Bhandup’s youngest animal lover bags scholarship

Friday, December 18, 2009

Four-year-old Hitesh does not know the meaning of ‘animal lover’ but his love for animals has not gone unnoticed

Recently, he bagged Robin Age Bright Sparks Scholarship for Horse Power (training in handling and riding horses). The sholarship is sponsored by an equestrian centre and gives the child a chance to stay at the centre and interact with ponies and horses.

Speaking about the award Sunish Subramanian founder of PAWS stated, “This year our NGO got a mention in the Limca Book of Records- 2009 under Youth for Animals category. Hitesh’s award is in fact an award for all of us because he is our youngest member. As he lives in my neighbourhood I have observed this child very closely. Unlike other children, Hitesh is not afraid of animals. For a four year old kid this is something amazing. Hitesh plays with all the injured birds and animals undergoing treatment at our centre.

However, he is very fond of snakes so we allow him to handle the non poisonous species. A few months back, Hitesh came to me carrying two tiny sparrows. He had rescued these birds from the dogs. Even his parents were not aware of his brave deed. Touched by his compassion towards these tiny birds, our organisation decided to enroll him as the youngest member. This news was published in The Times of India, that probably must have caught the attention of the publishers of Robin Age, a magazine for children in the age group of 5-12 years.”

Little Hitesh who is a pre-primary student from NES Sunbeam English school does not know the meaning of ‘animal lover’ but his love for animals has not gone unnoticed. The Robin Age scholarship entitles him to undergo training in horse power, mainly lessons on how to handle horses. According to his mother Neerjala, “Hitesh is a quiet child he does not like to play with a bat or ball. However, he loves playing with all kinds of live animals and birds including snakes. Initially, I was scared when I found him handling snakes, but now looking at his passion my fear is slowly dying. I have started reading books on animal life to know about the various creatures, their food habits, etc so that I can update him during his growing years.”

Incidentally, Hitesh’s favourite television channel happens to be Discovery followed by National Geographic and snakes are his friends.

Animal loving kid honoured with scholarship

13^th December to 19^th December 09

Powai - 13 December 09 : Hitesh Yadav is a four year old child from Bhandup. This little animal lover started getting recognition by society for his love for animals from a very early age. Hitesh has recently received the 'Robin Age Bright Sparks Scholarship for Horse Power' as an award.

'Robin Age' is a weekly children's newspaper exclusively designed for children between 5 and 14 years.

He is also the youngest voluntary member of Plant & Animals Welfare Society Mumbai (PAWS-Mumbai).

Robin Age carries news and information on current affairs, science, technology, sports, careers, culture and environment along with activities, puzzles and projects that children can do themselves.

At this tender age he has handled various creatures like: snakes, birds, dogs, cats, etc. While talking to PP his mother Nirjala Yadav told us, “We are happy with Hitesh's love for animals and we have always supported him for whatever he wanted to do. Since childhood he used to observe animals and snakes. The Animal Activist, Sunish Subramanian lives near our house and he used to go to his home to watch injured animals he used to bring for treatment.

While talking to PP, Animal Activist Sunish Subramanian told, “It is a good sign that today's generation is showing interest in animal welfare and environment protection, which is very important in today's world to save our mother earth and we want more children like him, it will will definitely make a difference to see animals and our environment protected”.

If you are an animal lover like Hitesh and see a bird or animal in distress; you can help the bird or animal yourself or call PAWS-Mumbai Helpline 98334 80388 for guidance and become a helping hand for our voiceless creatures.