Our college campuses have rarely shied away from giving back to the society, especially through the National Service Scheme (NSS) units. The activities of NSS range from blood donation and fund raising to cleaning drives and eco-friendly initiatives; the NSS unit of Lal Bahadur Shastri Institute of Technology for Women (LBSITW), Poojappura, being a prime example.
One of NSS’ major initiatives was a blood donation drive, through which they donated 75 units of blood to institutions such as the Regional Cancer Centre and the Kerala Aids Control Society. Another programme was in association with Amritavarshini, a city-based organisation which supports people suffering from Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI). This rare genetic disordermakes bones brittle. “On Friendship Day, Amritavarshini made friendship bands. We sold those bands on our campus and the money collected, nearly Rs. 4,000, was given to the organisation,” says Jain George Thomas, student coordinator of the NSS unit. The unit has 125 members and programme officer of the unit is Sajith P.
Another ongoing programme is the collection and distribution of old clothes to a host of institutions. “We collect old clothes from the students and every Friday members of the NSS wash and dry them on the campus. We’ve already given the clothes to Mahila Mandiram in Poojappura,” says Jain.
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On September 28, as part of the college’s two-day annual arts fete, the unit members put up a food stall and the amount collected is to be donated to Ward No.9 of the General Hospital in the city. “We bought 10 kg tapioca and boiled it on the campus. The students bought green chilli chutney from their homes. The item was sold out in no time. Students bought other snacks items such as cakes, gulab jamun, kesari and unniappams from their homes,” she adds.
The unit is all geared up to be part of the Joy of Giving Week observed from October 2 to 8 across India, which calls for volunteering for five hours at a stretch or one hour a day for the five days of the week. On October 2, Gandhi Jayanthi day, the unit is set for a clean up drive in Poojappura. “Since the City Corporation is commissioning the mobile incinerator to tackle plastic menace, we are also planning to collect plastic for recycling. Also, if we get funds we hope to collect plastic waste and hand it over to a shredding unit at Nagercoil,” Jain says. Lead the way, girls!