Ramesh Chaurasia: Illuminating new paths for the Chaurasia community

The Akhil Bharatiya Adarsh Chaurasia Mahasabha has been actively involved in spreading awareness among the Chaurasia-Tamboli community and that too with great success. It is known that the Chaurasia community has been traditionally engaged in the farming and trade of betel leaves. Thus, a large part of the community is of farmers and traders. The organization aims at uplifting members of this community and help them keep up with the rest of the society which is moving towards modernization.

Mr Ramesh Chaurasia, the president of the organization, said “The Chaurasia community is a large tight-knit community. The members of this community have been known to work extremely hard and survive against all odds. We are like a huge family and I am fortunate to be a part of it. Our organization leaves no stone unturned when it comes to helping the members of our community whether it is in getting exposure, awareness, education, healthcare, guidance on business, guidance with jobs, financial help or anything else. We believe that everything plays a role in building up a society and it all begins at the community level.”

He then added “I don’t think that a person can imagine doing something which he does not know of. You need to know the system to improve it or benefit from it. The organization aims to lightespecially the path for the women of the community, the youth, the children and also the farmers. All of them are an integral part of the community and we aim to provide the supervision in any way possible. A lot of initiatives are already running and we are planning new ones too.”

The Mahasabha has launched several initiatives for different members of the community based on their needs.

Children The children of the community are given guidance with their school education. They are provided access to E-Learning resources and E-Books. Stationery is distributed to them at the beginning of each academic year. Career counselling is provided to children who are going to complete their school education. Education is one of the central areas of focus for the organization.

Women The women of the community are specially guided by the women’s wing of the organization called the Akhil Bharatiya Adarsh Chaurasia Mahila Mahasabha. Women of the community are given guidance on employment opportunities. Skill development camps are planned for them so that they can learn new things and find better jobs. They are also guided on how to start cottage industries and employ other women from the community. Healthcare guidance is given to women so that they can take care of their health and that of their families. Nutritional awareness is provided to women so that they can provide a healthy diet for themselves, the children and the whole family. The leaders of the organization consider women to be the strongest and the central part of any society and aim towards elevating them.

Farmers As the community consists largely of farmers, the organization aims at providing all possible help to the farmers of the Chaurasia community. Experts from the field of agriculture sciences are invited to give lectures about the latest innovations in the farming of betel leaves and other cash crops. Latest techniques like multi-layered farming are discussed and farmers are told about various schemes offered by the government for their welfare. This has helped a lot of farmers in increasing their income and also attracted youngsters towards betel farming and trade.

Vision and current efforts “We do the right research; we gather the correct data and our team works hard to develop systems that work. We have been trying to create awareness among our community so that they can also dream big. Without imagination and exposure, we as humans, cannot have ambitious goals. I can see that the youth of our community is hungry for growth and progress. We are going to provide them with the guidance and the right platforms. Apart from this, we are also focusing on the most helpless sections of society because they are the ones who are most often ignored. Whether it is women’s mental health or the health of the elderly, we are doing everything possible on multiple ends.” – Mr Ramesh Chaurasia expressed his thoughts about the work that they are doing. It is through the collective efforts of the community leaders and community members that the people of the Chaurasia-Tamboli samaj are now looking at a hopeful and bright future, full of promises.