In West Bengal India is the village of Jharkhali where a regional hero lives, meet Ramananda. He is a member of the Prameya family. Oceanbag’s very first Partner for Good, Prameya Foundation fosters environmental sustainability through responsible training, school education, sustainability skills and agri-tourism. Ramananda has been with Prameya since its inception in 2016, when as the head mason, he led the architecture team as they built the organization’s first offices and farms.
Ramananda also designed and built the first Pathshala with his own hands from bamboo poles and soil. Since then, he is present at every community effort of the organization and otherwise in the village. His enthusiasm is unparalleled for every community effort to make Jharkhali a better place. Most of all, the leadership depends upon his imagination and inventive ideas about sustainability.
In truth, Ramananda's selflessness is legend in the community. The lead story told is about the day when one child slipped and fell into a deep pond. Onlookers stood by, wringing their hands and shouting out things that could be done, should be done. Not Ramananda! Instantly he jumped into the water to save the child! While this is the most dramatic of his many rescues, Ramananda shows his heroism on a daily basis.
Presently, Ramananda assists Prameya in its Mangrove plantation initiative
to save the shoreline of Jharkhali from erosion. He, along with his wife,
attend every event, helping the community with their knowledge of the ecosystem. Their 6-year-old daughter is now a regular at the Pathshala school. Quiet heroes like Ramananda maybe a quiet hero, but together with others like him, involvement in the grassroot works of the organization, as well as sustained efforts in the organization keep the Prameya family growing into a healthier and happier lives day by day.