T Raja Auto Raja: Story Of Sinner Turned Into A Saint

Auto Raja – Home Of Hope – New Ark Mission of India: We struggle to manage a small family of just 4-5 members, however, this simple man is managing family of 700 strange people impeccably with love and compassion. He has been a ray of hope for the dejected people. Popularly known as Auto Raja, he is relentlessly managing such a big family of 700 people from the last 20 years. We all should learn his secret money management formula, isn’t it? Let me introduce you all to this great man and also let us learn excellent money management lessons from Auto Raja.

As a son of a telephone linesman T. Raja never knew parental love and took to stealing, drinking and gambling early in life. He ran away from home and lived on the streets for two years. He slept on the streets near garbage bins and rabid dogs that constantly pined around him day and night. His life was meaningless and he was just another destitute wandering aimlessly on the streets of Bangalore.

Unable to bear the life of such anguish, Raja decided to start working to support his basic needs. “I drove autokishaws for sometime and then taxi’s and was struggling to make ends meet.” he said. “I also worked as a body guard and then as a hit man in the auto union.”During this phase of Raja’s life, he felt a constant struggle in his heart for answers about his life.

Then, a friend of Raja helped him realize that there was more to life. That life itself is a blessing to those who use it for the service of others.“I decided then that I would dedicate my life to helping the dying and destitute people on the streets. My decision was strongly supported by my religious principles and my family.” Mr. Raja told the Asian Age.

New Ark Mission of India (The beginning):
The New Ark Mission of India was started by T. Raja in the year 1997 and ever since Raja has committed his life to helping the destitute and dying from the streets. He is also privileged to have the help from his family. His wife and his three children also share his vision and offer him their full support.

“Whenever I approach the destitutes, passers–by and even the people I intend to rescue are surprised. Passers–by suspect me of luring these people into hospitals and stealing their organs. On the other hand, the destitutes themselves are taken aback at me holding them because they have never been approached by anyone before. In fact, they are only used to people stoning them or abusing them. Some of them are so weak that they can barely move their limbs, while others who just manage to move need to battle with the street dogs to feed themselves from the leftover in thrash bins. Most of them rejected by their families are living the most inhuman lives and with their bodies covered with sores. When I come across such people, I bring them to our Home of Hope.”

All that Raja could do then (in 1997 when NAMI was first started) was to pick them from the street in his auto and bring them to his home. With minimal help from others, he would bathe and shave them and clean up their wounds. They would then be dressed afresh and fed. Thus, the New Ark Mission in the year 1997 was started in a 5’ by 6 feet passage outside Raja’s tiny single room house. Since then, the New Ark Mission of India has been remarkably dedicated to rescuing and rehabilitating the deserted and the dying people from the streets. The Home of Hope is where the future of the homeless lies. Raja started this home with compassion and faith as his only investment.

OUR NEEDS
The work of God is carried out at Home of Hope through the generosity of people like you. Here below, we have listed some of our immediate needs and ongoing needs. We will keep this list updated on a monthly basis as things change. We are grateful for whatever helpyou can provide towards helping us in the cause of the poor and forgotten.

Needs list – These have been classified into immediate needs (one time) and ongoing needs (continuous)

Immediate (one time)
Stainless steel bunk cots – 200 No’s
Mattresses water proof for long time usage wear and and tear of other kinds by the unavoidable usage of patients – 400 No’s
Solar heaters 1000 liters – 1 Nos
Solar street lamps 18 watts – 20 No’s
Bread-baking oven machine – 1 No’s
A large ambulance , because our present ambulance is too small for increasingly larger intakes of inimates espically from highways – 1 No’s
Water purifier – 2 No’s
Uniform ( like hospital gown ) for men’s & women’s – 800 No’s
Stainless steel dining table for childrens – 100 Nos
Sturdy moulded plastic chairs – 600 No’s
Dead body freezer box – 2 No’s
Footware for our residence – 600 No’s
Single disc – 2 No’s
Scrubbing Machine – 2 No’s
computers for educating children and for office use – – 5 No’s
50 inches LED/PLASMA TV – 2 Nos
Help for setting up similar homes in Mumbai, Andhra and Chennai
Building Fund (Towards building a larger facility when we acquire a bigger plot of land)

Ongoing Needs (continuous)

Regular Donors – People that can commit to giving a set amount every month. This will greatly help us wth planning our finances.
Vegetables
Grains
Medicines

Committed volunteers that can work with our sick residents
Donors that will sponsor residents at a cost of Rs. 500/month. Please note this cost only applies to healthy residents. The costs incurred with our sick or elderly residents is much higher.
Diesel Generator for backup power (the reliability of our power supply is very poor)
General and psychiatric medicines

NEW ARK MISSION OF INDIAA/C NO. 10448472426. IFSC CODE:SBIN0002263. RICHARDS TOWN BRANCH. BANGALORE.

PHONE
HEAD OFFICE: 080-65997274,080-28445509
MALE WING: 080-28465899

EMAIL
raja@newarkmission.org newarkmissionofindia@yahoo.com