In a unique initiative, a group of 35 students of Shri Shivaji Maratha Society’s Institute of Management & Research have set up a club that will perform social service. The club, titled Random Acts of Kindness (RAK) Club, is the brainchild of a second-year MBA (human resources) student Rakesh Rajpurohit.
Rajpurohit said, “The club was founded on September 5 this year with the purpose to serve society. I was inspired to set it up after reading the works of Swami Vivekananda. It was then that I felt the need to go beyond my academic work and do something for society.”
Giving the details of the club’s activities, Shaheen Qureshi, professor (human resources) and faculty coordinator of the club, said, “On October 2, we went to St John’s Orphanage and on October 28, we went to Trimurti old age home on Karve Road. We organised a host of activities at both the shelters, including poem recitation, storytelling, dancing, and also gave refreshments and gifts to everyone.
“In the future, we plan to visit a centre for the mentally challenged students, besides taking up a public cleaning drive by December or January next year. The students bear all the expenses of the activities. Participating in these activities teaches the students the importance of social responsibility and values. As far as I know, this is a first-of-its-kind initiative by any business school.”
Badrinath Iyengar, one of the club members, said, “The club is not just about helping people. When I saw how lonely people in the old age home were, I felt very sad. Parents struggle so much for their children, so dumping them in an old age home is completely wrong.”
Qureshi said that all the 35 students took a vow that they would never leave their parents in an old age home.
