Mr. Samir Kumar Visits Kakatiya Sandbox, Nizamabad

On 29th October 2014, Mr. Samir Kumar (Managing Director of Inventus India, VC of Acer Technology Ventures, and Governing Body of TiE Bangalore) visited Kakatiya Sandbox in Nizamabad. He was received and felicitated by Mr. Ram Reddy and Mr. Amrut Patil (Program Manager, KS). The event was a great opportunity for LEAD students of Nizamabad to interact with, and learn from, such a notable entrepreneur.

The students asked him questions about managing his career and being an entrepreneur. To begin with, Satya asked “what are the things that an organisation is aiming for when recruiting a fresher?” Samir replied: “soft skills, communication skills, subject knowledge to a little extent, and discipline.”

Next, Sharon asked “what's the criteria that the investors are bounded up while investing in someone?” Samir replied, "the abilities of the team members, their coordination, innovation and the concept beyond their startup.”

                                          

Leader Nikhitha asked, “what factors should be considered when our organization is collaborating with another organization?” “Make sure that the partner with whom you venture is going to collaborate. Prefer for the person who are familiar with the venture, and get proper information about the partners”, Samir responded.

Archana noted that she want to become a software engineer and to have her own startup like Software Solutions. She asked, “what's your advice for future planning?”, to which Samir answered: “she's on the right path. All she needs to do is go ahead with proper planning and commitment.”

Srujan asked, “how do you make a team for a new start up, and how to move ahead if your startup idea is stolen by someone else?” Mr. Samir answered: “always we need to have a hard working, smart, and like-minded team members. Also, have alternatives to face any sought of situations.”

Saketh said, “I'm a techno-interested guy, pursuing commerce degree. How do I go ahead?” Samir replied to Saketh: “Complete your education first, and then to go for some technical courses from the institutes if you are interested.”

Anvesh asked whether to choose web technologies or networking as a career. Samir replied: “both are the best fields in our current situation. It is better to choose the field which you are most interested in.”

Rajesh asked, A good leader, a good follower. Who is the best among?” "Actually, every person can't be a leader. If so, then who will they lead? So, being a good follower is not bad. So, up to me, both are best”, said Samir.

Then Akhil questioned what Mr. Samir aimed for when he was a graduate. Did he accomplished it? And what else did he want to have? With a smile, Samir replied: “I was a aimless fellow initially, but later with the pioneering of my father, I chose my career and am satisfied with it.” Samir also noted that he has a dream to have a corruption free India, for which he is ready to contribute his services if needed.

Mr. Ram Reddy also shared examples from his life and inspired students before the session came to a close and Samir wished the LEaders all the best for their futures.

Nizamabad LEaders Raise Awareness on World Food Day and helped 50+ people.

Satya Phanindra and her team members Akhil and Suman (VREC, SSR) were very concerned about the amount of food being wasted, and simultaneously the degree of malnutrition present amoung children, in Nizamabad. They noticed that two of the main places that all of this food was being wasted was in party halls and restaurants. These LEaders decided to stand idle, but instead do something about it. They approached the owners and managers of various restaurants and party halls in Nizamabad and encouraged them to stop wasting all the food that they do. In addition, they suggested NGOs that they could donate their leftovers to, and even offered to act as an interface between them and the suggested organizations. Additionally, they left posters around these establishments educating people about malnutrition and the importance of not wasting food but instead giving it to those in need. The people they spoke with were grateful for the efforts of the LEaders and decided to follow the recommendations. These LEaders impacted 50+ people in a very positive way.

 

LEader Shubam Creates a Wind-Powered Portable Charger

LEader Shubam (VREC, Nizamabad) faced a big problem on a long journey of his: he needed to make an important phone call to his dad, but his mobile had low battery so he was unable to make the call. Inspired by this, he came up with the idea to make a portable mobile charger that can be used anywhere.

During long journeys in trains and buses, we are unable to charge our mobiles and can face a communication crisis if we need to make an urgent call. Therefor, Shubam created a portable charger that can bring us out of such crisis. Here’s how it works: it converts the kinetic energy produced by the exhaust fan (in reverse motor action) into electric energy, which can be used to charge the mobile. All you need is wind!

The device consists of a exhaust fan (which generates the AC current), a rectifier (bridge wave rectifier) to convert this AC to DC current. This current is then filtered through a capacitor and supplied to a voltage regulator, which give constant output voltage. This is further connected to a USB port, through which we can connect our mobile’s charger cable.

The fan, when kept in the wind, will give output voltage which we can use to charge our mobiles. We can fix the fan to the bars of windows of buses,trains and in the bikes, etc., to make charging easy and efficient.

LEader Akhil Surveys Problems in Nizamabad Government Hospital

In Nizamabad, there is only one hospital to care for everyone. LEader Akhil had caught wind of issues at the one and only hospital, such as a lack of daily cleaning and water facilities, and instances of patients getting mixed up. He decided he wanted to learn more about what was actually going on in this hospital. Akhil, along with Harshitha, Saketh, Navanitha, Sravan, Prashanth (SSR, NDC, VREC, KCEA) decided to survey the admitted patients in the hospital, to find the inside scoop on what the problems are, and how they could solve them. They first obtained permission from the Charge, who allowed them to survey in 3 of the 4 wards (the 4th was in bad condition). They discussed the hospital’s problems with over 50 people, in the process learning how to interview strangers and gaining ideas of how to make the hospital a better place.

International Women's Day 2014

Young Leaders Recognizing Women for Their Work

This year on 8th March, 2014 students of LEAD (LEADers Accelerating Development) of Deshpande Foundation are proud to celebrate the International Women's Day in a very unique way under the theme "Recognizing the unrecognized." They are from various colleges where our LEAD is located namely Dharwad, Hubli, Sirsi, Mundgod, Belgaum, Chikkodi, Nidasoshi, Bijapur, Talikoti, Gulbarga, Chitradurga, Davangere from Karnataka region, Karimanagar and Nizamabad of Andhrapradesh/Telangana region, Coimbatore of Tamilnadu region and Pune, Islampur and Kolhapur from Maharashtra region.

"Recognizing the unrecognized" is an approach where women of our society who does the most important work such as cleaning the public places like railway stations, bus stands, government offices, roads and streets are identified. Most of the time these special women are neglected by the society and are not recognized for their phenomenal work.

 

 

Under this event around 2477+ women were personally visited and appreciated across LEAD locations in the four states. 200+ students have taken this initiative into their respective location.

As such, in each location these student LEADers have divided themselves into teams of 5 to 10 and have visited public places in the past 10 days. During the period, they collected data and met extraordinary women who are working in the line of housekeeping, public hygiene and sanitation from various departments. 

LEADers collected the details of each woman and about their commitment and dedication towards work. They also inquired about their personal appreciation and achievement they received for their work in the past. Many women were an inspiration as they had to balance both work and family life. During the interactions, these women were astonished to know how their work is remarkable. They were informed about the importance of their role in the hygiene sector and they were surprised to know.

The purpose of this event is to instill social consciousness among the youth so that they can respect such women for their hard work. It is to make these women feel dignified for their work and increase their dedication towards their work.