Vol 1 | Issue 1 september 2011 A MonthLY newsLetter InspIre > Involve > Transform O n 15th August, this year, when India celebrated its 65th Independence Day, a non decrepit centre at Nehru Nagar in Delhi opened doors of economic empowerment for the youth. The day marked the beginning of ‘Training of the Trainer’ (TOT) program for this centre, whereby 25 members of academic institute ‘Samarth Shiksha Samiti’ were groomed to become Master Trainers (MTs), who would in turn impart entrepreneurship training to the youth. The MTs were honed by I Create, a partner in Nation Building Projects of Pan IIT Alumni. This was I Create’s 10th training centre— a stamp of its mounting popularity, 12 years after it was flagged off. Says Ulhas Kamat, CEO, I Create, “So far, we have trained over 1,000 MTs, while 30,000 have gone through our entrepreneurship awareness program. Over 6,500 have participated in full entrepreneurship workshops and more than 1,400 have been successful in starting their entrepreneurial journey, whether it is in tailoring, catering, fast food joints, repair shops, beauty parlours or maid service.” The Journey So Far Distressed by the high level of unemployment in the lower strata of society, US-based Harsh Bhargava and his wife Aruna decided to start an organization in India that would help create jobs through entrepreneurship training. As part of Harvard Business School Alumni outreach program, Harsh had volunteered to help Network For Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE), and was convinced that the NFTE training would also help disadvantaged Indian youth to become entrepreneurs and acquire employability skills. He adopted the NFTE program for India to start I Create in 1999. While the plan was to initiate the first I Create centre in Jaipur, their home town, dearth of funds posed a hurdle. With the help of a friend, they reached out to Dr Pur nendu Chatterjee, an alumnus of IIT Kharagpur and the Founder and Chairman of The Chatterjee Group (TCG). Dr Chatterjee readily agreed to fund the novel social initiative and thus two I Create centres were unveiled in Kolkata and Jaipur in quick succession. Tutoring unemployed youth, urban poor to tribal, abused and helpless women, and school and college drop outs to kick start their own business is fraught with challenges. However, the three-to-five-day training program helps sail over such obstacles by simplifying the process of training. The training entails helping participants identify their areas of interest, screening business ideas, transforming ideas into profitable business ventures, along with follow-ups and continuous mentoring. “In many cases, we have helped them get bank loans,” informs Kamat. Widening Avenue Head-quartered in Bengaluru, I Create India was registered as a trust only in 2009 and since then it has proliferated rapidly, starting centres in Rajkot, Hubli, Bengaluru, Delhi and Mumbai, in addition to centres in Kolkata, Jaipur and Baroda. While the prime focus is to reach out to the underprivileged class, I Create also conducts entrepreneurship courses in schools and colleges. “We want to ‘Chart’ing out Careers Starting with a sole entrepreneursh ip training centre in Kolkata, I Create has rolled out 10 centres that have honed 6,500 underprivileged youth and women to embark on their entrepreneurial journey. I Will Impacttraces the journey of this social enterprise It was a moment of pride and glory for I Create, when on 3rd August, 2011, Former President of India Dr APJ Abdul Kalam — in his address at the National Seminar on Skill Development — extolled I Create for its entrepreneurship training. He cited the example of an unemployed youth, a school drop-out from a village in Bengal, who today has established a Rs-10-crore business empire. “Entrepreneurship incubation institutions need to be developed all over India and the developing world,” Kalam had said in his speech. A participant gives business plan presentation as part oEntrepreneurship Training Program Kalam Extols I Create I Create has helped more than 1,400 participants to successfully start their entrepreneurial journey ulhas Kamat CEO, I Create Continued on page 2
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centre is located off the busy NH-8, a mere three-
hour drive from New Delhi. I was simply not ready for
what I was about to experience!
The Gurukul campus provided only some basic
amenities, yet it was complete in all respects.
Located on a 500-square-yard plot, it is housed in
a two-storeyed ‘pucca’ building. It has a classroom-
cum-recreation room that has a carom board, a
dining room, a dormitory and a kitchen. There is a TV
and a DVD player, while Kalyan brought along some
good DVDs and movies. This entire set-up is manned
by a lean five-man team, essentially ex-servicemen.
The Trainees: Naive Yet OptimisticThe centre is imparting driving training to 25-odd
youth, who receive training on an adjoining driving
track with two Qualis. The trainees displayed great
enthusiasm about their new profession. After the
brief introductions, I found them sneaking out,
exploring the features of our Innova car and in earnest
discussions with our driver.The trainees, all Dalits, had come from diverse
locations-- from Banswara in Rajasthan to Nagpur
in Maharashtra. They had barely one or no other
earning member in their family. Their families either
possessed non-agricultural land or were landless.
They had either nil income or anyway less than Rs
2,000 per month; many were deeply entrenched
under the spiralling cycle of debt. Some of them
had also witnessed suicides in their villages due to
poverty and debt.
Barely class eight pass, none of them had driven
an automotive vehicle before. Their knowledge about
their country and its people was abysmal. They had no
idea about who Gandhiji was, had never ever heard
of Sachin Tendulkar or Shah Ruh Khan. They had not
seen a TV set in their life. Yet, their heart was brimming
with the hope of a better living for their family.
We gave the trainees confidence-building advice
in the most simplistic and rustic way. Like with one
stroke of their joining the Gurukul, their journey of
progress in life had begun and that there would be
no dearth of jobs for them if they were hard working
and honest.
Low on Cost, High on EnthusiasmPARFI Gurukul model is a low cost, fit-for-purpose
training with the cost of training benchmarked with
one-month’s post-training salary. The Gurukul
charges Rs7,500 for a full time, residential and 45-
day driving training with Rs 6,500 assured job at
the end of it with 100 per cent micro- financing. This
makes it one of the lowest cost models in the country,enabled through the people behind the project who
are always high on enthusiasm, delivery and hope
and bring their ex-servicemen patriotic passion to
the forefront. Hats off to seven full-time young IITians
team at PARFI for providing the only ray of hope in
the lives of these youth and their families, integrating
them with the mainstream and making definite and
permanent changes in their lives!
Is it too much for us IITians to provide more active
support to such a noble project? I would most
certainly request all IITians, whether visiting or staying
in Delhi, to witness this transformation that has left anindelible impact on me. n
Anil Vij is Head, Government Project, PAN IIT
FocUS
After visiting PARFI’s Gurukul in Alwar for Independence Day celebrations,anil K vij seeks more active support from IITians for PARFI,
the nation-building arm of Pan IIT Alumni
IIT Kharagpur CollaboratesTo Set up Rs-1,000-Cr
Research InstituteIIT Kharagpur has entered into a
joint venture with Mani Bhaumik
Educational Foundation to start a
Rs-1,000-crore research institute in
Kolkata. The institute, to be located
near Ruby Hospital on the EM
Bypass, will be a research wing of
the IIT, where students can pursue
masters and doctoral programs.
The Kolkata-based ManiBhaumik Educational Foundationprovides full financial supportfor university education of overone hundred meritorious butunderprivileged students from rural
Bengal. Physicist Dr Mani Bhaumik,an alumnus of IIT Kharagpur andManaging Trustee, Mani BhaumikEducational Foundation, recentlymet chief minister MamataBanerjee to discuss the project.A land measuring 15 acres hasalready been acquired for theproject.--------------------------------------------IIT Delhi Alumni Association
Association (IITDAA) felicitatedfive distinguished alumni, who
have attained excellence in theirrespective fields, with IIT DelhiDistinguished Alumni Award forthe year 2011. The awardeeswere: Prof DP Agrawal, MTech(1972) and PhD (1978), IIT Delhiand now Chairman, UPSC;Ashok Belani, BTech, Electrical(1980-IIT Delhi), and President,Reservoir Characterization GroupSchlumberger Ltd; PatanjaliKeswani, BTech Electrical (1981-IIT Delhi), and now CMD, LemonTree Hotels; Anant Jhingran, B
Tech, Electrical (IIT Delhi), is theVice President and CTO, IBMCorporation; Dr Dinesh Manocha,BTech,CSE (1987- IIT Delhi), iswith Phi Delta/ Mathew Masonas a Distinguished Professor,University of North Carolina.While delivering a message to theawardees, Anil K Vij, ExecutiveCommittee, IITDAA and HeadGovernment Projects – Pan IIT,said, “This award is a testimony toyour extraordinary achievementsand excellence in your chosendomains and your perseverance in
rising above the challenges facedby you. IIT Students, IITD, IITDAAand PANIIT decidedly deserve tobe guided by you in our respectiveendeavours.”
At a Glance
Anil Vij with trainees on the occasion o IndependenceDay at PARFI’s Gurukul in AlwarAnil Vij in a motivational session with the trainees
My AppealWe must provide hope to these PARFI folks— to sustain the
hope they are bringing in the otherwise dark and hopeless
lives of our underprivileged brothers and sisters.
We Pan IITians proudly strive to match Bill Gates in theprofessional world. Yet, why do feel shy to match the Bill &
Melinda Gates Foundation?
What is our contribution and support? To contribute to the