“This feeling is great. I feel honoured at the recognition,” says Vijayaragavan Gopal, Head of the Youth Leadership Programme, Shanti Ashram. The institution recently received three awards at the Global Awards by Arigatou, an International global NGO which brings people of diverse cultural and religious backgrounds together to build a better world for children. The awards are in the catogories— the most committed trainer, facilitator and the most inspiring children-led project and will include a certificate, a shield and cash prize.
“There were applications from 15 countries. Ours is the only institution from India to receive this award. We provide value education to the public.” While the most committed trainer award is bagged by Vijayaragavan himself, the most committed facilitator award is received by Kaviya Balaguruswamy and Ravichandran Rangasamy, both of them trained by Vijayaragavan. “Kaviya is pursuing a PhD in Zoology and Ravichandran is into agriculture. They are in charge of the sessions and workshops for the kids.”
The most inspired child-led-project their food bank initiative. “It started in 2007. Arun, a class VII student wanted to do something for society. He started by collecting a fistful of rice from homes in his neighbourhood. He collected 22 kg of rice and we distributed it among families affected by HIV in the city. Slowly more students and centres joined in this project. Today, we collect around 500 kg of rice every month and distribute it to elders, deserted people and families with HIV.”
The application process for the award was in September. “We were asked to send a three-minute video about ourselves and our work. I have been associated with the project from 2006 and am one of the four international trainers from our country. The news that we received three awards came as a sweet surprise,” says Vijayaragavan.
