A few words
About Us
Jaishankar Memorial Centre was established in 1990 as a non-profit society. We focus on health, education, environment, and livelihood initiatives, with special emphasis on children, and youth. Through education, training, study, and research, we aim to disseminate knowledge and empower students and through them, the communities they belong to. Our approach is rooted in gender sensitivity, fostering participatory engagement in community-oriented activities. Our mission extends to enhance and enable students to realize their potential, so that they are able to access opportunities for a better quality of life.
Registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 (Registration no. S-21403-Delhi).
Registered under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act
Contributions to JMC are exempted under Sec. 80G of the Income Tax Act.
Honouring Jai's Legacy
JMC was born to keep alive the spirit and efforts of a young man named Jaishankar, or Jai for short, who met with an untimely and tragic death in a car accident in the USA at the age of 25. Jai had been a student of the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur and Yale University, New Haven, USA.
About Jaishankar (1954-1978)
Jai is remembered for his outstanding ability to talk to people, patiently and persuasively, about things that he held very dear and to convince them of the rightness of his beliefs and convictions. Above all was his abiding love for India and the Indian people whose well-being was closest to his heart and for which he was determined to come back to India when his life was cruelly cut short.
“Man’s dearest possession is life. It is given to him but once and he must live it so as to feel no torturing regrets for wasted years, never know the burning shame of a mean and petty past; so live that, dying he might say, all my life, all my strength were given to the finest cause in all the world – the fight for the liberation of mankind. And must make use of every moment of life, lest some sudden illness or tragic accident cut it short”.
The Birth of JMC and its Mission for Social Change
THE BEGINNING
1990
JMC was conceived and founded.
1991
Inaugural lecture on solidarity of the Indian people delivered by V.R. Krishna Iyer, retired judge of the Supreme Court.
1992
Seminar on solidarity of the Indian people – the case of Indian federalism.
1994
Allotment of institutional area for the Centre’s building.
1994-95
Participation in Book Week celebrations of Bluebells School, New Delhi.
1995
Completed ILO-sponsored study of social assurance schemes for the aged and widows, and for maternity benefits for women.
1996
Completed UNDP-funded study of strategies and financing for human development (working of welfare funds in the mining sector).
1992-96
Study of urban informal sector in Govindpuri, New Delhi, funded by Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES).
1997
Setting up of library and documentation centre.
1997
Organization of round table discussion on social security – a right or privilege?
1997-2000
Building construction commenced and completed.
AFTER 2000
2000
Moved into own building in Sarita Vihar Institutional Area in New Delhi.
2002
Began the library.
2002
Began the remedial education programme.
2002
Began collaboration with Association of Writers and Illustrators for Children (AWIC) for library programme enrichment and summer camp activities.
2001-03
Held science lectures for school children.
2002-03
Hosted declamation contests on social issues for Delhi school children.
2006-16
Implemented mandate as Field Gender Resource Centre for Delhi Government’s Women’s Empowerment Programme.
2011-13
Internship programme in collaboration with the Josef Korbel School of International Studies, University of Denver, Denver, USA.
2014-2023
Focus on remedial education and library – the two mainstays of JMC activities. Achieved optimum enrolment and high success in examinations. Regular summer and winter camps held. Extra-curricular and recreational activities were built into the two programmes.
Road Map - 2024
Quality improvement of the Remedial Education (RE) Programme
JMC is taking active steps to enhance the RE programme through improved teaching and curriculum planning. With access to a pool of experienced high school and university teachers, we plan to support our RE Programme teachers with regular inputs and insights from the experts. There is a plan to enable access to Computer Education.
Planting the seeds for Pratham Creativity Club
We are excited and eager to become part of the innovative theme-based Pratham Creativity Club that opens the door to some exciting learning processes for children who are mainly first-generation learners. Using digital tools, the children are encouraged to learn and interact with other children in their group and take up projects in their subjects of interest. We plan to kick this off in June 2024 when most of our students will return from their summer vacations.
Enabling access to health at the community’s doorstep
Health is unaffordable for many households in working class communities. This was confirmed by a survey conducted by JMC staff in March-April 2024 in Madanpur Khadar. Households that we surveyed welcomed our proposal to initiate a mobile health service at our premises, through our collaboration with the Alshifa Hospital in Okhla. We hope to provide substantial relief to the community by enabling access to a team of doctors to consult at affordable cost and close to home.
JOIN US IN MAKING A DIFFERENCE
Come, be a part of our team if you want to participate in transforming lives through education and skill building. We are committed to creating positive change in communities and empowering students to reach their full potential.
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