RID Manoj inspires DGEs

Cool Kodaikanal in Tamil Nadu played host to the District Governors Elect of Rotary India for a Leadership Meet from July 31–August 2. All 38 DGEs along with their spouses participated in the Meet hosted by D 3000.

Chief guest RI Director Manoj Desai, in his keynote, called for novelty and innovation from the DGEs whom he fondly refers to as Smiling Sheriffs. “Innovate or evaporate,” was his mantra. He asked them to rise above the conventional mindset and transform themselves to fit into the changing world scenario. “Otherwise, you will be swept out to the sidelines by the forces of change,” he said. His call for introspection made the District leaders think about exploring ways of non-conventional interventions to address challenges in their District.

Presentations

The DGEs spelt out the priorities for their Districts. They found the orientation sessions on Rotary topics such as TRF, Public Image and WinS informative. While DGE ­Shyamashree Sen (D 3291) shed light on Strategic Planning, T Shanmugasundaram (D 2982) shared his thoughts on Global and District Grants, Sharat Jain (D-3012) spoke about WinS, Dr K Vijayakumar (D 3212) on PR and image building. Gopal Rai Mandhania (D 3140) appealed to the DGEs to create awareness among the public about organ donation and suggested they take it up as a pan-India initiative.

Spouses Training

The spouses were not left behind, with Desai’s wife Sharmishtha conducting a session for them.

Fun evenings

Fellowship and fun were further extended in the evenings with games, music and dance, where the DGEs and their spouses participated with gusto, strengthening their rapport and creating moments to be cherished. They were given a taste of Tamil Nadu’s folk art and traditions when a professional troupe performed dances such as Oyilattam, Thevarattam, Karagattam, Poikkalattam and Thappattam.

The next Meet will tentatively be held at Agra, during 2016–17, their official year of Governorship.

(The writer is DGE of D 3000)