Volunteering is at the very core of being a human. No one has made it through life without someone else’s help. – Heather French Henry

Our voluntary actions are service to others. By things we get, we make a living but by things we offer, we make a life. It can also be considered the rent paid by us for the room we have got on earth. Volunteering is a way of life engaging people to deal with the development challenges that keep raising their head worldwide and humanitarian causes that bother us.

Despite the economic growth in our country, the Indian population is deprived of several basic necessities of life. For example, 70 percent of people have limited access to clean drinking water and housing. Some statistics are heart- rendering; there are six doctors available for every 10,000 people and India suffers from grave public health challenges every day apart from social issues related to education, women empowerment and skill development.

Volunteering is No Issue, Making a Difference Is
To volunteer means to come from one’s own will and when such actions are for the upliftment of the downtrodden and actions by people who invest time in sharing their skills and knowledge with others, it has a potential of making a difference. It just requires free will, commitment as well as a wish to get involved and express solidarity towards peace and development. Though, only a willingness to help may not be enough to fulfil the purpose, as the biggest problem occurs in figuring out how to go about it. Consider the aspects given as under-

• Choose an organisation considering your abilities to benefit people in need.
• Decide upon the amount of time you are going to devote realistically to a given project.
• Ensure that the non-profit organisation you are going to associate with is of repute and maintains transparency in its discharge of duties and spending its money. If possible, invite feedback from past volunteers.
However, before considering the above mentioned aspects, you must be aware of the areas where you can be of help.

Share Skill Based Knowledge
Going by the increasing birth rate, an uphill task faced by India today is of educating the huge population. If you share a passion for teaching, you may start off with a small task of gathering children in your community to teach them for free at any time. You can teach them in specialized subjects or in computers or simply offer them non-formal education. Also, you can offer skill training to the illiterate and untrained youth for securing a livelihood.

A better idea can be to become a part of some structured programme under a non-profit organisation to impart skill based knowledge to the underprivileged. Commit to the service of people for at least four weeks to achieve continuity so that you may get tangible outcomes. As soon as you are inducted as a volunteer in a non-governmental organisation, you are assigned with services to take up matching your skills.

Act of Philanthropy
Also, with such huge demography to cover and look after, health concerns are surely to arise and can go unnoticed. As a general citizen, you can lend a helping hand by volunteering at a camp for blood donation nearby or health check-up facility set up in your area. Such acts of philanthropy go a long way in creating an impact.

We can see that education, vocational training and health facilities can be major areas of focus when it comes to making a difference. This is because they are the pressing issues that have plagued our nation to the core. So, at this time we all need to alter the stagnant pool individually for creating a ripple effect.

In India, you can explore and invest your time and efforts by pursuing various activities in association with various NGOs or even as a lone crusader to usher change in the society.

As a volunteer in India, you can contribute as:
• An educationalist
• A community coordinator
• A healthcare services consultant
• An awareness activist
• A child specialist
• A self-employment coordinator
• A carer for disabled & orphaned children
• An environmentalist

Hear the call of your heart, listen to what your mind says and take up the role you want to, unlike others who simply know how to take from the society, but be someone who gives to the society and brings about a change!