Monday, October 28, 2013

DISCOVERING INDIA



To commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda, NSS IIT Roorkee organized a motivational lecture, DISCOVERING INDIA- AN IITIAN’S PERSPECTIVE, on Monday, 28th October, 2013 at Bose Auditorium, Physics Department, IIT Roorkee. Our guest lecturer, Shobhit Mathur, alumni of IIT Bombay and founder of “Youth for Seva (YFS)”– a national organization, which aims at inspiring the youth to serve mankind, took us through his life, recounting to the audience his journey of self discovery. Dr. Smita Jha, Program Officer, NSS IIT Roorkee inaugurated the event and introduced the chief guest to the audience.
Born and brought up in Hyderabad, Shobhit, like any other Indian kid, was fascinated by the unknown. The west was a distant realm, where dreams came true. An All India Rank of 72 in IIT-JEE ensured him a place amongst the best. After pursuing degree in Computer Science Engineering from IIT Bombay, he was admitted to University of Washington, Seattle for post graduation. Meanwhile, the advent of Internet had opened up a plethora of opportunities exposing him to western culture. Shobhit arrived in US, star struck by the various possibilities that the west offered. His days there, however, proved to be an eye-opener for him.  The Hindu Students council, where Indian students met to discuss their views and ideas, also influenced him to a great extent.
This process of self realization led him to take off two months, prior to joining Amazon. He travelled to Surinam, an unknown country in South America, with a large Indian population. Shobhit was engaged in teaching computers among the poor. But it turned out that the people expected more from him. He was regarded as an ambassador from India -the ‘holy’ land.
Two years later, Shobhit quit his job in Amazon when he realized that it was not what he was looking for. He set out to begin a new chapter in his life.
Back in India, after a stint with RIWATCH (Research Institute of World’s Ancient Traditions, Cultures and Heritage) in Arunachal Pradesh, Shobhit realized his aim in life, to help and serve the people around him. Consequently, Youth for Seva was founded in Hyderabad. He went on to explain various activities of Youth for Seva and how from just a small group of likeminded individuals, they have expanded into a national organization, with chapters in many cities all over India.

Shobhit implored the audience to get out of the rat race and follow their calling. The question answer session that followed had the audience brimming with queries and thoughts regarding the talk. Shobhit Mathur was presented with a memento for gracing us with his presence and wisdom.
The talk left the audience inspired, aware and motivated towards their goal in life. 

Sunday, October 27, 2013

SCIENCE WORKSHOP BY PRERNA CELL

         

  A Science Workshop was organised by the students
 of  Prerna Cell, NSS, IIT Roorkee on 27th oct,2013.
 The main aim of organising this workshop was to show
 the school students that the things they learn as their
 Physics, Mathematics or Chemistry lessons can be
 implemented in real life too.
EXCITED STUDENTS AT SCIENCE WORKSHOP
 For this manyexperiments were demonstrated by the
students ofPrerna cell to show the various real life
phenomena.These experiments included Float and
Spin (todemonstrate Newton’s 3rd law); Total
Internal Reflection; Funny Fountain (to demonstrate the
working principle of syphon); Candle Fun (to
demonstrate the consumption of oxygen during
combustion); Cup Helicopter; Kaleidoscope and
Periscope.
CANDLE FUN: DEMONSTRATING OXYGEN CONSUMPTION
DURING  COMBUSTION
EXPLAINING LAWS OF REFLECTION
 The students were also asked to performthose experiments themselves for a better
understanding of the classroom concepts.
STUDENTS ENJOYING & PERFORMING EXPERIMENTS
About 60-70students from the local schools of Roorkee attended it
with great enthusiasm. They gained a lot of knowledge and were quite
excited about the workshop.

Survey on Availability of Govt. Facilities




Survey on Availability of Govt. Facilities

It is rightly said that the soul of modern India resides in its rural culture which is clearly embodied by its villages and vernacular folk. With the objective of providing basic amenities to the villagers of Bhangedi, located on the outskirts of Roorkee and to study the trends in the availability and dearth in facilities to the villagers, Model Village Cell of NSS, IIT Roorkee organised a survey on 27th October, 2013 from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm. The survey was conducted under the guidance of cell secretaries, Sukhdarshan Singh and Gaurav Verma.


The survey came out with some eye-opening and encouraging facts. Around 60 houses were surveyed in all under some pre-defined outlines and topics such as availability of Voter ID Card, various government schemes, PD( Physically Disabled) Certificates, P/O( Post Office) Accounts, BPL Cards- to name a few. From infants to senior citizens, each and everyone participated in the survey wholeheartedly. In all 6 PDs were found, one of them in possession of certificate but did not avail any extra facilities because of being unaware. 7 of the villagers had got P/O accounts and almost all eligible people of the village had their Voter ID Card. There were around 20 APL families and almost 30 had got their BPL Cards and rest of them were in dubious state. A major part of the surveyed population was unaware of the various Govt. Schemes going on for them and denied any availability as such, barring a few who benefitted from the Toilet Building Scheme, Ration Card Scheme etc.
“The lack of knowledge and understanding about the various ongoing government schemes keeps us deprived of our rights and facilities”, said Deepak, a resident of the village. Sukhdarshan Singh stated, “We would carry out such kind of surveys on a regular basis to notice the improvement in the availability of facilities”. Thus, the survey established as a significant step towards the transformation of the rural folk and will go a long way in lessening the socio- economic disparities of the villagers. That’s how, the survey came to an end with enthusiastic participation by all of the team-members.

Saturday, October 26, 2013

Environment Cell Presentation



Environment Cell Presentation


The Environment Cell of NSS, IIT Roorkee organized a presentation cum interactive session on the “artificial causes of degradation of the environment and the ecosystem” at the Kendriya Vidyalaya School 1, Roorkee on October 26, 2013. The session was held for students of Class 9. The attendance was overwhelming with all of the students of Class 9 present in the occasion. Earlier the Environment Cell had done presentations in the nearby sister Kendriya Vidyalaya 2


            The session kicked off with a small interactive part about environment and the present scenario  being displayed to the students in the form of videos. Later the focus became more serious as pollution was taken up as the topic with various forms of pollution – Land, Air, Water, Noise pollution being discussed with the students. The harmful effects of using polythene and other non-biodegradable artifacts were also inculcated.
            The next shift was on the wastage of food and electricity. The fact that about 1/3rd of the world is hungry and 3% of world’s water only is fresh shocked the students as they hit the realization. The students were changed that they must be energy efficient and took oaths to not waste electricity. Finally, the event concluded with a talk-in-the-stage event on the topic “What will I do if I am the PM for 1 day?” which received mixed responses with focus on cleaning India of poverty from the students’ side. Suggestions were given by the presenters on how to celebrate eco-friendly Holi and Diwali by using dry colors and not bursting many crackers. The event concluded thereafter and was a move in the students who were actively discussing on their roles in the society for the future among themselves.

Thursday, October 24, 2013

PAPER BAG SURVEY

With a view to study the demand and needs related to the utilization of paper bags
 instead of polythene bags and the bound objective of banning the use of synthetic
polymers, NSS Environment Cell, IIT Roorkee organized a survey on 24th oct,13.
 at Century Gate, IIT Roorkee to Kundan Sweets, Civil Lines.

                                          The survey came out with certain learning and outcomes.
While some shopkeepers nodded positively to whether they use paper bags or not,
some alleged the public for the rising trends in demand. Some of them, like like the
 medical stores and the peanut- trolley owners whole heartedly welcomed the
 move and ordered for paper bags in appreciable amount. But, there were some
 high- sounding shops also who denied bags made of newspapers under the
 guise of veritable status issues.
         The result of the survey was worthy and encouraging, as well simultaneously.
 About 300 kg of paper bags of all types costing Rs. 25/ kg were ordered by
various shopkeepers and as a result, this move will engender employment
opportunities for the weak, disabled and the willing unemployed in the rural
stretches of Roorkee and its vicinity. Thus, the drive was completed with
 utmost enthusiasm by the students.

PRESENTATION BY NSS ENVIRONMENT CELL ON POLLUTION



 PRESENTATION BY NSS ENVIRONMENT CELL ON POLLUTION 

A presentation on was shown by the members of Environment Cell, NSS, IIT Roorkee to the children of Kendriya Vidyalaya on 24th October 2013 .The timing of this event was from 7.3o am to 8.30 am. The members of Environment Cell as well as Kendriya Vidyalaya students attended the event. This venue of the event was Kendriya Vidyalaya itself. 


During the presentation, children were told about different types of pollution such as land pollution, water pollution, air pollution and noise pollution. This presentation was well received by students who were both enthusiastic and energetic. Students were told to turn off taps when not in use, turn lights and fans off when they left the room etc., as a means of saving electricity and water. They were also encouraged to use jute bags instead of polythene bags for shopping as polythene bags causes many problems and are not environment-friendly. Children were told that they are the future of the country and the prime responsibility of moulding the country lies on their shoulder and as such, have to keep their country clean. Finally, the students were asked what they would do to save the environment if any of them becomes the Prime Minister of the country. Many children came forward and gave their views and told that they would ban hunting, plant more trees etc. Then, the event was concluded and the members of NSS Environment cell thanked the teachers for giving them such an opportunity and the students for their enthusiastic participation.