These youngsters help police keep a check on crime

The youth, if they choose to, can make a sea of a difference in running the affairs of a city, and with the help of a not-for-profit organisation, they are doing exactly that.

Vidyuth, which was formed by a young marketing professional, works to curb unlawful activities in the society with the help of youth and also attempts to bring about a positive change in the society. It not only works in educational institutions, but its volunteers are also assisting the Mumbai police to detect crime in the city.

VidYuth was formed in November 2008 by a Mumbaikar, Anshuman Sinha. “The aim of the organisation is to guide the youth in bringing about the change they want to see in the society,” said Sinha, adding, “We provide them with the platform for bringing about that change.”

Most youth today have a give-a-damn attitude, which the young volunteers at VidYuth despise and try to create awareness about. Recently, the group sought permission from the Mumbai police to do patrolling for them. “We want to provide the police with the manpower they need. We patrol several areas chosen by us. If we see any criminal activity, we bring it to the notice of the police. We monitor areas to detect anti-social elements such as drug addicts. We inform the police about their whereabouts. Our group has also helped in clearing hawker-encroached areas. We help the police get rid of the encroachments and also help relocate the hawkers,” said Sinha.

To participate in such crime-related activities, VidYuth volunteers get professional martial arts training from an agency. “It is a necessary for these kind of activities. Also, if we are offering our volunteers as manpower to the police, it is better to have some self-defence skills,” Sinha said.

Most VidYuth volunteers are college students and most continue with the organisation even after their formal education is over. Sinha also lectures in several south Mumbai colleges on social awareness and socio-economic issues.

Sometimes, the forum is left open for discussions for collegians. “Topics that the collegians feel strongly about are discussed in the open forum. Based on the discussions, an action plan is chalked out. I point the enthusiastic youngsters to several organisations working on the issues that they come up with,” Sinha said.

The organisation also works in colleges to create awareness on the ill-effects of ragging. It keeps a close eye on the ragging cases and members of VidYuth have written a letter to MP Milind Deora to highlight the plight of a father of a ragging victim who recently committed suicide. VidYuth now plans to ensure ragging-free college campuses when the academic year begins.

You can find VidYuth on Facebook, or you can log on to www.vidyuth.org.