farmers: PM

-We have taken big steps for the welfare of farmers. Our aim is to double their income by 2022: PM

-Today, Uttar Pradesh has a government that doesnt care about farmers: PM

-UP government is anti-farmer. Why is it that farmers don't benefit from the Fasal Bima Yojana? Why they don't help farmers in distress: PM

-We have brought the Soil Health Card. We are training our farmers with scientific methods of farming: PM

-I have a dream that everyone gets his own house by 2022: PM Modi in Rhoaniya.

-Inspired by ideals of Gandhiji&SardarPatel, we are working for welfare of people of this country: PM

-Fortunate that I was raised on the land where Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel were born: PM.

-Paid tribute to Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri ji this morning: PM

-PM Modi asks people to make BJP win with absolute majority.

-PM Modi calls for change in UP, says people will teach a lesson to SP, BSP

-PM Modi addresses rally in Rohaniya's Khushipur.

-PM Narendra Modi waves to supporters as he leaves Lal Bahadur Shastri Memorial in Varanasi.

-PM Modi leaves for Rohaniya by road, greeted by hundreds of BJP supporters.

-PM Narendra Modi at Lal Bahadur Shastri Memorial in Varanasi.

-PM pays floral tributes to former prime ministerLalBahadurShastri.

-PM Narendra Modi waves to supporters in Ramnagar, on his way to Lal Bahadur Shastri memorial.

-PM Modicancels speech, leavesGadhwaGhatAshram forRamnagar.

-PM Narendra Modi at GadhwaGhat Ashram, will speak shortly.

-Spiritual heads of the Gadhwa Ghat Ashram welcoming PM Modi.

-Akhilesh Yadav-Rahul Gandhi's joint press meet cancelled after Congress VP's plane denied permission to land in Varanasi, reports News18.com.

-PM Modi meets sadhus at Gadwa Ghat Ashram in Varanasi.

-PM Narendra Modi meets Mahant Sharananand of Gadhwa Ghat Ashram.

-Here's the video of the PM feeding cows at the Gadhwa Ghat ashram in Varanasi.

-PM Modi feeds cow at Gadhwa Ghat, set to address a rally here.

-PM Narendra Modi offers prayers at Gadhwa Ghat Ashram in Varanasi

-PM Modi arrives at Gadhwa Ghat ashram.

PM Modi's roadshow in Varanasi

During his spectacular roadshow in Varanasi, PM Modi hit out at the Opposition while singing paeans to the historic city of Benaras and promising to turn it around into a modern world class metropolis.

His resumed five-km road show began at Pandeypur Square and wound its way through Chaukaghat, Teliabagh, Maldahiya and Patel Chowk to culminate at the Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapith, where Modi addressed a huge gathering.

"Earlier governments did only tidbits (of development work) for Benaras (the older name for Varanasi) with an eye on short-term electoral gains. But these tidbits won't help Benaras. The city needs a complete, modern makeover and it is my dream to turn this city into a modern world-class city," he said.

He said that if earlier governments had given proper attention, Kashi (another older name for Varanasi) could have become an attraction for the world.

"People would have yearned to visit Benaras at least once," he said.

Singing paeans to the city, Modi said Benaras is older than history and traditions, proverbs and maxims.

"Benaras is not a city, it is a living heritage. Every Indian considers Benaras as his own," he said.

Targeting political rivals Akhilesh Yadav and Rahul Gandhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday termed the two "galua", which he said in the local dialect meant those born with a silver spoon.

"The (Uttar Pradesh) Chief Minister (Akhilesh Yadav) and his new-found friend (Rahul Gandhi) are galua. They have got everything in inheritance, they are born with a silver spoon," Modi said.

"These people born in affluence are weak... they can't take tough decisions because they can't take pains. Only the one who has come from the grass root can take tough decisions," he said.

Modi, who began his speech by chanting "Bharat Mata ki Jai" and "Har Har Mahadev", cited the surgical strikes and demonetisation to underscore that the government should be capable of taking tough decisions.

He also took a jibe at the opposition, saying their motto is "kuchh ka sath, kuchh ka vikas" (selective association, selective development).

"There is fertile land and hard working people but there is no good government," he said.

The Prime Minister said the central government is ready to provide required funds for development of the region but the state government must be able to properly account for the expenses.

Modi said Uttar Pradesh would become the "number one" state in the country only after Poorvanchal is developed.

He said that electricity is something required by every household in this modern age but the Samajwadi Party government refused to take electricity from the Centre.

Earlier, the Prime Minister first flew from the airport to the Police Lines in a special Indian Air Force chopper. He then made his way in a bullet-proof car in a convoy to the Pandeypur area, from where the road show commenced.

Thousands of supporters thronged the route along which Modi went. Carrying BJP flags and shouting 'Jai Shri Ram' and 'Har Har Modi, Ghar Ghar Modi', they waved at Modi, who acknowledged their greetings and waved back at them.

Polling in Varanasi, which is also Modi's parliamentary constituency, and some surrounding districts will be held in the seventh and last phase of the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections on March 8.

With Agency inputs

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UP polls LIVE: PM Narendra Modi offers prayers at Gadhwa Ghat Ashram temple in Varanasi, feeds cows - Zee News

VARANASI: PM Modi visited the Gadhwaghat Ashram on the final day of campaigning for the Uttar Pradesh assembly election, potentially triggering some worry in the Samajwadi Party camp.

The ashram is revered especially by the Other Backward Classes and the SP counts Yadavs, who are part of OBCs, as its core support base. The PM on Monday spent about an hour at the ashram, located along the Ganga on the outskirts of Varanasi city, and met its head, Guru Sharananand.

Monday was the third and final day of the PMs hectic campaigning in his Lok Sabha constituency as part of the BJPs strategy to ensure a clean sweep in Varanasi district and ensure majority in entire eastern UP.

Varanasi, Chandauli and Ghazipur, which are considered SP strongholds, are among the districts where polling for 40 constituencies will be held in the seventh and last phase of the election on March 8. After reaching the ashram, the PM was offered several rudraksh garlands. Before offering his prayers, he visited the cowshed on the ashram premises and fed jaggery, bananas and fodder to the cows.

Later, he met the ashram head. In his last public address in this election season, at Rohania, the PM targeted both the SP-Congress alliance and BSP. He highlighted the alleged corruption in recruitment for government jobs and law and order in the state. The PM said police stations in the state have virtually become SPs office.

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PM visits Gadhwaghat Ashram, triggers some worry in Samajwadi party camp - Economic Times

NEW DELHI: "This might be the last time we see him in his home," said Khushi, a friend of Atul Arora, when the teenager's body reached his house from the mortuary on Monday. Khushi fondly remembered the good times she had spent with the Class XII student, who was killed in a hit-and-run case late on Sunday night. "None of us liked to go out much after school hours, so we mostly ended up coming to Atul's house either for group studies or to spend some free time," said the grief-stricken girl.

And yet just hours earlier, nobody could have imagined the young student's life would be cut short by a Mercedes Benz ramming into his scooter and killing him. Monday was supposed to be the first day of Atul's final year in school. A month short of his 17th birthday, the boy was eager to meet his friends after a two-week school break.

"He had his bag all packed, the new books neatly arranged inside," said a despairing Ruchi Arora, Atul's elder sister, a teacher. "His uniform was crisply ironed. I had got a new pair of shoes for him, but he never got to wear them."

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Boy offered seva at ashram before death: Kin | Delhi News - Times ... - Times of India