Established | 1976 |
---|---|
Location | |
Director | Victor Moses [1] |
Main organ | Perspective – Drashtikon |
Affiliations | Jesuit, Catholic |
Budget | US$1,000,000, mostly food aid |
Staff | 20 [2] |
Website | St. Xavier's Social Service Society |
St. Xavier's Social Service Society (SXSSS), a Jesuit social work originating at St. Xavier's High School Loyola Hall, Ahmedabad, has since 1976 worked to improve the lot of the people in the slums of Ahmedabad city in the areas of education, health, environment, and community organization. Its efforts have also spread to the countryside and more widely. [2]
St. Xavier's Social Service Society (SXSSS) grew out of a 1960s outreach program of students and faculty at St. Xavier's High School Loyola Hall, Ahmedabad. Over the years three areas have come to the fore: education, organizing people's groups, and people's action to improve the quality of their lives.[ citation needed ]
In 1976, Fr. Erviti, founded St. Xavier's Social Service Society (SXSSS) beginning with rehabilitation work in Sankalitnagar. In 1983 it moved on to Mahajan-no-Vando and the Nagori Kabrasthan slum settlements. It also obtained its own premises apart from St. Xavier School. In 1986 Erviti died but other Jesuits carried on the leadership. [3] The SXSSS Center for Orientation, Research, and Documentation (CORD) was founded in 1989.[ citation needed ]
The National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) is a programme of the Indian Ministry of Human Resource Development. In 1990 SXSSS became the first accredited institute in this programme in Gujarat, with English and Hindi as a medium of instruction. [4] SXSSS also responds to emergency situations – cyclones, floods, droughts, earthquakes, [5] and communal riots that have ravaged life in Gujarat. [6] [7]
By 1994 the Society was active in seven major slum pockets, and had increasing manpower and resources. Funds for its food for work program come from several foreign countries. [2] Since SXSSS is not run by Hindi or Muslims, it is seen as speaking to racial issues from a neutral perspective. Also, it has Sikhs, Jains, Hindi, and Muslims on its staff. [2] In 1995, the organization was named the first recipient of the Anubhai Chimanlal Nagarikta Puraskar for its sustained contribution to the city of Ahmedabad.[ citation needed ]
In December 2004, Jamat-e-Islam-e-Hind presented its Human Rights Award to St. Xavier's Social Service Society for unflinching service towards the cause of communal unity and human rights in the year 2002. [8] [9]
In 2008 the Communal Harmony Award was given to an SXSSS children's home monitor (balmitras) Mrs. Niruben Marwadi by the NRI Coalition, for saving Muslim families during the Gujarat Carnage in 2002. [8] [9]
Ahmedabad is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 makes it the fifth-most populous city in India, and the encompassing urban agglomeration population estimated at 6,357,693 is the seventh-most populous in India. Ahmedabad is located near the banks of the Sabarmati River, 25 km (16 mi) from the capital of Gujarat, Gandhinagar, also known as its twin city.
Loyola College is a private Catholic higher education institution run by the Society of Jesus in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It was founded in 1925 by the French Jesuit priest, Francis Bertram, along with other European Jesuits. It is an autonomous Jesuit college affiliated with the University of Madras. Loyola commerce association celebrated its 75th year in 2019. Loyola College has more than 8000 students studying as of 2021.
This page provides a historical timeline of Ahmedabad, the sixth largest city in India.
Asghar Ali Engineer was an Indian reformist writer and social activist. Internationally known for his work on liberation theology in Islam, he led the Progressive Dawoodi Bohra movement. The focus of his work was on communalism and communal and ethnic violence in India and South Asia. He was a votary of peace and non-violence and lectured all over world on communal harmony.
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St. Xavier's High School, Mirzapur, India is an English and Gujarati medium primary and secondary school administered by the Jesuits. It was established in 1935.
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Cedric Prakash,, is a Catholic priest and a member of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) of Gujarat in India. He is currently based in the city of Ahmedabad, Gujarat in Western India. He is well known for his work on human rights, reconciliation, and peace activism, with a focus on advocacy. He is also a prolific writer on subjects related to social justice, peace, communal harmony, environment, contextual spirituality, and the Constitution of India. His articles are regularly published in newspapers, magazines, and journals in India and abroad. He is also a visiting faculty in some colleges, universities, and seminaries in India, Europe, and the USA. Fr. Prakash speaks four languages - English, Gujarati, Hindi and French.
St. Xavier's School is a private Catholic secondary school located in Bokaro Steel City, Jharkhand, India. The Christian minority school was founded by the Jesuits in 1966 primarily to serve the children of those working at Bokaro Steel Plant. It is the oldest private school in Bokaro and the only ICSE school in the main township of Bokaro. It is one of the top schools of the city.
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The 1969 Gujarat riots involved communal violence between Hindus and Muslims during September–October 1969, in Gujarat, India. The violence was Gujarat's first major riot that involved massacre, arson, and looting on a large scale. It was the most deadly Hindu-Muslim violence since the partition of India in 1947, and remained so until the 1989 Bhagalpur violence.
T. K. Oommen is an Indian sociologist, author, teacher, and Professor Emeritus at the Centre for the Study of Social Systems, Jawaharlal Nehru University. He was awarded Padma Bhushan, the third highest Indian civilian award in 2008 for his services to the fields of education and literature by the President of India.
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Coordinates: 23°2′14.75″N72°33′59.29″E / 23.0374306°N 72.5664694°E