In a small Anganwadi in Ujjain’s Ingoria development, there was a daily noise of giggling children, but here the children were not only getting nutrition and basic alphabet knowledge, but a new confidence was being woven in their little hands. The catalyst for this change was Divya Nagar—an Anganwadi worker with the passion of a boxer and the love of a mother.
Divya knew that these children from rural areas have immense potential hidden in them, just need the right direction and one opportunity. He coordinated health and discipline in the courtyard of the Anganwadi in such a way that the children were excited and obeyed his every word. Along with engaging the children in sports, she also started regular yoga practice every day. It was also a pleasant experience for the villagers to see young children doing yoga and pranayama in the morning. Divya believes that yoga not only keeps children’s bodies healthy, but also makes their minds calm and focused. Divya often told the children that sports and yoga not only make the body strong, they also remove the fear of defeat from the mind and teach concentration.
Divya, who used to learn the ins and outs of boxing in the ring, was now teaching these children the lessons of discipline, agility and perseverance through yoga and basic fitness. When the small children playing in the mud did yoga with Divya and trained in punching, there was a different sparkle in their eyes.
Villagers who initially considered Anganwadi as a place of ‘daliya aur tikakaran’, were now shocked. He began to see how the passion of an Anganwadi worker could change the overall health and thinking of his children.
Divya Ka Sapna Sirp Aaj Ka Swasthya Samdara Nahi Hai; A big dream floats in his eyes—that day when a child from his village will wave the tricolor on the national stage and one day make India famous by winning a medal for the country at the Olympics.
