IT student

Young IT student can’t stand leaking public taps

Yudhvir Rana, TNN | Jul 30, 2013, 07.18 AM IST

AMRITSAR: At first sight, Mithun Kumar, 19, may pass off as a plumber, fixing a leaking tap on the roadside or at any other public place. But this first year student of Bachelor of Computer Applications (BCA) is a conservationist, who can't stand precious water being wasted. 

Mithun realized the importance of water when he saw a glass of water being sold for Re 1 in Delhi during one of his visits to the national capital. "I was in class VIII when I had gone to Delhi to meet my sister, and for the first time, I had to pay one rupee for a glass of water," Mithun told TOI. That incident changed his mind as he had seen thousands of litres of water being wasted in Amritsar through leaking taps. 

On his return, Mithun purchased a wrench and soem plastic taps. He said he would go out on streets to find leaking taps. "I try to repair a tap, and if I can't, I replace it with a plastic faucet," he said. 

Mithun, whose father Dina Nath is a rickshaw puller and mother Meera Devi works as a domestic help, thought of expanding the scope of his social work with the help of like-minded people. Youngest of four siblings, Mithun found his mentor in Ernest Albert, who helped him set up an NGO,Methodologies for Rural Education and Learning (MREAL). 

Using social networking sites, the young IT student attracted attention of international activists and philanthropists. Impressed by his work, Indira Krishnamurti Pardhan from Columbus in Ohio, US sent him financial aid, which helped him purchase a 140-sq yard plot to construct a school building, which is nearing completion. 

Mithun does not only teaches students but also conducts sewing classes for girls. He takes care of nearly two dozen dogs for whom he collects leftover food from restaurants and other places. He said he wants to construct toilets for the poor in villages besides expanding his school and other social activities of his NGO.