Our Bronze Level Award Journey

Rakhi Jain and Jyoti Sagwekar (Award Leaders) from Bombay Cambridge School, Andheri West, Mumbai narrated the experience of teachers and participants at the Bronze Level of their Award Journey.

Deeksha Pal, who lead the students for the Service section, said that this was a heartwarming experience. Says Deeksha, "Every time the students accomplished something, I felt proud. While I was teaching them, I learned a lot about myself. My students were really happy and kept praising us, saying that I was a wonderful teacher. Students who used to hate Maths soon started enjoying it; those who didn't enjoy English learned to admire it. This was such a positive experience that I believe that everyone should try teaching at least once in their lifetime."

Mubasshira Shaik says, "The Cleaning drive experience didn't only leave our school and surroundings clean but also left us proud of ourselves. We cleaned the streets armed with brooms and gloves, dug compost pits and spread awareness among local people by rallying across the streets of J.B Nagar and Chakala with posters prepared by us. Apart from this we also molded ourselves for a better and cleaner future. We also hope that our initiative will motivate and leave an impact on society."

Disha Shetty said that the music sessions conducted for the Skills section served as music therapy. It made participants realize the essence of music in their life.

Parth Dand explained how the sessions that they were exposed to during Physical Recreation not only helped them to improve their skills in field events like shot putt and long jump, but also served as a stress buster.

Talking about the Adventurous Journey Shruti Mokashi said, "We, the students of BCSE, thoroughly enjoyed the three-day journey undertaken on foot. We were trained about various aspects of camping: tent pitching, route planning, navigating and map reading a week prior to our expedition. We were split into groups as soon as we reached there. We walked amidst grass, dams, mud and fields in the sun's scorching heat and sometimes rains. We did jungle cooking on the second day which turned out to be as much fun as learning. We mingled with our new group members and helped each other in various ways throughout those three days. We experienced the true sense of team spirit, responsibility and decision making during the journey."  Click  for more pictures

Special Project Adventurous Journey Camp for JCB Supported Govt. Schools in Faridabad

National Award Authority organised a three days Adventurous Journey camp for JCB Sponsored Government Senior Secondary School of the rural areas of Haryana from 19th to 21st December 2014 at Rocksport's Balliwash Camp site. Total 179 participants (83 Silver level and 96 Bronze level) participated in the camp and performed Adventurous Journey related activities under the supervision of instructors from Institute of Climbers and Nature Lovers (ICNL) Kolkata and Bivujit Mukhoty (Programme Manager).

The camp activities includes Rock Climbing, Rappelling, Fixing Rope, Building Burma Bridge & Single Rope Bridge, fixing Tyrolean Traverse (for river crossing), tent pitching along learning Rope Knots. The participants also learned Team Building Games with Spider Net. All the participants successfully completed their practice and qualifying Adventurous Journey. The NAA team thanks ICNL, Kolkata and Rocksport, New Delhi for their spontaneous support to the Award Programme. We also wish to thank Neelam Singh (Award Leader, Govt. Sr. Sec. Schools) for her valuable support and help.    Click for pictures

Bringing the Shine Back to the Shrine

The global climate change has had a major impact on historical monuments in India. In the last few years the Indian government spent a lot of money on restoration and renovation of these historical monuments.  To contribute to this cause GEMS NPS International School's Bronze Award participants decided to pick up the task of renovating, cleaning and painting a 600-year-old shrine, Shri Shri Damodar Dev Satra located in the village Patbausi in Assam.

The shrine was destroyed in the 1964 earthquake and was repaired under instructions of the Chief Minister of Assam; since then the shrine has been uncared for. As part of the service activity of the IAYP Award programme, the 35 Bronze Award asprants volunteered their services for over five months to bring the shrine back to its glory.  Click for pictures

Manali, The Switzerland of India

A Report from Priyatma Ningthoujam (Bronze Aspirant)

On 24th November, 2014 a group of 20 Award aspirants of Miles Bronson Residential School participated in an adventure trip to the Himalayan ranges of Manali,  Himachal Pradesh. The group was led by Ms. Lipika Borah (Award Leader) along with Mr. Thomas P. It was a 12-day programme which included trekking, rafting and other adventure activities.

The team reached Manali early in the morning of 27th November. They did some local trekking that day and visited the hot springs and the Hadimba temple in Manali.

The next day was a day to play in the snow in Lothang pass. Each one of us experienced the snow for the first time.  Lothang pass can be called a natural paradise. The same day we came down to Solang valley and met an eminent personality called Sri Rajib Sharma who has spent the maximum time of his life in the mountains and was a victor over Mount Everest twice.

In Naggar (a place between Kulu and Manali) we camped for a night. It was a memorable experience and the students enjoyed a number of adventure activities such as monkey crawling, Burma crossing, rock climbing, zip lining, rafting etc. In that venue we had the amazing experience of night holding inside tents in the extreme cold.

We also trekked to a village called Heritage Village in Naggar which is popular in both Bollywood and Hollywood. Many of the famous films such as Jab We Met, Yeh Jawani Hai Diwani etc were pictured there. The forest is the state's most important wealth. The place had a very thick vegetation of pine, cedar, deodar, and apple.

We had the opportunity to visit a monastery in Mc. Leod Ganj where there is a residence of the Dalai Lama. Mc Leod Ganj is teeming with exiled Tibetan people.

Manali with its soothing backdrop of Himalaya has given us an unforgettable moments and memories in our life. This trip has taught us life skills like taking risks, having confidence in ourselves and the ability to take on challenges, and most importantly, developing team spirit and empathy.  Click for more pictures

IAYP Adventurous Journey Camp for Differently Abled Participants on International Day of Disabled Persons - 3rd December 2014

On the occasion of International Day of Disabled Persons, the National Award Authority is organising an Adventurous Journey Camp for the differently abled Bronze, Silver and Gold aspirants of Raphael, Dehra Dun.  A team of six instructors from ICNL, Kolkata will be imparting training to the participants under the supervision of Bivujit Mukhoty, Programme Manager IAYP.

The group started the activities within the Raphel campus and will head to the Maldevata Village for three days where they will perform different activities at the Inside Passage Campsite.

In all 40 participants (9 Gold, 20 Silver and 11 Bronze) along with 3 escorts have joined the camp. Watch out for a detailed report in this spot.

Congratulation Ms Priyo Lall on Receiving The Rajiv Gandhi Manav Seva Award 2014

The Award family wishes to congratulate Ms Priyo Lall (YES Centre Manager and Director Special Education, Raphael, Dehra Dun) on receiving The Rajiv Gandhi Manav Sewa Award from the President of India Mr. Pranav Mukherjee on 14th November 2014, for services rendered for the welfare of children.  In pursuance of its policy to support and encourage voluntary action, and in memory of the later Prime Minister, Shri Rajiv Gandhi, the Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India instituted this award in 1994 to honour individuals who make outstanding contributions towards service for children, including children with various kinds of disabilities. The sole basis for selection is the quality of work performed by the individual for the cause of children. Voluntary action has a special place in the nation's effort for promoting the well being of children and the Award seeks to grant recognition for individual excellence in such voluntary services.  We are proud of her association with us.