There is a very famous quote by Mahatma Gandhi. “Be the change you want to see in the world”. Well, I felt a change today. I had the pleasure of attending the India Emerge Youth Summit (IEYS) which was held in Vellore Institution of Technology University (VIT, Vellore), and it was an experience that changed me. The topic for this year’s summit was ‘Corruption in contemporary India”. IEYS had a jaw dropping line-up of speakers ranging from different walks of life. Economy decoded was the official social media partner of the whole event and I was there to cover the event myself on behalf of ED. They were:-
- Padma Shree Syed Kirmani (Former wicket keeper and Batsman for Indian cricket team)
- Captain Ravi Sahnmugam (Founder Director, Pegasus)
- Mr Mahesh Sharma (Founder, Know your true self)
- Dr S.S. Meenakshisundaram (executive vice chair of MYRADA)
- Mr Josy Joseph (Times of India)
- Ms Madhu Singhal (founder/trustee of Mitra Jyothi)
- Mr Mir Ranjan Negi (Former Hockey player, Indian Hockey Team)
- Prof. Jayaran Srinivasan (Chairman, Divecha centre for climate change)
With such extraordinary speakers, the summit was an absolute eye-opener and an everlasting experience.
The IEYS 2013 started with a grand opening, which was also an open debate session. The event was initiated by Chairman Chancellor of VIT University, Dr G. Viswanathan. The event saw many youngsters sharing their views about many issues. The youngsters had interesting takes and fresh ideas upon how to tackle the problems related to corruption in India.
The speaker session commenced on 28th September. Padma shree Syed Kirmani was the first speaker. It was an absolute honour hearing him talk about his experiences and his glory days from when he was with the world cup winning team. He had a meaningful message for the listeners and urged them to bring about a change. He was very motivational and a true Real life hero. He was appreciated with a standing ovation. He even cracked a joke or two about his funny experiences with his teammates. On a much serious note, he shared experiences from his own life where he had experienced the dark hand of corruption. The listeners were in awe. The speakers continued to charm the audience. Next up was captain Ravi, who had worked hard all his life and is presently working too with Pegasus, which is a non-profit organisation and aims at opening an experimental university in India. Mr Mahesh Sharma had his arsenal of fun activities to keep the audience glued and active. He has been a motivational keynote speaker and researcher for 12 long years in his life and it clearly showed. All the speakers had something to say which would motivate and generate a spark amongst the audience. The event was very well received. The highlight of the event was the speech given by Mr Mir Ranjan. He was very open and expressive about his controversy back in the day when India lost to Pakistan in hockey and a simple miscommunication and the media led his image to be tarnished. The film Chakk dey India is inspired by his real life ordeal. He did make a comeback, leading the Indian Women’s Hockey team to victory in the Indo-Afro world championship. His words moved many to tears and he was given a well-deserved round of applause by each and every one present there. After him, Prof. Jayaram enlightened the audience with his opinions on the corruption scenario nowadays.
All in all, the event was a complete experience which would be enough to change any person to make that one selfless choice that makes a change. This is exactly what our nation needs right now. When politicians struggle for power, and people blind to the truth. The media stuffing the generation’s minds with nothing but half-truths or whole lies. It doesn’t take much to take a stand against all this. It just leaves you with the assurance, that when everyone else failed, you were there to make a change. I personally applaud IEYS for their efforts.
SAY NO TO CORRUPTION
