Tag: national

Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], December 20: The Hyderabad Chapter of Entrepreneurs’ Organisation held the chapter finals of Global Student Entrepreneur Awards on 18th December at T-Hub, Gachibowli.

Global Student Entrepreneur Awards or GSEA is an initiative started by Entrepreneurs’ Organisation worldwide. A competition conducted at regional, national and international level, the GSEA is to motivate and reward student entrepreneurs or “Studentpreneurs” who run promising businesses with funding and mentorship.

GSEA – Hyderabad Chapter Finalists

After receiving hundreds of applications, 6 studentpreneurs were shortlisted for Hyderabad chapter’s finals for their innovative and disrupting business ideas.

The finalists came from a diverse range of backgrounds with businesses in various sectors.

Passionate about sustainability and reducing plastic waste on our planet, Syed Ali Qasim founded iWater – a brand of packaged drinking water that is made of 100% biodegradable packaging.

Mohammed Shairose has developed an app called Bunkmeal to make food ordering for students at colleges and universities easier and more seamless.

A serial innovator, Chitta Sri Yasaswi through his latest patented product at SADENT aims to mitigate damage from two wheeler accidents.

FullStack is an educational company where the founder Parth Maheshwari aims to teach graduates and undergraduates various digital skills like app development and graphic design.

Hailing from Nagpur, studentpreneur Vidhi Pandya saw the gap in the market for ready to use content which led her to start her company Ink Of Bond, where content is readily available for different industries.

And finally, The Date Mind Centre founded by IIM Graduate Saathwik Nune is a company that provides a one-stop solution to train employees and students to handle all data needs of a company.

GSEA Hyderabad Chapter – The Finals

After being mentored by certain members of EO Hyderabad for weeks, the day had finally come for these bright studentpreneurs to showcase their business models to 5 judges who to win the title of First and Second place of GSEA Hyderabad Chapter and also qualify for the regional and national rounds.

The panel consisted of 5 judges – GV Kumar, Smitha Raju, Aditya Vuchi, Neeraj Gelli & Abhijeet Pai, each of whom have made a strong mark in the entrepreneurial world.

Much like an episode of Shark Tank, each of the finalists was given 30 minutes to present their business idea and impress the panel of judges.

It was a very close competition among these impressive finalists and came down to the minutest of details. It was Parth Maheshwari, founder of Team FullStack who ranked above all to secure the first place and win funding of Rs 100,000 from the GSEA Hyderabad Chapter.

Vidhi Pandya and her company Ink of Bond came in close to secure second place and win funding of Rs 50,000.

Both these studentpreneurs will compete at the regional level competition in January next year.

The icing on the cake was a surprise guest KT Rama Rao – Minister of MAUD, Telangana, who awarded all the participants their certificates and also had words of encouragement for these studentpreneurs.

December 20: Adv. Dushyantraje Deshmukh, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena district president, told the youngsters that gaining domination in political circles is the key to success in politics. Talking about his background, Deshmukh attended Jayhind High School and Jayhind Senior College for his education.

Dushyantraje Deshmukh has always emphasised education and extracurricular activities. He mastered martial arts techniques such as kung fu, judo, karate, and taekwondo during his school and college years. Dushyant possesses 7 Dan Black Belt Master Degrees in Karate and has achieved a gold medal at the state & national level. He also received the Martial Arts Life Time Achievement Award at Indore, Madhya Pradesh, for his thirty-year dedication and experience in martial arts. Dushyantraje also runs his own martial arts academy. Also, the best swimming player won continuously 3 years gold medal at the state level and participated in a national level Championship. Participated in Ashwamegh university games. NCC  Best cadet award & Captain Ashok Patil memore award achieved by Dushyantraje.

Dushyantraje, when at B.A. final year of college elected as a General Secretary (G.S.) of his college and also nominated for  University representative (U.R.)he was selected for North Maharashtra University  Students Council and competed for election for Cenet in 2002-03.  Dushyantraje completed his education M.A., LLM and MBA,. Dushyantraje is practising as an Advocate to the district Session Court of Dhule.

Advocate Dushyantraje has always been fascinated by politics. Dushyant Raje  Deshmukh was inspired to pursue politics after witnessing Raj Thackeray’s first meeting in 2006. Raje thought he had it in him to succeed in politics because he was already the Vice President of North Maharashtra University for 6 years. After that, for the past five years, he has served as the District President of the Dhule District Vidyarthi Sena.

Adv. Dushyant Raje Deshmukh has done a great job as District President during the previous two years. He has made a name for himself by working for the public benefit, the development of Dhule, and the MNS party. He is also the Dhule district president of the Maratha community and the MNS district president and has always been at the forefront of social work. He is also involved in social activities as District President of the Dhule Youth Forum.

Thousands of working-class individuals passing along the Mumbai-Agra, Surat-Nagpur route were supported by giving food packs, water bottles, and buttermilk for a month during the COVID-19 lockdown. Furthermore, as the number of patients in need grows in the second wave of the corona, beds in government and private hospitals are made accessible. He aided many of these patients and their families by preventing the patients’ financial issues and fraud.

Adv. Deshmukh has a message for youth, “Swami Vivekananda is my role model. Vivekananda’s autobiography should be read at least once by young people. This will undoubtedly inspire true and selfless patriotism and civic duty. According to Swamiji, if one performs public service with the feeling that every soul is part of God form, then one is performing service to God.”

Gandhinagar (Ahmedabad) [India], December 17: In order to give a new dimension to the tourism sector of Gujarat through social media, A Bloggers & Influencers Meet was held at Gandhinagar on 1st December 2021 by Gujarat Tourism Corporation Ltd. in collaboration with the Government of India. This was the first time such a meet was organized by the tourism department. Bloggers and influencers from all over India participated in this meet.

Shri Harit Shukla, Secretary, Tourism, Government of Gujarat, other officials of the Ministry of Tourism, as well as the people associated with the tourism industry, were present in the meet. During the event, a film on the world’s tallest statue of Shri Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel ‘Statue of Unity’ at Kevadiya and a film on the state of Gujarat was shown to the bloggers and influencers present there. They all watched the film on tourism of Gujarat with great interest. A cultural program was also organized in this meet for the entertainment of the bloggers.

Speaking at the occasion, Shri Harit Shukla, Secretary, Tourism, gave information about various tourist destinations of Gujarat to the bloggers and influencers and said that Gujarat is a land of thrilling wildlife, rich culture and traditions, delightful customs, innovative tourist destinations and spiritually remarkable architecture. Gujarat offers every kind of tourist attraction, including beaches, forests, mountains, historical and religious destinations etc. The tourists visiting Gujarat have a memorable experience of a lifetime.

He asked the bloggers and influencers present in the meet to visit various tourist destinations in the state. He asked them to present the vibrant culture of Gujarat on social media in front of the world through their blogs and videos. He said that this meet would be beneficial to the travel, tourism and hospitality sector of Gujarat.

After that, the bloggers and influencers visited various tourist places of Gujarat such as Kutch Ranotsav, Modhera Sun Temple, Ranki Vav, Historic city Vadnagar, Statue of Unity, Gir Sanctuary, Balasinor Dinosaur and Fossil Park, Science City, Mandavi Beach, Shivrajpur beach etc.

During their visit, the bloggers thoroughly enjoyed these tourist destinations of Gujarat. They experienced the culture, language diversity, hospitality, costumes, customs and cuisine of Gujarat and they were very much impressed by it.

During their visit to different places, these bloggers took the help of the tourist guides to get information about the history and culture of various places. They were very pleased with the knowledge of the tourist guides of Gujarat and their courteous behavior. They got detailed information about various tourist destinations due to the tourist guides.

Visiting such diversified tourist destinations provided them with a lifetime memorable experience. Bloggers also shared their thrilling experiences. Let us know about some of these experiences.

Blogger 1- (Kutch Ranotsav)

Kutch is a wonderful tourist destination highlighting the culture and life of the villagers of Gujarat. Especially, the Rann Utsav organized here in the white Dessert is worth a visit. Your mind will be filled with joy by watching the beauty of the White Desert shining in the moonlight. The colourful local costumes of the people of Kutch are also very beautiful. This is an excellent tourist destination that every tourist must visit.

 Blogger 2- (Kutch Ranotsav)

The Ranotsav of Kutch has become a global event today, and you will know why only when you visit it. The fun of living in Tent City cannot be described in words. All protocols are followed here in view of the Covid-19 pandemic. A variety of handicraft items are being sold here. It can be seen that Ranotsav provides many employment opportunities for the locals. The beauty of the desert has not been tampered with for the development of various facilities here. The Ranotsav of Kutch is an excellent example of sustainable tourism.

Blogger 3- (Rani ki Vav)

Raniki Vav, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is truly a masterpiece of sculpture and architecture. The tourist guide here also gives detailed and interesting information about the construction of the step-well and its history, which gives a better idea of the grandeur of this step-well. Patan and Rani ki Vav are truly interesting tourist destinations for art lovers.

Blogger 4 – (Modhera Sun Temple)

A visit to the Sun Temple of Modhera gave a unique experience. We learned from the tourist guide that the first rays of the sun fall on the statue of the sun in the Garbhagruha i.e. the main sanctum sanctorum of the temple, which illuminate the whole temple. What an amazing sight that must have been! The sculpture and architectural work of the temple is also very beautiful. The beauty of this place cannot be described in words. One must visit the Sun Temple to enjoy this beauty.

Blogger 5- (Vadnagar)

It was a thrill to visit Vadnagar as the birthplace of the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India. I really enjoyed visiting this ancient town. Vadnagar is a place of temples. We visited Hatkeshwar Mahadev Temple here, which is the temple of the deity of the Nagar community. The view of Sharmishtha Lake is very beautiful and attractive. We also visited historical places in Vadnagar like Gauri Kund, Kirti Toran and the Tomb of famous singer sisters Tana-Riri. Vadnagar still preserves the historical heritage of Gujarat.

The bloggers and influencers witnessed how Gujarat has emphasized on the development of local tourism, which has created ample employment opportunities for the locals.

Surat (Gujarat) [India], December 17: There is some good news for the country’s tens of thousands of frontline sanitation workers. For the first time, a student from Surat’s Institute of Design and Technology (IDT) won the national innovation challenge by creating user-friendly personal protective equipment (PPE) for female sanitation workers to improve their working conditions during Covid-19.

Meenu Agarwal, an IDT student, won Rs. 25000 prize for her innovative design of a PPE kit for female sanitation workers at the national Design Innovation Challenge organised by the Bangaluru-based Collective Good Foundation (CGF).

The design innovation challenge centred on creating personal protective equipment that meets the needs and preferences of female sanitation workers while also increasing their productivity and comfort.

IDT students took up the challenge and surveyed the female sanitation workers employed in the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC). She met scores of sanitation workers to gauge the problems faced by them while working with the personal protective equipment provided to them and their drawbacks. After many rounds of interviews and field visits, the work started on designing the PPE and choosing the right fabric.

When designing the PPE, special consideration was given to the medical and general issues that females face. The actual fabric was used to create prototypes that focused on the comfort and protection of female sanitation workers.

Out of many innovators from across the country, two teams from the Surat-based IDT qualified as one of the top six finalists in the national innovation challenge, guided and mentored by Aarushi Upreti, an IDT faculty member.

Ankita Goyal, Director of IDT India and Fashionova Designs, said, “It a very proud moment for us at IDT that our student has won the national challenge of designing user-friendly personal protective equipment for female sanitation workers in the country. Meenu Agarwal has done a fantastic job by winning the challenge and doing a great social service to the nation.”

“At IDT, we are constantly striving to foster creativity and design challenges like this, paving the way for their notable success.” This recognition has instilled a sense of pride in us and has greatly motivated us to provide new avenues for our students to learn and excel.”

December 17: Lalit Prabhakar’s Tarri Film Producer Vikram Dhaktode, was arrested while filming in Ahmednagar. Rupali Dhakatode, wife of Dhaktode has filed a complaint with the Panvel Police Station against inhuman harassment and cheating.

Speaking on the issue, Rupali said, “Vikram introduced me to Priyanka Yadav as his sister. When I came to know that Priyanka Yadav is nowhere related to him and they were having an extramarital affair, further to that, I was constantly threatened by Vikram. He used to say that Priyanka has a connection in politics, and they will make me vanish. In fact, all his entertainment’s financial transactions were done from my accounts. He constantly tortured me by having unnatural intercourse against my will, and he used to beat and abuse me.”

She further added, Vikram Dhakatode was previous married to Pratiksha dhaktode, and I have heard that the same kind of thing happened to Vikram’s ex-wife as it happened to me. He used to abuse her, beat her and torture her as well. Even Pratiksha did a police complaint; She has all the proof of Vikram Dhakatode abusive behaviour.

Accused Vikram always intimidated the complainant ‘Rupali’ by saying political arena. Rupali has revealed everything and has taken action by filing a complaint. Earlier, Vikram Dhakatode was also arrested by the police for allegedly cheating producer and actor Amol Kagne. He was arrested for allegedly cheating Amol Kagne for Rs 30 lakh by showing him a false lure.

The Panvel Police have arrested filmmaker Dhakatode under sections 377 (Unnatural offences), 498 A(Husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty), 420 (Cheating), 406 (Punishment for criminal breach of trust), 323 (Punishment for criminal breach of trust), 504 (Whoever intentionally insults, and thereby gives provocation to any person), and 506 (Punishment for criminal intimidation)of the Indian Pinal Code.

Founder of Roots Nature Club helps kids develop a passion for nature in a fun and educational way through her debut book

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], December 17: Pooja Hemdev Lalwani is a Biodiversity Conservationist and Founder of Roots Nature Club – a community that fosters knowledge and appreciation for nature and wildlife amongst children. In her constant effort to contribute to environmental conservation and awareness, Pooja launched her debut book ‘Common Birds of Mumbai – Not Just a Field Guide’ at her delightfully unique “not just a book launch” this week in Mumbai.

As the title suggests, Common Birds of Mumbai is a pictorial field guide to 174 species of birds found in Mumbai (resident and migratory). It piques the readers’ interest with fun trivia and other educational and awareness-building topics like Wild Bird SOS, Tips for Bird Identification, etc. The book is divided into colour codes for ease of use, and each species is depicted with different male and female silhouettes, its common name, scientific name, size and habitat indication. This book is for anyone and everyone and keeps the reader engaged and excited to learn more about nature and the wonders it has to offer. The book launch matched the book’s uniqueness – involving engaging activities at an on-brand outdoor venue. It started with the author, Pooja, sharing the ethos behind Roots and her book, followed by a bird-themed bingo consisting of some interesting trivia and delightful giveaways, and ended with a live musical performance by the young and talented Mahi and Neel Menon, aged 13 and 15 respectively. The launch was attended by accredited conservationists, ground-level environmentalists, wildlife photographers, nature enthusiasts, prominent names from the field of education, and other nature preservation enthusiasts.

The approach towards the education of young children has evolved over the years – gone are the days of mere memorization and reiteration. Today, educators are inclined to engage children with reading material that not only helps them understand the subject matter but also develop a more personal relationship with it. This is precisely the approach that Pooja has taken with her book. Pooja says, “A lifelong interest in nature and science can only be inculcated when children develop a keen interest in the world around them and are curious about the environment and its inner workings. ‘Common Birds of Mumbai’ aims to achieve exactly this by being an interactive, fun, and engaging book that invites kids and even adults to not only learn about birds and take up birding as a hobby but also to   encourage children to be passionate about nature and discover their relationship with it.”

 Dr. Vandana Lulla, Director, Podar International School, Mumbai, said, “The beautiful pictures and interactive exercises make the book very comprehensive for kids. It is simple, easy to understand, and clearly laid out – which makes it easy to grasp the information.” The book nudges the reader to understand nature’s patterns, seasons, changes in the environment and in the longer-term – answer some of the most pressing questions of today regarding climate change, endangered wildlife and more.

Radhika Rajgarhia, Primary School Principal, Ascend International School, Mumbai, said, “Getting kids acquainted with nature is extremely important, which is why our students also get a monthly copy of the Roots WildScribe Newsletter. This book is a great way for kids to learn about the wildlife that exists in their very own city!”

Children are not only the biggest stakeholders of our planet, but they are also the ones who can introduce the most fundamental change in preserving nature, as they are undoubtedly our future. Education that inculcates a love for nature at a young age is perhaps one of the best ways to ensure that the next generation is environmentally conscious and works to make our world more sustainable. This philosophy led the author to not only write the book but is also the driving force behind her not for profit organization, Roots Nature Club. Roots strives to reconnect urban kids with the wild through fun and engaging workshops and seminars. This passion for spreading knowledge and facilitating a connection between individuals and nature reflects through the book, which is not only informative but also exciting enough to engross kids and adults alike. After reading Common Birds of Mumbai, Parveen Hashmi, nature enthusiast and wife of Bollywood actor Emraan Hashmi said, “I identified a grassland bird the other day – I’m happy to be able to identify more than just crows, kites and parakeets. I’m glad to be able to sit with my child, look out the window and learn about the birds that we see. It is a great bonding experience.”

New Delhi [India], December 16: The Honorable Ms. Khairat Abdul razaq Gwadabe, Chairperson of the Nigerian Senate and Chair of ECOWAS in West Africa, together with former Indian Supreme Court Chief Justice Sri K.G.Balakrishnan, Pondicherry Minister for Public works, Sri Lakshminarayanan and numerous other dignitaries convened the 15^th session of the Provisional World Parliament at the United Services Institute in New Delhi, India, December 10-12, 2021. The Parliament embraced the theme of India’s role in the emerging new world order. The Parliament sent an official memorial to the Government of India urging India to assume leadership using federal world rules of an Earth Constitution to replace the United Nations Charter. India’s world leadership can replace the UN Charter with the democratic Constitution for the Federation of Earth.

The Provisional World Parliament has met 15 times since 1982.  Eight of these sessions have been in India. The second session opened at the Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi in 1985 and deliberated further at the historic Constitution Club. The World Parliament was inaugurated by then President of India, Giani Zail Singh, with the Lok Sabha Speaker Bal Ram Jakhar as Honorable World Parliament Speaker. Then-Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was the Chief Guest.

The opening ceremonies of this 15^th session also featured many dignitaries from India and abroad, including General AKS Chandele (retd), Col. T.P. Tyagi (retd), Major Sushil Goel (retd), Sri Sachin Gupta, Chancellor, Sanskriti University,Mr. Rajesh Chandra, Tech Education Secretary, UP government, as well as Honorable Kashefa Hussain, Supreme Court Justice of Bangladesh.

Due to Covid restrictions, this Parliament session took place entirely on-line with participants from more than 20 countries worldwide. However, its 16^th session, planned for Pondicherry next year, will again involve an in-person meeting of delegates from around the world.

This year’s legislative session on December 12 consolidates the outlines of world electoral districts and enables secure on-line voting that will soon allow the people of Earth to generate a virtual World Parliament in the way to ratifying a federal Earth Constitution.

The Parliament underscored the fact that we are in a race to save the planet from both possible nuclear holocaust and accelerating climate collapse. The only effective way to protect our planet is to unite the people and nations of Earth under a democratic world parliament that embraces all under the principle of unity in diversity.

This session declared that India is uniquely positioned to call for an Article 109 review conference in which world federal rules of procedure allow an effective Constitution for the Federation of Earth to replace the United Nations Charter.

Under the World Parliament, India’s representation in the world body would increase immensely compared with its marginalization in the current United Nations. It is, therefore in the interest of both India and the world that the government of India assume leadership in making this happen.

India, December 16: The City Of Lord Mahadev has now been rejuvenated by PM Modi. After 400 years, the world witnessed the Historical, Grand, Divine, and Ethereal Kashi! There is unprecedented enthusiasm in the whole world following the Inauguration of the Kashi Corridor. Keeping the cultural and spiritual heritage of India in mind, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has once again done the historical task of completing the world’s most complex task in the fastest way possible by rejuvenating the Kashi Vishwanath temple, an incredible centre of faith of millions of people. Now researchers from around the world will come to Kashi, witness the change, and will write about it.

Situated on the Trident of Lord Shiva, Kashi Dham is completely rejuvenated and is ready to welcome Lord Shiva, turning the closed and narrow roads into wide roads. Phase I of the project provides a variety of facilities to the pilgrims, including Yatri Suvidha Kendras, tourist facilitation centres, and Vedic centres.

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi reached Varanasi this morning. Upon reaching Kashi, PM Shri Modi visited Kaal Bhairav Temple to offer prayers and performed aarti at the Temple. After that, PM Modi and UP CM Yogi Adityanath boarded a cruise vessel for Lalita ghat, where PM Modi took a holy dip in the Ganga river. PM Shri Narendra Modi then performed Jalabhishek of Baba Vishwanath temple and inaugurated the Kashi Corridor. He expressed gratitude to sanitation employees and had a photo taken with them all. As they were being photographed, they all chanted ‘Harr Harr Mahadev.’

All BJP chief ministers and deputy CMs attended the ceremony which was broadcast live from over 51,000 places nationwide. The inauguration ceremony has been named “Divya Kashi, Bhavya Kashi” (Divine Kashi, Grand Kashi). During his address to the nation, he said, Kashi is not a matter of mere words; it is a creation of sensations. Kashi is that – where awakening is life; Kashi is that – where death is also a festival; Kashi is that – where truth is the culture; Kashi is where love is tradition.

He further stated, Today, a new chapter is being written in the history of Kashi Vishwanath. Kashi Vishwanath Dham premises is not just a grand ‘bhavan’ but a symbol of India’s ‘Sanatan’ culture and traditions. Here you’ll see how inspirations of the ancient are giving direction to the future.

 After about two and a half years, now this corridor is ready for pilgrims and devotees of Baba Vishwanath and with this, the dream of transforming Kashi to Kyoto seems to be fulfilled.  On 8 March 2019, PM Modi, while laying the foundation stone of beautification of Kashi Dham in Varanasi, said, “Since I was not in politics, I have been thinking about how to increase the beauty of Kashi. For years, Baba Vishwanath was tied, could not even breathe properly, but now he will get freedom.”

In the last 100 years, only two such politicians of India have developed and maintained the cultural heritage of their country on a grand level. Sardar Shri Vallabhbhai Patel and PM Shri Narendra Modi. Sardar Shri Vallabhbhai Patel fulfilled the dream of making Somnath temple while following his footstep; PM Shri Narendra Modi has done incomparable work of beautifying Kashi, which has been recorded in history with the name of Kashi Corridor today. Kashi Vishwanath Beautification Project presents a grand example of architecture to the world. Idols of Rani Ahilyabai, Kartikeya, and Adi Shankaracharya have also been installed in Kashi Vishwanath Dham.

This dream project of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been completed in record time. Building this corridor wasn’t an easy task. It was a daunting task to convince the owners of hundreds of houses and shops that came along the Corridor to acquire their land, to pay fair compensation, and then to preserve the temples. For this, PM Shri Narendra Modi had given the formula of coordination, co-operation, and rehabilitation i.e. by giving proper compensation and rehabilitation to those whose houses or lands are taken.

The Uttar Pradesh government constituted a three-member committee to monitor it. In which Vishal Singh, CEO of Kashi Vishwanath Temple, and two other members were involved. This committee completed the work of soil testing, issuance of tenders, and beautification of Kashi Dham expeditiously. Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself took part in the Dev Deepawali program on 30 November 2020, where he also took stock of the project time and again.

As soon as PM Modi inaugurated this corridor, laddus were distributed in 7 lakh houses. The responsibility of delivering prasad from door to door was entrusted to the food department. Along with the Prime Minister, Chief Ministers of BJP-ruled states, Deputy Chief Ministers, dignitaries of all sects of Sanatan Dharma, including the Shankaracharya, Mahamandaleshwar, Shri Mahant, reached Kashi to witness this occasion.

–Harsh Sanghavi

December 16: In the corona era, if the common person could live their lives safely and comfortably, it is all because of covid warriors. These selfless human beings, either individually or through their social organisations, served the people at the risk of their own lives during the pandemic.

Recently, some of these Covid warriors were felicitated at an event organised by a reputed global press release network, Times Applaud. The media house took pride in honouring the Socially responsible Indian citizens with the Times Applaud Award 2021 for their outstanding contribution to society during these critical times.

According to Mr Taushif Patel, the Co-founder of Times Applaud, “The murky times might have engulfed us for two years but nothing like recognizing the role of many who stood for us to combat COVID-19. This is a small gesture from our side to thank them as much as possible. With respect to their contribution, it will still be counted less for the work they are doing for us.”

The Award ceremony was a virtual event conducted in Mumbai, and there were more than 17 recipients of the honorary award. Some of them were Doctors, other medical experts, corporates, working professionals, social workers, personalities, & influencers, etc.; all of them worked day and night for our cause and benefit. The Award souvenir/memento was later couriered to them individually.

Among the medical fraternity to receive the honour were Dr Rahila Shaikh of Dr Rahilas Holistic Health, Dr Mangesh– a Clinical Trial Expert; Dr Uday Tamhankar of Ceramco Dental, Dr Nikhil Tari (India’s first bodybuilding consultant) & Dr Vivek Lolage, a reputed Ayurvedic, who has rendered remarkable service to mankind during the Covid-19 pandemic. His selfless service during the corona Pandemic is something that needs to be appreciated and valued.

Dr Rahila performed her duties by reaching out to non-covid patients through 24*7 online consultation and raising awareness about the pandemic from her social media handles. In contrast, Dr Mangesh contributed by conducting crucial clinical research to find this disease’s exact cause.

Dr Uday was seen working day and night, even during the peak wave of Covid, where most of the young doctors were avoiding any physical contact with their patients.

Times Applaud honored Dr Nikhil Tari as Covid-19 warrior award for the extraordinary contribution that he made towards society in critical times. He has started INDIA’s 1ST BODYBUILDING & FITNESS Clinic located in Kandivali (W), Mumbai. A clinic that is strictly dedicated to health and fitness, with proper high-end equipment to get perfect measurements. He has vast clinical experience of more than 15 years in this field as a doctor and 24 years as a bodybuilder himself.

Then there was Abhijeet Rane, founder general secretary of Dhadak All Film Kamgar Union. The man helped the junior artist and other industry workers by supporting them financially and providing them with all basic necessities and medicine. Mr Rane received the support of many big film stars in his endeavour.

From the Corporate world, the virtual platform included Mr Mahesh Jogani (CMD Jogani group of companies), who has been rendering exemplary service to mankind since the start of the pandemic and has become a true Covid-19 warrior with all the contributions he has made for the poor and needy during the pandemic, Rajendra Singh(CEO of star promotion inc – Houston, USA), the Indian-American communities across the country, including a sizeable population in the Houston metropolitan area, are mourning the deaths of family members, checking on relatives with growing alarm and launching efforts to help their native country battle the world’s worst COVID-19 surge and Mr. ArvindGodara and Mr. Ajeet Godara (Natureland Organics). These corporate bigwigs carried on with their corporate social responsibility with due diligence and strong leadership.

Some other dignitaries to be rewarded were -expert financial crisis councillor DrHiten Mehta (expert in financial crises) BMLEGAL firm, Dr Richardson Khristi, SsuhaniSinalkar of Sohamiit And Neet Classes and MrNikesh Kumar and NehaKumari of Ascent Career Institute, in contributing in the academic front through their individual-teaching establishments either by waiving fees for poor students or by not laying off their coaching staff.

Dr Hiten Mehta, the founder of “BM Legal Firm” (formerly known as Lawmatics), is well known for helping people get rid of their financial crises and helping them to restart their lives for themselves and their families. Recently he was awarded by the Royal American Society as a Doctorate in Financial Crisis Counselling& also awarded by the Indian Achiever’s Award, 2021 for Financial Crises Counselling& Mid-Day Icon Award, 2021.

Social workers & Political activists such as Azeez Abdulla, GanpatBanthia and Raunak Singh of Sikh Aid. These social workers organised medical camps, distributed medical supplies, masks and sanitisers to the poor and marginalised in the remotest corners of India.

Although to express our gratitude to such covid warriors, such recognition ceremonies are needed. But then corona warriors deserve more respect and reverence from the public. The general public is expected to understand the social emergency and act according to the laid protocols. This is another way of awarding our covid warriors. Website: www.timesapplaud.com

Nagpur (Maharashtra) [India], December 16: The Innovators Against Covid (IAC) program, launched by Vruksh Ecosystem Foundation and supported by GIZ India, has chosen five aspiring innovators who are providing solutions in healthcare, education, and livelihood in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.

The pandemic has disrupted nearly all businesses and will continue to change how organisations operate and do business in the future. The IAC programme was launched with the goal of having a high-touch engagement with innovators, building solutions to the Covid-19 response, and providing them with a cohesive environment with stakeholders from local geography to collaborate and build future startup companies.

Arasi Arul brought a one-of-a-kind solution to address and meet the needs of elderly people who live away from their children. Individuals have been isolated due to widespread lockdown and preventative measures, which have harmed the global economy and limited access to physical and mental healthcare. However, the elderly, who have been disproportionately affected by both the virus and the lockdown measures, have reaped the fewest benefits from digital solutions. Arasi started a virtual caretaker service for parents who live away from their children.

School closures widen learning inequalities and hurt vulnerable children and youth disproportionately. 60.5% of the world’s student population was affected by school closures; 1.05 a billion learners in 109 countries were out of school. The Ekatra team, Prasenjit, Viresh, Abhijeet & Suraj took upon this challenge to build a tool for educators and organisations to deliver learning at scale, combining the power of Text (SMS & WhatsApp), Audio & Video communication. For a simple breakdown of how Ekatra works, once the courses are uploaded onto the Ekatra platform, the teacher can choose what time of day to send their daily text (500-700 characters each), as well as if they want to receive their course over Whatsapp, or SMS. They receive an image for visual cues followed by an audio call that enables instructors to answer students’ queries over a synchronous medium. Ekatra’s long term vision is to provide education to millions without access to adequate education, or even the internet, worldwide.

The M19 Initiative led by Richa & Vaibhav; started in March 2020 as a response to the pandemic. Their maker space, Maker’s Asylum, started making face shields to support the frontline workers only to realise that they could make a few in the lab while the situation demanded a lot more. That was the beginning of the M19 Collective – Makers fighting COVID19. In the last year, the collective manufactured not only 1 million face shields in 49 days but also active respirators, rebreathers, sanitisers, intubation boxes and much more. Since April 2021, the collective has reunited to work on the scarcity of oxygen in the country. This engagement aims to adopt an innovative approach for a decentralised model of knowledge sharing for manufacturing by connecting different maker spaces and outreach to local communities as well as to ideate and develop solutions for responding to the challenge of equipment repairs and their product life-extension. It can enable manufacturers to meet immediate needs relating to COVID-19 Response, including through local manufacturing, repair and maintenance, and thereby contribute towards Resource Efficiency and Circular Economy. Makers Asylum has now started hosting Repair Cafe – a unique initiative to build capacity in the country to repair oxygen concentrators.

On similar lines, and as an active part of the M19 Collective, Fablab Nagpur gave a place for innovators to power their Ideas, a playground for inventions to happen, possibilities for makers to make anything, an ecosystem for creativity, and space for like-minded people. Pratik and Asim opened their space to makers offering the space and tools to manufacture solutions to fight the pandemic digitally. It also ran several initiatives to enable creativity in children and young adults. The Protocademy is an initiative that enables the philosophy of Design-Develop-Deploy. It runs over 60 days enabling multi and interdisciplinary projects and experiential-based learning programmes. Anyone from any discipline can come up with their newly born ideas and nurture them by designing, developing a prototype and manifesting using advanced fabrication tools to a well-furnished deployable product.

Since March 2020, most of the artisans in the country have been unemployed. Artisans and weavers are the third largest segment among the poor. Their current situation is getting very low perception notwithstanding the call for “vocal for local” and ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat”. Raaha, started by Amrita & Radhika, is powering growth in the artisan economy by facilitating digital access to handmade goods. Today’s conscious global consumers work together with social enterprises and artisan communities to bring beautiful, environmentally positive gifts and immersive cultural experiences to consumers. In addition, Raaha curates immersive learning experiences for global audiences to engage with craft communities and artisans, preserving age-old craft forms. These workshops are Team Building and engagement, Students, Craft Enthusiasts, Cultural groups, and whosoever wants to start their journey as advocates for artisans. The Artisan Shop was created as a pandemic response not-for-profit initiative by Raaha + Ka-sha + Loom & Hand. The collective action movement to support our Weavers + Artisans by giving access to global consumers to buy directly from the makers.

Vruksh Ecosystem Foundation is an Innovation & Entrepreneurship Ecosystem; a think tank facilitates organisations and institutions to implement an innovation ecosystem and support global goals for a sustainable future. We enable a cohesive environment with stakeholders from local geography to work together and build future startup companies. If you are someone who wants to #BuildTheFuture, reach out to us at hi@vruksh.org!