Coimbatore: Education is the first step towards attaining knowledge, critical thinking, empowerment and skills towards making this world, a better place to live. Every child deserves to be educated and have access towards the best of resources.
Coimbatore: Education is the first step towards attaining knowledge, critical thinking, empowerment and skills towards making this world, a better place to live. Every child deserves to be educated and have access towards the best of resources.
And, Computers play a pivotal role in the last decade or so and with the current pandemic, its importance has only been rising. E- classes has been the norm for children and will be in the days to come. Students are the future of our nation and building a strong foundation for them lies in the nation's hand.
RCC Saicity, in partnership with IT major Cognizant today donated 1,000 computers to 152 rural community schools in Coimbatore, Tirupur, Erode, Nilgiris, Tiruvannamalai and Kanchipuram districts. The donation drive is part of “Digital Inclusion” initiative of Cognizant Outreach, the organization’s employee-led volunteering programme and one of India’s largest corporate volunteering efforts.
Maya Sreekumar, Vice President and Head of Coimbatore Operations at Cognizant said, “Digital inequality in education is an unfortunate reality of our times worsened by the widespread disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Rural schools that do not have the means to conduct online classes have been hit the hardest by prolonged lockdowns and physical distancing restrictions. This donation is our humble effort to enable these schools to continue imparting education. We think of education, as one of the most crucial enablers of social progress and transformation, and will continue to serve the cause of digital inclusion in education for it to unlock the promise of modern technologies."
"On behalf of Cognizant, I thank the State, District and local administration, as well as our implementation partner Rotary Club of Coimbatore Saicity for their support in making this initiative a reality", she added.
After doing a thorough research on the essential programs required by the educational staff, as per Tamil Nadu government textbooks for all the classes, e- books have been installed for all the classes along with other essential programs required. These 1000 computers will be distributed to 152 schools which need them the most. The total number of children benefitting from these initiative is 82,000, according to the organisers.
Cognizant Outreach has long-standing partnerships with 25 of these schools, where volunteers have worked to improve learning parameters, increase interest and awareness in STEM disciplines, create avenues for extra-curricular activities and help students make informed career choices.
Outreach has also helped in improving the infrastructure and facilities in these partner schools. All government and government aided schools have been invited for the event from Primary to Higher Secondary from various locations. Tirupur, Erode, Nilgiris, Tiruvannamalai, Kanchipuram and Coimbatore are six of the major districts being covered under this initiative.
Jose Chacko, District Governor 3201 and Rtn Gopinath, Project Chair, Rotary Club of Coimbatore Saicity, said, “The pandemic has been both a life-changing learning experience as well as a call to action. We commend Cognizant’s efforts in mitigating the impact of the pandemic on the education of underprivileged rural students.”
During a candid interview Rtn.Gopinath revealed, "Last year we did 200, this year we are doing 1,000 and in the following year as well, we are looking forward to associating with Cognizant and other organizations for doing this kind of a project so that it reaches the beneficiary properly and is utilised in the best ways. Now that the world is going digital we need to work on these platforms."
The project is being carried out under the watchful eyes of Rtn. Gopinath Arunachalam, Chairman of this program, Rtn. SP Shanmugam, President and Rtn. K. Devaraj, Secretary of RCC Saicity across 152 rural schools. On Monday, a set of 600 computers will be distributed from Cheshire Homes (Peelameedu, Coimbatore) under the presence of MD. M. Jose Chacko, Dist. Governor - 3201, GR Govindrajan, Chairman, Cheshire Homes, Mrs. Maya Sreekumar, Vice President and Head of Coimbatore Operations at Cognizant. This was followed with as many as 400 computers being distributed at the Jai Shriram Engineering College, Avinashipalyam,.
Rtn. MD. M. Jose Chacko, Dist. Governor - 3201 participated as Chief Guest, while Mrs. Maya Sreekumar, Vice President and Head of Coimbatore Operations at Cognizant and Thiru. R.Ramesh, Chief Education Officer, Tiruppur participated as guest of Honour.
Other dignitaries who graced the occasion were Rtn. MD. R.S. Maruthi, Dist. Director, Rtn. Antony Johnson K.I., Asst. Governor, Rtn. Valli S. Kanakaraj, GGR, Rtn. P.P. Lakshman, Community Service, Rtn. Varadharaj, Dist. Chairman, Vocational Service and Rtn. Murugan, Dist. Chairman Youth (Dist. Priorities), T.K. Karupannasamy, Vice Chairman, Jai Shriram Engineering College, Tiruppur, Shri. M. Govindasamy, Chairman, Jai Shriram Engineering College, Tiruppur. The Vote of Thanks was delivered by Dr. M. Vijayakumar, Principal, Jai Shriram Engineering College, Tiruppur.