Bhubaneswar, Aug. 4: One rupee will probably not buy you much more than a candy or a bit of mudhi. But like little drops of water make the ocean, several one rupees put together can make a big difference to the lives of many.

Ravenshaw University student Bastav Parida and a few of his friends, all aged 20 years, collected Re 1 for over a year every day from their acquaintances. At the end of the year, they spent the entire amount on bettering the lives of underprivileged children.

It all started in July last year. "A few of my friends and I were hanging out in college and discussing about how Re 1, which had some significant value at one point, was gradually vanishing from the market. So, we thought of accumulating one rupee coins, but we had no vision then," says the student of geology.

All the nine members of the group, called Ek Umeed, began collecting Re 1 every day and also requested their friends and relatives to do the same. "We made sure to drop Re 1 every day in our piggy banks and we also collected coins from our friends. A few of our relatives and college seniors helped us by giving Rs 30 at the end of the month," said Ambika Prasad Sahoo, another member of the group.

"People happily donated us the money because it was quite minimal and it did not really affect them," said Ambika.

At the end of six months, they had collected around Rs 10,000. A part of the money was spent on buying winter clothes and study material for slum children. "During the winter months, it becomes very difficult for underprivileged children to bear the cold. So we spent around Rs 2,000 in buying jackets and sweaters. We also collected old clothes from our friends and distributed them," said Bastav. In January this year, they donated Rs 7,500 from their funds for the treatment of a six-year old boy suffering from cancer. "We came to know from a common friend of ours about the little boy. We went to Jajpur and gave him the entire amount we had," said Soumya Ranjan, another member of the group.

At present, they manage to collect around Rs 5,000 every month. They are planning to open libraries in two orphanages located in Cuttack on September 5. They wish to continue doing social work but are not interested in getting themselves registered. "We do not want brand ourselves as an NGO. Whatever we are doing is to get personal satisfaction," said Bastav.