Careing for the Human Beings: Xavier Centre for Migrant workers.

Former General of the Society of Jesus, Fr. Kolvenbach had said “One of the most important criteria given by our constitution is that that we should go wherever the most marginalized live, be with those whom nobody cares for and nobody is interested in”. These inspirational words guided Fr. Jolly to start Xavier Center for Migrant Workers.
 
Xavier Centre for Migrant Workers educates the children of migrant workers who are school drop outs and those who may not be able to pursue studies on their own. They are imparted non formal, flexible and easily adaptable system of education. The curriculum of education programme has been blended with personality development oriented programme such as sports, public speaking, music, dance, arts, martial arts and life skills for holistic development of the children. At present 207 children are registered with the centre from kindergarten to Class 10. The age group is between 5 to 16 at a ratio of boys 55%, and girls 45%. About 90 to 95% of the students regularly attend the classes.
 
Care of mother Earth: Gujarat province had 39 acres undeveloped land. The land had a wild growth of thorny bushy shrub. Barbed wire with cement poles were erected over the boundary of five kilometres. Lakes, water channels, pipe lines were built and laid down for water conservation and irrigation. More than 50,000 trees are growing now; some are well known medicinal plants and fruit trees. It resulted into regenerating, preserving and improving the ecology and environment of the area.Educating the children of migrant workers in the heart of mother earth, has an inseparable bond.
 
Migrant workers originally in their rural habitat, their entire life cycle from womb to  the tomb, their belief system, their religion, their worship, food, medicine etc. depended upon the nature; but in course of time, by the onslaught of nature and its destruction,  they are thrown out from the natural jungle to the concrete jungle. 
 
Fr. Jolly’s mission has been - Caring for the human beings, especially for the marginalized, the migrants, the exploited and the poor and nurturing the mother earth. Caring for the human beings and mother earth cannot be separated; both are two sides of one coin, just as two parts of hydrogen and one part of oxygen make water. Today the migrant workers interact with the mission and send their children to the Centre with a ray of hope, interest, ease, comfort and optimism that a day will come that their children too will hold responsible position in the society.
 
Fr. Jolly Nadukudiyil, S.J., C/o. Xavier Center for Migrant Workers, Vadodara, Gujarat, India-390019
Mobile No. +91 98252 43831, Email id - jollynadukudiyil@yahoo.co.in