IIMB’s EPGP students open the gates of the school to the differently abled and are inspired by their stories of courage & grit
JANUARY 25, 2016: “We are born to fight; born to live as legends. So we need to convert failure into success,” declared international para athlete and Padma Shri awardee Malathi Krishnamurthy Holla, during the Annual Prayaas Day, celebrated at IIMB on January 24 (Sunday).
IIMB’s EPGP students organized a very special day of fun, competitive sports, dicussions and interactions for the differently abled as part of Prayaas Day this year. The EPGP students partnered with the Spinal Foundation to organize the event, which was aimed to raise awareness on spinal cord injury. The day’s events were broadly divided into two halves: the morning session and the afternoon session. The first session featured sports and the second one comprised a talk, a panel discussion and cultural events, all of which were in tune with the motto of the event – ‘Dream, Believe, Try’.
In her special address, Malathi Holla said: “People who have everything and still grumble are the ones who are actually disabled. In cases like mine, it is just a minute part of the body which is impaired but my determination, confidence, ambition and dreams are not paralyzed. I believe every problem has a solution.” Giving the example of the Mathru Foundation, a charitable trust that she has formed with her friends where children with different types of disability are supported till they find placement, the Arjuna awardee said it was important to find ways to give back to society. “We have to show the path to the next generation,” she added.
Earlier in the afternoon, Dr. Dinesh Kumar, Professor, Quantitative Methods & Information Systems, IIMB, and Chairperson, EPGP, lit the ceremonial lamp and welcomed the guest speakers and panelists.
Dr. Malathi Holla’s speech was followed by a dance performance by children of the Worth Trust, an organization which provides support and job opportunities to the differently abled to make them self-reliant; a dance by Vishwas Ravi, artiste, swimmer and winner of several awards; a musical performance by self-taught artist Sudhendra, and an awareness session on spinal cord injury by S. Vaidyanathan, an IIMB PGP alumnus and board member of Spinal Foundation, and Dr. Anand Viswanathan, Sr. Research Scientist, Cochrane, South Asia.
A panel discussion on ‘Breaking Down Societal Barriers’ saw participation from Nasreen S Wadia, Founder, Unlimited Freedom, Dr. Anand Viswanathan, Sr. Research Scientist, Cochrane, South Asia and Pranesh Nagri, Director, Enable India. The discussion was moderated by Justin Jesudas, an international para-swimmer and Associate Director, Cognizant. The panellists focused on ways to make society, especially in India, inclusive.
There was provision throughout the programme to communicate to the hearing impaired through sign language.
This year’s Prayaas Day at IIMB, themed on ‘Celebrating Abilities’, was flagged off with an Awareness Run (5 km and 10 km). The sports competitions included wheelchair basketball, table tennis, carom and chess.
Click here for Prayaas Day photo gallery
IIMB’s EPGP students open the gates of the school to the differently abled and are inspired by their stories of courage & grit
JANUARY 25, 2016: “We are born to fight; born to live as legends. So we need to convert failure into success,” declared international para athlete and Padma Shri awardee Malathi Krishnamurthy Holla, during the Annual Prayaas Day, celebrated at IIMB on January 24 (Sunday).
IIMB’s EPGP students organized a very special day of fun, competitive sports, dicussions and interactions for the differently abled as part of Prayaas Day this year. The EPGP students partnered with the Spinal Foundation to organize the event, which was aimed to raise awareness on spinal cord injury. The day’s events were broadly divided into two halves: the morning session and the afternoon session. The first session featured sports and the second one comprised a talk, a panel discussion and cultural events, all of which were in tune with the motto of the event – ‘Dream, Believe, Try’.
In her special address, Malathi Holla said: “People who have everything and still grumble are the ones who are actually disabled. In cases like mine, it is just a minute part of the body which is impaired but my determination, confidence, ambition and dreams are not paralyzed. I believe every problem has a solution.” Giving the example of the Mathru Foundation, a charitable trust that she has formed with her friends where children with different types of disability are supported till they find placement, the Arjuna awardee said it was important to find ways to give back to society. “We have to show the path to the next generation,” she added.
Earlier in the afternoon, Dr. Dinesh Kumar, Professor, Quantitative Methods & Information Systems, IIMB, and Chairperson, EPGP, lit the ceremonial lamp and welcomed the guest speakers and panelists.
Dr. Malathi Holla’s speech was followed by a dance performance by children of the Worth Trust, an organization which provides support and job opportunities to the differently abled to make them self-reliant; a dance by Vishwas Ravi, artiste, swimmer and winner of several awards; a musical performance by self-taught artist Sudhendra, and an awareness session on spinal cord injury by S. Vaidyanathan, an IIMB PGP alumnus and board member of Spinal Foundation, and Dr. Anand Viswanathan, Sr. Research Scientist, Cochrane, South Asia.
A panel discussion on ‘Breaking Down Societal Barriers’ saw participation from Nasreen S Wadia, Founder, Unlimited Freedom, Dr. Anand Viswanathan, Sr. Research Scientist, Cochrane, South Asia and Pranesh Nagri, Director, Enable India. The discussion was moderated by Justin Jesudas, an international para-swimmer and Associate Director, Cognizant. The panellists focused on ways to make society, especially in India, inclusive.
There was provision throughout the programme to communicate to the hearing impaired through sign language.
This year’s Prayaas Day at IIMB, themed on ‘Celebrating Abilities’, was flagged off with an Awareness Run (5 km and 10 km). The sports competitions included wheelchair basketball, table tennis, carom and chess.
Click here for Prayaas Day photo gallery