Murugan's Marriage

அன்பார்ந்த உதயம் நண்பர்களே,

நமது மன்றத்தின் உருப்பினரான முருகன் அவர்களுக்கு திருமணம் நிச்சயிக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது என்பதனை மிக மகிழ்ச்சியுடன் தெரிவித்துக் கொள்கிறேன். கூடிய விரைவில் அவரே தனது திருமண நாளை எல்லோருக்கும் தெரியப்படுத்துவார். வாழ்த்துக்கள் குவியட்டும்!

இப்படிக்கு உங்கள்,
அனுப்.

UWF's First Magazine Release - Feedbacks and Comments

Hi all,

Here are some of the comments which I got for the last month's release of our magazine "Sarvam". I've consolidated the comments, and here are the comments...

1) Please include a section for listing out last month’s activities and accomplishments of “Udhayam”

2) Include a section for helping needed people, u may name the section as “Siru thuzhi” or “Siru thuzhi peru vellam”. Where you can list down any kind of help (money, food, books, donation, fees, blood camp, etc) required for any poor people.

3) Add some real historical stories along with the pictures which you have included

4) Try to avoid the unnecessary comic pictures like ZooZoo. This magazine should be useful magazine like thannambikkai..

5) You can give some write up from the books also. You can add how to improve computer knowledge like Computer Malar at Dinamalar.

And regarding the name for our magazine, here is a suggestion from a Udhayam member Selvaraj Venkatesan:

Instead of ‘Sarvam’, I feel we need to come with some powerful and attractive name like ‘Udhayam’. I also think ‘Sarvam’ is not pure Tamil word, it is a borrowed one from Sanskrit.

I have an idea for the name, i.e “Vidiyal” which has some relationship with “Udhayam”. I.e “Vidiyal” which is a consequence to “Udhayam”.



Think about this... And I'm awaiting more comments from you all. Thank You for your support.

~ Muthu Selvan.S

UWF Activity at IGIA, Jakkur - Jun 20th 2009

As part of our weekend activity, six UWF members (Sridhar, Muthuselvan, Mathiniraiselvan, Balamurugan, Shanmugapriyan and Karthick Ganesan) visited IGIA Jakkur on June 20th, 2009. It was also the day, Udhayam Welfare Foundation successfully stepping into its second month of activities and the birthday of one of our Udhayam member Karthick Ganesan. In this post, Karthick and Mathi were sharing their experiences at IGIA Jakkur.

(From left to right: Karthick, Bala, Muthu, IGIA Computer Teacher Dharman, Mathi and Sridhar)

It was a fine tuned experience for me(Karthick Ganesan) at IGIA, Yelahanka. I have never seen such a large group of needy children. I feel very proud to be a part of Udayam Welfare Foundation. I spoke to a large number of children there, especially with the Srilankan tamil children. We had deep heart conversation. Just see the conversation between Suraj and myself below:

Me: Suraj, Where do you like to live? In India or in SriLanka?
Suraj: (Before me ending), SriLanka.
Me: SriLanka is a violent place, LTTE occupied place (because Suraj stayed in Trincomalee (திருகோணமலை)). Do u like a terrorist group called LTTE?
Suraj: (In a polite way) I like LTTE, they fight for us (SriLankan Tamils)

I had no words to say hearing his reply!!!

(Clothes of all the students are piled up. The girl's were selecting their uniform for the current year, which may be used by some other student last year)

Like this, we spent time with most of the children. Non-Vegetarian food had become a very rare dish for them in the near past. So we decided to contribute a Non-Vegetarian dinner. We immediately went and bought around 55 Kgs of chicken which cost around Rs.5775 and vegetables worth Rs.550.

(Assembling of the boys in the evening)

We also came to know that the School Management is not able to provide basic amenities like proper drinking water, toilet facilities etc. As the underground Sewage tank was not cleaned properly, the waste got stagnated inside the toilet itself and the children were not able to use most of the toilets. Immediately, we called up the near-by sewage tank cleaner and cleaned the same. Now, they can use the toilet whenever they wish.

Also, the SINTEX tank in which they store water is in a pathetic condition without a lid and a tap. Water couldn’t be stored in the tank for more than two hours as it gets leaked. We need to pay attention to provide clean drinking water.

(The water storage which students use for taking bath and washing clothes)

We went to the terrace of the building. We saw the children using the floor and the parapet wall to dry their clothes. Because of this, most of their clothes were dirty and torn. We need to pay attention on this too.

(This is how the students dry their washed clothes)

Meeting a large number of needy children , I myself had many unanswerable questions. I have to thank God that I am in a position to serve such children. I would like to continue this service in my future days. I thank Udhayam for serving as a channel to fulfill my desire. Keep up your good work, Udhayam.

Action Item for UWF:

1. Provide clean drinking water
2. Provide alternate means for drying clothes

~ Mathiniraiselvan & Karthick Ganesan

Sarvam Monthly Magazine - June Release

Hi all, Greetings from Udhayam Welfare Foundation. I'm pretty much happy to inform that our first release of Udhayam Welfare Foundation's Monthly magazine "Sarvam" is here. Click on the below image to download the magazine in PDF format.


P.S: The download site is blocked in some companies.

~ Muthu Selvan.S

A Day Out to IGIA, Jakkur, Yelehanka

It is my privilege to share my experience that I had on visiting the “Indira Gandhi International Academy” in Jakkur (Yelahanka) along with the Udhayam members MuthuSelvan, Sridhar, Murugan, Shanmugapriyan and Sivaraj.

We started our journey with open mind but on visiting, our minds were filled with undiminished thoughts.

We met the school warden Kokila and we came to know that there were 40 students who are in need of our service at present. She provided us with their requirements that have to be addressed immediately. Sridhar, Shanmugam and myself along with James, a student from the school went to the near-by market to purchase the grocery items. We purchased Rice (75kgs), Dal (10Kgs), Aata (20Kgs), Turmeric Powder (1/2 Kg), Chilli Powder (2Kgs), cumin (2Kgs), Fennel (1Kg), Mustard (1Kg), Powdered Salt (50kgs) and Stone Salt (50Kgs) which costs around Rs.4870. We traveled a little more distance and purchased vegetables, which included Carrot (5Kgs), Potato (10Kgs), Cabbage (10Kgs), Beet-Root (7Kgs), Onion (10Kgs), Tomato (20Kgs), Chilly, Ginger and Curry leaves costing around Rs.700. As it was a rainy day we could not buy more vegetables. Then we proceeded further to buy Buckets, Mugs and Mop sticks which cost Rs.920. At this instance we thank the almighty for giving us a wonderful opportunity to serve the needy.

Boys Hostel Room

School's Mess

In the meantime, remaining Udhayam members MuthuSelvan, Murugan and Sivaraj had an interactive session with the students. The students are sleeping in bunkers, with no/very minimal pillows and blankets. There are not much of buckets/mugs to the children. As all the students are from the Refugee camps in Tamil Nadu and they are used to have hot conditions, they are facing acclimation problems in Bangalore and they require immediate medical attention. We NEED to extend our service in this regard. Any pointers on this are welcome!

Apart from this it was hard to hear that they hardly have clothes. There is no proper facility to even dry their clothes. They use the parapet wall to dry their clothes where there are lots of chances to lose their clothes. Attention has to be paid in this regard too.

Believe it or not, the boy in the green/red T-Shirt, Surendar, studying 8th standard, was the incharge for hostel's mess. He knows how much of rice, dal, etc were spent on a particular day, and I was amazed on seeing how talented these kids were.


They don’t have adequate recreational facilities. It will be good if we further extend our helping hand by contributing few gaming equipments like Swing, See-Saw, Merry-go-around etc.

The location in and around the school is uneven which leads to water clogging during rainy days. This serves as a best place for the mosquitoes to breed. This leads to an unhygienic environment for the students. Hence the terrain has to be leveled.

They are planning to cultivate vegetables like brinjal, tomato and chilli which can reduce their grocery bill. We can contribute by helping them in preparing a good field for their cultivation. This can be taken immediately.





We finally ended the day by playing cricket with the young innocent minds.

Truly speaking, this day would be an unforgettable day that haunted our minds with unforgettable memories.
At this instance, I would like to extend my heartful thanks to all the members who are giving constant support to Udhayam.

~Mathiniraiselvan.K

Our First Activity at AET, Ejipura

It was a cool morning in Bangalore. A team of 9 members met near Ejipura signal in the morning exactly at 8:30. I am very happy to say that all the members were very punctual. Kiddos to them! We reached AET around 9 am. A bunch of children had been to their school, in spite of being a Saturday ;). Being Murugan’s birthday, chocolates were distributed to the kids. There was a sweet birthday song sung by the children. The video can be found in the following link.

Murugan's Birthday Celebration at AET Ejipura

After sometime, Aarthi and Hema started with their teaching activity. They taught the children how to read and write Tamil alphabets (அ முதல் ஃ வரை). A few questions on general knowledge were fired at the children from where we got instant replies.


Udhayam Welfare Foundation sponsored two kids’ education. Mathi and Muthu went to the school, paid the fee of Rs.5100/- (per kid), and got the books and other stationeries in a lightning time. To mention the names of the children; its Manjula and Nandhini. Both of them were admitted to Vth standard in Holy Christ School, nearby.

Kids Manjula and Nandhini

Mathi, Sridhar, Sivaraj, Murugan, Muthu and Shanmugapriyan started to IGIA, Yelahanka leaving behind Hema, Aarthi and myself at the Ambedkar Educational Trust. At AET, we were engaged in playing with the children. Every one of them were in a happy mood in playing their favorite games. Let it be cricket, writing, ‘ராஜா ராணி திருடன் போலீஸ்’, shuttle badminton or building, people showed their full dedication and were shining. All were served with a glass of ‘Fanta’ sponsored by one of our Udhayam member. We just spoke with each kid asking for any troubles or discomfort at their place.

To mention one happy incident, there was a small boy called John. He never came to anyone for the first few hours there. All the members called him, he just wend on his way. As time passed after some 2 hours, he started to play with our member. He was playing continuously the same game of throw and catch the ball for more than half an hour. Though our member got bored of the monotonous activity, he smiled a little and wanted to continue. There we saw his HAPPINESS!!! We don’t know his background, we don’t know the reason why he came here, we don’t know what happened to his parents, we don’t know how he was treated by his relatives. The one and only thing that we knew was, he was happy when our member played with him. We could see his smile alone. When I think about this incident, tears drop! His cute smile will never fade from my mind. This is what we need. I request each one of you to bring happiness in each child’s face.



Do what ever you can; the ultimate goal should be happiness. Many people can give them food, money, shelter, anything. But only a few can give happiness. Let us be one among the few!!!

I plead the members to allot a few minutes everyday to think about these children’s welfare. Come up with suggestions and ideas on how to make other happy. I would request that we avoid seeing any performance by the children as spectators. Just think from their side. Will we dance in front of every visitor who comes to our house? They don’t have an option. But we have an option! Let’s participate with them. Let’s get in close with them. Let us be one among them without any difference. Let us get down to them! Let us see their performance by us getting near them. [I insist on this because, once I heard from a child saying this: எங்களுக்கு வேற வழி இல்ல, ஆடி தான் ஆகணும்].

Let us have this as one of our objective itself. Let us be different.

Members, please do the needful!!!

~Anup Kumar.K

AET Orphanage, Ejipura Update

Yesterday, Udhayam Welfare Foundation members Mathi and Bala spoke with the Holy Christ School's principal and got more details regarding the admission of AET children.

We learn from the principal that Rs.5100 should be donated as Admission Fee, and should be paid as a whole before June 10, so that the school authorities can update their auditing records. However, the monthly fee of Rs.2700 can be paid in installments. The admission fees should be paid only by cheque favoring Holy Christ School.

With our current balance, we've decided to pay admission fee of at least two children, which comes to around Rs.10200. The monthly fee comes around Rs.450 for both the children. Paying monthly fee won't be a burden for us.

Our duty doesn't stop here. We need to have a regular visit to the orphanage and take care of their basic need now and then. I'm planning for a team of minimum two members to visit the place on a weekly basis. The members will be shuffled every week.

I would be happy to hear from volunteers who can help in tutoring/ coaching the children. If you or any of your friends are interested, please do contact us immediately. We have to plan this step at the earliest.

I thank all of you for your support extended in all means. Any suggestions/ feedback are welcome!

~Muthu Selvan.S

AET Orphanage, Ejipura, Koramangala

Ambedkar Educational Trust and Orphanage is located in Ejipura, near Koramangala in Bangalore. On behalf of Udhayam Welfare Foundation, Sridhar, Mathi, Murugan, Bala, Gomathy and myself visited the orphanage on 30th May, 2009. Here is a short update on the current situation in AET orphanage.

There are around 22 inmates. When we went, there were only 7 children. As the founder/warden Kalpana was not there, we got a chance to spend some time with the kids. After a self introduction, the kids served us water.

Mathi, Murugan and Sridhar went to the school (Holy Christ School, Ejipura) where these kids are supposed to join. The school teacher gave them the fee details, and the same can be viewed below.


Later, our team's Public Co-ordinator Mathi, distributed mangoes to the kids.



After the much awaited snacks, the kids presented us with their performances, starting with Harish, who sang a song from 'Villu'. I initially thought Harish might be a fan of Vijay, but alas, the final words of the songs were "Unga Kitta Anbai Ketten (I’m asking affection from you)"!!! Smart kid.


There was a dance performed by Durga and Navya followed by Manjula singing some religious songs. After the performance, we took a group photo with the kids and headed towards our place with happiness on one side and bit sad on the other side.
I'm eagerly waiting for more funds from the members and others, so that atleast we can provide education for some of these charming kids. Please do donate generously.

~Muthu Selvan.S

Udhayam's First Activity

On May 30th, 2009 six Udhayam Welfare Foundation members visited the Indira Gandhi International Academy in Jakkur, near Yelehanka in the outskirts of Bangalore. We reached the place after an exhausting travel through Bangalore traffic on a sunny day. Unfortunately by the time we reached there, the warden of the school, Kokila, had been out and we had to wait there for about 2 hours. After Kokila came, we spoke with her. She explained the current situation of the school. Here goes the summary about the academy.

Indira Gandhi International Academy School was set up in Bangalore in 1990 with funding from the Bright Society, a non-governmental organisation that works for Sri Lankan refugees in Tamilnadu and Karnataka. The NGO had first approached the Tamilnadu Government to set up a school there so that the children could be close to their families, but permission was denied.

The refugees from Sri Lanka were primarily getting settled in Mantapam Camp near Rameshwaram in Ramanathapuram district of Tamilnadu. And the Tamilnadu Government were providing some help to the refugees, but there are even poorer people, who can't even able to afford food for their children. For helping with the education of these children, the Indira Gandhi International Academy was found. Now there are some 230 children studying in this school. When we went there, most of them had been to their relative's house for summer vacation. The warden told, that they are expecting some 300+ students to join the school this academic year.

Udhayam members (From left: Balamurugan, Sridhar, Murugan, Gomathy and Mathi) with the Warden of the school Kokila (In Blue dress)

The situation in the school is worse. They are struggling to feed the children with proper food. And they don't have enough blankets, mats, pillows and even there is scarcity for buckets and mugs in toilets and bathrooms. The children are being fed with food alone. No coffee/tea, or snacks are being provided to them. They have to clean their belongings, as well as they have to look after the school's cleanliness. On May 30th, the warden told, that with current stock of rice, and other food items, they can, feed the children only for the next 4 days.

During the school days ISKCON provides lunch with their "Akshaya Patra Scheme". And without Akshaya Patra scheme, they have to spend 75Kgs of rice per day, Kokila added.

So as part of our Udhayam's first offering, we donated Rs.5000 to the Academy. We asked the warden to spend the money for feeding the children. And we also gave her our mail ID, so that in case of any emergency she can inform us. We promised her that Udhayam Welfare Foundation will try to help them as much as possible.


I'm really proud and felt happy that we are one of the cause to feed some needy children. But, with the current number of members and fund, it is nearly impossible to do these kind of activities on a regular basis in the near future. My humble request: "Please try to find more members. Because after going there, now I know what a piece of bread costs to them."

And I congratulate Udhayam members on their first activity. And I pray to God to let this group live long and provide aid and help to many people.

~Muthu Selvan S