Ex-police officer starts NGO to provide spiritual training……..Laxmi Birajdar
PUNE: From enforcing the law to helping people connect spiritually is a big leap. Raj Khilnani, additional director general of police, railways, took this very step when he launched the NGO Heart Quest or Dil Ka Prayas on February 25.
“The NGO is an avenue open to all to reach their inner selves,” Khilnani, who visited Pune on Tuesday, said. “It is aimed at inviting suggestions and ideas from people across society on how they can connect with God, become spiritually inclined and find ways to overcome the social categorisation that exists in our country.”
The idea is to provide spiritual training to people in new and novel formats, stated Khilnani, who has been in the police force for over three decades.
Looking for unity amidst diversity, promoting peace and resolution of conflicts, adopting villages for integrated rural development, reducing the psychological divide between the rich and the poor, upholding human rights, helping victims of crime, accident and self-abuse and reformation and rehabilitation of criminals are some of the many objectives of Heart Quest.
Khilnani has been globetrotting to spread the word about his initiative. Besides Pune, he has so far visited Raipur, Nagpur, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Palo Alto and parts of Germany. “I will be announcing this initiative in Mumbai as well as the other metros in India. We intend to create a think tank that can come up with practical solutions to personal and societal problems. Volunteers are most welcome to join us in this effort,” he said.
Joining him in this endeavour is Larry Thrasher, founder of World Sisters United, an NGO that empowers women in rural Maharashtra and the Philippines by training them in making community videos. “I’m training these women in using the camera so they can tell stories about themselves, their problems, communities and villages. It’s a way of making them independent and strong. And we are joining hands with Heart Quest to chip in for the initiative,” Thrasher, a former music producer, said.