LEAD Valedictory Davangere - 2016

On 2^nd April LEAD Davangere marked a momentous day by celebrating LEAD Valedictory in collaboration with A.V. Kamalamma College for women, Davangere. There were around 400+ students including faculties who attended the event and brought more glory to the event. 

LEADers with Guests at Stage

Students listening to motivational speech by guest

The guests of honor were Dr. G.N. Mallikarjunappa (Executive Director, SJM Vidyapeeth, Davangere), Prof. Shivaprakash (Principal, A.V. Kamalamma College for Women, Davangere), Dr. Manjunath, (Principal, Jain Institute of Technology, Davangere), Shri. Ajay Suman Shukla (Functional Head, LEAD, Deshpande Foundation, Hubballi) and a special guest Mrs. Mamatha who was awarded during the LEAD International women’s day for her special contribution to her service presided over the events. The event was highlighted by an inspirational presidential talk held by Prof. Shivaprakash (Principal, A.V. Kamalamma College for Women, Davangere) and a motivational talk by Mr. Ajay Suman Shukla (Functional Head, LEAD).

LEAD student explaining about her project to the guests

Many LEAD students were awarded with Best LEADer and Best Project awards. Bhuvaneshwari and Chandrika from DRM Science College were awarded for their initiatives taken in different fields. Individual project awards went to Tasmiya from Jain institute for recognizing the unrecognized women, Abhishek from Department of Journalism received Best activities volunteer and creative LEADer and several other LEADers for their different projects that have made an impact.

There around 8 LEADers Shyam from SJMIT College, Chitradurga, Latha and Amulya from BIET College, Davangere, Netravathi, Bhuvaneshwari and Chandrika from DRM Science College, Davangere, Tasmiya from Jain Institute of Technology, Mamatha from Department of Social Work Davangere University are promoted as Master LEADers. Akhilesh from Saraswati Law College, Chitradurga promoted as LEAD Ambassador.

Students receiving award

Mrs. Mamatha (Special Guest) receiving award from the guest

Overall the day has completed with lot of joyous moments and students bought back lot of information and knowledge along with them.

SAR Safety with LEADer Rahul S A

Rahul S A, a LEADer from DRM Science College, was concerned about the SAR value in mobile phones.

SAR, or specific absorption rate, is a value that measures the amount of radiation absorbed into the head while using a mobile phone.

Rahul has a lot of knowledge about this topic, and discovered a simple way to reduce SAR values in mobile phones during his research. However, he also knew that many people were oblivious to the health concerns, or didn't even know about SAR.

So, he shared his knowledge with others, teaching people about the issues surrounding SAR values, how to determine the SAR value of their phone, and how to lower the SAR value in old mobile phones by fixing small circuits in the back of their phones.

While Rahul found it difficult to approach and interact with strangers, he learned new skills and persevered through the challenges. In the end, over 1000 individuals were educated about SAR values by Rahul and his team.

Banking Information for Farmers by LEAD Chandrika P

LEADer Chandrika P from DRM Science College had heard a lot about the stress of farming, even as serious as to cause some farmers to commit suicide over financial issues due to crop failure, disease, or poor weather. She realized that finances were extremely fickle for farmers, and she wanted to help provide information that would help them through basic money problems.

Chandrika talked to the banks and gathered materials and knowledge to share with the farmers. The banks were not extremely helpful or prepared to help those who were uneducated, but Chandrika found the information she needed and found new ways to present it.

Chandrika approached over 50 farmers, offering information and guidance as to how to use basic bank functions such as applying for loans, using checks, and special programs and accounts designed for farmers. Many of these farmers had little-to-no experience in banking, and were appreciative of learning about certain banking features that would be specifically helpful in their livelihood.

While it was a challenge to bridge the gap between the banking world and the farming world, as well as address the possibility and reality of financial issues with farmers, Chandrika feels good about making a difference in her community.

Hygienic Pani Puri with LEADer Nethravathi G V

LEADer Nethravathi G V, from DRM Science College in Davangere, is a science student passionate about health and hygiene. She knew small changes can make a big difference when it comes to clean, safe food.

After doing more research into hygiene in street food, Nethravathi contacted local pani puri sellers and talked with them about the importance of food safety in their carts. She had to convince them to go against the norms and take an additional cost in order to make their food cart more hygienic. Once convinced, she would sell them hand gloves at a low cost.

So far, she has spoken about food safety and sold hand gloves to over 30 pani puri sellers in Davangere.

She hopes to inform the public as well about food safety so there is a demand for more hygienic practices for street food vendors. In the future, she also wants to extend her project to discuss the importance of eating healthy and fresh foods over packaged junk food.

Library in the Slum by LEADer Abhishek HJ

After noticing that his family and many of the people in his residential area had books they did not use, Abhishek H J from Bapuji Institute of Engineering and Technology in Davangere came up with an idea to share the knowledge that was sitting idle.

Abhishek visited kirani shops to collect donations of paper boxes, and then him and his LEAD team went to residential areas to collect books that people had already read or did not have time to read or use any longer. The team brought the donated books to the slums in SJM Nagar in order to help educate those living in the area. These books included children’s books as well as education books that would help individuals study for exams to get out of unemployment.

 Abhishek and his LEAD team have now raised over 350 books and have been given permission to store the books in a small room which now acts as a free library in SJM Nagar. With only 50 rs of funding from LEAD, this project has helped over 1000 people gain access to free knowledge in the slum.

While Abhishek notes that it has been a challenge to convince people to both donate books and access the free library, the struggles were worth it for the success and he plans to continue with this project in his free time in order to expand the library.

Joy of Giving

“Taking is our right and giving back is our duty”.

Every person in this world is obliged to give back to the society. The society where human beings grow up and live their life. Pavithra joined LEAD with an intention to contribute to the society she was living in at Davangere. Hence with an intention to improve LEADer Pavithra of AVK college initiated her project "Joy Of Giving" where all the colony members where requested to donate pens books, tiffin boxes, clothes etc adn other basic items. She had thought of donating it to orphanage and government school children who are in the most need of such basic amenities.

The project was carried out in the Davangere where the leader and her team approached  students of their college and their neighboring home and collected more than 30 pairs of clothes, 60 pens and pencils, 10 tiffin boxes and 12 bags. These were distributed among the students from orphanage and Government school.

She titled this project as JOY OF GIVING as she experienced the joy of helping others and witnessed happiness in Children's eyes. 

LEADer Aparna's initiative for Systematic Parking

Organizing things makes man perfect to succeed his goals. As he finds it easy to maintain and analyze things. Everyday Aparna used to observe the chaos at parking of vehicles near the Park in her colony. Aparna held the belief "To see the change you first need to be the change" Hence to bring a system in parking. She decided to become a LEADer. Hence Aparna from DRM College, Davangere took an initiative to organize the parking system near a park in her colony.

 LEADer Aparna thought of changing the culture of parking the vehicles near the park. She painted the signboards for the parking and created awareness among the public about systematic parking of vehicles.

This initiative was appreciated by the locality because LEADer Aparna didn’t complain but found the solution and acted upon it to bring a change in her neighborhood. This project of Aparna has benifitted around 200 people of her locality.

Davangere LEADer Conducts Employment Card Mela; Helps 200 People Apply

Today's job market is tough, and there are many young people without jobs.  Employment cards issued by the government provide limited financial assistance to young people who are unemployed, but these cards can only be acquired if people take action to apply for it.  LEADer Prasanna from Davangere wanted to assist young people in applying for employment cards.  To accomplish this, he organized Employment Card Mela at Davangere University.  After getting permission from the university to host the event, Prasanna publicized his upcoming event through the mass distribution of pamphlets and flyers.  With support from Mr. Ram Chandra Rao (District Employment Officer), Prasanna helped more than 200 people apply for employment cards.

Prasanna's project was showcased at Yuva Summit 2014. 

LEADer Reduces Cracker Pollution in Davangere by 10% Through Anti-Cracker Awareness Programs

Although playing with crackers can be fun, they do pose some problems.  Every year during holidays and festivals, people get hurt from cracker incidents.  What's more, cracker wrappers are usually not disposed of and  pollute our environment.  LEADer Anuj Kulkarni of Nutan College wanted to do his part in reducing cracker pollution.  He conducted "anti-cracker awareness" programs in 15 schools of Harihar, Davangere, and Chitradurga.  During these sessions he collected signatures from students who had pledged to not burst crackers during festival time.  Approximately 5, 600 student signatures were collected.  He even collaborated with the Karnataka Pollution Control Board to host an anti-crackers awareness program in his college.

Studies show that there has been a 10% decrease in pollution after festivals in Davangere.   His project received lots of local media attention. 

Anuj deserves special recognition for capitalizing on the opportunities presented in his project.  Whenever he visited schools to conduct anti-cracker awareness programs, he also collected old clothes and books from the students to redistribute to needy children. 

Anuj's project was showcased at Yuva Summit 2014.

Chitradurga LEADer Cleans Local Bus Stand and Demonstrates Amazing Collaboration Efforts

Inspired by the bus stand cleaning project led by LEADer Aarya Hallikeri from KLEIT, Hubli, Mamatha V. from SJMIT, Chitradurga, decided to lead her own bus stand cleaning project in Chitradurga.  But what sets her project apart from the other bus stand cleaning projects throughout other LEAD locations is the efforts she put into collaboration in order to ensure lasting impact.  Mamatha connected with resource persons such as Mr. Ikkeri (District Commissioner), Mr. Kanthraj (Municipal President), and Mr. Anand (Health inspector), Mr. Shiv Kumar (Principal JCB).  In addition, Mamatha acquired a vehicle to assist with garbage disposal as well as monetary and materialistic donations from the public.

In her project, Mamatha made a team of fellow students and painted the dirty walls of the bus stand, collected and disposed of the garbage that had littered the ground, met with nearby shopkeepers and encouraged them to do their part in keeping the bus stand clean.  She trained the municipal staff in how to maintain cleanliness, approached the government for the sanction of sign boards, and told private bus owners to educate their passengers regarding waste management. 

Mamatha's project is benefiting an estimated 5,000 people that move in and out of the bus stand every day.  She received an appreciation letter from the District Commissioner for her initiative.  Her project was showcased at Yuva Summit 2014.

Davangere LEADer Helps 200 Animals Receive Medical Attention

Many efforts are being taken to help and improve the lives of people. But what about the animals? They usually get left behind.  LEADer Umesh from the MSW Department at Davangere University.  He coordinated with local veterinary doctors to hold an veterinary camp.  Over 200 animals were received treatment.  In addition, the animal's diseases were assessed and reported to the District Animal Husbandry Department. 

Davangere LEADer Implements Terrace Gardening to Provide Sustainable Solutions for Numerous Problems

Terrace gardening, the art of recycling waste material to create personal gardens, has various benefits for the environment and for our health.  Not only does terrace gardening allow us to make use of non-biodegradable plastics, but it is also a good way to grow healthy, organic plants and vegetables right in our own home.  LEADer Swaroop has a vision to spread terrace gardening throughout the city of Davangere.  So far, he has distributed pamphlets and seeds to 30 homes to spread information about terrace gardening.  He even spread knowledge about terrace gardening in his college by inaugurating a terrace garden in his college on Kannada Rajoytsava.

 

Through his terrace gardening project, Swaroop has tackled numerous problems at the local level in a sustainable, low-cost. He has plans to expand his project to more residents. 

Eye Donation Video Competition Attracts 200 Students and Local Doctors to Promote Awareness

Davangere LEADer Chaitra wanted to promote eye donations, but she wanted to do so in an innovative way.  To encourage student and community involvement and to raise awareness for eye donations, Chaitra conducted an video making competition.  Participants were asked to make videos showcasing the importance of eye donations.  

 

Chaitra organized a press meet to promote the event.  200 students, both LEAD and non-LEAD members, and from engineering, medial, and degree colleges, participated in the competition.  Chaitra raised Rs. 22,500 from Dr. Chandrashekar (Nayana Eye Hospital) to be given as cash prizes to the competition winners.  Three well-known doctors in Davangere were appointed as judges and Saroja Dixit, a social worker, distributed prizes to the best three videos.  

 

Chaitra's project inspired participants to take eye donation pledges.  Chaitra received a great deal of appreciation from Nayana Eye Hospital staff and its patients.  

 

Davangere LEADer Mobilizes Students and Village to Clean Drainage Systems

LEADer Yeshwini from Davangere University wanted to solve the drainage problem in her village.  She approached the Gran Panchayath for help, but they were not willing to support her efforts.   Rather than give up, Yeshwini recruited other students and they worked to clean the drainage system in her village.  After seeing the students' energy and drive, 15 of the villagers joined them to help with the drainage cleaning.  Yeshwini's initiative may have started small, but soon grew to a larger project involving 25 people and benefiting 300 villagers.

My Story: Rakesh Kulkarni

Rakesh Kulkarni (BIET, Davangere)

Ever since my childhood, I knew that I wanted to grow up and do something good for society.   Specifically, I had always dreamed of establishing a house for beggars.  But I faced a big challenge in that I used to have trouble speaking freely with people.  I realized that my shyness was an obstacle that I would eventually need to overcome if I wanted to advance in my life, but I was not aware of how I could develop myself. 

During my first week of college at BIET, I attended a LEAD orientation program.  After the orientation program, I learned about LEAD and how so many students are growing and becoming LEADers.  I thought back to my dream of building a home for beggars.  I saw LEAD as a great opportunity for personal growth. 

Since joining LEAD, I’ve completed two projects, and one is currently in progress.  After just completing one project, I noticed so many changes in my character.  My senses of ime management, people management, and my ability to convince people really improved.  My first project was an old clothes collection.  For this project, I formed and managed a team of 13 other LEADers.  I then divided my team into smaller groups and set up a schedule and timeline.  We also publicized and promoted the event through pamphlet distributions and Facebook.  My team and I visited every single home in the colony of Vidyanagar, Davangere and asked people to donate secondhand clothes to give to local old age homes and orphanages.  My project was successful; the clothes we collected were able to benefit 200 people from throughout six old age homes and orphanages.  My project was even covered in three newspapers.  My initiative also encouraged 20 new students to join LEAD and generate project ideas. 

I used my second opportunity to combine my singing talent with helping society.  I conducted a singing competition for young government school children.  Since these children usually do not get much exposure to other activities outside of academics, I wanted to give them a platform to help them discover their hidden talents. 

I am currently working on a project to help clean up a river and spread environmental awareness in a river area nearby a temple. 

I am really grateful for the support and encouragement LEAD has given me to help me grow.  After joining LEAD, I feel so happy and proud of myself; I feel like I’ve done something in my life.  I feel powerful.  

LEAD Shravana 2K13 Raises Rs. 15,000 for Deaf Children in Davangere

On October 5th and 6th, 2013, in honor of World Deaf Day, Davangere LEADers of the BIET LEAD Cell executed LEAD Shravana, a major event consisting held to raise awareness and funds for deaf children throughout Davangere.

35 LEADers worked hard day and night to make this event a huge success.  The event attracted over 160 students from partnering colleges of Davangere and consisted of 17 competitions that aimed to bring out and showcase participants' talents.  The competitions were as follows:

Quiz Competition

Essay Writing in English

Debate in English

Essay Writing in Kannada
Cooking Without Fire

TShirt Painting

Debate in Kannada

Solo Singing

Drawing Competition

Group Dance

Rangoli
Slow Cycle Race

Speed Walk Race
Chess

Cricket

Treasure Hunt

Solo Dance

In addition to the competitions, the event also included a story of the BIET LEAD Cell journey, prize distributions, and guest speeches.  The Valedictory function was held in the presence of Prof. Y Vrushabendrappa (Director), Dr. Mallikarjun (Professor of ENT, JJM College), H B Manjunath (Renowned Cartoonist), and Dr. N S Basavaraj (LEAD Faculty Coordinator).

According to Chandan, a BIET LEADer and one of the primary event organizers, a grand total of Rs. 15,000 was successfully raised for the event to benefit deaf children throughout Davangere.

News of the event was published in Udayavani and Janathavani newspapers and reached thousands of readers throughout the city.