Rotary News August 2015 by Rotary News

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August 2015

Padharo Mhaare Des

K R Ravindran & Vanathy

RID Dr Manoj Desai & Sharmishtha

PDG Dr Ashok Gupta & Vijaya

RI President 2015–16

Convener, Rotary Jaipur Institute 2015

Chairman-Rotary Jaipur Institute 2015

aipur is the much loved capital of India’s largest and most colorful state. It is also the main gateway of the splendour and magic of Rajasthan. This heritage city, popularly known as the Pink City, is an epitome of meticulous planning. Majestic forts and palaces dominate the skyline and yet, it is the bazaars in the old city, that create Jaipur’s unique energy, providing a special shopping experience. The city’s heritage status and proximity to the national capital New Delhi have attracted people from

far and wide. Mainly known for its innumerable sagas of valour, culture and heritage, it provdes an aristocratic treat for tourists. There is something in the atmosphere of Jaipur that brings joy and delight and the genuine hospitality of the people wins hearts. From sunset-pink walls, buildings and temples, all the corners of this city seem to be humming the famous folk song ‘Padharo Mhaare Des.’ Which is why we’ve chosen this as our theme. We are sure that the warmth of this city will mesmerise our guests as we walk them through an overwhelming experience.

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10 30

CONTENTS

From the Editorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Desk

President Speaks

10 Stitching up dreams 18

RC Madras pioneers a novel sanitation project

Water facilitates marriages

Governors gear up for the New Year

An Innovation: 9 Presidentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Joint Installation

34 Helping Assamese migrants in Coimbatore 44

Pune Rotarians usher in a Drumstick revolution

A green funeral

52 18

Where ultrasound is a novelty

Transforming a town

58 When dak bungalows had class & character 60

Hard-won lessons

Heal yourself by positive thinking

On the Cover: Shamlu Dudeja, Kantha crusader.

20 44

52 Breathing life into Puppets 54

LETTERS

Impressive Magazine

am observing tremendous change in the coverage of Rotary News since the time you have taken charge as Editor. Now it is also a magazine which I can give to my family to read as there are lots of general topics along with Rotary information. I can see the difference because I have been reading the magazine for over 20 years. I am impressed. Rtn Prashant Mehta RC Kolhapur Heritage-D 3170

eing an avid reader of Rotary News, I must compliment you and your team for such diverse yet relevant coverage in the magazine. Especially, the article about Mike Feerick in the May issue was absolutely wonderful. PDG Satpal Gulati RI District 3120

otary News is getting a new look and evolving as an interesting reading material. In July issue general topics like Listening to your body, In Brief and Ethnicity and culture rule this Resort were excellent. Besides the main information on Rotary, the main meal, there are many side dishes. We expect more such feasts. Rtn Sujata Srinivasan RC Cuddalore Central-D 2981

our article on our incoming RI President in the June issue was really inspiring for young Rotarians. District Scores highlights useful projects done by various clubs and gives ideas to other clubs. Publishing email id or phone numbers of the clubs will help other clubs for possible joint projects. Congrats for the wonderful work. Rtn BA Prabushankar RC Coimbatore West-D 3201

New horizons

our editorial describes how from a height of magnificent architectural glory Nepal has fallen into an abyss of disaster. Indian Rotary clubs should help the traumatised people and show our generosity to our neighbour. Your July editorial is apt as incoming presidents begin with a new zeal and enthusiasm to achieve their dreams. The valuable suggestions regarding the ongoing projects are valid, and the lines from Richard Bach inspiring. Rtn Arun Kumar Dash RC Baripada-D 3262 4 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

thank the Editor for the interesting July issue which had enchanting news on Rotary and allied subjects. Your editorial, New horizons beckon… is bound to kindle all incoming club leaders. The article, Pay it Forward about RI President Ravindran was very interesting with good lessons. I fully agree with his concept of “Self-made men.” Parents, teachers, colleagues and friends have a great role to play in shaping us to be good citizens. Rtn R Srinivasan RC Madurai Midtown-D 3000

our editorial, New horizons beckon… is giving true direction to the new team of Rotary leaders. The decision to take Rotary Magazine to non-Rotarians will increase membership growth. The article on human trafficking is an eye-opener for innocent and ambitious people who want to work abroad. Literacy article will encourage the clubs to work hard. I enjoy reading every issue of Rotary News. Rtn PC Sanghi RC Jaipur Bapu Nagar-D 3052

aishree’s articles, Saving them from sex slavery and on Kadambavanam were absolutely fantastic. Dr Sunita is a classic example of courageous crusader in society. Rtn Nicolas Francis RC Madurai Midtown-D 3000

thank Rotary News for reporting our achievements in producing three peace scholars (Peace Scholars from D 3240) in the May issue. July issue also has Bringing focus to the North East, written by Rtn Tilak Das. We are grateful for your support in promoting D 3240 twice in 2014–15. PDG Swapan Choudhury RI District 3240

he issue is becoming better with newer and more relevant information and different facets of our RIP Ravindran. The pictures on the covers are superb, especially the inside back cover — I first thought it was a painting. The Letters and Online Feedb@ck gives us the real worth of our magazine. I was shocked to read the article, Saving them from sex slavery; human trafficking picturises the poor condition of the trapped people. Many Rotarians did not realise that getting a Presidential Citation was this difficult. Tilak Das’s write up on the North East gives new information; I thank Jaishree for the neat write up on Kadambavanam, the tradition resort of our President-elect

LETTERS

Chitra Ganapathy. How a chance meeting on your travel can help a meaningful project is highlighted in the RC Budge Budge article. Israel charms Pune Rotarians and A discovery of Mexico’s unique cenotes were thrilling to read. Rtn Nan Narayenen RC Madurai West-D 3000

Ravindran, a gift to Rotary

his year’s Rotary International theme Be a gift to the world has caught every Rotarian’s attention. RI President KR Ravindran is himself a very big and valuable gift to Rotary and he has created a positive vibration in Rotary. I am seeing a lot of excitement and energy among Rotarians to serve more, as ‘Ravi’ is truly a global leader with amazing expertise in both business and community service. His idea of running Rotary like a business is great. I feel the magic already happening with Rotary Rewards programme. Let us, Indian Rotarians, be the best gift to the world and make Rotary the finest social brand. Rtn Jagdish J Malu RC Gulbarga Suncity-D 3160

ongratulations for the lively and informative July issue; rich in all aspects. The legendary heart touching story of Krishna-Sudama nicely depicted by KR Ravindran emphasises the magic of love attached to any gift. The theme Be a gift to the world is illustrates the fact that ‘what we give through Rotary becomes a gift to us.’ The purpose of life, as RI Director Manoj Desai says, is happiness and it should be kept in mind that, “True happiness lies in self satisfaction.” The mindblowing, educative article on human trafficking clearly defines the twin causes responsible for sexual exploitation — ignorance and illiteracy. Rtn Subhendu Mohanty RC Nabarangpur-D 3262

n the July issue the article by Kiran Zehra, When a ‘homeless’ Governor was motivated, reminded me about the revival of Kutch after the devastating earthquake. RC Mumbai South rebuilt the village of Nana Karodia with earthquake resistant houses with attached toilets, school, community and medical centres and encouraged the villagers towards the upliftment of the village on several fronts. Rtn Deepak Bhimani RC Mumbai South-D 3140

he comprehensive profiles of RIP KR Ravindran, and RID Manoj Desai by the Editor describing their views, priorities, principles and programmes to be implemented were very interesting. I am proud of them because they are the two pillars of Rotary International. It is said that Asian countries are poverty-stricken, but Asians are rich in cultural wealth. Let us join hands with them in making their visionary programmes a grand success. Rtn GV Sayagavi RC Vidyanagar-D 3160

he current issue is a piece of beauty. I read with enthusiasm A taste for kimchi in the July issue. I find kimchi delicious. Rtn Dr Ravindra Shukla RC Bhusaval-D 3030

am very proud of Rotary News and in the July issue, RI President’s and RI Director’s messages are excellent. Literacy Focus is very good and an inspiration to all teachers; I also liked the article on Israel and the book review on the firangies. Rtn D Suresh Kumar RC Rayachoty-D 3160

IP KR Ravindran’s thundering message is simply wonderful; the objective of Rotary should be taught to senior Rotarians, reminding them of the Four-way Test. Often a “group” dominates in a club obstructing the motto ‘Service above self.’ Thanks to jealousy, some sincere and genuine Rotarians are being curbed and deprived of opportunities. Such Rotarians should be identified and taught a lesson through stringent punishment, however high their office. PDG Katta Nagabhushanam RI District 3160

We welcome your feedback. Write to the Editor: rotarynews@rosaonline.org; rushbhagat@gmail.com AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 5

Governorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Council RI Dist 2981

Dr Gunasekaran Chinnathambi

RI Dist 2982

R Vasu

RI Dist 3000

R Theenachandran

RI Dist 3011

RI Dist 3012

Board of Permanent Trustees PRIP

Rajendra K Saboo

RI Dist 3080

PRIP

Kalyan Banerjee

RI Dist 3060

Sudhir Mangla

PRID

Sudarshan Agarwal

RI Dist 3011

Jitender Kumar Gaur

PRID

Panduranga Setty

RI Dist 3190

RI Dist 3020

M Jagadeeswara Rao

RI Dist 3030

Dr Nikhil Arvind Kibe

PRID

Sushil Gupta

RI Dist 3011

RI Dist 3040

Sanjeev Gupta

PRID

Ashok Mahajan

RI Dist 3140

RI Dist 3051

C A Lalit Sharma

PRID

Yash Pal Das

RI Dist 3080

RI Dist 3052

Pradhuman Kumar Patni

RI Dist 3053

Anil Beniwal

PRID

Shekhar Mehta

RI Dist 3291

RI Dist 3060

Parag Sheth

PRID

P T Prabhakhar

RI Dist 3230

RI Dist 3070

Kuldip Kumar Dhir

RI Dist 3080

David Joseph Hilton

RID

Dr Manoj D Desai

RI Dist 3060

RI Dist 3090

Dharam Vir Garg

RI Dist 3100

Suneel Kumar Gupta

RI Dist 3110

Sharat Chandra

RI Dist 3120

Ved Prakash

RI Dist 3131

Subodh Mukund Joshi

RI Dist 3132

Dr Deepak Prabhakar Pophale

RI Dist 3140

Subhash Kulkarni

RI Dist 3150

Gopinath Reddy Vedire

RI Dist 3160

Dr Gautam R Jahagirdar

RI Dist 3170

Shrinivas Ramkrishna Malu

RI Dist 3180

Dr A Bharathesh

RI Dist 3190

K P Nagesh

RI Dist 3201

Kamlesh V Raheja

RI Dist 3202

George Sundararaj

RI Dist 3211

C Luke

RI Dist 3212

J Navamani

RI Dist 3230

C R Raju

RI Dist 3240

Chandu Kumar Agarwal

RI Dist 3250

Dr Bindu Singh

RI Dist 3261

Rakesh Dave

RI Dist 3262

Sibabrata Dash

RI Dist 3291

Jhulan Basu

ROTARY NEWS ROTARY SAMACHAR Editor Rasheeda Bhagat Assistant Editors Jaishree Padmanabhan Selvi Kandaswamy

Send all correspondence and subscriptions to ROTARY NEWS TRUST 3rd Floor, Dugar Towers 34 Marshalls Road Egmore, Chennai 600 008, India. Phone : 044 42145666 e-mail : rotarynews@rosaonline.org Website : www.rotarynewsonline.org

From th e E d i t or ’s Desk

Of girls and daughters…

s a new Rotary year began, bringing to the helm new leaders and teams, all filled with enthusiasm and resolve to work hard and make a greater difference to the world, I accepted District 3131 IPDG Vivek Aranha’s invitation to visit Pune and look at some of the projects they’ve done in and on the outskirts of Pune. PPs of RC Pune Lakshmi Road, Sadanand Bhagwat and his wife Deepa took me to their water project about 65 km from Pune city. This issue carries details of how a simple idea, such as the tapping of mountain streams in this hilly region, storing the water in a little kund or pond and then taking it down through a pipeline by gravitational flow, eliminating the need for electricity, can meet the drinking water needs of around 10,000 tribal villagers. With the fetching of water being the responsibility of women and girls, imagine the relief these villagers, who used to trek up to 6–9 km in the hilly terrain daily to fetch water for their homes, would have experienced. Low haemoglobin, severe back pain and other ailments suffered by these women got immediate relief. Much more important, freed from this unfair and Herculean task, girls could get back into schools. The trigger down effect of such projects ... the women’s free time will be channelised into gainful economic activity through self-help groups, distribution of cows for a home dairy ... the possibilities are endless. As more villages are canvassing for water at their doorstep, the astute Rotarians are making this conditional to a pledge to put and keep their daughters in school! For lovers of books, particularly classics, the publication last fortnight of the beloved American writer Harper Lee’s Go set a Watchman has created a mini revolution in literary circles. Actually a prequel to her immortal classic To kill a Mocking Bird,

the Watchman depicts the feisty Scout, now a young lawyer living in New York, returning home to Maycomb County in Atlanta where she grew up hanging on to every word, every value and principle her hero, idol and demigod Atticus Finch had given her. Published at a time when the United States is once again grappling with racist attacks against blacks — be it the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham where blacks worship, or a series of controversial altercations between white policemen and black “criminals” who are often victims of a persisting racist mindset, this book has once again sharpened the White vs Black debate in the US. A storm has broken out in the media and literary circles on how Atticus, the crusader for justice for all irrespective of their colour, is depicted as a ‘racist bigot,’ knocking the breath out of his daughter. With bated breath I read through this compulsive page-turner to the blood-chilling climax where the adult Scout asks some very tough questions of her father on his views of Negroes in this very Southern American town, and blasts him in some pretty strong language as her hero comes all unstuck in her head and heart. But before the book ends, Lee allows you to breathe ... Atticus is human after all, and has taken his daughter through the acid test of holding “her ground for what she thinks is right,” and for standing up to her values and beliefs. This book, as well as Mockingbird, is a must read for those who have a special relationship with your daughters.

Rasheeda Bhagat

AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 7

President

Speaks

“

The leaders at the R I, zone, district, and club levels have to maintain the highest standards in governance.

Dear Fellow Rotarians, In the 1930s, Ole Kirk Christiansen, a Danish carpenter, had a wooden sign hanging on his wall that read, Det bedste er ikke for god: “Only the best is good enough. ” Today, Christiansen is remembered as the inventor of Lego, the colorful plastic bricks beloved by children around the world. But in the early days of the Lego company, its signature product was a wooden duck — one built to the highest standards, out of aged beech, with three coats of clear varnish. Lego’s company history tells how Christiansen used his ducks to teach a lesson in quality to his son, Godtfred Kirk: One evening, when I came into the office, I said to my father: “It’s been a good day today, Dad. We’ve earned a little more. ” “Oh, ” said Dad, “what do you mean? ” “Well, I’ve just been to the station with two boxes of our toy ducks for the Danish Co-op. Normally they get three coats of varnish, but since it’s for the Co-op, I only gave them two. So I saved the business a bit of money. ” He looked at me in dismay. “Godtfred, fetch those boxes back. Unpack them and give the ducks another coat of varnish. You’re not going to bed until the work’s done — and you’ll do it all on your own. ” There was no arguing with Dad. And it was a lesson for me about what quality meant. Today, Lego’s quality standards are legendary, and its products are the most popular toys in the world: Lego pieces outnumber humans 86 to 1. We all recognise that this success stems directly from Lego’s business practices — its insistence on quality, efficiency and innovation. I compare this with our efforts in governance and accountability in Rotary, and realise that sometimes we fall short of the standards expected. The leaders at the Rotary International, zone, district and club levels have to maintain the highest standards in governance. The RI President and Directors must serve the membership in a meaningful manner; zone leaders must deliver on the investment Rotary makes in them; district leaders must provide dynamic leadership in the district and focus on transparency in accounting and timely reporting of financials; and club leaders must adhere to proper reporting functions and get their clubs onto Rotary Club Central. Just as Christiansen refused to consider sending a lesser product to any of his clients, so should we refuse to consider giving a lesser effort to any of our work. We must always demand the best of ourselves — in our professional lives, and especially in our Rotary work. For in Rotary, what is our product? It is not wooden ducks or plastic bricks. It is education, water, health and peace. It is hope, and it is life itself. For this work, only our best is good enough. I ask you all to remember this — and to do your very best to Be a Gift to the World.

KR Ravindran President, Rotary International

Greener

Rotary Working towards a Greener future in Rotary.

or any organisation, growth is the most important goal to achieve. As it moves ahead in years, it sets new benchmarks of achievements. The bar is raised higher and the objectives widen the expanse of activities. Newer horizons and vistas open up bigger possibilities for the future. Opportunities arrive in tandem with movement, giving the impetus and momentum to stride ahead. The institution grows in status and stature and gains the knowledge, skills, expertise, experience and wisdom to manage its resources in a better way. Thus both, the organisation and its resources, need to grow with time. In Rotary International, the organisation is represented at the club level all over the world. And clubs need to grow, in numbers and in quality, in profile and in character, in efficacy and in management. The resources that support Rotary International also need to grow. And the purposes and goals for which funds are raised would also expand over time. This is handled by TRF. The domain of service will also grow, along with the activation, to generate more resources for this purpose. The avenue of humanitarian service and the collections to fulfil them need to grow with time. Green is the colour of growth, life, environment-friendliness, development and action. We need to work towards a GREENER ROTARY. Blue is the colour that shows that the entity is seamless, boundless and limitless. It’s the colour of the sky as well as water. TRF is the blue side of Rotary. Yellow is the colour of action, brightness, wisdom, intelligence, energy and heat. It’s the colour of the sun as well as fire. CLUBS are the yellow side of Rotary. When the two colours unite, they produce green. They showcase growth. Water, when heated, becomes steam that gives energy. In the same way, TRF and Clubs are two sides of the same coin. Or perhaps, the equal and mutually inclusive support system that holds the balance of Rotary together. They are interdependent. If we want Rotary to grow in every aspect, we have to address both the facets equally. Thus, a greener Rotary is possible if • Clubs grow in size and stature, with quality members involved in service • Funds at TRF grow, along with enhancement of avenues of humanitarian service A greener Rotary will become more visible and attractive to the world and its public awareness and image will rise positively. To elaborate this further, greener clubs would have growth in • • • • • • • •

Quality membership Opportunities in humanitarian service Member engagement Connectivity and involvement with Gen Next More female members Public Awareness amongst volunteers and donors Rotary as a Brand Diversity in membership

Let August 2015 be remembered as the month that focused on “Greening of Rotary.”

Manoj Desai Director, Rotary International

Rasheeda Bhagat

Reviving a dying tradition is no mean feat; this amazing Rotarian has brought back to life the exquisite Kantha needlework of Bengal.

er story reads like a combo of a fairy talecum-thriller where the heroine battles severe adversities and emerges triumphant. The feisty Shamlu Dudeja from Kolkata has seen it all in her 77 years; but overcoming every adversity she has brought happiness and pride in the lives of 1,000-odd women in rural Bengal. This she’s done by reviving and giving a new direction to Bengal’s traditional and exquisite Kantha embroidery. This after battling with a seven pound tumour in her stomach, followed by breast cancer. This Rotarian from RC Kolkata is indeed as feisty as she is creative, innovative and resourceful. Born in Karachi before the Partition, she lived in a house near the Sindh Assembly and on August 14, 1947, “on the balcony of our house, I watched the white horse drawn chariot bringing Lady and Lord Mountbatten to the Sindh Assembly. They were received by (M A) Jinnah and his sister, and I saw the flag of Pakistan go up … I literally watched Pakistan’s birth,” she recalls. Her father was a maths professor and initially hesitant, by October 1947 decided to move to India and “we came from Karachi to Bombay and then went to Delhi with just a suitcase of clothes and my mother’s sewing machine.” Shamlu joined Lady Irwin School and was taught by her crafts teacher an embroidery stitch when she was 10; “but she didn’t tell us its name or background.” The girl often used that stitch to embellish her mother’s blouse sleeves. In 1957, after graduating in maths honours, she shifted to Bombay and modelled for some time, making it to the cover of the Eves Weekly magazine and appearing for top brands such as Lakmé.

A modelling career As modelling and organising 1,000 rural women are polls apart I quiz her on that phase; “well, I was slim and sexy then, but don’t write that,” she giggles, but later agrees to be quoted! In 1962 she married Vijay and they moved to Calcutta. “He was a junior executive and Calcutta was very welcoming and we made good friends here.” Within a year, their first child, Kabir was born. She started teaching at Miss Higgins, an elite private school, but when daughter Malika was born in 1968, she took a break, joining an international school to teach maths after four years. In 1975 she got a scholarship to England to learn a new method of teaching Maths; the two-year-course being compressed to 6-months to accommodate the extremely AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 11

From left: Shamlu Dudeja, Gurusaran Kaur, Isher Ahluwalia and Sharmila Tagore.

talented teacher. On return she joined the Lorretto Teachers Training College; “everything went on very well till 1985 when they found I had a 7-pound tumour in my stomach, and I had to give up my job,” she sighs.

Rainbow after cloudburst As she was recovering, at a local handicrafts meet she met a group of women from the villages around Shantiniketan, an event that changed her life. Intrigued by

Such exquisite fabrics were traditionally created by the women as auspicious gifts to celebrate family milestones including births and marriages.

the stitch used in the women’s embroidery, and recalling its similarity to what she had learnt as a child in Delhi, she quizzed the women and learnt all about the significance of Kantha in Bengali culture. The interaction fired in her the idea to spread the craft and proved to be a dazzling rainbow after a cloudburst in her life. Shamlu invited these women to her home and asked them to attempt similar work on new silk saris instead of old saris and gave them some Paisley and other patterns. Though initially reluctant and sceptical as this was totally different — working on a single layer of silk instead of multiple layers of old cotton they were used to — the women took up this challenge and returned after four months, all smiles. She set about the task of setting up the SHE (Self Help Enterprise), but around 1987 before the women could return with the second set of saris, tragedy struck again; she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Her daughter Malika was about to go to UK for higher education, but stayed back to help her mother and got drawn into her mother’s dream. She actually took it forward by launching a range of Kantha kurtas and kurtis, which she marketed to her friends in college. While all this

antha’s origin is not authentically chronicled but is believed to date back to the 16th century, the word itself originating from the Sanskrit word for rags. Born out of necessity and thrift, traditionally, in rural Bengal women in the family would put together used saris, dhotis and other fabrics and join the layers with Kantha stitches running over simple designs, converting the old and used fabrics to beautiful quilts, mats or soft wrappings for newborns.

was happening, a publisher approached Shamlu to write Maths text books, and these continue to bring her royalty. Both mother and daughter got engrossed in reviving this intangible cultural heritage of Bengal; apart from Shamlu, Tagore’s daughter-in-law and another woman were also trying to revive Kantha.

Kantha goes to London Even as they got busy with innovations in silk / chiffon / georgette saris and dupattas and kurtas, Shamlu got a

As Leslie Umberger, an eminent curator who has curated exhibitions on international folk textiles at prestigious institutions such as the Smithsonian American Art Museum, and has specialised in folk arts and tradition of various cultures, including Kantha, writes in the introduction of the book Through the Eye of a needle brought out by Shamlu’s SHE (Self Help Enterprise), “Bengali tradition holds that old cloth is spiritually protective; babies swaddled in worn soft cloth were thought to be shielded from the evil eye. It also holds that joined rags symbolise the creating of a unifying whole.” Such exquisite fabrics were traditionally created by the women as auspicious gifts to celebrate family milestones including births and marriages; “fashioned literally to protect a family member from the cold, a stitched Kantha is also a vehicle of richly layered meaning. In addition to their spiritual components, Kantha was driven into being by a union of thrift and practicality, and, much like Japanese Boro or African American improvisational quilts, the early Kanthas were necessarily spontaneous in design, unbound by pattern or symmetry and always unique,” she adds. So traditionally in Bengal, whenever there was a wedding or pregnancy in the family, all the women would enthusiastically get together to craft a loving garment for the son-in-law or the new born baby. “All women of rural Bengal have an inherent talent for stitching. Kantha embroidery is the expression of the innermost thoughts of rural women and we have inherited this intangible heritage from our mothers and grandmothers,” says a SHE team leader.

guest from London, “who said this is exquisite embroidery, why don’t you bring this work to London?” Thus came SHE’s first overseas exhibition in London in 1990. “We put it up in her house which was across the road from the Victoria Albert Museum. Her windows were 17 ft high and we hung saris and curtains from her windows; several people visiting the museum saw these and came to her house.” Now of course her SHE’s Kantha exhibitions have gone to many European countries, Tokyo, Yokohama,

A typical adda of Kantha workers.

Melbourne, etc and SHE is now getting a branch in France. On the pricing overseas, Shamlu says it is barely double or a little more to just cover the cost of travel and stay, as the objective is to popularise this ancient craft of Bengal and not to make profits. On the similarity between some of the Kutchi embroidery and Kantha, Shamlu says the stitches might have

some similarity, “but it is not the same. We have to remember that in Bengal, in the good old days, Kantha was actually a quilting stitch. It was never embroidery. But in Gujarat, Rajasthan and even Punjab it was always embroidery for embellishment. Here it was more a practical thing; recycling of old garments, which were softer to wrap babies, or use as quilts that felt soft against the skin. “It was all about making old into new; there were no artists to make the sketches so the women put their heart and soul into the work and would make a lion, peacock, tiger or people. It was not art work; it just came from the heart,” says Shamlu. Small wonder then that what that work turned out to be was nothing short of spectacular. While the younger women made stitches to make a lion or tiger, the older women did just parallel lines or concentric circles. The SHE women, who affectionately call Shamlu ‘Didi’ or Boro Ma, now use cotton embroidery thread to make the stitches, but in the olden days, says Shamlu, “they would

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SHE Foundation was formalised as an NGO in 1999 to give Kantha artisans income at their doorstep and spread greater awareness about Kantha both within and outside the country. Currently SHE has access to about 1,000 artisans, though only 300 are members. The women work only for 2–3 hours a day at home in their spare time. Kantha products are sold at their showroom in Kolkata and through Jaypore, the online store.

Shamlu Dudeja with former West Bengal Governor M K Narayanan, with a portrait of Rabindranath Tagore in Kantha.

use threads pulled out from the border of the old sari or cloth as that thread is thicker. Now of course we use new fabric and thread.” While the girls working on their Kantha fabrics have a great time as typically 3–4 or more girls/women will work on one sari or kurta, it is a kind of adda where they have chai as they work. The best part about this work is that it is not full time, it is done in the women’s own homes, so conservative families, particularly

Kantha embroidery is the expression of the innermost thoughts of rural women and we have inherited this intangible heritage from our mothers and grandmothers.

Muslims, have no problem with the women doing this work. As the women can manage to put in only two or three hours a day, it takes them four to five months to complete a sari. While a silk or chiffon sari costs from Rs 12,000–15,000 at the SHE showroom, kurtas and kurtis would typically cost around Rs 4,000–5,000 and dupattas around Rs 4,000.

Prestige, self esteem So in economic terms, when the women make around Rs 600 or 700 a month, it is not big money. But the fact remains they are not full-time workers, they don’t need to commune as the SHE members specially designated with the work reach them the garments, designs and embroidery threads to their homes. “It’s much more than money for them. When we did the Tagore project at the Kolkata Raj Bhavan (where Kantha panels related to Tagore’s work were displayed) the women who got the award brought their entire families with them. For them it’s a matter of prestige, self-esteem and recognition,” says Shamlu. And recently when Malika celebrated her mother’s 75th birthday she invited 90 women from nearby villages

to have lunch at home. “It was a surprise party for me. They ate fish and prawns, sang and danced on the stage. It is a question of identity, belonging.” And it works both ways. When Shamlu lost her son who was only 32, and who died in bed due to cardiac myopathy and later her husband, also from the same cause, it was the women from SHE, and her involvement with their work and lives that helped her cope with these tragedies. “These girls came to my house, stood by me, had lunch with me … and during that year our work doubled and we were able to sell much more,” she says.

The work is marketed through the outfit called Malika’s Kantha Collection and Trading. Shamlu takes a small salary for her expenses; “my math text books royalty gives me enough money. And money has never been my motive. Actually the maximum royalty for my maths books comes from my homeland Karachi, where the Oxford University Press had asked me to do a special series of book exclusively for them.” As I interviewed Shamlu, her staff was busy packing the Tagore products — done specially for Tagore’s 150th birth anniversary — for an exhibition at Houston, where a small fashion show was being planned. She recalls that when Bill Clinton was US President she had sent Hillary Clinton a wall hanging through a friend. “She wrote me a letter saying she loved it. When she came to Kolkata two years ago, at a stall I had put up at the Taj Bengal for her delegation, she came there, chatted with me, and bought a Tagore picture done in Kantha and presented it to our chief minister.” Next morning there were pictures of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee waving the Tagore picture before the media, and the Kantha women got a big boost. Shamlu’s “girls” swear by their Boro Ma and she says, “I can’t even put into words what these girls mean to me … except say they mean the world to me.” While the money they might make from this association might be modest, the Kantha women get help from association with SHE in terms of loans for education, health care, home extension, building of additional toilets, support for setting up printing units nearby, health and hygiene camps, and training in self-defence to ward off unwanted sexual advances. In some of the water deficient areas, tube-wells are also being put up for their families.

Amazing bonding The bond that SHE has developed with these women is invaluable. In the beautifully brought out book, Through the Eye of a needle, the Kantha women of SHE have amazing tales to relate on their association with the organisation. One of them, Sadhana Mohan, proficient as a girl in Kantha kaaj, lost her right arm when she fell Latest feather: Shamlu Dudeja gets an award from RC Calcutta Mahanagar.

from the balcony. Devastated for some time, she began trying out the Kantha stitch with her left hand, and later, with a loan from her husband, organised Kantha artisans in her locality and tried to sell their work in local fairs but with little success. Later she hooked up with SHE and became an integral part. Once while travelling to the US with Shamlu for an exhibition, British Airways lost her baggage and for the entire duration of her stay “Didi took care of everything and even shared her clothes with me.” Dipti Poddam, another team leader, describes in the book how she had become proficient in Kantha work from a young age and loved working with Shamlu and her network. When she got married, “Didi came with a tray full of gifts; she even helped my husband to get a permanent job in the BSF and gave us financial stability.” She describes how unmarried girls are able to put a lot more time into this work and get a better income and most of them use this money to buy jewellery for their wedding. As she got busy raising a family, Dipti had to give up Kantha, but never lost touch with SHE. Now that her children are 21 and 16, she wants to get back but is deterred by her failing eyesight. What is touching is her confidence

I wish Rotary can help my girls; I want my Kantha to be taken across the world.

that, “SHE will help me with the treatment for my eyes,” just as it had helped buy a computer for her children! But the clincher in this account is how Shamlu always treated her like Malika; being firm when required but “indulgent” most of the time! Shamlu’s ultimate goal while promoting Kantha all over the world is interesting. “Just as the peacock is the national bird of India, I want to make Kantha the national stitch of India. I want Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s help to do this. When he says ‘Make in India’ what more can be made in India than Kantha fabrics?” Meanwhile this Rotarian for 22 years also wants “Rotary to help my girls take Kantha all over the world.” Designed by Krishnapratheesh

RC Madras pioneers a novel

sanitation project Jaishree

am glad to be here, one of the Districts that I have admired always,” said PRIP Kalyan Banerjee during his recent visit to RC Madras, RI District 3230. The purpose of his visit was to understand the path-breaking sanitation project implemented by the club at Amarampedu, a village near Chennai. It is one of the three villages adopted by the club to create an open defecation-free community, apart from building individual toilets. The project involved the “triggering method” to sensitise people and change their mindset against open defecation. “Within two days of ‘triggering’ disgust and shame in the community, the behaviour of the people changed in a sustainable manner that resulted in 70 out of 100 households digging leech pit toilets on their own,” said club President S N Srikkanth. Today nobody in the entire village defecates in the open. Community-led toilets have been constructed without imposition from outsider setting an example for others to replicate.

Banerjee, who visited the village, commented, “(TRF Trustee) Sushil (Gupta) and I have been working on designing different types of toilets across the country to suit different people, different needs and habits; we were focusing on changing the mindset of children in schools because when they go home after being used to toilets in schools, they would insist on having the same at home. Here what you do is different — changing the mindset of people in the villages by telling them how disgusting it is not to have toilets. This is something I learnt today and I am going to carry it to rest of the country.” Commending the club’s novel initiative — Polio Flame — that went around 30 Rotary Districts across 17 countries, commemorating India’s Polio-free status and heralding a Polio-free world, he said, “The concept of the Flame captivated the entire world, energising and motivating Rotarians wherever it was lit. I was filled with pride at the São Paulo Convention when everybody congratulated every Indian

PRIP Kalyan Banerjee interacting with a resident at Amarampedu. 18 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

there for what you have done.” Srikkanth said that the Flame raised $2 million on its journey. He recognised RC Tirupattur President Arulalan for being the first to respond to his call to make the martyred polio workers at Pakistan, Paul Harris Fellows. Seventy three polio workers were killed in the 18-month period in Pakistan. Referring to Rotary founder Paul Harris’ house in Chicago that is going to be torn down by the City of Chicago, Banerjee complimented Srikkanth for his brainwave — all Indian Rotarians can contribute to save the house from being reduced to rubble. “The house costs $400,000; while Rotary Club of Chicago is trying to save the house, they are unable to raise the necessary funds. I was amazed when you suggested that every Indian Rotarian will be ready to contribute $35 each to preserve the house where Rotary was born. I would now take it one step further and discuss this idea with (PRIPs) Sakuji Tanaka of Japan, D K Lee of Korea and maybe all Asians can get together and save the house. If that happens, it would be the third idea you would have initiated,” he said. Banerjee participated in the club’s thanksgiving meeting along with RI Director P T Prabhakar and DG Nazar. The club was decorated with 40 awards this year plus the

You are changing the mindset of people in the villages by telling them how disgusting it is not to have toilets. grand Platinum Trophy and the Presidential Citation. Rtn Krish Chitale traced the journey of the polio immunisation idea that the club pioneered in the mid-1970s; Prof Raghuram of IIM, Ahmedabad, briefed the audience on how the Amarampedu story was adopted as an interesting case study for his students. Prabhakar said, “Your club stole the show at the São Paulo Convention. While it is extremely rare even for a country to get a brief mention, the inaugural session was all about Chennai — the Polio Flame of your club and the Rotary My Flag My India which was declared the best Rotary Day project of the year.”

Spinning Rotary Wheel Team Rotary News

he Rotary Wheel, symbol of ‘civilisation and movement’ as attributed by Paul Harris, has journeyed through an interesting evolution — from a simple wagon wheel designed by Chicago Rotarian Montague Bear to the present gear wheel modified in 1923 with 24 cogs and six spokes representing the six Objects of Rotary and a keyway that locks the wheel to the hub. Today it adorns the Rotary flag, ties, lapel pins, bill boards and banners as a prominent RI emblem. Satinder Singh Dev of Rotary Club of Ladwa in Kurukshetra (D 3080) designed and presented a battery-operated Rotary Wheel that spins to DG Dilip Patnaik last year during his official club visit. His experience as ad film maker and chief

Rtn Satinder Singh Dev presenting his Rotary Wheel to PDG Dilip Patnaik.

assistant editor of Punjabi and Hindi movies has come in handy in this unique experiment. “Rotary is always on the move through its various activities and service projects. A spinning Wheel would be a fitting memento

to our vibrant Rotary,” explains this Rotarian who joined Rotary a year ago; he had served as District Rotaract Representative for D 3080 in 2009–10. Dev aspires to present this novel creation to the RI President too. AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 19

Doing good with TRF help

L to R: Rotarians Deepa Bhagwat, Sachin Goyal, Parag Vora and Sadanand Bhagwat.

Water facilitates

Marriages! Rasheeda Bhagat By tapping and diverting water from natural springs near Pune, these Rotarians have removed drudgery from rural women’s lives.

hat the availability of water near their doorstep means to rural women was driven home to the head honcho of a Pune company who had donated money to enable RC Pune Laxmi Road, D 3131, to implement a water project that tapped spring water from the hills and reached it to the villagers. The MD inaugurated the project and on the same day a marriage was 20 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

being celebrated in the village. The villagers said that in this village it was virtually impossible to get a young man married because nobody wanted their daughter to walk for 8–9 km to fetch drinking water. “Jaise pani aa gaya hamare yaha pehli shadi ho rahi hei (once the water came, the first marriage is taking place),” says Sadanand Bhagwat, past president of the club. “The MD was so happy that he said

whenever you require money for such projects, come to me,” he adds. The water projects that RC Pune Laxmi Road has taken up with such enthusiasm was started when his wife, Deepa Bhagwat, was the Club President in 2009. In the last six years 65 natural streams in the Kolvan valley, about 65 km from Pune, have been tapped to reach water to over 10,000 people in nearby hamlets.

We feel good about this project because 70 years after independence if women still have to walk for 7–8 km to get water, that isn’t a good certiﬁcate for our country! Then through GI or hi-density pipelines the water is taken to the hamlets where a sturdy storage tank, complete with water proofing, is built to hold about 10,000 litres of water. This daily supply is sufficient to meet the drinking, cooking and other household needs of 150–200 villagers.

Manna for villagers

“We were searching for a needbased project away from Pune city and partnered with the NGO Gomukh which was implementing watershed projects in this area,” recalls Deepa. When they surveyed the Kolvan Hills area, a lush green mountainous region at a height of 3,000 ft., “we found that there are any number of streams that can be tapped. We could build a small reservoir at different points and bring down the water through gravitational force.” The biggest plus point in this electricity deficit region was that electricity wouldn’t be needed to bring down the water. Seventeen projects have been completed tapping water from 65 natural streams. Through a pipeline the water from 4–5 streams is brought down and collected in a small kund or pond about 4 x 4 ft or 6 x 6 ft in size, which has a capacity to hold about 40,000 litres of water. Wired filters are put in place to keep out the mud and silt which comes down the mountains.

This pristine water, packed with minerals, is manna for the inhabitants of the villages, particularly the women and girls who had to walk for at least 2–3 km, if not more, either way, in the mountainous region to fetch water. As only those streams that generate a copious supply of water in the months March–May are tapped, the villagers have safe drinking water round the year. Bhagwat, who runs a construction business, specialising in industrial sheds (Deepa is an interior decorator) explains that the cost of each project is Rs 3.5–5 lakh and raising money has never been a problem. He is also deft at getting his suppliers and clients to contribute either in kind or cash to help the projects done by his club, including giving comfort and dignity to senior citizens at Matoshree, a home for the elderly in Pune. But more of that wonderful project in another issue of Rotary News! Depending on the height of the mountain streams and the size of the village — (population varies from 150 to 500) a pipeline of 1,000–1,500 ft or

5,000 ft has to be laid. The cost of each project depends on how far and how high the natural springs are. “In one or two places the water pressure was so high that the water overflowed the tank, so we put another pipe and connected that tank down to serve another hamlet, getting one spring to serve two villages,” he says. Till now Rs 90 lakh have been spent on these water projects, with the money being raised either through the club, private donors or matching grants from TRF. With 17 projects over, five more are in the pipeline.

Women benefit most The 10,000-odd villagers who have benefited from these water projects are mostly farmers or daily labourers. The area has no municipal water supply, and earlier the women had to trek 3–4 km in this hilly region to fetch water. “We did a health check-up here and found that almost all the women suffered from joint pains, back ache and low haemoglobin. And if young girls have to walk 7–8 km to fetch water, when are they going to go to school? The education of the girl child was suffering, so now we start a new project only when the villagers promise to send their daughters to schools,” says Deepa. With time saved from fetching water, the women take more interest in the children’s education. “Their health has improved too and now AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 21

we’ve started self-help group and given them three sewing machines in a pilot project and it is doing well. We really feel good about this project because 70 years after independence if women still have to walk for 7–8 km to get water, that isn’t a good certificate for our country!”

Initial suspicion Bhagwat adds that initially the villagers were very suspicious; “the first suspicion being whether the Rotarians wanted to grab their land! So they wouldn’t allow the pipeline through their land, and instead of a 2,500 ft., a 4,500 ft pipeline had to be put up thanks to diversions.” But once the first project was done and the villagers saw the benefits they started chasing Deepa saying, ‘Madam hamey bhi pani do. (Give us water too!)’ As more requests came in, “I told the villagers to collect Rs 25,000 for the project. This was promptly done but I said we don’t need your money. Please deposit it in the name of the village in the bank, because after three years you have to change the filters and some pipe repairs might come up. You need the money to keep this project sustainable,” says Bhagwat. Next he asked them for shramdaan in taking the building material up the hills and in making the tanks. “Then

Initially the villagers were suspicious because they thought these Rotarians will grab our land.

we said we’ll do this in your village only if you send your daughters to school, and they agreed.”

Overdose of Oxygen We drive up the road, parts of which are narrow and rickety, but the surrounding undulating hills, washed by the recent monsoon showers are so clean and green that Parag Vora, who has taken over as the new President of the club says, “Whenever we come here, we go back recharged with a copious supply of oxygen!” We visit a kund which is brimming with water and Deepa takes copious 22 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

sips of the water and insists I taste it too! I do and it is absolutely fresh and sweet. Apparently the kund is home to three large tortoises! We next visit Valen village where a group of villagers quickly gather to greet the visiting Rotarians. Mukta, a mother of two, is all smiles as she says that she uses the two hours she now saves from her water-fetching duty to work on her 2-acre farm where the family grows paddy, wheat, channa and masoor dal. Alka, who owns one acre of land, also spends the time saved accordingly. Haribabu, a member of the Rotary Community Corps, says the villagers are very happy that the Rotarians are helping them not only with water but also giving benches for their schools. Vora says that last month he had distributed about 250 school bags with some basic books to the children of a few villages. Bhagwat has made the distribution of benches for the schools in this area his mission and says proudly, “You won’t find a single school here without benches.” From ‘happy schools’ the Rotarians are now concentrating on ‘happy villages.’ Deepa gives credit to DG Vivek Aranha for encouragement and support. The DG says 50 such happy villages have been done in the District during his year as Governor. Solar lamps have been distributed in villages deficient in electricity, “and for the first time children are able to study after sunset,” says Deepa. Schools with leaking roofs have been repaired and next on these Rotarians’

Rotary is our passion

hen I ask Sadanand Bhagwat and his wife Deepa, both past presidents of RC Pune Laxmi Road, if their business is not affected by their giving so much time for Rotary projects, he says, “Our business is well established now and runs smoothly even if we don’t attend to it daily. But Rotary is our passion.” A Level 3 donor — this year he has donated $30,000 to TRF — Bhagwat keeps a low profile and has to be coaxed to get into a picture frame. But get him talking on water for the adivasis of the

agenda is building toilets for schools which don’t have toilets. A computer centre has also been started and while in the day schoolchildren are trained here, in the evenings those villagers who want basic computer skills are given lessons. With the women now having extra time, there are plans to give them cows to start a mini dairy. The sarpanch,

Solar lamps have been distributed and for the ﬁrst time children in these villages are able to study after sunset.

Kolvan hills region, or Matoshree, home for the elderly, which he and other Rotarians have adopted with such commitment, and he is a transformed person. As we drive up the hills, he explains that this area has no catchment and all the water coming down the mountain streams just runs away. “I found there was just a 10 ft opening through which a massive quantity of water was going out. All we did was close the 10 ft opening and now about 30 to 40 lakh litres of water is stored in this bund. First the water recharged the ground water in these areas and now it remains above the surface. The project cost only Rs 7–8 lakh. I told the owner of the company with which I work to donate the amount … and with the money we made one more project too.”

who has two cows has started a biogas plant, and generates enough fuel to take care of his family’s cooking and fertiliser for his farm. Depending on the success of this pilot, the Rotarians will help the villagers put up more biogas plants, “and if we can get surplus milk and enough fuel, we won’t have to run after gas cylinders. And the plant will also give us good fertiliser for our land,” beams Haribabu. When a project is on, Deepa and her team of dedicated Rotarians visit the site twice a month and have developed such a camaraderie and comfort level with the villagers that Subhadra, a villager, has no hesitation in asking her: “Why don’t you bring water through taps to our homes!” Pictures by Rasheeda Bhagat Designed by N Krishnamurthy AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 23

Children will be his focus

Meet your Gov

Pradhuman Kumar Patni Commercial Liaison RC Kota, D 3052

Rasheeda Bhagat and Jaishree

Don’t waste resources on “small things” hen Rajendra K Saboo became RI President in 1991, and came to India, eight Rotary clubs in North India gave him a reception. “I heard him speak and was very inspired, so I joined Rotary,” says Pradhuman Kumar Patni. Earlier too he had been invited to join Rotary, but had desisted from doing so. Inspired by the speeches of RI leaders at the San Diego Assembly, he got a much clearer picture of “what these leaders expect from us, and I will pass on to my district members what Rotary really means.” During his year Patni, will encourage the 3,600 Rotarians in his district (71 clubs, his with 400 members, being “one of the largest in India”) to use technology, connect to Rotary Club Central, and update their info there. “I will ensure that nobody takes Rotary lightly.” Was it difficult to become DG? “Actually I didn’t particularly choose to be Governor or work for it. I feel that even a Governor should be invited, like we invite members.” Patni’s focus during his year will be to do child-oriented projects. “As you’re aware, in Rajasthan education and health are two big areas where a lot of work is required. I want to do big projects for the children of my District; those are badly required,” he adds.

24 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

C R Raju Architect, RC Madras Meenambakkam, D 3230

s an architect, C R Raju is professionally trained to see the big picture. And his endeavour as a Rotary leader will be to do just that. I engage him in a chat at the International Assembly in San Diego and ask what Rotary, which he joined in 1993, has taught him. “Many things; to understand and value friendship and look at it as an opportunity for service. To make good and longstanding friends, for that is the only way to take things forward.” Raju believes that individually one can do only so much, “but collectively you can move mountains and do meaningful service to society. I believe that we have enough resources but somehow we’ve not been able to capitalise on these resources, which are being frittered away in small things here and there.” And that, he says, is a pity “because an organisation such as Rotary should

see the big picture. And we should not mistake activities for projects. Many people think that on a Sunday morning you can do some activity and your job is over. But this misconception should be removed.” Raju says his district has 141 clubs and “I feel every club should do a significant project. Many people shy away because they are not encouraged or told how to do the project, its focus, the club’s resources and what more it can raise.” But isn’t raising money a challenge? “No, and we have to link up with TRF. I want every club to link up with TRF and see how they can scale up the project that they want to undertake or have already undertaken.” He says raising money becomes difficult because often there is no purpose. “Show people a goal, a clear picture, a purpose; say I want to help children with cancer. Or I have a vision for such a hospital and for this I require your support. Have a clear picture

ernors

I’ll be an inclusive governor James Navamani Educational administrator RC Valliyoor Central, D 3212

ames Navamani joined Rotary in 1996 and has learnt a lot during these 19 years. “Rotary has moulded me in many ways and taught me leadership qualities. What I was before I joined Rotary and what I am today is very different.” He recalls that when he was president of his club he learnt very valuable lessons on how to include everybody in anything that one does. “Voluntary organisations have to be very inclusive. And though we are not here to win any popularity contests, you have to take everybody along with you when you play any leadership role.” Very excited to be at the San Diego Assembly, he said he had come with very high expectations and “to find out what the RI goals are, the vision of the incoming RI President K R Ravindran. “We learnt a lot in GETS at the Chennai Institute, but the Assembly has given final touches to what Rotary expects from us as DGs.” The opportunity to network with other world leaders, make friends, learn about TRF grants and other programmes was an invaluable opportunity. During his year, a blood bank will be a major project, “we have six revenue districts of Tamil Nadu in D 3212 and I want to build a blood bank to provide this precious commodity to those in urgent need. I’ve already talked to a UK Governor at the Assembly and given a proposal to him. I hope to take it forward,” he adds.

J and the money will come.” But what is happening now is that “you raise the money but don’t know what to do with it. Instead establish a purpose, and then raise and use the money.” During his year as Governor, Raju’s focus will be on child care in rural areas. Rotary has already put up a good blood bank at the Voluntary Health Services in South Madras. “I am looking at North Madras, an industrial area where accidents, often fatal, take place and a blood bank is required.” On membership, he says it’s important, “but we shouldn’t get people just for numbers. If you add one person who is not worthy, he will spoil 10.” His other focus will be TRF and the public image of Rotary. “But we shouldn’t spend money to advertise … your acts should define your public image. Your advertisement should be your hard work and the benefits you’ve provided society,” he adds.

We need a softer Rotary model Subhash Kulkarni Media Research and Marketing, RC Mumbai Parleshwar, D 3140 ubhash Kulkarni joined Rotary in 1999 “because some of my friends were Rotarians and they felt being service minded I should join Rotary.” He is proud of the clubs in his district

and says that Mumbai’s Rotary clubs have “done very good projects, and done remarkably well in every facet of Rotary, whether it is membership growth, club strengthening and community development, water and sanitation, youth development, education, TRF programmes … every sphere of Rotary.” His journey till here, says Kulkarni, had not been “that difficult. As you go up in any organisation, at every level there is competition but if you have self-belief that you can add value to the organisation, such leadership positions come to you. Perhaps I was lucky.” But, he adds, many Rotarians have appreciated and admired his work. He was also a Youth Development Chairman and had enthusiastically participated in RYLA initiatives. On young people not attracted to Rotary, he says, “We need to have a softer model of Rotary. I have discussed with PRIP Kalyan Banerjee on how we have to create something that is more acceptable to them.” He is working on introducing a new model … few physical fortnightly meetings; rest virtual AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 25

meetings, with attendance at important district events. “This way the cost and time of their participation reduces. Today young people are heavily loaded with work and can’t spare the 3-4 hours required for mandatory weekly meetings. So if we have to involve and encourage youth, we’ll have to create a different model.” Similarly, a special effort is needed to attract women to Rotary. “Just making spouses of members Rotarians doesn’t make sense. We now have 10–11 per cent women but this number can be

increased significantly. After all Rotary is a unique organisation that brings so many different people from different regions together so close in no time at all.” His primary focus this year will be membership, work very hard for public image and PR, and take up comprehensive community welfare projects such as TB eradication, toilet blocks under WinS. “We will also concentrate on TRF project in an unprecedented manner as this is the final year of 3140 as a single district,” he adds.

Check dams is his priority Kamlesh V Raheja Cotton Marketing, RC Coimbatore Sai City, D 3201

n the day of my installation I presented a cheque of $200,000 to TRF — a collective contribution from Rotarians from my District,” says Kamlesh Raheja, adding, “We’ve experienced the power of TRF … My club received 13 Matching Grants and we performed 750 paediatric heart surgeries … all this was possible only through TRF support.” This year’s focus for the 135 Rotary clubs in his district will be to improve water sources in the region. The District in association with the NGO Siruthuli plans to construct check dams to harness the River Siruvani water and benefit about 80,000 people of 12 villages. Other service projects proposed for the year include cancer care for the villagers (“I propose to procure two fully equipped vans through Global Grants for cancer screening,” says Raheja); Gift of Sight to provide eye care for school children, in association with Sankara Eye Hospital, Coimbatore, and to make Hope after Fire, reconstructive surgery for burn victims, a District project with RC Coimbatore Metropolis as the lead

We need well equipped schools R Vasu Export fabric manufacturing, RC Salem Central, D 2982 asu is the first governor of this newly formed District, born out of D 2980 and his plans are clearly cut out for this year. “I propose to involve all 60 clubs of my District to adopt a school each and transform them into Happy Schools. Parents in rural and semi urban areas would be doubly motivated to send their children to school when the environment there is attractive,” he says. He has committed to build toilet blocks in 330 schools under WinS. ‘Project Hope’ is next on his agenda; “we will provide

26 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

club. When I visited him on July 1, Raheja was receiving reports of blood donation camps organised by clubs across his District. “Today, we’ve collected 800 unit of blood, and this drive will continue for the entire week,” said the excited DG. He has ambitious plans to improve membership by 20 per cent by September and also encourage ex-Rotarians to join Rotary. “This I plan to execute with help from PDG Deepak Shikarpur of D 3131.” Improving the number of Interact and Rotaract clubs are also on his agenda.

750 artificial limbs and 150 homes in Sri Lanka this year for the needy people.” On the major challenges he foresees for his newborn District, this veteran Rotarian from 1996 confidently says that his experience as DRFC twice and various other District posts will stand him in good stead. Vasu plans to “add 15 per cent more members to the 2,884 Rotarians and charter at least five Rotary clubs” by the end of his term, and “contribute $300,000 to TRF. Pictures by Rasheeda Bhagat

(To be continued)

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Governors gear up for the New Year

Photo: K Vishwanathan

Jaishree

DG C R Raju and Shanthi with RID Manoj Desai and IPDG ISAK Nazar.

will not accept gifts. We have been receiving gifts throughout our lives; it’s our turn now to be a gift to the world; let us rise up to (RI President) Ravi’s clarion call,” said RI Director Manoj Desai at the installation of C R Raju as District Governor of D 3230. During his tenure as Governor when he appealed to his club presidents not to honour him with gifts, “they requested me to allow them to give me books at least, I said okay and today I have 49 Bhagwad Gita books.”

Membership

Toilet Director

Bifurcation

Talking about his commitment to WinS, he said that at the orientation meet PTP had committed that “we will build 10,000 toilets each in 2015–16 and 2016–17; my two-year tenure will be spent in building toilets and people have already dubbed me, ‘Toilet Director.’ But that’s fine. And I look forward to hear Prime Minister Modi say that Rotary has performed excellently well.”

“Divide to multiply,” said Desai. India’s total membership of 1.4 lakh Rotarians is equivalent to four zones, “but what we have now is two and a half; senior leaders PRIPs Raja Saboo, Kalyan Banerjee and TRF Trustee Sushil Gupta are of the view that we can have 50 districts in two years; that means four zones, two directors to represent our country on the Board.”

28 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

Concerned about the fluctuating membership, a disturbing feature of Rotary the world over, he said, “We are happy to see graphs going up in our businesses. But why can’t we do anything about the zigzag graph in Rotary? We have to concentrate on membership — sustaining existing members and growth. Let’s be progressive on all three fronts — membership, Foundation and public image.”

Referring to RI President Ravindran’s theme, Raju acknowledged his ‘gifts’ — “Rtn Sitrarasu who introduced me to Rotary was a gift to me, my children — Prashant and Sneha — are invaluable gifts to me and Shanthi, and Rotary is the best gift to all of us.” He too discouraged the tradition of gifting him mementoes during his club visits and thanked Past President Rtn Ravi of RC Madras Silver Beach for setting the trend by giving a cheque for $100 towards TRF instead of a memento and many other Rotarians for their contributions to TRF. IPDG Ajay Gupta passing on the baton to DG Subhash Kulkarni in the presEnumerating his plans for ence of RID Manoj Desai. Ranju Gupta and Swati Kulkarni are also present. the Rotary year, Raju encouraged clubs to jointly work for a common project. Referring to the nine Chennai clubs that had a joint installation, he suggested that they work D 3140 collectively for the uplift of a village or school and urged Desai chaired the installation event of DG Subhash clubs to identify matching partners and work with TRF Kulkarni in Mumbai. “This is your final year together; funding. so strive to achieve maximum membership growth, The ‘First Ladies’ Directory,’ a first for the Dis- TRF contributions and enhance Rotary’s public image,” trict, was launched by Shanthi Raju. IPDG ISAK Nazar he said. The district will be bifurcated from next year. thanked his team for their support in the District’s distin- Reminding the Rotarians on the RI theme, Desai urged guished achievements. Engaging in an impromptu word them to dedicate themselves to be a gift to both Rotary play, he said, “All Light Up presidents will continue to and humanity, and take up national focus programmes be a Gift to the World.” such as TEACH and WinS on a priority basis. Elaborating his plans for the District, Kulkarni said that TB eradication and treatment will be a major thrust for all the 145 clubs of the District. “It has a support of Rs 3 crore from the Lupin Foundation. With a series of 600 TB detection camps, followed by treatment supported by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, this project will be a life saving one,” he said. The district plans to provide 500-plus toilets along with washing stations for girl students in schools around the tribal areas of Palghar and Jawhar. The first toilet block was inaugurated in Gurukul Vidyapith School, Thane.

We are happy to see graphs going up in our businesses. But why can’t we do anything about the zigzag graph in Rotary?

D 3190 Rtn K P Nagesh of RC Bangalore Highgrounds was installed as DG at Bengaluru. Commitment of four Rotarians to become AKS members, an endowment of $100,000 and 106 Major Donors marked the occasion. A new club (Rotary Bangalore Malgudi) with 60 members was chartered on July 4 and “it has committed to enter the ‘Hall of Honour,’ whereby all members will become PHFs; we have 36 Hall of Honour clubs and we propose to add 25 more this year. We will also charter 40 new clubs,” said Nagesh. AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 29

An Innovation:

9 Presidents’ Joint Installation Rasheeda Bhagat RI President K R Ravindran urges incoming Presidents to marvel at the mammoth size, depth and uniqueness of Rotary, and its ability to make a difference.

t a glittering and first ever joint installation of nine Rotary Club Presidents in Chennai, on the suggestion of RI President K R Ravindran, the latter urged them to use each day of their term purposefully. “With good imagination anything is possible. July 1 is an important day when you and I will be completely transformed. We have a choice; to perform great deeds, with ambition and responsibility and say at the end of the year that we did a good job. Or just let the year go by and say I was also President … but with nothing left to show five or six years later.” Quoting Martin Luther King he said the new leaders could decide if they want to walk in the light of “creative selflessness or the darkness of destructive selfishness.”

$2 billion organisation Touching upon the mammoth size of Rotary as an institution, the RI President said: “It’s a great organisation of immense proportions and immeasurable achievements.

We have 1.25 million members; this is the highest level of membership in over 15 years.” Moreover, today it had an “investment portfolio of over $1 billion; that is Rs 6,000–6,500 crore. Our endowment funds have reached the same figure; another Rs 6,000 crore or so. We estimate that the work we Rotarians do is also worth another billion dollars. We are a huge organisation by any standards.” But that was only money. “If you look at our polio work for 25 years, the end is very close and we are now talking in terms of months and not years. Success is just around the corner. We can’t afford to give up.” Ravindran urged the Presidents to marvel at “building this organisation in a world of bewildering contrasts. A world of ruthless dictatorships, a world of great democracies; a world of advanced IT, a world steeped in superstitions and spirituality, a world of immense wealth and stark poverty. Across these worlds we’ve built an organisation and forged a united group of members who have crossed all these borders and differences.” All these dreams of

RI President K R Ravindran and Vanathy and DG C R Raju and Shanthi with the incoming club presidents. 30 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

Nine Presidents Siva Ilangovan

RC Annanagar West

M Govindaraja

RC Chennai Galaxy

A Satishkumar

RC Chennai Infocity

G Devaraj

RC Chennai Mambalam

A Prabakaran

RC Chennai Nolambur

K Loganathan

RC MCC

G Rajinikanth

RC Madras Fort

S Sankar

RC Madras Pallava

Balan

RC Tambaram

friendship were possible because “many of us placed the needs of many over the wants of a few. You chose to give your fortune or part of it away instead of clinging to it. You made the correct choice.” Reiterating his belief that Rotary should be run like a business, he said that it can’t be just “volunteers doing some work in their spare time. We must insist on the same quality and transparency, and same efforts to keep costs low and efficiency high as we do in our daily businesses or professions.”

Rotary Global Rewards Ravindran drew a huge applause from the gathering when he disclosed that from July 1 Rotary Global Rewards would be launched in a bid to give value to Rotarians. Through a phone app they would be able to get discount from 300 service providers and establishments like hotels, and that too at 10 per cent discount below their lowest published rates. “This will more than compensate you for the money you pay each year to Rotary and the discounts you get will cover that amount 10 times over if you really use this.” But there’s a hitch, he added. Clearance of all dues; or else the member could not enter into My Rotary, which was essential to connect to this app. Another advantage would be that not only would Rotarians get a discount, a small percentage would also go to TRF when they used this app. By the end of the year, Ravindran added, the network of establishments giving such discounts would go up to 1,000, “making Rotary membership really worthwhile because our slogan is that the good that you do will come back to you. This will also get us new members who often ask what is in it for me. Though we don’t want them to join Rotary only for this. But it will help us retain members because if they leave they lose all these discounts.”

Ravindran made it clear that all appointments during his tenure will be made strictly on merit. Making appointments on the basis of “who we know and who our friends are” is not the way we run our businesses. We get the best person and give them the job. We don’t give it to our friends because they will ruin themselves and ruin you. So I am asking why can’t we do that in Rotary.” He had done that at the highest level giving up the right to appoint TRF Trustees, the biggest positions an RI President gets to fill. Defining parameters and the regions, he appointed a committee and told it to “find the best persons. The committee came out with the best people and I said appoint them.” He even went a step further. In the July issue of The Rotarian (also in Rotary News), two pages had been devoted to the various committees and the vacancies existing in those committees. “Any of you can apply; you will not need my or anyone else’s influence to get a position ... it means that I can’t do you a favour. I can tell you I will be one of the most unpopular Presidents, but we will get the best people into leadership positions to manage Rotary like any business should be managed.”

Cutting costs In an endeavour to cut costs he had reduced RI Board meetings from five days to three, said spouses will not attend

Rasheeda Bhagat

Appointments on merit

board meetings, and had asked President’s representatives to cut costs. “If we start at the top, everyone falls in line. I’ve told the management that I’m looking at a cost cutting of at least $3 million this year; if you ask for $3 million you might end up with 1 or 2 million. If you don’t ask for anything, you won’t get anything.” He also warned the Presidents to keep their focus on performance as KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) had been AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 31

No Politics Please put in place and even RI Directors would be measured on their performance. RID Manoj Desai would seek answers from the DGs and the DGs from the Presidents. “We can’t say we are volunteers doing part-time work because there are 100 people lining up to take up my job and 300 to take Raju’s job,” he added. Ultimately results would come “if the effort we put into our professions or business in working for our shareholders and stakeholders, employees and families, is put into our Rotary work.” Membership was important because 90 per cent of TRF funds came from members. “If membership comes down, the money for TRF and your projects comes down.” But he cautioned them not to get members just for the sake of numbers. “We want members whose company we enjoy, who like us live a normal, decent life and also want to do some good.”

Sustainable Legacy

Rasheeda Bhagat

His mission was to create a “sustainable legacy” for Rotary. Once polio was eradicated, the infrastructure Rotarians had established and partnerships they had forged across the world needed to be used for other health problems, such as ebola, for instance. “Our health infrastructure is a legacy that we must leave behind.” Congratulating the nine Presidents for their joint installation and starting the meeting on time, “something that is unheard of at events here,” he said the joint installation would save them not only time and effort but also nearly Rs 10 lakh. “There is much more we can do

Touching on a thorny issue, RI President K R Ravindran said irregularities and problems in elections “in this part of the world is ruining our reputation and India’s reputation. I am telling you that Manoj (Desai) and I will be absolutely ruthless on this issue. I ask you why on earth would you need anybody to tell you who to vote for or to nominate? I will set up a system where if anyone outside the club interferes in the election process I will ask that person to be taken out of Rotary. If he is a PDG, I will get his Governor’s title removed. I intend to be a very unpopular President; I have nothing more to aim for. This is going to be my stand. I hope I am making myself absolutely clear. Electioneering is not for us. It is for politicians. Then you must join the congress, DMK or whatever. Even in your club if someone tries to influence you, be smart and be good Rotarians. I am telling you all this because I am absolutely clean. I will never speak for anyone or indulge in any form of electioneering at any time. So I can afford to take this stand.” He also urged them to embrace technology. “Your presidential citation is completely online. You will know whether you’re getting it or not getting it. You do not need influence; you do not need to talk to me or to (DG) Raju. Even if Raju wants to, he cannot help you. You have to perform.”

L to R: PDGs Krishnan V Chari, J B Kamdar and A S Venkatesh.

“

If you ask for $3 million you might end up with 1 or 2 million. If you don’t ask for anything, you won’t get anything.

32 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

than just entertain ourselves. Use this money wisely and for good projects, but also know that money is the easiest to raise and the smallest part of your project. With good imagination anything is possible.” He left them with a final thought to reflect upon … how they were blessed in various ways. They had an opportunity to lead and give back what they had received from Rotary. “You are blessed because in the midst of morally bankrupt people in the world, we have in Rotary people with integrity and moral fortitude. We are blessed that in an age of crime, war and natural disasters, in Rotary we have people who have stood against all kinds of pressures and made a difference.” Addressing the meet DG C R Raju asked all the nine clubs to jointly adopt a village and turn it into a model Rotary village. “This is the way you can leave an impact on the community. I am already seeing the bonding between the nine presidents and your yearning to do good work,” he said. He also urged them to concentrate in the coming year on increasing membership and strengthening clubs. “For nearly 20 years Rotary’s membership has been around 1.2 million. We add new members but the number is static, somewhere there is a drain; you have to plug the drain.” Designed by Krishnapratheesh

Trustees take office RI President K R Ravindran’s four appointees to the 15-member Rotary Foundation Board of Trustees took office on 1st July. They will serve four-year terms. MÁRIO CÉSAR MARTINS DE CAMARGO Santo André, Brazil Mário César was president of Grafica Bandeirantes and is now a consultant to the print sector in Brazil. He served as director and president of ABIGRAF Brazil for eight years, president of Sindigraf São Paulo for six years, vice president of Fiesp for 11 years, and vice president of Conlatingraf. He also has been advisor for the Patrol Boys Group and serves on the board of Casa da Esperanca (House of Hope), a project for children with disabilities, sponsored by his Rotary club since 1953. A Rotarian since 1980, Mário César has served RI as RI president’s representative, RI training leader, leaders’ seminar trainer, committee member and chair, RI Convention co-chair, and task force member. ÖRSÇELIK BALKAN Istanbul-Karaköy, Turkey Örsçelik is the executive senior board director of the EAE Elektrik Company, involved in manufacturing products in Turkey and Russia. He is a developer in renewable energy implementations in Turkey and teaches for an MBA program at Kültür University in Istanbul. He is a trustee of several health and education foundations, a past member of the Council of the Chamber of Commerce of Istanbul, and a past candidate for member of parliament from Istanbul. A Rotarian since 1973, Örsçelik has served RI as director; RI Board Executive Committee chair; committee member, liaison, advisor, vice chair and chair; task force zone coordinator; RI president’s representative; RI training leader; and Council on Legislation representative. He has been vice chair of the Operations Review Committee and Reach Out to Africa Committee, and a member of the Eastern Mediterranean Regional PolioPlus Committee. In 2007, he convened Rotary Presidential Peace Forums in Sofia, Bulgaria Istanbul and Nairobi, Kenya. He has led disaster relief services in Turkey following an earthquake in 1999, helped bring Rotary services to Bosnia-Herzegovina, and initiated a heart surgeries project for Iraqi children. Örsçelik has received the 2001–02 Distinguished Past District Governor Presidential Citation, RI’s Service Above Self Award, and The Rotary Foundation Citation for Meritorious Service. He is a Rotary Foundation Major Donor and Benefactor.

RON D BURTON Norman, Okla., USA Ron retired as president of the University of Oklahoma Foundation Inc. in 2007. He is a member of the Cleveland County, Oklahoma, and American Bar Associations and is admitted to practice in Oklahoma and before the U S Supreme Court. He is a founder and past president of the Norman Public School Foundation, and founder and past board member of the Norman Community Foundation. A recipient of the Silver Beaver Award, he is a past vice president of the Last Frontier Council of the Boy Scouts of America. Ron has been a Rotarian since 1979 and has served RI as president, director, Foundation trustee and vice chair, RI Board Executive Committee member, RI president’s aide, committee vice chair and chair, task force member, and International Assembly group discussion leader, assistant moderator and moderator. He has been a regional Rotary Foundation coordinator (RRFC) and Permanent Fund national advisor, and has served as assistant moderator and moderator of RRFC training institutes. A recipient of RI’s Service Above Self Award, Ron also has received The Rotary Foundation Citation for Meritorious Service, Distinguished Service Award, and International Service Award for a Polio Free World. THOMAS M THORFINNSON Eden Prairie Noon, Minn., USA Tom is president of Thorfinnson Law Offices and is engaged in the private practice of corporate law. He is a former lecturer in business law for the University of Minnesota and is in his 14 th year as a member of the First Minnetonka City Bank board of directors. He also is past director and board chair for the Hopkins Crime Prevention Foundation, Open Circle Adult Day Care, Eden Prairie ABC Foundation, and Eden Prairie Girls Athletic Association. For 15 years, he volunteered as a head coach for girls’ fast-pitch softball. A Rotarian since 1980, Tom has served RI as vice president, director, member of the RI/USAID Water Alliance Steering Committee and the Strategic Planning Committee, regional Rotary Foundation coordinator, Council on Legislation representative, Permanent Fund national advisor and zone coordinator. AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 33

Helping

Assamese

migrants in Coimbatore Jaishree

magine a group of Assamese children, who have little to eat and hence end up consuming 10 kg of betel nut a day to satisfy their hunger pangs. Not because they love betel nut or are addicted to it, but because heaps of these nuts are available at their doorstep, with their mothers shelling this commodity as part of their daily work in a village — Thenamannalur, about 21 km from Coimbatore. These children belong to three or four groups of families that migrated from Assam in search of a livelihood. They were brought by agents to work for affluent landlords who own large farms growing betel nut. Thanks to the interest and intervention of RC Coimbatore Aakruthi, D 3201, and passionate help from one of its members Dr Meera Krishnan, many of these children are now getting better nutrition, healthcare and education in the local anganwadi and at the Government PRG Middle School. I visit the PRG School and find a group of 5–6-year-old Assamese children recite a variety of rhymes in Tamil. “The children are taught English, Tamil and Math,” says Vatsala, a volunteer-teacher and RCC (Rotary Community Corps) member.

Zarina Iqbal, club president (2014–15) leads me into a migrants’ colony, where Halima and Reema, along with other women, are busy shelling betel nuts, talking rapidly in Hindi and an Assamese dialect. An infant sleeps blissfully in a make-shift hammock hung from a wooden beam of the verandah and few young children, in dirty clothes and unkempt hair, play hopscotch outside. Initially shy, the women tell me they make about Rs 114 for shelling a quintal of betel nuts and collectively do about 50 kg a day. When I ask if that isn’t too less, Reema quickly says, “It is like working abroad. Back home, we’d earn only Rs 60–70 for similar hours of work.” The women hesitate to speak as their employers have cautioned them against doing so. These Assamese groups are bound by a contract for a period for a meagre sum fixed by these agents. They are housed in these colonies during their contract period. This club has formed RCCs in these villages to take care of the people’s welfare. The 40 women of RCC Kadambam is engaged in enrolling the children in the local schools/ balwadis, educating the women on health and hygiene and

Assamese children reciting rhymes in school. 34 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

Zarina Iqbal, Parvathi Ravichandran and Dr Meera Krishnan at an Assamese settlement.

giving them basic education to help them read and write and perform simple arithmetic. They are the bridge between the club and the villagers. Zarina promises to bring new clothes for the women for Ramzan, but warns, “If you start chewing betel nut again, I shall not visit you.” Last year, she and her team succeeded in weaning these women from this unhealthy habit and conducted several dental camps to clean betel nut stains from their teeth. “They chew it to ward off hunger,” she explains. The Rotarians have provided toys and dresses for the children; vitamin supplements for the families, renovated balwadis and provided mats, books and play material. “We club our village visits with a picnic to get all members excited about the trip.” She gives credit to Dr Meera Krishnan for a majority of welfare activities performed under this ‘Happy Villages’ project. An unassuming, generous and passionate social worker with a number of awards to her credit, including one from the National Commission for Women, gynaecologist Meera puts her medical education to good use. She helped in conducting health screening for the children. “Thanks to the intake of so much of betel nut, we found their teeth stained, and first gave them a large quantity of toothbrushes and taught them how to brush their teeth. Later we found that their teeth is stained by the betel nut,” says Zarina. They also suffered from severe anaemia thanks to this diet. What amazed the Rotarians was that once some of the children, who were just wasting their time at home, were put into the balwadis or the PRG School, they started learning very fast. “Within months they were speaking fluent Tamil,” says Zarina. And the midday meal at the anganwadi

and school has improved their nutrition level and is perhaps the reason that one of the children, a girl, has started topping the class. She added that when the Rotarians first visited this village, they found many of the children naked. “We were told that as they had only one set of clothes, they had to wait for that washed set to dry. So we gave them more clothes.” But the overall hygiene of these migrants is rather pathetic. As most of them are Muslim, Zarina, a devout Muslim herself, chided them for not performing regular namaz and “they told me that they did not have enough water to perform wuzu, but I told them this was not an excuse.” Though they’d like to help these migrants much more, the problem is that “many of our members say that if we put up something permanent like toilets, we can’t be sure they will not migrate somewhere else,” she adds. But in the meantime, they are happy that “we are at least doing something good

We found their teeth stained, due to consuming betel nut to fight hunger. We first gave them toothbrushes and taught them how to brush their teeth.

AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 35

for the children. With better education and health, they will have a much better future than their parents.” She is also toying with the idea of putting up some of the girls in Madrasas; “in Combatore we have some good Madrasas which will take care of these girls, educate them and get them married. Some of the parents are ready for this, but it is a huge responsibility so we will have to discuss this further.” adds Zarina. She is open to the idea of this service being expanded with the involvement of more clubs, and gives credit to IPDG Venugopal Menon for “encouraging us all the time and mentioning our work at various platforms.”

Women shelling betel nuts.

Welfare in other villages

Empowerment

This all-women Rotary club (29 members) is involved in a variety of development activities in two Panchayats — Thennamanallur and Boluvampatti — with 14,000 population, comprising 14 villages. Building toilets for homes and schools, organising periodic medical camps and equipping schools with infrastructure are few of the activities undertaken by the club. Dr Meera visits ailing villagers and provides treatment at their door. We visit the hut of Govindraj, who used to pluck coconuts but is now bedridden after a fall. Meera tends to his bedsores, gives him an injection and medicines, explaining to his wife how to administer them. The club has given him a wheel chair and constructed a ramp in front of his home to facilitate his movement. The kind doctor immunises the village children against Rubella and Hepatitis B and conducts de-addiction camps for men. Even as we are on the road, Meera gets a call from an anxious villager saying that her husband is suffering from chest pain and she dashes off to attend to this emergency.

RC Aakruthi works in tandem with CORD (Chinmaya Organisation for Rural Development), Siruvani, in some of their projects too. They market the products of CORD’s SHGs thus helping these women enhance their income. Zarina places an order with Meera, who is Director of CORD Siruvani, for putting up a stall at the next club meeting for food items, wire bags, herbal food mixes, herbal pesticides and fertilisers, insect and rat traps that helps to save plants — all these made by the SHGs. Meera has taught few villagers, including Govindraj and his wife, to make paper covers which are bought by the club for its packaging. Meenakshi, who was deserted by her husband, and Kavitha who has a bedridden spouse, now earn a decent livelihood by stitching blouses, skirts and sari falls with the help of sewing machines donated by the club. The Rotarians sponsor LIC premiums for needy women in these villages.

We’re happy we are doing something good for the children. With better education and health, they will have a much better future than their parents. 36 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

Sanitation Most of the villages are clean and devoid of garbage dumped on the streets, thanks to the coloured dust bins (for waste segregation) and carts that the club has provided. It has also helped set up a compost pit in a school in one of the villages. “We keep the conservancy workers too in good spirit by gifting them new clothes,” says Zarina. “It was a wonderful year and I intend to carry on Zarina’s work in my year too,” says Parvathi Ravichandran, the current year president and headmistress of a school for special children. Zarina explains, “We women can do amazing work, provided we have family support. I am lucky to have that.” Her husband, Haji Iqbal, is associated with RC Coimbatore Cosmopolitan. Pictures by Jaishree

MESSAGE FROM THE FOUNDATION CHAIR

A longer look ahead

he Rotary Foundation has traditionally used a few annual goals to guide its planning for the next Rotary year. However, there is a more comprehensive plan in place for the current Rotary year. At their October 2014 meeting, the Trustees utilised the spirit of the RI strategic plan by approving four priorities to stay in place for the next three years: 1. End polio, now and forever. 2. Strengthen Rotarians’ knowledge, engagement and financial support of The Rotary Foundation. 3. Increase the quality and impact of Rotary’s humanitarian service effort through Foundation grants and the six areas of focus. 4. Enhance the image and awareness of the Foundation’s record of achievements, particularly the success of PolioPlus and its 100-year record of doing good in the world. In addition to the agreed four priorities for the next three years, the Trustees also approved four measurable goals for each of the priorities. Therefore, we now have 16 measurable goals to guide our efforts. The goals can be changed each year as progress is made on achievement of the priorities, but for the current year our course is set— and for the first time, it is measurable! I will be sharing some of the goals with you in future editions, but it is worth noting that the advent of measurable goals for the Foundation came at a propitious time. RI President K R Ravindran is a proponent of key performance indicators (KPIs) for the work of Rotarians in leadership positions, and the new measurable goals made it much easier to develop some KPIs for our regional Rotary Foundation coordinators and endowment/major gift advisors. The KPIs are still an experiment, and they will need refinement and development, but they are a step in the right direction as we try to take a longer look ahead each year!

Ray Klinginsmith Foundation Trustee Chair

Membership in India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Maldives As on July 1, 2015

RI RI Rotary No. of Women Rotaract Interact Zone District Clubs Rotarians Rotarians

5 5 5 4 4 5 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 6 6 4 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6

2981 2982 3000 3011 3012 3020 3030 3040 3051 3052 3053 3060 3070 3080 3090 3100 3110 3120 3131 3132 3140 3150 3160 3170 3180 3190 3201 3202 3211 3212 3220 3230 3240 3250 3261 3262 3271 3272 3281 3282 3291 3292 Total

103 60 105 65 70 71 91 97 64 67 56 95 113 76 77 76 106 69 136 78 146 92 66 119 140 96 132 125 133 89 77 137 79 92 74 78 56 100 171 119 150 89 4,035

4,273 2,884 4,568 2,833 2,827 3,505 4,847 2,278 2,370 3,530 2,147 3,901 3,270 3,162 2,052 1,953 3,454 2,747 5,656 3,311 7,521 3,416 2,358 4,957 5,642 3,991 5,023 4,790 4,233 3,504 2,123 5,960 2,808 3,553 2,413 2,760 986 1,830 5,054 3,232 3,903 3,032 1,48,657

192 131 369 399 285 179 544 312 176 548 225 350 278 162 103 101 189 247 973 278 1,018 273 105 285 249 309 276 237 254 155 249 494 310 543 234 289 140 345 655 285 610 367 13,723

43 33 148 25 43 49 51 31 38 28 14 37 49 43 26 10 43 31 55 46 106 70 9 29 40 57 72 71 9 20 68 140 45 40 14 32 35 20 190 110 47 93 2,160

196 102 315 109 88 239 187 90 119 127 30 96 129 154 34 83 46 48 180 104 343 163 37 259 367 119 93 360 67 147 185 388 122 166 95 62 13 35 80 20 99 91 5,787

RCC

164 37 77 28 53 263 128 133 330 123 90 106 58 98 122 146 61 48 68 78 140 109 80 155 144 41 46 39 119 118 94 297 123 171 41 68 13 34 179 38 537 89 4,886

Source: RI South Asia Office

District Wise Contributions to The Rotary Foundation as on June 30, 2015 Interim Statement District Number

APF

PolioPlus

Other Restricted

(in US Dollars)

Total Endowment Contributions Fund

India 2980 3000 3010 3020 3030 3040 3051 3052 3053 3060 3070 3080 3090 3100 3110 3120 3131 3132 3140 3150 3160 3170 3180 3190 3201 3202 3211 3212 3230 3240 3250 3261 3262 3291 India Total

2,61,094 1,05,725 7,13,275 2,18,718 1,79,924 37,723 80,573 (20,400) 65,532 5,22,823 1,41,217 1,54,545 54,051 53,619 1,10,482 1,09,115 2,86,115 55,289 8,85,102 75,009 46,935 3,22,753 2,51,158 10,02,131 1,64,139 2,04,170 1,99,519 1,05,280 3,43,780 2,45,268 4,41,522 37,992 91,654 1,98,657 77,44,489

1,45,124 2,000 48,105 46,989 8,919 714 50 0 0 10,705 6,673 40,792 0 0 4,659 0 9,839 4,807 8,469 3,823 17 3,749 0 100 1,38,712 1,53,190 1,000 21,351 5,088 1,727 16,283 0 0 0 6,82,885

0 7,000 76,881 50,373 3,09,164 51,814 0 2,06,430 4,000 1,66,724 66,489 51,885 0 15,378 0 205 7,27,260 7,000 5,81,188 1,09,430 30,000 71,124 11,427 3,04,722 39,677 2,29,500 13,336 0 1,46,786 96,387 5,165 0 2,500 1,58,132 35,39,977

20,075 14,615 73,631 1,86,101 32,221 593 0 83,136 0 12,037 0 17,398 0 0 0 0 35,050 19,000 89,698 36,639 0 0 0 1,198 0 52,017 6,000 1,000 1,26,798 33,384 87,840 0 50,500 0 9,78,932

4,26,292 1,29,340 9,11,892 5,02,180 5,30,228 90,844 80,623 2,69,166 69,532 7,12,288 2,14,378 2,64,621 54,051 68,997 1,15,141 1,09,320 10,58,265 86,096 15,64,458 2,24,901 76,952 3,97,626 2,62,585 13,08,151 3,42,529 6,38,877 2,19,855 1,27,631 6,22,452 3,76,765 5,50,810 37,992 1,44,654 3,56,789 1,29,46,283

14,025

19,604

5,88,553

0 (816)

0 1,000

46,363 86,730

Bangladesh 30,897 17,413 1,00,525 1,000

34,113 0

6,72,679 3,04,847

0 10,33,648 2,00,64,033

2,48,397 1,48,93,852 18,93,74,709

3220

5,45,689

Sri Lanka 9,235

3271 3272

17,395 40,856

Pakistan 28,969 45,689

3281 3282

5,90,256 2,03,322

Nepal 3292 South Asia Total World Total

1,67,730 93,09,738 12,30,53,573

3,128 9,01,329 2,89,62,816

77,538 36,49,137 1,72,94,286

* Does not include contribution of Mrs Rajashree Birla ($1,000,000)

Source: RI South Asia Office

Rotary International Service Above Self Awardees The 2014â&#x20AC;&#x201C;15 RI Service Above Self Award, Rotary Internationalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s highest honour for individual Rotarians, have been conferred on: 2980

Asoka Nagappan

3020

Manda Chiranjeevi Das

3030

Sanjay Wani

3040

Atul Gargava

3051

Ashish Desai

3052

Ratneshwar P Kashyap

3060

Chandrakant Shah

3080

B L Ramsisaria

3100

Mahendra S Jain

3132

Rajgopal Zanwar

3140

Gulam Vahanvaty

3211

Udayakumar Kumar

3230

Raja Ramakrishnan

3240

Minoti Barthakur

3250

Sandeep Narang

3281

A H Zahidul Islam

3282

Monzurul Hoque Choudhury

3291

Vishnu Dhandhania

3292

Tikaman Vaidya

This award recognises Rotarians who have demonstrated exemplary humanitarian service, especially those who have helped others through personal volunteer work and active involvement in Rotary. Source: Rotary International

GLOBAL

OUTLOOK

E N R I C H YO U R R OTA RY E X P E R I E N C E

A DOZEN WAYS TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE

Make the most of your membership. Here’s how. Learn more about Rotary Global Rewards, a new member beneﬁt program that offers discounts on products and services – travel, hotels, car rentals, dining, and entertainment. Visit www. rotary.org/myrotary and click on Member Center.

ALL PHOTOS : ROTARY INTERNATIONAL

Identify a need in your community and work with your club to design a hands-on project that addresses it.

Learn how to apply for a grant to implement a project at www.rotary.org/grants.

AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 39

GLOBAL

OUTLOOK

PROGRAMMES FOR YOUNG LEADERS ROTARACT Rotaract is a service club for adults ages 18–30 to exchange ideas, plan activities and projects, and socialise. Rotaract is a global community of young adults taking action for positive change through hands-on service projects, fun networking and social activities, professional development opportunities and an international network of young leaders. Young professionals in the community and university students may participate.

INTERACT Interact is Rotary’s service club for young people ages 12–18 and can be found in middle schools, high schools or the community. Working together, Interactors conduct international and community service projects with the support of their sponsoring Rotary club. Participants gain leadership and organisational skills and give back to their communities.

ROTARY YOUTH EXCHANGE Rotary facilitates international study abroad experiences for secondary school students ages 15–19. Students are cultural ambassadors over a few weeks to an academic year, and are sponsored and hosted by Rotary clubs.

RYLA RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Awards) is Rotary’s leadership development programme for young people of any age. Typically, RYLA is designed by districts for seminar and experiential learning and team-building for secondary school students, university students and young professionals. Participants are invited to apply their new skills to lead and serve in their communities.

SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES Rotary Peace Fellowships Each year, Rotary funds some of the world’s brightest professionals to study at our Rotary Peace Centres. The fellows are committed to the advancement of peace, and many go on to serve as leaders in national governments, the military, law enforcement and nongovernmental or international organisations, such as the United Nations and World Bank. The fellowships cover tuition and fees, room and board, round-trip transportation, and all internship and field study expenses. Learn more at www.rotary.org/peace-fellowships. Club- and district-sponsored scholarships Clubs and districts can create their own scholarships and fund them with a district grant (for any type of study) or a global grant (for graduate studies in one of Rotary’s areas of focus). 40 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

Know a young leader? Tell them about Interact, Rotaract, Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA), and Rotary Youth Exchange.

Explore other clubs. Did you know that you’re welcome to attend any club’s meeting, anywhere in the world? Use the Club Finder tool at www.rotary.org or download the Club Locator app to ﬁnd a meeting when you travel.

Try a new role. Clubs need leaders. Take the ﬁrst step and ask where your club needs help.

GLOBAL

OUTLOOK

ROTARY AND POLIO Attend the next Rotary International Convention in Seoul, Korea. Enjoy inspiring talks from global leaders, celebrities and activists. Meet members from around the world. It’s the ultimate way to understand the scope of Rotary. Register at www.riconvention.org.

To date, Rotary has contributed more than US $1.4 billion and many volunteer hours to help immunise more than two billion children against polio in 122 countries. Currently, we are working to raise $35 million per year through 2018 for polio eradication, which the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will match two to one. Learn more at www.endpolionow.org.

Be part of history and help eradicate polio. Find out how to support PolioPlus and join the movement to end polio at www.endpolionow.org.

Use the resources in the Rotary Brand Centre at www.rotary.org/brandcenter to help you communicate, inspire and collaborate.

Meet other members who share you interests and passions through a Rotary Fellowship or Rotarian Action Group. There are about 70 groups, catering to everyone from cooking enthusiasts to water and sanitation project experts.

Connect on social media. Rotary has official 11 pages on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, Flickr and more. Join the conversation at www.rotary.org/socialnetworking.

ROTARY’S BRAND CENTRE The Rotary Brand Centre provides tools to help members apply a consistent look and voice in all communications. A consistent look is vital to strengthening our image and enhancing our reputation. Visit Rotary’s Brand Centre at www.rotary.org/brandcenter for resources and templates to help you tell your story. Sign in to:

12 Support The Rotary Foundation. Contributions provide millions of dollars in grants that support our humanitarian service around the world. Learn more at www.rotary.org/give.

1 Access Rotary, Foundation, Rotaract and Interact logos 2 Create your own club or district logo 3 Find voice and visual identity guidelines 4 Customise a club brochure template 5 Download newsletter, presentation and letterhead templates AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 41

GLOBAL

OUTLOOK

WHY DID YOU JOIN ROTARY? We asked members around the world why they joined and why they stay in their club. I joined Rotary to be a part of our collective humanitarian projects, and I have stayed because of the joy on the faces of beneﬁciaries each time we solve a need. Chibuzo Hilary Asogwa

Rotary Club of Ekulu Nigeria

I had a desire to give back to my community and the world. My father was a Rotarian, so I knew a lot about it. That was about nine years ago. I think what keeps me there is the friendships, not only with people in my local club, but with Rotarians I’ve met from around the world.

As a disabled couple who are both Rotarians, we knew that our fellow Rotarians would see us as people, not disabled people, and would welcome our input into the community. And so it has proved for the last 10+ years! David Shaw

Rotary Club of Thornton-Cleveleys England

Elizabeth Cohoe

Rotary Club of Cataraqui-Kingston Ont., Canada

I joined to make a difference in my community. I’ve stayed because I am.

I joined Rotary after having been involved in a post-tsunami project in Sri Lanka in 2005. This was the ﬁrst contact I had had with a Rotary club, and I was so impressed by the dedication of its members in their efforts to help others that I immediately applied to join my club in Stockholm when I arrived back in Sweden.

Heather R Klein

Nicholas Thompson

Rotary Club of Alleghany County N.C., USA

Rotary Club of Stockholm International Sweden

Making friends, travel and self-development attracted me to Rotaract. After a successful decade in Rotaract, I graduated to be a Rotarian. The bonding with Rotary family and the way projects are executed to beneﬁt society at large helped me ascend to be a Rotarian. Saket Gadkari

Rotary Club of Thane Hills India 42 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

GLOBAL

OUTLOOK

I sat down and ﬁgured out how much time I was donating, and how much more effective it would be as part of a club instead of doing it all myself. I joined for the service and stay for all the friends I’ve made. It’s nice to travel and instantly have friends wherever I go. Aur Beck

Rotary Club of Carbondale Breakfast Ill., USA

Honestly? I joined for business. But I stayed for the fellowship and causes.

The more I give back, the more I continue to get. Rotary moments, personal development, great friends, the joy of service — Rotary is the gift that keeps on giving! Raewyn Kirkman

Rotary Club of Waikato Sunrise New Zealand

Craig Howie

Rotary Club of Whitby Sunrise Ont., Canada

I joined Rotary to render service to the downtrodden; I stayed because I found fun and friendship.

Rotary inspires me to contribute to good humanitarian causes. My club is a great platform for service and fellowship.

Nze Anizor

Sayeed Chaudhury

Rotary Club of Trans Amadi Nigeria

Rotary Club of Sonargaon Dhaka Bangladesh

WE’RE HERE TO HELP There’s always more to learn about Rotary. Staff members are available to answer your questions by phone or email from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central Time.

Share your story! Tell us why you joined and stay in Rotary at: membership.minute@rotary.org

facebook.com/rotary

twitter.com/rotary

Rotary International and The Rotary Foundation One Rotary Centre 1560 Sherman Ave. Evanston, IL 60201 USA Phone: 847-866-3000 Toll-free: 866-976-8279 Email: RotarySupportCenter@rotary.org Fax: 847-328-4101

AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 43

Rasheeda Bhagat

hen outgoing DG of RI District 3131 Vivek Aranha looks back at his year as Governor of a district that made waves during 2014–15 in the Rotary world for quite a few achievements and innovations, one of them being adding 1,500 new members, the highest in any Rotary District in the world, he gives an interesting nugget — Drumstick Revolution. “I saw in Chennai how in Tamil Nadu, particularly rural areas, drumstick, which is one of the biggest sources of iron, is used to improve the low haemoglobin levels of women. So in our District we undertook what we call the Drumstick Revolution and planted 75,000 drumstick trees in the region,” he says. The saplings were subsidised and people encouraged to plant them across the District. Aranha explains that in Maharashtra there is no knowledge or awareness that this vegetable can be a cheap and effective source of iron for women. One of the major health problems of Indian women is a low haemoglobin count and he was very impressed with the way Tamil Nadu has tackled this problem using the humble drumstick. So on July 30, when RI Director PT Prabhakar chartered RC Pune Next Gen, a massive club with 406 members, one of its first big projects was to plant one lakh drumstick saplings in rural and urban areas of the district within a month. “It doesn’t cost much and we’ve subsidised the saplings. I told the members that begin with your homes. All of

44 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

District 3131 DG Vivek Aranha leads a green revolution.

In new clubs coming up in D 3131, more young people and women are joining Rotary. So we’ve cracked the two major challenges of Rotary International.

PRID P T Prabhakar inaugurates RC Pune Next Gen.

you live in different Societies; plant at least two saplings in your Society and others elsewhere and don’t worry about who will benefit from it. It will improve the overall nutritional and health parameters of our community,”says Aranha. He is also proud that women have been in “the forefront of all our activities, whether it is projects or membership. This year we sent 40 women Rotarians to Dubai as a group for an exchange programme. And in RC Next Gen, of the 406 members, half are women. We’ve also started a new

all-women’s club with 30 members and all of them are entrepreneurs.” Young flock to Rotary PDG Deepak Shikarpur said that the two major challenge areas identified by Rotary International — getting more women and younger people into Rotary — had been cracked by D 3131. “In all the new clubs coming up, more young people and women are joining Rotary. The average age of the 406-member club Vivek mentioned, RC Pune Next Gen, as its name suggests, is 30!”

So how has D 3131 managed this difficult feat? Shikarpur attributes this to “proper and targeted marketing.”Aranha says: “I believe that we are doing community service in the right sense of the word. We don’t put the name of any Rotarians in any projects — no director, no governor, no president — only District 3131 and Rotary feature in the name plates. So people feel there is no personal agenda involved and that has helped us a lot in attracting newer and younger people to Rotary.”

SOLUTION FOR THE LAST MONTH’S CROSSWORD

Rotary at a glance Rotarians Clubs Districts Rotaractors Clubs Interactors Clubs RCC members RCC

: : : : : : : : :

12,16,328* 35,043* 535* 1,80,964 7,868 4,14,115 18,005 1,91,889 8,343

*As of July 1, 2015 As of March 31, 2015

AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 45

LITERACY FOCUS “Asha Kiran ... a ray of hope” An initiative to send children back to school PRID Shekhar Mehta Chairman, Rotary India Literacy Mission

came here with my mother and stepfather. I have been coming to this school for last six months. I came here to assist my parents in the brick kiln and got enrolled after seeing other children coming here. I am happy that I am studying. I can write letters and identify numbers. I will study well and then help children like myself,” says Sanjana Soye (7) from Howrah, West Bengal. Sending 1,00,000 children back to school will be the focus of Rotarians for August. The project took off with the launch of “Asha Kiran ... a ray of hope” campaign. Some alarming facts about Child Development of India triggered the need to focus on this area of the TEACH Programme: • According to a report of Global Initiative on Out-of-School

46 ROTARY NEWS JULY 2015

•

Children published by UNESCO and UNICEF in 2014, India has 1.4 million children not attending primary school. According to an ASER report published in 2014, 96.7 per cent children are enrolled in government schools in rural areas. However this high enrolment has unfortunately not resulted in great learning outcomes, due to poor quality teaching/learning experience and high dropout rate. A study by CRY during 2014 shows that the dropout rate from elementary schools stood at 40 per cent. According to the ASER report, 48 per cent children enrolled in government schools and studying in Std V can read only till Std II levels and only 50.5 per cent

can perform basic mathematical operations.

What is Asha Kiran? ‘Asha Kiran ... a ray of hope’ campaign is a Rotary initiative to send all out-of-school children in the age group of 6 to 14 years, including children with special needs and children at risk, back to school by facilitating their access to main-stream State-funded primary/elementary schools, thereby enabling them to complete their studies. Activities • Identifying out-of-school/ dropouts/never-been-to-school children with the assistance of partnered NGO working specifically with them.

•

• • • • • •

•

Baseline data collection about such children by conducting surveys. Setting up a non-formal learning centre. Providing supplemental teaching through trained teachers. Periodical assessment about progress of children. Conducting health camps. Special activity classes for personality and overall development. Evaluating the learning abilities of children after completion of a stipulated teaching period, say, 3 months. Sharing details of the children with local government education authorities through government agencies in the locality, for tracking the children. Advocacy of parents and sustainability approaches.

Current projects undertaken by partners of “Asha Kiran ... a ray of hope” Apne Aap Worlwide Work Area : Kolkata - Sonagachhi and Munshiganj (150 children); New Delhi - Dharampura and Premnagar (50 children); Mumbai - Kamathipura (125 children); Bihar - Uttari Rampur, Khawaspur and Araria District (175 children)

Focus Area : Children living in red light areas in the age group of 6–14 years. Activities: Provide informal education and later, mainstreaming into formal state funded schools; Mobilising the community to bring about an awareness of RTE Act; facilitate healthcare, nutrition, entertainment for the target group.

Implementing Asha Kiran • Identifying local or nationwide networks/associations/NGOs that have credible track record of dealing with such children. • Entering into a partnership with these networks at national level through formal MoU on the

Kamina Social Welfare Society Work Area: Howrah - 4 brick kilns in Rajapur, Kanupat, Kalikapur and Shiberhana village areas in Howrah, West Bengal (200 children).

Focus Area: Children of brick kiln workers and migrant labourers. Activities: Provide supplemental teaching, counseling and mentoring through temporary classrooms. Organising and conducting learning ability evaluation of each child after every 4 months. Imparting life skill education, physical training, organising health check-up camps and co-curricular activities.

•

implementation methodology of working with such children. The objective of this partnership is to augment the capacity of the concerned working networks to increase the number of children who are being educated. The partnered network would provide

Impact: At the time of initiation a survey conducted says that 98 per cent of the children had never been to any school. They could not identify letters and numbers. On completion of five months in the makeshift school, these children can easily write their name, father’s name and full address, small sentences, and do basic arithmetic.

NISHTHA Work Area: Kolkata - Villages in Mograhat, Baruipur area in 24 Parganas (South) - over 850 children.

F o c u s A r e a : Vu l n e r a b l e disadvantaged children in the age group of 6–14 years belonging to families from very poor socioeconomic background. Activities: Provide supplemental teaching, counseling and mentoring through 19 community centres; Advocacy on personal health, hygiene, life skill education and facilitating co-curricular activities; Motivating local school teachers to undertake their duties and responsibilities with utmost care. Impact: A survey report conducted before the project was undertaken says most children in these villages were enrolled in local government schools but weren’t going there for various reasons. This has been rectified with RILM’s intervention to send these children back to school, by providing them with supplemental teaching and advocacy of both parents and local authorities.

•

regular updates on the progress of the children. Children to be connected with donors so that they can track the development of the child sponsored by them. Local Rotary clubs, Inner Wheel clubs or anyone sponsoring a child can track the progress made AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 47

• •

•

by the child by visiting centres run by the partnered network. The cost of sending one child back to school is Rs 2,100. Official receipt (Tax exempted under 80G) will be issued on payment of Rs 2,100 to the donor. Any club or Rotarian interested in supporting this cause will be provided with the official receipt booklet with 10 leaves of Rs 2,100 each, which they can issue to the donor on receipt of the specified amount. Once a club/fundraiser has accumulated the total amount of the desired children they wish to sponsor, they can make a cheque/ Demand Draft (preferably) favouring ‘RSAS A/c Literacy Mission’ and send it to the following address: Rotary India Literacy Mission, Skyline House, 145 Sarat Bose Road, Kolkata 700026.

48 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

National Committee of “Asha Kiran … a ray of hope” PDG Dr Rekha Shetty

Chair

PDG Sushil Khurana

Vice Chair

PDG K Chandra Mohan

Member

PDG Zubin Sam Amaria

Member

PDG Dilip Patnaik

Member

Let us join hands to build the bridge towards literacy and help these children by sending them back to school, thereby ensuring a secure and happy future for them.

Rotary India Literacy Mission commits to HRD Ministry, GoI to send 1,00,000 children back to school. “I am extremely happy and proud to engage with the TEACH campaign

of Rotary. I have got a promise from him (PRID Shekhar Mehta) that in the next one year the TEACH programme of Rotary family will help us get 1,00,000 children across the country back to school,’ quoted Smriti Zubin Irani, Minister of Human Resource Development, Government of India. To achieve this number the RI Districts in India have set their national goals for this year which accumulates to sending 85,000 children nationwide back to school.

Association of Inner Wheel Clubs in India pledges to send 35,000 children back to school. The Association of Inner Wheel Clubs in India has set their national goal of sending as many girl children back to school equivalent to the number of members in their Association.

Literacy comes first here Selvi

iteracy was my priority for the year 2014–15, during my tenure as District Governor, because we wanted to support Rotary’s Literacy Mission,” said IPDG Satpal Gulati, D 3120. As a result, all the 69 clubs of the District focused on promoting literacy in their region and their activities revolved around improving infrastructure in schools to enroll more children in schools. Construction of toilet blocks in schools took precedence to put a check on adolescent girls dropping out of schools. “I wanted each club to build 3 to 4

toilets. In Allahabad alone 50 toilets were built in schools,” he said. By the yearend, he says, 275 toilets were constructed in schools at a cost of $80,000, of which $20,000 came from the District Designated Funds. Gulati himself sponsored $30,000 through his corporate group and the balance was borne by the Rotarians. Each club adopted a village and special attention was given to the children regularly attending schools. The Rotarians provided 5,000 pieces of classroom furniture to the village schools to enhance the learning experience for the students. To help

Construction of toilet blocks in schools took precedence to put a check on adolescent girls dropping out of schools.

students commute to school comfortably, the Rotarians gifted them with bicycles. Vindhya, a Class 9 student from Mirzapur, is very excited with her new bicycle. “I used to walk at least 8 km everyday to school and back. By the time I reached school/ home, I was very tired. I thank Rotary for this wonderful gift,” she smiles. Several literacy awareness programmes were conducted particularly in the semi-urban and rural belts. Approximately 95,000 books were given to different school libraries to promote the reading habit among students. The clubs also extended relief to the victims of natural disasters in Jammu & Kashmir and Nepal. Gulati said that the J & K Rahat Kosh was set up through which the District collected Rs 4 lakh which was sent to PRID Shekhar Mehta for relief and rehabilitation of the flood victims. They also contributed Rs 12 lakh along with shelter kits, clothing and food for the victims of Nepal earthquake. AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 49

A green funeral Kiran Zehra

hen one man dies, he takes a tree with him. We don’t have that many trees left. Think about the future,” says Rtn Indrajit Barot, RC Mehsana, D-3051. Passionate about people switching over from traditional methods of cremating bodies to the much more ecofriendly gas based crematorium, he and his other club members have been instrumental in 85–90 percent of villagers in and around Mehsana, Gujarat, switching to this mode of cremation. These Rotarians have been urging the villagers to understand the “environmental impact locally and globally,” of a wood-based funeral. “They learnt to use toilets and now have better hygiene and also drinking water. But nobody wanted to use the gas crematorium. The traditional method was like a shibboleth, and they were not letting it go,” says Rtn Sandip Sheth, when asked how difficult it was to get the villagers to accept the gas crematorium. Spread on 40,000 sq ft, Shri Manubhai Mafatlal Patel Nij Dham, 50 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

is the only cremation facility in Mehsana. “We did not have to look for funds outside the club; Sandip placed the request at the club meeting and by the next evening we had Rs 50 lakh in our kitty, the other Rs 40 lakh was raised through a corpus,” says Rtn Maullin Patel, another club member. The crematorium is named after his father, who was a major donor for the project. The club

signed an MoU with the Municipality of Mehsana. Thoughtfully placed throughout the green campus are many special features that provide detailed information on death registration, organ donation, use of the hearse van, mortuary body refrigerator and options for using either a traditional or gas-based cremation. The crematorium can accommodate 2,000 people attending a funeral.

They learnt to use toilets and now have better hygiene and also drinking water. But nobody wanted to use the gas crematorium. The traditional method was like a shibboleth, and they were not letting it go.

The prarthana hall (prayer room) can seat up to 500 people and Sindhi, Gujarati or Punjabi bhajans are played depending on the community of the deceased. The ashes are stored in niches in a store room. Barot remembers the case of a young boy who was studying in the US and “couldn’t attend his father’s funeral. Using the live telecast option on our website, the boy was virtually able to attend his father’s antim vidhi (final rites).” The Panch Mahabhoot-themed cubicles describe each element of life with verses taken from the Bhagwad Gita. On

request the asthi visarjan seva is also provided for the bereaving family and the ashes are immersed in the Ganga. A team of 10 full-time staff maintain and provide service at Nij Dham. But without the services of Barot who retired as the Sub Registrar for Births and Deaths at the Mehsana Municipality and an honorary Rotarian of the club, “it would have been impossible for us to come this far,” says Rtn Shoba. The Rotarians took special efforts to break the taboo that visiting a crematorium could bring bad luck and death. “The night before Diwali — Kali

Chaudas — was considered a dark night limited to tantric vidhi. We broke this ritual. We lit up the crematorium and invited people to light crackers,” says Patel. Now this ritual has become an annual affair at the crematorium. Rotarians of RC Mehsana are a happy lot. They estimate that over 3.53 lakh kg of precious wood has been saved by this project. What is more, the larger area of this complex has been developed with greenery and maintained so well that it has become a popular city centre, also used by locals to walk or relax.

RC Anakapalle completes 60 years Team Rotary News

C Anakapalle, D 3020, celebrated its diamond jubilee on June 13. DG (2014–15) Mohan Prasad participated in the celebrations along with other past governors and Rotarians of the District. Governor of Tamil Nadu K Rosaiah, felicitated the charter member, 87-year old Vuppala Sanyasayya Setty, who also holds a 100 per cent attendance record for these 60 years. The services of PDG VV Sanyasi Rao was also recognised at the occasion. Anakapalle is a municipal town on the banks of River Sarada in Visakhapatnam and is famous for jaggery. Rotary Club of Anakapalle, sponsored by RC Visakhapatnam in the then RI District 314 by PDG K S Dutt, was chartered on June 16, 1955, with 24 members. Today the club has 104 members, two of whom — I R Sastry (1959–60) and V V Sanyasi Rao (1989–90) have held the office of District Governor. The club has 100 Paul Harris Fellows and 4 Major Donors.

Governor of Tamil Nadu K Rosaiah felicitating PDG VV Sanyasi Rao and 87 year old Rtn Vuppala Sanyasayya Setty.

The club’s welfare projects in the six decades include 4,000 IOL surgeries performed at Rotary Eye Hospital; distribution of 1,500 school benches; six drinking water projects; building toilets in schools; donation of two ambulances and an x-ray unit to the Merchant Association’s Maternity Hospital. The club’s immovable assets include two community halls and the third, ‘Rotary Diamond Jubilee open air theatre,’ to commemorate its 60th year milestone was inaugurated as part of the celebration.

The Rotary Endowment Merit Scholarships is the club’s endeavour to promote higher education of children who want to pursue further studies but lack the means to proceed. The club has adopted a village where it is directing several welfare projects. RC Anakapalle has sponsored 10 Interact and two Rotaract clubs. A Rotaract book bank is also established in the local library.

AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 51

Breathing life into

Puppets Arun Kapoor Project Kayakalp aims at pulling the strings of change, bringing in its wake a revived art and community.

uppetry has seen a downward gradient from being an art which lit up Indian streets and courtrooms, to being pushed to hopeless anonymity reduced by the contemporary forms of entertainment. Project Kayakalp is an initiative to breathe life into the dying art form. It is an endeavour of the Rotaract Club of SRCC Panchshila Park and its parent club, RC Delhi Panchshila Park, District 3010 to empower traditional puppeteers and other artists of Kathputli colony in Delhi and expand their income opportunities; while also using the medium of puppetry to convey social and environmental messages and making their art relevant to contemporary audiences. The Colony is home to a host of talented artists like puppeteers, sword-swallowers and folk dancers who have been pushed to the verge of extinction due to lack of audience. Professional problems like seasonal nature of work, lack of education, lack of basic organisational structure, restricted market exposure and internal wage

cutting have forced them to live in deplorable conditions. The puppeteers showcase programmes on road safety, environmental issues, health, hygiene and nutrition for student-audiences across various schools, and other themes for general audience across the capital. They use an interesting blend of puppet masks, muppets and props to make the show thoroughly attractive and entertaining for the children. Puppets dressed

as cartoon characters such as Chhota Bheem and Chutki effectively drive home the educative messages. The Amar Singh Rathore Show took the children of the club-adopted government schools through the Rajasthani legend and his controversy with Salawat, Shah Jahanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

Puppetry merchandise displayed for sale at a stall. 52 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

â&#x20AC;&#x153;

Besides the traditional art form

being revived, income of the puppeteers

trustworthy courtier. Glimpses of the kingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s court and celebrations added to the opulence. The puppets used are bigger in size compared to the usual Rajasthani puppets so as to be visible to the entire audience. The Project The puppeteers are taught scriptbuilding skills with professional assistance, and varied forms of puppetry to broaden their horizons. Their puppet making workshops teach children and interested learners to make various kinds of puppets, including the Japanese traditional Bunraku puppet. The project reaches out to help the puppeteers establish sustainable contracts with event management

has also risen

companies, fair organisers and cultural institutions for theme-based shows. More than 80 shows across Delhi have been staged and four workshops conducted; stalls put up at various events have helped promotion of their merchandise. Impact The income of the puppeteers has risen to over three times. Their income during the lean period has also increased substantially. The revival of the traditional art form of puppetry is a step towards preserving the cultural heritage of India. The messages spread by the puppet shows among children sensitise them to pertinent social and environmental issues.

3 times.

Future Vision It is proposed to organise the artists into a puppet theatre group with a rotating ruling committee which will cater to their need for a selfsufficient professional body. It will provide them an identity/brand-name whilst securing long-term patronage. Moreover, the formation of an organisation would combat the issue of competition within the community which may lead to downward-wage spiral. (The author is member of Rotaract Club of SRCC Panchshila Park, District 3010) Designed by L Gunasekaran AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 53

Doing good with TRF help

Kiran Zehra

hile pregnant women across the world are opting for 3D and 4D ultrasound tests at plush clinics to see their baby’s development, “this centre in Uganda didn’t have a couch, or even a table and a screen for privacy of the patients in the examination room,” says Rtn Dr Raju Sahetya, an obstetrician and gynaecologist, member of RC Bombay Airport, D 3140. So he had to ask for two mats to be laid on the floor, one for the patient and the second for the machine and the doctor to sit on! He was part of the 7-member Vocational Training Team (VTT) sponsored by Districts 3140, India; 5500, Southern Arizona; 9211, Uganda, and TRF, for conducting training in Pre-natal Diagnostics and Nutrition for 23 rural healthcare providers at Uganda from April 17–19. The participants were midwives, clinical officers from the Ministry of Healthcare and four representatives from local AIDS information centre clinics. Earlier in 2013, Rehema, a midwife in Jinja, Uganda, was uneasy conducting ante-natal consultations, because she was not sure about what was going on inside the pregnant woman. She reported this to Dana Thienemann Smith, a nurse from Arizona and a VTT member. With her own funds Dana purchased and shipped an ultrasound equipment to the midwife. “Within 3 days, this equipment helped save the life of a woman with an ectopic pregnancy,” she adds. In 2014, a nationwide Uganda Healthcare Summit sponsored by D-5500 District Grant identified adoption of rural healthcare centres by Rotary clubs to enhance diagnostic capabilities in rural clinics, and provide better nutrition for expectant mothers and infants as a priority. “Patients lined up in excitement because they had not heard of or seen an ultrasound machine,” says Dr Sahetya. The midwives under his supervision examined

54 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

fetal movements and heartbeats of 15–40 cases a day. “The patients had tears of joy in their eyes when they saw their babies on the screen. That smile is something I am never going to forget,” he adds. The captured images were saved and sent to the consulting hospitals (with whom a MoU has been signed with assistance from the VTT) using flash drives and printouts. Where net-connectivity was available, emails were sent, so that

the radiographers could interpret them and give suitable directions. Discussions revolved around what if the hospitals were reluctant to take on this additional task of assessing ultrasound reports from the healthcare centre? In a lighter vein, a participant suggested, “The power of personal relationships. Invite the radiographer or the doctor for a cup of tea as soon as this training ends, to create a rapport.”

Ethical issues Rtn Dr Raju Sahetya with ultrasound machine.

Patients lined up in excitement because they had not heard of or seen an ultrasound machine.

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Having the ultrasound diagnostic capacity is a new ethical issue for the midwives. “India and China are two countries struggling with moral and socio-economic fallout from the new technology,” says Dr Sahetya. Termination of pregnancy because of gender or likely birth defects (congenital defects, Down Syndrome, etc) are issues which are raising several questions in these countries where the female child is considered a burden. Dr Sahetya’s wife Malati, who conducted the evaluation procedure at the end of each session said, “They wanted to know so much more. Most of them wanted us to stay back there. It’s lovely how Rotary brings people together and changes your life forever. The midwife Philemon Tumwebaze says, “Rotary is doing a good job. We will need further training to enhance our skills. Please make sure you come back and teach us more. Thank you!”

Transforming a town Jaishree RC Mettupalayam makes its presence felt across the town with its impressive projects.

Exam fever at Metro School.

he school is second home for them, and they love being there, point out a group of Class 9 students of MetRo Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Mettupalayam. It was lunch break and the campus was alive with kids chattering and playing. Class 12 students were preparing for their weekly test, sitting in groups under trees. “We find our lessons very easy, thanks to our teachers, we are well prepared much ahead of the Boards. They conduct tests regularly and evaluate our performance, giving us extra lessons wherever we are weak,” said Shekhar, a student. The school boasts of cent per cent pass results for the past five years. “Last year we had a State rank holder, S Kausalyadevi, scoring 1189 marks in XII Board; Dharani Prakash (498) and S Kavya (497) stood State second and third respectively in the Class X 56 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

Boards. We are determined to hold the record this year too,” said another student, Niveditha. Small wonder the Principal, Sulochana Nataraj, is the recipient of Coimbatore District’s Best Principal award. The MetRo (Mettupalayam Rotary) School is housed in a sprawling campus at the entrance of this small town on the foothills of the Nilgiris. It is a dream project of Rotary Club of Mettupalayam, D 3202. “You may have come across Rotarians owning a school; but only few Rotary clubs own schools,” said club member and school’s PTA president L S Sidduram. When the children of four Rotarians were denied admission at the South India Viscose School, Sirumugai, the only English medium school in the vicinity in the 1970s, they decided to start their own school. With support from club

members and several philanthropists, the school was established on a three-cent land donated by HB Nanjiah in 1975. From 1984 it slowly developed into a bigger complex, with three more acres donated by Rtn RS Ramasamy. Today nearly 2,000 children study here, from pre-KG to Class XII. Many hail from rural and tribal belts, from villages as far as 20 km from Mettupalayam. “But distance doesn’t matter. We have 11 buses for students and staff,” said L Nagarajan, the school Correspondent, the seniormost club member. “I joined the club in 1975 and since then I have seen this school grow.”

Generous donors Noting the generosity of many people, he mentioned about S Murugayyan who gave a blank cheque when the construction was stopped for want of funds, and

help from industrialist N Mahalingam, from RC Madras, O Arumugasamy, the Jain Association and many more. “It is not just Rotarians; Inner Wheel members and many others also pitched in to make this school a reality,” he says. He and Rtn E Balagopal, the school Chairman are actively involved in its activities. A spaciously laid out computer lab with 75 peripherals, well equipped science lab, facilities for sports activities and closed circuit cameras at strategic spots complete the picture. Each floor has safe drinking water facilities; a 10 kv solar grid produces green energy. “Admissions are on merit basis; no donations. Fees are subsidised or waived for the poor; the club extends scholarships for deserving students,” said the Principal. The school’s popularity in the region is summed up by IPP M Ismail, a paediatrician: “A week ago my hospital was abnormally crowded; to my surprise I found it was not for consultation; people wanted recommendations for the Metro School.” The Vocational Training Centre within the school campus offers classes in tailoring, computers and a beautician course for women. At least 150 women are trained annually. “Two years ago, a villager from Vellengadu, 25 km away, learnt tailoring here; today, she has a textile showroom in her village providing employment for few women in the region,” said Ismail. The club’s newest addition is a Rs 10 lakh clock tower, at the entrance to the town’s bus terminus, from where

Thanks to our teachers, we are well prepared for the Boards and we will aim for the State rank this year too. nearly 1,300 buses ply every day. The transport department thanked the Rotarians for this as it is now the hallmark for checking on the crew’s arrival time! We then visit the gasified crematorium by the banks of River Bhavani, “built two years ago, with around Rs 1.2 crore public contribution and Rs 50 lakh from Rotarians. The Van/Lorry Owners Association and Hotel Owners Association also supported us,” said Sidduram. It is equipped with a unique cleaning chamber which converts the black soot into white smoke, greatly reducing pollution. The excess ashes are collected in a separate chamber which is cleaned every two months and are used as manure for the plants. Plans are underway to construct a skywalk to

Shanthivanam, the crematorium.

connect the complex with the riverbank, to make it convenient for the bereaving family to perform the last rites.

Toilet block for girls The Rotarians have also renovated a toilet block for a government girls’ school at Sirumugai, in association with D 7930, USA and TRF and Encee Aromatics (P) Ltd of Mettupalayam. “There was no compound wall and the open backyard was dangerous as there is a liquor shop behind the school. We visited the school to install a water tank and seeing the pathetic state of the toilets and the backyard, we constructed the compound wall and toilet block and commissioned a borewell,” said Ismail. And “the strength shot up from 160 girls to 240 this year,” said the headmistress Rajeshwari. Two road accident helpline centres complete with ambulance and paramedics set up by the club, at a cost of Rs 10 lakh, strategically at the entrance to the hills has responded to several emergencies since 2000. Chartered in 1961, this is the only Rotary club in the town; all 54 members are MPHF Rotarians. Last year they were recognised as the ‘Outstanding Club’ of 3202, out of 102 clubs. AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 57

When dak bungalows had class & character TCA Srinivasa-Raghavan e Indians take great pride in our British legacy, you know, things like the legislatures, the judicial system, the administrative machinery, the army, the transport and irrigation networks, the educational institutions, the hospitals and so on. These were the good things the British bequeathed us. But there were many bad things also they left behind, like the idea that Government employees have a right to live off the taxpayer from the date they

A circuit house in Bhopal.

58 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

join service to the day they die; or the notion that ordinary people are generally inferior to those who rule them and therefore can be treated badly; the practice of segregation — special facilities for Government employees — and so on. It is an extraordinary tribute to India’s ability at retention of all sorts of practices, right through the ages, that we have retained both the good things and the bad. But not everything the British left behind can be categorised as simply good or simply bad. There were some things

that were neither good, nor bad — they were just there, a necessity then, and now a means for enjoying hidden perks by the employees of the government and the public sector, namely, the forerunners of the ubiquitous ‘guest houses.’ These were the circuit houses and the dak bungalows, exclusive and highly subsidised micro sized hotels built in picturesque locations where the white officials of the Raj stayed while on tour. The circuit houses were for the higher ranks and the dak bungalows for the lower ones. They were

as essential to governing India as the police and army were because the Raj was run on the hoof, as it were. Thanks to my father who joined the IAS just after Independence in 1949, we stayed in several of these, first in the Central Provinces and Berar and then, after the reorganisation of the States, the heavily forested Madhya Pradesh. The usual drill was that the Sahib arrived at dusk, hot and dusty from a long day on the road — first on horseback , then in jeeps when they became available — had tea on the spacious veranda, and took a walk around the grounds talking to the local minions like the tehsildar or patwari. These buildings could be on as much as five acres, so the strolls could last a while. The Sahib then bathed, had a drink, and a very simple but hot dinner. Sleep on clean sheets — and rough hairy blankets if it was winter — under a mosquito net, wake up for an early breakfast and then off again by 8 a m to the next leg of the tour.

The drill was that the Sahib arrived at dusk, hot and dusty from a long day on the road, had tea on the spacious veranda, and took a walk around the grounds talking to the local minions like the tehsildar or patwari. While the Circuit Houses would be in district headquarters in what were called the Civil Lines, the Dak Bungalows were in the middle of dense forests. Many of these, even some Circuit Houses, were still without electricity until the 1960s, or any kind of modern conveniences, for that matter. Many of these had some very strange and dark bathrooms. The night soil carriers were as much a part of the scene as were the gharriewala and the khansamah. The latter, my father told us, were a source of many delectable and salacious stories about the love life of the Sahibs who would bring along their girlfriends for an amorous week or so while the Memsahib was away in England. They have remained a place for comfortable liaisons between male and female officers who were attracted to each other. Just how off the beaten track and convenient these places were can be seen from the fact that there was a place called Chikaldah near Amaravati which is now in Maharashtra. My parents said leopards used to sleep at night on the verandah. I was too young to remember that, but I do remember the Circuit House in Rewa, set deep inside a huge compound. It had huge tiger heads on the walls even in the bedrooms, which was quite scary at night. In one circuit house, in Chattarpur, which is the

district headquarters for Khajuraho, the bathroom was as big as a large drawing room in modern flats. The Circuit House in Indore was massive and set on a very large estate. The one in Hoshangabad was set on a small rise over the Narmada. A set of stone steps from the garden led down to the river. Many had ghost stories attached to them. The Dak Bungalow at a place called Misrodh near Bhopal had the story of one Miss Rod — Misrodh, get it? — who committed suicide after her heart was broken by some cad of an Englishman. Then there is the story of a circuit house near Jabalpur. An Englishman’s ghost would visit there over Christmas. He had killed himself out of sheer loneliness. Sometime in the early 1980s, I had occasion to stay there as a guest of the MP government and was greatly saddened to see its state. In the old days, they used to have old stone flooring, huge heavy teak or rosewood beds, hat racks, and ancient cane furniture on the verandas upon which many a distinguished bottom had rested. All that is now gone, replaced by cheap PWD tiles, plywood beds and plastic furniture. As with so much else the idea has remained but in a mutated form. We Indians are like that only, you see. AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 59

Hard-won lessons Rotarians reveal their biggest project missteps. Here’s what they learned. Warren Kalbacker

n his 25 years of Rotary service, Chris Mutalya says he’s seen “quite a few projects that didn’t turn out well.” He recalls one that was designed to bring clean water to schools and health centres in southern Uganda. But the planners neglected a crucial need: Nearby residents had no clean water in

60 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

their homes. And some of those residents diverted the water intended for students, patients and health workers. A project can go awry for many reasons. Emotional reactions, poor communication and lack of local knowledge can all hinder judgment. Cultural differences might scuttle

a painstakingly designed education programme, for example, if parents feel it’s less important for their children to attend school than to help with the harvest. Rotarians face a particular challenge when they come in from an outside community to implement a

project. Marilyn Fitzgerald, a member of the Rotary Club of Traverse City, Mich., has seen this on her travels in countries including Bangladesh, Guatemala, Indonesia and Romania. “Impatience is unique to Western culture. We assess the problem and quickly determine the most effective solution,” she says. “If I see women who carry water three hours a day, I’m in a big hurry to fix this problem.” What’s wrong with that? In one case, Fitzgerald says, “the women weren’t as excited about not carrying water as the Rotarians were. Women have been carrying water jugs in Guatemala for generations. A new well had an impact on their culture, because the men no longer had to depend on women and children to bring water. There wasn’t any ‘community’ of women anymore. We didn’t recognise their social structure.” She continues: “Donors sometimes implement programmes without talking to the intended beneficiaries. We need to rethink that. We need to help them develop assets that they value.” Another common issue, Mutalya says, is for nongovernmental organisations to have too narrow a focus when designing projects. He terms the result an “underdose” effect — and although it’s often dictated by limited resources, it’s also reflective of donors’ ambitions to offer expertise in specific areas, such as water purification or education. Mutalya, a member of the Rotary Club of Kyambogo-Kampala, Uganda, who is a past district governor and an assistant Rotary coordinator for Zone 20A (English-speaking Africa), questions such targeted approaches. “How can you talk about malaria prevention when someone has no food security?” he asks. “How can you address the nutritional needs of children when parents go hungry?” He advocates a more comprehensive method: “The key in entering a community is looking at all the issues — health, food security and the environment. We need everybody’s expertise

if we’re going to be helpful in the life of the community.” Mutalya describes a sanitation and hygiene project that his club worked on: “We thought our message was going out to the community because we were dealing with the village leaders. But broken gutters and pumps were neglected. There was no ‘buy in’ on the part of the local residents. To them it was a ‘Rotary project.’ The residents were expecting us to come back and fix things.” The intended beneficiaries, he says, should contribute something, such as money, labour or building materials. That way, the project belongs to them rather than to Rotary. “We’ve made that clear to all our clubs here in Uganda,” says Mutalya, who led a breakout session at the 2014 Rotary convention in Sydney to lay out the Uganda clubs’ strategy for large-scale water and sanitation efforts.

in a home is easy,” he says. “But it may not be used. In hindsight, I’d insist that more time be spent on education before installing filters.” One goal of the project, he continues, was to create demand that local manufacturers could then meet. But the Rotarians encountered another unexpected problem. “We could buy cement, sand and gravel in bulk,” Sobotta says. “We determined that we could manufacture the filters, including paying for labour, for about $55 apiece.” But Ecuadorean entrepreneurs, who could not make such large purchases of raw materials, couldn’t get the individual filter price below $80. The programme has yet to spawn locally run businesses that can turn out the bio-sand filters at an affordable price. “We created the demand,” Sobotta says. “But we found the delivery costs to be higher than we had anticipated.” Fitzgerald — who describes herself as a “passionate educator” on

A project can go awry for many reasons. Emotional reactions, poor communication and lack of local knowledge can all hinder judgement. Gary Sobotta, of the Rotary Club of Novi, Mich., led a project to install bio-sand water filters in several communities in Ecuador. “Changing the behaviour of the people using the water is the most difficult part,” he says. “People understood that they should use purified water for drinking and for cooking, but they kept using source water” — which was contaminated with animal and human faeces — “for cleaning their dishes.” Sobotta suggests that focus groups — the same kind used for marketing purposes — might help donors learn how a community uses water, and why. “Building a water filter and placing it

sustainability, for donors as well as beneficiaries — recalls a seven-week visit she made to Romania. After returning home, she learned about a programme designed to help teenage mothers support themselves by baking and selling bread. Fitzgerald was excited about the prospect of the young women achieving independence: “I’d been there. I’d met the mothers. I’d held their babies. It’s so easy to get carried away with your emotions. I didn’t ask any common-sense questions about the project.” She quickly moved to fund the purchase of an oven — too quickly, she admits. Only a few months later, she AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 61

)RU 5RWDU\ VXVWDLQDELOLW\ PHDQV SURYLGLQJ ORQJ WHUP VROXWLRQV WKDW EHQHÂ¿FLDULHV FDQ PDLQWDLQ DIWHU JUDQW IXQGLQJ HQGV Use The Rotary Foundationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s checklist WR KHOS VWDUW D VXVWDLQDEOH SURMHFW ASSESS COMMUNITY NEEDS Conduct a thorough assessment to identify a community need that project sponsors can address in a way that Â¿WV EHQHÂ¿FLDULHVÂ¶ YDOXHV DQG FXOWXUH ,QYROYH PXOWLSOH FRPPXQLW\ SDUWQHUV LQ WKH SODQQLQJ SURFHVV Print a community assessment guide at www.rotary.org/document/communityassessment-tools.

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MONITOR AND EVALUATE IDENTIFY A LOCAL FUNDING SOURCE &RQÂ¿UP D ORFDO IXQGLQJ VRXUFH WR VXSSRUW WKH SURMHFWÂ¶V ORQJ WHUP RSHUDWLRQ PDLQWHQDQFH DQG UHSDLU

'HYHORS FOHDU DQG PHDVXUHDEOH SURMHFW REMHFWLYHV DQG LGHQWLI\ PHWKRGV IRU FROOHFWLQJ GDWD (VWDEOLVK EDVHOLQH GDWD WKDW FDQ EH XVHG WR GHPRQVWUDWH FKDQJH RYHU DW OHDVW WKUHH \HDUV Search for the Global Grant Monitoring and Evaluation Plan Supplement at www.rotary.org.

PLANNING A LARGE-SCALE PROJECT? If your project involves water or sanitation, refer to the WASH Sustainability Index Tool, which Rotary developed with USAID. It can help assess the likely sustainability of water and sanitation interventions using a range of qualitative and quantitative indicators. Download it at www.washplus.org/rotary-USAID.

62 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

received word that the oven had been vandalised. Then the women asked for a security fence for pans and other baking equipment, even for flour. “All the problems could have been foreseen by asking questions,” Fitzgerald says. She notes that the baking project ballooned from an initial $500 investment to 10 times that. “We finally got there,” she says. “But it was a lesson.” Fitzgerald remains concerned that many donors — and beneficiaries — do not understand the concept of sustainability. “Programme directors would assure me that their projects were sustainable because they’d had strong donors for 20 years,” she says. She notes the irony in such observations — and she stresses that the world of philanthropy has changed. “After 9/11, we had a great decrease in donations for international humanitarian aid,” she says. “People were more concerned with what was going on in this country. The recession followed in 2007. When programmes are not sustainable and beneficiaries are dependent on donations, it makes them vulnerable to whatever is happening in our economy.” As a result, according to Fitzgerald, there’s an urgent need for sustainable initiatives. But donors who have set up projects over the years may not be accustomed to asking intended beneficiaries what they want and need. Fitzgerald, like Mutalya and Sobotta, recognises that no single project can remake a community. Development remains a puzzle, and donors must

carefully consider how the pieces interlock. For example, she says, to improve education, “you have to find out who believes that school is important. When a child starts attending school and the parents aren’t educated, that creates an imbalance in the culture of that family and that village.” She says micro-loan programmes for parents can help equalise the parent-child relationship and increase education projects’ chances of success.

“ It’s so easy to get carried away with your emotions. I didn’t ask any common-sense questions about the project.”

“A micro-loan helps empower parents and create respect for them in the entire community,” Fitzgerald says. With this approach, a project does not skip a generation of parents who also need an education, she explains. “Parents in micro-loan programmes learn financial literacy — business, marketing, economics. They’re making money, which is a much better model than only providing academic scholarships for the kids.” Rotarians who have experienced disappointment insist they’ve learned lessons. “Success or failure is always a source of information. And it’s inspiration to do better,” Mutalya notes. “It’s not hard to get a project going if you work with everyone in the local area,” he says. “Use their resources. Use their expertise. Work with them, and you deliver.” Reproduced from The Rotarian AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 63

CONVENTION

CROSSWORD PUZZLE

Off the runway

f you’re planning to attend the 2016 Rotary International Convention in Seoul from 28 May to 1 June, here’s a little secret: There is a spot in Korea that all visitors can access, but few would consider a tourist destination. You can relax at the spa or spend hours shopping. It has cultural attractions, gardens, movie theatres, and an ice skating rink. So where is it? The Incheon International Airport. The main airport serving Seoul, located about an hour’s drive from downtown, has all the standard conveniences, along with features including free Wi-Fi, a kids’ playroom, nursing rooms, prayer rooms, showers, mobile phone rentals, medical services and plenty of dining options. And then there are the over-the-top amenities, such as Spa on Air, which offers a traditional Korean bathhouse experience. The spa is open 24 hours, so you can even grab some shut-eye in one of the private sleeping rooms. If fresh air is what you need, then head to the Sky72 Golf Club, a free five-minute shuttle ride away. You can hit a few balls on the 400-yard driving range or play the full 18 holes. Then cool off at the Ice Forest Skating Rink or catch a first-run flick at one of the two movie theatres. You can also head to the Traditional Korean Cultural Experience Zone to make crafts, listen to musical performances, or try on a hanbok, traditional Korean dress. – Susie Ma Register for the 2016 Rotary convention in Seoul at www.riconvention.org.

SUMMER STRETCH Across 1 6 10 14 15 16 17 20 21 22 24 25 27 28 32 33 34 36 37 41 43 44 49 50 51 52

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53 55 57 62 63 64 65 66 67

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23 25 26 29 30 31 35 36 38 39 40 42 44 45 46 47 48 49 54 55 56 58 59 60 61

Clothesmaker Strauss Bodies of water Participate, with “in” Up to this point Attends Tied up Deep ditch Tim of Frank’s Place OPEC and NATO Rebuffs overseas Purposes JFK preceder Makes possible Harpsichord cousin Invented, linguistically “... ___ I have to draw you a map?” Made a quick change A Man and a Woman star Anouk Razor brand made by Gillette Inviting letters? Worrier’s words “Good” cholesterol inits. Very narrow shoe size Was introduced to Summer, on the Seine

Solution in the September issue

Reproduced from The Rotarian

XXXXXXXXX Doing good

with TRF help

From Disabled to Abled Selvi

PDG Anil Agarwal, Rtn Suresh Poddar and television news reader Rajdeep Sardesai at Saksham.

or Tanmay who can only crawl, Devyanshu who cannot walk or stand, Charu who cannot speak and Gargi who cannot hear, life is not going to be same now, after the inauguration of Saksham at Jaipur. “To see these people who come crawling, or being wheeled into our physiotherapy centre, walk with minimal or no support is the most special moment for me,” said PDG Anil Agarwal, sharing his thoughts about Saksham, the multi-therapy department for differentlyabled children set up by Rotary at Disha, a resource centre for people with multiple disabilities in Jaipur. The project is aimed to deliver complete remedial services and empower the children with functional independence. Rotarians of RC Jaipur Midtown, D 3052, along with their Global Grant partner RC Fairhope, D 6880, USA and TRF, upgraded Disha with a sophisticated physiotherapy, speech and audiology department. The total cost of the project is $95,000 (Rs 58 lakh). Since then the rehabilitation scenario has transformed at the centre. “Vishal Chaudhary suffers from dystonia; he cannot stand or walk and uses the wheelchair. I was thrilled to see him stand upright using the unweighing support system and gradually put his foot forward on the treadmill trainer. Very soon, if not independently, at

The project is aimed to deliver complete remedial services and empower the children with functional independence.

least with the help of assistive device he will be in good functional status,” said Agarwal. Several hearing and speech impaired children are benefitted by the diagnostic tools such as the audiometer and Otoacoustic Emissions (OAE) screener and speech therapy software. “Mumal was not able to communicate at all; in the course of the treatment with the aid of this software, she has started uttering few words,” said her mother. Presently her vocabulary has reached up to 30 words, thanks to Saksham. AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 65

Women Corporators make a difference Saadia Azim

udharshana Mukherjee is used to a busy life. As a television journalist she planned her day around the news cycle and often had to burn the midnight oil to meet deadlines. Today, she is no longer a reporter but her schedule is hectic, with back-to-back meetings and discussions with city officials, municipal workers and, of course, citizens. She is a newly-elected councillor of Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) that is responsible for running and maintaining the metro’s civic infrastructure. “I decided to give up my lucrative job to be able to do something for my city, my people. I do believe that there are certain issues that women can understand better, like the need for proper sanitation and women’s safety,” says this first-time councillor of Ward No 68, the posh Ballygunge locality. Sudharshana is among the 70 women who have been voted to the 144-member KMC for a five-year term. This is the highest number of female candidates ever elected to the municipality and together they will take decisions that will impact the future of the 4.6 million living in the bustling city. The KMC has 33 per cent reservation for women and that motivates committed female candidates to join the fray. Not just the reserved seats but they can also contest from the general quota, which only improves the odds of a greater number of women getting elected. “I was never really interested in joining politics earlier but then I realised that if I want to see a change in my city then I would have to work for that change from within rather than complaining from the sidelines. It was my desire to do something

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I realised that if I want to see a change in my city then I would have to work for that change from within rather than complaining from the sidelines. – Sana Ahmed, councillor concrete for the people that pulled me into the race,” says Sana Ahmed, the homemaker-turned-councillor of Ward No. 62, Central Kolkata.

A demanding job A municipal councillor has a whole range of key decisions and responsibilities — making the city safer for women and children by focusing on

improving transportation and street lighting, ensuring better sanitation and water supply and upgrading roads in residential areas. “Being a councillor is more demanding than any regular 9–5 job. City development and planning is serious business. We have to oversee works related to drainage, water supply, street lighting and plantation drives, apart from ensuring the smooth functioning of corporation-funded schools and health centres. Each ward is allocated Rs 10 crore annually to get things done,” elaborates Mina Purohit, who contested and won from Ward No. 22 in North Kolkata. This four-time councillor from BJP is as gung-ho about her duties right now as she was when she was elected for the first time two decades back. She has fought KMC elections five times. “For me, this is the kind of career that is not just personally fulfilling but allows one to improve lives and create a constructive legacy. Political participation

cannot just be about contesting elections alone. It has to be about making a difference with good ideas and setting the benchmark as a leader,” she says.

Leading by example Personally, two-time councillor Jui Biswas from Trinamool Congress, wants to “lead by example” and put “my MBA degree to good use to draw up specific plans for the betterment of the city.” This mother-of-two knows “there is a lot that needs to get done especially in terms of bringing the city’s infrastructure up-to-date” and she has to play her part in the progress. Okay, once elected what is a typical day in the life of a councillor like? Mina says being a councillor is a 24 x7 commitment. Anyone in the ward may need you at any time; “it’s like working for emergency services,” she says. On an average her work day starts at nine am. She meets a whole lot of people notes requests, signs letters and, most importantly, solves local area problems. “Thereafter, I head to the KMC office. In the evening, I make my way to the party headquarters to exchange notes with colleagues and work out any pending issues. It’s a full day but I am able to do justice because my children are independent and happy to support me.” These motivated women councillors enjoy the loyalty of their male colleagues and other municipal staff, which is crucial for them to be effective in the KMC. Says Sudharshana, “I think both men and women are more comfortable working with women. This is why I believe many more women should come forward and contribute to politics. As they handle their homes efficiently, they can also handle their wards. Moreover, this presents women with the perfect opportunity to make their presence felt in public places.” Despite being divided across party lines, the women councillors have common development agendas. They are keen to concentrate on regularising

Shamina Rehan Khan, Councillor.

standards of sanitation, drainage and water supply in addition to access to education, even as Shamina Rehan Khan, councillor of Ward No 77, who has been elected thrice, has decided to prioritise primary education, vocational training for women and the commencement of electric rickshaws in her area. Women’s safety is another central issue on their mind. Mina speaks for everyone when she says, “We have to get together to ensure more women become economically independent and are comfortable in the public domain. Only when their visibility increases will the rate of gender crimes start to decrease.” Adds Councillor Maya Ghosh, “Adequate street lighting is a must and we ought to look at solar energy to power them.” Additionally, she wants to “stop corruption and streamline the licensing process.” While it’s true that reservation has opened up the political platform

for women, a sceptical male observer isn’t sure whether it is indeed game changing. “Given that women councillors are bound by the interests of the political parties they represent I wonder how effectively they can function as a force that shifts the paradigm of governance in the KMC,” he says. Nonetheless, councillors like Shamina are eager to prove such sceptics wrong; “No doubt women are vulnerable and there are fewer opportunities available but we need to fight back to make sure the status quo changes. Women in grassroots governing bodies are capable of making quite a difference. They are able, honest and take care of their wards as they would their own home.” Sudharshana sums up this optimistic mood perfectly, “As a councillor I may only make Rs 4,320 a month but when one works for the people, nothing else matters.” (© Women's Feature Service) AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 67

Indian philosophy SHUIHFW ¿W Rotary and

G Boolchand

ocial service organisations provide great opportunity to engage in service activities to help people suffering from poverty, ill-health, etc. All over the world, people join social service organisations which have a noble mission with multiple goals and objectives to benefit people. These organisations bring people together on a common platform, transcending the differences in ideology, profession, religion, language, ethnicity and other barriers that divide people. They also foster international understanding and peace. In our society, gratitude has a high ethical value. We are expected to contribute, whatever we can to the community. Swami Vivekananda said, “When we serve the needy, we must thank them for the opportunities given to us to serve them.” Community service is one way by which we

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express our gratitude to those known and unknown people who have and continue to make our lives happy. Community service thus gives us an opportunity to climb the humanistic ladder, end point of which is experiencing divinity and happiness. There is duality everywhere around us. Light and darkness, good and bad, rich and poor, truth and lies. Socio-political systems have not yet found a solution to bring in equity and equality. Destiny and environment make some people rich, while others remain poor. The less fortunate need help and support from the fortunate few. In a market economy, there is always an element of exploitation of nature, animals and mankind in transactions and relationships. What can one do to reduce such exploitations to the very minimum? Social service organisations give an opportunity to

give to the needy what we can — either money or our time. Coming to Rotary, the world’s largest service network, its members are business, professional and community leaders who provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards and help build goodwill and peace in the world. The core ideology of Rotary International, ‘Service above Self,’ defines what Rotarians stand for and which guided the organisation since its inception more than 100 years ago. Committed to this core ideology Rotarians contribute positively to all communities everywhere. The first part of core ideology is the ‘Four-Way Test’ which every Rotarian follows, finding in it intrinsic value and importance. The second part of the core ideology is the organisation’s reason for being — so that members are able to accomplish something collectively and contribute significantly to society. Passion, emotion and conviction are essential and integral parts of core purpose. Rotary clubs participate in a broad range of humanitarian, intercultural and educational activities designed to improve the world. They are nonreligious, non-political and open to every race, culture and creed. Rotary with more than 1.2 million members worldwide brings together men and women of all races, religion and political beliefs towards a common purpose — service. When one comes to Rotary meetings, there is an atmosphere of goodwill and bonhomie. Everybody

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Rotary with more than 1.2 million

members worldwide brings together

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men and women of all races, religions and political beliefs towards a common purpose — service.

is in a joyous mood, exchanges pleasantries and different ideas and ideologies, attitudes and behaviour; interests and motivation are shared. Thus Rotary helps in selfdevelopment in terms of increased competence and communication skills, genuine leadership qualities, earning public esteem and goodwill, holistic development and a much larger circle of friends, who help personally and professionally.

Even from the religious, spiritual, cultural and philosophical aspects, Rotary has significance. All four religions which originated in India, namely — Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism, believe in the law of karma, which signifies that our present life is destined by our action in our earlier and previous births. Good deeds of an earlier birth bring good results and evil deeds the opposite. Karma has two parts — the fixed

or irrevocable part and the variable part which is linked to good deeds in the present birth. We can use our Rotary network to do good deeds, and its ideology to live a life of ethics, compassion, patience, cheerfulness, selfless work and use this to erase or convert the unfavourable variables of karma into favourable ones. Even though other religions like Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Christianity and Islam do not postulate karma, they also advocate a life of ethics, service and sacrifice, prayer, charity and forgiveness. Community service in Rotary helps us to grow spiritually, religiously and earn the grace and blessings of God and the community. (A member of RC Bangalore Jeevanbima Nagar, D-3190, the author is a former Additional Director, Centre for Artificial Intelligence & Robotics, and presently Consultant (Technical) with Defence R & D Organisation.)

Say No to Tobacco! Team Rotary News

he Rotary clubs of Berhampur city, Odisha, falling under District 3262, came together to observe the ‘World No Tobacco Day’ on May 31. The Rotarians, under the leadership of PDG Dr Narayan Mishra, organised a rally to ring in awareness among the people on the ill-effects of tobacco. The team comprising doctors, and members from various associations such as the IMA, National College of Chest Physicians, Senior Citizens Forum, Laughter Club etc., assembled at the Khalikot College grounds and walked through the important streets of Berhampur carrying placards highlighting the hazards of consuming tobacco of any form. The World Health Organisation’s call to stop illicit trade of tobacco was stressed upon to the public and shopkeepers with a request to act upon it seriously. “Young adults are increasingly falling prey to this dangerous habit of smoking and chewing tobacco and this should be a major concern for all

of us. Children must be strongly educated about its health hazards to nip the evil practice in the bud itself before they get addicted to it. Shops near schools and colleges should be strictly advised not to stock tobacco in any form and frequent checks must be conducted to ensure that the rule is enforced. Parents and teachers should also ensure that children do not acquire the evil habit. What starts as a thrill, eventually kills!” observed Rtn Trilochan Panigrahy, IPP of RC Berhampur Central.

AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 69

Heal yourself by

positive thinking Bharat and Shalan Savur

s I begin to write this piece after much contemplation and meditation and, of course, personal experience, I wonder: Am I carrying coal to Newcastle? Rotary is renowned for its wonderful social work of bettering lives, providing facilities, bringing smiles to weary faces. On the other hand, it’s great to re-affirm goodness, get new insights and evolve continually.…

Heart over head. And what I have learnt is this: whenever you feel helpless, be helpful to others. The heart is the home of helpfulness. The mind feels helpless, not the heart. The mind says, “Oh no!” The heart offers: “How may I help?” Helplessness is the precursor of depression. That’s why depression too is of the mind, not the heart. So, if you feel depressed, fearful or sorrowful, remember, it is only in the mind and can be dealt with only by the heart. Karen’s compassion: Let the heart reach out. I remember reading this wonderful little anecdote that made a deep impression on me: When her mother was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), Karen sat in the visitor’s area in tears. She’d never seen her energetic mother look so pale, so inert. It was unsettling. Just then, an attendant wheeled a senior woman into the area. Her hands were tightly closed into fists and her nails were so long, they dug into the palms. 70 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

Without thinking, Karen rose and sat next to the lady. She gently massaged her hands until they opened and placed wads of tissue between the nails and palms as protection. Then, impulsively, Karen rummaged in her own overnight bag and found a manicure set. Quietly, she snipped the nails and applied on the cuts some medicated cream which her friend had thoughtfully slipped into her bag as she rushed her mother to the hospital. She was so engrossed in her task that she’d stopped worrying. When the patient gave her a grateful, radiant smile, Karen suddenly felt light-hearted and optimistic about her mother. Helpful to hopeful: Helpfulness transports you from darkness to light, from sickness to health. Helpfulness keeps you hardy. There is supreme value in helping others; it enriches the giver and receiver, it enriches the fabric of humanity, it enhances life. By helping, you bring order to disorder, relief to pain, love to fear … it’s like scouring the black clouds, scrubbing and wiping the sky clean off these smudges and … aah allowing the bright light of the sun to shine out in all its golden, healing splendour. “Right action is action that is appropriate to the whole,” says Eckhart Tolle, spiritual teacher. And when the right action — in this context, the helpful action — is accomplished, you feel more hopeful because

you’ve contributed something positive to the situation, to the whole. The negative slant: Interestingly, neurological research suggests that our brain is hardwired to focus on negative things more than on positive ones. This slant helps in an emergency — say, we spot black smoke and rising flames in our building and run to save ourselves. Even the brain’s encoding process tilts towards the negative — memory sheaths of horrifying experiences are stronger than ecstatic ones. Perhaps, it’s designed so in order to avoid similar dangers in the future. However, it is this negative slant that makes us remember one insult over several thoughtful gestures in a relationship. And it’s also the reason why we can talk repeatedly about ‘bad’ things and hardly mention the good and, hence, spiral into helplessness, despair and depression. The higher path: Being helpful sets us on a higher path. When we help another, we bond with her. Bonding is balming. The core principle of helping is that we are all here for one another. As an Akan proverb goes: “It is because one antelope will blow the dust from the other’s eye that two antelopes walk together.” Moreover, in helping somebody in trouble, you are like the fireman dousing the flames of pain. It gives you the confidence that things can be better and that you have what it takes to make things better. Of positive affirmations: Researchers of the brain have also found evidence that suggests that the brain needs strong and consistent positive inputs on a ratio of 5:1 to negative inputs to truly transform our mind. Yes, we need to be five times more positive over the negative to keep our equilibrium, to feel all’s-right-with-the-world, to heal. A psychiatrist says, repeating positive affirmations for 20 minutes, twice a day,

There is supreme value in helping others; it enriches the giver and receiver, it enriches the fabric of humanity, it enhances life.

have a positive effect on the brain’s neural structure. One of my favourite affirmations is Helen Steiner Rice’s poem: The more you love, the more you’ll find That life is good and friends are kind, For only what we give away Enriches us from day to day. It never fails to lift the spirit with its catchy rhythm and rhyme. I suggest collecting positive affirmations that resonate with you in a little book. Dip into it daily and rise refreshed. I have gifted several such hand-written books to friends. It inspires and motivates them and keeps my joy flowing too. Helping yourself: It is also important to interpret the world in a happy way. This great ability helps you help yourself and others. I’ve learnt that the more you consciously purge yourself of irritations, dislikes, guilt and the urge to complain and criticise, the more you are able to put things in perspective and allow contentment and peace to reign in your mind. This is where meditation helps. Meditation is a hospitable self-invitation to enjoy daily a few luxurious moments where you drop all defenses, tensions, analysis and for 30–45 minutes relax as you dwell in a timeless space free from the assaults of inner conflicts. As your relaxation deepens, you experience what it is to live in a lit-up place called peace. You experience healing. In meditation, healing is the order of the day. It’s simply a matter of staying awake and feeling the joyous surge of well-being as everything falls into place. (The writers are authors of the book ‘Fitness for Life’ and teachers of the Fitness for Life programme.) Designed by N Krishnamurthy AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 71

Atticus Finch,

human vs demigod

Go Set A Watchman Author: Harper Lee Publisher: HarperCollins Price: Rs 749

Rasheeda Bhagat

Harper Lee’s much awaited book, Go Set a Watchman has caused a furore about the depiction of the beloved Atticus as a “racist bigot.” But this is more due to a misreading of the book than the author’s making.

hose of us who have grown up reading, rereading and holding in a corner of our hearts its upright and adorable hero, Atticus Finch, who puts up a spirited and principled fight against racism in the Alabama of the 1930s, in Harper Lee’s To kill a Mockingbird, just couldn’t wait for its prequel Go set a Watchman. This title is derived from Isaiah 21:6. After all the brouhaha and feverish debates over how it was not Harper Lee but others around her who discovered this earlier manuscript and decided to publish it, came a huge shocker. Previews of the book said that the Atticus that millions — Mockingbird has sold well over 40 million copies — of people look up to as a crusader, played so ably

Don’t push her. Let her go at her own speed. Push her and every mule in the country’d be easier to live with. 72 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

by Gregory Peck in the 1950s’ Hollywood classic, who took up the case of the negro Tom Robinson on trial for raping a white woman is after all not the towering righteous icon we’ve worshipped for decades. But before looking at the finer nuances of the Watchman, note that this was the original novel that Lee completed in 1957. But her editor told her to go back and rewrite the book from Scout’s viewpoint when she was a little girl, and both Jem her brother, and Atticus, her father, were her heroes. When plans for publishing the Watchman, which was completed in 1957, were disclosed, Lee said in a statement that after really liking the flashbacks to Scout’s childhood her editor had persuaded her “to write a novel from the point of view of the young Scout. I was a first-time writer, so I did as I was told.” And thank god she did that; or the world would have been deprived of the Mockingbird! Interestingly, just like Jean Louis Finch, or Scout, our feisty little girl with her fists frequently clenched, Lee was living in New York when she wrote Watchman, and occasionally came to Alabama to visit her aging father, the lawyer A C Lee, the Atticus of Mockingbird.

Right timing And what a timing to release the Watchman! A time when America is grappling with racist attacks on blacks,

bombing of the black 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, white cops busting a black teenagers’ pool party in Texas! Watchman lands bang in the midst of this debate. Lee’s much awaited book opens with the 26-yearold Jean Loius — I’d rather call her Scout — taking the train ride from New York to Maycomb, where Atticus is now 72, and severely afflicted with arthritis. Romantic interest is thrown in with the entry of Henry Clinton, who to Scout’s agitation is referred to as “white trash” by her Aunt Alexandra, who considers him unfit to marry a Finch. But Clinton is a competitive junior to Atticus and she finds him interesting; his biggest plus point being that “he let her be silent when she wanted to be. She did not have to entertain him.” This, Lee tells us, he had learnt from Atticus, who had warned him “Don’t push her. Let her go at her own speed. Push her and every mule in the country’d be easier to live with.”

Childhood flashbacks Incidentally her darling brother Jem has died two years earlier; inheriting a weak heart from their mother who dies when the kids are very young, he just drops dead in front of Atticus’s office one day. Some vivid passages in the book take you back to their childhood. In one passage Jem enacts a revival, playing the role of the Rev Moorhead, “a tall sad man with a stoop,” with Scout and Dill being both the congregation and the chorus. When he starts on hell, Scout stops him as the reverend’s original sermon on its horrors “was enough to last her a lifetime.” So instead, he moves on to heaven where there are plenty of bananas (Dill’s favourites) and scalloped potatoes — her delight. The session ends with Scout’s baptism ... being dunked stark naked in a pool with slimy

Gregory Peck playing the role of Atticus Finch in the film To kill a Mockingbird.

Do you want your children going to a school that has been dragged down to accommodate negro children?

water and walking home without a stitch of clothing to confront Atticus and Rev Moorhead on the driveway! One thing is certain; Watchman is going to give Mockingbird a run for its money for the number of memorable quotes and that is the power of Lee’s pen. As Clinton keeps renewing his efforts to get her to say ‘Yes’ to his marriage proposal, Jean Louis ponders: “But I’m not domestic. I don’t even know how to run a cook. What do ladies say to each other when they go visiting? I’d have to wear a hat. I’d drop babies and kill ’em.”

Shocking climax As you get deeply enchanted by Lee’s effortless writing style and firm strokes that give a different dimension to Scout, the young woman, the reader is slowly taken towards a shocking climax. The daughter’s discovery that the man she had held as God and “looked up to as I never looked up to anybody in my life,” is after all like the other racist white southerners in Maycomb. This facet of Atticus she stumbles on to accidentally when she walks into the Maycomb citizens council meet where Atticus and her sweetheart Clinton are seated calmly listening to “a man who spewed filth from his mouth about the negroes.” Remember their household help Calpurnia, who brings up Scout and Jem just as a mother would in the Mockingbird? As the meeting goes on, the shocked young woman hears phrases such as “kinky wooly heads ... still in the trees ... greasy smelly … mongrelise the race … save the South.” There is more: “Not the question of whether snot-nosed niggers will go to school with your children or ride the front of the bus … it’s whether Christian civilisation will continue to be or whether we will be slaves of the Communists … nigger lawyers … decent white Christmas. Was Jesus crucified for the nigger?” As both Atticus and Clinton listen to this harangue, she feels sick. “Her stomach shut, she AUGUST 2015

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began to tremble. Every nerve in her body shrieked, then died. She was numb.” As she watches the progress of the citizens’ council meet “she heard her father’s voice, a tiny voice talking in the warm comfortable past. Gentlemen, if there’s one slogan in the world I believe, it is this: equal rights for all, special privileges for none.” That is of course a flashback to the Mockingbird.

Racist bigot? Then of course comes the ultimate shock when Jean Loius challenges her father and he tells her that the negroes have been given all the chances they needed, and that “you can’t have a set of backward people living among people advanced in one kind of civilisation and have a social Arcadia.” The ultimate shocker of course, which has had many of Atticus’s original admirers from Mockingbird seeing red and calling him a “racist bigot” is when he tells his daughter: “Do you want your children going to a school that has been dragged down to accommodate negro children?” Jean Louis’s spirited defence focuses on the need to give the blacks hope. “You deny them hope. Any man in this world, Atticus, any man who has a head and arms and legs, was born with hope in his heart. You won’t find that

The one human being she had ever fully and wholeheartedly trusted had failed her; the only man she had ever known to whom she could point and say with expert knowledge, ‘He is a gentleman, in his heart he is a gentleman,’ had betrayed her, publicly, grossly and shamelessly.

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Scout, with her father Atticus, in the film.

in the Constitution, I picked that up in church somewhere. They are simple people, most of them, but that doesn’t make them subhuman.” Next comes the heartbreak: “The one human being she had ever fully and wholeheartedly trusted had failed her; the only man she had ever known to whom she could point and say with expert knowledge, ‘He is a gentleman, in his heart he is a gentleman,’ had betrayed her, publicly, grossly and shamelessly.” You get the poignancy of the title when her Uncle Jack, Atticus’s brother tells her: “Every man’s island, Jean Louise, every man’s watchman, is his conscience. There is no such thing as a collective conscious.” But the surprising end — which I will not spoil for hardcore Lee fans who want to read the book — allows Atticus’s fans to breathe. Just suffice it to say the last few pages of the book leave you with the image of the demigod as human. Many reviews of the Watchman have been harsh on both Lee and Atticus, but a rereading of the book might pacify them a little bit. So did the publisher, HarperCollins, make Lee tone down Atticus’s racist remarks to preserve his moral image? Totally denying this, in an email to New York Times, the publisher said: “Harper Lee wanted to have the novel published exactly as it was written, without editorial intervention. By confronting these challenging and complex issues at the height of the civil rights movement, the young Harper Lee demonstrated an honesty and bravery that makes this work both a powerful document of its time and a compelling piece of literature.” In the end, if you ask is the Watchman better than its sequel … the answer is a resounding ‘No.’ But I would still buy the Watchman and keep it in my collection of treasured classics.

The Changing world of Tambrams

Tamil Brahmans: The making of a middle-class caste By C J Fuller and Haripriya Narasimhan Social Science Press/Orient BlackSwan Rs 750

TCA Srinivasa-Raghavan

Similar eccentricities can be laid at the doors of s is evident from my name, or should be, I am a Tamil Brahman. But I have lived 97 Tambrams. They were obsessed with auspiciousness. per cent of my life in Delhi where I have Whether it was time — rahukalam and yamagandam — gone to school with post-partition Punjabi or food — no tubers etc — or oil baths and castor oil, children and, later on, mingled with Jats and the Tambrams are a class apart. The authors ably demonstrate the emergence of a other assorted north Indians throughout my working life. It was only towards the end of my career that I worked in bunch of professionals who have done very well for themselves. Their recent history is that for a hundred years an utterly Tamil Brahman organisation, The Hindu group of newspapers. I realised then that being a Tamil Brahman was from the 1870s they took to liberal arts education and law, thus becoming prominent in the fields of education serious business. It certainly was not like the funny series and governance. Then when the Dravidian movement I wrote about them in the Times of India in the early 1990s. That series had popularised the term Tambram, much to the began to shove them aside in Tamil Nadu, they took to engineering and medicine, though less to the latter anguish of my aged relatives. That aside, had Fuller and Haripriya not written this because of ritual purity reasons. When in the 1990s the rest of India pushed on with book, I would probably have attempted one on the subaffirmative action for the lower ject. It is, after all, a low-hanging and castes, they found themselves being fascinating fruit. But they have spared There was a time edged out of both educational opporme the labour and produced a very tunities as well as government jobs in scholarly study which not only shows when a Vadagalai India. So they went big on the private Tambrams their place, but also the sector. Many went off to the US and world the place that Tambrams now Iyengar would not have done well there. Living outside occupy in Indian society: down from their natural habitat they have started high caste oppressors to middle class marry a Tenkalai marrying outside their fold too. survivors in a hostile environment in In consequence, old edifices are their own State. Iyengar and vice crumbling. There used to be a time The authors say Tambram popversa. That line when a Vadagalai Iyengar would ulation of Tamil Nadu has declined not marry a Tenkalai Iyengar and hugely from 2.5 per cent in 1931 to was breached vice versa. That line was breached just about 1.8 per cent now. A quarter in the 1950s. Next the Iyers and the of these live outside Tamil Nadu. in the 1950s. Iyengars started marrying each other, This is not a book for the frivolous which was a clear watershed. Now reader looking for a quickie on a flight. everyone else has become fair game. It is a serious academic work that lays bare the mysteries of TamBramism because as social groups So as endangered social groups go, Tamil Brahmans lead the way. go, Tambrams are as distinct in their practices, customs, The book, however, fails to bring out adequately shibboleths and prejudices as, say, the Hassidic Jews. They cling to a mixture of piety and practicality that survival the gradual disappearance of a community that was under difficult circumstances teaches. In doing so, they always a curiosity. The end for the Tambram is in sight often appear as ridiculous as the Jews who have been known but the book doesn’t say so. Give it another 50 years and, as the Agatha Christie novel says, there will be to debate whether electricity is fire, and if so whether it is none. all right to get into a lift on Sabbath.

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RC Pondicherry Cosmos RI District 2981 The club renovated the Government Primary Schoolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s toilets and felicitated student achievers.

RC Komarapalayam RI District 2982 A gas-based crematorium to facilitate the funeral and last rites for the kith of poor villagers was sponsored by the club. 76 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

RC Bhusawal Tapti Valley RI District 3030

RC Karambakudi RI District 3000 The club sponsored a feast of nutritious food for devotees attending a temple festival in the town.

RC Rewari City RI District 3011 To help children learn comfortably, the club donated benches and desks to Shri Ram Public School, which the club has adopted for development.

RC Anjar RI District 3051 AUGUST 2015

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RC Balrampur Greater RI District 3120 Toilet blocks were constructed for a girlsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; school in the region.

RC Pune Parvati RI District 3131 Eye and dental screening camp were conducted for special children at Ankur School.

RC Baroda Sayajinagari RI District 3060

RC Ghaziabad

RC Baroda Sayajinagari

RI District 3012 Under a matching grant project clubs from Districts 1620 and 3010 installed RO water plants in several schools near Ghaziabad.

RI District 3060 A blood donation camp conducted by the club collected 104 units of blood.

RI District 3070 RC Vizianagaram RI District 3020 The club in association with RC Kalamazoo, D 6360, USA, donated classroom furniture to government schools in the region.

RC Bhusawal Tapti Valley RI District 3030 D 3030, 6190, 6840 and 9920 sponsored mammography van to help detect cancer for villagers.

Clubs jointly organised surgeries to correct cleft lip and palate for children in association with DMC Hospital and Smile Train.

RC Shahabad Markanda RI District 3080 The club organised a cleanliness drive and rally to sensitise people of the locality to keep their area clean.

RC Nabha RC Anjar RI District 3051 The club sponsored the renovation of Mahila Baug park. The project cost Rs 11 lakh.

RI District 3090 Close to 100 patients out of 450 were treated for cataract surgeries at Rotary Bhavan, Nabha.

RC Jalna Central RI District 3132 Under Rotary Distance Education Programme (RDEP) an e-learning unit was installed at a school in Bhilpuri village.

RC Lokhandwala Kandivali RI District 3140 The club distributed 7,000 cloth bags to local residents. This would curb the use of plastic bags and help conserve the environment.

RC Chandanagar RI District 3150 Study materials were distributed to students of Government Elementary School, Ilapur. Scholarships were also provided for the needy.

RC Proddatur RI District 3160 The club conducted a dental

RC Moradabad Civil Lines RC Udaipur RI District 3052 The clubs installed RO water plant at Gyan Mandir School, in association with Bafna Charitable Trust.

RI District 3100 The club sponsored the screening and treatment of women residing in an old age home for cataract.

RC Gwalior Veerangana

RC Agra West

RI District 3053 Rotarians distributed sewing machines to poor women to help them take up tailoring vocation.

RI District 3110 The club conducted a sports programme for school children. Winners were felicitated.

78 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

RI District 3070

camp to benefit students of Municipal Vidya Vikas School.

RC Belthangady RI District 3180 Under Rotary’s TEACH programme, a solar based e-learning kit, a toilet block and a band instruments set was handed over to Sri Rama HP School.

RC Punganuru Central RI District 3190 An annual eye camp conducted by the club operated 25 patients for IOL surgeries. Usha Eye Hospital and District Blind Society partnered the camp.

RC Coimbatore Ikons RI District 3201 A road show was conducted by Rotaractors to exhibit Rotary’s work in the area of civic sense, cleanliness, building toilets and Happy Schools.

RC Payyanur RI District 3202 The Rotarians gifted 120 steel plates and tumblers to Edanad Upper Primary School to promote hygiene for the students.

RC Nagercoil Mid Town RI District 3212 The Interact Club of Home Church Girls Higher Secondary

RC Belthangady RI District 3180 School participated in the club’s road safety awareness programme.

RC Ranipet RI District 3230 In association with RCs Taipei, Taipei Mingmen, Minkuan, Macau, Honolulu-Oahu, Puteri Lagoon and TRF, the club donated an ambulance to Scudder Memorial Hospital.

RC Jalpaiguri RI District 3240 Marina Medical Centre and the Forest Department, Baikunthapur Range partnered the club in organising a health camp at Baikunthapur forest.

Rotary Club of Gaya City RI District 3250 The club organised a tree plantation drive at a high school in Bishunpur. Girl students were taught about medicinal value of plants and are encouraged to use them in day to day life.

RC Rourkela Central RI District 3261 A health camp organised at Jhirpani village tested and treated around 100 villagers with various health issues.

RC Bhubaneshwar Elite RI District 3262 The club donated desks and benches to its adopted school to enhance the learning experience of the students.

RC Rawalpindi RI District 3272 The club along with Hashoo Foundation donated books to students of St. Mary’s Academy, to promote literacy among the poor.

RC Calcutta Mega City

RC Shahabad Markanda RI District 3080

RI District 3291 The club organised a mega health camp at the Esplanade Metro Railway Station. Around 300 people benefitted. AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 79

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Views expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of the Editor, trustees of the Rotary News Trust, or Rotary International. Every effort is made to ensure that the magazineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s content is accurate. Information is published in good faith but no liability can be accepted for loss or inconvenience arising from errors or omission. Advertisements are accepted at face value and no liability can be accepted for the action of advertisers. The Editor welcomes contribution of articles, news items, photographs and letters, but is under no obligation to publish unsolicited material. The Editor reserves the right to edit for clarity or length. Contributors must ensure that all material submitted is not in breach of copyright or that if such material is submitted, they have obtained necessary permission, in writing, for its reproduction. Photographs in this publication may not be reproduced, whether in part or in whole, without the consent of Rotary News Trust. Printed by Mukesh Arneja at Thomson Press (India) Ltd, Plot A-9, Industrial Complex, Maraimalai Nagar 603209, India and published by Mukesh Arneja on behalf of Rotary News Trust from Dugar Towers, 3rd Flr, 34, Marshalls Road, Egmore, Chennai 600 008. Editor: Rasheeda Bhagat.

Plethora of awards at District 3131â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Awards Function held at Pune.

DG Kamlesh Raheja, D 3201, presented cheque for Rs 1,36,70,400 ($213,600) to TRF Trustee Sushil Gupta, during his installation, as contribution from the District for TRF.

Rtn Jagdish J Malu, IPP of RC Gulbarga Suncity, D 3160, received the Avenues of Service Citation Award in recognition of his dedicated involvement in various service projects.

AUGUST 2015

ROTARY NEWS 81

MNREGA: world’s largest Govt. programme

IN BRIEF Gates couple world’s wealthiest Bill and Melinda Gates, with a combined net worth of $85.7 billion, were declared the world’s wealthiest couple, followed by Spanish retail tycoon Amancio Ortega Gaona and spouse Flora Pérez, with a combined net worth of $70.7 billion. Warren Buffet and Astrid Menks ($65 billion) rank #3. The ranking has been done by global wealth intelligence firm Wealth-X. Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg (31) and Priscilla (30), with a combined net worth $38.5 billion, at the ninth position, are the youngest couple on the list.

Japan’s Robot Hotel

Henn-na (Japanese for ‘weird’), the first ever robot hotel, has opened its doors in Japan. An English-speaking dinosaur or a Japanese humanoid welcomes guests at the front desk; rooms are opened by facial recognition and luggage carted by robotic porters. Tuly, the tulip-shaped concierge robot present in every room assists guests with switches, time or weather outside. Sensor panels adjust room temperature according to body heat. Guests can store their valuables in a robot cloak room staffed by a giant robotic arm that receives their belongings and stores it in individual lockers. All this for $60 to $153 a night, a bargain for Japan for it is at least twice dearer in other hotels. Hideo Sawada, who runs the hotel as part of an amusement park, plans to open 1,000 similar hotels around the world.

The World Bank has ranked the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act as the world’s largest public works programme. The rural employment guarantee programme provides a social security net to 15 per cent (about 182 million) Indians. Our mid-day meal scheme, benefitting 105 million children, was ranked the biggest school-feeding programme; Janani Suraksha Yojana promoting safe motherhood and institutional delivery for pregnant mothers, the topmost social security programme with conditional cash transfers (78 million beneficiaries) and Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme, the second largest unconditional cash transfer social security programme in the world.

Never park in a disabled bay in Brazil When residents of Maringa in Brazil spotted an inconsiderate driver pull up his car in a parking bay reserved for physically challenged people, a group of vigilantes found a unique way to hammer their point home. They covered the car completely with blue (symbolising disability) post-it stickers, using white ones to create a wheelchair design. The furious owner angrily ripped off the stickers, much to the amusement of the cheering onlookers. He cleared just enough space to see out of the windscreen and side window and wheeled off in anger, not before being issued a ticket by the traffic police too. This hilarious footage is doing the rounds on the internet. 82 ROTARY NEWS AUGUST 2015

Text and picture by: M Swaminathan

ust as my wife canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t resist mangoes, I canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t resist photographing Flamingos. Till 2010 flamingo sighting was a major effort for photographers in Chennai. The Pulicat lake, between the borders of Tamil Nadu and Andhra, was the only place where greater flamingos were found and only during February and December. Winter visitors to India, they came from faraway lands such as Iran and Iraq. A fisherman in a small fishing hamlet at the southern tip of Pulicat lake, who takes me in the lake in his boat, tips me off about the arrival of these colourful winged creatures. But now, for the last two years, flamingos have become local residents around Chennai. They thrive only on brackish water lakes where they find their food, algae and shell fish in abundance. Rann of Kutch in Gujarat, Chilika lake in Orissa and Pulicat lake are their main feeding grounds in India. But they breed only in Rann of Kutch. While photographing flamingos, it is important to isolate them in small groups, away from the huge flock and wait for the right moment to capture them in action when they are at play or in a fight. Early morning or late evening is the best light to capture them with clarity.

REGN. NO. TN/CCN/360/2015-2017 LICENSED TO POST WITHOUT PREPAYMENT NO.TN/PMG(CCR)/WPP-431/2015-2017 REGISTERED WITH REGISTRAR OF NEWS PAPERS FOR INDIA 3880/57 ROTARY NEWS PUBLISHED ON 1ST OF EVERY MONTH