Vardi-Ka-Samman: Respecting The Uniform

A recent video doing the rounds, titled ‘Vardi Ka Samman’, caught my attention. It was about an NGO’s initiative to recycle old defence uniforms into a range of usable products for socially disadvantaged persons. The concept of reusing armed forces uniforms, mainly for civilians, while being committed to reducing their carbon footprint was both novel and noteworthy. Keen to know more about the venture, I reached out and spoke to the pleasantly voiced and friendly, Akshi Kohli.

Akshi introduced herself as the daughter of the founder, Maj. Gen. Ashim Kohli (Retd.) and answered my questions about the organisation. “There are only two of us overseeing the operations. The organisation, Sewaj (SEna WAyu Jal) Neesim Foundation-Vardi Ka Samman (SNF-VKS) was registered in 2020 and started functioning in January 2021. It was our first attempt at running an NGO. Our intent was to collaborate with experts working for sustainable and impactful development for society.”

Akshi continues, “Our first partner, Prof. Bipin Kumar from IIT Delhi, was an expert in textiles and helmed SWATRIC. This incubation centre of IIT helped initiate our first product during COVID. Since the need of the hour at the time were face masks, VKS collected the uniforms and SWARTIC technological expertise converted them into filtered masks as deemed mandatory during that period,” She recalls pricing these at a highly affordable Rs. 40-50 each and also donating numerous masks for free. A challenge they faced was the initial hesitation in people to “use masks made out of used uniforms”.

“We put in a lot of effort to ease their minds and assure them that the manufacturing process included thorough sanitisation before turning them into the finished product. VKS soon gained credibility and our masks gained popularity.” As word spread, more uniforms started arriving. It was at this point that father and daughter went back to the drawing board and realised that new products meant more manpower, equipment, and other resources — all requiring funds.

Another challenge that added to their woes surfaced towards the decline of COVID. The Kohlis found that “many people had started not only copying our concept but using the name as well and making a business out of it. This hurt our reputation and funding to the cause as people got confused and often, unknowingly, mistook them for us and ended up supporting the other organisations offering the same concept as Vardi Ka Samman,” rues Maj. Gen Kohli.

VKS’s most popular items are school bags and, now increasingly, laptop bags. In addition – blankets, bibs, ladies bags, aprons, et al. are also shaped by their cutters and tailors. Akshi explains, “School bags came post COVID. By then Vardi Ka Samman had reached more people and gained integrity and trust. The donations of defence personnel uniforms snowballed and motivated us to take the work forward and increase our output of school bags to the best of our capacity. Orders and requests kept pouring in. The bags designs were researched and improved by me and the SWATRIC team. We tried out different samples with a few adjustments to see what could work and what was possible with maximum usage and least wastage. This was done keeping in mind the source of our original material.” 

VKS has continued its collaboration with institutions like IIT Delhi and a few NGOs. This practical method keeps its own manpower down to a minimum, and results in saving monetary and other resources while simultaneously optimising output. Given the labour intensive manufacturing process, on any given day, approximately 50 articles are completed.

The next critical step is selling the items. Akshi explains, “Even if our bags, priced at Rs. 400 each, are bought by benefactors as gifts for those in need, we establish the credentials of the organisation and the beneficiaries to ascertain their genuineness. Our funding is primarily from three sources: corporate and individual contributions, sales at War Memorials, and our personal funding.”

Work roles between father and daughter are divided. Akshi is the brain behind the concept of this NGO. Her role? “I have been involved in the designing of the products and the inventory expansion. I’m also handling social media and interaction with interested organisations for various purposes. My Dad is the pioneer who spearheads the entire operation and works on strategic partnerships. He also deals with the hierarchy of the defence forces. These come naturally to him having spent over three decades in the Army.

The NGO’s multifold mission that gives them a sense of immense pride comprises:
1. Honouring the uniforms of the forces by graceful disposal
2. Providing basic amenities to those in need
3. Sustainable development
4. Generating employment for local men and women
5. Honouring the theme of ‘Make in India’

The Founder, Maj Gen. Ashim Kohli states, “Upon retiring from the Army, I realised I had so many types of service uniforms that I could no longer use. How could I dispose of them? My mind started working to find an answer to this important and relevant question because I realised none of our men and women in uniform from the Army, Airforce and Navy could give me an answer about how to dispose of these uniforms, once not in use, yet with all due respect. It was then that my daughter Akshi and I started working on the idea of creating an NGO that could collect these uniforms and turn them into useful products.”

He continues, “We feel truly privileged doing this work. Besides, it is an enhanced, emotional connect with the armed forces. We consider it a matter of pride to do our small bit to continue giving these special uniforms the dignity they deserve, especially after they are no longer in use.”

The voice of SNF-VKS, Akshi, concludes, “Going forward, we are looking to cover an entire range of items which require graceful and dignified disposal, and yet are available for someone else to use. We have already taken our next step in this direction by starting with old national flags in giving them a deserving recycling.”

CONTACT
Mobile: +91 84477 31909
Email: vardikasamman@gmail.com
Website: vardikasamman.com