The real change in society must start from individual initiative
— The Dalai Lama
VELLORE: For R Ravishankar, the past 13 years have been the most rewarding period in his life. Through a series of social initiatives, ranging from anaemia eradication programme to a school for special children, the 35-year-old veterinarian from Vellore’s Sankaranpalayam has touched the lives of scores around him and, in the process, found meaning to his life. Now, through his new project, a breastmilk bank, he is trying to ensure better lives for scores of newborns.
The seeds of his commitment to society, however, was planted decades ago by his mother Rajini and his grandfather, who did their bit to help the needy around them. It was, nonetheless, the satisfaction he felt after helping visually challenged individuals cross a busy road in Chennai that inspired Ravishankar to pursue social work with the same fervour as his career.
“I saw them struggling to board a train or walk in the mad rush at Park Town Station in Chennai. I used to hold their hands and lead them to their destinations,” Ravishankar recalls. Encouraged by his friends, he made helping such individuals his daily routine throughout his life as a student at Madras Veterinary College in Vepperi. During the same time, he volunteered to donate blood and regularly spent time with orphans in homes in the district. As he grew more confident of the changes he can bring about in others’ lives, Ravishankar decided to launch his own NGO.
“During my college farewell speech in 2008, I announced my decision to constitute Dr Ravishankar Foundation, which came into being in 2009,” he said. The anaemia eradication programme, one of the major initiatives he spearheaded, covered adolescent girls and elderly women in rural areas. Under the programme, the NGO holds tests to measure haemoglobin levels and blood pressure and distributes iron tablets to those in need.
In 2011, he founded a school for special children at Pennathur in Vellore. “We picked up children from their homes and dropped them off in the evening. A teacher was appointed to engage with the children. Due to Covid-19, however, the school had to be shut,” he said, adding that it will be reopened soon. During the second wave, Ravishankar converted his car into a makeshift ambulance and rushed patients to hospitals.
Ravi’s wife, the first donor
About three months ago, Ravishankar launched the latest of his NGO’s initiatives, a breastmilk bank. “We have a team to collect breastmilk from donors and supply it to the breastmilk bank set up in the Government Vellore Medical College Hospital at Adukkamparai. We also directly hand over the donated milk to women who need to feed their children,” he said.
“The brain attains 90 per cent of its growth in the first two years of life and those who take breastmilk attain that growth because of the presence of an essential fatty acid called linoleic acid,” said Dr E Theranirajan, Dean of Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital.
“While an antibody called Immunoglobulin in breastmilk prevents respiratory tract infections, para-aminobenzonic acid, another substance found in the milk, boosts body’s defences against malaria,” Theranirajan said.
It was Ravishankar’s wife Sandhiya who became the first donor in the initiative. So far, six donors have agreed to donate breastmilk. “Somewhere, my milk is nourishing a baby and that makes me happy,” said Geetha*, one of the donors.
(*Name of donor has been changed to protect her identity)