Proposed Design
for Veerayatan Schools
2014 VEERAYATAN GLOBAL CONFERENCE The 200 Schools Project
Distinguished service award presented by Veerayatan to Dr. Kiran Patel, Mr. Amar Shah, Dr. Ketki Shah. and Dr. Vinod Shah Mr. Amar Shah (President), Dr. Kiran Patel (Chairman), Dr. Ketki Shah (Conference Program Chairman), Mr. Bharat Doshi (Kenya), Acharya Chandanaji, Dr. Vinod Shah (Co-Chairman), Mr. Sunderji Shah (India), Mr. Rohit Mehta (UK), Mr. T R Daga (India), Mr. Pravin Chheda (India), Mr. Bakul Mehta (Muscat) and Dr. Bipin Doshi (India)
Let’s create a better future for our world, by investing in its greatest resource - our children’s education. Together, we can transform today’s plans, into tomorrow’s reality.
‘Knowledge illuminates all’ Tirthankar Mahavir
Adm. Office: 92 Lilac Lane, Paramus, NJ, 07652 •Tel: 201-845-0775 • WWW.Veerayatan-Intl.org
Learn more about our cause at www.veerayatan.org.
More than 300 international delegates from US, Canada, India, UK, Kenya, Dubai, Muscat and Australia gathered at Hilton Hotel, Hasbrouck Heights, NJ to attend a 3 day Veeraytan Global Conference. They had gathered to give concrete shape to Acharya Shri Chandanaji’s vision of transforming for the better, lives of thousands of rural poor children by providing value based education and in the process, improve rural health and environmental conditions that will also face of Jainism in India. The project Tirth Vikas or “The 200 Schools Project” is a major new initiative by Veerayatan – a humanitarian, non profit charitable organization based in Rajgir, Bihar whose motto is: Seva (service), Shiksha (Education) and Sadhna (Inner Development). Veerayatan International based in NJ hosted the 2014 Global conference that was chaired by Dr. Kiran Patel of Tampa, FL. The conference was graced by presence of Acharya Shri Chandanaji, Sadhvi Shri ShilapiJi, Sadhvi Shri Chetanaji, Sadhvi Shri Vibhaji, and Sadhvi Shri Sanghmitraji. Office bearers, volunteers and friends of Veeraytan family were inspired by Acharya Shri Chandanaji’s call to “All those who believe in the Power of Education and in one’s responsibility to contribute to join hands in this worthwhile project and make the world a better place.”
The 200 School project initiated by Veerayatan is a magnanimous project, which will bring together and unite the entire Jain community internationally for one worthy cause – to enrich our Tirth Kshetras through Education. So many pilgrim places in India are towns without any major commercial, industrial or agricultural activities. There may be some government schools, if any, but quality education is not provided. The town’s people get by with handouts from good-hearted pilgrims who go there but are gone the next day. The children do not go to school but practice art of enriching themselves from comings and goings of the pilgrims. This culture of dependency is like a prison holding the town in a perpetual cycle of abject poverty. To break this cycle of poverty, Acharya Shri Chandanaji has proposed education based approach - Her vision is: “JAHAN JINALAYA VAHAN VIDYALAYA” - Make our pilgrimage places seat of quality education and a fountain of solid citizens for mother India. The plan of action is to transform our Tirth Kshetras, center of our faith and devotion in to “Ideal Villages” by providing value-based education to children with attention to health, environment and well being of the entire community. As a first step, Veerayatan has decided to build three teachers training colleges to ensure that trained teachers can provide value based education with health and vocational training to children.