PANAJI
One of the greatest joys in the world is to see a face light up with pure happiness due to a small act of kindness of your part. And indeed, each of us has a moral responsibility to try and make a difference in the life of those less fortunate in small meaningful ways.
To celebrate and encourage these small acts of giving, like-minded individuals and organisations across the country came together and started the 'Daan Utsav' or 'Joy of Giving Week' in 2009.
Right here in Goa, the event is organised annually by BITS Pilani Goa and Nirmaan Organisation (a student-run NGO) from October 2 - 8.
“We started off with a few events in 2009, with the participants mostly comprising only Nirmaan members. However, the participation has been increasing,” says Shardool Kulkarni, Coordinator for Daan Utsav, Nirmaan Goa.
“This year we have tried to involve a much larger section of society and are expanding to a pan-Goan level involving multiple schools. School kids across Goa will be making 'Thank You' cards which will be distributed among the service folk. Everyone, from police officers to cleaning personnel, will be thanked for their selfless service. We hope that this will help people acknowledge the importance of service folk in our lives."
Over 80 volunteers headed by a core team will be involved in the planning of the event this year which will include various activities like the 'Meal of Joy' where students will serve lunch to all the mess workers, cleaners, security guards, etc of the campus, and 'Evening of Joy' where kids from different orphanages will be invited to the college campus and fun events like origami, basketball, etc are organised. This year, a new event 'Moments of Joy' will be held at Zari and Birla, two urban slums located close to the college, and will include, tree plantation, star gazing and a movie screening.
“During the Evening of Joy last year. we taught the kids how to make two short PowerPoint presentations with basic animation. They were so amazed with what was possible with PowerPoint, that it reminded me of the joy that kids find in little things that we take for granted,” states Kulkarni.
However, despite larger participation, the organisers would still like a change of attitude to come about among people and would like still more people to lend their support.
“People have a perception that these events are serious. Every year our team faces the challenge of making the event 'more fun' without losing the essence of it,” says Kulkarni “Also, it's very hard to explain people that Joy of Giving or Daan Utsav is not a charity event, rather it is an event which requires participation from their side. It is an experience.”
