Founder's Profile: Late Shri Bali Charan
A lifetime dedicated to rights, dignity, education, and health for waste-picking communities.
Late Shri Bali Charan
Founder (1965 – 2021)
Waste Pickers Welfare Foundation
"The hands that sort our cities' waste are hardworking hands protecting our environment. They deserve respect, healthcare, and an equal opportunity for their children through quality education."
Biography & Visionary Legacy
Shri Bali Charan started his grassroots social work across East Delhi in the early 2000s. Deeply moved by the vulnerabilities faced by migrant and daily-wage waste-picking families living in settlements around Shahdara, Seemapuri, and East Nathu Colony, he mobilized local youth and volunteers to address child illiteracy, poor sanitation, and lack of social protections.
In May 2014, he formally registered the Waste Pickers Welfare Foundation under the Indian Trusts Act. Under his guidance, the foundation established community-based non-formal education centres, organized health checkup camps with institutions like Max Foundation and CII, and initiated vocational tailoring and digital training for youth.
Though Shri Bali Charan passed away in 2021, his selfless philosophy continues to guide the managing trustees, teachers, and field workers of WWF in every community initiative.