She promised water, and what a liquid relief it was…….Ashwin Aghor
Sanjana Narkar’s philanthropic journey from LA to Mumbai to help rural Maharashtra
She is in her early teens and, unlike her classmates, has a passion unusual for one her age. Sanjana Narkar, a class ninth student from Los Angeles, has already started showing signs of concern for the well-being of the environment. At the age of 15, Sanjana has started working on minimising the threat posed by global warming.
In fact, thanks to her efforts, people living in villages near Rajapur now have a perennial source of water.
Inspired by Al Gore’s eco-mentary, An Inconvenient Truth, Sanjana decided to do something to counter the effects of global warming.
“The film changed my life and my way of thinking. I decided to do whatever I could,” said Sanjana. Due to her Indian roots, Sanjana regularly visits her native village near Rajapur. During one such visit, she noticed that people from adjoining villages walked long distances to fetch water from her backyard. The reason being was that all the wells in the area ran dry during the summer and the only source of drinking water was the well in the backyard of the Narkar’s home.
“When I learned of their problem, I decided to do something; at least help them dig wells in their area, which would provide a perennial source of water,” said Sanjana.
“When she expressed a desire to help people in rural Maharashtra, we decided to encourage her,” says her father, Sunil, adding, “She always had an inclination toward social service and we decided to cultivate it.”
To raise funds to help people in Maharashtra, Sanjana launched a non-profit organisation, Development of Rural Maharashtra, and also a website www.dormindia.org, with the help of Maharashtra Mandal Bay Area (MMBA), in Los Angeles.
The MMBA helped Sanjana collect money from people through donations. “The drive began in July, and by the end of the month, a total of $2600 was collected. This money was sufficient to dig a bore well, as well as fit an electric pump,” said Sanjana. The bore well was inaugurated on August 17.
Sanjana has a mission statement: No global warming touches my Maharashtra; plant trees to absorb CO2; to save trees, recycle papers, cans, bottles, and plastic; and be environmental friendly.
“I want to build rural Maharashtra. I want medical attention to be available to everyone and make physicians available in every village in rural Maharashtra,” said Sanjana.
Her objectives also include making clean water available to rural Maharashtra “After I provide a proper well with an electric pump, homes and villages in rural Maharashtra will receive clean, healthy water,” she added.