Bhumi Annual Report 2009-2010

Bhumi: Annual Report 2009 – 2010

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Contents

About Us ................................................................................................................................................................ 3

Governance Details of the Executive Committee.................................................................................................. 4

Financial Report 2008 – 2009 ................................................................................................................................ 5

Make a Difference ................................................................................................................................................. 7

Kanini ................................................................................................................................................................... 10

Little Einsteins ...................................................................................................................................................... 13

Dronacharya & Ekalavya ...................................................................................................................................... 15

Think Green ......................................................................................................................................................... 17

Joy to the World .................................................................................................................................................. 18

Siragugal .............................................................................................................................................................. 20


About Us

Introduction:

Bhumi is an independent youth volunteer non-profit organisation – the largest in Chennai. Bhumi was started on August 15, 2006 by a small group of young friends with a strong passion to change society as it is today and build a better India for tomorrow. Volunteers comprising college students and young working professionals are trained and placed at children’s homes, slum or village community centres to teach under-privileged children two hours every week.

Bhumi is registered under the Tamil Nadu Societies act Reg: 234/2006 (Dt. 13.11.2006) All contributions to Bhumi from 04.01.2010 onwards are exempted from tax under section 80G of the Income Tax act vide order DIT(E) No.2(966)09-10 (Dt. 24.06.2010)

Vision: To help build a more influential, equal and socially conscious society

Mission:

To bridge the societal gap by providing quality education to the under-privileged

To provide a platform for socially conscious youth wanting to contribute to the nation's inclusive progress and to mould them into tomorrow’s leaders

To turn youth into Climate Messengers and fight climate change through citizen level initiatives

Geographical presence: Chennai, Thiruvallur and Kanchipuram districts of the state of Tamil Nadu, India

Project wise beneficiaries:

Projects Beneficiaries – Children

Make a Difference 448 Kanini 364 Dronacharya & Ekalavya 22 Little Einsteins 47 Joy to the World 735 Siragugal 796

TOTAL 1,675*

*Some children benefit from more than one project, hence the total beneficiaries is less than the sum total of each individual project. Number of volunteers enrolled in 2009 - 2010: 797 Total number of volunteers enrolled since 2007: 1,236 Number of actively contributing volunteers: 202


Governance:

Details of the Executive Committee (as on 31.03.2010)

Name Age & Sex Position Occupation Meeting attendance

Mr. Prakash Selvaraj 24, M President Software Engineer 13/13 Dr. Prahalathan K.K. 27, M Vice President Doctor - Ophthalmologist 13/13 Ms. Vaishnavi Srinivasan 23, F General Secretary Operational Research Analyst 13/13 Mr. Vivek Agrawal 27, M Joint Secretary Systems Engineer 13/13 Mr. Ayyanar Ezhumalai 24, M Treasurer Software Engineer 10/13 Ms. Mini Jain 24, F Executive Member Software Engineer 10/13 Mr. Mallieswaran 24, M Executive Member Software Engineer 13/13

The Executive Committee of Bhumi met 13 times in the FY 2009-10; the minutes of Board meetings are

documented and circulated.

Regular elections are held to the Executive Committee every three years as per the TN Societies Act.

The Executive committee approves programmes, budgets, annual activity reports and audited financial

statements. The committee ensures the organisation’s compliance with laws and regulations.

Accountability & Transparency:

No remuneration, sitting fees or any other form of compensation has been paid since the inception of the

society to any committee member.

No reimbursements have been made to any executive member for any national or international travel.

Number of Staff employed: NIL

Affiliations:

Bhumi is a member of Confederation of Indian Organisations for Service and Advocacy (CIOSA)

Bhumi is a member of Credibility Alliance

Bhumi has partnered with Make a Difference, Cochin for the implementation of the MAD programme in

the region.

Bhumi is associated with Nizhal in their initiatives to conserve the environment.

Bhumi is not affiliated to any religious or political organisation in any way.


Financial Report 2008 – 2009

Bankers (Main): State Bank of India, Royapettah Branch, 213, Royapettah high road, Chennai - 14

Auditors: Ramkumar R & Associates, 19, South Canal Bank 2nd Street, Mandaveli, Chennai - 28


Make a Difference

Introduction:

Make a Difference (MAD) aims to fill the gaps in the present education system by helping children develop basic

English language skills. Bearing in mind the very little exposure these underprivileged children get, the transition

from higher secondary to college is challenging. With lessons primarily in English, they begin to struggle, and in

many a case the overall performance of a child goes down. MAD provides children with the skills to read, speak

and write English through games, stories, worksheets, puzzles and much more, thereby contributing towards

their holistic development and continued higher education.

Centre Details:

S No Centre Name Type Location No. of Volunteers

No. of Children

1 Anbu Karangal Children’s Home

Thiruvanmiyur, Chennai

13 37

2 Bala Mandir Kamaraj Trust

Children’s Home

T Nagar, Chennai 17 54

3 SAC Dr. P.V.Rao School

Children’s Home

R A Puram, Chennai

16 80

4 Karpagavalli Vidyalaya

School Mylapore, Chennai

14 63

5 Indian Council for Child Welfare

Children’s Home

Shenoy Nagar, Chennai

18 34

Total number of direct beneficiaries: 268 children

Total number of beneficiaries: 448 children

Bhumi Volunteer: Child Ratio – 1:5

Training:

EZ Vidya, a Chennai-based corporate involved in content development, collated a syllabus exclusively for MAD.

This syllabus, adapted from the Cambridge University, included challenging worksheets and interesting games

that kept the children engaged during class hours. The concept of an experienced teaching volunteer mentoring

a comparatively new teaching volunteer was introduced this year, and the team benefitted from monthly

interactions coordinated by these mentors.

Feedback:

This year, MAD developed and launched a complete internal social networking website for its volunteers to

confirm their attendance for classes, post feedback, interact across centres and cities, maintain child profiles,

etc. Our volunteers were able to record any information related to MAD meticulously, and the user-friendly

interface was much appreciated.


Structure:

While Operations is responsible for the weekly activities concerning the centres and volunteers, Training takes

care of the syllabus, trainers, and issues that volunteers face with teaching and during classes.


Corporate Social Responsibility:

Our second consecutive year with Cognizant Technology Solutions’ CSR team, Outreach kicked off with a training

session for 35 volunteers from the Pallikaranai and Perungudi facilities. Tips on executing the syllabus,

understanding and appreciating the children’s interests and incorporating games and stories to teach the

language were a few topics covered.

Achievements:

The baseline assessments conducted before and the progress assessments conducted after the academic year

by EZ Vidya revealed good progress in the children’s performance. While the overall test score was 82.1%, 64%

of the students scored above an average score of 33/40.

Plan for 2010-2011:

To expand the programme to at least seven centres and benefit at least 350 children.


Kanini

Introduction:

Kanini (meaning Computer in Tamil - the most important utility of our era), bridges the gap between classroom

teaching and career prospects. Starting from the basics of computers and gradually moving into programming

languages, Kanini also customises its packages to suit the needs and aptitude of the children. For instance, a

group of children from accounts learn Tally as part of their syllabus. The programme helps children improve

their knowledge in computers, thus helping them find a better place in society.

Centre Details:

S No Name of Centre Type Location No. of volunteers

No. of children

Class

1 AID Community Centre

Kottur, Chennai 04 12 11& 12

2 Anbu Karangal Children’s Home

Kottivakkam, Chennai

03 07 11& 12

3 Chinmaya Organisation for Rural Development

Community Centre

Thamaraipakkam, Thiruvallur

04 90 6 to 12

4 Government Corporation High School

School Thousand Lights, Chennai

06 29 9

5 Nightingale Educational Social Trust

Community Centre

Thirumullaivoyal, Thiruvallur

04 52 6 to 12

6 Pudiyador Community Center and Children’s Home

Ramavaram, Chennai

05 28 2 to 9

7 Roshini Home Children’s Home

Kovilambakkam, Chennai

08 18 6 to 11


Children’s Home

R A Puram, Chennai

09 20 10

9 Seva Barathi Tuition Center

Community Centre

Chrompet, Chennai

05 48 8 to 12

10 Veeraraghavan Memorial Trust

Community Centre

Pallavaram, Chennai

04 22 6 to 9

11 Welfare Educational Trust

Community Centre

Pallavaram, Chennai

08 38 6 to 12

Total number of direct beneficiaries: 364 children

Bhumi Volunteer: Child Ratio – 1:6


Structure:


Achievements:

Yamunadevi (a Class 12 pass-out from Nightingale Education Social Trust, Thirumullaivoyal) was able to find a job as a data entry operator after being part of the Kanini programme.

Children from Welfare Education Trust, Pallavaram got 80% and above in the computer subject at school.

Welfare Education Trust students were able to create animations using just Microsoft PowerPoint.

The expansion to five more centres in comparison to last year.

Plan for 2010-2011:

To expand the programme and help more children and to have a prescribed course content separately for both volunteers and children.

To customise further and cater to the needs based on the children’s interest.

Increase the number of centres especially in rural areas.


Little Einsteins

Introduction:

Little Einsteins aims at providing children an opportunity to learn mathematics and science through

experiments, puzzles, games and multimedia resources. It is an activity based learning program which makes

minimum use of blackboard. Assessment tests are conducted regularly to track progress of students.

Structure:

The children are divided into groups and each volunteer handles about five – seven children. The programme

assesses them periodically and the volunteers address the issues of every child separately.


Centre Details:

S No Name of Centre Type Location No. Of Children Class

1 Karpagavalli Vidyalaya

School Mylapore, Chennai

47 7 & 8

Total number of beneficiaries: 47

Total number of volunteers: 18

Volunteer student ratio: 1:5

Science Exhibition:

Siragugal is Bhumi’s annual inter-orphanage cultural fest where children from orphanages across the city

participate in various events. The Little Einsteins team organised a science exhibition for the children to increase

their interest in the nuances of science.

At the Exhibition, lots of “backyard science” experiments were gathered and the fundamentals of science were

demonstrated. There were a good number of charts and models exhibiting various phenomena.

Plan for 2010-11:

Expand to at least one more centre.

Stabilize the structure and syllabus to suit the needs of maximum children.

Make the Siragugal science exhibition bigger and better.


Dronacharya & Ekalavya

Introduction: Dronacharya & Ekalavya (formerly known as the Career Counselling programme) is a mentoring and skill building programme that helps children complete the cycle of growth by guiding them to focus on a career of their choice or need. The programme instils the confidence in children, thereby initiating the process of moulding them into

better citizens of tomorrow. This challenging and interesting task is accomplished by several teams working

in coordination.

S No Name of Centre Type Location No. Of Children Class


Children’s home RA Puram, Chennai

18 10

2 Indian Council for Child Welfare

Children’s home Shenoy Nagar, Chennai

6 10 & 12

Total number of beneficiaries: 22 children

Teams and Responsibilities: 1. Student Mentors

Collecting information about the children

Administering psychometric tests and personalised counselling

Training students on various life skills like personality development, inter-personal communication etc.


Identifying best fit based on aptitude and interest, recommending ideal career path

Supporting and equipping children with information and infrastructure

Connecting children with potential Sponsors

Continuous monitoring and feedback 2. Knowledge Management

Collecting and collating details of vocational courses & industry contacts

Details of scholarships, bank loans and procedures Trainers:

Creative Communication and Management Center : Dr.Sumathi Narayanan, PhD in Human Development, Department of Psychology, University of Madras

Plan for 2010 - 2011:

To mentor the students more effectively and ensure appropriate decision making by them for their

career

Connect students with various sponsors and assist them with continuation of higher studies

Develop leadership qualities in volunteers.


Think Green

Introduction:

Think Green is an initiative to turn youth into Climate Messengers and to fight global warming through citizen level initiatives. This project encourages people to plant saplings of their choice in their localities. A preliminary study is done to identify trees that would adapt to the conditions of the area. Continuous care of the trees planted emphasises our collective commitment to provide the current and future generations with a green and safe environment. ‘Free the Tree’ Campaign (FTC), in association with Nizhal is a regular activity to remove billboard/poster nails

from trees and urge advertisers not to continue this harmful activity.

Implemented at:

Developing the Tree Park, Kotturpuram, Chennai – Our volunteers spent almost every Sunday evening planting, manur-ing and maintaining the 200 saplings

Free the Tree Campaign on Sardar Patel Road

Additional saplings were planted at PS Higher Secondary School, Mandaveli.


Joy to the World

Introduction:

Joy to the world (JTW) initiative connects lesser-privileged children with employees of several leading companies

who help make small wishes of these children come true. During this season, children were made to write their

wish in a wish card, and the filled cards were then distributed to donors willing to fulfil those wishes. The gifts

were then distributed during the weekends of Christmas and New Year 2009-2010.

Beneficiaries:

S No Name of Centre Type Location No of Children

1 Anbu Karangal Children’s Home Thiruvanmiyur, Chennai 78 2 Gandhiji Rehabilitation Center Children’s Home Pattabiram, Thiruvallur 22 3 SAC Dr. P.V.Rao High School Children’s Home R A Puram, Chennai 85 4 Sathya Jyothi Home Children’s Home Kanchipuram 50 5 Thiruvalluvar Gurukulam Children’s Home Kanchipuram 246 6 Thiruvalluvar Home for girls Children’s Home Kanchipuram 80 7 Roshini Home Children’s Home Kovilambakkam, Chennai 39 8 Jeroham Children’s Home Keezhkattalai, Chennai 32 9 Pudiyador Community Centre Ramapuram, Chennai 35

10 Nightingale Educational Social Trust

Community Centre Thirumullaivoyal, Thiruvallur

50

11 Chinmaya Organisation for Rural Development

Community Centre Thamaraipakkam, Thiruvallur

18

Total number of beneficiaries: 735 Children

Participant Companies*:

S No Name of Centre Location

1 Cognizant Technological Solutions MEPZ 2 HCL Technologies Purasawalkam, Guindy 3 Cybernet Slash Support Alwarpet 4 FLSmidth Kelambakkam 5 Danfoss Sholinganallur 6 Tata Consultancy Services Siruseri, Karapakkam, Sholinganallur, Velachery and Lloyds Road, *Employees of the companies


Achievements:

Joy to the world saw a 300% increase in the number of children benefited by this initiative compared to the

previous year. In 2009-2010, eleven centres compared to six last year, including three in Kanchipuram district

were covered.

Plan for 2010-2011:

To reach out to at least 1,500 children.

To simplify the process of distributing wish cards to companies by creating an online application to select any of

the wish cards.


Siragugal

Introduction:

Siragugal is Bhumi’s annual inter-orphanage art, literary, cultural and science talent festival. The first edition of

this extravaganza was held on 15th November 2009 at Chinmaya Vidyalaya, Kilpauk.

Chief Guests:

While Ms. Archana Raghuram (Cognizant Outreach), Mr. Kannan (Chinmaya Organisation for Rural

Development), and playback singer Mr. Mukesh inaugurated the function, ‘Food King’ Mr. Sarath Babu delivered

an inspirational speech at the valedictory function.

The Event:

Solo/group song, solo/group dance, quiz, English and Tamil elocution, Tamil essay writing, Tamil poetry,

drawing-painting, mimicry and mono-acting were a few of the many event conducted. From the traditional villu

paatu during the group song event, to many enthusiastic children drawing and painting their message to society

(“Say no to child labour”, “Give life by donating blood”, “Educate children” and the like), Siragugal ’09 brought

out the amazing creativity and innocent thoughts hidden deep within these children.

The Science Exhibition had models prepared by the volunteers of the Little Einsteins team and the children of

the participating homes, who actively explained scientific concepts to the other children.


Entertainment:

Siragugal was also peppered with ample entertainment and fun. Apart from a theatre workshop for the children

by professionals, the Magic show and game stalls like balloon shooting kept the children occupied when they

were not competing.

Beneficiaries:

796 children from 26 homes across Chennai, Thiruvallur and Kanchipuram districts participated in 16

competitions and the Science Exhibition.

Aadhiswarar Home, Mudichur Nalmanam, Villivakkam

Adi Dravida Samooga Sevagar Sangam,

Old Washermanpet

Nesakkaram Seeds, Cholavaram

Anbagam Street Children Care Centre,

St. Thomas Mount

Open Door Children’s & Community Centre,

Manali

Annai Bharathamatha Educational trust, Red Hills Parisu Trust Child Development Centre,

Mogappair

Annai Trust, Gummudipoondi SAC Dr.P.V.Rao Children’s Home, RA Puram

Bala Mandir Kamaraj Trust, T Nagar Roshini Home, Kovilambakkam

Bharatha Matha School, Vyasarpadi Sathiya Jyothi Destitute Home, Kanchipuram

Child Children's Home, Korattur Siragu Montessori School, Avadi

Ebenezer Home Of Social Outreaches, Kolapanjeri SISTWA, Saidapet

Good Life Centre, Tambaram Sree Sarada Sevasramam, Manivakkam

Indian Council for Child Welfare, Shenoy Nagar St. Thomas Orphanage, Vyasarpadi

Maranatha Intermission children's home,

Palaniputtur Post

Swami Charitable Trust, Mugalivakkam

Mottukkal Good Shepherd Convent, Nungambakkam Webbs Memorial Orphanage,

St. Thomas Mount

Plan for 2010-2011:

Bring together at least 1,000 children from around the city and create a platform with more such events that will

expose them better and tap their true potentials.


13 / 1, Cenotaph Road, First Lane Teynampet

Chennai – 600 059 www.bhumichennai.org

98408-68441 / 98942-09741

Bhumi Annual Report 2009-2010

Documents

Transcript of Bhumi Annual Report 2009-2010