While others crib ‘Is desh ka kya hoga?’ as they lounge in cafes, some youngsters have taken it in their own hands to change things.

Between falling in and out of love, hanging out at cafes and slipping in a few hours with textbooks, more than 3

youngsters in Vadodara and Ahmedabad have also found time for underprivileged children and the elderly.

From teaching basic English and Maths to art and craft, from holding medical camps to playing cricket, these youngsters - who have come together as YUVA Unstoppable - are giving the less fortunate a chance to smile and enjoy life.

“We want to be role-models for poor children. This is one activity where you don’t spend money, only time, which again is well-spent,” says 30-year-old businessman and volunteer Vinay Panjwani.

Necessity was certainly the mother of invention in this group’s case. “When we visited some municipal schools, we found students chewing tobacco and gambling. We realised that something should be done so that these kids enjoy learning,” says Joy Shah, a college student.

Resistance from the slum kids was inevitable, considering their parents themselves abuse and ill-treat the wards. “Initially, some students would throw chalk at us or use abusive language, but now we find that they look forward to learning from us,” he continues.

And over the last few months, these young Samaritans have been able to reap sweet fruit. “Out of 35 kids we teach in one slum, 30 have learnt the English alphabet. What’s more, some of the kids have quit chewing tobacco and have started saving money in a piggy-bank,” narrates Hardik Shah, another volunteer.

Says class XII student Nilofer Desai (whose father is a rickshaw-driver), about learning from these youngsters, “English and Maths are our weak subjects. Also, learning from them after school means we don’t need to take tuition classes.”

That’s not all - even cleanliness drives have been successful. “In one of the slums, we went about cleaning each child’s nails. Now they do it themselves,”Joy chips in.

Rinaz Shahu, a collegian who teaches kids in the Juhapura area, gives another reason for loving the work, “Apart from the satisfaction, you realise that these people are as talented as us; they just need a platform to bring out their abilities.”

These 20-somethings keep their parents informed about their activities by organising a bi-monthly meeting.Says Shushma Contractor, whose son is with Yuva, “Initially, I was apprehensive, but then I realised that he was doing constructive work.”

Even parents of the poor kids are happy. “We never imagined our child would get to interact with youngsters from such good backgrounds,” says screen painter Dhiru Bhanabhai, about his son Milan. Seems like a win-win situation for all!