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May 3, 2025
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CSR: Teachers In India

By
Hency Thacker
-
teachers in India

Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam Azad has said, “If a country is to be corruption free and become a nation of beautiful minds, I strongly feel there are three key societal members who can make a difference. They are the father, the mother and the teacher.”

Teachers have always received a lot of respect in India’s culture. There have always been stories and folktales about the importance of gurus. Be it Dhronacharya, Chanakya, Vishvamitra or Adi Shankracharya, all of them have played a significant role in history and have had very dedicated disciples. In order to honour the teachers, Guru Purnima is celebrated in India and Nepal.

India is going through crisis in terms of number of teachers in the government schools, when 60% of children in India rely on education from these public schools. In fact, there are several schools in rural India that are functioning on just one teacher. According to the data provided by the Union Minister for Human Resource Development to the Lok Sabha in December 2016, 17.51% posts for government teachers at Elementary level was vacant and 14.78% posts for government teachers for Secondary level were vacant in India.

Teaching as a profession is generally considered as the last option for majority of people in India. Hence, most of the teachers in the profession today, are not highly motivated.

Teaching is not a preferred vocation because it lacks a scope of progress, and the pay is not very satisfactory either. Teachers in India do not get pay raises or promotion for years. And their salaries are way below the OECD standard average.

Indian teachers and students have come a long way from the time when a student was willing to cut his own thumb to placate his teacher, and a teacher was willing to give up his life to save his student. In today’s time, the teachers are far from acting as spiritual guides to students. They are more focused on training their students to score more marks in exams so they can get more students again.

However, away from this business of education there are several teachers who are true to their profession and are passionate about it. They are appreciated well by their students too. In order to honour them, let us take a moment today, to remember them, get in touch with them and thank them for the role they played in our lives. It is only when we respect and appreciate those in the profession, monetarily and mentally, will we be able to raise better teachers for the upcoming generation.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

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CSR: Ladakhi Innovator and Mumbai-based Psychiatrist Win Magsaysay Award 2018

By
The CSR Journal
-
Magsaysay awardee Sonam Wangchuk

Sonam Wangchuk, who inspired actor Aamir Khan’s character in 3 Idiots, has made India proud. He is one of two Indians to be given the Ramon Magsaysay Award this year, recognised as Asia’s premier prize, “honouring greatness of spirit and transformative leadership.” The prestigious award is given to persons — regardless of race, nationality, creed or gender — who address issues of human development in Asia with courage and creativity, and in doing so have made contributions which have transformed their societies for the better.

Innovator and education reformist, Wangchuk, was felicitated for his uniquely systematic, collaborative and community-driven reform of learning systems in remote northern India, thus improving the life opportunities of Ladakhi youth, and his constructive engagement of all sectors in local society to harness science and culture creatively for economic progress, reported IANS.

Magsaysay Award 2018 winner Bharat Vatwani
Bharat Vatwani

Psychiatrist Bharat Vatwani from Mumbai, has been recognised for “his tremendous courage and healing compassion in embracing India’s mentally-afflicted destitute”, started an informal operation of bringing mentally-ill street persons to their private clinic for treatment. Vatwani established Shraddha Rehabilitation Foundation in 1988, aimed at rescuing mentally-ill persons living on the streets; providing free shelter, food, and psychiatric treatment; and reuniting them with their families.

Their rescue work has been aided by the police, social workers, and referrals. Shraddha’s free custodial care and treatment ranges from personal hygiene, medical check-ups, psychiatric treatment, to appropriate medication — all done in the open, healing environment of the Karjat facility, the board of trustees noted in a statement in the Philippines. Since its inception in 1998, the SRF has treated free of cost over 7,000 such wanderers and even helped them to reunite with their families.

Talking to IANS at this Borivali residence, Vatwani said: “I remember, a couple of years ago, the Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity, Mumbai, found a 74-year old man from Punjab, mentally ill and wandering on the streets. We not only completely cured him but reunited him with his family back home 54 years after he went missing.” Vatwani said mental illness affects over 16.50 crore or nearly 14% of all Indians, but 80% of all the districts lack even one psychiatrist in the public health care system. “There are around 3,500 psychiatrists in India or three per million, compared to 100 in Australia or 150 in developed countries, and just one bed for 44,000 patients,” he said.

The other recipients of the annual honour include Cambodia’s Youk Chhang, Maria de Lourdes Martins Cruz from East Timor, Howard Dee of Philippines and Vietnam’s Vo Thi Hoang Yen.

As for Wangchuk, he founded Students’ Education and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL) and started coaching Ladakhi students, 95% of whom used to fail the government exams. In 1994, with Wangchuk in the lead, Operation New Hope (ONH) was launched to expand and consolidate the partnership-driven educational reform program. Taking a life of its own, to date ONH has trained 700 teachers, 1,000 VEC leaders, and dramatically increased the success rate of students in matriculation exams from just 5% in 1996 to 75% by 2015.

For a nation as vast as ours with a population of youngsters that exceeds the other age brackets, we don’t have nearly enough role models like Wangchuk and Vatwani. Watch this space for more stories on such real life heroes.

Source: IANS

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

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Major transformations needed to put sustainable development in Asia Pacific back on track

By
The CSR Journal
-
sustainable development goals

Increased engagement from all sectors of society, along with a whole of government approach will be key to advancing the United Nation’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in the region where at the current rate of progress, only one of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is on track to be met by 2030.

This was the resounding message at the High-level Political Forum (HLPF) in New York where participants heard the outcomes of the 5th Asia Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD) – a meeting convened by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) in March 2018 in preparation for the HLPF. The APFSD convened annually is the primary platform for countries, civil society and the UN to share achievements, challenges and opportunities arising from the 2030 Agenda.

“In light of the complex risks facing the region, the 5th APFSD stressed the importance of inclusive, multi-stakeholder participation, including by disadvantaged, poor, vulnerable and risk-exposed populations, and engagement by all levels of government,” said Co-Chair of the APFSD, Levan Davitashvili, Minister of Environment Protection and Agriculture, Georgia in his report to the Forum.

“As many of our challenges from disasters to connectivity cut across borders, Member States also reiterated the importance of regional cooperation for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs, and reaffirmed the key role of ESCAP in coordinating and supporting regional actions,” he added.

ESCAP’s latest assessment shows only SDG 4 on achieving quality education and lifelong learning is on track to be met by 2030. It is not all bad news, however. Asia-Pacific has seen welcome advancements over the past three years, including in some of its least developed countries. Healthier lives are being led and wellbeing has increased. Poverty levels are declining, albeit too slowly. Innovation is powering new industries and infrastructure, and the region’s track record in poverty reduction over the past few decades is unparalleled.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

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E-Governance: A powerful tool toward resilient, inclusive and sustainable disaster risk management

By
The CSR Journal
-
Landslides in Japan

A major report launched by the United Nations this week highlights the critical role E-governance plays in building inclusive, resilient societies in anticipation and response to the impact of disasters.

The E-Government Survey 2018: Gearing E-government to Support Transformation towards Sustainable and Resilient Societies highlights the complex challenges and varied opportunities of deploying e-government services.

Contributing to the global report, the UN’s Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) highlights that the use of information and communications technology (ICT) during all phases of disaster risk management presents substantial opportunities to reduce disaster risks, enhance coping capabilities, and provide inclusive preparedness and response.

Several regional cases studies in the global survey illustrate the importance of integrating emerging innovations in digital technology, such as artificial intelligence (AI), social media, space applications and geospatial information for e-resilience efforts. The report also reiterates the urgency of embracing e-resilience in e-government initiatives to ensure undisrupted services and information to citizens before, during and after disasters.

The findings and recommendations come against the backdrop of several recent disasters such as landslides in Japan, an unpresented heatwave in Pakistan and monsoon flash floods in Bangladesh and India, all of which serve to remind us how disaster risk is outpacing disaster resilience in Asia-Pacific.

Asia-Pacific is among the world’s most disaster-impacted regions prompting governments to step-up disaster risk reduction efforts through digital connectivity and innovations.  Digitally-driven emerging frontier technologies, such as AI, are expected to offer unparalleled levels of data availability, insights and coping capabilities to support countries address this formidable challenge and advance the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Broadband connectivity for all remains critical to the success of e-governance. Towards this end, ESCAP continues to support the Asia-Pacific Information Superhighway (AP-IS) initiative to seamlessly increase the regional availability, affordability and resilience of broadband networks as a platform for e-resilience.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

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Empowering Transgender Individuals In A Democracy

By
Hency Thacker
-
transgender rights

It is not a fight for equal rights for the members of LGBTQ community. It is a fight for equal rights for all human beings. The LGBTQ community is one of the most repressed communities in many countries including India.

India acknowledged its transgender population for the first time in 2011 census. According to the census data, 4.9 lakh transgender individuals were registered officially. However, only 28,341 of them are registered to vote.

According to the census, the literacy rate among transgender individuals is 46% which is very low compared to the overall literacy rate of 74%. This is because these individuals often end up dropping out of the school because of the discrimination and the harassment they face. This makes them vulnerable to the competitive world. They often end up working at the lowest of the hierarchy or in the sex business. Even if certain transgender individuals are educated, they do not secure well paying jobs because of discrimination.

Pakistan, in a historic move for the benefit of this repressed community, has passed The Transgender Person’s (protection of rights) act. According to this law, any discrimination against transgender people by employers and business owners is banned. The harassment faced by them at public places and homes is also outlawed. According to this bill, people are allowed to choose their own gender on official documents.

In the recent elections in Pakistan, it was announced that at least 13 transgender persons will contest general elections. Two of them were to contest for national assembly and the rest for provincial assembly seats. The announcement was organised by All Pakistan Transgender Election Network (APTEN) in collaboration with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), as reported by The Express Tribune. For the first time, the election commission of Pakistan had also appointed transgender persons as the ‘observers’. The move was made applaud worthy for empowering the transgender community who face harassment on regular basis in the country.

However, according to IANS, in Lahore, transgender people were not allowed to cast their votes and the observers were barred from entering the polling booths. The community has informed the poll panel of the provincial police’s behaviour and are awaiting action. Also, of the 13 transgender candidates who had filed their nominations for elections, 9 were forced to drop out due to lack of funds.

Elections, their results, and their victories are just a part of democracy. Surely elections are the time when all the citizens participate, and if they don’t they should. However, in order to bring gender inclusiveness and fighting for rights of every human, it is important for everyone to participate all the time and consider elections as benchmarks to measure how far they have come since the last one.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

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CSR: Saluting War Heroes On Kargil Vijay Diwas

By
Kasmin Fernandes
-
Kargil war heroes
The 19th Kargil Vijay Diwas celebrations began at Drass War Memorial in Jammu and Kashmir to commemorate India’s emphatic victory against Pakistan. Officially marked on 26 July, the Kargil Vijay Diwas is actually celebrated for three days; from 24th to 26th July.
Dras War Memorial
Kargil war memorial in Dras
The day marks the victory of Indian forces over Pakistan in the hills of Kargil and the success of India’s Operation Vijay in 1999. It remembers the supreme sacrifice of 500 war heroes who laid down their lives, and the war veterans who came out alive.
One of them is Brigadier Devinder Singh (retd), who commanded one of the largest brigades in the Kargil conflict in the Batalik sector. He believes that the sacrifices of the troops made in the conflict are being slowly forgotten. “The Kargil Diwas is not officially recognised at many levels. There has been a tussle at the political level whether the 1971 war Vijay Divas was the real one or Kargil Vijay Diwas is,” he said in an interview to The Indian Express.
Also, the remembrance of the event seems to be focused only on the actions which took place at Drass and below and not at Kargil and beyond. “Thus, while the general public hears a lot about Tololing, Tiger Hill etc not much is known about the actions in the Batalik sector, Khalubar ridge, Kukarthang etc.” he said.

Top leaders pay tribute

Meanwhile, President Ram Nath Kovind, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the nation in paying homage to the martyrs of Kargil on Kargil Vijay Diwas today, reports PTI. “On Kargil Vijay Diwas, every Indian acknowledges the efforts and gallantry of our Armed Forces. We salute the ultimate sacrifice of the martyrs of Kargil, and record our everlasting debt to their families,” the president said. Prime Minister Modi said a grateful nation pays homage to all those who served the nation during Operation Vijay and remembered former prime minister Atal Behari Vajpayee for his leadership during the operation. “Our brave soldiers ensured that India remains protected and gave a befitting answer to those who tried to vitiate the atmosphere of peace,” he said.
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and the three Service chiefs — Army chief General Bipin Rawat, Naval chief Admiral Sunil Lanba and Air chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa — laid wreaths and paid rich tributes to the martyrs on the 19th anniversary of Kargil Vijay Diwas at the Amar Jawan Jyoti in Delhi. “We salute all the brave hearts who proudly protect the nation,” the defence minister said. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj added that she saluted the “courage, valour and sacrifice of our martyrs and heroes”. Union minister Arun Jaitley tweeted, “Salute to the indomitable courage of our soldiers.”
Brigadier Singh feels we are back to square one after two decades. “For various reasons, the focus on counter-insurgency and anti-militancy operations is again gaining an upper hand. There are certain areas in the North, in the Ladakh sector which may be again open to Pakistan misadventure. The Army will be well cautioned to look at the areas which are dormant,” he warns.
The onus of reserving respect for what this day stands for, lies on us civilians. On Kargil Vijay Diwas, The CSR Journal salutes the Indian army officials who earned gallantry awards for their bravery in the war:
1. Grenadier Yogendra Singh Yadav, 18 Grenadiers, Param Vir Chakra
2. Lieutenant Manoj Kumar Pandey, 1/11 Gorkha Rifles, Param Vir Chakra, Posthumous
3. Captain Vikram Batra, 13 JAK Rifles, Param Vir Chakra, Posthumous
4. Rifleman Sanjay Kumar, 13 JAK Rifles, Param Vir Chakra
5. Captain Anuj Nayyar, 17 JAT Regiment, Maha Vir Chakra, Posthumous
6. Major Rajesh Singh Adhikari, 18 Grenadiers, Maha Vir Chakra, Posthumous
7. Captain Haneef-u-ddin, 11 Rajputana Rifles, Vir Chakra, posthumous
8. Major Mariappan Saravanan, 1 Bihar, Vir Chakra, Posthumous
9. Squadron Leader Ajay Ahuja, Indian Air Force, Vir Chakra, Posthumous
10. Havildar Chuni Lal, 8 JAK LI, Vir Chakra. Also awarded Sena Medal for gallantry and posthumously awarded Ashoka Chakra as a Naib Subedar.

CSR: Skilling Youth For Internships Abroad

By
Kasmin Fernandes
-
Skilling Youth for Internships Abroad
India has the world’s largest youth workforce today and it is estimated that there will be 104.62 million fresh entrants in the labour market by 2022. However, the current youth unemployment rate continues to remain as high as 10% with 31 million unemployed in India and more importantly, 43% of India’s youth are not in employment, education or training. The unemployment rate in Karnataka is 5.1% as of today and one of the main reasons for this is the gaps in skilling, which prevents them from being gainfully employed.
Social enterprises like LabourNet and GRAAM are expanding their focus on skilling youth in Karnataka. LabourNet has been skilling youth and providing them opportunities for wage employment and self-employment through creation of micro-enterprises. By partnering with governments, local corporates and industry bodies, they have trained over 700,000 Indians so far.
LabourNet also shared with us its plans for skilling in the Healthcare and Infrastructure Equipment sectors, which would help provide employment opportunities in India and abroad. It is one of the first few authorized partners for the Government’s strategic Indo-Japan Technical Intern Training Program (TITP) that aims to send more than 3 lakh Indian youth to Japan for a one-year internship program and technical training.
Under this programme, they have partnered with the AyurVAID chain of Ayurvedic hospitals to train more than 10,000 Ayurveda Paricharaks (caregivers) in the next five years. These Paricharaks will be trained for a year as a Caregiver, besides being trained in Japanese language, post which they will be sent to Japan for hands-on internship.
Eldercare workers are in high demand in Japan with more than 380,000 required by the year 2025. These Caregivers need a very high level of professional training in healthcare to be able to provide high quality, standardized care as Japan has developed outstanding technology and know-how in Care Work. Ayurveda Paricharaks trained at AyurVAID shall have the technical expertise, as well as skill sets and hence, shall be suited for this high-class training.

Rugged Sahyadri Ultra Trail Race

By
The CSR Journal
-
Rugged Sahyadri Ultra Trail Race
The annual Rugged Sahyadri Ultra Trail Race is scheduled for 5th August this year. The total distance of the race is 50 km. However, this race also plans to give beginners a chance, so there will also be a shorter 10 km race from Panhala Fort. The race trail has been chosen from the historic location of Panhala Fort to Pawan Khind.
Apart from its historical connection, this trail is a beautiful one along the Western Ghats. The trail will cover muddy tracks, village backroads, and a trail through the jungle. The weather is unpredictable, and monsoon being the season, there are high chances of rain. The registration for this event is on and will continue till 1st August.
Rugged Sahyadri is a self-supported race. The organizers will not have any volunteers to help you along the course. You will have to find your own way by following the GPS. Participants are also expected to carry their own supplies for the day, along with an extra set of comfortable wear in their individual backpacks. When the Sahyadri Ultra Trail Race ends at Pawan Khind, there will be refreshments for the participants. After that, the company Ruggedian arranges to drop the participants back till Kolhapur.
Trail runs like these are aimed at promoting the fitness culture. The popularity of these events is also growing because more youngsters are showing an interest in fitness activities outside the gym. Millennials believe that taking part in these sports helps them break monotony. Lalit R. Parakh, an employee of PwC, Kolkata says, “My sister introduced me to long-distance running. I also hit the gym, but it never gives me the satisfaction that I get from marathons and trail runs. Running drives out all the negativity and brings out positivity and confidence in me.”
Although it is the youngsters that have shown immense interest in outdoor fitness activities, long-distance running has no restriction of age. Rugged Sahyadri welcomes people of all ages to take part in this run.
Date: August 5, 2018. Last date for registration is 1st August

CSR: Outside Food In Maharashtra Multiplexes? Celebrities React

By
The CSR Journal
-
Multiplexes in Maharashtra Might Allow Food From Outside

The Friday the 13th announcement by the Maharashtra State Government in favour of allowing cinema goers to bring food and drinks from outside to multiplexes, during its Monsoon Session at Nagpur, has drawn ire from many quarters. The announcement was made by Minister of state for Food and civil supplies Ravindra Chavan in response to a query raised by NCP MLC Dhananjay Munde about the prices levied by multiplexes on snacks.

In countries like the US, there is an outright ban on outside food in movie halls, sports stadiums and concerts, so this ruling in the world’s largest democracy has created quite a stir. Social media is abuzz with funny memes while celebrities closely associated with Bollywood films are expressing their ire on various platforms.

Said singer Kailash Kher, “As far as security reasons are concerned it is going to be very challenging as people will carry liquor inside the multiplex. The situation will become out of control and many incidents can take place.” Agreed Poonam Dhillon, “It will definitely create an issue with alcohol as security will have to do so much more work. People may get into fights with the objection of food items, smells, drunk misbehaviour and most importantly, security could be compromised as it won’t be possible for security people at the theatre to go through every item in detail. Like the airport, one will have to come 1 to 2 hours before for security. It’s not practical.”

Singer Bhoomi Trivedi said, “Whose responsibility would it be if an unwanted event occurs due to food or liquor got from outside? Watching a movie has a reason behind families wanting to chill instead of being suspicious about anything they see. The fewer things people carry from home the more they will enjoy the movie.” Said playback singer Sonu Nigam, “This could be detrimental to the existence of multiplexes. A lot of what the cinema hall owners rely on is the money that they make from food items and beverages. Depriving them of their business model is not fair to them. Also, Indians have the habit of misusing their rights. Does one can expect cinema halls to become like railway stations in the future if outside food items are permitted? Moreover, nowhere in the world is one allowed to do this.”

Telly actors were not far behind when it came to voicing their opinions on the issue. Actress Pooja Bisht said, “I feel there should be a list of items put up which have excessive odour to avoid discomfort to other people.” Shubhangi Atre of the soap Bhabhiji Ghar Pe Hain said, “I am worried that multiplexes become unhygienic as people will eat and litter there. It would be very difficult to sit inside the theatre for hours.”

Said DJ Paroma, “Littering, odour, sticky food such as chewing gum being stuck on seats, all this will definitely lower my overall experience of watching a movie.” Actress & politician Hema Malini said, “Obviously, these liberties to indulge in indisciplined food pleasures would prevail irrespective of the quality of film you have gone to experience.” Shriya Saran said, “If you feel hungry then eat your food and come to watch a movie.”

It looks like celebrities closely associated with films are primarily not in favour of allowing food and beverages into theatres. The decision could raise issues concerning safety, hygiene, property rights and overall movie watching experience.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

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1000 students from NES International School Kick off Go Green Project

By
The CSR Journal
-

With an aim to increase the green cover of the city, the students of NESISM and Muncipal corporation flagged of “Go Green Project”, a unique inititative with an idea to increase the green cover of the city. The project was flagged of by Shri Manoj Kotak, Muncipal Councilor, BMC and Dr R Varadrajan, Founder President NES-SVB Group and members from T Ward (Mulund West) in Mumbai.

Starting in the suburb of Mulund, the students of NESISM started a tree plantation drive. Students came out in large numbers to create a kilometer long Human chain to show solidarity in their efforts to making the area green and beautiful.

Speaking at the event, Shri Manoj Kotak, Muncipal Councilor, BMC, shared “With the support of NES School, we are launching open air reading room cum library at Sardar Pratap Singh garden where students can come to read books and study.”

Go Green Project also aims to create a sense of responsibility in the student population to create a better and green future for themselves and future generations to come.

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