Ripples of change for a Cause

Award participants of Sat Paul Mittal School, Ludhiana took an initiative to support the specially-abled children. A brief report.

"I slept and dreamt that life was joy… 

I awoke and saw that life was service… 

I acted and behold, service was joy."

Rabindranath Tagore

It is rightly said, “Only a life lived in the service of others is worth living”. Abiding by this maxim and to support Aashrivad Schools Amba Project, the Satyans affiliated with the IAYP Programme have taken a step ahead to help pave the way from “Dependence to Independence” for specially-abled children. The Satyans have taken an altruistic initiative of promoting Indian handicraft and entrepreneurship. The Satyans put up stalls for the sale of beautiful garden planters and exquisitely designed biodegradable and eco-friendly diyas. The money collected from this initiative will be entirely spent for buying technology to further the endeavour in making the specially-abled children technologically adept for self-sufficiency. This initiative has provided the Satyans with an opportunity to rise by lifting others, and the power to bring about a change for good.

This initiative was undertaken by Satyans on September 27, 2017 and was duly acknowledged and appreciated by the parent fraternity. They encouraged the Satyans by contributing to the beneficent sale for a noble cause. Ms Bhupinder Gogia, Principal, Sat Paul Mittal School, also appreciated the efforts made by the Satyans of the IAYP Club and stated that Satyans should work consistently with the conviction for a humanitarian outreach and create ripples of change for a better society.

Cleanliness Drive - A Report

The Award participants of Sanjay Ghodawat International School, Atigre undertook the second phase of their cleanliness drive in the village of Hatkanangale (Maharashtra) in the Old Market Area on Saturday, September 9, 2017. All the 96 Bronze and 8 Silver participants were involved in this activity under the supervision of 15 mentors.

The purpose of the second phase of this cleanliness drive was to create more awareness among the villages regarding hygiene. The open drains which were cleaned during the last drive were not in a good condition, and the participants had a difficult task ahead of them as the drains were again filled with polythene bags and grass had sprouted around the drains. The Award participants convinced the villagers not to throw litter everywhere. They also discussed the negative impacts of poor hygiene on our health. The participants visited each home and shop of the area to spread awareness. It took nearly three hours to clean the drains. The work was appreciated by the villagers and the Sarpanch of the village. Click here for pictures

Save Paper, Save Plants Campaign

 The Award participants of DPS Megacity, Kolkata along with students of Eco Club took part in a campaign named “Save Paper Save Plants”. These are the initiatives taken by the participants to create a green environment:

• The papers were reused to make bags and envelopes which were sold during our Annual Carnival, the proceeds of which go towards charity through the Interact club.
• Economization of paper Both sides of the A4 size paper is used to prevent wastage. School circulars were also printed on the reverse side of used papers in order to economize the use of paper.
  
• All unused papers in the exercise books were taken out and bound to form new exercise books. These exercise books were handed over to the Interact Club to be distributed to the less privileged students in the community.
• Old exercise books of the students were collected by the participants and used to make pulp for handmade paper and then this pulp was mixed with water and spread on a piece of window screen to dry. On completion of drying this paper was painted by the students and used for board work in the classroom.
• The Award participants recycled used papers, bottles, cans and made beautiful folders, pen stands, show pieces etc., which were also used as gifts for distinguished guests who visited our school.

In conclusion, it can be said that DPS Megacity has truly followed the mantra of REUSE AND RECYCLE for the conservation of plants and contributed immensely to our planet Earth in reducing global warming.

Opportunity to do Community Service

Shiksha Kendra, a philanthropic venture of Delhi Public School Gurgaon, Sector-45, is a school for remedial teaching for students from the ‘marginalised those at risk’ section of society. It is an afternoon school (1.30 pm - 5 pm) providing quality education to 1300+ students from classes 1-12. As it is a prerequisite that all students/members have to do community service, we at DPS Gurgaon want to extend a helping hand. We wish to invite all those children desirous of doing community service in the form of teaching to come and teach at the Shiksha Kendra run by the school.

The IAYP participants of all three levels can volunteer to take classes from standard 1 to 5 on weekdays from 3 pm to 5 pm. Besides teaching academic subjects they can also conduct classes for co-curricular activities and train students in Dance, Theatre, Art, Vocal Music, Spoken English, etc.

Students interested in teaching at Shiksha Kendra should write an email to Shubra Banerjee or Darshna Dahiya at least a week in advance, informing about the dates on which they would like to take classes so as to enable us to make suitable arrangements. Click to see some pictures at Shiksha Kendra

Wall Painting for Environment Protection Awareness

Award participants of The Aditya Birla Public School, Kotputli organised a campaign for environment awareness. A brief report from Jintendra Nath Tripathy, Award Leader.

The children of Aditya Birla Public School decided to organize an awareness campaign to inform people about the hazards of environment degradation and the importance of ecological conservation. With this aim in mind, a wall painting campaign on environment protection was organized at the school premises on August 2, 2017. All the IAYP students, along with other children, took part in this activity under the guidance of Mr Ravi Sharma, the Art and Craft teacher of the school. This programme was organized to spread awareness about the causes and effects of environmental degradation and the methods for conservation and protection. Mr Vinay Bhalerao, Unit Head of Ultratech Cement Ltd., graced the occasion along with Mrs Sangita Christopher, Principal, ABPS Kotputli.

Cleanliness Drive

Sasi Krishnan (Award Leader), Sanjay Ghodawat International School, Atigre, Kolhapur, Maharashtra is sharing a report on Cleanliness Drive.

Award participants of Sanjay Ghodawat International School, Atigre have undertaken a project in the village of Hatkanangale in the Old Market Area on 29th July 2017. All the 96 Bronze and 8 Silver participants were involved in this activities, supported by 15 teachers. The project is towards the Service Section of the Award programme. The main aim was to undertake a cleanliness drive to clean the open drains and thereby prevent the spread of various communicable diseases.

Initially, the team found the task difficult, because the drains had never been cleaned after they were made. They were stinking and choked with polythene and surrounded by tall grass. But with the cooperation of Mr Santhosh Redekar, one of the Ward Members of the Hatkanangale Gram Panchayat, the team managed to take up the drive and arranged sickles and baskets to clean the garbage.

Another problem that the team came across was finding a place to throw the garbage, as there was no bin kept for the garbage! Every house threw their garbage in the open space outside their house. The IAYP team first tried to convince people not to throw litter everywhere. The next problem was pulling up grass grown inside the drains -- this procedure was quite a challenge because the filth from the drain came out along with the grass; so the team got masks and gloves for the job. Once the team started doing it they got acquainted with the task and the villagers helped by providing tools like spades, water, sickles and sticks, etc. It took nearly three hours to clean the drains. It was a satisfying job to carry out the cleanliness drive regularly. The work was appreciated by the village folk and the elected Sarpanch of the village Mrs Anuradha Anil Kadam promised to lay out the sewerage line. Click here to check more pictures...

A Journey to Self-Discovery

A real contribution that makes a difference

Participants of Bawa Lalvani Public School (BLPS), Kapurthala (Punjab) have registered for the Bronze Level of the Awar

 
d and taken on a mission to make a real contribution to society and make a difference through their work. Ms. Ekta Dhawan, Principal, Bawa Lalvani Public School, Kapurthala, shares the report of the work undertaken by the Bronze level participants.

The Award is an exciting self-development programme available to all young people worldwide, equipping them with life skills and exposing them to make a difference to their lives and their 

communities. In one such endeavour to make a difference, the Bronze Award participants 

from BLPS have been devoting their time, love and care to the underprivileged children of village Kokalpur, Distt. Kapurthala. Each Award participant of the group has taken a pledge to make a difference to the life of at least one child of the village. These participants are enthusiastically engaged in teaching them, grooming them and also creating awareness among children about good health and well-being, a balanced diet, good toilet habits, air-borne diseases and water-borne diseases. They have been educating the village about different ways of administering first-aid in case of a snakebite, insect bite etc. They use their pocket money to buy things for their buddy in the village and make them feel responsible for their individual growth and development.

These engagements of Bronze level participants have not only made a difference in their levels of confidence and self esteem but has also made a difference in the lives of the children from the village. They look forward to meeting with their IAYP buddies and learning from them.

We are very grateful to IAYP for arousing in the young minds the urge to serve the community.

Let's Make a Difference

Bronze participants of EuroSchool, Airoli visited the Old Age Home as a part of their Service. Sonia Cardoza, Award Leader, shares their experience with us.

The Bronze level participants of EuroSchool, Airoli decided to work at the old age home, Prem Dhan in Airoli, for their Service Section of the Award.

First, they started with a small meeting to plan the events for the people at the old age home. Next, they decided to plan a few games and activities to celebrate the festival of Christmas there. They prepared cards, gathered decoration items and also collected a few gifts that they could give as a token of their appreciation and love to the old people at the home.

On 19th December 2016 the students spent their afternoon with the residents of the Old Age Home. They sang carols, old Hindi songs and played tambola. Everybody enjoyed their time at the Old Age Home. The participants got a first-hand experience of the living conditions of the old people, many of whom have been disowned by their own children. The attitude of these people is truly inspiring, for they have no hard feelings or any anger towards their children. The participants were deeply moved and it helped them realize the true worth of their own parents.

Shravya Kaunongo gave her testimony: “I feel I am blessed after getting to know about the living condition of the people in Prem Dhan. I feel that God has been very gracious towards me. I have an entire room for myself, but here a single room is shared by over 15-20 people. I have more amenities than I could possibly require. They only have means to fulfil their basic needs. One bed and a shelf is all they have.”

The happiness of the old people was reflected in their eyes and gestures. The participants stayed on to help the staff during lunch time. All the participants left the place with a promise to meet their new friends regularly.

Service to Humanity

“Humanity is not about maintaining a gracious relationship between one another in the society, but it is about building a bond between people in society.”

This was proved by the Silver participants of Coorg Public School, Mysore, when they were taken to the Ashram School at Thithimathi on 26 June, 2016. The twenty-six Silver participants enjoyed the companionship of students by singing and dancing with them for more than two hours. This programme infused the spirit of social service among the Silver participants.

Helping to preserve our heritage!

It is a commitment of a different kind. When the bronze aspirants of Heritage Girls School, Udaipur visited the 10th century monument that was literally a stone's throw away from the school during the course of a walk, one of us just mentioned that it would be wonderful if we  could come there more often. The Principal suggested that we adopt the place and the idea took flight!

Adopting a monument is not a difficult process. We wrote to the local office of the Archeological Survey of India and waited. A month later the letter arrived. Yes, it can be done, said Mr P.S. Sriraman, the ASI officer. Correspondence flew back and forth and it was decided the monument would be ours on the 26th of January!

Though it was originally dedicated to  Lord Vishnu, the Saas-Bahu temple at Eklingji, Udaipur is not functional as a temple anymore. However, it  is worth visiting for its sheer architectural beauty. Experts like Dr Rajshekhar Vyas, who was present at the adoption ceremony, tell us that this is one of those rare places where the stories of both the Mahabharata and the Ramayana are featured on the stone frescoes. Like many of our precious legacies, this too has been ravaged by plunderers, but whatever is left, is worth saving.

The care and nurture that we plan for the monument has already begun. The Community Service Society went about cleaning the premises on the morning of the 26th of January. The History Society will now prepare brochures containing the popular lore associated with the place to distribute to the tourists visiting the place.

There is a lot about history, archeology, architecture to be learnt from here. It is an exciting prospect!   Click for more pictures

Visit to Mother Teresa Old Age Home

Himshekhar Konwar, Silver level participant from Miles Bronson Residential School (MBRS), Guwahati, shares his teams' experience when they visited the Mother Teresa Old Age Home.

In this era where many leave their old parents homeless, there are a few angels of God who give these old people another chance at life in the comfort of a home. On 6th July 2014  we, the members of IAYP from MBRS, Guwahati visited the Mother Teresa Old Age Home. One of the members we met there was 105 years old and and lived there happily under the care of the 'angels of God'.  At present there are around 19 old people who are cared for by Ms Manika Sharma and her team.

We spent four hours with the old people, hearing their stories and their life experiences which brought tears to our eyes and made us realize deeply the importance of our parents in our life.

As part of of our entertainment effort, we sang several songs and one of the old grandmas sang to us the song of youth which describes the happy youth phase of life and advises us never to grow up! Then, we had a cake cutting ceremony by our grandma of 105 years, while we feasted on cake and soft drinks.

We left the home, our hearts filled with the simple purity of the old hearts who showered their blessing on us and through this we earned a great respect for them as well as for our parents. The time that we spent there is unforgettable and we will remember it in every phase of our life.  Click for more pictures