A mega Raahat camp in MP
Chartered accountant
RC Bhiwadi, RID 3053
As chartered accountant, Brij Agarwal handles a large number of corporate portfolios, and believes that “Rotary has got the most transparent and reliable Foundation in the world. This organisation is the best place to serve communities.”
During his term, 4–5 new clubs with a net membership growth of 10 per cent is planned to take the numbers to 85 clubs and around 3,800 Rotarians by June 30. Medical equipment (GG: $35,000) was donated to the cardiology unit of Mathura Das Mathur Hospital, Jodhpur; and 8–10 check dams are being constructed (GG: $50,000) in the arid villages of Alwar and Jodhpur to meet the irrigation and drinking water needs of rural families. An HPV vaccination drive is reaching out to 5,000 school and college girls through 10–12 medical camps (CSR grant: ₹25 lakh) against cervical cancer.
Under its flagship Raahat programme, a week-long medical mission will be conducted either in Morena or Shivpuri in Madhya Pradesh in Feb-March 2027. Before the medical camp, “our teams will tour villages for two months to hold at least 250 preliminary tests to register patients,” says Agarwal. The mega Raahat camp is part-funded by MP government and RID 3060 which supports the event with doctors, equipment and volunteers. “Around 3,500 surgeries and over one lakh OPD examinations will be done at a project cost of ₹40 lakh at the camp.”
Agarwal, who joined Rotary in December 1998, aims to collect $300,000 for TRF.
A Rotary Blood Bank in Bidar
Petroleum retail
RC Anantapur Central, RID 3160
Ever since 2002, when Keshav Reddy joined Rotary, it has been a life-changing journey for him. “Every service project, each fellowship event, and every life we touch through our collective efforts has the power to transform communities,” he says. His target for net membership growth is 250, and he aims to charter 3–4 new clubs, which will take up their respective headcounts to over 2,850 Rotarians and around 85 Rotary clubs by June 30.
A Rotary Blood Bank will be set up in Bidar by January (GG: $30,000) to meet the growing demand of blood components among local hospitals; and to provide eco-friendly menstrual hygiene products to girls and rural women, “we will start a sanitary pad manufacturing unit (GG: $60,000) in Gulbarga. This plant, which will come up in 2–3 months, will be a boon to school and college students and villagers.” The district’s annual theme is ‘Champions for Change’ which, Reddy says, complements the RI’s theme, Creating lasting impact. “Every Rotarian in my district will be a catalyst for positive change, and this belief drives me to serve with passion, humility, and commitment every single day,” he explains.
RI’s global motto of Service above Self and its stewardship values (‘integrity’ is the word) inspire “me to dedicate my time, energy and resources to create meaningful change in society.” During his tenure, the district clubs will be doing 650–700 service projects, including GGs and CSR-funded programmes, worth ₹3.5–4 crore. He hopes to collect $100,000 for TRF.
Autos, sewing machines for women
Civil engineer
RC Ramnad, RID 3212
Comprising seven revenue districts of southern Tamil Nadu, RID 3212 had 124 clubs with 4,600 members in July. This DG hopes to start 12 new clubs, one every month, and induct at least 500 new Rotarians for the year,” says Gandhi Krishnan. He had instructed his clubs to come up with projects ideas for global grants, and “they are working on it.”
He has stitched up three signature projects for the year after consulting his executive team. First, sewing machines (sponsors+CSR fund: ₹60 lakh) are being given to over 1,000 underprivileged women who are skilled in tailoring to ensure a regular income for their families. Next, pink autorickshaws will be presented to 124 women (GG+CSR grants: ₹2.5 crore) once they had completed their “driver training given by a local NGO.” In a boost to public hygiene and sanitation, prefab toilets (GG+CSR grants: ₹1 crore) with overhead tanks will be installed at 100 rural homes which don’t have this basic amenity. “Rotary teams will identify beneficiary homes before the construction begins.”
For TRF-giving his target is $1.2 million. Krishnan was a Rotaractor in a community-based club since 1991 before he joined Rotary in 2000. “Friendship and service, the two pillars of Rotary, keep me motivated to excel in my voluntary work.” Now as DG, he says, “it is a great opportunity to lead my clubs, and we will take all efforts to achieve our goals in a time-bound manner,” he smiles.
Making cemeteries eco-friendly
Chartered accountant
RC Kanpur South, RID 3110
Happy to get involved in multifarious service projects, Jasbir Bhatia says, “I joined Rotary in 2002 to expand my reach, and seeing those smiling faces of beneficiaries, gives me enough motivation to continue my work in this organisation.” Comprising Uttarakhand and parts of western Uttar Pradesh, the district had 130 clubs and 3,600 members when he took over as governor. He is confident of forming 10 new clubs, and inducting 400 new Rotarians by June 30.
Around 400 water kiosks, each having an RO unit and a water cooler, are being set up (GG: ₹2 crore) across the revenue districts; 10 burial grounds will have special machines (GG: ₹4 crore) that will use eco-friendly tech to burn corpses. “These high-tech devices will consume just 20 per cent of wood and is pollution-free,” says Bhatia. Throughout the year, 200–250 medical camps are being hosted by local clubs, screening 25,000 patients with chronic ailments and other diseases. The medical camps worth ₹3.5 crore are funded by a mix of club donations, private sponsors and CSR grants.
On the literacy front, 20 Happy Schools projects will usher in an aesthetic makeover to government schools in rural areas by either setting up or upgrading gender-specific toilet blocks, revamping classroom facilities, taking up civil, plumbing work etc. The Happy Schools are funded by a mix of club donations and CSR grants valued at ₹1.5 crore. For TRF-giving, Bhatia aims to collect $500,000.