BRIEF NOTE ON THE VARIOUS SOCIAL AND ENTREPRENEURAL

ACTIVITIES OF PROF.SHRIKANT BHATE.

Prof.Shrikant Bhate, based in Pune,

66 years of age and retired in 2008 as Professor and Incharge Principal from Bharatiya

Kala Prasarini Sabha’s College of Architecture,Tilak Road,Pune after working in his

almamater for 25 years.

Prof.Shrikant Bhate is basically an Architect by profession and has been engaged in

teaching, research and professional practice all these years and still continues his limited

teaching activities in various colleges of Architecture in and around Pune for the

students of undergraduate and post graduate level. He says it is a great satisfaction to

see his students flower in to capable architects and doing good work for the society.

After his retirement Prof. Shrikant Bhate started his second innings by undertaking and

helping socially relevant projects and many organisations approach him for his guidance.

His natural inclination is working for underpreviledged people and hence all his major

jobs are in rural setting.In the year2010 he visited Baramulla in Kashmir to see and help

an organisation namely Kashmir Humanity Foundation(KHF) which is doing good work

for Kashmiri boys and girls and he decided to work with KHF and donated 10 computers

and sewing machines to this organisation and is happy to state that work is going on

well and many youths are being trained in that Institute and getting good emplyment.

He feels that Kashmir is facing very difficult situation and requires lot of help from

philanthrophists and donors so that the youths may be prevented from doing terrorist

activities and getting good skill based education will help them lead life of dignity and

honour. The ladies students require special help due to very complicated social issues

and he says that if one girl gets educated the next generation will definitely be much

better educated and hence we must focus on issues related to girls, women etc.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY CENTER NEAR BARAMULLA, KASHMIR.

Students learning the skills in Fashion Designing Training Center near Baramulla,

Kashmir.

He is also involved in helping number of voluntary organisations developing their

educational campuses. In the year 2008 he helped establish a school campus at village

Yamgarwadi, near Sholapur for Bhatke Vimukta Parishad and at present about 500

students are studying in this campus with separate girls hostel, staff quarters, virtual

classroom facility etc.He is happy to note that students from rural areas are very

talented but due to paucity of funds and facilities they do not get proper guidance. He

showed a letter written to him by students and teachers after they started working in

the new building and great positive impact it had on them.

GIRLS HOSTEL at village Yamgarwadi for Bhatke Vimukta Parishad.

Educational campus at village Yamgarwadi near Sholapur for Bhatke Vimukta Parishad.

He has also extended his help in constructiong houses for weaker section of society at

village Ansarwad near Latur, Marathwada. Out of 80 houses 12 are completed and

families have moved and occupied new houses. Each house comprises of a verandaha,

living cum bed room, kitchen, bath and w.c and open court to keep their animals or

undertaking any business activity and having total built up area of 350 sq.ft and costing

rs. One lac and twenty thousand per house. The cost is shared by the beneficieries to

the extent of 25 % and a businessman from Mumbai shared 75% of cost. The people

staying there have started number of small enterprieses leading to a life of dignity and

happiness and showing overall progress in their life. It is expected that the entire project

will be completed in another couple of years and such projects will be initiated at

number of other places where nomadic tribe people are staying. This will give them

stable life and opportunity for their children to have proper education.

HOUSING FOR GOPAL SAMAJ PEOPLE AT VILLAGE ANSARWAD NEAR LATUR.

Govt officials vistied this housing complex and expressed their appreciation and

compared with Indira Awas Yojana, these houses had much more participation from

stake holders and their future needs have been properly addressed in overall planning

of the society and also individual houses.

VILLAGE INDUSTRY CENTER AND GUEST HOUSE AT VILLAGE ANSARWAD.

In the industry shed women weave cotton mattresses on handloom and earn around rs

100 to rs.150 per day thus it has provided them an opportunity to be financially

independent.

Prof.Bhate established an NGO in the year 1990 under the name of PARISAR NIYOJAN

SAMITI and was running number of skill based courses in building trade for number of

years. At present he is mainly concentrating on developing educational resources for

students of Architecture and regularly uploads it on his Facebook page which is proving

to be very helpful to both students and professionals in Architecture.

He has also initiated a Family Empowerment Project in village Ansarwad with the help

of local Bank. The members of Self Help Group will be given a loan of rs. 50,000 per

member and they will be provided with basic needs of daily life such as,

1. Water Filter.

2. Clean Toilet.

3. Bio Gas plant which will provide gas for cooking.

4. Solar cooker for cooking with the help of solar heat.

5. Solar domestic lighting system when grid electricity is off.

6. Nutritious food made from Moringa leaves.(Drum stick, Shewaga Tree)

So this will take care of the basic needs of every family. The toilet will help in

producing good wormi compost, and nitrogen rich urine to be given to farm

which will help in increasing the agricultural production and with cooking gas and

electricity readily available, each family will be immensly benefitted and in

monetry terms may gain to the extent of rs. 2000 to rs 3000 per month and may

have to pay about 1000 rs to the bank towards repayment of the loan. Prof Bhate

and his team of like minded people are also helping the women to have gainful

employment so that they lead a life of dignity and achieve overall progress.

This is an exercise in meeting the basic needs of a rural family and empowering

them with livelhood skills to earn their living.

Women Empowerment Project at Village Ansarwad near Latur.

Presently he is also involved in Design and Construction of Educatioal Campus of

Gurukulam near Beed, and also school campus for students of cerebral palsy at

Latur, Marathwada.

EDUCATIONAL CAMPUS FOR GURUKULAM NEAR BEED, MARATHWADA.

Prof. Bhate believs that it is time to give back to the society and keeps himself

busy working with various organisations in doing his best ,with acts of kindness

such as giving education to poor child or providing a shelter to the needy or

helping somebody getting skills to lead a happy life.This is a journey of

fulfillment,great joy and satisfaction.He says that he believs in the divine power

but he is against any rituals and hence his best prayer is his work for the society

where he can see the effect of his prayer in the eyes of all those who get new

energy to lead a life of dignity and happiness.

With a very disciplined life pattern of regular exercise, good inspirational reading,

listening to music, balanced diet and positive thinking keeps Prof.Shrikant Bhate

constantly motivated to keep working and spend his life with a sense of purpose

and fulfillment.

He gives credit to his wife Shraddha and all his family members and like minded

friends of his team for helping him in all these endeavours. He signed off by

saying a famous quote of great American scientist George Washington Carver

who says,

“ Start where yoy are, with what you have, do something out of it and never be

satisfied”

Prof Shrikant Bhate can be contacted on mobile no 9890440648 or by e mail at

bhate48@gmail.com