Monday, August 24, 2009

Why am I a Rotarian?

This was the topic of the discussion at Rotary Club of Chandigarh's regular meeting today. Rtn. Pres. H.S. Saggu along with Rtn. PP Inderjit Singh, Rtn. H.S. Nanda, and Rtn. Neeraj Punj from Chandigarh Central, Rtn. PP B.L. Ramsisaria from Chandigarh Midtown, and Rtn. PE Arvind Mahajan from Rotary Club Chandigarh joined the panel for discussions. For more on the report please click here.

My special thanks to all the Rotarians who joined in these meaningful discussions and contributed their thoughts so effectively.

CJ

More Hands More Service

I am waiting for your Club's registration for participation in the Membership Development Seminar on August 30, 2009 at Yamunanagar.
Rotarians of host club, Jagadhri North, have made elaborate arrangements to welcome you but they would require your prompt response to make appropriate arrangements. I shall therefore appreciate if you can send the information about your representatives at the seminar in the following format please :

Name of Rotarian
Call Name
Club Name
Classification

Your quick response shall be deeply appreciated. Please send the complete list to host club President Rtn. Dr. Darshan Pal Bansal 098120 21838, or Registration Chair Rtn Ashwani Goel (098120 05400) with a copy to me.

The Registration fee is Rs.600 Single and Rs.1150 Couple.
Venue is Kamal Palace, Industrial Area, Yamunanagar.
Please be there by 9:00 am for Registration and Breakfast.
The Seminar shall be over with lunch.

Kindly respond.
CJ

Monday, August 17, 2009

Rotary United Nations Day

Rotary played a key role in setting up the United Nations. On 7th November 2009,
Rotary-United Nations Day is being celebrated in New York, USA.

The Saturday meeting is scheduled from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at UN Headquarters and will include presentations and panel discussions addressing Millennium Goals, and key humanitarian issues such as water, health, literacy, and hunger.

United Nations leaders, representatives from key nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and Rotary International leaders will all address the group. There will also be a separate youth program for Rotaractors and high-school age students. NOTE: UN building tours are not available on Saturday, so those interested in this should do so on Friday morning.

Advance registration is necessary by October 23rd for security reasons at rotary@teamvincent.com. Saturday meeting registration can be done on line at: www.eventbrite.com/event/383749806 Cost is US$37.50, which includes a box lunch.

Saturday, August 15, 2009

More Hands More Service

Any organisation exists, prospers, and serves effectively only because of its members. It is only members like you and me who are true ambassadors of our great organisation Rotary, its ideals of service, and its mission. Yet, as we move ahead, it is very essential to continue to strengthen our organisation by proposing new members, inducting them, and changing their lives too. Rotary values help us become better friends, ethical and honest professionals and business people, and better human beings who care for others.
To discuss these and many other issues, let us participate and express our views at the Membership Development Seminar on Sunday, 30th August at Kamal Palace, Industrial Area, Yamunanagar.
This half day event would discuss various aspects of membership development and retention.
The registration fee is Rs.550 (single) and Rs.1050 (couple) till 15th August. However, we shall accept the same fee till 17th August, Monday. The registration charges thereafter shall be Rs.600 and 1150 respectively.
Club Presidents in Zone 3 are requested to collect the dues and send the same on 17th August so that the names of participants can be sent to the organisers.
I shall appreciate your prompt response.
Best wishes. CJ

Kalyan Banerjee visits Chandigarh

It was a great day. On 13th August, the Rotarians in Chandigarh were privileged to meet with the nominee of the Rotary International nominating committee, Rtn. Kalyan Banerjee, who has been selected to lead the Rotary world for 2011-12.
Both Rtn. Kalyan Banerjee and Ann Binota were received at the airport by Past Rotary International President R.K. Saboo and Usha ji, District Governor Chetan Aggarwal, and later in the evening, a quick reception was organised in his honour at Hotel Taj, which was attended by most of the RI Officers of our District with their spouses, some of the Assistant Governors and District functionaries who could make it to the city at such a short notice.
Speaking on the occasion Past Rotary International President recalled his first meeting in Surat in December 1978 at the District Conference where he made an audio-visual presentation on the District activities. "He has grown taller in all those years, and has made India proud", he said.
"Kalyan has brought a special gift to all of us in India, as he would be touching the Rotarians around the world with Indian ethos and Indian culture," Rtn Saboo added.
Rtn. Kalyan Banerjee, humbly expressed his gratitude to all the Rotarians of District 3080 for his first "unofficial reception" since, he said, he is the nominee of the Rotary International President's Nominating Committee at the moment.
"We are however going to start a new chapter in Rotary life by meeting you all, here in a city where heart of Rotary resides, and for Binota and I, it is a pilgrimage to the Mecca of Rotary," Kalyan Banerjee remarked.
"I am sure that we would not have reached thismilestone in Rotary without Raja and Usha, who had been so humble, and when the announcement came, Raja called up to thank me for the perfect birthday gift that he received from me, which perfectly demonstrate his greatness as a true leader."
"I will look at the future with guidance of all Rotarians to meet the challenges of tomorrow," he concluded.
As a token of their gratitude, Rtn Kalyan Banerjee and Ann Binota presented shawl each to Past Rotary International President Raja Saboo and Usha.
On behalf of the District senior RI Officer, PDG Lakshmi Sagar, presented a beautifully carved idol of Ganesha to the couple.
It was momentous occasion to share those beautiful evening with Rtn. Kalyan Banerjee, whom District Governor Chetan Aggarwal described as a Savior, a dedicated humanitarian who is out to serve the humanity most befittingly, true to his name, "Kalyan".

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Kalyan Banerjee is third Indian to be the Rotary International President


Congratulations to the Rotary fraternity. The Rotary International has nominated

Rtn. Kalyan Banerjee of Vapi, Gujarat, to be the 3rd Indian to assume the leadership of Rotary world in 2011-12.

Our heartiest congratulations to Rtn. Pres. Kalyan Banerjee.
We had the opportunity of interacting with him at the installation of Rotary Club of Chandigarh's installation function of Rtn. Dr. S.K. Duggal for 2008-09 at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan.

Kalyan Banerjee will become the president-nominee on 1 October if there are no challenging candidates.

Banerjee said he would like to see Rotary "blossom from being the world's most recognized service organization to being the most important NGO [nongovernmental organization] in the world.

"Rotary, it is said, has the strength of a government and the tenderness of a parent," he added.

Banerjee is a director of United Phosphorus Limited, the largest agrochemical manufacturer in India, and the chair of United Phosphorus (Bangladesh) Limited. He is a member of the Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers and the American Chemical Society, a past president of Vapi Industries Association, and former chair of the Gujarat chapter of the Confederation of Indian Industry. He earned a degree in chemical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, in 1964.

Banerjee has served Rotary as a director, Rotary Foundation trustee, committee and task force chair, International Assembly group discussion leader, president's representative, and district governor.

The chair of the Southeast Asia Regional PolioPlus Committee, Banerjee has served as a member of the International PolioPlus Committee for many years and has attended international meetings with the World Health Organization and UNICEF in that capacity.

Banerjee is a Major Donor, Benefactor, and Bequest Society member, and has been awarded the Foundation's Citation for Meritorious Service and its Distinguished Service Award.

Banerjee also serves as a trustee of Rotary club-sponsored trusts that support many educational and community development programs in India, including a 250-bed hospital.

He noted that Rotary's strengths include its ability to attract leaders from different vocations around the world, as well as its role in promoting peace. "Rotary needs to become the preferred organization for today's generation to join and participate in, to make the world better and safer and happier," he said.

Banerjee's wife, Binota, is a social worker and Inner Wheel club member. The couple have two children and four grandchildren.

Saturday, August 8, 2009

'Departure Lounge'

Dear Rotary leaders:
You must have been reading about the dilapidated state of the cremation grounds in Chandigarh and Manimajra. In 2005-06 till 2007, Rotary Club of Chandigarh had undertaken a massive beautification drive in association with the Municipal Corporation in which our Club members participated actively to draw a layout plan, got green area developed, installed a tubewell, operationalised the electric crematorium, replaced the fans, etc.
However, the situation is back to square one and there are drastic changes that need to be done to bring about changes in these 'Departure Lounges' so that the family members who come here should experience dignity, peace, and emotional strength in these last hours of departure of their nears and dear ones.
I request all the Rotarian leadership in our Zone 3 to please come together and jointly take up the beautification of all cremation grounds in Chandigarh, Manimajra, and Panchkula.
We have the support of the Municipal Corporation Chandigarh and I am sure District Administration would definitely support this initiative if Rotary Club of Panchkula also takes it up.
Our Rotarian and Municipal Councillor Pallav Mukherjee, would like to accompany the Club Presidents or any other Rotarian which the club may nominate for this project, for an initial recci on Monday, 10th August 2009 at 9am. All of us shall meet at the cremation ground in Sector 25 for the first hand assessment of the situation.
I am sure all of us can jointly make the difference.

Have you added new Hands?

Every new member brings in new expertise, diverse professional knowledge, and more importantly another pair of helping hands to work with you to serve.
More the merrier. Though of course you have to be very cautious in selecting the right kind of members from the community who are the leaders in their respective professions, are willing to devote their time and money for larger good of the society, and meet the attendance criteria.
The best way is to review and update your classification roster and then identify professionals or entrepreneurs, who are on the top rung of their organisation and can contribute effectively to Rotary.
Please be rigorous in the induction process and follow the entire procedure religiously, sharing the obligation a member has in terms of financials, attendance, and active participation in club projects.
In order to achieve the District membership targets, it is imperative that you continue this process of bringing in new members into Rotary every month, which would ultimately prove rewarding.
Also inform your director club services, chairmen membership development, chairman classifications, and members of your board of directors to attend the Membership Development Seminar on 29th August at Yamunanagar. Register yourself before 15th August for early bird discounts.

Your Monthly Reports Please

I hope you have sent to our District Governor Chetan Aggarwal the report of your July month's activities covering all avenues of service. Please do send a copy of the same to District Secretary and to me. Please enclose some photographs of the projects undertaken during July so that the editorial team can include it in the Governor's Monthly Letter.
Also please let me have the Attendance Data for July09 asap.
Look forward to your prompt response please.
Regards,
CJ

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Live What you Speak, advises Rtn. K.R. Ravindran

The two-days visit of Rotary International Director K.R. Ravindran was eventful and highly exciting, as he met with the Rotary leadership and touched them with inspiration.
A complete professional, focussed on the Rotary values and mission, Rtn. Ravindran, while addressing the Assistant Governors and other District officers in Rotary District 3080 Headquarter, was emphatic that Rotarians have the capabilities to undertake much larger projects that can address more serious issues that impact the society.
"My purpose here is to empower you to make Rotary a true instrument of change," he remarked.
He said that Rotary has the best organisational capabilities and knowledge pool of diverse vocations, and a very strong value system that embraces the highest ethical values of conduct in every aspect of our lives. And being in Rotary it becomes all the more imperative for Rotarians to truly imbibe those values and follow them through their actions.
Live the Talk, was his emphatic message to everyone.
Later at the District Intercity hosted by Rotary Club of Chandigarh he dwelt upon the power that Rotary represents throughout the world because of the great pool of dedicated Rotarians. He also emphasized the need for the Rotarians to be more honest, transparent, accountable, and trustworthy as the world looks up to them with great expectations.

Saturday, August 1, 2009

RI Director K.R. Ravindran's visit

Rtn. Ravindran is reaching Chandigarh tomorrow afternoon, and shall be meeting the press and attend the College of Governor in the evening.
On 3rd August, Monday, he is visiting several projects of local Rotary Clubs, guided by Rtn PDG Shaju Peter.
After lunch at 3pm in the Rotary District Headquarter, he is meeting all the Assistant Governors and some of the District officers over a cup of tea.
At 5pm he is expected to join the Rotarians at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, on Madhya Marg, Sector 27, Chanigarh, which is the venue for the District Intercity.
Rotary Chandigarh Shivalik is having this as a joint meeting on Monday, and we look forward to the participation of every Rotarian of all the Clubs in our Zone 3.
This is one of such programmes where the presence of Rotarians from all the five clubs in our Zone would get the opportunity to be together and strengthen Rotary through collective participation.
I look forward to your presence along with your club contingents on Monday evening for District Intercity.