Social worker Chinthoju Bhasker earns recognition for community service

Karimnagar: For Chinthoju Bhasker, social service had not begun with an organisation but with a deeply personal loss that shaped his life’s direction. Born on March 25, 1970, in Mustabad, he had lost his mother to tuberculosis at a young age, an experience that left a lasting impression on him due to the lack of timely medical awareness and access.

These early hardships later drove Bhasker towards community service. After years of informal efforts, he formally established the Manair Social Organisation in 2008 to expand and structure his work. A BA graduate from Open University in 2018, he steadily extended his initiatives across Karimnagar, Sircilla and surrounding regions, including Veernapalli, Akkapalli, Tangallapalli, Dharmaram, Marthanpet and Bonala.

One of his earliest interventions had focused on legal awareness. Over a span of 14 years, nearly 350 legal literacy camps had been conducted in rural and tribal areas, reaching around 70,000 people. These sessions, often organised at the request of village sarpanches, had covered land rights, labour laws, women and child protection, welfare schemes and complaint mechanisms in practical and accessible terms. As a Member of Lok Adalat in Sircilla, Bhasker had continued to assist underprivileged families with free legal guidance.

In the field of healthcare, his organisation had conducted more than 350 free medical camps, benefiting between 150 and 800 individuals per camp depending on village size. Medical professionals from various specialities, including general medicine, gynaecology, ophthalmology, cardiology and neurology, had participated. Tuberculosis cases had been referred to government hospitals for diagnosis, and around 20 confirmed patients had later received nutritional support sponsored by Bhasker.

He had also sponsored approximately 305 free eye surgeries for elderly citizens and extended financial assistance to cancer patients. Around 50 blood donation camps had been organised, collecting nearly 2,500 units of blood with the support of students and youth groups.

Between 2000 and 2006, Bhasker had supported 30 farmers annually for training at Texmo Industries in Coimbatore, enabling about 180 farmers to gain knowledge in mechanised agriculture. In addition, nearly 50 rural mechanics each year had been sponsored for hands-on technical training, benefiting around 1,200 individuals. All related expenses, including travel and accommodation, had been borne personally by him.

Environmental initiatives had also been a key focus through the Arrow Green Project. Over nearly a decade, about 5,000 saplings had been distributed annually among school students. During Ganesh Chaturthi, he had funded the production of 5,000 eco-friendly idols to promote sustainable celebrations.

Bhasker’s community service had extended into religious activities as well. During Maha Shivaratri, nearly 10,000 buttermilk packets and 30,000 water pouches had been distributed to devotees at the Sri Rajarajeshwara Swamy Temple. He had also supported renovation work and arranged daily prayers and prasadam distribution at the Sri Bheemeshwara Swamy Temple, besides earlier serving as the ex-president of Sri Veera Brahmendra Swamy Temple in Sircilla.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, he had distributed masks and sanitisers free of cost and personally arranged daily meals for around 30 individuals, including police personnel and court visitors, for a month near the local court complex.

Over the years, Bhasker had held several civic roles, including president of Manair Social Organisation, President of NGOs of Sircilla Division, Secretary of Sircilla Pollution Control Organisation, Secretary of Sircilla Consumer Forum, Secretary of Sircilla Welfare Society and Member of the Family Counselling Centre under Sircilla Police. As Public Relations Officer of the Indian Medical Association in Sircilla for over 25 years, he had actively supported public health campaigns, CME programmes and media interactions.

He had also contributed to social causes such as preventing female foeticide through the PCPMT Task Force and campaigning against child labour under Balaka Rakshak initiatives. Educational support, including shoes, belts and dictionaries, had been provided to around 150 underprivileged students to ensure continuity in their education.

His contributions had been recognised with several honours, including Padmabandhu, Sevabandhu, Grameena Kala Jyothi, Best Leadership Award and the Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan National Award.

Despite financial constraints and administrative challenges in the early stages, Bhasker had continued to expand his work, evolving a grassroots model rooted in community needs and sustained engagement across multiple mandals. Personal loss shapes public service journey Grassroots initiatives reach thousands across rural Telangana Recognition grows for decades of social and humanitarian work.