Saviour of the Destitute

"Perseverance, kindness, inquisitiveness and determination have been the driving forces for P. Naveenkumar, the founder of Atchayam Trust, to pursue his dream of eliminating begging and providing shelter to the homeless. A mechanical engineer by education and a social activist by profession, for the last 10 years, Naveen has been rehabilitating the impoverished, in the state of Tamil Nadu. For him, beggars are human beings too, and they have the right to live just as we do. Naveen, through Atchayam Trust, is determined to uplift their lives, no matter what it takes "

Hailing from an economically disadvantaged background, Naveen learned to sail through the obstacles with ease—be it taking care of his physically challenged father, looking after his mother suffering from rheumatoid arthritis; and amidst all this, completing his education. He wanted to become an engineer, so he was working hard to secure the life he wished for himself. Little did he know, the universe was planning to take him on a completely different path—to become the saviour of the destitute and needy. “I was just 19, when a conversation with a beggar changed my perspective on society,” says Naveen.

The life-changing moment

It was around 2013 when Naveen, during his graduation days chose to help humanity. “While taking a bus from Salem bus stand, a person came to me, asking for money. Pitying him, I gave him ten rupees. The next day, I saw him again, begging. Curious, I decided to follow him, and to my surprise, I found that he used that money to buy liquor.” This incident shook Naveen and he learnt why impoverished people resort to begging and how society perceives them. At that time, his love for reading, especially about Swami Vivekananda and former President of India, late Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam—gave him the direction of serving the needy.

Facing the harsh truth

Upon his epiphany on the struggles of the homeless, Naveen decided to spend three days on the streets of Salem bus stand without food and water. “The experience was striking; I was starving, felt discomfort, and learnt the harsh realities of life on the streets,” recalls Naveen.

Discovering the core issues, he approached his friends, college professors and relatives, seeking support to rehabilitate beggars. But, he was told that beggars are impossible to rehabilitate. Some believed that begging was an organised racket and also warned him about the danger posed while working with the beggars. However, it did not discourage his intent. He completed his graduation and was also awarded the Best Outgoing Student in 2014. “This recognition gave me the confidence to pursue my vision further,” says Naveen.

Kickstarting the journey

Soon after completing his degree, Naveen stepped in the journey of social service. He started it with the help of Rajsekhar and Kaliappan.

Once, while interacting with Rajsekhar, who used to beg at Salem bus stand, Naveen came to know that Rajsekhar had lost his family in an accident, and he had no identification documents, due to which he could not find any job. His condition worsened, and this is how he was forced to beg. “Looking at his need for employment, I decided to provide him shelter and look for a job. Initially, it was challenging to find employment with no identity documents. However, I didn’t give up and kept on persuing—eventually I was able to secure a job for him,” Naveen says.

Following this, Naveen met Kaliappan, who was found begging near the Shiva Temple in Erode district. His condition was similar—lost and abandoned, begging for survival. Therein he realised that there are many such people who become homeless due to circumstances beyond their control. This thought led him to establish Atchayam Trust. “The word Atchayam in Tamil signifies something that never diminishes, just as my commitment to this work,” affirms Naveen.

Thus Atchayam Trust was established, and Naveen with his team started rescuing and rehabilitating homeless individuals including the elderly, beggars, persons with disabilities, destitutes and mentally ill people. He would analyse their state of mind by hearing their stories of how they landed in such situations. “We kept on conducting surveys in the region to identify the needy and homeless—some had been abandoned by their families, some were mentally ill, while others were pushed by society to beg and live on the streets. Thus, identifying their circumstances, we took actions and provided solutions accordingly—whether it’s admitting them to the hospital, reuniting with families or providing job-orientated skills at our rehabilitation centres,” he informs. Before moving the beggars to the shelter, the team provides basic care, including a haircut and a bath, right on the roadside.

Through Atchayam Trust, the team rehabilitates homeless by providing them shelter, medical care and job-orientated skills. In a decade, Naveen and his team of over 400 volunteers have rescued over 1400 such underprivileged people and counselled more than 11400 beggars. Once the beggars start living a normal life, the real challenge comes of providing them employment. To get this done, the team conducts a special skill identification process according to the mindset of the individual. “Our rehabilitation centre has 12 different skill development programmes, which include paper plate manufacturing, making incense stick, plant nursery, cooking assistance, security, electrical work, gardening, hotel service, and several other vocational training programmes. Through the training process, some people secure employment, while others may require additional time and care,” informs Naveen. The trust under the National Urban Livelihood Mission(NULM), operates five Shelters for Urban Homeless (SUH) in the Erode district of Tamil Nadu, which also serves as a central hub for all their activities. Further, Atchayam Trust's operational activities have expanded to four more districts of Tamil Nadu—Namakkal, Tiruppur, Karur and Salem.

"Each day brings a new challenge for us, but seeing these people smile makes it all worthwhile. Through this trust, I feel like I have restored hope for the homeless people"

— P. Naveenkumar

Financial support and a new hope

To provide immediate and appropriate facilities to rehabilitated beggars, Naveen chose to become assistant professor in a college, refusing all the job offers he received after graduation-just to dedicate his time to the cause and raise funds for his trust. However, when the organisation gradually started expanding in nearby areas of Erode district, he went short of money and asked people for financial support. Many people mocked him, while some called him an “educated beggar” who was seeking a donation to rehabilitate beggars. “With endless challenges of getting donations, I lost no hope. I turned to crowdfunding, and I am delighted that local authorities, businessmen and localites have supported us in this cause,” says Naveen.

Overcoming the financial obstacles, today, Naveen is heading towards constructing a new shelter home with a capacity to house 200 individuals. This Pan-India model, as Naveen says, will provide shelter to the homeless, and he is seeking support from the Central and State overnments for it. After a successful establishment of this model, the team will develop a replicable model that can be implemented nationwide. “To start and scale up this model of ‘shelter for the homeless’, I have approached the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment for support—we are still awaiting their response,” he says. This project is estimated to cost around Rs. 10 crores, and through crowdfunding and CSR initiatives, they have already raised 40% of the required funds. “Each day brings a new challenge for us, but seeing these people smile makes it all worthwhile. Through this trust, I feel like I have restored hope for the homeless people,” grins Naveen.

Challenges and rewards

One of the key things that Naveen took care of was ensuring that the rehabilitated people do not return to begging. So, to prevent this, his team follows up with rehabilitated people to ensure that they remain in stable conditions. “If someone returns to the streets, we immediately visit them, counsel them, and if necessary, we take them back into the shelter home so they can become stable,” says Naveen.

After years of hard work, the government and various organisations, recognised his efforts. Naveen has received around 78 awards, including the prestigious National Youth Award from the Government of India (2018) and the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister's State Youth Award (2019), for transforming thousands of lives.

The increasing number of beggars and homeless people, as Naveen points out, is a serious concern, which requires immediate attention and collective action from the government and liable authorities. “Till that time, we will work religiously to address this problem as a priority. Our journey has just begun. Though the road ahead is long, with mutual efforts, we can create a society where not even a single person is left to suffer on the streets,” says Naveen with a smile.