Turning the Pages will lead to ......

?Address by the Dean 2

?Address by the faculty Coordinator 3
?Message from Team Saamanjasya 4
?Shraddha: Spreading Colours in Life 5
?More than a billion Indians: A GIGANTIC PROBLEM 7
?Tale of Two Cities 8
?Child Labour and Malnutrition 9
?E-Governance and its role in curbing corruption 11
?Eco Tourism 12
?Story of a Martyr 13
?Alleviation and Academic Research 15
?World of Hypocrisies 16
?West Bengal (India) Health Policies - A Tryst With Reality 17
?Saamanjasya- Getting the Ball rolling 19
?Kalakaar Vikaas- An art Experience 20
?Green Tyres workshop by Michelin 22
?Wired- Social Networking for a cause 23
?Parishram: Live NGO Case Study 24
?Shikshan: Water Conservation Workshop 25
?Vichaar: The Leadership Summit 26
?Heartfelt Testimonies 28
?The people who made Saamanjasya possible 30
 Message from the Dean

Vinod Gupta School of Management, IIT

Vinod Gupta School of Management inherits the essence of IIT Kharagpur, which is
“Dedicated to the Service of the nation”. We have committed ourselves towards building
managers who will set paradigms in the new world where business in not just confined to
making profit. The culture prevailing here inculcates socially responsible entrepreneurial
values in the budding managers. Our students have taken an initiative in this regard and
formed an umbrella group called SHRADDHA, driven by the mantra, Dedication is not
what others expect of you, it is what you give to the others”. Under the aegis of Shraddha,
the students have collaborated with a local NGO called Disha Seema which operates a
school located within the IIT campus where they work for the cause of development of
underprivileged children. They have undertaken a number of initiatives like Joyfest, to
spread the cheer and experience the joy of giving.

It gives me a great pleasure in announcing the advent of SAAMANJASYA’10. It is a novel

initiative to bring the Corporate and NGOs under one roof and aims at making the
Corporate-NGO partnership sustainable, replicable and stronger. I am glad that this unique
initiative has its genesis in VGSOM, IIT Kharagpur and we look forward to having the
presence of Corporate and NGOs in large numbers to make this event a success. I am sure
it will help create a fruitful Corporate-NGO liaison for the betterment of the society.

Dr. Arabinda Tripathy

Dean, VGSOM, IIT KGP

2
 Message from the Faculty
Coordinator
At VGSOM, we believe that responsibility towards the society is one of
the traits of a respected leader. As the gap between the haves and the
have-nots increase, sustainability and inclusive growth are becoming a
concern in the corridors of power, corporate boardrooms, academic
circles and newsrooms. This led to the genesis of Saamanjasya at Vinod
Gupta School of Management, IIT Kharagpur. It is a one-of-its-kind event
which is being organized with the aim of bringing together corporate and NGOs on a common
platform to ensure inclusive growth and inculcate a culture of giving back to the society in our
aspiring and educated youth. It seeks to highlight the importance of a symbiotic corporate-NGO
relationship.
Talking about the various events that were a part of this spirit of Saamanjasya:
Parishram was an event that helped the NGO's who have the will and the dedication to help the
underprivileged. But what they need is the management expertise to come up with feasible
solutions that turn their thoughts into reality.
Shikshan facilitated the interaction of industry experts with the students on the technologies
which are increasingly becoming the necessity for a sustainable future.
Vichaar made it possible to bring industry experts to come together on a single platform and
discuss the importance of social initiatives,corporate-NGO partnership frameworks and the role
of students.
Kalakaar Vikas gave the platform to the artisans who have still kept alive the art forms that are the
soul of India, but do not get the exposure that they truly deserve.
This is not all; Saamanjasya came up with a pioneering initiative of using Social media as an
effective tool to create awareness about various NGO's through WIRED!!.
This gamut of events is just an evidence of the thinking, planning and the hardwork that has been
put in by this team. But this event would not have been a success without the support of various
people involved.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank The Director of IIT Kharagpur, Prof. Damodar
Acharya for extending his whole hearted support for this event .Special thanks to our Dean, Prof
Arabinda Tripathy has provided his invaluable feedback and guidance to the team from time to
time. Prof K K Guin, Prof Gautam Sinha, Prof Tapan Bagchi and all faculty of VGSOM have been
forthcoming in their contributions towards making this event a reality. I am also grateful to all the
Heads of the Departments of IIT Kharagpur,Registrar, Dean of Student Affairs, Dean of
Continuing Education, Head of HMC, Hall Wardens, Security Head, Establishment Section and
all others without whose support this event would not have been possible. A special thank you
also goes to our sponsors – Michelin Tyres, Hindustan Coca Cola Beverages Ltd, ONGC, print
media partner Hindustan Times, apprarel partner Levis Strauss, hospitality partner Holiday In
Hills, our NGO partners – Khushi, Save The Children, Oxfam India, India Sponsors Foundation,
Saarthi and CRY India. I thank the participants and the audience for their enthusiasm and
support. Last but not the least, my very own team of Saamanjasya who have worked
enthusiastically and selflessly to make this event a success.
I assure the that the leanings from this noble event will be very useful and that Saamanjasya will
be back next year on a much larger scale.

Prof. Sushmita Mukhopadhyay

3
 Message from Team Saamanjasya

“Saamanjasya” is a unique endeavour Vinod Gupta School of management and we, the
students of VGSoM, pioneered. It aspires to bring the different pillars of development,
Corporates-NGOs-Students on a common platform. We can no longer expect sustainable
development and social well being without sensitizing towards and understanding the
needs of our society at large. It is very easy talking about what is right and what needs to be
done, but the fact remains that someone needs to get up and do it. “Saamanjasya” was step
in the direction of taking a concrete step towards making better the lives of a few people we
were able to touch. The forages of revolutionary change are ignited with a just a small spark
and we hope “Saamanjasya” lit that spark.

The most difficult job in the world is to get things started. We had several challenges ahead
of us, no history to restore faith, no resources to fall back upon and a hazy road ahead if and
when we get stuck. I believe that once you have convinced yourself that something needs to
be done, circumstances conspire towards what you aspire. Something similar happened
with “Saamanjasya” . For the first time, a group of Management students had set forth on a
path which was untried at any level and hence, there were unseen obstacles and unplanned
contingencies. We were unsure of how people would take to the concept of “Saamanjasya”
and we shouldered a greater responsibility, that of propagating our message across without
distorting the essence and meaning of the cause. During these times plaguing with
uncertainty, it was as if the US presidential elections were “rewinded”. It was the belief which
kept us going - “Yes we can!!”

All the events in Saamanjasya were appreciated with vigour that surpassed all our
expectations. Corporates, NGOs and students were Gung-ho about the concept and its
execution. We saw participation from the best educational institutions like IIMs, NITIE, XLRI,
SPJain, support from the best of corporates like Michelin, Coca-Cola, Levi's, ONGC and had
onboard the best of NGOs like Save the Children, Oxfam, CRY etc. The events are
described in a much greater detail inside and I am sure we will all love hearing about the
events Straight from the Horse's mouth, and these horses did labour day in and day out to
make it all the success that it was.

Lastly, no amounts of words are enough to thank the awesome team that I was so proud to
be a part of. Kalakaar Vikaas Team, Vichaar Team, Parishram Team, Shikshan Team and
Wired Team, you actually have done us proud. Also, the team that worked behind the
scenes, Logistics, Hospitality Team and Back stage team, you really were the unsung
heroes of the event. Big Thanks to the PR team, for letting the message across to the
amount of people you did, and Last but definitely not the least, the corporate-NGO interface
team, the spinal cord of the event. Without you, this wouldn't have become a reality. To the
IIT administration, we are thankful for you bestowing faith in us. And Finally, all the faculty of
VGSoM for their constant support. A word of Thanks is just a very small way of us showing
our gratitude. We promise to come back with better and bigger Saamanjasya next year, but
For now, lets just savour the success. Cheers!!
Mohammad Mudasser
Team Saamanajsya

4
Shraddha: Spreading Colours in Life
Divya,
VGSoM Class of 2011
At the Vinod Gupta School of Management, learning has never been confined to classroom
teaching. We have always endeavored to be cognizant of our society. We believe that an
ideal learning is one which helps the society as a whole. With this in mind, our seniors from
the batch of 2009 had come up with an initiative named Shraddha. With the vision of
spreading colours in life, team Shraddha has been consistently working to spread joy and
happiness in lives of people in the vicinity.

Since the inception of Shraddha, we have witnessed an ever increasing enthusiasm in

students towards social cause. The students organize many small and big events round the
year through which they can devote their time for some noble cause. Team Shraddha has
organized blood donation camp, it has planned a day out for the kids of Disha Seema, it
often gives a visit to schools in vicinity of IIT campus and students from VGSOM share their
time with small kids from poor families,

The primary focus of Shraddha is social inclusion of underprivileged kids belonging to

the poor families located in and around Kharagpur. To forward our cause we have been
working in collaboration with the Disha Seema Centre, a non profit organization which runs
a residential school inside IIT Campus. The school supports the education, nutrition and
lodging of about 200 children from the nearby villages. Apart from studies, kids in Disha
Seema are also get chance to indulge in activities like sports, dance, music, painting, etc.

For the past few years students of VGSOM have actively undertaken fund raising
initiatives for helping Disha Seema. One such major activity is getting T-Shirts hand-
painted by the kids of Disha Seema and then selling them during the SpringFest, the
cultural extravaganza of IIT Kharagpur. The proceeds arising from the sale of these T-Shirts
is donated to Disha Seema. Kids too have a gala time and get to paint their hearts on the
tshirts and enjoy the activity the same way as we do.

With belief that, “the greatest gift one can give others, is to give one's time”, we
occasionally spend time with these kids and it has become our tradition to celebrate Diwali
with the kids at Disha Seema. Interacting with the kids, playing games with them,
distributing gifts, sharing sweets with them and seeing their faces brighten up truly give us a
sense of happiness. Till date this experience has been one of the most cherished memories
for every student of VGSOM. Team Shraddha also collaborated with the Jagriti Vidya
Mandir in the Salua village to spend a day with the students of the school. The school is run
by Gopali Youth Welfare Society which is working for the upliftment of the nearby region.
Such interactions have helped us experience the real Joy of Giving

We believe, that as responsible citizens of the nation, our responsibility does not end here.
We are working on initiatives to enhance the primary education in the region. We, the
students of Vinod Gupta school of management believe that our responsibility does not
end with our life at VGSoM and that wherever we go we will continue our efforts towards the
same cause at some level or the other.

5
 Shraddha: The year in
photographs

6
Mo r e t h an a b i l l i o n In d i an s :
A GIGA NTIC PROB L EM
I am an Indian. But at the same time, I can
be a male Hindu of Pakistan origin, a citizen
of USA, working as a photographer,
interested in poetry, a supporter of gay
rights, follower of extra terrestrial objects
wanting to have a conversation with them in
a language predominantly French. All these
identities can have their own relevance. For
example, at the time of dinner, country of my
origin is not relevant. What matters is
whether I am vegetarian or a non-
vegetarian. But what will happen if my
identities start overlapping? What will
happen if my choice of food is seen through
the prism of religion? What will happen if my
support for Gay rights is rejected for my
being a Pakistani origin? And what will
happen if these multiple identities are
multiplied over a billion people?
The answer to all these questions is a
gigantic problem which India is facing
today. Heterodoxy has always been the
most striking feature of our country. Any
attempt to homogenize our society has
been thwarted. Plurality and tolerance has
allowed diverse cultures, religions and
traditions to co-exist peacefully in the past.
But now the equations are changing.
Parochialism and sectarian mindset is
making its way in the civil society. And this is
not despite the billion people but because of
it. Every group is trying to become a
dominant force not because of its
ideologies but because of its size.
Everybody living in the illusion of identity
feels neglected and wants to fight for his
rights.
The root cause of every evil present in the
Jatin Grover,
VGSoM Class of 2011
society lies somewhere in a size of a billion
plus people. India has one of the highest
food stocks in its warehouses in the world
but is also home to 20% malnourished
children of the world (worse than the Sub-
Saharan Africa). Why? Because it is almost
impossible to take food to everyone in a
country of a billion people. More than 50%
adults in this country are illiterate because it
is almost impossible to give education to
everyone in a country of billion people. India
is home to one of the highest ethnical and
sectarian violence in the world not because
of its heterogeneity but because of its sheer
size. China has done better than India in
almost every parameter of GDP or Human
Development or Happiness Index in past 2
decades because it has tried to solve the
root cause of every problem, that is,
population growth.
This gigantic problem has a very simple
solution - education. Education not only
means a technical training of Science and
Mathematics, but understanding the
perspective of life. Education makes people
empowered and helps them take informed
decisions which are beneficial to the
sustenance of a society. In 1990s when
China launched its one couple- one child
program it had the national fertility rate of 3.0
comparable to Kerela at that time. And today
both have their fertility rates under 2. One
followed a draconian path of autocracy and
other followed the path of education and
empowerment. Population of any country is
an asset which has to be nurtured but when
it grows out of proportion, the problems can
become gigantic and costs too high.
7
 The Tale of two cities..
Mohammad Mudasser,
GOD made this universe out of love, VGSoM Class of 2011
But the present state of affairs must be making him sad.
The CHOICE IS OURS which world to live in,
From the two contrasting visions I had…

I saw a war raged habitat in shatters,

Motionless bodies lying around in tatters,
A child searching for her mother, a brother for his sister,
The aura seemed horrific, the atmosphere so sinister…
A riot had broken out as I moved on,
Blood-thirsty maniacs had been set free, all the accord had gone,
I saw people hands joined, begging for life,
They don't relent, brutality combined with strife,
Adolescents became orphans, girls became widows,
Petrified with fear, they see evil silhouettes rising from their shadows,
People had become homeless, their shelter razed in front of the eyes,
Their belongings up in flames, the weed had consumed the ryes,
The leaders came, with promises pretentious and fake,
So did the law makers, watching the law break…
Revenge and hatred emanate from the oppressed,
Up in arms, citing themselves strangled and suppressed…
Crying over the graves of the deceased, my spirits began to wane,
GOD made us all humans, but are we humane??
Amidst the rubble of humanity, debris of credence, I feel pity.
In the mist of forlorn, smoke of morose, I leave the city…

Moving on, another town was next in my voyage,

The haze of sadness had ceded, I felt out of the cage.
The aura seemed soothing, tranquil and serene,
A welcome change, from the place I had been…
People were happy, a fluorescent smile lit up their face,
They were friendly and conforming, irrespective of your religion and race,
No wicked thoughts, no clandestine conspiracies,
No beastly intentions, no egregious rivalries…
I saw people going to work, children to school.
Busy with purpose, yet their tempers so cool…
The economy was booming, the technological advancements came,
And the citizens well aware of their duties, not blind and lame…
The families looked happy, together and euphoric,
The place was happening, the events seemed idyllic…
The leaders were visionary, the promises were executed,
The law makers enforced the law, not standing there muted,
People possessed exuberance, people possessed health,
People possessed love, people possessed wealth…
This is the city I want to live in, I vowed,
Because of the attachment, the ardour, the familiarity I had endowed.

The pleasure of living in peace, harmony and contentment

Or brazenly drowning in the whirlpool of caste, creed and colour,
THE CHOICE IS OURS, where we want to see ourselves!!
Live and let live, and you have a magnificent world to savour...

8
Ch i l d L ab o u r an d Mal n u t r i t i o n
India leads the world in the population of
below 14 child labour. Although poverty is
mainly looked upon as major cause other
factors such as discrimination, social
exclusion as well as the lack of quality
education or parents perceptions of child
labour and the perceived importance of
education also has a role to play. Stone
breaking, that is exactly what the kids of
Siliguri, near Darjeeling, are doing on a
daily basis under the beating hot sun simply
to attempt to make a living, never mind the
ability to actually make a living. Kids and
some of their families, if they have family,
are breaking rocks everyday for a nominal
amount of money which is not even enough
to maintain a normal life. These kids fight for
food and for their lives. Many diseases and
health related problems have been noticed
in these areas. It is very problematic,
especially when the numbers consist of
over 500 children in these conditions. This
project/center will be similar to others in
place in this area, but will focus specifically
on the welfare of these stone breaking kids.
Social work and health related work camps
already exist in this area; it is our wish to
build up these programs as well as a
medical vocational training center for these
youth. There already exists an abundance
of community support for this project.
"It's the contrast between India's fantastic
economic growth and its persistent
malnutrition which is so shocking,"
Lawrence Haddad, director of the IDS, told
The Times.
It said that an average of 6,000 children die
every day in India; 2,000 to 3,000 of them
Tarun Kothari,
B Tech Class of 2011
IIT Kharagpur
from malnutrition.
The report said that one of the main problem
was that millions of Indians were unable to
hold government officials to account for
delivering government feeding
programmes, with bureaucrats frequently
excluding large groups of individuals --
including those from the lower castes and
women -- from government initiatives.
How do we fight Malnutrition:
In conclusion, child malnourishment in India
can be improved dramatically with the active
participation and prioritization of this issue
by the government and international
organizations. By targeting those who are
living below the poverty line and suffer the
most from malnutrition in urban and rural
areas, success will be the greatest.
Education about nutrition, household food
security, health services and proper
childcare is essential for the general
population to improve the state of children's
nutrition today. The government needs to
spend more money on quality nutritional
programs in order to improve the state of
malnutrition and therefore health services,
education for females and poverty. I believe
that spreading the word about
overpopulation and its effects on the planet
is important to help decrease malnutrition
and environmental distress, which will
become disastrous with the continuation of
the population growth for future
generations. The environment needs to be
saved and pollution needs to be minimized
because illness and disease are brought on
by lead in the air and poor sanitation of the
water. The earth should be a priority along
with a focus on food production and
availability to the population along with
health care. Malnutrition is affected by
female inequality because women, being
9
 the primary care givers, are uneducated
and at a lower social status so equal rights
and education should be promoted so that
the literacy rate increases and parents are
more knowledgeable about child rearing
and nutrition. Those living in rural areas
need help receiving adequate food, income
and health services due to lack of
transportation and availability to such
diversity and opportunity. Proper
immunizations against disease and illness
should be offered to all children and an
increase in health care will help decrease
child malnourishment. Poverty is a major
problem causing families to have
insufficient funds for buying enough food
but there are many who suffer from the
silent hunger of malnutrition because they
have enough cereals to fill up on but lack the
proper nutrients and minerals to lead an
active and healthy life. Child
malnourishment is one of the greatest
problems in the world, especially in India,
and it is important to improve the situation
because the first years of life are crucial in
One of the initiatives to counter Malnutrition. Many more such initiatives are
needed in the long run.
10
the development mentally and physically
and children continue to suffer from lifelong
health issues such as blindness, poor bone
structure, and a lower capacity to learn
along with many more consequences.
Trends show that the situation of childhood
malnutrition has improved over recent
years, but a serious and dedicated effort
needs to be put forth today to more rapidly
improve the health of children in India in a
sustainable way.
How can we fight Child Labour:
Families in third world countries tend to think
of additional children as additional sources
of income. As long the culture holds this
belief, there's no amount of foreign aid,
laws, or sanctions that can end this practice.
It can also be effectively stopped if the
education nurtures productive domain
besides cognitive, psychomotor and
affective domains. This is possible if the
decision makers and the others
concerned become more objective and
global in their perspective.
 ROL E OF E-GOVERNA NCE IN
CURB ING CORRUPTION
A corrupt but efficient economy is better than a
corruption-free-inefficient economy. But when
corruption becomes institutionalized and deep
rooted, its affects are irreparable. It can lead to
a deleterious impact on economy like the
hyper-inflation witnessed in Zimbabwe or
diabolical health hazards caused by Milk
scandal witnessed in China or a terror prone
society like Pakistan - on the verge of
bankruptcy. Our own country has been
desecrated by deep rooted corruption in
almost every sphere. It is recently awarded a
shameful 80th rank in Global corruption index
in 2008. A recent report by McKinsey estimates
a total loss of 3-4% GDP of India attributed to
corruption.
Corruption primarily finds its way into a society
because of poor legislation like in China or
weak law enforcement like in India or both like
in many African countries. These factors lead
to the lack of transparency and accountability
in the system. In a privately owned company
there is accountability within the hierarchy
because people are answerable at every level
and the person at the top is accountable to
investors. But in a public system people at the
top are not answerable to their investors, that
is, people. As a result law aversion and
corruption easily move down and become
institutionalized.
In such a scenario E-Governance can play a
vital role in bringing transparency in the system
without changing the legislation or law
enforcement. It can transform an institution-
centered society into a citizen-centered
society. In the 21st century, internet and
broadband are spreading faster than never
before and technology reshaping the world can
provide answers to this chronic problem which
has become an intrinsic part of our society. It
Pratish Yadava and
Ritesh Sinha
VGSoM Class of 2011
can help in bypassing red tape and bureaucracy
without affecting the system in place. It can avoid
much of paper work which has now become an
excuse for procrastination and pocketing some
extra bucks under the table. For example, E-
Governance can be used to pay bills for which
people generally have to stand in long and
daunting queues. It can be used for land
allotments where papers can be digitally
scanned and submitted to the agencies directly
without inviting the hassles of middle men. It can
be used for issuance of Passports and Driving
License with the help of electronic verification. It
can also be used to launch police complaints
where each complaint is logged in the database
visible to everyone and making the actions of
police more transparent. But all this is easier said
than done. People loosing complete faith in the
public system will need to see its six sigma
execution before breaking the myths of
skepticism and start believing the costs of being
in the system to be less than being out.
People might argue its effectiveness because of
low internet penetration or lack of education or
even reluctance by the bureaucrats to transform
the change. But similar projects of private
companies have been successful in the past like
e-choupal of ITC. Government can launch
internet kiosks with the help of Public private
partnerships. Technology can look beyond the
internet and exploreoptions with Telephone
which is now available in almost every part of the
country and penetration is increasing at the
fastest rate in the world. Government can take a
leaf out of the book of the Indian railways and
launch similar help desks and databases for
various civic agencies and law enforcement
agencies. Ultimately to achieve its true potential
requires willingness and sincerity at the top
because of a known fact – “Water trickles down
only from the top”.
11
 Ec o - To u r i s m
“Do unto others what you shall have them
do unto you”. This is the essence of giving
back to nature. We can only give back when
we understand nature, our environment
and its various manifestations. We at
Holiday in Hills endeavour to inculcate this
feeling among people by exposing them to
the various nuances of nature and ensure
that we add to its value by planting trees,
pruning branches for
flowering, helping locals
and villagers in vegetation
and making sure that we
leave no trails of inorganic
m a t t e r. R e s p o n s i b l e
tourism is another name for
eco conservation. It also
means responsible travel
to natural areas that
conserves the environment
and improves the well
being of local people. We
believe that sustainability is not just an
ethical imperative but a sound business
decision that allows private enterprise to
12
Major Tushar Chaudhary
VGSoM Class of 2011
Founder Holiday in Hills
meet market demands by servicing under
penetrated markets with customized and
cost-effective products and services,
leveraging the potential of untapped natural
and human resources, while enhancing
social and environmental benefits. We
select sites where wildlife, forests and
humans can coexist without disturbing the
ecology and venturing into the boundaries
of each other.
We believe that eco-tourism
can only flourish if we act
responsibly and at the same
time enjoy what nature has for
offering. We aspire to influence
the tourism industry, public
institutions and donors to
integrate the principles of eco-
tourism into their operations
and policies. This, in essence,
is the experience we wish to
give to our customers. We have
meticulously selected such destinations
where the essence of eco-tourism can be
felt. Here, one often feels closer to God.
St o r y o f a Mar t y r ! !
Yash Vardhan Aggarwal
VGSoM Class of 2011

It was a the Indian battalion crounching over there

mornin Major Shaitan Singh looked visibly
g o f perturbed. He couldn't stop himself thinking
Novem about the drawback their battalion had.
ber !8th More than the thin air and cold, the location
,1962. of Rezang La had a more serious drawback.
The icy It was crested to Indian artillery because of
winds an intervening feature, which meant that
w e r e they had to make without the protective
biting comfort of the big guns. Despite of all the
a n d odds he finally comforted himself and others
benum that it is their motherland and won't let it go
bing. so easily.
Every Finally in the dim light of the morning, the
single Chinese were seen advancing through
vestige nullahs to attack No.7 and No.8 platoon
of green positions.. Time came to an abrupt
w a s halt.Many hearts skipped a few beats .
quiverin Whole area plunged into a vortex of eerie
g in the silence.. The Indian Army troops fell on their
unremit prepared positions to face the Chinese
Major Shaitan Singh Bati : An offensive.
Eternal Hero who was awarded Param Vir
Chakra Posthumously Eventually at 5.00 am, came the
unpropitious moment when the first bullet
ting storm. Light snow was falling since left the barrel. The stun silence transcended
days with an unflinching determination to to an utter pandemonium in no time. Sounds
kill every sign of green. With a sadism, of firing up of bullet , mortar shells , heavy
quintessentially Hitler's, it was slowly wiping artillery blankirst frontal attack, were not
out every single blade of grass , and discouraged. They subjected the Indian
mosses.. Ironically , this time the sadist had positions to intense artillery and mortar fire
others to compete with.. Yes , Rezang La at about 0540 hours. Soon about 350
was all decked up for a war. The two forces ( Chinese troops commenced advance
Indian and Chinese ) were about to paint the through the nullahs. This time, No.9
mountain red . Platoon, which held fire till the enemy was
The 'C' Coy of the battalion, led by Major within 90 metres opened up with all
Shaitan Singh, held this crucial position at weapons in their possession. Within
Rezang La, at a height of 5000 metres . As minutes, the nullahs were again full of dead
the icy winds howled and whiffled through bodies, mainly of the Chinese.
Unsuccessful in frontal attack, the enemy,

13
 approximately 400 strong, then attacked
from the rear of the company position. They
simultaneously opened intense medium
machine gun fire on No.8 Platoon. This
attack was contained at the barbed wire
fencing of the post. The Chinese then
resorted to heavy artillery and mortar
shelling. An assault group of 120 Chinese
also charged No.7 Platoon position from the
rear. However, Indian Army 3-inch mortar
killed many of them. When 20 survivors
charged the post, about a dozen Kumaonis
rushed out of their trenches to engage them
in a hand-to-hand combat. Meanwhile, the
Chinese brought up fresh reinforcements.
The encirclement of No.7 Platoon was now
complete. The platoon, however, fought
valiantly till there was no survivor. No.8
Platoon also fought bravely to the last
round.
Major Shaitan Singh, the Company
Homage Ceremony by Tri Services Chiefs at Amar Jawan Jyoti, India Gate
14
C o m m a n d e r, d i s p l a y e d e x e m p l a r y
leadership and courage amidst the bedlam.
By all accounts, he led his troops most
admirably.
Unmindful of his personal safety he moved
from one platoon post to another and
encouraged his men to fight. While moving
among the posts he was seriously
wounded, by a sniping Chinese MMG. But
he continued to fight along with his men.
While he was being evacuated by two of his
comrades, the Chinese brought heavy
machine gun fire on them. Major Shaitan
Singh sensed danger to their lives and
ordered them to leave him. They placed him
behind a boulder on the slopes of a hill,
where he breathed his last.
He mumbled “ JAI HIND “ as his last words
and slowly the brave soul left for a heavenly
abode.
May his soul rest in peace.
 A l l ev i at i o n an d A c ad em i c Res ear c h
(What is theroleof academiain poverty alleviation?
Is academic research about poverty too elitist?
“No”, is the unanimous answer provided by
students and research scholars at IIT Kharagpur.
This article describes how marketing techniques
and contemporary research helps microfinance
industry to be more efficient and being good by
doing good.)
Microfinance is a universally accepted tool for
poverty alleviation. Microfinance is defined as
the provision of financial services to the poor
so that they can undertake projects which
generate income and can come out of poverty.
The sector has attracted a large number of
players due to the untapped potential and high
growth rate which has resulted in a
competitive situation. Even in the year of
economic melt down, the Indian microfinance
sector has grown substantially in terms of
outreach, loan outstanding and poorest
district served. During the period 2008-09, the
sector has served around 70 million poor,
against 59 million last year, an increase of 20
per cent. Total outstanding microfinance loan
increased 36 per cent this year from Rs.
229.54 to 359.39 billion. Microfinance
constituted 1.29 per cent of gross bank credit
of scheduled commercial banks with an
increase of 0.27 per cent over the last year.
Microfinance Institutions (MFI) have reached
234 of the 331 poorest districts identified by
the government which was 209 last year, an
increase of 12 per cent.
Even though the sector is continuously
growing at a steady pace, its growth is
hindered by high delinquency, dropouts and
non participation, which has affected the
sustainability and performance of many MFI's.
It is estimated that Rs. 4.23 billion was the
total defaults of SHG's (Self Help Groups)
which is 2.9 per cent of the total loan
outstanding. This reflects the problem of
delinquency in microfinance. It is reported that
of the total 230 MFI's, around 34 per cent are
loss making which is an indication of low
Renjith Peediackal,VGSoM Class of 2011
and V.D. George, Research Scholar, Rural
Development Center
performance. Even though, India is having the
world's largest banking network, still 51 per
cent of the population is financially excluded
which reflects nonparticipation of the clients.
Competition along with these problems is
affecting the sustainability and performance of
many MFI's.
Many studies revealed that lack of customer
focus of the MFI's is the main cause of the
above problems. Hence this situation has
urged a transformation in the sector. Hence it
is the need of the hour for the MFI's to
concentrate on their customer, know their
needs and wants and transform themselves
from product concept to marketing concept.
Thus marketing has become an integral part of
the sector. Marketing is defined as a “societal
process by which individuals and groups
obtain what they need and want through
creating, offering, and freely exchanging
products and services of value with
others.”Kotler (2009).
In times to come MFI's should be more market
oriented in order to minimize the problems like
delinquency, dropouts and nonparticipation
which will result in better performance of the
institution. Moreover it will be a competitive
advantage for the MFI. Market orientation is
defined as the “organization wide generation
of market intelligence pertaining to current and
future customer needs, dissemination of
intelligence across departments and
organization wide responsiveness to it”.
So the pioneering research conducted by
education institutes can throw light on many
aspects which are not addressed until now
and lead to application of many emerging
management techniques which might make
sustainable and profitable solutions for solving
social issues. Social issues are not chronic
problems which can never be solved but they
are business opportunities for the corporate
and the entrepreneur. But a connect has to be
made by devoted and committed research.
15
 Wo r l d o f Hy p o c r i s i es
Imagine you open a door thinking it a
gateway to heavens and find yourself in a
never ending dark tunnel. You see a light at
the end of it and start moving towards it with
a hint of optimism only to realize it being a
train coming towards you at the speed of
knots. This is the state of a common man
who is constantly derided by the specious
world. This is I call the world of hypocrisies.
When was the last time you complained
about the system being corrupt and yet did
not hesitate to pay bribe to a traffic
policeman with alacrity? When was the last
time you rebuked the flamboyance of rich
and powerful and at the same time could not
tolerate a poor at your doorsteps asking for
food? When was the last time you voiced for
a change in the functioning of the
government and yet felt ashamed to cast
your vote which could have actually brought
the change? When was the last time you
deified Sachin Tendulkar as God of cricket
and yet were not hesitant to censure him
when he failed to score runs in a crucial
match? If you are honest enough then the
answers to all these questions should
reflect the level of hypocrisies and double
standards in your daily lives.
World has witnessed umpteen number of
philosophers and spiritual leaders who in
the name of enlightenment have tried to
deceit the world with their preaching. They
ask the world to stay away from materialism
and ridicule those who are after
materialistic gains in this so called “virtual”
world and yet are not hesitant to incorporate
the technological advancements in their
manoeuvres which are the contributions of
materialistic people to the society.
16
Shweta Jain and
Piyush Anandani
VGSoM Class of 2011
This is the world where CEOs of big Multi
Nationals travel on their personal jets when
in the need of bail-outs. They are happy to
announce large scale retrenchment as an
efficient cost cutting but can not accept even
a penny cut in their bonuses. The street
smart CEOs, who take pride in not being
MBA and continue to boast the world how an
MBA is rubbish, are always reluctant to hire
managers in their companies who are not
MBAs.
The 24x7 news channels who claim to be
the face of society and the lone survivors of
morality often cross all limits of decency
when comes the question of TRP. The
façade of ethics rips apart when our TRP
savvy news channels prefer to show the
faces of rich and presentable on their
cameras instead of poor and illiterate when
both are the victims of horrendous act of
terrorism.
It is very convenient to take pleasure in
blame games and criticize people in the
power if something goes wrong. It is also
very convenient to claim unity through
candle lights and placards on the streets
after a dastard terror strike on the heart of
our country. But ask yourself a simple
question. If you are a so called “liberal” and
“secular” Hindu and a person named Zakir-
ul-Haq wants to live in your empty house on
rent. Would you rent him your house?
(Similar question asked to people of all
religions). If your answer is yes then you are
less than honest and still living in the state of
denial and if your answer is no, which should
be the case, then it sums up my world which
is the world of hypocrisies.
Wes t B en g al Heal t h Po l i c i es - A
Tr y s t Wi t h Real i t y
The Constitution of India charges every
state with "raising of the level of nutrition
and the standard of living of its people and
the improvement of public health as among
its primary duties”
But in West Bengal, at least nine districts in
the state suffer from arsenic contamination
of groundwater, and an estimated 8.7
million people drink water containing
a r s e n i c a b o v e t h e Wo r l d H e a l t h
Organisation recommended limit of 10
µg/L.
According to WHO statistics there are over
250 medical colleges in the modern system
of medicine and over 400 in the Indian
system of medicine and homeopathy
(ISM&H). India produces over 250,000
doctors annually in the modern system of
medicine and a similar number of ISM&H
practitioners, nurses and para
professionals.
But still India suffers from high levels of
disease including Malaria, and
Tuberculosis where one third of the world’s
tuberculosis cases are in India . In addition,
India along with Nigeria, Pakistan and
Afghanistan is one of the four countries
worldwide where polio has not as yet been
eradicated. Half of children in India are
underweight, one of the highest rates in the
world and nearly same as Sub-Saharan
Africa. India contributes to about 5.6 million
child deaths every year, more than half the
world's total. According to the World Health
Organization 900,000 Indians die each year
from drinking contaminated water and
breathing in polluted air. Most Indian
women are malnourished. The average
female life expectancy today in India is low
compared to many countries and in many
families, especially the rural ones, the girls
Aditya Zutshi
VGSoM Class of 2011
and Sehej Buttar
RGSoIPL
and women face nutritional discrimination
within the family, and are anaemic and
malnourished. The maternal mortality in
India is the second highest in the world. Only
42% of births in the country are supervised
by health professionals. Most women
deliver with help from women in the family
who often lack the skills and resources to
save the mother's life if it is in danger.
According to UNDP Human Development
Report (1997), 88% of pregnant women
(age 15-49) were found to be suffering from
anemia. Water supply and sanitation in
India continues to be abysmal. Only one of
three Indians has access to improved
sanitation facilities. As of 2003, it was
estimated that only 30% of India's
wastewater was being treated, with the
remainder flowing into rivers or
groundwater. The lack of toilet facilities in
many areas also presents a major health
risk; open defecation is widespread even in
urban areas of India, and it was estimated in
2002 by the World Health Organisation that
around 700,000 Indians die each year from
diarrhoea. No city in India has full-day water
supply. Most cities supply water only a few
hours a day. In towns and rural areas the
situation is even worse.
What is the organizational structure of the
governing body? The Health and Family
Welfare (H&FW) Department is organized
into a number of directorates whose work is
monitored and coordinated by the H&FW
Department by the Health Secretary. The
department functions under the overall
guidance of the Minister-in-charge, Dr.
Surya Kanta Misra. The State Health
Administration has two arms, the
Secretariat and the Directorate of Health.
The Secretariat is headed by the Principal
Secretary who is a senior officer of the
17
 Indian Administrative Service assisted by
Special, Joint, Deputy and Assistant
Secretaries. The Director of Health
Services and ex-officio Secretary heads the
Directorate and is the chief technical
Advisor to the State government on all
matters related to medical and public
health. He is assisted by a number of
Additional, Joint, Deputy and Assistant
Directors. The heath care system has
primary health care network, a secondary
care system comprising district and sub-
division hospitals and tertiary hospitals
providing specialty and super specialty
care. Each of the seventeen districts is
headed by a Chief Medical Officer of Health
(C.M.O.H.), assisted by Deputy and
Assistant C.M.O.H.s, whose responsibility
is to manage the primary health care sector
and ensure the effective implementation of
the various medical, health and family
welfare programs. The secondary level
hospitals are headed by medically trained
superintendents who report to the C.M.O.H.
and are accountable to a hospital
management committee. At the block level,
the Block medical officer is responsible for
providing services and for monitoring and
supervising the primary health centres and
health programme implementation. The
medical manpower in the State Health
System is provided by the State Health
Service and in the teaching institutions by
the Medical Education Service. The training
activities are mainly organised at the
Institute of Health & Family Welfare, Salt
Lake, Kolkata, and also at various training
schools.
Even though the situation is abysmal, there
is hope. The West Bengal Clinical
Establishment Rules, 1951 mentions that
no license for clinical establishment shall be
granted unless the licensing authority is
satisfied that the applicant and the Clinical
Establishment fulfils the conditions
mentioned in the Act. All operations should
be performed in a fixed centre having OT
facilities. The licensee for a temporary
18
camp shall be valid for one month from the
date of issue of the license.The license for
such temporary camp shall be renewed in
any circumstance. West Bengal Nursing
Personnel Rules, 2008 assures that no
nursing personal will be allowed to undergo
studies as training reserve in any manner
other than sponsored as per the rules. The
Regulation and Prevention of Misuse
Amendment Act 2002 prohibits sex
selection, before or after conception to
prevent their misuse for sex determination,
leading to female foeticide and for matters
connected therewith or incidental thereto.
The West Bengal Prohibition of Smoking ,
Spiting and Protection of Health of Non
Smokers and Minor act 2001, State Drug
Policy of West Bengal in 2004, Tobacco Law
in 2003, West Bengal Registration of Births
and Deaths (State Rule 2000) are some of
the laws introduced to address some of the
health issues.
There are so many problems to tackle and
so many issues to resolve. But then the
journey of a thousand miles begins with a
single step... In this case, we the dynamic
and aware youth are the travellers. Few
stanzas from Bruce Springsteen's We Shall
Overcome song can act as the fuel to this
fire.
Yes... We do believe... we shall overcome
someday... !!!
Saam an j as y a- Get t i n g t h e b al l
rolling
The dogmas of the quiet past are
inadequate in the stormy present. The
occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we
must rise with the occasion. As our case is
new, so we must think anew and act anew.
These words of the great Abraham Lincoln
marked the first steps of Saamanjasya in its
long walk into history. “Saamanjasya in its
literal sense means Harmony, and
harmonious collaboration for sustainability
is what we aim to achieve out of our efforts.
Through Saamanjasya, the brainchild of
VGSOM, we wish to inculcate the culture of
giving back to the society amongst the
youth of our country. The realisation that we
can no longer seclude ourselves from the
rest of the society needs to be brought
home.” Were the words of Swati and Aditya,
both students of VGSoM, who anchored the
ceremony.
The inauguration ceremony of the first
edition of Saamanjasya was truly a
confluence of the ebullient, the eclectic and
the excellent.
Ebullient was the spirit of the evening. The
idea of bringing together the NGO's who are
dedicated to the cause, the youth who have
the vigour to take up the cause and the
corporate who can give the required
momentum ; had finally seen the light of
day. In accordance to the theme, the entire
Saamanjasya team sported traditional
attire as a mark of respect of the culture
imbibed in them.
Eclectic were the wise words that poured in
from was Prof Madhukar Shukla, a
professor of eminence of social
entrepreneurship at XLRI. He lauded the
initiatives of the students of VGSoM and
wished the event reaches greater heights in
Aditya Kulkarni
VGSoM Class of 2011
times to come. Prof Tapan Bagchi, the
Guest of honor and a senior faculty of
VGSoM, praised the vision of the students
and thanked them for organizing a one-of-
its-kind event. These pearls of wisdom from
the honoraries who inaugurated the event
not only added gravity but were a motivation
to the audience to go forth and bring about a
change.
Excellent was the talent portrayed by the
fusion band Fingerprints who after having
wooed audiences in Berlin, London and Den
Haag weaved their magic for the IIT crowd.
A haunting mix of classical and modern
music, fingerprints rendered the listeners
hungry for more.
Also, as an integral part of this evening was
an event organised by Shraddha, the CSR
arm of VGSoM. Vaibhav and Divya, student
representatives for Shraddha moved the
audience with an appealing speech and a
very touching video compiled especially for
the evening. This was followed by a dance
performance by the kids of Disha Seema-
the NGO that operates in IIT campus to
provide quality education for
underprivileged kids. Shraddha on this
occasion also donated an amount of
50,000/- generated from proceeds of
student activities for the betterment of the
NGO. While speaking to the audience,
Hansa Ma'am said that “Saamanjasya”
could only have been conceptualized by the
students of VGSoM.
The evening in all respects was an
inauguration the event deserved. With a
heart full of pride and Minds set on the days
ahead, the inauguration ceremony ended
on a note of high energy as the entire team
cheered!
19
 K al ak aar Vi k aas – A n A r t
Ex p er i en c e
Saamanjasya'10 – By the end of January all
I knew was a management event to be
organized by few of my classmates. It was
going to be first of its kind, a B-school event
completely focused on corporate social
responsibility. During the last week of
January, I was busy selling T-shirt sale at
the Shraddha stall set up in SpringFest, the
cultural extravaganza of IIT Kharagpur.
With the vision of spreading colors in life,
team Shraddha, a students' CSR
community of VGSOM has been
consistently working to spread joy and
happiness in the lives of underprivileged
section of the society.
I being one of the proud members of
Shraddha, was approached by Team
Saamanjasya that team Shraddha
organizes an event, Kalakaar Vikaas – an
initiative to preserve local art of Bengal by
providing a wider platform to the grass root
level artists – as a part of Saamanjasya'10.
In a meeting, resulting into few Yes's, few
No's and many neutral votes, team
Shraddha decided to go ahead with
organizing Kalakaar Vikaas - KV. This we
thought would give us a chance to help
some needy artists.
I went back to get more details of the event
and subsequently realized that when I
realized that even the scale and scope of
event could be revered in times to come.
Well, this was yet another opportunity to
add to the cause of Shraddha. Since we
were doing this for the first time, we had no
legacy to fall back upon. We just knew one
thing – This should be and needs to be done
To start with we formed the KV team,
specifically choosing Bengali-speaking
guys from our batch. We divided ourselves
20
Vaibhav Shrimani
VGSoM Class of 2011
in teams of two with at least one Bengali-
speaking which would help us travel to
some remote locations and converse with
local Bengali population. During weekends,
teams travelled to places like Midnapur,
Bishnupur and Birbhum in search of
traditional art and the artists. Teams had to
convince some poor artists who were highly
reluctant to participate in any such event.
We promised them food, travel and
accommodation to attract them. At the same
time we also met few artists who were
excited about getting a visibility in IIT. Rest
of the days we were busy designing posters,
banners and pamphlets to promote KV
within and around IIT campus. For the event
to be a success, we put in the best of our
promotional, marketing and communication
skills. In synch with KV team, logistics team
also toiled hard to get permissions from the
HMC, the security and complete other
formalities needed to set up stalls for the
exhibition. We also bargained hard to get
best deal from the decorators since
sponsorships and funds were hard to find till
the last moment.
20th March - The entire KV team was
present at the Vikramshila complex where
the stalls were set up. By then, we had
overcome many mundane issues like
cancellation of permissions, price hike by
the decorator and the change of venue at
the eleventh hour. The decorator was still
struggling with the electricity connections.
Artists arrived one by one carrying their
inventory of art. As they started displaying
their artifacts we started feeling excited; two
months of dedicated efforts had paid off.
The stalls were up by 12 noon and everyone
eagerly waited for the audience. KV was
well represented by variety of art forms
ranging from terracotta, bamboo-art,
wooden-craft, jewellery and decorative
pieces made from horns, docra metal work,
hand-worked saris and dress materials,
paintings and much more under a single
roof.
In the afternoon, we escorted the guests
from corporate and NGOs, who were at the
campus for the leadership summit and case
study events. All of them were
overwhelmed by the theme of Kalakaar
Vikaas. Many of them exchanged contacts
with the artists for future correspondence
and purchasing deals. The purpose of KV
was met. Later in the evening in an informal
interaction with the artists, we realized that
they had been to campus not just for sale of
goods but with intent of interacting with
students and faculty of IIT to gain new
business insights. We assured them that a
workshop with eminent faculty was
scheduled for tomorrow and they would be
able to discuss their entrepreneurial
problems with them.
21st March – We had requested some of
our professors to have an interaction with
the artists to which they had readily agreed.
Prof. K. Pathak from the mining dept and
One of the stalls at KV
Prof. Prabina Rajib of VGSOM told the
artists how important it is to innovate with art
to attract customers. Prof. A. Sarkar shared
some ideas to cut production costs while
Prof. A. K. Misra gave insights on various
funding opportunities made available by the
government to expand the trade of art within
and outside India. The workshop which was
planned for an hour extended for more than
two hours till every artist found a solution to
his problems. By evening the stalls had
higher sales owing to an ad placed in local
cable channel to target local population.
At the end of two days when it was closing
time, all artists expressed how useful the KV
theme, especially the workshop had been
for them. They are looking forward to
participate next year as well and have
requested us to conduct this event on a
bigger scale. Two days of running around in
the hot sun, serving food, managing
transport and accommodation for artists,
escorting the guest, managing the crowd
taught us a lot about real life project
execution, crisis management, change
management and handling logistics. Above
all, we became friends with many artists and
we are eager to invite them again next year.
21
 Gr een Ty r es Wo r k s h o p b y
Mi c h el i n
“I hope we have been able to convey to
you that atyreis not avery simple,round
black thing.” Mr. Rahul Chodha, Country
Communications Manager, Michelin
India.
Vinod Gupta School of Management, IIT
Kharagpur organized “ Shikshan” , a
series of workshops, intended to provide
the audience with real-life examples of how
different aspects of corporate social
responsibility have actually contributed to
the bottom-line of practicing companies.
The workshop was conducted by Michelin,
French tyre giants who are known for their
innovations such as Pneumatic tyres and
Radial tyres. It was the first company to
come out with the concept of Green tyres
which has already achieved significant
reductions in rolling resistance by
revolutionizing the tyre designing
technology. Low rolling resistance tyres
reduce the vehicle running costs and other
harmful exhaust emissions.
Through the workshop the audience got a
sneak peek into the complete process of
designing a tyre and the various intricacies
involved in it. Although the lecture was
highly technical, the enthusiasm of the
participants to gain knowledge was
palpable. The Michelin team kept the
audience entertained with interesting facts
22
Shailender Singh Negi
and S.Srikanth
VGSoM Class of 2011
about the world of tyres and there were also
demonstrations using models which just
added to the whole experience.
This workshop examined how rolling
resistance is measured and how these
measurements translate into reductions in
fuel consumption. Technical prospects for
further reductions in rolling resistance were
also discussed, with careful consideration
given to safety, durability and other factors.
The impact of Rolling Resistance on Fuel
Consumption, Efficiency, Tyre Energy was
also discussed.
It was great to see the participation in the
workshop from different departments of IIT
and a few participants had come all the way
from Kolkata which just speaks volumes
about the event.
The Michelin team which had flown in all the
way from Delhi was thoroughly impressed
by the feedback they received from the
audience. The questions asked ranged from
tubeless tyres to fuel consumption impact
on environment.
With the effects of global warming, climate
change and high cost of fuel becoming ever
more important, benefits of green tyres have
never been more relevant. The workshop
also ignited the fire within the research
students of the IIT's to further contribute to
the development in this field.
WIRED-So c i al Net w o r k i n g f o r a
So c i al Cau s e
Facebook has an active user base of 400
Million. 200 Million Users log on to
Facebook on any given day. More than 35
million users update their status each day.
More than 60 million status updates posted
each day. That is almost equal to the total
population of United Kingdom!
Vinod Gupta School of Management, IIT
Kharagpur organized WIRED, the Online
Social Networking Competition of
Saamanjasya '10 on Facebook to unleash
the power of Social Networking to spread
awareness for a Social Cause.
The participants had to CHOOSE from a list
of NGO's and had to CREATE a social
networking page with their take on the
subject at hand. Participants were to
CHANNEL all the data they could find about
the cause on facebook page/group and
COERCE people into joining their cause.
The participants had to CONSOLIDATE
their position by making their facebook
page/group the most creative and original
with the largest fan/member base.
The participation in the event was
unimaginable. More than 100 Teams from
all over the globe participated and launched
a viral marketing campaign to mobilize
facebook subscribers into joining hands for
the cause. We received entries from
Premier Business Schools like IIMs, IIT
DoMs, IIFT, FMS, SPJIMR, XLRI etc
besides many others. Participation from
Corporate House like AMDOCS and
Startups like Silverline Group of Companies
and others strengthened our belief that
Corporate are all set to support the basic
essence of Saamanjasya-Collaboration
and getting Corporate and NGOs to a
Aditya Zutshi, Mohamed
Abdullah and Ravinder
Pal Singh Dhillon,
VGSoM Class of 2011
common platform to ensure giving back to
the society and inclusive growth.
Participation from universities like JNU gave
us a reason to believe that the message of
Saamanjasya has seeped in not just in
management students but also in people
from diversified background.
It was heartwarming to find innumerous
teams crossing the 1000 fans/members
mark. It wasn't easy to arrive to the final
results of WIRED. The participating teams
were evaluated on the facebook
subscribers they would mobilize by getting
fans/members, the creativity in content, the
interaction within the page/group and the
buzz created by their page/group.
The 1st Prize was bagged by Team
MatchBox with Team Members Abhinit
Agarwal and Anupama Sirsalewal from
MICA and Joshbro Communications for the
NGO-Save the Children. The 2nd Prize was
bagged by Team Zero Gravity with Team
Members Ankur Verma and Meghana Bajaj
from Welingkar Institute of Management
Development and Research, Bangalore for
CRY.
In the closing ceremony of Saamanjasya
'10, Prof. Damodar Acharya, Director IIT
Kharagpur congratulated the winners for
their splendid performance. The
performance of the teams in mobilizing
facebook members in such a short time is a
good indicator of how much people are open
to the social cause and that if each one of us
keeps alive the spark generated by
Saamanjasya '10 in the months that follow,
we would be able to strike Saamanjasya
and ensure an inclusive growth in our
society.
23
 Par i s h r am : A r eal l i f e NGO c as e
study
Parishram – A real life NGO case study
contest is a unique event organized under
the banner of Saamanjasya'10. This is the
first event of its kind which invited
participation not only from both the Under
graduate and Post Graduate students from
all over the country but it also gave a chance
to any other individual who is not even a
student also. Considering the uniqueness
and being the fact that it has been organized
for the first time in the whole country, the
event was a huge success. The event saw
participation from every nook and corner of
the country. People from as diverse
background as medical and engineering
came forward and shown their commitment
to serve the society. In total of more than 80
teams registered for the case study but only
15 teams could make to the next round of the
event. The participants were required to
present their solution and respective NGO for
each case study judged their proposal on the
basis of social, political and technological
feasibility. Out of the 15 teams, 6 teams
qualified for the final round which tests their
creativity and leadership skills.
The NGOs were represented by
Monce C. Abraham ,Programme Manager
,The India Sponsor Foundation
Pragya Vats, Campaign Manager , Save the
Children, India
Aparajita Suman , Web Coordinator,
OXFAM India
AparnaSingh, Head Counsellor, Khushi
The best colleges from India were
represented in Parishram and the list was
topped by institutes like IIM Lucknow, IIM
Khozikode, NITIE Mumbai, XLRI, IIFT
Kolkata, MDI Gurgaon, MICA, XIMB, BIM
24
Ritesh Sinha and
Anuj Yadav,
VGSoM Class of 2011
Trichy, M.S. Ramaiah Medical college and
VGSOM, IIT Kharagpur. While the winner
was Team Analytica from NITE comprising of
Anish Sengupta, Mantu Baishya and Jitendra
S Chaudhari; Team “Tamanna” bagged the
second prize with Aarti Shah, Dipesh Mutha
and Ravinder Bansal being its flag bearers.
The whole event has been designed to bring
out the best team who can actually go to the
grass root level and mobilize the public for the
cause. The event ensures this by first testing
their analytical and problem solving approach
and then letting them compete on the
grounds of creativity and leadership skills.
Saamanjasya believe that such are the
people who can be the instruments of the
change and being among the best B-School
of the country, VGSoM find its responsibility
of initiating that change. The event saw an
equal enthusiasm from various NGO's of
international league and it can be judge by
the fact that most of them want to have a long
term association with Saamanjasya.
VGSoM,IIT Kharagpur believes that
Parishram is just a beginning to a nation wide
campaign which will surely mobilize the
youth by providing them an opportunity to
come forward and bring the much needed
change.
Event like Parishram was neither thought of
nor executed anywhere in India hitherto. As
Khushi representatives put it “The
participants of Parishram were very confident
& the presentation was outstanding. The
students had really studied the case study
very minutely & some of their solutions were
very apt & practical and can be replicated in
the field. Overall coordination of the
volunteers of Saamanjasya'10 was worth
appreciating.” It is quite evident that our
efforts did strike positive chords with all
involved.
Sh i k s h an - Wat er Co n s er v at i o n
Wo r k s h o p
"Water is personal, water is local, water is
regional, water is global. Everybody has a
different idea, a different approach, a
different issue, a different concern. Water is
the most personal issue we have." That was
the reason why Saamanjasya came up with
idea of a workshop on Water Conservation
in the Shikshan series. The whole event,
with its support from the industry, NGOs and
academia proved how water is not just the
lifeblood of our bodies but also of our
industries, economy and well-being.
Hindustan Coca Cola Beverages Limited
associated with Saamanjasya in this
venture reaffirming their role in making a
meaningful difference to the communities
they rely upon. Focussing beyond the
confines of their bottling plants, Coca Cola
has been involved in more than 250
community water partnerships in 70
countries to support locally relevant
initiatives, such as watershed protection;
expanding community drinking water and
sanitation access; agricultural water use
efficiency; and education and awareness
programs. The Workshop gave a glimpse
into their initiatives and what could be done
at each level to contribute to sustainable
water conservation practices.
The workshop was not all about the industry
perspective of water conservation. In the
true spirit of Saamanjasya, the event was a
collaboration of the ideas from the
academia and the industry. Prof. Sudhindra
Panda, Head of the Department of Water
Resources gave real life examples from his
Ann Thomas and Ambrish
Mani Tiwari
VGSoM Class of 2011
research and water conservation initiatives.
70% of all agricultural land in India is purely
rain-fed; that is, not supported be any
methods of irrigation. This limits the
cultivation to one season every year leaving
the land barren for the rest of the time. Prof.
S. N. Panda gave methods on how
rainwater can be conserved and reused
locally for increasing agricultural
productivity of such rain-fed ecosystems.
The interest of the participants was evident
from the concerns they raised on relevant
issues like the costs involved and the impact
of agricultural watersheds on the natural
balance.
Dr. V.R. Desai from the Civil Engineering
Department of IIT Kharagpur provided
insights into many recent technologies from
the area of Information Technology in the
context of Water Resources Engineering. A
sneak peek into many of the qualitative
methods used for measurement and
forecasting in water resource management,
the talk invited appreciation from audience
which included research scholars, students
and faculty from various departments of IIT
Kharagpur, NGOs and enthusiastic
participants from various other institutions
who expressed their faith and responsibility
in the cause.
As the last event of Saamanjasya 2010, the
Water Conservation workshop left a perfect
message to the participants - Let's sustain
what sustains us. Truly, that was the
essence of what Saamanjasya was all
about.
25
 Vi c h aar : Th e L ead er s h i p Su m m i t
"The future belongs to those who understand
that doing more with less is compassionate,
prosperous, and enduring, and thus more
intelligent, even competitive." -- Paul Hawken
India is one of the fastest growing economies in
the world. Yet it accounts for 40% of the world's
poor and 35% of the world's illiterate population.
While we reach for new frontiers in space
exploration, we lag behind most nations in child
mortality rate. Our software engineers produce
world-class IT applications but our national sex
ratio shows a steady decline. It is the classic tale
of the two Indias – one inspires and the other
saddens. How can we bridge this gap?
Business organizations have the resources.
NGOs have the intent. Government has the
authority. It is time that these three pillars of our
society come together to provide sustainable
solutions to the challenges facing our country.
V i c h a a r, t h e l e a d e r s h i p s u m m i t o f
Saamanjasya 2010 brought together leaders
from business, society and government to
discuss the importance of social initiatives, the
innovations which are fuelling the next
generation of social initiatives, corporate-NGO
partnership frameworks, the role of students
and much more.
The panellists consisted of
1. Mr. YPS Kanwar - Mr. Y P S Kanwar is
Dy. General Manager (HR), with the Oil
and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd
(ONGC), the most valued corporate of
India. He is one of the leading pioneer
HR initiative leaders and has led several
path breaking initiatives in ONGC
including the Assessment Development
Centers, Coaching and Mentoring, HRD
Audit, Business Games and applied
them innovatively to create lasting
26
Debesh Majumdar
VGSoM Class of 2011
impact. Associated with several consulting
assignments in the organization, he is also
the convener of the major initiative by the
Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas to
Attract Talent in the Petroleum Industry.
Awarded the Prime Ministers Gold Medal in
the National Management program and
author of several published articles, he has
widely traveled and synergies the Academia
and the Industry with exemplary conviction
2. Mrs Jayanti Dutt – Mrs Jayanti Dutt is the
AGM, Community Services at Tata Motors.
She is also the Gram Vikas Kendra at
Jamshedpur. She has worked extensively in
rural development.
3. Ms Shireen Vakil Miller – Ms Miller is the
Director of Campaign, Advocacy and
Communication at Save The Children. She
works in the field of child development. She
is an expert in this field and appears
regularly on electronic media to discuss
such issues.
4. Soumitra Poddar – Mr. Poddar is a Principal
Consultant at IBM. He has more than 17
years of experience in SAP. He completed
his MBA from VGSOM in 1995. He
appeared in his personal capacity.
5. Prof Chhanda Chakraborty – Prof.
Chakraborti, Associate Professor in
Philosophy at Dept of Humanities and
Social Sciences, joined IIT Kharagpur in
1999. Prior to that, she had served as Group
Leader, Humanistic Studies at BITS Pilani
during 1996-1999. Dr. Chhanda
Chakraborti obtained her Ph D from
University of Utah, USA in 1995. She is a
double M.A in Philosophy from University of
Washington, USA, and Jadavpur University,
Kolkata, India. Her research and
 publication areas are: philosophy of camps and helping in disaster management and
logic, philosophy of mind and applied recovery.
ethics. She is interested in human It was followed by a panel discussion, centred
cognition, particularly in thinking and around sustainability and triple bottomline. Ms
reasoning. In philosophy of mind, her Dutt highlighted the importance of sustainability
research interest is in the metaphysics and cited instances of how Tata has been
of the mental, particularly in non- instrumental in driving CSR activities in India.
dualistic options. In applied ethics, her Prof Chakraborty drew attention of the panel to
research areas are health and public importance of ethics in business transactions
policy, development and public policy, and how it contributes to sustainability.
and corporate governance. In addition Representing the world of NGOs, Ms Miller
to research articles, she has also talked about how corporate-NGO partnerships
published two books. can be mutually beneficial. Mr Poddar,
6. Sunil Kumar C S – Mr. Kumar is a Senior representing the society, said that individuals
Environment Specialist at ITC. He has a have a huge role to play in the sustainability
Masters in Environmental Engineering. movement. Mr. Kumar cited the example of
He has more than 20 years experience Classmate program where a portion of the sales
in the areas of Environment, Industrial contribute to CSR activities. The session ended
Safety and Sustainable Development. with the moderator noting that in the current
state of affairs, only profits do not drive business
The moderator for the event was Prof. Gautam but people have to take into account the triple
Sinha. Prof Sinha is a Professor of Operations bottomline in business decisions.
Management at the Vinod Gupta School of
Management, IIT Kharagpur. He has been
associated with the institute since 2002. He has
an industry experience of over 24 years. Before
joining academics, Prof Sinha was the Senior
Deputy Director at Management Training
Institute of Steel Authority of India Limited. His
research interests include Supply Chain
Management and Manufacturing Strategy. He
has authored a book on Research Methodology
and is currently working on a book on
Manufacturing Strategy. In his leisure time, Prof
Sinha writes poetries. A collection of his poems
have been published as a book named
“Refractions”. He is also very passionate about
biking. Recently, he concluded a 3000 km
expedition to Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh.
The event started with a presentation by Mr.
Kanwar on the CSR activities of ONGC. He
emphasised the fact that ONGC spends around
3-4% of its total organizational expenditure on
employee welfare and corporate social
activities. ONGC supports the local community
in which it has a setup. ONGC activities include
girl child education programme, special medical

27
 Heartfelt Testimonies
The event in general was very well
organised and the fact that there were so
many questions is what impressed me,
especially on the topic like tyres. I was
also very happy to note the warmth the
faculty showed us on our visit. We do
hope to work together more closely with
IIT Kharagpur. Also as the festival gets
more traction, you will also get more
students to participate.
Rahul Chodha, Corporate
Communications Manager
Michelin India Tyres Private Limited
VGSoM, IIT kharagour has set a unique
example of giving back to the society
and inculcating a culture of social and
environmental sustainability
Mou Chakraborty, Principal
correspondent
Hindustan Times
We look forward for the next opportunity
to perform at IIT Kharagpur.
Rishab Dhar,
Musician,
Fingerprints
28
I would like to thank you for the
wonderful hospitality extended to me and
my family. Good forum and should be
held as a yearly event; theme well
appreciated.
Soumitra Poddar, Principal
Consultant
IBM GBS Global Delivery
I extend my heartiest thanks for inviting
me to participate in the panel discussion
on sustainable development. There have
been many takeaways for the faculty,
students as well as the panelists in terms
of understanding corporate social
responsibility & sustainability, need for
upgradation of regulatory standards in
Indian situation and more specially the
role of youth towards balancing
ecosystems and economic development.
I look forward to a sustained relationship
with team Saamanjasya.
Jayanti Datt, AGM (Community
Services)
TATA Motors
 Heartfelt Testimonies
Saamanjasya was a great experience for
ISF, and we appreciate the efforts that
went into the event.
ISF too is looking forward to a long term
relationship with IIT-Kharagpur.
Monce C. Abraham, Programme
Manager
The India Sponsor Foundation
Thank you VGSoM and Team Saamanjasya
for giving us the chance to interact with the
youth and seek their enthusiastic
suggestions. I am very sure that we would
want to take this association to the next
level of involvement- both online and on-
site.
Aprajita Suman
Oxfam India
I thank you very much for the invitation to
be a panellist in the leadership summit. It
was indeed an inspiring session.
Sunil Kumar, Senior Environment
Specialist
ITC
Thanks for creating an opportunity for the
closer interaction across sector –
business, NGOs and youth – which has
initiated a thinking towards meaningful
collaboration. It was indeed inspiring to
see the energy at the campus and
keenness amongst you all to support the
campaign. We had a great time
interacting with students at the
presentation session which reflected
great efforts at engaging with the issue of
child survival.
Save the Children will continue to
engage with you on the issue through our
campaign and campaign action to feel
fun and engaging and have it create a
cool buzz rather than be seen as yet
another NGO activity.
Pragya Vats , Campaign Manager
SAVE THE CHILDREN, INDIA
29
 Th e Peo p l e w h o m ad e Saam an j as y a
possible Mohammad Mudasser
VGSoM Class of 2011

“It is amazing how much you can accomplish

efforts bore fruit as Kalakaar Vikaas was one of
when it doesn't matter who gets the credit.”
the most appreciated events of Saamanjasya.
Saamanjasya started with such a philosophy
Debesh Majumdar, Shubham Chattopadhyay,
and concluded with the same essence. The
Vaibhav Gupta and Renjith Peediackal headed
individualistic approach doesn't lead to a path
“Vichaar”. It was an event where eminent
worth treading and with this space, I want to
dignitaries graced us with their presence. It was
thank people who worked tirelessly and made
of paramount importance that the arrangements
dream “Saamanjasya” turn into a magnificent
were spot on. Through the team's hard work, the
reality.
event turned out to be a great success. The
To start off, Ashish Doneria and Anuj Chugh did
responsibility of Parishram was shouldered by
most of the pre-event planning. They were
Abhishek Gupta, Anuj Yadav and Ritesh Sinha.
instrumental in the kick-off of the event and
Perhaps they dealt with the most number of
never let the event go off the track till last. Amit
people. From participants' hospitality to looking
Sarangal was the unsung hero. He headed the
after NGO representatives, they performed their
logistics and did all the running around. To give
job with excellence. Team “Wired” was
him company were Ravi Shankar and Abhijeet
represented by Ravinder Dhillon, Mohamed
Mohan Shrivastav. These back end works are
Abdullah and Aditya Zutshi. Their prowess with
perhaps the most difficult and time consuming.
social networking space came in handy and the
Vipin Dutt as Hospitality in-charge was one of
event turned out to be a major hit with around
the main reasons of our guest going back happy
200 teams registering for it. Team “Shikshan”
and satisfied.
was represented by Amrish Mani Tiwari, Ann
Jatin Grover, Aditya Kulkarni and Swati Arora
Thomas, Sushant Kumar, Sriramagiri Srikanth
were the corporate and NGO Liasons for
and Shailender Singh Negi. They organized
Saamanjasya. They were the people who
“Green Tyres” and “Water Conservation”
convinced people to get associated with
workshops and very smoothly at that.
Saamanjasya and roped in biggies like Michelin
Aakashdeep, Kunal Choudhary and Swapnil
and HCCB. Ideas without resources remain just
Hedaoo also proved their worth as they
an idea. These people actually gave a
managed the overall auditorium and backstage
foundation for that idea to turn into an actuality.
work. Kumar Bipallav Mani and Aditya Kulkarni
PR and Media was another important area we
were the web site coordinators for Saamanjasya
had to focus, to make our voices reach
website.
maximum number of people. Mohammad
Lastly, two people deserve special mention.
Mudasser, Ravinder Pal Singh Dhillon and
Ambuj Agarwal and Mohamed Abdullah. Without
Ashish Rahul managed to rope in big names
any professional designer at our helm, these two
like Hindustan Times, Doordarshan and All
guys took the responsibility of designing all the
India radio to cover Saamanjasya. Mantu
posters, banners and advertisements working
Kumar Murmu ,Sujeeth Ungratwar Shashikant
tirelessly under strict deadlines. Hats off!!
handled the local publicity part very ably.
Success is journey, not a destination. And
Rohit Khandelwal and Vaibhav Shrimani were
hoping such a team shoulders the responsibility
the backbone of “Kalakaar Vikaas”. These
of coming Saamanjasya, we hope the journey of
people, along with Abhirup Das and Devdut
joy would continue. Striving for more, the bigger,
Saha travelled to the interiors of Bengal to look
the better!!
for people with genuine creativity. All their

30
 Photo Gallery: Down the memory lane

Fingerprints performing at the

Saamanjasya inauguration
ceremony

Lighting of the lamp

People flocking KV stalls to

see the artisans work.

Be friendly to the environment.

Michelin representatives telling about
Green tyres.

31
 Photo Gallery: Down the memory lane

Vichaar: The panel

discussion on Social and
Environment
Sustainability.

Participants in deep thought while

attending the Water Conservation
Workshop by HCCBPL

Winners of Parishram with the

Director of IIT Kharagpur

Kalakaar Vikaas exhibitors in

conversation with faculty of IIT
Kharagpur to explore different
sources of funds and revenue.

32
The People who supported Us
 Designed by: Ambuj Agarwal (ambujagarwal007@gmail.com) and Sushant Kumar(sushantnit@gmail.com)

Vinod Gupta School of Management,

Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur,
India - 721302.

Phone : +91 3222 282295 / 282297 / 278027

Fax : +91 3222 283874 / 278027