IAS Officers' Wives' Association Website, Maharashtra, About Us

IAS Officers' Wives' Association, Maharashtra

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President’s Note

History

Past Presidents

Down memory lane

Footprints in the sands of time

We delve into the past to give you a glimpse of the history of this Association. We are privileged to get a first hand account of the times and manners of days gone by.

The first step of the association towards a social cause.

The movie ‘Carnival of thieves’ was screened at new Empire Cinema in a late night show as a fundraiser for the victims of the Koyna Earthquake 1968.

Committee initiation, Draft Costitution & Letters

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Mrs. Rumma Nair, erstwhile Jt Secy, recalls that

“The Association met once a month at teatime in the evenings. The venue was usually the Sachivalya Gymkhana. Any other venue was not popular as this was most convenient and centrally located, for the majority of members.

Demos, talks and value addition outings were usually conducted. The atmosphere was informal and friendly. They were all on a first name calling basis. Members were informed about events and meetings on telephone and all shared this chore, in equal measure. In 1974, there is an interesting insight into the life and times of those days."

Mrs. Ajitha Nayak, an active member of the association reminisces on the early days of the Association. When she speaks of the activities of the Association of those days one can sense the camaraderie and sense of participation. We thank her for sharing her account in the following passage.

“The Association, at that time, was primarily, a fun organization to bring together the Civil Service Wives a few times in the year, by way of Haldi kumkums, Diwali & Christmas parties, cookery demonstrations and occasional talks on health matters. The membership comprised wives of serving and retired ICS officers and IAS officers.

The wives of retired ICS Officers included Mrs. Susheelabai Joshi, Mrs. Freiny Paymaster, Mrs. Bambhawale and Mrs. A. S. Naik, Among the IAS Officers wives, Mrs. Moghe, Mrs. Kasbekar, Mrs. Laxmi Seshadri, Mrs. Lopa Pradhan (a very active President during her tenure), Mrs. Feroza Kanga, Mrs.Vatsala Jambunathan, Mrs. Minakshi Jairam, Mrs. Satya Subramanyam, Mrs Sneha Prem Kumar, among others were the pillars of the Association.

In 1975, I was elected to be the Association’s Secretary and hence, my close involvement with its activities. The following year, Mrs. Rajani Paranjpe (wife of Mr. K.G. Paranjpe, IAS, who later became Chief Secretary in 1986), was teaching in Nirmala Niketan School of Social Work, came up with a suggestion for the Association.

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She offered to set up a Balwadi in the Suniti / Suruchi complex for the young children of the domestic help, who also resided in the buildings. She thus, set it up and ran it with the help of her students as part of their fieldwork. The Managing Committee was happy with this new direction towards social work.

Mrs. Susheelabai Joshi came forward wih a yearly donation of Rs. 2,000/- given by the Ganesh - Saraswati Trust that she had set up. She continued to support the Balwadi for several years.

After the Association took over completely it needed funds, not only for the nutrition programme, but also staff salaries. This was met partly by Mrs. Joshi’s donation and also from other donors whose help was enlisted.

Mrs. Paranjpe then suggested that the Association should request the PWD to allow the Balwadi to operate on the terrace of Suniti under the large water tank. With the combined efforts of Mrs. Moghe and Mrs.Paranjape, this permission was obtained and classes were conducted on the terrace.

Mrs. Sathya Subramaniam initiated a mid day lunch scheme with food being sent daily from her own kitchen. She continued this practice even during her tenure as President of the Association. Now, the Association has taken over.

From modest beginnings the school has grown in strength and stature and is an asset to the working class of that neighborhood. It is now a premier Nursery of the vicinity."

After Latur Earthquake in 1993, the IASOWA felt the need to extend philanthropic activities beyond the Balwadi.

The “WeCare” subcommittee was formed in 2004 for all social as well as environmental causes:
A film show “Ab Tak Chhappan” was organized and a souvenir was published, as a fundraiser.

It helped in the upgrading of the Susheel Balwadi. Our aim has always been to improve the Balwadi in respect of teaching methods, nutrition, mid-day meals, uniforms and stationery. With the introduction of English teaching since 2003, many children of Susheel Balwadi are getting admissions in reputed Marathi and English medium schools. Since 2007, we have introduced scholarships for meritorious students

2.	Building Effective Teaching Environment (BETA) programme conducted by SNDT University successfully completed to improve the standard of education in Worli Municipal School

3.	We started vocational training Centre at Worli Municipal School in 2005 in collaboration with Mahila Arthik Vikas Mandal (MAVIM) and S.N.D.T. University for the economically backward women. I am proud to say that many of these ladies have become successfully self-sufficient in addition to forming self-help groups with MAVIM

4.	“Clean Neighborhood” Initiative – the first environmental project was a vermicomposting project in a Class IV colony (of 6000 residents), was inaugurated at Bandra by star, Riteish Deshmukh; this is replicated in many other government buildings and is progressing well – contributing to a cleaner, healthier and garbage-free environment

5.	Through this social arm, we were also able to assist other charitable centres such as: Victoria Blind School, Asara – a shelter for street children and Asha Sadan, a home for orphans

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