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The things we hold on to

General

Last month, while looking for something on a high shelf, a carton fell on my foot. Fortunately it wasn’t very heavy. When I looked inside I found half a dozen photo albums. We had forgotten about them entirely. Much excitement ensued as we flipped through the photographs, a few of which were from the late 1940s. Some of the people in those photos are dressed in European clothes, hats and sticks including. Others are in Indian clothes, sherwanis, churidars and all. The ladies are all in saris. Some of those photos were taken in large halls that had animal heads on the wall. I am pretty certain that the photos weren’t taken at our house. My father was a civil servant and never lived in such a big house and there was no question of animal heads on walls.

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Kolkata Rotarians take up the battle to prevent cervical cancer in girls

Projects

One Rotarian in Kolkata losing his wife to cancer some 15 years ago has resulted in an impressive programme to vaccinate a few thousand girls against cervical cancer in West Bengal. In an initiative powered by the Rotary Club of Belur, West ­Bengal, RI District 3291. And supported by some other clubs in the Howrah region, Rotarians are reaching out to protect school girls from the scourge of cervical cancer.

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Reducing your plastic footprint

Go Green

The world is too plastic-dependent to expect a complete ban on the mouldable ‘wonder’ polymer. Indeed, any government would think twice before making such a rash decision. This is because plastic has varied uses, including in medical devices, automobile spare parts, plumbing, sewage systems, packaging, construction material, furniture, toys, shopping bags, clothes, cosmetics and much more. And since a cheaper and viable alternative is not yet on the horizon, annual global plastic production is estimated to reach 1.3 billion tonnes by 2060. However, a serious effort is being made to cut its consumption.

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Making books for children

Wordsworld

Children’s Books: An Indian Story is a treasure for those interested in Indian literature, whether total immersion or a toehold; whether writers, readers, teachers, editors or publishers. It’s an erudite perspective on aspects of our kidlit (children’s literature), which is attracting more and more attention because of its interesting history, our super-multi-cultural people and layered social issues. An awesome task, achieved with excellence by two doyens in this arena, Shailaja Menon and Sandhya Rao. The range and breadth of the subject require minds that are both learned and creative, both characteristics of Shailaja and Sandhya’s characters and works.

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A computer centre empowers youth

Projects

In 2023, Bharat Daga, then president of the Rotary Club of Raipur, RID 3261, turned his vision into reality by setting up a computer centre at the Amilidih Government School in Raipur, Chhattisgarh. “Most students here come from impoverished backgrounds; their parents are daily wagers, street vendors or domestic workers. Despite having 2,000 students, the school lacked a computer lab or digital classroom. Our club was determined to change that, and empower these children with skills needed for a brighter future,” he says.

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Rotary responds to USAID funding freeze, withdrawal from WHO

News

Rotary International has stated that irrespective of the US government’s intention to withdraw from the WHO, a partner in the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), it remains “resolute in our mission to eradicate polio. As a founding partner of the GPEI, Rotary has for decades worked closely with GPEI partners, the US government, and other governments to end polio worldwide.” This effort has reduced the number of children paralysed by polio by 99.9 per cent since 1988. The global effort to eradicate polio has innovated many times over the years to come close to protecting every last child.

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