Nanded begins Mission Aapulki to help ‘sons of the soil’ give back to their district, community

Started on August 15, Mission Aapulki, which is the flagship programme of Nanded District Collector Dr Vipin Itankar, aims to channelise the urge of the ‘sons of the soil’ to give back to the place where they spent their childhood.

The idea of the mission, Itankar said, came from the conversations the administration had with many people.

“They used to come to our office and express their desire to do something for their villages. But in many cases, they didn’t know what would be useful,” he said.

Located in the Marathwada region of Maharashtra, Nanded has seen many people who went on to be successful after travelling to other parts of the state or abroad.

To help them fulfil their desire to make contributions towards the development of their district, the district collectorate chalked out a plan.

The idea was simple — gaps in any area would be identified and remedial steps taken to solve the problems.

“We decided that we will not accept any donation in cash, it has to be in kind. So, for example, if someone wants to make a contribution in the health sector, we identify the primary health centre where they can help in procuring a television or important instruments that are required. For education, they can help in getting e-learning technology,” said Itankar.

The objective of Mission Apulki is to bridge the gap left behind in areas despite development measures undertaken with government grants.

The mission, Itankar said, would be streamlined with committees at the level of districts, villages and talukas.

At the village level, the gram sevak and talathi would be in charge, and they would be part of an extensive outreach campaign.

“As they are local officials, they would know the people who can be approached. WhatsApp groups would be formed to coordinate with
them and take the project forward,” he said.

Similar committees would be formed at the tehshil and district levels, he added.