Just #Doright...coz you can

From the stages of childhood when we start to understand things, our parents tell us - Do the right thing. It later transpires into helping the others in whatever way we could , either by cash or in kind. Something which gives the receiver and us - both happiness. Everyday we come across people who are different from others and we think that there must be a way to help them anyhow... just anyway because we know that its the way to do it.

Sign language - their way of bonding

I have always thought that we become a bit restless when we are ill or recovering from an injury - hoping to get well soon and bring our life back on track and on the same pace. What happens to those who are disabled in some way or the others and live their lives? I came across one such story and an endeavor long back and was awed by it. Its a story that featured many times on the various publications and various websites. It has also won various awards... Awards because it has touched a lot of lives.. Its the story of those who cant hear, yes its about them...the deaf people whom I refer to as the Hearing impaired.

Its the story of Mirakle Couriers, a Mumbai based courier courier... it employs low income deaf men and women as its staff and my bit of doing what I feel is right. I read about Dhruv Lakra sometime back through an article I was reading and came across this story. It was heart touching as I could feel the pain.

I now present to you the story about Mirakle in my words as well as the history taken from the website of the company itself as I want more people to know about it.. Here it goes. 

Mirakle Couriers was started in January 2009.  The idea to help the deaf was triggered by one particular incident Dhruv Lakra experienced while travelling on a bus in Mumbai.

Once , Dhruv was sitting on a bus next to a young boy looking eagerly out the window. In fact he was not just eager but actually very restless. He was looking around anxiously, seeming slightly lost. Dhruv asked him where he was going but the boy did not respond. It took him a few seconds to realise that this boy was unable to hear or speak. He was deaf. Though the bus conductor regularly announced the stops this boy still did not know where he was. Dhruv took out a piece of paper and wrote to him in Hindi asking him where he was going. Through the back and forth pen and paper exchange, it suddenly dawned on Dhruv how difficult life was for the deaf. Something as straightforward as a bus became a struggle.

It is an invisible disability. You can not know when someone near you is deaf as there are no obvious physical attributes, and so its totally ignored. It is also a silent (voiceless) disability. There is very little public sympathy for the deaf, and , a severe lack of government support for them in India. Particularly when it comes to employment there are no opportunities because no one has the patience or the foresight to learn deaf language and culture. This is how Mirakle Couriers was born.

Over the next few months Dhruv spent time exploring the deaf culture and learning Indian Sign Language. He focused on a courier business because it requires a lot of visual skills but no verbal communication. The deaf are extremely good at maps reading, remembering roads and buildings because they are so visually inclined.

How its done ?

Everything from pick-up to delivery is carefully planned at the branches in sign language. The field agents receive instructions via sms of a client’s address and a time for when documents need to be picked up. Upon arriving at the client’s office the shipments are counted and a count confirmation sms is sent back to the branch supervisor.

Once the packages arrive at the branch they are sorted, processed and prepared for delivery. The female staff will sort out the shipments based on pincodes. Further sorting is carried out by each field agent who is responsible for a designated area of delivery whose narrow lanes and unmarked buildings he has mastered. Once sorted each document is given a tracking code and entered into the system. This allows us to track and maintain transparency as to who is responsible for which shipment.

Proof of Delivery (POD) or a digital delivery status report is then returned to our clients the day after delivery. For faulty or changed addresses we have one phone operator who will call the client or the consignee to confirm a new address. Any part of this delivery procedure can be customised by our clients if they have special requirements.

Cellphones- the medium of communication

Where do I come in?

It all started with twitter one day. I saw a tweet from Mirakle that they needed cell phones. I enquired and came to know that they need cellphones for their staff as all the information is relayed through sms. We all keep buying new cellphones for our needs and discard the old ones by keeping them in one corner. Why dont we send it to them ? Atleast they can use it. Since that day I am putting up tweets, posts asking my friends to send their now unused (but in working condition ) phones to Mirakle. Even though they operate currently in Mumbai but they accept phones from all over India. 

So do your bit...do help it because its not about money, its about help of a different kind and because its right. Give them a chance to serve you too...you might like the change.

All the relevant info about Mirakle could be found at http://www.miraklecouriers.com/  

Thats my story I want the world to know.

The TATA Capital Do it right initiative - 

Initially I wanted to write about Mirakle as one separate post but I got a chance to merge it with this beautiful story from TATA Capital- the common cause being Do it Right. This is a part of the Do it right campaign by TATA where Pankaj Trivedi travels from Dharamshala to Guwahati bringing half stories which need to be finished, the end how we want it, how we want them to change lives.

This is about a school in Mumbai- Koshish, for the deaf and dumb students who learn new things under ENT Dr. Ajay Kothari. Mumbai , the city which is always in rush, always running to get ahead from the others. 

Apart from the usual ways of learning, they are introduced to a new thing- photography. With 3 days of training providing such beautiful results , it was decided to gift 2 cameras so that they discover something new.

The story is here -

                                         

Its not about the money, its how I see the half story being finished –

1. Capturing the world as it is. Part of their memories collection over the years.

2. Its said that a picture is worth a 1000 words and there are quite a lot of times when one simple click expresses many unspoken thoughts and emotions. It would be the power of their expression.

3. Journalism

4. Some careers like having your own photo studio. A photographer these days are required to handle a variety of roles and this will also open many mainstream avenues for them.

5. Explore the country with the camera and help in bringing the country closer.

This is how I wish the story to be completed. Where one simple camera merges with their passion to explore things and shows them how beautiful the world really is.

One fast paced city- Mumbai

One half story- Koshish

One story carving its own path- Mirakle

The feeling of helping both- Priceless

Both tied together by one feeling- Do it Right

Although a part of a contest, there are a lot of people I wish to thank in these 2 stories-

1. Ajay Kothari- the trustee of Koshish.

2. Dhruv Lakra- the founder of Mirakle Couriers.

3. TATA Capital- for the Do it right initiative.

These is my half story and how I wish it should end. 

For the Do it right initiative and more half stories that need to be completed , head to www.doright.in

Part of the Indiblogger Contest in collaboration with TATA CAPITAL ( the story of Koshish).