Live
- Punjab hikes maximum state-agreed price for sugarcane, highest in country
- Centre okays PAN 2.0 project worth Rs 1,435 crore to transform taxpayer registration
- Punjab minister opens development projects of Rs 120 crore in Ludhiana
- Cabinet approves Atal Innovation Mission 2.0 with Rs 2,750 crore outlay
- Centre okays Rs 3,689cr investment for 2 hydro electric projects in Arunachal
- IPL 2025 Auction: 13-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi becomes youngest player to be signed in tournament's history
- About 62 lakh foreign tourists arrived in India in 8 months this year: Govt
- IPL 2025 Auction: Gujarat bag Sherfane Rutherford for Rs 2.60 cr; Kolkata grab Manish Pandey for Rs 75 lakh
- Assam CM meets Governor, cabinet expansion on the cards
- IPL 2025 Auction: RCB buy Jacob Bethell for Rs 2.6 cr; Ellis sold to CSK for Rs 2 crore
For them, service to mankind is service to God…
It is an incredible story of a woman, with the assistance of her daughter-in-law, setting an inspiring example of philanthropy. While the entire country regards mother-daughter in-law relations as the most strained and hostile, soap operas flourish on belligerent in-laws in prime time on televisions.
Bhadrachalam: It is an incredible story of a woman, with the assistance of her daughter-in-law, setting an inspiring example of philanthropy. While the entire country regards mother-daughter in-law relations as the most strained and hostile, soap operas flourish on belligerent in-laws in prime time on televisions.
Saroja wasn’t born with silver spoons in her mouth. Nor was she bequeathed a huge fortune by a lonely millionaire. She works in a government hospital as an ayah for a paltry salary per month. Yet, she proves to be a unique soul that has been assigned by the Almighty to run his errands. Instead of cursing her fate for not having enough, she uses whatever little amount she has, to take care of the needy.
Saroja and her daughter-in-law have been running an ashram for the destitute and serving the inmates making the axiom ‘Service to man is service to God’ meaningful in letter and spirit. In 2009, Saroja founded the ashram at Etapaka, near here, and has been running the ashram since then with her meager salary she earns. Her daughter-in-law, Vijayalakshmi, has been extending necessary support to Saroja in serving the poor, the aged and the physically challenged.
In her rented premises, she gave shelter to at least 150. They include visually challenged and those who are not table to walk. The ashram provides them with food, clothes, shelter and medicines in case they are indisposed. Now and then, the charitable public donates to the ashram both in cash and in kind.
Nearly 46 persons passed away during their stay at the ashram. In all cases, the duo took care of the cremation. The devotion and dedication of the duo in attending to the needs of those who are not able to independently answer their calls of nature is unbelievable and as such, people began to call them as Amma.
Talking to The Hans India, Saroja said her urge to serve the needy was growing with each passing day in spite of giving her 100 per cent attention and devotion to the care of the inmates. She said she was treating the inmates as her own family members, believing in the saying ‘the service to man is service to the God’.
She sounded confident when she said she would take them under her wings despite of any amount of hurdles on her path. She puts the daily expenditure of the ashram at Rs 2,000. Charitable public on their birthdays, wedding anniversaries and other occasions contribute to the ashram materials like rice and essential commodities besides cash. Vijayalakshmi said she was walking in the footsteps of her mother-in-law with the support of her husband Rafi and father-in-law Hussain.
By PV Satyanarayana
