The Award in Action - Silver level Award Participants of Sri Sri Academy, Kolkata

 The Silver level Award Participants of Sri Sri Academy, Kolkata went to the Aravallis in Dhauj, Faridabad for an Adventurous Journey. Following is a writeup submitted to us by Kavya Gupta from 10-B, who is pursuing the Silver Level of the Award.

"We boarded the Duronto Express from Howrah at 8:35 a.m. on 14th October 2022 and divided ourselves into groups for assigning of cabins. The train journey consisted of lots of chitchats, games, and sightseeing outside the train window.
We reached Camp Wild Dhauj on 15th October in the morning (at about 8 am), after a bus ride from the New Delhi Station. We played team building games and divided ourselves into 4 groups or ‘ropes’. We had a brief know session and a bonfire at night.
We slept early to prepare for an early morning trek. The trek introduced us to thorny bushes, a scorching sun, and a beautiful view of a hidden lake for which we travelled around 5 km. We went back to the campsite through a tractor and got ready to zipline. We finished the day with dinner and a bonfire.
The next day and the day after encompassed rock climbing, rappelling, an obstacle course, and our last night at the camp. We prepared food in the evening ourselves, with one of us leading the whole process and teachers (Award Leaders) guiding us. We prepared paneer and aloo tikka, and saved some for later at the bonfire. We sat at the bonfire and reminisced about the whole trip, and what it taught us.
It was one of the first times we were in such an unfamiliar environment, and things like bathing in ice-cold water in the early mornings, or living with insects, rats, and lizards required some getting used to but we learnt to adjust and live with the basics. We were blessed with good food and friendly instructors who guided us at every step of the way.
On the 5th Day, we got ready early in the morning and visited a village near our camp site. The objective was to interact with the villagers to understand how they live their daily lives. We came to know about their language, their food habits, the problems that they face in everyday life, their festivals and recreation. We also visited a primary school to interact with the students there and spent the day with them.
On the 6th day, while coming back, we faced heavy traffic and stopped the bus to board the metro. We took 2 metros and got off at the New Delhi Station stop. From there, we each ran frantically with our luggage to the Railway Station. We were all tensed, nervous, and scared to miss our train but somehow we all made it just before the train departed.
The journey back to Kolkata was also memorable, and we all wished the trip would not end.
We all said our goodbyes on reaching back to Howrah Station, a place where we all once gathered excitedly to start our trips. This trip taught us a lot and gave us a lot of happy moments with our friends and teachers, becoming a memory to remember for a lifetime!"

- by Kavya Gupta,10-B, Sri Sri Academy, Kolkata

The Award in Action- Purkal Youth Development Society, Dehradun

The contribution of Award Participants from Purkal Youth Development Society, Dehradun towards a clean and better environment!



Taking a small step towards a cleaner environment and reaching out to community, Award Participants took the initiative to clean their surroundings on Sunday, 12th of February. Some individually and some in groups, Participants along with their family members participated in a Cleaning Drive in the surrounding area.

Participants staying in the hostel cleaned the dining hall, washing area, and the adjacent river of the school.

Award Participants successfully covered up the 11 different areas (Purkal, Jaspur, Panditwari, Shenshai Ashram, Rajpur, Rikholi and Kimadi Village among others).

I hope these young Award Participants and Achievers will come together in taking care of our community and take steps cautiously to create a beautiful world.


- by Manish Chandel,

Award Leader,

Purkal Youth Development Society,

Purkal, Dehradun

 

Adventure Journey with Visually Impaired Award Participants of SWB- Bronze & Silver Level at Matha Hill, West Bengal- 1st to 5th February, 2023

 

The Award in Action- Bawa Lalvani Public School, Kapurthala

 Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all!

The Adventure Expedition of The International Award for Young People had a profound impact on the students of Bawa Lalvani Public School who took part in it. The three-day journey was filled with physical and mental challenges, which helped the students to overcome their fears and develop a sense of adventure. The first day saw the students engaged in myriad activities like camping, go-kart racing, hanging & maneuvering, climb & jump and wheelbarrow traverse. The day commenced with some fun team building activities which were then followed by other more thrilling activities. Initially, fear and anxiety had gripped them and they were paid back in wounds and bruises for their physical labour. But eventually, they did overcome the challenges and accomplish the tasks. The second day of the journey unfolded with knee-top negotiation, crawl negotiation, pull-ups, sword assault and tree climbing. Being able to complete this too, the hearts of youngsters were filled with the exhilaration of victory. The day and the journey both concluded with a tree plantation activity. The joy of persistent attempts leading to accomplishments had been overwhelming for them in this journey. While the pupils were doing their tasks, the grips of many of them loosened. A lot of them tripped and fell too. But what kept them going was the will to finish what they had begun. In activities like climbing, hurdle races with vaulting horses and wheel drag, the students could feel surges of adrenaline in their bodies that filled them with a sense of adventure. These tasks not only aided them in overcoming their fears but also in discovering parts of themselves that they never knew had existed before. Detaching themselves from books and gadgets that had always been a strenuous task seemed accomplishable in the journey. However, one of the most enlightening aspects of the journey had been the tree plantation activity that the students undertook as a mechanism to create awareness among the locals about the environment. When they look back at the time that they spent at the camp, they feel elated. This journey has been one of the most enthralling experiences of their lives, offering them countless opportunities of newfound sense of self-realisation. They've started looking at obstacles and hurdles as stepping stones. In this way, the students have not only learnt but grown too, both individually and collectively. The moments that they spent with themselves and with each other in the journey during the team lunch and the life skills that they imbibed with every passing moment will forever remain etched in their memories.

The International Award for Young People has played an important role in making our students understand their responsibility towards society.

Thank you IAYP!

- by Dr. Ekta Dhawan
Principal
Bawa Lalvani Public School,
Kapurthala

The Award in Action - Manikya Rana, Bronze Award Participant, Dyal Singh Public School, Jagadhri

 

Under the Voluntary Service section of The International Award for Young People, I selected volunteer work in my city. I planted more than 100 plant saplings, participated in a river cleaning drive and was part of more service projects. It was an enthusiastic experience and I wish to take up similar tasks in the future as well! by Manikya Rana, Bronze Award Participant, Dyal Singh Public School, Jagadhri.

Watch Manikya's Award Journey and experience here: https://www.instagram.com/reel/CoH1MECDMYa/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y%3D