Dashrath Manjhi, also known as “Mountain Man”, was a poor labourer in a village near Gaya in Bihar, who carved a path through a hillock using only a hammer and chisel after 22 years of work. Today, Dashrath is not amongst us, but his story lives on. This is just one famous example of sheer courage and determination. However, there are scores of Dashrath Manjhi’s in India who have made a mark for themselves in their villages and mofussil towns. And their stories are yet untold.
It is people like these that JSPl Foundation which spearheads the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives of Jindal Steel and Power limited (JSPl) wants to highlight and recognize through a unique national initiative titled Rashtriya Swayamsiddh Samman that it has instituted from this year onwards.
The Rashtriya Swayamsiddh Samman will felicitate people from the grassroots level for their exemplary courage, commitment and confidence that has enabled them to overcome adversities and create a unique identity of their own, making them a source of inspiration for many in India. They would become Ambassadors of Change who will fan out in other parts of the country to work for the upliftment of the underprivileged and through their experience and hardships guide others to achieve their dreams.
Says JSPl Foundation president Shallu Jindal, “The objective of holding the Rashtriya Swayamsiddh Samman is to recognise and nurture talent at the grassroots level. Our effort is to bring out stories that have yet been untold.”
The awards will be conferred in 10 categories such as women empowerment, entrepreneurship (start-ups), education, agriculture/rural development, public service, art and craft, livelihood/vocational skills, health, innovation / technology (related to science) and environment.
Ten awards would be conferred upon individuals and 10 would be given to organisations. The awardees will be given a certificate and `1 lakh as prize money.
United Nations Global Compact Network India (UNGCN), the Indian arm of United Nations Global Compact (UNGC), will be the Knowledge Partner for the awards and will be responsible for earmarking the parameters and finalising the awardees with the help of four regional juries and one national jury. The call for entries will begin from September 23 and close by October 25, 2015.