Dr. Satish Gogulwar
Saturday, 08 May 2010 14:19 | 
Written by Kiran Patil
I have committed myself to spending about 8 months in Wardha (Maharashtra) for a project "Development of Societal Entrepreneurship" funded by the Government of India and executed by the Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Rural Industrialization (MGIRI), Wardha.
As part of the project, I happened to meet this great person, who is well known in this part of the world, especially Gadchiroli district. No, he has not performed any surgery on the Prime Minister. He has done something more spectacular than that.
I took a bus from Wardha to Nagpur and went to the New Memorial Hospital in Sitabuldi there. Sitting in Quarter No 2, were a group of 10-12 women, working on some papers. I was not supposed to enter this room and hence I was quickly rushed outside, through a passage taken to a room which has a small cooler, one simple bed (cot), two chairs and a table. It was a small room, not more than 200 sq ft. There in one corner of the room, at the table sat Dr. Satish Gogulwar.
So what is so special about him? His organization "Amhi Aamchya Aarogyasathi" (We Are For Our Health) (founded by him and his friends in seventies) has set-up over 400 self help groups in Gadchiroli and in turn has provided employment to several people. Satish Gogulwar has also provided basic health services to thousands of villagers and tribals in Gadchiroli and Chandrapur districts, where no doctor dares to go. He has spent over three decades in the violence-affected Gadchiroli district on health related issues, educational, rehabilitation of disabled people, and livelihood and food security.
What makes me write about Dr. Satish Gogulwar is that he is much different from the other social entrepreneurs I have met in Wardha. Unlike Gogulwar, the social entrepreneurs in Wardha have lost hope in their work now. "Defeated" is what they call themselves. On the other hand, Gogulwar has no signs of defeat on his face. He works in a more difficult region than the people in Wardha. Gadchiroli is not only remotely located, it is also affected by violence. Then what separates out Gogulwar? I think it is the approach of his work. While most of the social entrepreneurs in Wardha (and many other parts of India) believe in hand-holding of the villagers / tribals, Gogulwar believes in providing the right tools to people and leaving them on their own. This ensures that the beneficiaries of his work do not look up to him for trivial problems, enabling him to focus his energies in reaching out to more people.
I will be meeting Dr. Gogulwar again next week. Will add more details of his activities. His website is http://www.arogyasathi.org
PS: Finally, after a lot of deliberations, I started blogging on Grameen Bharat. Thanks to Sorabh (Topi).
Last Updated (Wednesday, 19 May 2010 20:08)