Activities of Ramakrishna Mission, Khetri
Ramakrishna Math and Mission Centers are well known all over the world for their activities in social upliftment especially in the fields of Education and Health Services. Like any other Ramakrishna Mission Center, Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda Smriti Mandir, Khetri is also involved in various social services besides cultural and spiritual activities in Khetri city and in villages around Khetri. At present following are the activities of the Ashrama :
A Nursery School for the Children
A Public Library with Reading Room
Medical Service
Tailoring Training School for Poor Girls
Computer Education & Training Center
Coaching Centre for Secondary and Higher Secondary Students
Relief and Welfare Activities
Cultural and Spiritual Activities
Brief accounts of the above activities are given below:
a. Nursery School for the Children: The school known as Sarada Shishu Vihar is being run by the Mission in service of the backward and the poor. Special attention is also being paid to the all-round development of the children. A park with playing facilities is provided for the same. At present there are 72 children with three teachers and one Aya in the school with boys to girls’ ratio of 54:46.
b. Public Library with Reading Room: In the field of education, another activity of the Mission is the running of a public library with reading room. The library has about 4267 good books on philosophy, literature, science, history, ethics etc. Many daily news papers and over 30 weeklies, monthlies and other periodicals are kept in the library for public use. It is heartening that students and the public of the town make full use of the valuable library. Last year total Number of Attendance was 3850.
c. Medical Services:
i. Homeopathic Dispensary: In the sphere of health, we run a charitable dispensary in the town. Patients are treated here at nominal charges. In the year 2000-10, a total number of 2652 patients got treated. Out of that there were 1147 male patients and 1505 female patients.
ii. Free Eye Surgery Camp: Four camps were held in collaboration with various eye hospitals. Free screening: 650 patients; Free Surgery: 105 patients: Free Specs given: 72 patients. Recently we have started eye surgery camp for poor patients on a regular basis on the last Sunday of every month.
iii. Heart Check-up Camp: On 8 June, 2009, a Heart Check up Camp was organized in collaboration with the Global Health Medicity c/o Indrapastha Apollo Hospital, New Delhi. Total patients screened: 48
d. Tailoring Training School: There are 6 schools named Sarada Mahila Silai Shikshan Kendra for the poor girls at different sites. There are 10 trainees in each center and they are trained for a period of six months. Total number of trainees during the year 2009-10 was 100. There are two centers at villages Jasrapur and Babai, rest of the centers are in the Khetri town itself. Ten Sewing Machines have been distributed as scholarship to the best trainees.
e. Computer Education & Training Center: We have started a computer center for providing computer education to the needy students at nominal charges. The centre is equipped with 10 computers, power back-up and internet connection. In the Year 2009-10 there were 143 students and two teachers. Apart from the basic course of two months, an advance diploma course of six months duration has been started.
f. Coaching Centre for Secondary and Higher Secondary Students: We have started a coaching facility for poor but serious students in science subjects and English during the summer vacation between mid May to mid July. About 80 students enrolled. There are four teachers.
g. Relief and Welfare Activities:
i. Ramakrishna Mission, Khetri has taken steps to restore a very old check dam (Ajit Samand Bandh) at the outskirts of Khetri by excavating silt from it so as to make it sufficiently deep in order that it might hold adequate runoff water during the rainy season. The accumulated water of the reservoir will recharge the ground water tables which in its turn protect wells and tube wells of the locality from drying
ii. Distribution of free Milk to small children: We have started distributing free milk to small children and expectant mothers, in all to 70 beneficiaries. Each will be served nearly 200 to 250 milliliters of milk and biscuits everyday in the morning at the Ashrama premises throughout the year.
h. Cultural and Spiritual Activities: Prayers, celebrations, functions and other such programs are being organized in the Ashrama regularly. Recitation and music competitions of students of different schools of different nearby towns are organized at the Ashrama premises every year.
The birthday celebrations of Sri Ramakrishna, Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi, and Swami Vivekananda are celebrated every year. Daily prayer and bhajans are conducted in the morning and in the evening and Ramanam Sankirtans are sung on Ekadashi days.
A devotees’ convention “Bhakta Sammelan 2010”, was held on 7th March in which about 200 devotees of different parts of Rajasthan and Delhi took part. Swamis Gautamanandaji, Adhyaksha, Ramakrishna Math, Chennai and Nikhilatmanandaji, Secretary, Ramakrishna Mission, Jaipur addressed the gathering. Apart from spiritual discourses, Question-Answer session and devotional songs by monks and eminent artists marked the occasion.