CHENNAI: Dignity—the quality that elevates human beings above all other organisms and the force that drives freedom, self-respect and personhood. But does society guarantee it to all? 36-year-old P Manimaran of Thalayampallam says it doesn’t, and few can answer this question with more authority.
During the 19 years that he has been a social worker, Manimaran has seen hundreds of people being denied basic human dignity owing to diseases, discrimination or divergent views, and he has been doing his bit to right this wrong since the age of 17.
Born into a family of farmers, Manimaran was inspired at a young age by the work of Mother Teresa, especially her services to alleviate the suffering of leprosy patients. When he was at a crossroads after completing his SSLC, Manimaran decided to dedicate his life to the service of the weak and abandoned.He turned his focus on caring for leprosy patients and received training at the Schieffelin Institute of Health Research and Leprosy Centre at Karigiri in Vellore. He learned to provide first aid and palliative medications to the patients.
The founder of Siva Karma Yogi Charitable Trust, an NGO, in Tiruvannamalai, Manimaran says he and the trust have treated over 15,000 leprosy patients, rescued over one lakh from streets and admitted them to leprosy care homes. One of the patients he rescued became emotional when talking about the help he received from Manimaran. “I don’t know how to thank him. He has done a lot to save me,” he said.
Manimaran also believes that every person has the right to a dignified burial/cremation after death. He and members of his trust have thus travelled across the country to provide dignified burials to unclaimed bodies after obtaining permission from officials. He says they buried 2,008 bodies this way, including over 365 bodies of those who lost their lives to Covid-19 during the two waves in 2020 and 2021.Over the past two decades, he also helped about 1,000 people found wandering on the streets reunite with their families or relatives.
Manimaran is a recipient of the National Award for the Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, by the union ministry of social justice, in 2015; Best Social Worker Magudam Award, News18 channel, in 2018; and Best Service Award by Tamil Nadu government, in 2019. He was also recognised as Best Social Workr by the collectors of Tiruvannamalai, Vellore and Thirupathur for his services during the pandemic.