This weekend was actually very eventful. We had already learnt that this saturday was the last day of the Sahitya Akademi books exhibition (cum sale) at Rabindra Bhawan, Ferozshah kotla Marg. It was a chilly morning and so it was a late rising day, still we got the best of it and were there around noon, 12:15 pm or so. I had already prepared a list of all the books which I felt good by names or which were award winners. Shikha spent good hour and half selecting books while I kept asking the fellow about the books in list. he was amused to see somebody with list and asking for books like "Cat on the Houseboat", "Bacchhon ne pakda chor", etc. Few of them were out of print. We got hold of more than two dozen books and the fella gave us some extra discount. So happily, at noon when Nanna said she is very hungry, we moved out of the exhibition area, but it was a good visit to that place. In general, they have a permanent sales outlet for the Sahitya Akademi books all year round over there on the first floor.
We definitely thought, we shall come back to this place and explore it more some other time.
Next, on Sunday, we casually went to Pragati Maidan, to see some Inside Outside Mega Show. As per the title, we know, it was a show about home furnishings, interior decorations, etc. but, we had some time in our hand, and what better place then Pragati maidan to spend it.
But, there was a surprise. Some SAARC Textile exhibition was going on there, we went inside strolling and started taking looks at the stalls. There were lots of fine rugs ( read expensive) from Afganistan and they were really good. Fantastic hand work, wall hangings, paintings from Bhutan and Nepal and shawls also were good. Some good soft toys from Sri lanka also. Nanna was also enjoying there, looking at things, while I spent time talking to people from Nepal, Bhutan, SriLanka about the things they have brought here and how has been there experience.
They were happy to be here. But, by the density of visitors on a warm Sunday afternoon,
it felt like, we need more promotion for SAARC exhibition like things.
But where did we spend the most time was Pakistan. The stalls from Pakistan had good stuff for the better half's. And so, there we spent two grand for two suit lengths for my better half. And I was happy to see her happy like that. We also saw a couple of people bargaining there like we usually do in Palika or Sarojini Nagar, and the exhibitor's looked very frustated by that. While talking to them , they mentioned, why some people would say we will only give Rs 40 for something of Rs 200. That is Delhi special I guess.
The IO Mega show, for which we went there, was kind of useless for us, so we spent not more than 5 min there. All in all, ITPO and Pragati Maidan are fantastic places to be.
Also we have the Auto Fair in Jan and World Book Fair in Feb lined up ahead.
Monday, December 17, 2007
Visit to GOONJ office
Well, its been many months, since I had been thinking of going to the Goonj office in Sarita Vihar, Delhi and so today it was
It was a perfect eye opener, the way they have been functioning and are managing the staff of more than 40 people and the values and behavior they have inculcated in them is extra-ordinary. It made me think, about the corporate trainings we go through time to time, to generate the motivation and belongingness feeling. I could feel that belongingness and motivation in the people working over there in the half hour or so, I spent over there. The guy Imran, who had shown us the work area primarily, was working overtime and that too on his own zeal to work rather than the pressure to show something. And I think the responsibility and authority he had was the primary motivations plus may be working with Anshu Gupta or being able to work at the grass root level and see the beneficiaries in front of your eyes and see and make the whole channel working in front of you in unison for this to happen are also the reasons. He is from Kashi. I was trying to understand the reason he chose this as his primary full time vocation but still am not fully satisfied.
But along with them, I intend to understand their modus operandi of choosing the local NGOs and sending the truck load full of material to them, then to another one, then look forward for reviews of their work. Hope am not being cynical, but still its a mammoth task to do. They have grown and are now sending a truck load full of material almost every 4-5 days, that makes it approx 90-100 truck loads in an year. I wish to be associated and be visiting villages and see/meet the beneficiaries in future.
And I must say, in their own manner, Goonj is working in the most professional and organized manner that is possible and in the most dignified manner for all the employees there. They have slowly expanded the work areas while there office is still situated in Sarita Vihar for people to see who are visiting.
Hopefully, I shall be paying more visits to their office and would make these visits more worthwile for them in the coming times.
Earlier in my carrier, I was associated with "World Vision India" (PartnerID- 1020731) and was sending them regular monthly payments. But later, I felt a need to be associated directly and see whats happening or if its happening the right way or not and since have stopped those monthly contributions.
Later I was also associated with a small team working on the education for poor children in Ghaziabad and Noida, and that was the best grass root level work I had witnessed till date. Going in the slums or labour colonies, watching the kids study in the rugged platform or dingy abandoned building floors, but they definitely looked happy. And you know what, those slums or the make shift labour colony, whatever you say, would generally have a small jhuggi, which acted as a cinema hall, where some enterprising guy would show movies through VCR/VCD on a TV, and the people used to spend money on that. But when they were asked to shell out Rs 20/- only for their children education for a month, they had many problems & excuses. So, it was both, non-willingness and attitude problem I guess.
But I sincerely appreciate, what they were doing without any help, almost independently. They had hired teachers at some places, erected shelters for schools and at a couple of places in Noida, they were helping and working in unison with the Govt schools. I had also sent them monthly contributions. But later when I stopped, I guess a year ago, I am not doing anything at all, and thats pinching me. Am forgetting the name of this institution, shall post it when I recall.
It was a perfect eye opener, the way they have been functioning and are managing the staff of more than 40 people and the values and behavior they have inculcated in them is extra-ordinary. It made me think, about the corporate trainings we go through time to time, to generate the motivation and belongingness feeling. I could feel that belongingness and motivation in the people working over there in the half hour or so, I spent over there. The guy Imran, who had shown us the work area primarily, was working overtime and that too on his own zeal to work rather than the pressure to show something. And I think the responsibility and authority he had was the primary motivations plus may be working with Anshu Gupta or being able to work at the grass root level and see the beneficiaries in front of your eyes and see and make the whole channel working in front of you in unison for this to happen are also the reasons. He is from Kashi. I was trying to understand the reason he chose this as his primary full time vocation but still am not fully satisfied.
But along with them, I intend to understand their modus operandi of choosing the local NGOs and sending the truck load full of material to them, then to another one, then look forward for reviews of their work. Hope am not being cynical, but still its a mammoth task to do. They have grown and are now sending a truck load full of material almost every 4-5 days, that makes it approx 90-100 truck loads in an year. I wish to be associated and be visiting villages and see/meet the beneficiaries in future.
And I must say, in their own manner, Goonj is working in the most professional and organized manner that is possible and in the most dignified manner for all the employees there. They have slowly expanded the work areas while there office is still situated in Sarita Vihar for people to see who are visiting.
Hopefully, I shall be paying more visits to their office and would make these visits more worthwile for them in the coming times.
Earlier in my carrier, I was associated with "World Vision India" (PartnerID- 1020731) and was sending them regular monthly payments. But later, I felt a need to be associated directly and see whats happening or if its happening the right way or not and since have stopped those monthly contributions.
Later I was also associated with a small team working on the education for poor children in Ghaziabad and Noida, and that was the best grass root level work I had witnessed till date. Going in the slums or labour colonies, watching the kids study in the rugged platform or dingy abandoned building floors, but they definitely looked happy. And you know what, those slums or the make shift labour colony, whatever you say, would generally have a small jhuggi, which acted as a cinema hall, where some enterprising guy would show movies through VCR/VCD on a TV, and the people used to spend money on that. But when they were asked to shell out Rs 20/- only for their children education for a month, they had many problems & excuses. So, it was both, non-willingness and attitude problem I guess.
But I sincerely appreciate, what they were doing without any help, almost independently. They had hired teachers at some places, erected shelters for schools and at a couple of places in Noida, they were helping and working in unison with the Govt schools. I had also sent them monthly contributions. But later when I stopped, I guess a year ago, I am not doing anything at all, and thats pinching me. Am forgetting the name of this institution, shall post it when I recall.
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