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Dear Volunteers,
Greetings!!
It’s August! A month that brings to mind the large numbers of people who participated in change during the Freedom movement. They thought it, sought it and got it! And as I collect my thoughts of the volunteer efforts over the month, it’s that same gathering energy for change that surges forward. Thank you all for this. 3000 volunteers committed to enhancing security in their neighbourhoods, and have signed up as Area Suraksha Mitras to support the ASM project launched by the Directorate of Home Guards and Civil Defence in collaboration with Janaagraha. Processes to formally train them are currently being undertaken by the Civil Defence. Bangalore is eagerly waiting to vote for its city council! Our One Billion Voters(OBV) campaign is gearing up to mobilise a large number of polling booth level leaders[BLL’s] to energise the electorate. These outreach and mobilisation efforts are supplemented by volunteers who form the City Team of OBV. With 40 schools and with the active support of a 100 volunteers, Bala Janaagraha is reaching out to around 3000 children this year! We bring you voices from volunteers who have supported the OBV campaign in its first phase. The campaign drew a large number of volunteers and there are many experiences that we would will continue to share with you. The Ribbon of Honour goes to Aruna and Rama of Infosys for their efforts in tackling traffic issues in and en route to Electronic City by volunteering in our partner programme, Bangalore City Connect.
We thank those of you who continue to share our volunteering needs amongst your networks and enabling more of you join us. Opportunities only continue to increase! We invite you to come and be a part of our activities and be a part of changing our cities.
“A volunteer is a person who can see what others cannot see; who can feel what most do not feel. Often, such gifted persons do not think of themselves as volunteers, but as citizens - citizens in the fullest sense: partners in civilization” - Anon
Sapna Karim
Coordinator - HR & Volunteer Management
RIBBON OF HONOUR:
Aruna & Rama, Volunteers with Bangalore City Connect, a partner programme of Janaagraha
Infosys Technologies like many of the other companies in Electronics City have long suffered the brunt of Hosur road congestion. The traffic conditions, generally nightmarish on this stretch, worsened with the commencement of work on the flyover. With frequently extending deadlines, the desired traffic improvements along the stretch were several years away. This is when N. S. Rama and Aruna C. Newton, Senior Executives at Infosys Technologies Ltd, decided to tackle the problem head-on. Undeterred by the daily chaos wrought by the burgeoning traffic, compounded by the road dislocation due to the construction activity, and appalled by the daily perils faced by all road users, they were determined to bring about improvements. Leading a dedicated team of young Infoscians, Rama/Aruna began to take stock of the situation.
They held a series of meetings with various government stakeholders and industry associations, surveyed the surrounding road networks, and put in place, an innovative traffic management system in partnership with ELCIA and the Bangalore traffic police, implemented a system of traffic wardens to regulate traffic flows along Hosur Road , and instilled a level of traffic discipline hitherto lacking. Read More
WEARING THE V HAT
Arun, City Team Member, One Billion Voters
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"Volunteering was a refreshing experience for someone stuck in the rut of the mundane, passionless corporate life. It was inspiring to see people so geed up to do things for reasons beyond monetary gains. The contagious nature of people's passion helped me get out of my comfort zone and push the limits, like in the case of Samsung. Samsung was considered a lost cause initially, after multiple mails to the HR head. I refused to give up, and started discussions with a number of HR people in my company, advertising the real benefits of the campaign, and finally managed to pull it off with a more than reasonable number of registrations. Apart from the experience of working with an energetic bunch of people, the campaign gave me a sampling of the public's perceptions of India's democracy and its lead actors. While convincing people to vote proved to be quite challenging, the incredibly positive response to the Jaago Re campaign demonstrated their yearn for a change in the system, and a willingness to be a part of it."
Srilakshmi Shenoy, City Team Member, One Billion Voters
"I was introduced to Janaagraha through Neha who'd already volunteered & just could not stop talking about the place, the fun she had with the people there & how good she felt to be able to be a part of the change!! My bad experience during the voter registration process for the 2009 assembly elections spurred me on to the bandwagon of being (and also making possible!!!!) the change that I wanted to see around me...Its been 2 months that I've volunteered here & its been an amazing learning experience..you realize that there are so many invisible things that affect the life around you & the work happening at Janaagraha helps me sustain my belief in the system that slowly we can make & also be the change that we want to see. !! "
LOOK WHO'S TALKING
Interview with Sachin Ravi, Symbiosis Law College - Volunteer, One Billion Voters
1) How did you get to know of Janaagraha?
To exactly specify where I came across Janaagraha would be hard to say, as it spoken about or heard by many in several avenues. I think that every Bangalorean would be aware of its existence as in my opinion it is a relatively ubiquitous commodity...Read More
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