Focus On Health, Education, Livelihoods
Rajiv Mehta, Trustee of Ratna Nidhi Charitable Trust, is a well-known and respected Rotarian who is contributing to the welfare of children across the globe.
He hopes to reach out to corporates and NGOs within and outside India, with whom he can work to expand the benefit to millions. Last year, the foundation established various libraries in Ghana in Africa. A total of 400 cartons of books, 14 tonnes in weight, over 19,000 books, 20 feet containers of books have been shipped to Ghana. The foundation is expanding to other countries in Africa and Southeast Asia.
While talking about the key areas, Mehta says, "Our focus is on health, education, livelihoods and disaster relief. Without the box thinking, Ratna Nidhi has been able to work with project partners like World Bank, Google.org, Essilor Group of France and IIT Mumbai. For maximum impact, we will bring in national and international partners to work innovatively to make a difference. Ratna Nidhi has been able to establish over 4,000 libraries in India and donate books to needy schools and colleges. Through this process, the foundation wants to become the largest library creator in India, ensuring every person has at least one book to read.”
"We believe in using risk management techniques to create solutions for social projects. The focus is on getting the desired ROI in every social project," he adds.
The Covid-19 pandemic has affected the entire world and Ratna Nidhi Charitable Trust is no exception. Due to the strict lockdown, a number of projects had to be stalled. Now with the opening up of markets work on the core projects has picked up again.
Mehta shares that they are currently in the process of setting up Ratna Nidhi mini-libraries in schools, colleges and hospitals. The trust is planning to establish 1,000 libraries in the near future.
“There are, however, several challenges that the foundation will have to overcome. Ratna Nidhi is still an unknown name to many. We would want Ratna Nidhi to be known as a brand for its exemplary work in education, health and disaster relief. We hope to reach different stakeholders through various communication channels to make our work known and inspire people to work with us in various capacities," he says.
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