I got the privilege of working closely with Fr Beni Alphonse Ekka for a year when I joined Xavier Institute of Social Service (XISS), Ranchi in August 2006. As the Director of XISS, he is conscientiously engaged in carrying the mission of Jesus to the most vulnerable and disadvantaged segments of the society. Being a respectable member of the Society of Jesus, a religious order within the Roman Catholic Church, that was established by Saint Ignatius Loyola in 1540 A D. Members of the Society of Jesus popularly known as Jesuits have pioneered in education in healthcare in over 100 countries of the world. What set the Jesuit priests apart are their humility, resilience and vision.
Fr Beni often charms one with his humility. One day he invited me to his residence to discuss a research project on which we were working together. As a perfect host, he tried to make me comfortable and shared a joke or two to create an informal ambiance. Coming from a bureaucratic organization, I was pretty conscious. He made a cup of tea for me and himself washed the cup. This gesture of Fr Beni enslaved me for life. Later I learnt that one of the vows that the Jesuits take is of austerity. They do their own work as far as possible even when they hold leadership positions.
Fr Beni has a unique ability of nurturing the faculty, staff and the students of XISS. He takes utmost care of all. He motivates people by his simple and brief speech. I remember, once during Christmas lunch, he just said, ‘My faculty members are excellent and hard working and keep themselves engaged even if the Director is not around.’ This small observation pricked the conscience of those who actually relaxed during his absence or leave and they began to work more diligently.
While Fr Beni is very humble and resilient, he has a zero tolerance for shoddy job, procrastination and poor performance. And this makes him a great leader besides being a great human being. He is committed to social issues such as human rights, social justice and overall social development. Interestingly, XISS is biased towards the interests of the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Minorities as reflected in the vision and mission of the Institute. It is the only private B-School in the country where 40% seats are reserved for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Minorities and yet all of them get tempting placement offers from several Multi National Corporations as well as Public Sector Undertakings.
Fr Beni studied Political Science at Jawaharlal Nehru University and conducted his doctoral research on land reforms at Ranchi University. He began his academic career at prestigious St Xavier’s College, Ranchi and served the college as Professor of Political Science, Vice Principal and Rector before joining XISS. He was Vice Chairman of the ’15 Point Minority Welfare Implementation Committee’ (under Government of Bihar) during 1991-2000. He has attended a number of workshops, conferences and seminars in United States, Belgium, Holland, Luxemburg, Italy and Thailand. His book ‘Land Reforms Administration in India: An Unfinished Task’ has been well received by the administrators as well as the academics. Fr Beni has been instrumental in establishing Mahila Help line that provides relief and support to the destitute and battered women. At the same time, he is engaged in promoting vocational education to the youth belonging to tribes facing an imminent risk of extinction.
One needs a lot of energy to all these things. But his smiles never recede. And that motivates those around him without any bounds. Truly, it was great experience for me to have worked with this celebrant who continues to send positive vibes to sustain my professional commitments and self-actualization.
