Global Grant 1982446
CHECK-DAM PROJECT
Submitted, Reviewed, Approved, Funded and Implemented!
Global Grant 1982446
Check-Dam project in Paidwala Ki Dhani, Jaipur, INDIA
A project of
ROTARY DREAM TEAM – INDIA 2019
On January 27, PDG Elias Thomas, from the Rotary Club of Sanford-Springvale, departed, once again, for India, where he was to meet members of the Rotary Dream Team – India 2019. All of the members, other than from those in India, came from the United States this year. The intent was to participate in two different programs – first, the National Immunization Day (NID) against polio, scheduled for February 3, 2019, followed by the second, and more involved project – the construction of a Water Catchment Dam in a remote region of the State of Rajasthan – about two hours’ drive from the Pink City of Jaipur.
Unfortunately, due to control of the vaccine being used in the Immunization Day activities, and concern over the quality of the vaccine, the NID was canceled for February 3, to be re-scheduled sometime in April. So that day, we had an opportunity to be invited to a marriage (the engagement day) in the small town of Sohna, near Gurgaon, where two brothers and their cousin were getting married to three sisters from another village. Needless to say, there was a great deal of preparation and merriment, where we were invited to join the elders in smoking the traditional water pipe, and the ladies in our group were invited to dance with the mother, grandmother, aunts and sisters of the three grooms.
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Some Dream Team members and local ladies, dancing.
The Global Grant for this project was initiated by the Rotary Club of Delhi-Megapolis, as the International Sponsor, with Rotary Club of Sanford-Springvale serving as the International partner. As a result of Elias being recognized by the National Association of Realtors® as one of five recipients of the Good Neighbor Award, out of the 1.4 million Realtor® members in North America. As a result of that recognition, Elias was presented with a $10,000 grant to be used as he chose. He committed the entire amount to this Dam Construction Project. Through use of matching funds from District 7780 and then The Rotary Foundation, this one grant from the Realtors®, when parlayed, helped to underwrite nearly two-thirds of the total cost of the Dam construction!
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CHAIN-GANG passing basins of “Masala” (dry cement mix), with local laborers
We were pleased to receive official word from The Rotary Foundation, prior to actually “digging in the dirt” that the Global Grant had been approved for funding! Since we were going to be away at the time the construction project was complete, we had an official dedication of the “tablet” which is placed in a concrete “frame” at the dam site. The ceremonies which surround each of these projects have been quite extensive, and always different, but led by a pandit (Hindu priest), asking blessings for the project and for its dedication.
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Banwari, Elias and Dinesh (The two Indian gentlemen are part of the team which oversees the construction of the dams, over these past ten years)
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Pointing out the participation of Rotary Club of Sanford-Springvale
Pointing out participation of District 7780
Planting a banyan sapling to commemorate the Dam Project
Also, while on this trip, Elias traveled to Kathmandu, Nepal, and while there, was able to meet with officials of UNICEF where discussions for assisting Rotary, World Health Organization (WHO) and other organizations to gain safe access to areas on the Pakistan-Afghanistan borders, where new cases of polio are being discovered, even today. With the suggestions of another Rotarian member of the Dream Team, ideas for potential campaigns were promoted and will be discussed with the END POLIO NOW campaign committee.
Past District Governor from Kathmandu as well as Paul Rutter from UNICEF, Chuck Bartosch of the Ithaca Rotary Club, Elias and Elke Wisch of UNICEF