Note From President Shernaz Vakil
Today I stand upon the shoulders of many stalwarts before me. Presidents who have not only made the Bombay Club what it is today but also lead with moral authority and conviction. How can we continue with the same values – the values that make a true Rotarian – in a world that has become all about the prestige of wealth?
Then, a conversation that DGE Sandip Agarwalla had with Dean of Harvard Business School Nitin Nohria about moral humility was an epiphany. A spotlight on morality in the world today and the core values that should be guiding us – and it turns out that a Rotarian’s 4-way test with its emphasis on truth and fairness, goodwill and friendship, and a concern for the well-being of all, is the best moral compass we can follow.
This past year has been devastating to so many in our communities and we, at the Rotary, have shown great compassion and altruism in reaching out to them. President Framroze has taken these challenges on the chin, and led with equanimity, unfazed by the unpredictability and disruptions in our projects and plans.
Our response to the pandemic has not only been prompt, but it has also been far-reaching, with food, kits, medical equipment and even ICU monitors and beds, being rushed to the Covid-affected.
Thank you, Framroze, for your patient and collected approach to resolving problems and navigating a way through such uncharted waters. The Rotary Club of Bombay is indebted to you and your team for supporting all our projects through these trying times.
I would now like to congratulate our incoming team, the Board, and the Chairs, who have so willingly agreed to commit and work towards a special and meaningful year. I know the teams we have formed this year to lead and support the Club will have the moral humility and authority to work in a true spirit of integrity and purpose.
Today, the need for service is more compelling and more urgent. We will step up and work together to bring change in the lives of those marginalised by circumstances. We hope to work with a sense of engagement, meaning and strength of purpose and to support under-served communities.
This year, we do not have many new big-bang projects but continue to refine and serve some of the very worthy projects of this Club, by revisiting their original mandate, and seeing if we can tackle them more cost-effectively.
We have once again met with each of the NGOs that have supported us and without whom we could never have accomplished the reach and service we have. Together, we are looking at ways to be more cost-effective while balancing the needs of the projects with the resources available.
This year, Environment has been declared a new and major thrust area for Rotary International, and we hope to make maximum impact in this area. We plan to take up the development of an entire Gram Panchayat consisting of three villages where we would bring about sustainable transformation to the area and catapult the villagers out of poverty. Through this integrated village development initiative, we pivot solar power to provide clean green energy and water to the community impacting all facets of their life and livelihoods. Over 2000 villagers from 340 households in the Nilmati-Dandwal Gram Panchayat will be impacted.
We will try and involve our Rotaractors to propel our projects forward with their youth and enthusiasm.
Twelve years ago, our Club launched the widelyacclaimed Bhavishya Yaan programme aimed at making underprivileged children from our Municipal schools employable. It has done its job rather well. Now, I am pleased to announce what we call BY 2.0. An immersive, three-year, eight-module programme that will bring the knowledge of data analysis, artificial intelligence, and 3D printing to one Bhavishya Yaan school. In a world driven by technology our objective this time is to create a group of solution-oriented employees who will contribute to building the India of tomorrow.
Join us on this historic journey.
A new initiative that we plan is in the Rotary area of Peace and Conflict Resolution. The pandemic has revealed the inequalities in our communities and the need to come together to support and heal. We wish to start a new Peace Project initiative at our BMC schools called YAY Zindagee which will transform the values and attitudes of the participating children by enhancing their conflict resolution and problem-solving abilities, and focus on the core principles of peace, social justice, and thoughtful action.
We hope that by teaching our kids the need to value each other as humans first, we may be able to instill a sense of unity in the new generation. In addition, we are starting a mentoring centre, where our enthusiastic youngsters can be led into a more meaningful and employable future.
Bright and well deserving children from the 11th and 12th standards who aspire for professional and highly competitive degree courses will get part financial aid and assistance in joining online tutorial classes, to enable them to meet the demanding needs of further studies. This will be enabled through our tie-up with the Yasham Foundation.
To begin with, both these initiatives will start with our BY students as well as in the localities we serve, and hopefully expand in years to come to other youth.
Our special focus will be on the girl child, ensuring she has access to counselling, scholarships, and an economically-viable future. I know this is a project after your heart, RIP Shekhar, and I hope to follow it with passion. I, too, believe that when you empower a girl child through education, you empower humanity at large.
Talwada has always been close to our hearts for the specialised medical services we provide to the community.
This past Rotary year, we may not have been able to reach out to as many people as we would have liked to, but our
Rotarian doctors continue to visit and support those who come to the Centre.
Both ADMC and the PRVEC are due for major repair which is being initiated presently. In fact, a need assessment study
is being carried out to understand how we can better serve the community in these trying times. Talwada will always remain our Kohinoor initiative.
Our initiatives for child welfare, and the elderly will continue to operate in a safe and virtual way, till the pandemic fades away, and we can support these communities face-to-face as we have been doing over the years.
Our Water Committee will continue its extraordinary reach in providing safe drinking water and wash stations to schools in the rural areas, once again, with a focus to keep the girl child healthy. RCB is partnering with AKAH (Aga Khan Agency for Habitat) to facilitate and construct sanitation facilities, promoting hygienic and sustainable access to water in schools.
The Panchtattva project envisages the adoption of village Gale, Thane, Maharashtra, and its holistic development. In
the current year, the committee is developing a curriculum for environment studies for schools for students of standards 8 to 11. In addition, the committee will be planting a forest using the Miyawaki technique at the Mumbai University, Kalina Campus, whilst taking up beautification of the lake and gardens around it.
We, at the Rotary Club of Bombay, have so much influence and power to serve our communities. We are leaders who, together, can bring positive lasting change to so many around us. We need to use this strength to make the changes
that are necessary to help those that need our support by giving them the opportunity to help themselves.
All our strategies are aligned to this core value of providing opportunities to those that need it. Our plans are many. Our committees are empowered.
We now need you, our Rotarians, to join a committee where you feel you can make a difference and enjoy
the ability to make that difference.
The older Rotarians of our Club, who have remained with us over decades, have added great value to the Club. We
have always selected our members carefully, resulting in a particularly good retention rate. However, this past
year has been disruptive for many of our members. The digital format has replaced our Tuesday get-together and
fellowship, alienating many.
To address this and ease the financial burden on our older Rotarians, the Board has agreed that members of age 75 and
above and with 25 years of continuous membership in our club, would be exempt from membership fees. All RI and
District dues including magazine charges would continue to be paid.
This and some other measures like capping expenses on installations and introducing a new interactive digital bulletin, will keep our fees relevant to the difficult times. We hope not only to strengthen but grow the membership in our Club, and include the younger generation, with their ideals, and a strong desire to do good in their community.
The Club’s focus on supporting and developing women leaders, will continue, as they take on chairs of various
committees. We understand and appreciate that we are part of a global organisation that does great work all over the world with the passion and financial support of individuals and corporations. By contributing to TRF, we are empowering a global force for good. Our members have always been generous, and we hope to accelerate our
contributions this year.
The respect our Rotary organisation gets, comes from more than a hundred years of effective and sustainable projects.
We, at RCB, are not far behind coming up close to our own centenary.
And, in closing, let us remember the words of Kahlil Gibran who said,
It is well to give when asked, but it is better to give through understanding. Therefore, give now that the season of giving may be yours, and not your inheritors.
