Saarthi, this time 2.0 – Blind Relief Association

Saarthi, the mentorship programme initiated by Youth4Jobs and the Blind Relief Association in partnership with HSBC in 2018 stepped into its second year with new trainees and mentors.

The pilot project with 35 trainees and mentors that started last year, planned for a course of three months with six face to face interactions stood as a success motivating the bringing together of Saarthi 2.0

This year, with majority of HSBC volunteers being new ones, and a couple of them doing round 2 of mentoring gathered in the Gandhi Hall on 7 September for an inaugural ceremony.

Ms. Delphine Antonutti – Global Process Owner for Financial Reporting, along with the other senior leaders of HSBC such as Ms. Arpita Agrawal, Mr. Manikantan, Mr. Sumantra, Ms. Mamta were present. After a brief exchange of short speeches by the officials of HSBC and the Blind Relief Association, the trainees of this year were paired up with the mentors with whom they will be interacting over the next few months.

Then came an announcement by Mr. David Absalom the Dy. Executive Secretary (Operations) about a game that the mentors were not prepared to play.

A treasure hunt, but scouting blindfolded. Eight teams comprising blindfolded mentors and visually impaired trainees were formed. The treasures were spread across different locations in the campus and each carried a clue in Braille for the next spot.

With hands on the shoulders in front of them, along with a volunteer, each team diverged out of the Hall where they were seated. With a lot of hustle and bustle, pushing and pulling, sweat and teamwork, the teams were able to find their treasures and the way back to the Hall.

Later in a discussion session speaking about the experience of being blindfolded and led by a visually impaired person, one of the mentors said, “I understood the real meaning of ‘blind trust’.”

Shivkumari, a Multi Skill trainee at the Association from 2017-18, currently pursuing BSW from Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar College shared her experience of being mentored by one of the HSBC staff last year. The present trainees Rahul Sharma, Bharat Rai and Padma exhibited their skills of singing and playing musical instruments and were soon joined by the mentors as well.

With some dedicated volunteers and eager trainees, all of us are excited to see what this effort will bring about in the lives of both the mentors and mentees.