Rotary news september 2015

@NewsRotary

RotaryNews India

Vol.66, Issue 3

Annual Subscription Rs.420

September 2015

Remembering People’s President.

President K R Ravindran in India

54 CONTENTS

07

From the Editor’s Desk

08

President Speaks

10

Young India enthralls Ravindran

16

Where the chemistry is right

22

Tribute to a dear friend, a great host

25

$ ÀQH WXQHG '* 3'* MXJDOEDQGKL

32

Meet your Governors

35

Largest Rotary Club outside USA

41

RI President in India

50

Ending water woes

54

Chocolates & beer at American farms

56

A hidden beauty of Mumbai discovered

58

On a mission to give dignity to teenage girls

60

American scientist gets M S Swaminathan Award

61

5,' 0DQRM LQVSLUHV '*(V

64

Vibrant Vienna

On the Cover: Dr A P J Abdul Kalam

32

10 16

35

60

61

22 41

64 25

LETTERS

Ravi ... all the way!

K

udos to RI President K R Ravindran for speaking his mind, saying No Politics Please.

Finally a leader who says he won’t tolerate Rotarians behaving like politicians. Hats off to you Sir. This article should be translated into different Indian languages and distributed to Rotarians all over India.

Rtn Sujata Srinivasan RC Cuddalore Central-D 2981

R

I President K R Ravindran has given us a wonderful message, Be a Gift to the world, and gave examples of Abraham Lincoln, Mother Teresa and Mahatma Gandhi. I hope every Rotarian will work to realise his dream, and give priority to projects. Hopefully now things will be different, and sincere workers will get a chance and be encouraged.

Also, thanks to the Editor for explaining the beautiful slogan Be a gift to the world in her own way with “Dream big - Spread your wings and fly high and when it comes to helping the needy, the distressed, the powerless, don’t set yourself any boundaries.”

Rtn Raj Kumar Kapoor RC Roopnagar-D 3080

T

he RI President has pointed out what will happen to those who tarnish the image of Rotary. Scrutinise district directories of a decade, and you’ll find photos of certain persons repeatedly printed; irregularities and interference are rampant. All Rotarians are behind you; with you.

You will never become unpopular.

Rtn Ramakrishna RC Sullia-D 3180

R

I President K R Ravindran is a dynamic and innovative leader and his thundering messages are wonderful. Thanks to jealousy some sincere Rotarians are being curbed; those responsible should be identified and taught a lesson.

PDG K Nagabhushnam RI District 3160

4 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

Bring in home makers

I

t is distressing to find such a low ratio of women in Rotary. We need to take homemakers and introduce this classification, as this huge working group serves both the family and society. If Rotary leaders do not change this policy, and introduce this classification, we will be seen as an organisation against home makers.

Rtn M Venu Nathan RC Badagara-D 3202

Watchman

I

was overwhelmed to read Atticus Finch, human vs demigod in the August issue. I found the review of Go Set a Watchman, set in the mid-1950s lucid. Many characters, whom fans of To Kill a Mockingbird have loved for years, change in this prequel. The focal point is that most teens grow up with different political views from their parents.

The lesson: always stand up for your beliefs.

Rtn Dr Ravindra Shukla RC Bhusawal-D 3030

I

t is a fact universally acknowledged that a woman or a girl child can stand up for herself and with her positive attitude can usher in a social revolution for change. Your editorial Of girls and daughters… gives ideas that can change the world. Rotarians have shown how great ideas can bring results.

Rtn Arun Kumar Dash RC Baripada-D 3262

Thank you!

I

t is a boon for Rotarians to have an innovative and creative editor. How on earth do you find so much time ... besides editing the magazine so beautifully, to pen so many articles? And you replied to my mail in three minutes! Heal Yourself by Positive Thinking and RI President K R Ravindran’s No Politics Please, are great articles. “I intend to be a very unpopular President.” He is determined to cleanse the system. We don’t need high sounding speeches; mean deeds and nefarious activities that tarnish the name of Rotary and make a mockery of our motto Service above Self, should be punished. Thank you for this urgently needed surgery. You will become a unique, and not unpopular President, Sir. We’re proud to have a great leader like you.

MRK Murty RC Narasaraopet-D 3150

I

n the August 2015 issue, Meet your Governors was informative. No Politics Please by RI President should

LETTERS

be taken seriously. Mettupalayam Rotary (Metro) has done an excellent job in transforming a whole town.

Pune Rotarians usher in a drumstick revolution and A Green Funeral are worth following. Till now I read the magazine only selectively, but I now religiously read it from cover to cover as all articles are very interesting, motivating and educative.

Rtn S Rangarajan RC Kumbakonam-D 2981

A

green funeral, excellently covered our club project Nijidham, in the August issue. Our club members thank Kiran Zehra for visiting our project and covering it in Rotary News.

DGN Maullin Patel RI District-D 3051

A

s a reader of different kinds of weekly/monthly magazines right from school days, I have now become an ardent fan of the editorial team of Rotary News. Every issue has content to motivate Rotarians

Not Cheapest; economical!

J

uly Rotary News had an article ‘Rotary News is cheapest.’

No it is not cheap, it is the most economical. Other regional magazines have problems of survival because of production costs, number of copies and postage. The Rotarian, printed in India, has no expenditure but for printing cost. They get print-ready material from the US, where the cost is $12. But in India we pay $24. Why? It is bleeding us.

After subscribing for 35 years I’ve stopped.

Rotary News with more pages, better high resolution printing on glazed newsprint paper, costs $7. It is not cheap, it is economical.

I am witness to Rotary News progressing for a few decades; congrats to the entire editorial team, editor in particular.

Rtn Arvind N Patel RC Bombay North West-D 3140

to know more about good service projects of various clubs. The August issue contains excellent write-up on joint installation of nine presidents at Chennai (an eye opener for the clubs in major cities); water project for rural women near Pune; Helping Assamese migrants by the Coimbatore Club; novel sanitation project by Madras Club and above all, RI President K R Ravindran’s clearcut views on irregularities and problems in Rotary elections and his desire to set up a transparent system to preserve Rotary’s reputation. We look forward to getting such an educative magazine month after month.

Rtn R Srinivasan RC Madurai Midtown-D 3000

M

y heartfelt thanks to Jaishree for the excellent coverage of our concept tourism project Kadambavanam in the July issue. A Rotarian since 1995, I acknowledge the role played by Rotary in shaping me as a first generation entrepreneur to run a project of this magnitude. This article is a shot in the arm.

Rtn Chitra Ganapathy RC Madurai West-D 3000

I

have been reading Rotary News regularly and find a great difference under your stewardship of making it better and raising it to a higher level. It gives more news, more information and inspirational articles from good sources.

Rtn Madhu Narang RC Bombay West-D 3140

I

’ve asked my son to get me the books Go set a watchman and To kill a Mockingbird, as I read only books on Hindu Philosophy. RI President K R Ravindran, I am afraid, will change the face of the Rotary clubs!

RID Manoj Desai says, “Growth is the most important goal to achieve in any organisation.” That is what I always tell my grandchildren. Kantha’s needle work, so nicely portrayed in the August issue, with the lady wearing a charming smile brought a responding smile from my wife, who sat with me and read through the entire article. TCA Srinivasa-Raghavan brought back my old memories of staying in the Dak Bungalows in the 1950s, while on tour.

I thank him for these nostalgic moments.

Rtn Nan Narayenen RC Madurai West-D 3000

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

ROTARY NEWS 5

Governors’ Council RI Dist 2981

DG

Dr Gunasekaran Chinnathambi

RI Dist 2982

DG

R Vasu

RI Dist 3000

DG

R Theenachandran

RI Dist 3011

DG

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

DG

Jitender Kumar Gaur

PRID

Panduranga Setty

RI Dist 3190

RI Dist 3020

DG

M Jagadeeswara Rao

RI Dist 3030

DG

Dr Nikhil Arvind Kibe

PRID

Sushil Gupta

RI Dist 3011

RI Dist 3040

DG

Sanjeev Gupta

PRID

Ashok Mahajan

RI Dist 3140

RI Dist 3051

DG

C A Lalit Sharma

PRID

Yash Pal Das

RI Dist 3080

RI Dist 3052

DG

Pradhuman Kumar Patni

RI Dist 3053

DG

Anil Beniwal

PRID

Shekhar Mehta

RI Dist 3291

RI Dist 3060

DG

Parag Sheth

PRID

P T Prabhakhar

RI Dist 3230

RI Dist 3070

DG

Kuldip Kumar Dhir

RI Dist 3080

DG

David Joseph Hilton

RID

Dr Manoj D Desai

RI Dist 3060

RI Dist 3090

DG

Dharam Vir Garg

RI Dist 3100

DG

Suneel Kumar Gupta

RI Dist 3110

DG

Sharat Chandra

RI Dist 3120

DG

Ved Prakash

RI Dist 3131

DG

Subodh Mukund Joshi

RI Dist 3132

DG

Dr Deepak Prabhakar Pophale

RI Dist 3140

DG

Subhash Kulkarni

RI Dist 3150

DG

Gopinath Reddy Vedire

RI Dist 3160

DG

Dr Gautam R Jahagirdar

RI Dist 3170

DG

Shrinivas Ramkrishna Malu

RI Dist 3180

DG

Dr A Bharathesh

RI Dist 3190

DG

K P Nagesh

RI Dist 3201

DG

Kamlesh V Raheja

RI Dist 3202

DG

George Sundararaj

RI Dist 3211

DG

C Luke

RI Dist 3212

DG

J Navamani

RI Dist 3230

DG

C R Raju

RI Dist 3240

DG

Chandu Kumar Agarwal

RI Dist 3250

DG

Dr Bindu Singh

RI Dist 3261

DG

Rakesh Dave

RI Dist 3262

DG

Sibabrata Dash

RI Dist 3291

DG

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

Closer to a polio-free world

A

ugust 11, 2015, will be etched as another important milestone in the journey of Rotary International ... this day marked a full year without a single wild poliovirus case in Africa. Africa’s last polio case was recorded in Somalia on this day last year. Nigeria, one of the most challenging African countries on the health care delivery front, achieved this feat on July 24. Of course it is early days yet and for the WHO to declare the African region polio-free, it will have to go through three years without a polio case. Though both countries are likely to be removed soon from the WHO list of polio endemic countries, to get the polio-free status, the next two years will be critical. Earlier, celebrating Nigeria’s success, RI President KR Ravindran said Rotarians across the world should be proud of this landmark. “We have made history and set Africa on course for a polio-free future,” but a polio-free world is not yet a reality, he said.

Urging Rotarians to maintain “intensive immunisation and surveillance” that have taken them this far, he said with resolve and optimism: “Victory is so close we will not let it slip from our grasp. We will end polio now and forever.”

Expressing his happiness at this development, PRIP Rajendra K Saboo, a veteran of many medical missions to Africa, said “Nigeria and Somalia achieving one year of no polio cases brings us to a milestone which will lead to the ultimate goal of Africa becoming polio free.” However, he cautioned, “we cannot be complacent and have to continue our vigil to see that this status continues for three years. I have personally seen during the medical camps and my visits the involvement and commitment of the Government and Rotarians of Nigeria, and what they have achieved in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges is truly remarkable. This brings us closer to our dream of a polio-free world.”

After this encouraging news from Africa, Indian Rotarians must be reliving the triumphant moment when India was declared polio-free last year. Of all the countries in the world, India, with its population of over 1.2 billion, and rising by the day, was expected to be the last country to achieve this feat. More important, many looked upon Indian Rotarians’ desire to get rid of this evil as “midsummer night’s dream,” but finally it happened and the entire world saluted India. But then, as Saboo and other Rotary India leaders keep reiterating, vigilance and total dedication are necessary to keep our doors firmly shut to this scourge. Our geography makes us vulnerable as our close neighbours, both Pakistan and Afghanistan, are still grappling with this infection.

The next big triumph for India, for which Rotary leaders are working very hard, is eradication of perhaps an even greater scourge — illiteracy. On Independence Day, several Rotarians, led

by Rotary leaders, took the pledge to send large numbers of children to school. Watching on with his trademark smile from another world would have been that man who loved children so much, and always counselled them to dream and dream big — former President APJ Abdul Kalam. The spontaneous manner in which the social media erupted with condolence messages and reminiscences of Kalam proved how popular and loved he was by this nation of 1.25 billion. He departed with hardly any physical assets, but his integrity, simplicity and values will ensure that he will be remembered for a long time.

Rasheeda Bhagat

SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 7

President

Speaks Work smarter with Rotary Global Rewards.

Dear Fellow Rotarians, There was once a strong young man who was offered a job as a woodcutter.

He set about his task with energy: The first week, he turned 18 trees into firewood. The second week, he worked just as hard, but was surprised to find he had chopped only 11 trees. The third week, despite working nonstop from morning till night, the number was six, and he went despairingly to the foreman to offer his resignation. “I am losing my strength. I can no longer cut as many trees as I once could.”

The foreman looked at the young man, who seemed to him in fine health.

“Have you thought of sharpening your axe?” he asked.

“Sharpen my axe? Who has time to sharpen an axe?” the young man asked indignantly. “I have been too busy chopping wood!”

When we aren’t making the kind of progress we feel we should be making, the natural response is to redouble our efforts. Sometimes, though, the better response is not to work harder, but to work smarter. Look at your tools. Analyse your processes. Are you directing your resources in the most effective ways? Or are you pouring all your strength into chopping wood with a dull axe?

For the last 20 years, we have relentlessly beaten the drum of membership in Rotary. We set goals and launch campaigns, all focused on bringing in more and more members. And yet, our overall numbers remain the same.

It is time to sharpen our tools. Instead of focusing on the question, “How can we bring more members into Rotary?” we should be asking ourselves, “How can we add more value to Rotary membership, so that more will join and fewer will leave?”

One way we are doing that is with the new Rotary Global Rewards programme, which launched in July. This innovative programme allows Rotarians to connect with, and receive discounts and concessions from, businesses and service providers around the world. Individual Rotarians may submit their own business to be included alongside those with which Rotary has already negotiated relationships; the most appropriate offers will be added to the listings. We have also created the option of allowing businesses to return a percentage of their profit on each transaction to our Rotary Foundation, and several companies have already been locked into this part of the scheme. Each month we will update the list with additional offers that we may receive. I urge all of you to try it out by signing up on My Rotary at Rotary.org now. The more Rotarians participate, the stronger, and more beneficial, the programme will be.

Much more than another loyalty programme, Rotary Global Rewards is a new way to benefit from being a Rotarian, and being part of the Rotary network. It is another way to combine business and service. And it is yet another way to add value to Rotary membership. We cannot forget that our potential members will be asking themselves, “What’s in it for me?”

We need to demonstrate the value of Rotary by showing that becoming a Rotarian will enrich their lives, as it has ours.

KR Ravindran President, Rotary International

Look positively at our youth

The first generation to be raised plugged into the internet, this generation is one of the most connected, educated and engaged generations.

S

eptember is the month dedicated to youth. We have to remember 3 things as we deal with ‘Millennials,’ a term that refers to anyone born between 1980–early-2000s. This group represents one of the most diverse generations in history, both in demographics and behaviour.

The first generation to be raised plugged into the internet, this generation is perhaps one of the most connected, educated and engaged generations that the world has ever seen, even if it seems that its members spend their time fixated on their mobile phones instead of breathing in, digesting ... actually experiencing their real surroundings.

Millennials are often blamed for having a sense of entitlement, taking things for granted, lacking respect for their more experienced seniors/leaders, being lofty, lazy and living off their parents.

Please remember important things about this generation:

1.

They want to be involved.

Our experience of this generation at Amity University in Noida, which RI President KR Ravindran visited in August, is unbelievable. Nearly 8,600 Adult Education programmes were done by them. President Ravindran was full of praise for this stunning activity by the youngsters.

2.

They don’t have their own value system.

From the baby boomers’ perspective, Millennials seem lazy and without ambition. But this is perhaps a mix of both fact and fiction; their outlook is actually a shift of priorities.

3.

Continued optimism is more positivity than naivety.

Valuable tips for youngsters from President Ravindran: •

No one achieves anything alone.

•

Keep yourself occupied productively.

•

Money is not the only goal in life.

•

Don’t be afraid of disapproval.

•

Protect and cherish your family and understand your role.

•

Every human life is equally important.

• Save a life, if you can.

• Change a life, if you can.

• Be a Gift to the World.

Manoj Desai Director, Rotary International

Young India enthralls

Ravindran Jaishree

At a school in Panshet village, Pune.

6

S

“Speaking to students is something I truly enjoy. You make us feel young, and there are many, many things that we can learn from you — your new way of thinking, technology and your ability to master things.”

With these words, RI President K R Ravindran, on his first visit to India as Rotary’s head honcho, set a brisk pace for a series of meetings and inaugurations in both Delhi and Pune. He was addressing Rotaractors, Interactors, students and staff of Amity University, Noida, at the New Generation Intercity Meet. Along with RI Director Manoj Desai, DGs Sudhir Mangla (D 3011) and J K Gaur (D 3012) and several PDGs participated in the meet.

Rotaractors were doing a great job in reaching functional literacy to adults, Ravindran said. “It is not just teaching them to read or do arithmetic … you are actually putting them on their feet. Look at the way their life changes.” A lorry driver thus learns to read signs, know all about speed limits and traffic signs and road rules; “just imagine what a difference all this makes to him.

A mother, whose life revolved around the fire and kitchen, now knows what vaccination is, when she has to take her child for a shot of polio vaccine, where she can get medicines, when she has to visit the doctor — she is an extraordinary warrior for the children. She didn’t have to go to Cambridge or Oxford. You just made her functionally literate.”

Saying that it is important for adults to be good role models, Ravindran said he once told a group of Australian Governors “to teach their cricket team how to behave on the field. Our children are imitating cricketers out on the paddy fields and in the streets.”

He admires Kumar Sangakkara and Sachin Tendulkar, mainly for their gentlemanly act both on and off field.

Exceeding the target of 5,000, Rotaractors from these districts have pulled 8,450 adults out of

“

“

Can anything replace the warm hug or handshake of a friend?

We will have robot Rotarians attending conferences.

– RID Manoj Desai

lessons

Ravindran shared with the starry-eyed youngsters the six lessons that have shaped his life.

No one ever achieves anything by himself. Don’t

for a moment think you are self-made. I will never forget how my parents strived to send me to the university; or my friends who supported me; or the banker who lent me money because I was a Rotarian. Only God is self-made and we need His help in every walk of our life.

Keep yourself occupied productively. That you

are using your spare time to teach the uneducated is commendable. When I was a kid, my father used to ask me whether I had any homework, and when I said No, he’d say, then assign yourself one! And even today when I switch on my computer I wouldn’t waste the time when it is booting — I would wear my tie or tie my shoe lace.

Money is not the only goal of life. Once a survey was

conducted for a group — the very rich to the very poor — on how much ‘more money’ they need to be satisfied in life. Over 90 per cent said they are satisfied, ‘but if I have a little bit more, I’ll be very satisfied.’ This ‘little bit more’ was the same need for men earning between $300–$30,000 a day. Nothing you have is enough; you always need a little more. Money is the easiest thing to find, more difficult to find is ideas and good people to work with.

Don’t be afraid of someone disapproving of what you are doing. What truly matters is the people close to you, people who want you to come up in life, listen to them, and don’t worry about the rest.

Protect and cherish your family. However young

you are, you still have a great role to play. As you start reaching for the skies, you must remember that your roots are on the ground. If your roots are not fixed, then the tree up there is going to fall. So keep those roots strong. Don’t miss occasions like your dad’s birthday, thinking you can go next year. Next year may not come. Spend your time with the people precious to you, and your precious time will become all the more precious.

Every human life is equally important. Referring to

the Venetian mosaic sketch depicting Norman Rockwell’s Golden Rule in the UN Building in New York that says, ‘Do unto others what you will do for yourself,’ Ravindran pointed out that every religion propagates this.

“Mind-blowing,” said Suneeta, a Rotaractor, referring to President Ravindran’s speech at the New Generation Intercity meet at Noida. “The six lessons on life that he rolled out were inspirational,” said Rotaractor Manish Goyal.

“It is amazing to see what a set of toilets can do for a nation. Toilets, especially in girls’ schools, can contribute hugely to a nation’s progress. After driving out polio, sanitation is the next best thing,” said Ravindran in an interview to a media channel. He extracted a promise from the students to maintain the toilets built by Rotary. An enthusiastic ‘Ho…,’ (Marathi for ‘yes’) was the chorus.

Happy Schools

Children sing the handwash jingle as they wash their hands.

illiteracy. “This is probably the highest in the country.

We will bring back significant number of school dropouts too, to school,” promised DLCC Ajay Kumar Singh.

A poignant moment in the programme was when Papu Ram Sharma (45) expressed his gratitude to the teenager Vanshika Sachdev for teaching him to read and write, and the auditorium burst into applause.

Describing her first-ever experience in teaching, Interactor Vanshika said her school had made it compulsory for all students to adopt an illiterate adult and give him/her functional literacy. “Those 45 days — 15 minutes a day — was the best time in my life,” she said, as Ravindran smiled on.

Importance of toilets In Pune, Desai commended D 3131 for pledging to build 5,000-plus toilet blocks in girls’ schools. “It is phenomenal … that one District can commit to construct 5,000plus toilet blocks in one year.” This was half of the 10,000 toilet blocks that Rotary India plans to build in a year ... “a perfect answer to Prime Minister Modi’s call for Swachch Bharat Swachh Vidyalaya.” Five hundred toilet blocks have already been constructed, including one in a girls’ school at Panshet village and 206 at Ambi village, constructed

by RC Pimpri, along with RC Durham, USA; RC Durham, UK; RC Bhubaneshwar Heritage, RI District 3261 and TRF, under Global Grants. Janaseva Foundation also partnered with the Rotary clubs in this endeavour.

12 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

In Delhi, school sanitation and Happy Schools stole the show with the leaders inaugurating toilet blocks constructed by RC Delhi Ashoka (D 3012) at Purva Madhyamik Vidyalaya at Gejha village in Noida, and Nigam Pratibha School at Sriniwaspuri, Delhi, built by RC Delhi Garden City (D 3011). The spanking clean school facilities got this comment from Ravindran: “I was wondering why they have to do projects in such a posh school. Then I realised that it was not a posh school, Rotarians have made it posh.”

The next day, the primary block of Rotary Public School at Gurgaon was inaugurated by the RI President.

Future of Rotary At the ‘Future of Rotary’ meets in both Pune and Delhi, Rotarians displayed generosity in TRF and WinS contributions. Said Manoj Desai, “India gave 12 AKS members and 406 Major Donors in the first week of this year.”

More than Rs 10 crore has been raised so far from the West Zone Districts for WinS projects, said Zone Coordinator Vinay Kulkarni (PDG 3131). MoUs were signed

RI President K R Ravindran and RID Manoj Desai being welcomed at the Gejha village school.

Change agents At a press conference in Delhi, TRF Trustee and WinS Chair Sushil Gupta highlighted Rotary’s commitment to build and maintain 20,000 gender-specific toilet blocks in government schools in two years, and enroll 1 lakh

children in schools. “The focus is on hygiene practices, hand washing and bringing about behavioural change in communities through school children. Just building toilets is not a guarantee that people will use them.”

Only when these children became “change agents, can we realise our dream of Swachh Bharat. We concentrate on girls schools so that they are taught menstrual hygiene habits too, because nobody is there to guide them and no suitable facilities exist in schools. So they drop out of school once they attain puberty. Delhi NCR will construct toilet blocks in 600 schools,” he said.

Hailing Rotary’s sanitation and literacy initiatives, UNICEF India’s WASH Chief Susanne Coates said hygiene messages inculcated in children last a lifetime and “interestingly where WASH in Schools exists, younger children stay in school longer. So it is just not about CSR money, it is about dedication and belief in investment in children.”

On the future of Rotary, Desai was sceptical about e-initiatives. “Can anything replace the warm hug or handshake of a friend? We will have robot Rotarians

“ RI President Ravindran, spouse Vanathy and RI Director Manoj Desai inaugurating toilet block at Panshet school.

Mind-blowing. The six lessons on life that he rolled out were inspirational.

“

at Pune with Zilla Parishad President and with Pratap Rao Pawar of Sakal newspapers to jointly implement WASH in Schools around Pune and Raigad districts.

SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 13

L to R: PRID Sudharshan Agarwal, RI President K R Ravindran and TRF Trustee Sushil Gupta in Delhi.

“

attending conferences, I am afraid. I’ll have a cold hug from a robot that will suffocate me to death.”

Desai said Rotary’s work on polio eradication deserved a Nobel award. “I have a dream that Rotary should become a ‘preferred partner’ for Government and other agencies.” He said that from a single CSR seminar held recently in Nagpur, Rotary had managed to get donations worth Rs 9 crore from corporates, including Rs 1 crore from the Central Surface Transport Ministry headed by Nitin Gadkari, the chief guest. Ravindran fondly recalled the late PRID OP Vaish, and his penchant to converse in Hindi despite the former telling him he can’t understand the language. “I wish he was here.

I really miss him.”

Complimenting Rotary India’s “phenomenal work” in WinS, he said, “It is so simple, yet challenging. If it succeeds here, it is workable elsewhere in the world, particularly in Africa. When the world was apprehensive about eradicating polio from India with all its problems of poverty, illiteracy and sanitation, you did it.

Rotary will now galvanise governments and other agencies world over to provide major thrust on sanitation simply because it is very economical to do this.”

Pictures by Jaishree RID Manoj Desai, RI President Ravindran and DG Sudhir Mangla Designed by Krishnapratheesh honouring the drawing competition winners at Sriniwaspuri school in Delhi.

Those 45 days — 15 minutes a day — was the best time in my life,” said the young girl, as K R Ravindran smiled on.

“

14 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

Ian Riseley to be 2017–18 Rotary President

I Ian Riseley, an Australian accountant and member of the Rotary Club of Sandringham, is selected as the 2017–18 Rotary President.

an H S Riseley, of the Rotary Club of Sandringham, Victoria, Australia, is the selection of the Nominating Committee for President of Rotary International in 2017–18. He will become the President-nominee on 1 October if no other candidates challenge him.

Riseley says that meaningful partnerships with corporations and other organisations are crucial to Rotary’s future.

“We have the programmes and personnel and others have available resources,” says Riseley. “Doing good in the world is everyone’s goal.

We must learn from the experience of the polio eradication programme to maximise our public awareness exposure for future partnerships.”

Riseley is a practicing accountant and principal of Ian Riseley and Co., which specialises in advising local and international businesses, and has a strong interest in international affairs. He received the AusAID Peacebuilder Award from the Australian government in 2002 in recognition of his work in TimorLeste. He also received the Order of Australia medal in 2006 for service to the Australian community.

“Governments see Rotary as positive representatives of a civil society,” he says. “We should work with them to advocate for peace and conflict resolution, just as we are advocating for polio eradication.”

A member since 1978, Riseley has served Rotary as treasurer, director, trustee, RI Board Executive Committee member, task force member, committee member and chair, and district governor.

He is also a former member of the Australian Polio Eradication Private Sector Campaign and a recipient of The Rotary Foundation’s Service Award for a Polio-Free World. He and his wife, Juliet, are Multiple Paul Harris Fellows, Major Donors, The Nominating Committee’s members are Ann-Britt Åsebol, Rotary Club of Falun-Kopparvågen, Sweden; John T Blount, Rotary Club of Sebastopol, California, USA; Hee-Byung Chae, Rotary Club of Seoul West, Seoul, Korea; Serge Gouteyron, Rotary Club of Valenciennes-Denain aérodrome Nord, France; Frederick W Hahn Jr., Rotary Club of Independence, Missouri, USA; Stuart B Heal, Rotary Club of Cromwell, New Zealand; Paul Knyff, Rotary Club of Weesp (Vechtstreek-Noord), Netherlands; Masahiro Kuroda, Rotary Club of Hachinohe South, Aomori, Japan; Anne L Matthews (chair), Rotary Club of Columbia East, South Carolina, USA; Michael D McCullough, Rotary Club of Trenton, Michigan, USA; David D Morgan, Rotary Club of Porthcawl, Mid Glamorgan, Wales; Gideon M Peiper, Rotary Club of Ramat Hasharon, Israel; José Alfredo Sepúlveda, Rotary Club of Pachuca Plata, Hidalgo, Mexico; P C Thomas, Rotary Club of Nilgiris West, Tamil Nadu, India; Alceu Antimo Vezozzo, Rotary Club of Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil; and C Grant Wilkins, Rotary Club of Denver, Colorado, USA.

Where the

chemistry is right Rasheeda Bhagat

A rare engineering college totally run

by Rotarians, RC Ankleshwar is justifiably proud of the centre of excellence in chemical technology it has established, costing Rs 40 crore.

Vaibhavi Patel 166 RROTARY OTA OTA OT TARY NE NEWS EWS SEPTEMBER EW SSEPPTEM MB BEEER BER R 2015 201155 20

T

he slender girl seated before me, Vaibhavi Patel, says she is 18, but looks 14. Training to be an electrical engineer at the Shroff S R Rotary Institute of Chemical Technology (SRICT) at Ankleshwar, about 78 km from Baroda, she hesitates when asked about her future dream.

In a whisper, she says “...my dream is rather big.” Prompted she spells it out: “Actually it is the dream of both my father and grandfather, that I become an IAS officer, because nobody from our family is educated.

So they have a lot of hope on me.”

With a paralysed father and from a humble background, Vaibhavi, now in second year, was academically faring badly. “In this college we give importance to academics; our students have to give a ‘commitment’ when they join on their future scores on a scale of 1–10, and this is monitored,” says Ashok Panjwani, a PDG from the Rotary Club of Ankleshwar. Managed by the Ankleshwar Rotary Educational Society, SRICT was promoted by United Phosphorus Ltd (UPL).

Vaibhavi’s teacher soon learnt the disturbing conditions in her home and she was helped to concentrate on her studies. Her score now: 90 per cent!

The beginning In 2001, the club decided on a long term educational project and thanks to the efforts of PP N S Mehta, it managed to buy 25 acres of government land at Rs 5 lakh. “Today this is worth Rs 8–10 crore but at that time even this amount was difficult and one of the banks gave it to us.”

A chemical engineer from Mumbai’s prestigious college (now called the Institute of Chemical Technology), which is “better than IIT for chemical engineering,” the Rotarians thought that as this belt of Gujarat — from Ankleshwar to Bharuch — is brimming with chemical industries, and 60–70 per cent of chemicals in India produced here with good colleges available only in Mumbai, “a college in chemical technology in

Ankleshwar was required to service the chemicals industry.”

With both UPL and RC Ankleshwar working to make Ankleshwar, then a very polluting place, pollution free, addition of a course in environment science was logical. “It’s no exaggeration to say that thanks to Rotary, many pollution control efforts have reached Ankleshwar. We have also planted a lot of trees,” says Panjwani.

Along with these subjects, mechanical and electrical engineering streams are also available; the environment science course is the college’s usp.

Finding the money By 2004–05, the land was acquired and other spadework done; “we estimated, rather naively, we would need Rs 10 crore for this college,” he recalls. He

This college will emerge as a centre of excellence for research and development and process improvement, so if Rotarians connect with us, it’ll be a win-win for all.

Ashok Panjwani with faculty members of SRICT. SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 17

requested UPL for a donation of Rs 2.5 crore, and at the meet held in 2005 to felicitate Panjwani, who had become DGN, UPL Chairman Rajju Shroff announced the donation of Rs 2.5 crore and the Rotarians were delighted. But with the chemical industry not buoyant then, the money from UPL and other industries too, came only in 2008–09, and the dream project took concrete shape.

By now the UPL Vice Chairman Sandra Shroff had got fully involved and “as she wants total quality in everything, the costs started climbing.” So UPL, where Panjwani is now the Executive Director, was again approached and “they said we’ll give you Rs 30 crore, and make up whatever deficit you might have.”

With this shot in the arm — the Rotarians were clear this would be a non-profitable venture — they went ahead to recruit quality teachers who needed to be paid good salaries, as the fees is anyway decided by the government. This is a rare professional private college where the 25 per cent management quota seats have no capitation fee and are charged the government-fixed fee — Rs 40,000 a year in 2011, and now Rs 80,000.

What about government help?

“We want to make this a centre of excellence and a world class institute and government involvement of any kind anywhere makes that difficult,” says Panjwani, adding that they have also kept away from Rotary’s Global Grants as “that money should be used only for primary education.”

The first batch enrolled in 2011; “Kalyan Banerjee, as the RI President in 2011–12, inaugurated this college on July 15; this was his first public service event as RI President.” The second and third phases were inaugurated by Ron Burton as RIPE. The college strength is 1,100 students.

65% campus placement The first batch of 154 graduates has got “very good results,” with 65 per cent getting campus placement at an annual package of Rs 2.5 to 4 lakh; 12 are taken by the UPL group, and others by big names such as Cadilla, Wockhardt, etc. Within a couple of years they’ll be getting Rs 6–8 lakh, says SRICT’s Vice Chairman.

Shukla explains that SRICT is affiliated to the Gujarat Technological University which has 110 colleges, and “the first year we got students from

the lower bracket as this is a tribal belt.” This institution is not the first priority of students “nor are students in Gujarat as academically inclined as in Tamil Nadu or Maharashtra.

That is why we take a commitment on targets from the students and parents,” says Panjwani.

The Principal, Srikanth J Marg, says that finding quality teachers was a challenge, but “we’ve been lucky.

Of our 80 staff members, all are PGs and 15–17 have Ph Ds. Visiting faculty, industry connect An MoU has been signed with the Miami University, where his cousin Sashi Lalwani heads the Chemistry department, and student exchange programme is happening. His son-inlaw, a Ph D in chemical engineering and teacher in London, takes classes for SRICT students when visiting.

His daughter, also a Ph D in chemical engineering, who works as a senior director at Pfizer UK, also addresses the students when here.

Shukla quietly adds that his own son has been trained by Panjwani, who in his 43-year career must have trained 350-odd people in the chemical industry. SRICT has also started industry

From Left: Jesal Patel and Shreya Kundu, with their classmates.

18 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

consultation, and plans are to develop this further.

Panjwani points out that this is already an Rs 40 crore institution and “we want to take it to Rs 100 crore in the next 10 years. The college is only the first step. We want to do a lot more research work for the industry which badly needs quality technical inputs. When we have 80 or 100 faculty members, who are the real brains in their subject, they must work along with industry experts to improve the quality of its products.”

Not only company but also energy costs can thus be saved. He says his alma mater in Mumbai is No 1 in consulting and “some of the faculty members there earn in crores,” as those bringing in consultancies get to keep two-thirds of the money, with only a third going to the college. “Once our credibility is built, industry will automatically come to us.”

The college already has a dozen consultancy projects, bringing in Rs 25 lakh, and also does environment audit for industry, appointed by the State Pollution Control Board for 15 industries; next year the number will rise to 30. “We have to bring down our losses, build more labs to make it

Kalyan Banerjee, as RI President (2011–12) inaugurates SRICT. Also seen in the picture are Chairman of UPL Rajju Shroff and Vice Chair Sandra Shroff.

We want to make this a centre of excellence and a world class institute and government involvement of any kind anywhere makes that difficult. a centre of excellence, an auditorium and also a hostel. We don’t have a proper compound wall or gates; the idea being to first put up quality labs, start PG courses and become a deemed university!”

Future dream SRICT has many advantages; “sitting in a chemical industrial belt, we get many industry experts to talk to students, become their mentors and allow them to visit their factories.”

Panjwani now wants to connect this college with all Rotary clubs of India, “particularly Rotarians connected with industries so they can give jobs to our

students, interact with them and we can admit students from other States under our management quota. This college will emerge as a centre of excellence for research and development, process improvement, so if they connect with us, it’ll be a win-win for all.”

Expectedly, the Rotary footmark is dominant with both a Rotaract and Rotary e-Club operating here. Snehal Lokhandwala, Professor in Chemical Technology, is the founder IPP of the e-Club with 21 members from India, Singapore, UK, Canada and Australia.

President of the Rotaract Club Rishab Jhadav loves the opportunity “to get out of our comfort zone and go SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 19

Ashok Panjwani and Angira Shukla with the students at SRICT.

out to orphanages, or plan adult literacy programmes.”

Gender quotient Of the 1,100 students, 10 per cent are women, and all the graduating girls were among the first to get placed!

Surprisingly, 40 per cent of the faculty in this highly specialised institute is female. Panjwani says this is because some of their husbands work in the chemical industry. “And as we give 6th Pay Commission salaries, some of them earn more than their husbands!”

From the Principal to the lecturers the chorus is: Girls are much better students than boys.

I see for myself the confidence the girls exude. Shreya Kundu, a 3rd year student in environment science and daughter of a production manager, wants to become an IAS officer.

“I grew up as a child in Ankleshwar and want to combat the pollution here.

As a bureaucrat I can change policy if I am strong and honest. Even bureaucrats without an engineering background have made a difference,” she says, giving the example of a woman Collector in Tamil Nadu who introduced a “great idea on waste water management, and encouraged rain water harvesting from highways.”

20 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

I grew up as a child in Ankleshwar and want to combat the pollution here. As a bureaucrat I can change policy if I am strong and honest.

Jesal Patel, the daughter of Dushyant Patel, a Rotarian and second-term BJP MLA from Bharuch, exudes similar confidence. She plans to do her Masters course in the US and then return to either take up a job or start an enterprise. “Though we would prefer her to become our faculty,” smiles Shukla.

Ask her about her commitment, Panjwani prompts me. Jesal smiles and he says: “It’s 10 out of 10; she is a potential gold medallist!”

But rubbing shoulders with these bright and confident students from privileged backgrounds are many students with whom teachers like Shivani Punjabi and Deepika Shah work patiently for long after-class hours to teach them English and raise their academic standards to the requisite levels.

As Lokhandwala says, “I love teaching here for its focus on technology and excellence on one hand and the Rotary core area of social development on the

other. It’s an opportunity to help some disadvantaged students and on a blank slate you can write well.”

Rajput Raju is the son of a vegetable vendor, and commutes daily by train a distance of 40 km to attend classes. He can’t afford rented accommodation here. Is paying the fees a problem, I ask him. “My father manages,” he whispers.

Rakesh Vagh lost his father 13 years ago, his brother sells bags. But the dreams of this chemical engineering student are impressive. “After this, I want to do a wine making course in Nasik, and then join the Indian Army, Navy or Air Force,” he says.

I walk out of SRICT musing that when he does that and unfurls the Tiranga, the Rotary wheel will be entrenched in his heart.

Pictures by Rasheeda Bhagat Designed by N Krishnamurthy

6XEVFULEH

12: for Rotary News Print Version & e- Version

For the Rotary year 2015 – 2016 $V FRQFHUQHG FLWL]HQV RI WKH ZRUOG WKRVH RI \RX ZKR DUH DODUPHG DW WKH GHJUDGDWLRQ RI WKH HQYLURQPHQW DQG VODXJKWHU RI WUHHV NLQGO\ RSW IRU RXU H 9HUVLRQ

Annual Subscription

India

Rs.420 Print version

e- Version No. of copies

Rotary News (English) Rotary Samachar (Hindi)

For every new member the pro-rata is Rs 35 a month.

Please attach the TYPED list of individual members with their complete address and PIN Code.

Intimate language preference (English / Hindi) against each member’s name. Please do not send the Semi-annual Report for address list.

Rotary Club of .......................................................................................................... RI District ................................

Name of the President/Secretary ...............................................................................................................................

Address ...................................................................................................................................................................... .................................................................................................................................................................................... ....................................................................................................................................................................................

City ............................................. State ................................................................ PIN STD Code .................................. Phone: OÄ›. ....................................... Res. ............................................................

Mobile ...........................................................E-mail ...............................................................................................

Cheque/DD No. ............................................. Dated .............................................. for Rs. ............................................

Drawn on ..................................................................................................................................................................... in favour of “ROTARY NEWS TRUST� payable at CHENNAI is enclosed.

Date:

President/Secretary Mail this form to: Rotary News Trust, Dugar Towers, 3 Floor, 34, Marshalls Road, Egmore, Chennai 600 008.

Tamil Nadu, India. Ph: 044 4214 5666, e-mail: rotarynews@rosaonline.org rd

Tribute to a dear friend, a great host Jaya Indiresan

A

fter the initial shock of television headlines screaming “Dr Kalam is no more,” I said to myself, he is no more with us physically, but he has taken permanent place in all our hearts and no one can take that away.

And then memories came floodingg in of our association with Kalam for over four decades. My husband, the late Prof P V Indiresan, Director of both Madras and Delhi IITs, was officially associated with Kalam in several projects.

A major project they

worked on together was the Vision 2020 document. Their common interests, vision, concern, commitment and a positive approach to finding solutions to problems brought them very close.

There were several common features between them. Both came from very humble backgrounds.

Whenever anyone asked Kalam who had inspired him the most, he would always refer to his mother and teacher Subramania Iyer. Similarly, Indiresan would always refer to his mother’s blessing: “Live with Dignity.”

Personally, their requirements were very few and they led very simple lives.

Both lived for others, and interestingly, had similar ends. Kalam

loved being with students and his life ended abruptly while addressing students in Shillong. Indiresan was always fascinated with the challenges of technology and collapsed in Pune where he had gone to finalise the paper trail issue of the Electronic Voting Machine.

Both firmly believed that India can progress only when the quality of life of the vast population in rural India improved and were both passionate and fascinated

by PURA (Providing Urban Amenities in Rural Areas).

My association with Kalam related to his concern about the challenges, development and uplift

of disadvantaged and marginalised communities. I was closely associated with a project commissioned by the then undivided Andhra Pradesh on Mainstreaming Madrasa Education under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan programme being implemented by CAP Foundation in Hyderabad. We had covered nearly 1,000 Madrasas in Andhra Pradesh. Feeling that just giving them formal education and taking them through high school will not lead them anywhere, we decided to provide vocational education with life skills to make them employable.

My organisation knew about our association with Kalam and asked me to invite him to inaugurate the training centre donated by a philanthropist.

At first Kalam was not happy about accepting this invitation, for he felt there are too many things in big cities and said he’d gladly come if this was a rural area. When we told him that this training centre is in a rural area, he readily agreed to come.

There were over 300 students from disadvantaged sections from all communities. He interacted with them freely, and invited them to ask questions. Some questions were funny, some personal, some serious.

He patiently responded to all the questions; some of his answers were funny and made the students laugh.

Others were very serious and made the students think. Some answers were very inspirational. The students were thrilled and just mobbed him.

The security staff had a tough time but Kalam was happy as he was with students!

Kalam had a very fine sense of humour. I watched him once on a live TV relay, while addressing the faculty of the Anna University in Chennai, he regaled the audience with a modified story of the genie who was able to count in a flash the number of stars in the sky and sand particles in the world, but was stumped when God asked him to count the number of political parties in India! At that time, he was seriously

PRIP Rajendra K Saboo being conferred the Padma Shri award

by President APJ Abdul Kalam.

When Kalam was invited to the stage to felicitate the artists, he went up and started playing on the drums.

SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 23

propagating the idea of a two or three party system for India.

Passionate about children As everybody knows, Kalam loved interacting with youngsters. When he got the Bharat Ratna award, we invited him home for dinner. He agreed, provided we made it a simple and quiet affair. We had our grandchildren, then in their early teens, and their friends. Kalam sat on the sofa, and the children squatted on the carpet at his feet and looked up to him with fascination. He asked each of them his favourite question: ‘what are your dreams?’ He told them stories, incidents from his life, how his teachers motivated and inspired him to accept challenges, and said that is what makes life worthwhile. It was fascinating to watch the kind of ease he displayed with children and relaxed in their company, becoming a child himself!

Other memorable times were when Kalam was the President, and we’d make our bi-monthly journey to the Rashtrapathi Bhavan to attend the Indra Dhanush cultural programme at the small and cosy auditorium.

Everybody knows his passion for music, especially Carnatic classical music. Being a player of the veena himself, he used to thoroughly enjoy the cultural evenings. Quite often we had the pleasure of sitting in the front row with Kalam, who would comment on the finer nuances of the music, being a great connoisseur of classical music.

On one occasion, on the lawns of the Moghul Garden, a huge stage was constructed and on it there was a large ensemble of percussion instruments, huge drums and so on.

After the scintillating performance, when Kalam was invited to the stage to felicitate the artists, he went up to the stage and started playing on the drums to the delight of the audience! This is another example of the child in him taking over 24 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

TRF Trustee Sushil Gupta being conferred the Padma Shri award by President APJ Abdul Kalam.

It was fascinating to watch the kind of ease he displayed with children and relaxed in their company, becoming a child himself! spontaneously and his uninhibited joy in simple things of life.

After cultural programmes, at the high tea, Kalam would always mingle with his guests, personally offer them the snacks, pose for photographs, always wearing his charming smile. Rarely have I seen such a gracious and delightful host.

I can go on and on, as the pleasant memories are numerous. Kalam used to refer to us as teachers of teachers. As the cliché goes, once the teachers open their mouth, you cannot stop them for one hour!

Dr Kalam’s aide, Srijan, reminiscing the discussions he had on the last journey, talks about Kalam’s concern on the frequent disruption of Parliament. He wanted to pose this as a surprise assignment to the IIM Students he was addressing. But before he could do that, he has gone.

Perhaps Kalam and Indiresan, who was also deeply concerned about this issue, will jointly take up this important assignment in the peaceful Paramdham and send a workable solution to save our democracy. Good luck to both of them.

A fine-tuned DG-PDG jugalbandhi Rasheeda Bhagat n an era where many Rotary districts are ridden with the problem of one PDG trying to stab in the back the new DG or vice versa, it was interesting to watch through the Rotary year 2014– 15, the bonhomie and synergy between Vivek Aranha, District 3131 Governor andd his hi IPDG Deepak D k Shikarpur.

Shik One O reason for the District scoring so many highs, be it in TRF contributions or membership growth.

At the 2014 Chennai Institute, Pakistan’s PolioPlus Chair Aziz Memon described how Pakistani Rotarians were struggling with polio

immunisation as their health workers were being shot dead by the Taliban.

Mobile phones were required by these workers for more effective and safer work. The scheme would cost $10,000.

In 30 minutes the session ended, by which time Aranha, Shikarpur and two other th Pune P Rotarians R t i were att the th dais d i to t announce they would fund this scheme!

The secret So what is the secret behind this perfect understanding, I ask the two as we dig into idlis at the Pune Youth Club. “First of all, the two of us

get along very well,” says Aranha, adding, “and and I think we do commucommu nity service in the right sense of the word. We don’t put the names of any Rotarians in any project that our district does … no director, no governor; only District 3131. So people feel there i no personall agenda is d involved i l d andd this attracts new members.”

Shikarpur adds that all the “challenge areas of Rotary” such as increasing membership, getting women and younger members have been successfully tackled by their District. “And Rasheeda Bhagat

I

Operation Reconnect

G

iving an example of how continuity helps, PDG Deepak Shikarpur says during his year the RI concept/programme of reconnect was tried out by the district, “the only district in the world to try it. Like a college’s alumni, it is an organised campaign to bring back old Rotarians who had left.”

For this he needed data of the people who had left, but had to put up quite a struggle to get it. “The data of those who leave rests in Evanston and there is privacy over it. So I told them you give me info only for my district, I am not interested in other districts.” It took him eight months to get this information. He was also helped by the fact that the IT back office of RI is near the Pune airport “where more than 60 people work. If you send a question to the US, it comes here but most Rotarians don’t know this as they don’t interact with Rotarians by design.”

When the chief information officer Peter Marcos visited Pune, Shikarpur convinced him on why he needed the data and got it. “I wrote to each of them saying we are missing you, please return. These are my

if our projects have worked well it is because we work with each other. If we had decided not to help each other, many of the projects would have fallen through.”

Notable projects Spelling out the larger projects, Aranha says that 1,000 e-learning centres were opened in 2014–15 and 800 were opened in the previous year.

Tata Technologies helped in a big way through their CSR initiative. Around 2,000 toilet blocks were constructed and 40 dialysis machines set up in the district where many people get the 26 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

PDG Vivek Aranha and spouse Chandra with PDG Deepak Shikarpur.

plans for the year as Governor.” And he followed this up by giving specific lists to the presidents during club visits and asked them to invite them back.

Shikarpur says he was “shocked to know that in five years 2,000 people had left.” As a result of Operation Reconnect, 500 people returned in his year and another 500 during Aranha’s year, as some people took time to decide.

So why do people leave Rotary?

Apparently there are a few standard reasons. One is financial; second a fight within the club; third, I was ignored; fourth illness and the last

but not the least, politics within the district. “But emotionally, after 2–3 years, those reasons become invalid.

I also found that heart of hearts, after leaving they were missing Rotary but there was an ego problem. So I said I will invite you, you don’t wait for club president. Some said I don’t want to return to the old club, give me another, so we gave that choice.”

Vivek Aranha adds that another problem is that in larger clubs leadership positions are difficult, so by shifting clubs, an opportunity opens up.

We don’t put the names of any Rotarians in our projects. No director, no governor; only District 3131. Finding no personal agenda, new members get attracted. service free of cost; the middle classes pay only Rs 500 per dialysis. Mammography vans have been set up; “one goes to rural areas, and we’ve gone beyond our district and given one van to Vijayawada and the screening is

done totally free of charge. Under the Happy Village project we’ve done 50 villages this year.”

And these PDGs have gone beyond D 3131; “we’ve given aid to RC Culver City in San Francisco for

a literacy programme. We’ve reached out to the people of northeast India by giving mobile medical equipment and ambulances. We’re setting up a computer centre in Jaffna which will be inaugurated soon. We support PRIP Raja Saboo in his medical missions in Africa with large sums of money. We gave mobile telephones to Pakistan’s polio workers.”

The district has recently set up a free dialysis centre in Kasargod in Kerala where chemicals Kera Ke rala la w h re hharmful he armf ar m ul che h mi mica cals ls aare re kidney used us ed for for ffarming, armi ar ming ng,, an andd ki kidn dney ey ddisorders isor is orde ders rs are on the rise.

RC meet on a train Another feather in their cap is that every Thursday 40 Rotarians hold their club meeting on the Deccan Queen, a train that commutes between Pune and Mumbai. “This is a very big PR exercise because the train has 100 commuters and only 40 are Rotarians.

The other 60 non-Rotarians learn a lot about Rotary, and the Rotary banner is on the train, train,” says Aranha.

Shikarpur adds that the club struggled gl ed ffor or ttwo wo yyears ears ea rs bbecause ecau ec ause se R RII ob obje objected jectted e saying sayi sa ying ng yyou ou ccan’t an’t an ’t hhave avee su av such ch a cclub lubb me lu meet et

I was shocked to know that in five years 2,000 people had left Rotary in our district.

PDG Deepak Shikarpur, RID Manoj Desai and PDG Vivek Aranha.

as the train goes through two districts.

“So Vivek found a solution saying the meeting will be held only when the train is in our district!”

Membership boost Another achievement is that 33 new clubs were opened during his tenure as DG, adding 1,500 new members and helping India emerge No 1 in membership growth. (Membership grew in India by 25,000 during 2014–15).

Adds Shikarpur: “And we’re getting more women and young members — RI’s challenge areas and all our new clubs are young!”

So how did they achieve that?

“Through proper marketing. In the last week of June, one of the world’s largest clubs was chartered here with 406 members. The average age of that club is 30 and it has 200 women!” D 3131 has also chartered a women entrepreneurs’ club — RC Inspira.

Shikarpur adds that you have to convince people in the right manner to join Rotary. In 2013–14, the district took up the gated community project, and talked to people in Magarpatta, the satellite township of Pune. “They have 30,000 people there. Our efforts paid off and they started a club inside.” That during Aranha’s period as Governor three more clubs were started in the same society is proof that co-operation and joint work by PDGs pays rich dividend.

So will they continue to work together in the future too along with the new district leadership? “Of course. He is the image co-ordinator and I am the Assistant Rotary Coordinator (ARC) for next year, the post Shikarpur had in 2014–15, and I’ve promised to help him in his image boosting efforts,” says Aranha.

Adds Shikarpur with a smile, “It’s a mutual admiration society …

Governorship will come and go and it has gone now for Vivek, as it did for me the previous year, but what has remained is our friendship.”

Designed by N Krishnamurthy SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 27

Registration Form

RI District...........................

Name

Hotel Accommodation

(CAPITALS):.................................................................

No. of Rooms: ..........................

Official Hotel

Tariff

*From.........................Dec 2015 to .........................Dec 2015

1. Hotel Marriott

Rs 7,000

No. of Nights .......................... Amount Payable:...........................

2. Hotel Clarks Amer

Rs 5,000

*Early check In and late check out may attract extra payment.

3. Hotel Royal Orchid

Rs 5,000

4. Hotel Fortune Bella Casa

Rs 4,500

One day room rent is payable as advance payment in favour of JAIPUR ROTARY INSTITUTE 2015 at JAPIUR

Preference 1-2-3 1.....................................

2 ....................................

3 ....................................

Cancellation Policy: Cancellation requests will be accepted upto 15 Nov 2015. All cancellations are subject to a deduction of 10% of the total registration and also one night’s hotel accommodation. Thereafter there will be NO REFUNDS. I submit the accommodation reservation form after having read the cancellation policy.

Registration Data Sheet Institute Registration Up to October 31, 2015, Couple: Rs 20,000 / Single :

Rs 14,000

..........................

From November 1, 2015, Couple: Rs 22,000 / Single :

Rs 16,000

..........................

GETS (per couple)

Rs 18,000

..........................

DGs Review Meet/DGN Training Seminar/ DTTS

Rs 03,500

..........................

COL Seminar

Rs 03,500

..........................

Foundation Seminar

Rs 03,500

..........................

Foundation Banquet

Rs 04,000

..........................

Advance towards hotel Accomodation TOTAL

For office use only Total Amount Payable :..........................

Advance Paid

: ..........................

Amount Due:..............................................

Paid Vide

: Cash:...................................... Card:...............................................................................

Bank:........................................................... Cheque No:......................... Date:.............. in favour of JAIPUR ROTARY INSTITUTE 2015 payable at JAIPUR

The Institute registration covers the following: a. Inaugural plenary on Friday 18th Dec’15 followed by Dinner. b. Lunch and dinner on Saturday, 19th Dec’15 c. Lunch on Sunday 20th Dec’15 d. Kit

The other events such as GETS (Couple), DGs Review Meet, DGN Training Seminar, District Trainers’ Training Seminar, C.O.L Seminar, Foundation Seminar & Foundation Banquet have additional registration fee as mentioned above.

Please send this form duly filled in by post/e-mail to: PDG Dr. Ashok Gupta Chairman, Jaipur Rotary Institute 2015. The IIS University, Gurukul Marg, SFS, Mansarovar, Jaipur 302020 INDIA Tel: 0141-2400160-161 • Fax: 0141-2395494 E-mail: ashok.gupta@iisuniv.ac.in

Date:..................................................

Signature:...........................................

District Wise Contributions to The Rotary Foundation as on June 30, 2015 (in US Dollars)

District Number

APF

PolioPlus*

Other Restricted

Total Endowment Contributions Fund

Bookmark Rotary

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 8,84,752 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 4,24,942 37,992 91,654 1,98,818 77,27,720

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 43,114 19,000 89,698 36,639 0 0 0 1,198 0 52,017 6,000 1,000 1,26,798 33,384 1,04,421 0 50,500 0 10,03,577

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 10,66,329 86,096 15,64,108 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 3,56,950 1,29,54,159

5,45,689

Sri Lanka 9,235

14,025

19,604

5,88,553

3271 3272

17,395 40,856

Pakistan 28,969 45,689

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 10,58,293 1,97,88,678

2,48,397 1,49,01,728 18,90,86,769

5,90,256 2,03,322

Nepal 3292 South Asia Total World Total

1,67,730 92,92,968 12,30,39,888

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

www.rotary.org/socialnetworks

More Online Resources books www.rotary.org/rotarian

www.rotary.org/rotaryminute

Rotary Images www.rotary.org/rotaryimages

3220

3281 3282

Rotary Social Media

77,538 36,49,137 1,72,95,386

* Excludes Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. * Does not include contribution of Mrs Rajashree Birla ($1,000,000)

Source: RI South Asia Office

Rotary eNewsletters www.rotary.org/newsletters

Meet your Governors Rasheeda Bhagat and Jaishree

Training brings results

Bringing solace to Uttarakhand’s flood victims

David Hilton, K P Nagesh Security services RC Bangalore Highgrounds, District 3190 “I have made it a practice to have a get-together of all the 98 club presidents of my District every month. It is the Presidents’ Day Out and it is an event to charge up and motivate each one of them. Fifty-two presidents have volunteered to become Major Donors,” says Nagesh, who believes that training makes the difference and brings desired results.

A Rotarian since 1995, when he joined Rotary after serving as Flight Lieutenant from the Indian Air Force, Nagesh is recipient of several national awards. His target: “To become world No 1.” His optimism is not misplaced, for, since the start of the year, five Rotarians from his District have committed to become AKS members, with two pledging to donate $100,000 each for the Endowment Fund and 120 will come on board as Major Donors. He has launched two new Rotary clubs so far this year and plans 50 more, adding 2,000 new Rotarians, 500 Interactors and 100 Rotaractors by the year end.

‘Lifetime friendship,’ is what Nagesh cherishes about Rotary and likes the ‘one year concept’ of leadership. “I know I have one year to make a mark and I will make the most of this year to add shimmer to Rotary.” Being part of the polio eradication team is his best moment in Rotary.

32 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

Education, RC Dehradun, District 3080

A

Rotarian since 1994, David Hilton’s journey in Rotary has been “fantastic. It has been a good transition over the years from a club member, secretary, president, AG and finally Governor.”

So what does he enjoy the most about Rotary?

“The tremendous friendships that one builds up, the service component which is important and meaningful to me and the opportunity to do things which you normally won’t be able to do individually ... things which make an impact on society,” he says.

At the San Diego Assembly, the full impact of the internationality of Rotary really hit him. “I loved meeting wonderful people across the world and discussing various projects with them. By talking to so many different people from different parts of the world you come to know about how Rotary functions in different countries.”

During his year, says Hilton, his energy and focus will be on taking forward the work his district has been doing to help the traumatised people of Uttarakhand after the disastrous floods of 2013. “This natural disaster has created a huge negative impact in the entire region. Rotary is building schools there. So my team and I will be working with the communities around those schools, and do all that we can to help and improve their lives,” he adds.

Leadership in her genes

TEACH and WinS, his focus

Bindu Singh Educator, RC Patna Sahib, District 3250

I

t is easy to spot the DG of District 3250 Bindu Singh; she is the only female Governor in the Indian contingent at the International Assembly in San Diego. Predictably, she is all excited; “I’ve been talking here and there about women’s empowerment and now that I’ve reached this position it feels very special,” she exclaims.

From the Department of Zoology in Patna University, she joined Rotary only in 2000. “I was associated with other voluntary organisations but nobody asked me to join Rotary.” But when a batch mate became president he told her that as she was working for women’s empowerment (she was general secretary of the Akhil Bharatiya Mahila Parishad) she should join Rotary. And she did.

Bindu attributes her success to the leadership qualities she was given as a child by her father, and became vice-president of the students’ union in the university. Actually, leadership is in her genes; her father is a politician, her grandfather Satyanarayan Sinha was Bihar’s chief minister and her great grandfather, its first finance minister!

And yet when she contested the Governor’s post two years ago she lost; “people said ek lady kaise governor ban sakti hei. District me akeli ghoomegi, kya? (How can a woman

become a governor; can she tour the district on her own?)” But Bindu continued working hard and got invited for important events. “Finally, I was elected uncontested,” she says. When she was selected by the nominating committee, there were challenging candidates but “when there was an overwhelming refrain ki ‘nahi ji hum to Binduji ko hi vote dengey,’ they withdrew! But yes, it is a still a man’s world and I had to work very hard to prove myself … but now that my District’s Rotarians have accepted me, I am not nervous at all.”

She has told her Presidents to adopt one village and “concentrate on women and children’s health,” focusing on vaccination programmes and pregnant women as most rural women are unaware of immunisation programmes. “We’ll also focus on sanitation; there are 97 clubs in my district, each will adopt a school and convert it, building toilet blocks. So 97 toilet blocks in the first round, and we’ll move on to do more. Before Modiji gave the Swachh Bharat message, Rotary has already started doing it.”

As RI President K R Ravindran announced his theme, an excited Bindu exclaimed: “We women are used to giving gifts all the time; the first being the gift of life. So this is a great theme.”

Kuldip Kumar Dhir Educational Administrator RC Ludhiana, District 3070 “A very good beginning. When we have a dynamic leadership at the top, commitment and motivation is equally high with everyone,” says K K Dhir.

Having joined Rotary in 1984, he finds present trends “disheartening; there are several divisions among the clubs. If fellowship and service go hand-inhand, the end result will be amazing.”

Providing pacemakers for poor heart patients through his club’s Rotary Pacemaker Bank was a great moment.

“Imagine the enormous difference it makes to the whole family for which these patients are sole breadwinners.”

TEACH and WinS will be his focus for the year during which 400 toilet blocks will be constructed in schools across his District. An addition of 15 per cent to membership, and higher TRF contributions including $40,000 for the Polio Fund are his other priorities.

It is easy to be a DG, but difficult to be a good Rotarian, he says.

SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 33

Integrating the northeast with other Rotary regions

When Rotary captivated him

Chandrakumar Agarwal FMCG Distribution Network RC Dimapur, District 3240

H

e was a Rotaractor from 1986–98 and joined Rotary the next year; the 15-year journey was great and then “many Rotaractors, who are Rotarians now, persuaded … rather forced … me to go for the Governor’s post and here I am,” says Chandrakumar Agarwal, adding with a smile, “at 49, I am the youngest DG in my district.”

The qualities that have brought him thus far are “commitment and sincerity. And once I feel I want to do something, I work hard to achieve it.”

Among his various plans for the year, the foremost is “doing something different that people will remember this year.” For his District the biggest challenge is that the North Eastern States continue to be a “remote area. It is unfortunate, but we are hardly known to other parts of the country … so that way we have very few opportunities.”

For the first time, he organised an MDPETS meet of his District in Kolkata “because we want to integrate with rest of the Rotary world.

I also wanted to give an opportunity to the future leaders of the district to get an exposure to other Rotarians.”

34 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

Agarwal says that the absence of big corporate houses in the North Eastern States limits their activities, but during his year he wants to further strengthen the already existing ‘Heart-to-Heart’ project which provides corrective surgery to children born with a hole in the heart. “We have already done over 300 such operations, and during this year I also want to take up literacy and Swachh Bharat projects in a very big way.”

Though D 3240 comprise 9 States, apart from seven revenue Districts of Bengal, it has only 76 clubs with 2,700-odd members. This DG’s objective is to increase the clubs to 85–90 and members to 3,500. He’ll do this partly by bringing many of his batchRotaractors into Rotary.

Agarwal attributes people leaving Rotary mainly “due to politics or ego problems which arise in clubs, demotivating members. We join Rotary for friendship but if by doing so we spoil even our existing friendships, what is the use? Hence people leave Rotary.”

Rakesh Dave Colour film processing RC Raipur Midtown District 3261 “Your name is the best in the world,” says Rakesh Dave, adding that his mother’s name is the same. She was the one “who made me what I am today.”

A Rotaractor from 1979 to 1990, Dave says he did not take Rotary seriously till he participated in a medical camp in a village near Raipur with some Rotarians. He was horrified to see the water of a dirty pond being shared by the villagers and cattle. The sight of women filling water from the pond with buffaloes bathing close by hit him hard and that’s when he decided to become a Rotarian. He holds close to his heart his club’s polio corrective surgery camp which has helped hundreds of children to walk.

On his plans for the year, toilet blocks in 300 schools in the District with 74 clubs and 2,400 Rotarians spread across three States — Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh and Western Orissa, will be a priority. Enrolment of women will be another focus area.

“We have 300 women Rotarians in our District and two all-women Rotary clubs — RC Raipur Queens with 100 members and the recently chartered RC Queens Jagdalpur with 22.”

Largest Rotary Club outside USA Rasheeda Bhagat At 30, RC Vijayawada Midtown is still young … at least its leaders feel so!

S

But they were missing the fellowship of Rotary, its inspiring leaders, great speeches and the privilege to rub shoulder with bigshots in town who were Rotarians.

The then DG suggested forming a new club and the 33 ex-Rotaractors — average age 25 — formed it.

On the 30-year journey he says for 20 years they were stuck with 60–70 members. In 2000, he became DGN, but was distressed at the poor attendance of 14–15 members. They decided they couldn’t continue like that and wrote to all the members that they had only two options. Either disband the club which had a DG-nominee, who’d have the option to join another club, or merge it with one of the two senior clubs. “We wanted to send shockwaves and to our surprise it worked.”

Brekker meet at swank hotel Those who cared to reply said most of them as young businessmen or professionals had to work late hours and couldn’t

Pervez Bhagat

ometimes when he is introduced as an illustrious, senior PDG, “I find it strange and wonder if they’re talking about me. Somehow, I still feel like the kid around the block.”

At the MDPETS in Colombo, PDG (2002–03) of District 3020 Sam Movva sat down with Rotary News after cutting a cake to celebrate the 30th anniversary of RC Vijayawada Midtown that he founded with a bunch of Rotaractors. Today, with 450 members, it is the largest Rotary club not only in Asia but the rest of the world bar the United States.

The club was born in 1985 because the Rotaractors in their early or mid-20s, were considered too young to join Rotary ... “yes, that is hard to believe today, isn’t it?”

Also as most of their fathers were members in the two existing clubs in Vijayawada, they never thought of joining those. “Nor did our dads invite us,” laughs Movva.

PDG Sam Movva.

SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 35

Sam Movva the Rotaractor in action addressing a meet.

make it to a Wednesday 6.30 p m meet. So the club meet was shifted to a Sunday morning breakfast meet, with the marketing point being if the wife came along she would escape the hassle of making breakfast! They shifted the venue from a non-descript non-AC hall — a Rotary property — to the fanciest hotel in town, a Taj Hotels property. “By now each of us was driving an AC car, had ACs in our homes and offices; why would anybody want to leave that comfort and drive through traffic to meet in such a place,” muses Movva.

These two decisions worked; within a year they had 100 members, added another 100 in two years and soon hit the 400 mark. Meanwhile, the club successfully hosted the District Conference. “This taught us that you need to change the way you do things to keep interest alive,” he says. To the critics and sceptics who said he was trying too many changes he said: “I am not wrong all the time so I can’t be right all the time. But how do I find out? By trying; if I fail, we’ll change it. We changed the whole format of the conference and made it more sexy, if I may use the word. And people loved it! We threw out all that we had been handed since joining Rotary and did it differently.”

Members flock in More members, specially youngsters, came in without canvassing or membership drive. “When people ask me what is the secret I say I wish I knew. It’s just a combination of factors; if you’re growing it becomes unstoppable. Unfortunately, if you’re declining, even that becomes unstoppable.”

But the main reasons for their growth, he says, are numerous family meets and great fellowship. The average age of the club still remains 45; “at 59, I am a ripe old man 36 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

You may not be able to stand somebody but focus on the organisation and work with him — That is the kind of professionalism I’ve learnt from K R Ravindran. in the club. There are only 4 or 5 older than me.” Of the 33 original members, only 10 are left. While a few have passed on, some relocated and others drifted away for some reason.

Major strengths On important projects, Movva says a significant project began with the passing away of the mother of a member. As he didn’t own a car he had to run from pillar to post to transport the body. “The rates were usurious … he narrated the story much later. He felt sensitive about asking one of us to give our cars because of the stigma of carrying a dead body.” He suggested a hearse car service, and 20 years back the club began with a second hand vehicle that cost Rs 75,000. “We had 70 members and thought if each one gave Rs 1,000 we’d have a vehicle.” Movva and the bereaved member gave Rs 5,000 each. With one member saying how much do you expect, and another saying don’t worry, collect whatever you can and I’ll make up the shortfall, “we realised the streak of generosity

in our members.” Two years later a new vehicle was bought at Rs 6.5 lakh with a matching grant. They still run the service and as the vehicle goes around the city 2–3 times a day, with RC Vijayawada Midtown logo, and people say ‘Call Rotary’ when there’s a death, our brand strengthens.”

The club is also the strongest contributor to TRF in the district with 67 clubs; about $100,000 last year. “The next biggest contribution would be around $20,000,” he surmises.

Challenges The biggest challenge is to find a place PDG Sam Movva and PRIP Kalyan Banerjee at a TRF event. for family meets; they need a kalyana mandapam as about 1,000 people participate.

So of the 400-odd members, how many are women?

“Just 6 or 7. I was hoping you wouldn’t ask that!”

On Rotary failing to attract more women Movva thinks it might be its image as a boys’ club. “We made a sincere effort, and had a female president and some board members too.

Everything is right with our club to attract more women members. But in a He still remembers the time he met Past RI President club of 450, with only 6–7 women, at a time you have to induct Kalyan Banerjee; “he was then a Past District Goverat least 15–20 at one go to make them feel comfortable.” nor, hoping to be an RI Director. I heard him speaking Women can bring a lot to Rotary, he says. “Unlike many members who don’t know what’s happening in the club, the at a seminar in Kochi; I was Club secretary and told few women we have are contributing members. That’s my president: ‘Look at this guy, he is a class act.’ And the reason they stayed in a predominantly male club. I find the I thought if Rotary has people like him it must be truly a great organisation.” service focus of Rotary attracts women.”

Similarly, the first time he met RI President So how has Rotary changed him as a person? “You can’t answer that question honestly because you can never K R Ravindran, the latter was in the run for RI directorship. assess yourself. Somebody who knows you well, has to,” “I wasn’t even a DG, but met him as I was the district says Movva, a veterinary surgeon by training, but now in polio chair and he was polio chair of Sri Lanka. Again, financial services. Two business associates, also his class- when I heard him speak I said: ‘Oh my god, he is a real mates, “who must have often wondered why Sam spends so class act.” While dropping him to the station, Movva much time in Rotary tell me I have evolved considerably. was too bashful to compliment Ravindran on his speech.

They say you are much more open minded and your grasp of “But to my shock, Ravi said: ‘Sam, young man, you have things, business and otherwise, has improved considerably.” a great spark and I enjoyed your speech. I see a great Rotary leader in you.’ And I wasn’t even contemplating becoming a DG!” Huge debt to Rotary Movva adds he owes much to Ravindran for shaping To Rotary, Movva owes a lot. “I can never ever repay the his attitude towards retractors. “I keep telling my Rotary kind of debt I owe this organisation. I’ve met some great and outstanding people, Rotary has opened doors that wouldn’t friends, you may not be able to stand somebody but focus have been possible otherwise and helped me to see so much on the organisation and work with him. That is the kind of professionalism I’ve learnt from Ravi.” of the world.”

When I heard Kalyan Banerjee, who was then a PDG, hoping to be an RI Director, I said: He is a class act. If Rotary has people like him it must be truly a great organisation.

SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 37

LITERACY FOCUS PRID Shekhar Mehta Chairman, Rotary India Literacy Mission

Nation Builder Award and Asha Kiran … a ray of hope

sha Kiran … a ray of hope and Nation Builder Award are the main focus of Rotary India this month. The project aims to assist the Central and State Governments’ ongoing efforts, in accordance with the RTE Act, improving the professional ability and performance of teachers, in selected primary/ elementary schools, through better

A

training and use of modern teaching aids, to enhance the learning outcome of students.

Rotary India Literacy Mission (RILM) has implemented an award system — Nation Builder Award — to recognise outstanding teachers, and motivate them to do better and inspire others to better themselves. The award not only recognises outstanding performers; as an important byproduct it gives information of the less effective

teachers in surveyed schools, who in turn can be helped through specialised teacher training workshops/courses.

Last year, Rotary clubs across the country felicitated more than 3,000 teachers for their enormous contribution towards the enhancement of quality education. This year too RILM plans to undertake this endeavour in acknowledging the efforts of teachers in various government or government aided schools.

Guidelines to implement “Nation Builder Award” Evaluation Sheets and their purposes Ideally, 15 teachers should be evaluated from one or more schools, depending on the number of teachers in each school. However variations can be made depending on the actual number of teachers in a school. The scheme is for teachers of Government/Government-aided/Zilla Parishad/Municipal or similar schools, teaching up to primary classes (I to VII).

z z z

z

z

Role of Rotary clubs in Nation Builder Award z Each Award is to be given at the club level. z Rotary clubs will have to download Evaluation Sheets from RILM website (www. rotaryteach.org).

38 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

Select the school, seek permission from the Principal.

Interact with students and help them fill Form No. T1.1 The final compilation as well as selection of awardees will also be done by the Rotary clubs.

The certificates will be forwarded by RILM to the respected DGs. Hand over the certificate to the selected teachers.

Upload the event on RILM website.

The Evaluation Process There are 3 evaluation forms: T1.1 to be filled by students, T2.1 by the Headmaster/Principal. Each teacher will be evaluated by 10 students and the Headmaster/Principal of the

Success of Asha Kiran … a ray of hope launch z 19,600 people reached between 14–16 August 2015 z 18,700 people reached between 17–20 August 2015 z 4,000 people engaged in 5 days z 612.3 per cent rise on engagement z 1,400 likes on the RILM Facebook page in 2 days z 457.5 per cent rise on the RILM Facebook page like z Average 40 shares per post z Average 330 clicks per post

school. Marks will be compiled in T3.1. The teacher with the highest marks will be felicitated with Nation Builder Award.

The distribution of the award and the work thereafter z The club may add gift or cash prize with the Award Certificate, if they feel so. z Each club can cover one or more schools and thus give one or more awards. z All awards should be given preferably on September 5 (Teachers Day) or September 8 (World Literacy Day).

Rotarians can give the Award z at the school during the Assembly in front of all students and teachers. Alternatively, it can be given at the club meeting or district function. z Clubs have to preserve the evaluation sheets and upload the final compilation sheet on the RILM website. Schools having low scoring teachers can be an intervention area for Rotary clubs to organise training sessions, workshops and seminars.

Publicising the Nation Builder Award Publicise the event locally through media. Arrange to get pictures of the awardees or at least their names in newspapers and share them thereafter with the awardees. Post their photographs on social media. Inform the schools that this is an annual event, so that other teachers are encouraged to aspire for the award.

Let’s honour our Nation Builders together.

Asha Kiran … a ray of hope Asha Kiran … a ray of hope was launched on August 15, 2015. Rotarians in India, along with their family and friends lit the flame of literacy pledging their support to pull out

Star Asha Kiran Rotary Clubs and Districts Criteria For Rotary Clubs z

Star Asha Kiran Rotary Club: Commitment of supporting equivalent children as per the club’s strength.

z

Super Star Asha Kiran Rotary Club: Commitment of supporting 3 children per member as per the club’s strength.

z

Mega Star Asha Kiran Rotary Club: Commitment of supporting 5 children per member as per the club’s strength.

For Rotary Districts

z

Star Asha Kiran Rotary District: Commitment to support more than 1,000 children from a district.

z

Super Star Asha Kiran Rotary District: Commitment to support more than 2,000 children from a district.

z

Mega Star Asha Kiran Rotary District: Commitment to support more than 3,000 children from a district.

SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 39

Launch of “Asha Kiran … a ray of hope” August 15, 2015

1,00,000 children from illiteracy.

On this day, Rotarians, Inner Wheel Club members and Rotaractors from all over the country pledged to send 6,000 children back to school.

Programme Launch The virtual launch of the programme on Facebook was a huge success as communications reached to approximately 20,000 people across 40 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

the country and in just three days, 19,000 pledged to put children back to school. Rotarians in India were asked to light a candle and post their picture of support and solidarity on RILM’s Facebook page. Indian Rotaractors along with the RILM Office did a commendable job by spreading the Asha Kiran launch like wildfire. Senior Rotarians and National Committee members led

from the front by encouraging messages and posts across various platforms. We want every Rotarian in the country to participate and pledge to send at least one child back to school.

August 15th was just a small battle won in this huge war against illiteracy and we have to grow oaks from acorns in the next one month.

It is possible…together we can.

RI President’s India moments

RI President K R Ravindran and Vanathy; PRIP Kalyan Banerjee and Binota; PRIP Rajendra K Saboo and Usha at Udaipur.

RI President K R Ravindran and Vanathy, RID Manoj Desai and PRID Shekhar Mehta being received at Delhi airport by DGs Sudhir Mangla (D 3011) and J K Gaur (D 3012). Also present: DGEs N Subramanian (D 3011) and Sharat Jain (D 3012).

Club Culture...

TCA Srinivasa-Raghavan

A

bout twenty years ago, during an idle conversation on a flight, I asked a newspaper baron why he thought Indians held no grudges against the British although they had left India destitute. His response, given after a long pause, took me completely by surprise.

“We understand each other at a subliminal level,” he said. “Culturally, we Indians love to exclude each other from groups to which we belong and that is something the British also do to perfection.”

He then went on to explain the different devices of exclusion Indian and British societies had devised. Caste and clubs, he said, stood out.

Caste I knew about but clubs? Apart from going to play tennis at the local civil servants club when I was about 14, I had no idea what these things were.

a British legacy But I have managed to visit a few over the years and have invariably been struck by how difficult it is to become a member of one. They have long waiting lists, charge the earth for membership, and by the time you are lucky enough to get it, you have one foot in the grave.

They also have idiosyncratic rules. Thanks to them, my wife was once asked to leave the walking track, because she was not wearing a coat! Many don’t let you bring your own alcohol and if you do you have to pay a fee before you can drink it. Some of these rules may have made sense 200 years ago, but in some perverse notion of nostalgia, are still in place.

Most of these clubs serve horrible food, perhaps because the members, having paid the ridiculously exorbitant entrance fee, can only afford very cheaply catered food! Until a few years ago, the waiters used to

The British badly needed a place where they could go in the evenings and meet other Brits to drink and gamble.

The Bangalore Club.

be doddering old men who had been in service since the East India Company first arrived in India. These old men looked down on all those who had not been members since the time of Robert Clive. Many of these club servants used to lend money to the members, although the practice was strictly forbidden.

Privilege without pomp Yet, even after knowing all this, people are queuing up for membership and are willing to pay a fortune for the privilege because that’s what clubs are mainly selling: the idea of privilege, the ability to say, “Shall we meet at the Gym/Club/Institute?” If the other person is not a member, he/she is shown his/her proper place. “I am better than you” is what the member is saying to the non-member.

India didn’t have clubs till the British came. By the time they left, there were over 500 in existence. In most of them, dogs and Indians were not allowed. This practice was not very different from upper caste Indians not allowing dalits into temples. Just as with temples, the rule about the dogs could be relaxed in some clubs but never SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 43

The Cricket Club of India, Mumbai.

about the Indians. It was only in the 20th century that this changed.

The British badly needed a place where they could go in the evenings and meet other Brits to drink and gamble.

Clubs in their early days were also places where other types of ‘immoralities’ could be initiated. Women were generally not allowed until the late 19th century. But by then, there were over 20,000 of them living in India and could not be excluded. Even then, they could only come as guests; and not become members.

Modern clubs The post-1991 economic boom has seen the mushrooming of a different type of clubs. You gain entry here not by status or caste or colour or employment. Anyone who can

There are a whole host of downmarket ones as well, usually for sports like volleyball and kabaddi.

44 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

pay the membership entrance fee can become a member.

Even 5-star hotels have started exclusive clubs where they charge an arm and a leg for entry. But as long as you have the money, it is okay. All old presidency towns had two types of clubs then: one for those employed by the government and one for the rest.

The fee in these private clubs usually starts at about Rs 2 lakh and go up, in the case of some exclusive golf and polo clubs, to Rs 1 crore.

Sports clubs are common. Cricket clubs abound and the best known amongst them is the Cricket Club of India at the Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai. Kolkata and Chennai have their own as well. But these are the upmarket clubs.

There are a whole host of downmarket ones as well, usually for sports like volleyball and kabaddi. Entry to these is based on a single criterion; an interest in the sport or the ability to play it. Entry fee is low, may be as little as Rs 1,000.

Women, too, now have their exclusive clubs where men are permitted only as guests. The Indian Women’s Press Corps in Delhi is one such, and is housed in an old bungalow in Lutyen’s Delhi. And of course there is the main Press Club in Delhi which is also housed in an ancient building that used to be a stable or something.

Finally, lest you think that my grapes are sour, let me assure you that they are not. I do belong to a few clubs. Entry to them is highly regulated. One of the clubs to which I belong even denied entry to Laloo Prasad Yadav, who may as well have commented what Groucho Marx said once: “Any club that will have me is not worth becoming a member of.”

Designed by Krishnapratheesh

Aseefa Bhutto Zardari Diana Schoberg The first child to receive the oral polio vaccine in Pakistan is working to end the disease once and for all in her country. efore her family was forced into exile, before her mother was assassinated, before ore her father became president, Aseefa Bhutto Zardari ri was known for something simpler, but in some ways equally powerful: In 1994, she became the first child in Pakistan to receive the oral polio vaccine, ccine, as part of the country’s first National Immunisation nisation Day. Benazir Bhutto, then prime minister, gave ave the drops to her daughter herself, a compelling endorsement ndorsement of the nascent campaign.

“I was a baby at the time, so I don’t remember member ent was it, ” says Aseefa, now 22. “But the moment an inspirational one for the nation, and encourncouraged women to believe that polio drops were and are safe.”

In 1988, at age 35, Benazir Bhutto became ame im the first woman elected to lead a Muslim country. She was assassinated in 2007, just ust n months after she had returned to Pakistan after almost nine years in exile. Butt Aseefa Bhutto Zardari — whose father,, Asif Ali Zardari, served as president off Pakistan from 2008 to 2013 — is carrying on her mother’s work. As a Rotaryy polio ambassador, she meets with offiicials, visits schools and talks with families es le of health workers who were killed while working to vaccinate children.

Aseefa has raised the profile of the polio eradication campaign in Pakistan and around the world.

She writes about the topic for the Huffington Post and joined Rotary International General Secretary John Hewko onstage at the 2012 Global Citizen Festival in New York City’s Central Park. On Twitter, with more than half a million followers, she encourages people in Pakistan to support ending polio and chastises those who stand in the way. In April, she invited two other prominent women in Pakistani politics to join her in the polio eradication effort,

ILLUSTRATION BY BERTO MARTINEZ

B

a move that garnered media coverage across the country.

In 1994, the year she received those first drops of vaccine, Pakistan had an estimated 35,000 cases of polio. As of 10 June, 24 cases had been reported in the country in 2015. Aseefa Bhutto Zardari, who is completing a master’s degree in global health and development in London, talked to us about ending polio in Pakistan, her future in politics and prospects for peace in her country.

SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 45

The Rotarian: Recently in Pakistan, some parents who refused the polio vaccine for their children have been arrested. Are those arrests justified?

Aseefa: There is a great ethical debate about whether the arrests are justified. Is it the right of the citizen to refuse care? Is it the right of the child to have the best health care? Personally, I don’t believe arresting people is the best solution. Parents want the best for their children, and they are trying to ensure their safety. Educating the parents and persuading them to let their children have the polio drops is more powerful and, although time consuming, will be more successful in the long term.

TR: You’re active on Twitter. If you could use more than 140 characters on Twitter to send a message to parents who choose not to vaccinate, what would you say?

Aseefa: In the media environment today, so much of our lives and what we seek to do is over-simplified, often stripped of meaning and context. Much of what I say on Twitter about this topic [of vaccination] is directed at people in positions of influence who are abusing their position by taking an anti-vaccination approach, rather than at individual parents. I know that the majority of parents, even those refusing vaccinations, have their children’s best interests at heart.

To parents who have held off on vaccinating: Do not take rumours as truth or let people use health as a political or religious weapon. Your children’s lives are at risk, and by giving them two small drops, you can ensure that they will avoid the suffering that polio can cause. Speak to families who have experienced polio personally. Talk to the polio workers and learn from them.

If we had to reduce it to a campaign slogan, I would say to those parents: Don’t rob your children of a future they deserve. Give them a chance. Let them get the polio vaccine.

Don’t rob your children of a future they deserve.

Give them a chance.

Let them get the polio vaccine.

46 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

Aseefa Bhutto Zardari administers the polio vaccine.

TR: What is the future of polio eradication campaign in Pakistan? How will you continue your involvement?

Aseefa: There is a serious disconnect between the significant and targeted efforts put in by the provincial governments and the hands-off approach taken by the federal government.

To ensure the best chance of success, we need collaboration with the federal and provincial governments in order to have a united front. Along with this, we need to focus on training more lady health workers [a programme launched by Benazir Bhutto that has trained more than 100,000 women to provide community health services] and polio workers.

These health care workers will be able to use their expertise to support other areas of our health service in the future, and we need to plan for this. I am committed to a polio-free Pakistan, but I’m also committed to a healthier Pakistan overall. For now my focus is on polio, but I hope to carry on my training to get involved in other areas of health care.

This campaign needs more resources, especially in the environment of fragile security that so many of our heroic vaccinators face. The PPP [Pakistan People’s Party, established by Bhutto Zardari’s grandfather, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto] recently proposed that donors fund a security health corps to protect vaccinators as they attempt to reach children in dangerous areas. This is crucial to protect the lives of our vaccinators and to ensure the success of the programme. I often hear of vaccinators returning from high-security-risk areas, such as Quetta, who were unable to reach children because of the danger. The conventional methods of taking the programme forward may not be enough if we do not simultaneously address the security concerns.

TR: Will you go into politics?

Aseefa: I have always been in politics. Since I was a child, I have been surrounded by it. With a mother who was prime minister twice and a father who served as president, it is impossible to avoid politics. I am keen to make my own mark and ensure that I have the skills to best serve Pakistan in the future. That is why I have dedicated so much effort to my education, specifically focusing on health care and humanitarian concerns.

TR: What was it like to grow up in exile?

Aseefa: I spent a good portion of my life in Dubai. It was difficult to see the struggles my mother faced being away from our home. At the same time, it was inspiring to see how she was able to maintain a presence in Pakistan while in exile. My father was in jail, and she was petitioning leaders worldwide to help bring democracy back to Pakistan.

Despite all of that, she always made the effort to help my siblings and me with our homework, and attend our school functions and plays. We were always hoping to return home, but she made sure we never felt lost.

TR: Your grandfather was executed under a military dictatorship, your father was jailed, your mother was killed. What drives you to risk your own security by staying involved?

Why not walk away?

Aseefa: Walking away is not an option. My mother, father, grandparents, aunts, uncles, brother and sister have all committed themselves to serving Pakistan. They have all believed that they could have a positive impact. While to many, they are simply political figures, they are my family.

I trust them, and they have shaped who I am. I will carry on

A postage stamp honours Bhutto Zardari’s contribution.

the cause that they have believed in, and that many of them have died for, to honour them and to serve my country.

TR: What prevents you from focusing on the tragedy you have experienced?

Aseefa: While there has been great tragedy in my life, I am also aware that I have been given great opportunities.

I have been able to study, I have been able to travel, and I have been able to create friendships with people from all over the world. I have also been blessed with an incredible brother and sister and a wonderful father. The support I get from my family is a great comfort.

TR: One of your mother’s legacies was inspiring women and girls, including Malala Yousafzai, who calls your mother her role model. What will it take to develop more female leaders in Pakistan?

Aseefa: Just as I have been blessed to have such an inspiring mother, I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to get to know Malala. She is exactly right in identifying how we will empower women to take the lead in Pakistan in the future: education. We must ensure that women and girls have access to quality education so they are able to obtain leadership positions. At the same time, we must make sure that men and boys are being educated about equality.

TR: Will your country and the region ever see peace?

Aseefa: I have great faith that one day Pakistan will have peace. I pray for the day when people can look beyond the bombs and the bullets and see my beautiful country, where the people have so much talent and bravery. It is a region in deep transition. One can only hope that the challenges of rapid population growth in South Asia will motivate leaders to strive harder for peace, and that we will be able to work with our neighbouring countries to form a more stable and safe environment for our families.

Benazir Bhutto administering polio drops to a child in Pakistan.

Reproduced from The Rotarian SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 47

Polio-free World forever RI President K R Ravindran

M

alta is a nation that has long stood at civilisation’s crossroads. From the times of the Phoenicians, its strategic location has placed it firmly in the paths of travel, trade, culture and conquest.

For centuries, as civilisations rose and fell, Malta has occupied a place in history far out of proportion to its size. Geographically, Malta may be small but its role in determining our common future has always been an outsize one.

And Malta, more than most nations, harbours a deep awareness of how common our future truly is.

In a few short months, the course of history will again be charted in Malta, at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) on November 27–29.

This biennial meeting is an opportunity for Commonwealth leaders to discuss matters of pressing concern and for Commonwealth citizens to make their voices and priorities heard at the associated People’s Forum.

Of the many issues to be discussed at CHOGM and this forum, one should sit firmly atop the agenda: the global eradication of polio.

In the 30 years since Rotary launched its global commitment to eradicate polio, more than 650,000 polio-related deaths and more than 13 million cases of polio-related paralysis have been averted through mass vaccination campaigns.

48 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

Last year, the world saw only 359 cases of wild polio, down from over 350,000 in 1988. In the first half of 2015, polio reached the lowest level ever recorded, with just 33 cases of wild poliovirus identified in only two countries.

This success has come as a result of the tremendous commitment led

by Rotary, the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organisation, UNICEF, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the world’s national and local governments.

Altogether, more than $11 billion have been invested since 1985 to vaccinate more than 2.5 billion children.

The theme of the upcoming CHOGM summit is ‘Adding global

value.’ Few global efforts bring this theme to life as vividly as the effort to eradicate polio. The resources invested to combat this disease have indeed brought us within sight of our goal — and paid dividends in many other areas as well.

The healthcare cost savings attributable to the campaign to eradicate polio are estimated at up to $50 billion through the year 2035.

The net benefit of the entire polio eradication programme, such as the supplemental vitamins included with the oral vaccine, is estimated to have generated an additional $90 billion in savings and prevented an additional 5.4 million child deaths.

The healthcare infrastructure created to fight polio has equipped nations to handle new challenges, such as the Ebola outbreak in Africa, far more effectively, resulting in more rapid containment and control of the disease.

Of course, final eradication of polio will

“

If the global campaign to eradicate

polio were to cease now for lack of funds, it would take less than a decade for polio

“

permit stressed healthcare systems to redirect scarce resources toward other pressing health concerns such as malaria, diarrhoeal illnesses and HIV/AIDS. Today marks one year since the last case of wild poliovirus in Nigeria, the last polio-endemic country in Africa. Fragile though this progress is, we are optimistic that, with continued investment and effort, we will soon see only two remaining countries with endemic polio: Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The net around polio has tightened to this one last reservoir of wild poliovirus and the ongoing efforts in the region are nothing short of heroic.

Surveillance officers meticulously comb neighbourhoods for children with signs of the disease; environmental monitoring teams constantly test sewage for signs of the virus; teams of health workers venture into the most difficult and dangerous of situations to reach children with drops of oral vaccine.

Despite civil unrest, ongoing insecurity and the threat of attack, commitment by government and health workers remains high and our support of them must remain high as well.

Polio eradication is so close — almost within sight. Yet, all the progress we have made could still easily be lost without the financial and political support that is so vitally necessary for eradication efforts to continue.

If the global campaign to eradicate polio were to cease now for lack of funds, it would take less than a decade for polio to return to pandemic levels, with up to 200,000 new cases of paralysis, in countries that have long been free of the disease, every single year.

Even a slowing of current efforts could prove catastrophic: a single exported case could easily lead to new outbreaks that would set

to return to pandemic levels in countries that have long been free of the disease.

eradication efforts back by months or years.

Twelve years ago, with global polio cases at historic lows, three Nigerian states elected to halt immunisation in response to unfounded safety concerns. This suspension of activity, in one relatively small area for a relatively short period of time, led to outbreaks that ultimately spread to 19 previously polio-free countries, costing over $370 million to contain.

This experience taught us, with brutal clarity, a lesson we ignore at our peril: that as long as polio exists anywhere, children everywhere are at risk.

At the 2011 CHOGM, Commonwealth member states committed to accelerate action and financial support to eradicate polio. Today, the world looks to Malta, and the member states of the Commonwealth, to maintain this commitment, with strong international support for full eradication of this disease.

The economic, humanitarian and ethical imperatives for eradication are clear. We cannot miss the chance we have before us, to ensure that 30 years of global investment pay their ultimate dividend: a world forever free of polio.

Reproduced from Times of Malta SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 49

Doing good with TRF help

Ending water woes Selvi

J

ust three hours from Mumbai, the commercial hub of India, lie a group of sleepy hamlets tucked away in the interiors away from public gaze. This group of hamlets or ‘padas’ were the focus of Rotary Year 2013–2014, when the District Governor Lata Subraidu, along with the clubs of District 3140, decided to build 150 low cost houses, or ‘Rotary Kutirs’ for the poor in these hamlets. At that time, there was acute water shortage in the region and the villagers had to go without convenient access to water for 2–3 months of the year. Water collection was a huge challenge here and women and children had to walk for kilometres to the nearest river to fetch a few pots of water.

RC Mumbai Cuffe Parade, D 3140, along with Rotary Club of Rockville, District 7620, USA, applied for a

Global Grant of $55,000 to TRF to build rain water harvesting structures in the villages of Ashta and Naroli.

These villages have a population of about 700 inhabitants, and the livestock needed water too. The population here is mainly Adivasi. The grant was awarded in April 2014 and the work began in February 2015. OIKOS Agro Consultants, a company specialising in rural rain water harvesting, became a partner in the project.

Under this project, three check dams, three subsurface bunds, two new wells and six spring cordons were built and recharging of the existing bore well by roof rainwater collection was also executed to create a central distribution point in the village. The check dams are expected to build a reserve capacity of 7,000 cubic metres

of water and help the villagers to cultivate a second crop, thus raising their incomes. Wells and spring cordons will provide drinking water throughout the year with the help of the subsurface bunds. Recharging the bore well will allow access to underground water and the central distribution of water will become the new nerve centre in the village. The project was handed over in June 2015 by President Mahendra Sundesha and IPP Rajul Parikh in the

Rotarians with the villagers at the inauguration of the water tank.

50 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

MESSAGE FROM THE FOUNDATION CHAIR

The endgame for PolioPlus - your club should be involved

R

presence of the villagers and local panchayat officials.

Women benefit Explaining the details and benefits of this project, Rajul says the women of these villages were the happiest in getting this additional source of water. By creating a spring cordon — effectively reinforcing a small natural pond or reservoir with concrete — “we’ve ensured that a cluster of 8–10 Rotary kutirs get water for an additional three months after the monsoon is over through one such spring cordon.”

An even bigger benefit, she adds, is that earlier the villagers were using the naturally sweet well water also for non-drinking purposes such as bathing, washing clothes, vessels and for their livestock. The result was wells drying up in April and leaving them high and dry ... literally dry ... in the summer months of May and June. “Now with additional water being available for their daily needs other than drinking, their well water lasts them even during the summer months.”

And with their time saved in fetching water from long distances, the women are able to give more time to their work both on the farms as well as home.

(With inputs from Rajul Parikh)

otary and its partners have developed an endgame for the final eradication of polio, and the plan is working successfully. No one can predict the last case of wild polio-virus, but if our progress is sustained, it may come before the end of this Rotary year. What a victory that will be for Rotary and its partners — and for the children of the world!

Rotary also has a plan to publicise and gain recognition for its vital role in the eradication of polio. Rotary started its first immunisation campaign against polio in 1979, when there were still 500,000 cases of paralytic polio every year. Its success led Rotary to launch PolioPlus in 1985, with the goal of immunising all the world’s children against polio.

It raised US $247 million for that purpose in the first three years, and it then joined forces with the World Health Organisation, US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, and UNICEF in 1988 to eradicate polio. When the partnership was formed, a truly epic battle was joined, and Rotary was the catalyst.

Now we are in the final days of this heroic effort, and it is important for Rotary that the entire world is made aware of its contributions as a major partner in the eradication battle. Rotary International and The Rotary Foundation will do everything they can to publicise Rotary’s role, but that is only one piece of the puzzle. Every Rotary club needs to learn the history of the PolioPlus campaign and publicise the news in their local communities. We need the active involvement of every Rotary club in the world to spread the news around the globe.

Download the marketing tools available at endpolio.org, and read Rotary and the Gift of a Polio-Free World, now available at shop.rotary. org. Share information about Rotary’s role in the fight to end this disease with your social networks online and offline.

World Polio Day is observed every year on 24 October, and it is critical that every Rotary club schedule an event on or around 24 October this year to spread the word in their local communities about Rotary’s role in the campaign to eradicate polio. Use the live-streamed updates from endpolio.org as a key element of the programme. This is a great time to start our local publicity efforts for World Polio Day 2015. We are so close to our goal — don’t let us down! Your club needs to start spreading the outstanding news about PolioPlus!

Ray Klinginsmith Foundation Trustee Chair SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 51

Doing good with TRF help

25 years of Eye Care Kiran Zehra

K

umar felt helpless when his daughter decided to spend the money she had saved for her marriage on his cataract surgery. “Bade aspatal mein ilaj karvana chahti thi (She wanted my treatment to be done at a big hospital),” he says. The next day a mobile van arrived in the village and ophthalmologists conducted screening of eye defects for the villagers. Kumar’s name was registered by the “kind doctor for free surgery.”

But his daughter was not ready to believe the ‘free surgery’ promise. “Mujhe laga koi jhol hai (I thought it was a hoax.),” she says. But a van arrived the following week and many of the elders from the village, along with her Baba, were taken to the Rotary Eye Hospital in Sangamner (Maharashtra). “They took care of everything — our food, stay medicines and the fees,” she adds.

52 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

She couldn’t thank the doctors enough and was curious to know “why so much care was showered for free?”

A staff member at the Rotary Eye Hospital introduced her to a few Rotarians. “I am never going to forget them. My daughter’s savings will be used for her marriage, Rotary ne sharminda hone se bacha liya (Rotary saved me from feeling helpless),” says Kumar.

What started as an eye check-up ward by RC Sangamner, D 3132, in the local municipal hospital back in 1990 has today transformed into a full-fledged eye care facility at Sangamner. It has a computerised OPD, uses latest equipment and has completed 21,000 surgeries till date, all thanks to “the untiring efforts of our club members and generous donations from Rotarians from all over the world, TRF and other charitable organisations,” says Rtn Dilip Malpani.

The club conducts regular camps at 7 Tahasils in Ahmednagar province, with a population of 1.5 lakh, using its own well equipped van. Patients are screened for cataract and other vision problems and registered for surgery.

Also listed as a Model Rotary Service Project, the hospital takes care of the patients’ pre-surgery tests, IOL lenses, and all free. Post surgery guidance and post operative follow-ups at regular intervals to ascertain sight restoration are also done. Each year 10,000 villagers are screened at 100 camps; the student eye check initiative of the club tests school students in the region for early detection and treatment of vision problems.

Rajapalayam Rotary brings

joy to school students Team Rotary News

S

eethalakshmi, a student of Class 10, in the new block of Perundalaivar Kamarajar Higher Secondary School, is happy to get a bench to sit on. The school at Meenakshipuram village near Rajapalayam in Tamil Nadu is named after the late chief minister of Tamil Nadu, Kamaraj, who was instrumental in introducing the noon-meal scheme. The old block had cramped classrooms till RC Rajapalayam, D 3212, stepped in.

Along with Fargo Moorhead AM Rotary Club, D 5580, USA, they constructed the new block in the

school’s 5-acre land to accommodate Classes 8-12; toilet blocks, drinking water and other requisite infrastructure are underway. Primary classes will function in the old campus and the students will have better seating arrangements.

Rtn N Gopalakrishnan said that with a global grant for $105,000 being denied, they raised the funds and finished the project.

The US Club contributed $50,000 and RC Rajapalayam raised $10,000. With more donations, good discounts from suppliers, and cement given by RAMCO, whose Chairman PR Ramasubrahmaneya Rajah is the club’s charter president, at a concessional rate, Rs 4 lakh was further saved. The Indian and American clubs, in partnership, have similarly worked on other schools in the region.

Newly constructed school building.

Chocolates & beer at

American farms Gaurish Padukone

A

golden opportunity presented itself this April to some Rotarians from the food processing industry in D 3170, when they were trained in different facets of this industry in D 7360, USA. The States of Pennsylvania, Maryland and West Virginia are important contributors to the US economy in agricultural produce, grain processing, horticulture, fruit processing, dairy farming and value addition to milk and fruits.

The Rotarians who underwent training in modern aspects of food production and food processing and other associated activities included Ashok Habib (RC Sirsi), a first generation entrepreneur owning a modern desiccated coconut flakes manufacturing unit; Amit Mate of RC Kolhapur, a technocrat specialising in automation and developing system controls in food industry; Supriya Jadhav, sponsored by RC Sangli, a baker owning a café in Sangli and Pune; Ramanagauda Timmanayakar, sponsored by RC Bagalkote, an agriculturist who has developed a unique method of manufacturing pomegranate 54 RROTA ROTARY ARYY NEW N NEWS EW WS SEPTEMBER SSEP EPT TEM MBER BER 2015 20155

juice and promotes the use of a multigrain flour made from cereals, millets and legume seeds which have a low glycemic index and hence is good for diabetics; and Vishwajit Shinde, sponsored by RC Kolhapur Sunrise, a sugar technologist.

The team visited the UTZ Quality Foods Inc. which manufactures a wide variety of potato chips (450,000 kg) and pretzels (410,000 kg) every week.

From the special glass observation gallery at its 600,000 sq ft facility, we watched the whole procedure, being guided step-by-step with the aid of a push-to-talk audio programme and closed-circuit TV monitors.

At Zoe’s Chocolates we saw a time-honoured tradition meet modern sophistication in chocolate making.

A three-generation company, Zoe’s Chocolates combines the spirit, skill and tradition of past generations.

Everything is fresh and natural, made from sustainable products, from nearby farms, like fresh cream, eggs, butter and pure honey.

At Misty Meadows Farm Creamery, Smithsburg, Maryland, a family-run farm owned by David and Betsy Herbst,

we were taken around in a tractor-driven trolley, where we saw the creamery in action. They have a herd of 400 Holstein Friesian cows and own about 4,000 acres of farmland on which they grow forage grass and corn.

The cows are fed a total mixed ration (TMR) formulated by a cow dietitian that includes corn, grass, as well as shelled corn and soybean meal and minerals needed to balance the animals’ diet. The average production of milk here is about 16,000 litres a day. While they sell fresh milk to cooperative dairies, they convert most of their milk into dairy products like ice cream, cheese or yogurt.

At the Dam’s County Winery, Rtn John and Katherine Kramb grow Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes for wine making and other fruits like peach, apricot, strawberries, mulberries and blueberries for various other fruit products. From the harvesting of grapes, fermentation, filtration and bottling, we got to see it all at this master wine maker.

At Knouse Foods, a growers’ cooperative with a 50-year history of providing the best fruit products,

apple sauce is manufactured. Here we saw 18 controlled atmosphere rooms which regulate temperature, humidity, oxygen and carbon dioxide content.

Each room holds 31 tractorloads of apples, kept under conditions which allow them to retain their crispness, juice and flavour for up to a year after harvesting.

Robotic milking The visit to Carol and Carl’s Dairy Farm, Chambersburg, was a total surprise. We never expected this elderly couple to manage a dairy farm with 260 cows. They’ve changed from manual to robotic milking system seven years ago, and told us the cows took just a week to adjust to the robotic milking method! Their cows come in from pasture, walk through the gates into the commitment pen to the robot for milking and eat a grain ration that is computed according to the animal’s milk yield and health status. The cows can now be milked day or night, up to six times in 24 hours, if they choose.

Yes, the cows can actually choose when they want to be milked. The result: Production has increased at least 10–15 per cent, without compromising on quality.

The robot is flexible and fully trained to prepare the cows for milking, to clean their teats before and after milking, to attach the teat-cups, to reattach them if required, and to detach them after milking.

At the Trickling Springs Creamery, Chambersburg, a cooperative dairy, that specialises in processing ‘organic milk,’ the farmers are

shareholders and committed to maintaining pasture-grazed dairy cows, which are never fed any grain or cattle feed. Milk is purchased from local family farms who take special interest in the welfare of the grass-fed cows by using organic and holistic practices.

This dairy processes milk using a low temperature pasteurisation method that allows the milk’s natural proteins and enzymes to live, giving healthier milk and tastier ingredients. They sell ‘organic and all natural’ milk in returnable glass bottles, and also produce cultured buttermilk, homemade butters, raw milk cheeses and more than 25 flavours of premium ice-creams.

They’ve also started to promote goats’ milk and cheese.

Hamilton Heights Dairy Farm, Chambersburg, PA owned by a seasoned farmer couple Clifford and Daisy Hawbaker, this farm produces

The cows walk into the commitment pen to the robot for milking; they can actually choose when they want to be milked.

only ‘organic milk.’ No-concentrate feed made from grains/cereals/pulses or oilseeds is used for their cows. The team learnt the new concept of ‘pasture management’ which is of great value for Indian dairy farmers. The farmer converts most of the excess grass that he cultivates into hay to be used during the harsh winters when there is shortage of grass.

Our visit to the Appalachian Brewing Company, Harrisburg, gave us an insight into the ‘art’ of beer making. We learnt how the colour of beer is directly influenced by the colour of grains and the malt used. Grain, hops, water and yeast are very important for a correct brew.

At the TRÖEGS Independent Craft Brewery, the focus is on the production of specialty and seasonal beers. Their bottling plant packs 230 bottles per minute.

This VTT programme was a truly memorable experience for all of us.

Thanks to the opportunity provided by D 3170, D 7360 and TRF. We also made many new friends beyond our shores, and came closer to the larger Rotary family.

(The writer is member of RC Bhatkal, D 3170 and the VTT’s team leader) SEPTEMBER SEPT TEM EMBER BER E 2015 R ROTARY OTAR OTA RY NEW RY NEWS EW WS 5 555

A hidden beauty of

Mumbai discovered Kiran Zehra

T

he finest part of Mumbai was just under our nose and we never paid heed to its beauty,” commented Rtn Karthik Sha, RC Bombay Seacoast. He was referring to the Heritage Walk recently organised by the National Society of Friends of the Trees (FoT) and the Rotary Clubs of Bombay Seacoast and Mumbai Queen’s Necklace, D 3140.

About 100 FoT members and Rotarians took part in the walk that was inaugurated by PDG Ajay Gupta.

“I walked for almost three hours, lost in the beauty of nature and the heritage buildings of the British era,” he said.

The walk was flagged off at Horniman Circle and “participants were amazed by the (Lignum vitae) tree inside the 190-years-old St Thomas Cathedral. “There was a Sunday mass at the time we entered the cathedral which made our experience even more delightful,” adds the PDG. “At Flora Fountain the star apple tree (Chrysophyllum cainito), enchanted the spectators with its golden leaves,” said Rtn Ashok Kothari, RC Bombay Seacoast.

District Chairman, Rotary Nature Trails, D 3140, Kothari recalls “a tiny Coppersmith Barbet, greeting the 56 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

tree lovers with its ‘tak-tak’ noise. Not many people get to see a bird build its nest,” he said. Tree of Heaven, Amherstia nobilis, also known as the Pride of Burma, and covered with crimson flowers, at the Mumbai University garden was the main attraction of the trail.

“The sun’s rays filtered through the multicoloured stained glass windows of the university’s Convocation Hall and left the spectators in awe,” he adds. The focus was also on the Mahogany tree, Swietenia mahogany, planted by explorer and discoverer of the origin of River Nile, David Livingstone, in 1865.

Bharatbhai Chovatia, FoT Vice President, urged Rotarians to join the Tree Movement and save the trees of Mumbai. Horticulturists and botanists C S Lattoo, V R Ogle and Annasaheb Rode explained various facets of the trees along the heritage trail.

Dr Kothari, who is also the General Secretary of the National Society of the Friends of the Trees, says, “Rotary has given my love for nature a whole new meaning.

Educating people on the importance of trees and living close to nature ... what more can I ask for? ” Rtn Virendra Widge said that this was an excellent opportunity to explore and learn. “The Mumbai

The finest part of Mumbai was just under our nose and we never paid heed to its beauty.

University’s Convocation Hall that remains closed was opened after a long time and it had me living through the past,” says Widge who is a past student of the University.

Thanks to the good response, these Rotarians plan to make this an annual event.

Harnessing the

Sun’s energy Selvi

P

RIP Gary Huang, while announcing the theme Light Up Rotary last year had said, “How you Light Up Rotary is up to you, as you know where you are strong, you know what your community needs, and you know how you can help.”

Taking this hint, IPDG Ganesh Bhat decided to light up the remote villages of his District 3170 spanning three states — North Karnataka, South Maharashtra and Goa. These villages lacked basic necessities like electricity, water IPDG Ganesh Bhat and Mr Chatru Menda of Menda Foundation and sanitation, and he drew up plans to install with beneficiaries. solar panels to light up villagers’ homes.

RC Corpus Christi, D-5930, USA, joined At sunset these villages used to be engulfed in darkhands with D 3170 in this project and contributed $10,000. ness, making both elders and the school going children “Since the Foundation global grant didn’t materialise, alike to stay indoors and retiring early to bed. Now with I approached the Menda Foundation of Bangalore for a the solar lamps lighting up the households, the villagers matching fund and they came forward with a matching lengthen their work hours allowing more time for prosum of $10,000,” explained Bhat. Orders were placed ductivity and school children are able to concentrate on with SELCO — a solar panel manufacturing company and their homework. panels were installed in 180 houses in various villages.

SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 57

On a mission to give dignity to teenage girls Kiran Zehra

“

Even if we dismiss the thought of

“

R

I Director Manoj Desai has a challenge before him; the allfemale club, RC Karur Angels, D 3000, wants to “totally impress” him. “He has to accept our invitation so that we can prove that women are better hosts,” says IPP Meena. Open to only women, the club fosters friendship between “ ‘town and gown.’ When you see a bunch of women you think it’s a kitty party. As women our credibility and sustainability to maintaining our homes, business and social service are always questioned,” she says.

Karur Angels have taken on sensitising young girls studying in government schools on menstrual health and hygiene, building toilets and “implementing the WinS programme in full swing this year” says club member

hygiene and health for a single moment how can we ignore her dignity?

Kavitha. The club has already constructed a toilet block at Saraswathi School, Narasingapuram village, at a cost of Rs 2 lakh in partnership with URC Constructions. Each time they take on a project they make sure they have done their home work. “We look for similar projects done earlier on My Rotary, Rotary Showcase and other online Rotary tools. Now we use these as a platform to give and receive information online,” she adds. To them My Rotary is a pool of information which helped them map their projects.

Club President Geetha Gopalaan is anguished over girls using broken

thatched leaf cubicles (put together behind the school) to change sanitary napkins. Each time a girl has to go for a change, she has to be accompanied by another classmate to fetch some water for her from another part of the campus and act as a guard to keep others away. “This is terrifying. Even if we dismiss the thought of hygiene and health for a single moment how can we ignore her dignity?” The club has identified six high schools in the region that are in need of toilets.

Apart from giving scholarships, providing monthly grocery to an

orphanage and conducting RYLAs, the club’s menstrual awareness programme in government schools is focused on sustainable hygiene and awareness. Distribution of sanitary kits, talks on various issues related to menstruation and check-up with gynaecologists are “small steps to help women and girls discover their true potential and self-value and in turn act as agents of social change,” adds Geetha.

Earlier, as spouses of Rotarians, almost all the club members had the opportunity to join their husbands’ club, but they opted to start an all-women club. “Male Rotarians snorting at female club mates is history. We have our own women’s club now,” laughs Rtn Neelavathi Gopal. “With leaders like RI President KR Ravindran and RID Desai stressing the need to bring in more women into Rotary, our future in Rotary looks bright,” she adds.

Membership in India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Maldives As on August 3, 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

104 66 113 64 71 76 92 98 65 68 56 95 114 76 77 84 107 71 136 81 147 92 66 126 140 97 134 136 133 90 78 146 79 98 74 79 56 103 173 121 152 90 4,124

4,443 2,974 4,790 2,758 2,888 3,820 4,874 2,238 2,363 3,532 2,133 3,886 3,151 3,123 2,000 2,041 3,445 2,782 5,600 3,295 7,420 3,297 2,341 5,079 5,585 4,067 5,041 5,097 4,210 3,499 2,088 6,142 2,826 3,607 2,390 2,761 981 1,843 4,988 3,214 3,938 3,058 1,49,608

226 121 425 373 310 215 538 279 174 543 218 329 258 158 100 109 190 234 983 290 1,010 267 102 295 254 334 262 279 249 145 249 596 321 560 227 289 141 323 655 274 631 384 13,920

44 33 155 24 44 50 52 31 38 28 14 39 49 44 27 10 43 31 55 48 108 70 9 30 40 58 72 71 9 20 69 140 45 40 14 32 35 20 193 111 47 94 2,186

196 102 315 109 88 239 187 90 119 127 30 96 129 154 34 84 46 48 180 104 342 163 37 260 367 119 93 360 67 147 185 388 122 167 95 62 14 35 80 20 99 91 5,790

RCC

164 37 77 28 53 264 128 133 330 125 90 107 58 98 122 146 61 48 68 87 140 109 80 155 144 41 46 39 119 118 94 298 125 171 42 68 13 34 178 38 537 89 4,902

Source: RI South Asia Office

American scientist gets

M S Swaminathan Award Kiran Zehra

T

hank you very much for giving me an award named after my friend MS. My interaction with MS has powerfully changed the way I looked at how science and agriculture could alleviate poverty from the world,” said Dr Bruce Alberts, recipient of the Dr M S Swaminathan Award for Environment Protection 2015, for his contribution to science and pioneering work in DNA replication.

The award has been instituted by RC Madras East, RI District 3230, in the name of its honorary member Dr M S Swaminathan, India’s most acclaimed agricultural scientist and founder and chairman emeritus of M S Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF). The club has been honouring noteworthy individuals/organisations with this award for the past 20 years, partnering with CavinKare for eight years.

Dr Alberts was the President of the National Academy of Sciences, Washington DC, from 1993 to 2005, where he was instrumental in developing the landmark ‘National Science Education Standards’ that have been implemented in American schools. He is one of the original authors of The Molecular Biology of the Cell, the standard cell biology textbook followed in most universities.

Currently the Chancellor’s Leadership Chair in Biochemistry and Biophysics for Science and Education, University of California, he said, “My wife will tell

Each time I visit, the MS Swaminathan Research Foundation is better than the last time. Enormous good can happen to the world if we can implement the way science is partnering with the private sector in India.

you I can’t tell one plant from another, they are all the same, all green. But I believe that scientists all around the world must now band together to help create more rational, scientifically-based societies that find dogmatism intolerable.”

Happy to receive the award on the eve of Dr M S Swaminathan’s 90th birthday, Alberts said, “I was here 10 years ago to celebrate MS’s 80th birthday, I’ll be here on your 100th too ... and hope to see you continue to change the lives of many more people.” Amazed by the work of the MSSRF and “a bunch of bankers,” he said, “Villages around Pondicherry are running wireless internet centres and have stopped using chemical pesticides because of the Foundation.

Each time I visit, it’s better than the last time.

Enormous good can happen to the world if we can implement the way science is partnering with the private sector in India.”

The past recipients of this Award include Dr Ismail Serageldin, former Vice-President of Sustainable Development at the World Bank; Dr Jeffrey Sachs, Head, Earth Institute, Columbia University; Dr Sartaj Aziz, former Foreign Minister and current Principal Advisor to Prime Minister of Pakistan; and Dr Madhav Gadgil, noted environmentalist who has also been conferred Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan by Dr Bruce Alberts receiving the award from Dr Nanditha Krishna. the President of India.

60 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

RID Manoj inspires DGEs Muruganandam M

DGEs with RID Manoj Desai and Sharmishtha.

C

ool Kodaikanal in Tamil Nadu played host to the District Governors Elect of Rotary India for a Leadership Meet from July 31–August 2. All 38 DGEs along with their spouses participated in the Meet hosted by D 3000.

Chief guest RI Director Manoj Desai, in his keynote, called for novelty and innovation from the DGEs whom he fondly refers to as Smiling Sheriffs. “Innovate or evaporate,” was his mantra. He asked them to rise above the conventional mindset and transform themselves to fit into the changing world scenario. “Otherwise, you will be swept out to the sidelines by the forces of change,” he said. His call for introspection made the District leaders think about exploring ways of nonconventional interventions to address challenges in their District.

Sharmishtha Desai addressing the Spouses’ session.

Presentations The DGEs spelt out the priorities for their Districts. They found the orientation sessions on Rotary topics such as TRF, Public Image and WinS informative. While DGE Shyamashree Sen (D 3291) shed light on Strategic Planning, T Shanmugasundaram (D 2982) shared his thoughts on Global and District Grants, Sharat Jain (D-3012) spoke about WinS, Dr K Vijayakumar (D 3212) on PR and image building. Gopal Rai Mandhania (D 3140) appealed to the DGEs

Rise above the conventional mindset; else, you will be swept out to the sidelines by the forces of change.

– RID Manoj Desai

to create awareness among the public about organ donation and suggested they take it up as a pan-India initiative.

Spouses Training The spouses were not left behind, with Desai’s wife Sharmishtha conducting a session for them.

Fun evenings Fellowship and fun were further extended in the evenings with games, music and dance, where the DGEs and their spouses participated with gusto, strengthening their rapport and creating moments to be cherished. They were given a taste of Tamil Nadu’s folk art and traditions when a professional troupe performed dances such as Oyilattam, Thevarattam, Karagattam, Poikkalattam and Thappattam.

The next Meet will tentatively be held at Agra, during 2016–17, their official year of Governorship.

(The writer is DGE of D 3000) SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 61

Detecting cancer,

making history Team Rotary News

R

otary Bangalore South, D 3190, in association with Parimala Hospital, Cancer Care India, Swaasathya Health Foundation, Suman Health Care and Need Foundation conducted two cervical cancer screening camps. The second camp went on to break the existing Guinness World Record in cervical cancer screening.

The first camp was held at Rajarajeshwari School, Yeshwantpur on May 31. It was inaugurated by PDG Manjunath Shetty. The plan to break the world record held by Fortis Hospitals, Mumbai, for a camp that tested 701 women was thwarted by heavy rains. The camp treated 520 patients and was executed with the help of 20 gynaecologists and 40 paramedics.

Determined to achieve the world record, RC Bangalore South made a second attempt on June 21. The camp at GK High School, Doddaballapura was inaugurated by the local MLA Venkataramaiah. A thunderous applause indicated that the target of 701 participants was achieved by 5.15 pm. The new World Record was established with a tally of 731 participants for cervical cancer screening.

Interestingly, the second attempt required only half the number of doctors and paramedics compared to the first one.

The medical team.

With this RC Bangalore South created a unique distinction of screening 1,251 patients in two camps.

“The first camp took three months to organise but the second one needed just 20 days,” said Rtn Sridhar BR. Out of the 731 patients screened on June 21, one was detected with cervical cancer and four suspicious cases were advised biopsy. Samples of the Pap smear test of all the women tested were sent to Kidwai Institute of Oncology for detailed analysis.

“More than creating World Record, we wanted to spread awareness about the disease. Every 8th minute one woman in our country dies from cancer. Not much importance is given to early detection. A simple Pap smear test can detect the cancer early and prevent death,” he said.

SOLUTION FOR THE LAST MONTH’S CROSSWORD

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

: : : : : : : : :

12,15,347* 35,139* 535* 1,87,864 8,168 4,23,499 18,413 1,95,960 8,520

*As of August 3, 2015 As of June 30, 2015 62 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

Be arrogant with arrogant people; this is the only language they respect, as they confound kindness with weakness.

– Paulo Coelho

It’s not the pressure of stardom that gets you ... more often it’s the pleasure of stardom u need to take care of.”

– Shah Rukh Khan on Twitter

People will think: ‘Why on earth can’t the Prime Minister order this thing to be published?’

I can’t. It’s an independent inquiry.

– British Prime Minister David Cameron, losing patience with the “immensely frustrating” delay in publishing the Chilcot report on the Iraq war.

If the Chinese depreciation is part of a process of getting competitive advantage through longer term depreciation, it has to be worrisome across the world, partly because you could have tit-for-tat actions.

– RBI Governor Raghuram

Rajan

Who do you think received more cash from Yale’s endowment last year: Yale students or the private equity fund managers hired to invest the University’s money.

It is not even close.

– Victor Fleischer, Professor of Law at the Univeristy of San Diego, in an article in The New York Times.

Leo Tolstoy wrote the epic War and Peace in less time than it is taking to produce the Iraq report.

– A comment in the British daily The

Independent.

Vibrant Vienna Rasheeda Bhagat

Vienna Tourist Board

The city enchants you with its palaces and concerts, its architecture and rich history, its greenery and gardens.

Rasheeda Bhagat

I

had been warned that summers, particularly Augusts in Vienna can be rather hot. But to an Indian used to the hot and humid 40 deg C in Chennai and a taste of the scorching 42–44 deg C in Delhi or Rajasthan, a summer high of 24–26 deg C seemed a no brainer. But the weather gods had their own plans and the three August days I spent in this spectacular city of palaces, museums and gardens was a record high of 36 deg C! Bang in the midst of a heat wave, the cardigan and coat I had slipped into my suitcase mocked me no end.

But with a good sun screen, hat and cottons — all of which I had thankfully packed — Vienna, often described as Europe’s cultural capital, an Imperial city, to which description Romans will undoubtedly frown, cast its magic spell on me in the wink of an eye.

In a hearty welcome to summer, the city with 50 days below freezing point, Vienna has put on a different kind of concert ... an open-air one! The Austrian Capital’s sidewalk cafes are packed, its landmark coffee houses bustling, and the bars and eating joints alongside the Danube Canal in the centre of town abuzz with activity. Of course the local holidaymakers are out in the cooler regimes of Europe — Greece being a popular destination — as schools and colleges and many other public institutions are shut. Literary and movie festivals are on and open air readings can be enjoyed for free.

This is a historic year on many counts; the 15th year of the city’s heartbeat or showpiece — the Vienna Ringstrasse — is being celebrated with many special exhibitions and tours, as also the 60th year of its Independence in 1955. Yes, Austria is a younger Republic than ours! And between June and October, Vienna is host to its first ever

interdisciplinary Biennale, bringing together the worlds of art, design and architecture.

If Switzerland was popularised to Indian tourists by Yash Chopra’s numerous Bollywood blockbusters, and Spain by Zoya Akhtar’s Zindagi na milegi dobara, why can’t Vienna follow suit?

Vienna’s Ringstrasse This city of 1.8 million has a true international flavour; it houses OPEC’s headquarters, is one of the 4 United Nations’ headquarter cities, and also the seat of the International Atomic Energy Agency. The recent talks on lifting sanctions against Iran’s oil were held here. Of course it was the home of Mozart and he died here; two landmarks the Viennese are very proud about are the Ringstrasse, a 5 km circular boulevard lined with double rows of trees that was commissioned and declared open by the Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph in 1865. Housing many of the iconic monuments and buildings of this historic city, including the State SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 65

Vienna’s geographical location has given an Eastern European flavour to its cuisine. Hungary contributed goulash and strudel, which it had borrowed from Turkey, and Bohemia, of its delicious pastries.

Opera and the Museum of Fine Arts, its building, points out Director of the Vienna Tourist Board (VTB) Norbert Kettner, symbolised the “middle classes being integrated into the political, economic upper class and aristocratic social life. Its construction was unparalleled in terms of urban planning. Nowhere else in the world can one find all of a nation’s most representative public buildings standing along a single street!”

In fact when the Emperor announced its building, there was a scramble among the nobles and rich citizens to build grand palaces in diverse architectural styles along this boulevard, which is in essence a kind of grand ring road

around the inner city. As you walk around this imperial boulevard flanked by both historic and majestic buildings, you are struck by the diversity of architectural styles the buildings display. I am no architecture expert, but am told that while the State Opera and the University are built in the Neo-Renaissance style, the Parliament and City Hall have adopted the Flemish Gothic style, with the Parliament building designed as a Greek temple and the Museum for Applied Art, Vienna Stock Exchange, and Votive Church flaunting the New Gothic style. All these edifices were constructed in the second half of the 19th century.

The private homes that were built on this landmark road “bear witness to the self-confidence of the city’s burgeoning new upper class ... the bankers, industrialists, etc,” says Isabella Rauter, Team Manager, Media Management, VTB. Many of the expats who have now retired have opted to stay on, and that is a tribute to Vienna, which once again this year, for the sixth time, was named the world’s most liveable city, among 230 surveyed, by Mercer. The criteria — political, social and economic climate, medical services, education, public transport, infrastructure, etc.

On a flying visit, regrettably there is no time to browse in the Museums of Fine Arts and Natural History, but these

A view from the Danube river.

should be on any art and history lover’s list, holding as they do stunning art and natural treasures.

many of Vienna’s cardinals and Archbishops were laid to rest here.

St Stephens Cathedral

Schonbrunn Palace

A towering monument you can see from all over the city is the imposing St Stephens Cathedral, an iconic symbol of Vienna, as Austria itself. “Austrians love it, every child knows this symbol and, wherever they live, Austrians will come at least once to Vienna, to see it,” says Ilse, my guide.

An important Gothic edifice with four towers, its height is 107.2 metres and width 34.2 metres. From the tower room — brace yourself for 343 steps — you get a stunning view of Vienna.

During World War II, the cathedral was saved from intentional destruction by the retreating German forces, when a Captain disregarded orders to “fire a hundred shells and leave it in just debris and ashes.” On April 12, 1945, the fires lit by civilian looters in nearby shops severely damaged the roof, which collapsed. Fortunately, protective brick shells around the pulpit and tombs saved invaluable artworks. The roof was rebuilt and laid with 250,000 Bohemian glass tiles, depicting the coat of arms and other motifs.

This magnificent cathedral has stunning relics decorated with precious stones. Apart from emperors and princes,

The summer residence of emperors, this stunningly beautiful yellow edifice, with its massive gardens and 1,441rooms constructed in Baroque style, the Schonbrunn Palace is an important architectural, cultural and historic landmark of Austria. Always crowded with tourists, its history spans 300 years and reflects the changing taste, interests and aspirations of successive Habsburg monarchs.

To Indian visitors, of particular interest is the Millions room, with Indo-Persian miniatures from the Moghul era. These have been cut up and put together in a collage with a Baroque painted border.

Here, you get a fascinating peek into the life and psyche of Empress Elisabeth, married to Franz Joseph

Rasheeda Bhagat

Vienna respects gay rights; many of its traffic signals show gay couples — male and female — as well as mixed ones, blinking in red and green.

when she was a carefree young girl in Bavaria. Her surprising engagement to the Austrian emperor at 15 left her bitter and reflecting on how a teenager was expected to know or understand love! She also complained about her mother-in-law constantly “spying” on her! A truly 21st century woman, she later became the cult figure adored as Sisi. Finding court life oppressive, she rebelled against it; she was known for her intelligence, independent spirit, beauty and fashion. She travelled extensively and was assassinated in Geneva by an Italian anarchist in 1898.

The emperor, on the contrary, worked from 5 am, with simple meals served at his table!

There’s a lot here on another Austrian icon, Maria Theresa, the only female ruler in the Habsburg dynasty, who introduced many financial and educational reforms.

68 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

City of cycles Vienna is packed with cyclists who are seen darting across the streets. Even though Vienna is well connected by public transport — trams, underground and buses — many citizens prefer to bike their way around and have a clearly demarcated green track set aside for them. Pedestrians steer clear of these as many bikers set a scorching pace!

Gay rights at traffic lights It’s heart-warming that while planning the annual Life Ball, the biggest European charity event for HIV/AIDS, in May, in respect for equality and LGBT rights, the Town Council changed traffic light settings at 47 pedestrian crossings in Vienna. So instead of just one-stick man poised on the red

Pervez Bhagat

The Schonbrunn Palace in Vienna.

and green lights, three kinds of couples were introduced, with a blinking heart! Now pedestrians can see the red and green lights portraying a female, male or mixed couple.

Supposed to be temporary, this arrangement created such a buzz — criticism as well as overwhelming support — that these traffic lights stay on, despite protests from the Right Wing Freedom Party, as Viennese want them. “This has caught on, and cities like Munich have installed similar traffic lights,” smiles Ilse.

Cuisine Local cuisine, Viennese wines and the refreshing Austrian beers, and above all its coffee house culture and its delectable pastries, merit a column of their own! Vienna was the heart of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy for centuries,

Empress Elisabeth, who hated court life, was truly a 21st century woman; she later became the cult figure adored as Sisi.

and this union brought together countless cultures with their special culinary identities. Vienna’s geographical location has brought a distinctly Eastern European flavour to its cuisine. Hungary contributed goulash, as well as the strudel, which it had borrowed from Turkey. Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic, contributed many of the city’s pastries (known as Mehlspeisen). And some of these I sample in the coffee houses, downed with cups of Melange, which is similar to the Italian cappuccino, but is stronger, having more coffee and less milk. South Indian coffee connoisseurs will love it!

Fortunately for vegetarians, Vienna has a refreshingly wide choice and it is not just confined to its delicious soups and a wide array of salads. The huge variety of freshly baked breads are so high on quality and taste, that coupled SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 69

Rasheeda Bhagat

This is a historic year on many counts; 15th year of the city’s showpiece — the Vienna Ringstrasse — and 60th year of its Independence. with some cheese, or the delicious freshly made jams for which Vienna is famous, they can be paired with a local wine to make a delicious snack.

Vienna grows enough quality grapes to not only make enough wine for local consumption but also export some to other European countries. Barely an hour’s drive away from the city centre, are located Vienna’s vineyards, and for tourists as well as locals the wine taverns offer a great menu of both European and local food and wine. For the die-hard Indians, there are many Indian restaurants in the Austrian capital.

At the Grand Hotel where I stayed there is an unduly large number of Arab visitors and Isabella answers my query saying that many of these groups prefer to stay in hotels where they can bring their own cooks and can be absolutely sure that they are adhering to their religious sensitivities. This should be possible for strictly vegetarian tourists too, provided the group is big enough.

She adds that while once the focus was on Russian tourists, (in fact, in the First District many designer label 70 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

shops were opened with an eye mainly on Russian tourists and these are now languishing) with their economy going through challenging times the VTB is now looking at Asian visitors. “And we’re very happy that during the first half of 2015, we have seen a growth of 41 per cent in overnight Indian tourists and 62 per cent in day tourists.

Chinese (64,991), Japanese (59,805) and South Koreans (47,517) top the charts, but the Indian arrivals (19,006) are showing strong growth; 62 per cent against China’s 17 per cent and South Korea’s 27 per cent.”

Vienna beckons Bollywood If Switzerland was popularised to Indian tourists by Yash Chopra’s numerous Bollywood blockbusters, and Spain by Zoya Akhtar’s Zindagi na milegi dobara, why can’t Vienna follow suit, I ask Isabella. She is all smiles and says something is already on, but she can’t disclose details yet!

Last but not the least is the magic of the Danube River, about 350 km of which flows through Austria. Outside the city centre, following the path of this river you marvel at how its various meandering arms, which cause frequent flooding of Vienna were controlled and the river “straightened,” and the debris from this work used to create the enchantingly green Danube Island, which is 25 km long and a great spot for picnics, biking, open air concerts and relaxing.

Vienna will leave you awestruck at the manner in which it has seamlessly combined its imperial past with a modern vibrancy that is infectious.

Designed by S Krishnapratheesh

CONVENTION

CROSSWORD PUZZLE

Hear the music

C

hances are, you’ve heard of Psy and his signature song, “Gangnam Style.” He’s the Korean pop star with dark sunglasses and a distinctive galloping horse dance who was everywhere a few years ago, including on a This Close ad for End Polio Now. But what you might not know is that Psy is merely the tip of the colossal iceberg known as K-pop, short for Korean pop. If you plan to attend the 2016 Rotary International Convention in Seoul from 28 May to 1 June, you won’t have to search for K-pop — you’ll hear it in the streets, in cafes, in taxis and on television.

You can also hear world-famous K-pop stars at the Welcome Festival, a Host Organisation Committee event on 28 May; buy tickets at www. riconvention.org.

Long before Psy hit the international stage, K-pop artists were revered across Asia. Their high-energy tunes and perfectly choreographed music videos earned them huge followings in Japan, Taiwan and China. The boy band Super Junior once caused a stampede when 10,000 fans lined up for 2,500 tickets in Shanghai. In the United States, the all-girl group Wonder Girls opened for the Jonas Brothers tour in 2009, and became the first Korean group to land on the Billboard Hot 100 with their single “Nobody.”

Register for the 2016 Rotary convention in Seoul at www.riconvention.org.

TRANSITIONAL STRETCH Across 1 3,776-meter peak whose prime climbing season is Jul.-Aug. 7 Apple product 11 Miffed 14 Catherine of ___ 15 Hunter’s attire, for short 16 Grandpa Simpson 17 Start of lyrics from a 1966 The Happenings song 19 Blanc who voiced Bugs 20 Broken bones may call for them 21 Ferrous ___ (iron taken for anemia) 23 Small batteries 25 Previously called 26 Leaving ___ Vegas 29 Part 2 of the lyrics 34 Way up?

36 What a CPA crunches 37 Physique 38 Smelled awful 39 Lion or tiger 40 Gift recipient 41 Real-estate sign word 42 Infant 43 It starts 29-Across 44 Part 3 of the lyrics 47 Express in words 48 GE took it ove and broke it up 49 Genetic inits.

50 Strange 54 Single swath of hair above one’s eyes 60 Israelite judge 61 End of the lyrics 63 That Spanish guy?

64 Free from contaminants 65 Hammer user 66 Acionado 67 Dick and Jane’s pooch 68 Expel from a country

Down 1 Paws’ partners 2 Stumble 3 Another word for 43-Across 4 Fruit that sounds unattractive?

5 Get in, as a Rotary club 6 Kind of coffee 7 The rocks 8 Mantle contemporary 9 Quantities 10 Grand ___ Dam 11 Red-hot sort?

12 Help in a heist 13 Remove, to an editor 18 Those Spanish gals?

22 Articially intelligent gal in Austin Powers 24 One of 100 in Washington 26 Catch, as a dogie 27 John Jacob ___

28 29 30 31 32 33

35 39 40 42 43 45 46 50 51 52

53 55 56 57 58 59

62

Narrow racing boat Squid liquid Where antes go Employee reward Tomato swelling Its club’s Annual Sportsmanship Luncheon with nearby HarrisonMamaroneck club is often 29 Across (abbr.)

Bewitched role Affectedly shy Robin and Batman, say Starts to cry Finished Odds and ends Word on a dime Grievance, slangily Rick Blaine’s old ame It, Beach Park, and Winthrop Harbor are served by the Rotary Club of Illinois Beach Sunrise Mark replacement “Dies ___” Radar signal Chocolate-caramel candy, popularly Finished “Who ___ and art and evermore shalt be” (hymn lyric) Came together

Solution in the October issue

Reproduced from The Rotarian

Rotary Action Group on Mental Health Initiatives Rita Aggarwal

P

riyanka was feeling depressed since Class 9 but did not understand her predicament. Her grades were falling, she was losing interest in friends, getting irritated at small things with her parents and sleeping a lot. She was bunking school more often; crying alone and contemplating suicide often.

When she failed in Class 12, she was brought for counselling. She needed treatment for depression. Many such children suffer from depression that is masked and goes undetected until the point of crisis.

Rani was in constant conflict with her husband and wanted to die 72 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

of shame and humiliation because he often accused her of having illicit affairs with other men. He routinely scanned her mobile and emails for the ‘secretive infidelity’ which did not exist. Out of sheer disgust, frustration and a strong urge to end her life, she came for counselling as a last ditch effort. She was informed that her husband suffered from a mental illness called ‘paranoia’ and could be treated for the same. She was actually surprised that such a disorder existed and could be treated! How people suffer in silence.

This is just a couple of illnesses.

There is a vast range of mental disorders. The figures are disturbing.

In India there are 6 to 7 crore people suffering from common and severe mental disorders. About 50 per cent of severe mental disorders and 90 per cent of common disorders go untreated. According to WHO, 20 per cent of Indians will suffer from some sort of mental illness by the year 2020.

We just don’t have the required number of psychiatrists and psychologists in India to handle the crisis.

Besides this, there is a huge stigma, superstition and ignorance attached to mental illness. Even parents of children with mental health symptoms might not be aware of such problems and hence misunderstand the predicament. They shout, scream and blame them for being lazy, irresponsible and stupid whereas there could be a serious problem in the making. Many people say ‘there are no such things as mental problems — he is shirking his studies.’ Or if a woman is depressed her in-laws might say ‘she does not want to work so she makes excuses.’ What we need is a lot of awareness and education about the various mental health problems and willingness to seek professional help. We need to develop a positive attitude towards mental disorders and the knowledge that it can be treated and managed. Many times help from lay persons may backfire and do more harm than good. The attitude and reaction of lay/ignorant persons towards a mentally ill person is that of ridicule, suspicion and apathy. We need to remove all that and help people take the scientific approach to solve this problem.

We must remember that every family, every community is affected by mental health issues in some way.

The members of the Rotary Action Group for Mental Health Initiatives share a vision. Our dream is to work for a happier, healthier society and world. We aim to make treatment accessible to as many affected persons as possible; prevent mental health problems through awareness generation and community workshops. We would act as a resource for Rotary clubs worldwide.

What do we want from Rotarians?

• Does your club have a Mental Health project?

• Would you like to engage in one?

• Would you like to be a part of a global initiative on mental health?

You could become a member of the Rotarian Action Group on Mental Health Initiatives (RAGMHI). This is an open invitation for membership in RAGMHI. The RAGMHI is an international body of 25 Rotarians representing five countries (Canada, USA, India, Brazil and Lebanon) with a purpose of promoting mental health globally.

There is an 8-member Board of Directors. The RAGMHI aims to build an association of Rotarians who are passionate and have expertise in mental health treatment. Such members would be actively interested in creating awareness, designing solutions and executing programmes to promote mental health in children, adolescents and adults, thus helping them to lead meaningful and productive lives.

Those who are interested can write to us whereby a Pledge Form for charter membership in RAGMHI will be sent to you. Presently, membership is free and open to all Rotarians, their family members, Rotary programme participants and Alumni.

You should also write to us about mental health projects of your club.

That would help us create a resource pool of running projects that could act as models for clubs to emulate.

Creating opportunities Team Rotary News

T

apuriaghata is a fishermen colony in Paschim Chowbaga, adjacent to Kolkata’s infamous garbage dumping ground called Dhapa. About 350 families settled here face several social challenges. Being adjacent to the dumping yard, lack of hygiene, illiteracy and lack of employment in youth for shortage of skills, its problems are huge.

RC Calcutta Megacity, D 3291, in association with the NGO Tapuriaghata Nari Unnayan Kendra (TNUK) is engaged in varied welfare activities to improve the living condition of the people here. The club recently set up a tailoring centre, where women are taught tailoring and embroidery to enable a decent livelihood.

“It is a small but meaningful beginning,” says club president Sanjib Choudhury. The club has been supporting TNUK in organising health camps and adult

literacy programmes in the locality. Together they plan to execute more welfare projects to improve the standard of living of residents.

SEPTEMBER SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 73

Change your attitude to shed weight Sheela Nambiar

S

o you want to lose weight. Half the world does.

Obesity is a worldwide epidemic so it’s only natural that every second person you meet is keenly seeking the holy grail of weight loss.

Dinner conversations invariably return to feelings of guilt over indulgences. The Internet is flooded with clever advertising to lure vulnerable individuals into buying

some product or the other with the promise of ‘losing ten kilos in ten days’ or similar fantastic claims.

You may not be thrilled with your body right now; in fact, you may view it with a good deal of distaste. Let’s ask ourselves a question, how did we get this way? How did we pile on the pounds? Where is that slender teenager?

No doubt there are some who struggle with obesity all their lives. Overweight as children and teenagers, they are often faced with ridicule and marginalised. A large percentage of the population however, grow obese with age. A certain amount of weight gain with age is acceptable. But to become obese and as a result develop various obesity related complications like pain and discomfort, diabetes, heart disease, anxiety, depression, indigestion and so on, is not.

Take stock of your lifestyle.

• Are you physically active all day or does your job entail a lot of sitting behind a desk?

• Do you exercise regularly?

• Do you stay home and watch a lot of television and do little physical labour?

• Do you deal with an inordinate amount of stress? More importantly, are you one of those people who do not handle stress well? Do you develop acidity, anxiety or insomnia as a result of your stress? Do your work and relationships suffer? Do you become an insufferable boss or mother?

• Do you go on eating or drinking binges?

• Do you starve yourself often with the hope of losing weight only to go back to binge eating?

• Do you get enough sleep? (Six to eight hours a night of uninterrupted sleep is recommended.)

• Do you eat well-balanced meals with plenty of vegetables, fruits, nuts, protein and healthy fats or are you loading up on the bread/cereal group (rice, rotis, bread, etc.), refined, processed, packaged food with additives and sugars out of packets as is common and convenient?

• Do you eat home-cooked meals or depend on canteens and hotels and takeaways?

• Do you travel a lot, subjecting yourself to different time zones, food, lack of sleep and stress?

• Does your life involve a lot of socialising with indiscriminate eating and drinking?

• Are you addicted to sugar and need to eat something sweet ever so often?

The list of poor lifestyle habits is endless. These are some of the reasons you could be steadily gaining weight.

Each problem has to be addressed independently with a combination of life skills, dietary advice and regular

What you do for the rest of the 23 hours counts far more than 1 hour of working out.

exercise. There is no way around it. Whatever the reason for the weight gain, the solution is to eat better, exercise and change your lifestyle.

Here’s the problem — most people think an hour of exercise alone will solve everything. It takes more than that, although that’s a good place to start. Your lifestyle is important. What you do for the rest of the twenty-three hours counts far more than one hour of working out. This means change. A change in attitude towards your lifestyle and not just one aspect of it.

A new mindset and not just a new menu is what is required.

The real secret to losing weight and more importantly, keeping it off is your attitude. The ability to look at your lifestyle with a certain amount of objectivity and a critical eye and then take the necessary steps to change what needs to change; the ability to get the necessary professional help when required. It’s not easy to change a whole lifestyle. There are other people involved — family, friends, colleagues and boss who are probably helping you preserve the current lifestyle. Change may involve others and this is not always welcome. For change to be sustainable however, it has to be holistic.

Adopt a slow and steady approach. Help your body and mind gradually learn to eat better, exercise more, live healthier, sleep earlier, relax and breathe. Most importantly, learn to appreciate yourself and your efforts. Learn to respect yourself and your body.

(The writer is a fitness and lifestyle consultant.

E-mail: Sheela.nambiar@gmail.com)

SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 75

RC Pondicherry Elites RI District 2981 Dental and medical camp conducted by the club for the inmates of an old age home and hospice.

RC Villupuram RI District 2982 The annual Rota Sports conducted by the club hosted over 15 events for 500 participants.

76 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

RC Villupuram RI District 2982

RC Thuraiyur Perumalmalai RI District 3000 In order to enhance the learning experience of government school students in the region, the club distributed benches and desks.

RC Rewari Main RI District 3011 The club donated an RO water plant at Shiv Chowk to provide clean and safe drinking water to the people of Rewari.

RC Thuraiyur Perumalmalai RI District 3000 SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 77

RC Sonepat Uptown RI District 3012 A medical health camp was undertaken by the club.

RC Vuyyuru RI District 3020 Over 4,000 saplings were planted at the 66th Vanamahotsavam, jointly conducted by the club, KCPS and IC Ltd.

RC Achalpur RI District 3030 The club conducted a dental camp at Municipal High School, Paratwada and distributed toothbrushes and toothpaste to the students.

RC Sonkutch RI District 3040 Close to 23 unit of blood was collect at a blood donation camp conducted by the club.

RC Sidhpur RI District 3051 The club conducted a cleanliness, hygiene and health awareness programme for students and parents at LS High School.

RC Rewari Main RI District 3011

RC Jaipur Royal

RC Ludhiana North

RI District 3052 E learning kits were donated at Khejroli, Chomu and Kanota village schools.

RI District 3070 The club distributed tricycles to help the physically challenged.

RC Bikaner

RC Roopnagar

RI District 3053 The club in association with Kothari Hospital conducted a medical camp at the Khara Association Bhawan.

RI District 3080 A three day RYLA was conducted by the club for children between 12 and 18 years of age.

RC Sunam RC Jetpur RI District 3060 The club set up a class room for its adult literacy programme.

RI District 3090 The club distributed tricycles, wheel chairs, callipers, artificial limbs, walking sticks and hearing aids for the differently abled.

RC Hasanpur RI District 3100 The club in association with Anand Hospital, Meerut, conducted a cardiac check up and diabetes screening camp.

RC Agra RI District 3110 Rotarians distributed saris for teachers, school uniforms and notebooks to students of the Saraswati Shishu Mandir, Agra.

RC Varanasi Greater RC Vuyyuru RI District 3020 78 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

RI District 3120 The club undertook a tree

plantation in the city, to promote a grenner tomorrow.

RC Pune NIBM RI District 3131 To create awareness on health and hygiene among the villagers the club conducted a general health camp at Vile village.

RC Jalna Central RI District 3132 A workshop on developing communication and enhancing public speaking skills was conducted at MS Jain School.

RC Bombay Peninsula RI District 3140 Rotarians sponsored an e-learning centre to Gyan Madhaymik Vidyalay, Powai.

RC Hanamkonda RI District 3150 Food kits distributed to inmates of Sishugruha, a home for orphan children.

RC Gulbarga Suncity RI District 3160 The club in association with Mother Teresa Charitable Society distributed footwear,

RC Roopnagar RI District 3080 clothes and blankets to the underprivileged.

RC Mysore South East RI District 3180 Under Rotary’s TEACH programme the club donated computers to Jnaneswari Vidya Samsthe School.

RC Coimbatore Heritage RI District 3201 The club in association with Rotaract Club of Akshaya College of Engineering Technology conducted a swine flu awareness rally.

RC Payyanur.

RI District 3202 The club donated a one year subscription of the Malayalam Manorama Daily to Government Girls Higher Secondary School, Payyanur.

RI District 3212 The club dedicated feeding rooms at various bus stops to help mothers breast feed their infants.

RC Madras Central RI District 3230 The club along with Rotary Central Margaret Sidney Hospital, Nanganallur, conducted a medical camp for poor and needy people.

RC Damodar Valley RI District 3250 The club distributed blankets to needy villagers.

RC Berhampur

RC Agra RI District 3110

RI District 3262 The club registered 300 student volunteers from DAV Public School for Rotary’s adult literacy drive - Each One, Reach One, Teach One. SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 79

Make sure Rotary News Moves with you!

Changing your address? Please write to us before you move, two months in advance. Mention your Club name, RI District Number and Rotary News Account Number from your magazine address label or simply attach the label itself.

Your Rotary News Account Number Name Rtn. _________________________________________________________________________________ Rotary Club of __________________________________________________ RI District ____________________ New Address (Please write your NEW Address below, in CAPITAL letters) ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ City / Town _____________________________________________________ PIN Code ___________________ Mail this coupon to: ROTARY NEWS TRUST, 3rd Floor, Dugar Towers, 34, Marshalls Road, Egmore, Chennai-600 008.

Air-conditioned Conference Hall with a seating capacity of 30 persons in the office of the Rotary News Trust

Contact:

ROTARY NEWS TRUST 3rd Floor, Dugar Towers, 34, Marshalls Road, Egmore, Chennai - 600 008 Phone: 044-4214 5666 e-mail: rotarynews@rosaonline.org 80 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

SERVICE ABOVE SELF AWARD Rtn Manmohan Krishan Maini, Past President of RC Ambala Central, D 3080, was honoured with ‘RI Service above Self Award’ for 2014-15, in recognition of his volunteer work and active involvement in Rotary.

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 magazine’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.

South Asia Literacy Committee Chair and PRIP Kalyan Banerjee and Binota launched the Asha Kiran programme of RILM to send children back to school. The couple pledged to put 50 children in schools.

Ambassador of Nepal to India Deep Kumar Upadhyay presented the ‘Pride of India’ award of Citizens Integration Peace Society, Delhi to Rtn R Srinivasan, RC Madurai Midtown, D 3000, Director of TVS Schools and Advisor to TVS Srichakra Ltd, Madurai, for his contributions to our country’s economic growth.

PDG (D 3260) Dr Narayan Mishra, President, National College of Chest Physicians of India, was conferred the Dr I A Modi Oration Award for 2015 at the National Environmental Science Conference for his contributions to antitobacco campaign and related research work.

Rtn Deepak Gupta, RC Ghaziabad, D 3012, presented cheque for Rs 32 lakh, as his contribution to TRF, to RI President K R Ravindran at the Intercity Meet in New Delhi.

SEPTEMBER 2015

ROTARY NEWS 81

IN BRIEF

Ebola vaccine trials promising

The interim results of the experimental Ebola vaccine in Guinea, published recently, have proved 100 per cent effective. Wherever the virus flared up, all adult-contacts of the sick, excluding pregnant women, were vaccinated. From 27,748 cases (including 11,279 deaths) up to July 26, in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, only seven new cases have been found in Guinea and Sierra Leone, till July end. The goal is not to get any new cases for 42 days which is twice the incubation period of the virus, after which a country/region can be declared Ebola-free.

New Time Zone for North Korea

No b’day bash for Chinese kids

North Korean clocks will be set back by 30 minutes to GMT+8.30 — the time zone they used before colonisation by Japan. The new time was effective from August 15, 2015, when the country celebrated its 70th anniversary of liberation. Citizens anticipate difficulties in inter-Korean exchanges with this new time zone. N Koreans have their own calendar, too.

It counts from the birth of their founding leader, Kim II Sung, which was 1912 – known in N Korea as Juche 1. That makes this year Juche 103. S. Korea too is debating on re-setting the clocks to similar time zone.

Tongiiang county in NE Sichuan Province of China has banned holding birthday parties for people under age 70. Those over 70 can have a birthday banquet once in a decade. County officials feel such parties create a huge financial burden on families and guests. While some opposed the rule saying they need to celebrate longevity, others backed it on the ground residents were not wealthy and banquets were excessive and expensive.

When Wikipedia editing went overboard Wedding feast for Syrian refugees Turkish bride and groom, Esra Polat CPF (GVJWNNCJ ÂŻ\Ă—OEĂ—QĂžNW EGNGbrated their nuptials in the Turkish province of Kilis, near the Syrian border, by sharing their wedding meal with the 4,000 Syrian refugees settled in the area. Both the families pooled in money for the meal and the couple was glad to begin their life with the blessings of the refugees.

Turkey has provided refuge to two million Syrians and a Turkish charity takes care of the settlement in Kilis.

82 ROTARY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015

Announcing Sundar Pichai as the new CEO of Google, Larry page wrote on Google’s official blogspot, “I feel very fortunate to have someone as talented as he to run Google and I know Sundar will always be focused on innovation, continuing to stretch boundaries.�

In Chennai, celebrations erupted as another Chennai body had made it big in the world of technology. Various schools claimed him as alumni, and his Wikipedia page was edited to say so!

After hundreds of edits, Wikipedia “disallowed editing from unregistered accounts.�

School or work?

While photographing kumhars (potters) in Moga, about 70 km from Jalandhar in Punjab, I came across this 12-year-old girl lending a hand to her father in making pots, lamps, etc. And she did it with a smile. A student of Class 8, she helps her father in the evenings, but skips school often to improve the family income. In many backward communities in Punjab they say “Kudi padhke ki karegi?� (What will a girl do with education). After all she has to work inside the house. I gave her a few books and chocolates, which made her very happy.

Rtn Amritpal Singh Luthra, RC Jalandhar Civil Lines, D 3070

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