#Rise Stories | Govind

Govind Singh Rathore is no stranger to challenges.

He grew up watching his mother being subjected to domestic violence and feeling a sense of helplessness. He was a survivor too. But when his father died, new struggles came their way.

While living on the streets for years, every struggle became a catalyst for Govind to grow up and become a compassionate and empathetic adult.

“In rural parts of Rajasthan, the drug and alcohol problem is widespread. Most of the time, this fuels abuse at home, where mostly women and children are victims. I wanted to do something to change that,” he says.

He began to fight back for victims of domestic violence, like his mother, in 2007 by starting the Sambhali Trust. Today, his NGO has six branches across the world, having impacted lakhs of women. Through Sambhali, Govind created a safe space for women and children to come and learn new skills.

However, his efforts towards self-empowerment came to a halt after their operations had to be suspended due to the COVID-19 lockdown. Instead of staying in limbo, Govind decided to channel Sambhali’s efforts towards several Covid-19 relief initiatives focused on helping people in rural and remote areas.

He raised more than Rs 25 Lakh and provided services like distributing essentials and ration to over 800 families in rural areas and a food bank to serve free meals to the poor. So far, through these efforts, Govind has helped almost 4,000 people during the pandemic.

Additionally, one of the primary initiatives taken up by him has been to extend mental health services in rural areas, especially to victims of domestic abuse and family members of Covid-19 patients. Using their Nirbhaya Telephone HelpLine (1800 1200 020), they continue to provide tele-counselling services to aid victims of abuse or other medical emergencies.

“Individuals can also use this helpline in Jodhpur and Setrawa to ask for emergency supplies and food.”

Mahindra salutes this challenger spirit of people like Govind who #Rise to the occasion and help people. #PeopleWhoRise #TogetherWeRise