Arbind Singh

Hi, I am Arbind Singh. A physics major graduate having worked with big names in B.P.O Industry like Genpact, Global vantage (Essar group), Go4 customer and the tour and Travels giant Tirupati Travels. I am an addictive traveller. My association with the renowned S.K publications led to the creation of a book. The book is an attempt on simplifying the approach of rural students towards spoken and written English. In the process of finding meaning to my life I served as a volunteer with Hagi Altaf Raza Trust in U.P. for the educational uplifting of students belonging to minority community. The task of improving the communication skills of students from rural India has always fascinated me. This is exactly what I am trying to achieve in Bagar, THE LAND OF EXPERIMENTS. The challenge is to create an easy, comprehensible and profession oriented set of course material for reducing the soft skill gap between rural and urban India.

Ashish Gupta

After spending much of his childhood in his birth city of Mumbai, India, Ashish left India at the age of 13 to live in Australia, and later in the Middle East. He graduated from Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Georgia (USA), with a degree in Computer Science and a minor in Economics. After college Ashish worked as a business consultant in technology. Although Ashish immensely enjoyed his time at the firm he was still searching for something where he could make a meaningful impact on people’s lives. At the same time, he was starting to re-connect with his Indian identity through his parents. There was a growing sense that to be proud of who he was, he had to do something about it. A fellowship at the Grassroots Development Laboratory through Indicorps provided the right conduit.

Whether by chance or fate, Ashish returns to his father’s homeland of Jhunjhunu district in Rajasthan to work in the GDL for two years. He is excited about working to find innovative grassroots solutions to development in India that are also nationally relevant. He is also looking forward to re-discovering his family’s roots, his own identity and his potential for creating change.

Brijesh Saini

I am from Bagar and before coming to GDL, I completed graduation & O-Level in computer technology. My first job was a computer teacher to secondary school level. At the Grassroots Development Lab, I have explored different areas related to employment and education. I began as a computer instructor at Bagar Employment Institute where I have been on high interface with the rural youth and I have to come to know about their environment specially with respect to education and employability. As a special assignment, I got to be a part of the launch of the Bagar Employment Exchange. As BEX Field Executive, I visit villages around Bagar to spread the word and explain what BEX offers. I conduct small awareness meetings at village level and I also manage the BEX activities like interview sessions and placement drives. My goal is to help all people who live in and around Bagar find jobs that lead to meaningful careers

Dharamveer Singh

I am Dharamveer Singh working for last ten years for pharma industry as frontline, first line and secondline manager. Due to professional reasons I always had to visit doctors and hospitals where I used to see lot of sufferings and I used to talk to patients a lot thereby a caring and sharing bondage between the people and myself has given birth a special person in me who is responsive to emotions and being of people I conducted many diabetic, cardiac, eye, dental and general camps which I could do under my controls I used to actively participate and interact and console suffering people.

When I came to know about the Mission and the Vision of GDL I thought this as a new opportunity to use for the benefit of community, my corporate experience of TEAM MANAGEMENT, IMPLEMENTATION OF STRATEGIES, CREATING NEW IDEAS INTO DELIVERABLE MARVELS, AND FORCEFUL CARRY OUT OF PLANS.

I strongly believe that professionally developed and implemented strategies can take up the serious most developmental challenge INDIA is facing.I will be happy to be a part of this renaissance.

Gaurishankar Choumal

I am a local from Bagar. I completed my B.Com in 2006, and, in hopes for a better job, I joined the BEI Computer Classes offered by GDL in 2007. Now I’m working in GDL as Office Manager and am responsible for the day-to-day running of GDL hostel and office. I hope to learn much about computers and English during my term here.

Kaushal K. Rajoriya

Hi, I am Kaushal K. Rajoriya from Jaipur. I have completed my MBA & PGDCA from Rajasthan University . Before joining the GDL, I was volunteer for two years in Nehru Yuva Kandra, an autonomous body of Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Govt. of India. During this period as a volunteer I was working with mobilizing rural youth to develop India. After hearing about the Grassroots Development Laboratory’s Mission and Vision I joined GDL as a Computer Trainer. Under the umbrella of BEI (Bagar Employment Institute), we provide vocational computer training to rural youth. Our training is different from others, and prepares students with practical skills for the real world. Bagar is a place of experimental laboratory.

Mahendra Kumar Saini

I am Mahendra Kumar Saini. I am a local from a village called Lamba Gothra (Chirawa Tehsil). Currently I am studying in B.com II year from Rajasthan University, as well as working fulltime with Bagar Employment Institute (BEI) as the Computer Class Teaching Assistant and Lab Administrator. I am also learning English Spoken Skills and experiencing the professional working environment at GDL.

Preeti Balakrishnan

A semester immersed in her community in Brazil, a summer teaching in Baltimore’s inner-cities and her deep connection to the country of her heritage converge as Preeti Balakrishnan explores educational development in Bagar, Rajasthan. A Tamilian who has never been to northern India, Preeti is particularly excited to learn about this side of India and become a part of a holistic rural development initiative. A native of Boston, Massachusetts and recent graduate of John’s Hopkins University, Preeti has been involved in various community initiatives and is passionate about social justice around the world.

Radhika Batra

After dabbling in several direct and indirect service opportunities while pursuing her undergraduate degree at UC Berkeley, Radhika sought to further explore her interest in the development sector. She began as an AmeriCorps*VISTA member at ACCION USA, a U.S.-based microfinance institution, where she conducted marketing and outreach activities. She went on to commit to a two-year fellowship at the Grassroots Development Laboratory (GDL) as a means to know and to contribute to the India she never knew . During her time at the GDL, she has worked with women, enterprise, and management of the Bagar Employment Institute’s Spoken English program. Hailing from Southern California, Radhika has a love for watching and playing sports (especially the Lakers), spending time outdoors, trying new food and teaching people how to vermicompost!

Shrot Katewa

My name is Shrot. I have completed my Bachelor in Biotechnology. I wanted to dedicate 5% of my life for exploration and development of rural areas. Hence after completing my higher education in 2005, I came back from Bombay, where I was born and brought up, to my hometown of Baktawarpura which just 5 kilometers from Bagar. I am currently associated with Source For Change. Having worked in the voice-based centers in the BPO industry, I believe I could add value to the organization. Teaming up with Gagan at SFC, has provided me with the right platform to have a greater impact on the wave of development which is spreading throughout Bagar very rapidly. Termed as “the rural entrepreneur”, I am working to take SFC to the next level. I enjoy meditating and playing outdoor games. Learning more about people is also something which I like to do.

Tarun Sharma

I am Tarun Sharma born and brought up at Bhagalpur , Bihar. I have just completed my secondary school and wanted to do some part time job so I saw BEX where I met the Program Manager Mr. Dharmveer Singh who was impressed by my passion for learning and self development. He offered me a volunteer position at the GDL for the summer holidays which I accepted and I have been working with GDL now for two months where I get support and advices from all seniors and I am in the process of learning many life skills. At GDL I am assisting the Program Manager, BEX. I am independently assigned administrative responsibilities at the time of BEX activities. I have learned in the last two months more than I could learn in two years I have improved on my communication skills, execution skills and computer skills. I hope to continue my association with GDL in times to come so that I can learn and serve my community as well.

Abhishodh

Hi! I am Abhishodh. I am majoring in Physics at BITS- Pilani, Goa campus. Science being a passion and the love of my life, I enjoy learning, and I consider every experience as an opportunity to learn, to understand and to think. I am interning at GDL for two months, under the focus stream of community leadeship. Helping my team members organize and run the summer camp has been one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life. It is amazing how much one learns in the process of teaching, and how satisfying it is to have made a contribution (as insignificant as it might be) to the evolution of the thought process of another individual. My stay at GDL has been incredible so far, with the clear night skies, the beautiful sights and sounds of Bagar, the friendly community and the air of intelligence and commitment. I am sure my two months here will have a significant impact on the way I think of and understand the world we live in, and life in general! My passions include scientific research, fine arts of any sort (music in particular!) and travelling.

Anurag Dutta

I am currently an undergraduate student in Computer Science at BITS Pilani.My passions include photography, music and graphic designing. I am an avid blogger and maintain an online design portfolio. At GDL, this summer I am working on setting up a sports league for the youth of Bagar to foster a spirit of sportsmanship and further community leadership. I am also helping up set up the Bagar website’s backend and CMS.

HM Akshaya

My name is Akshaya. I have just completed my second year at the Birla Institute of Technology and Sciences (Pilani) where I am pursuing my degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering. This summer as a part of the Practice School Program at college I am here at GDL to provide my services and hopefully contribute to the change here at Bagar. When I got here and looked around the conditions did look testing and tough but two days into Bagar and I feel like a fish in water and looking forward to work every day. I m going to be working here on a Career Handbook for BEI which is to be later distributed to 9^th- 12^th graders in and around here to help them out with their career decisions. I ‘m also going to be scouting for possible contacts for the BEX (Bagar Employment Exchange), where aspirants could be placed. I hope this visit is productive and I become a part of the change.

Akshay Singh

Hi, I’m Akshay. I just finished my second year at Tufts University where I am a Quantitative Economics major. As an intern at GDL, I’ve been responsible for setting up and running a football camp to help imbibe values such as teamwork and leadership amongst the local community. I’ve been born and brought up in Bombay and have always been out for an adventure or a bit of backpacking. GDL provided me with the opportunity to work to my strengths and help the local community within Bagar learn about various values that may be inculcated through team sports.

Antara Sarkar

I am in my final year at the Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani (BITS, PIlani). I am working on the Summer Camp that is going to be started here so as to teach English, Computer and Leadership Skills to students in 11th and 12th standard in Bagar. We hope that this camp will give them an extra edge and help them become aware and make most of the opportunities available in India, particularly to get better employment.

Bhuvanesh Babu

I am a student from BITS Pilani Goa campus rising to third year.I am studying for a bachelor’s degree in M.Sc.(Tech) Information Systems. As in BITS academic year, we are going to have Practice School station. I got an Internship here at G.D.L. At G.D.L., I am working with BAGAR EMPLOYMENT EXCHANGE (B.E.X.) which aims to remove unemployment in Bagar. My aim is to consult all the people in BAGAR and to held meetings in coordination with sarpanch and chairman. I am also working on the career handbook with HM Akshay, using which I am going to help establish career counselling cells in colleges. I am having a great experience here as an intern.

Indrashish Ghoshal

I’m a third year student at Bits Pilani from Kolkata. I’m working on the Bagar Drinking Water Initiative and I’m trying to help prepare the base for future installations of Sarvajal plants in villages in and around the Jhunjhunu district. During my travels from village to village, every moment spent and every challenge I’ve encountered has left me with a better understanding of the rural Rajasthan, its people and its problems.

Kumari Pooja

Hello. My name is Kumari Pooja. I am originally from Bihar. Currently I am doing my undergrad at the University of Pennsylvania, USA. I am majoring in Economics and pursuing a minor in Mathematics. In my free time I like drawing, painting, reading and shopping. I am working at Source For Change (SFC), which is a rural BPO. My tasks include training associates, preparing training module and creating HR Policies for SFC. Working at GDL has been amazing so far. Everyday is a new learning experience. Bagar is a very incredible village. People in this village are very welcoming. Any of us here are able to bring change because people want to change for better.

Manisha Thapa

I am Manisha Thapa. I am from Nepal. I am pursuing my Bachelor’s degree from University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. At GDL, I will be working on the Bagar Drinking Water Initiative. I will mostly be looking at the marketing schemes and promotion opportunities for Mridul water (soon to be Sarvajal) through interaction with the consumers, prospective entrepreneurs, government bodies and other stakeholders. By the end of the internship I hope to be able to produce all necessary marketing tools for the initiative. I also hope to be able to learn more about the local culture and get to know the people at GDL and the Bagar community better.

Neeraj Trikha

I just completed my second year of my Computer Science engineering course at BITS Pilani. I think I have two alter egos, one that is very practical and the other one overtly philosophical. I am the conflict of these two. My two blogs also are reflective of these alter egos. At the Grassroots Development Laboratory, I am working on Community Leadership. The summer camp is a great way to share my skills with the kids here and learn from them.

Nishant Dasgupta

I’m presently pursuing my degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Birla Institute of Technology & Sciences, Pilani where I just completed my 2nd year. I am an avid reader, a soccer freak, quizzer and love spending time with my friends. I’m in Bagar as a part of the Practice School Program of our institute. While I’m here, I’ll be working on scaling the Bagar Drinking Water Initiative, where my key responsibility areas include going to various villages, convincing them for the need to set up a water purifying plant and also scout for local entrepreneurs who can help us set up the plant and then run it as well. I also participated in the soccer tournament which was held in bagar recently with a few students from the soccer camp and a few interns which turned out to be a great learning experience for me. I had never thought the kids would be so passionate about the game, and in 2 weeks they learnt so much that we actually managed to reach the semi finals of the tournament.

Rachit Chandra

I am Rachit Chandra, 19 and highly confused about life. I am studying to be an engineer at BITS Pilani and have fallen in love with the small quaint little town of Pilani. My other loves include technology, entrepreneurship and gadgets. Sounds geek-ish? Well, when I am not catching feeds on Google Reader or blogging at Rach 100% Sach, I enjoy going on very low budget trips with my friends, camping under the stars, discussing love-life-philosophy - politics-religion over endless cups of chai and watching Westerns.
Here, in Bagar, I am working with the rural BPO, Source For Change. Working on a social start-up is an experience that fits perfectly in my long term plans. And empowering rural women to take control of their fate is such a huge motivation. So here, I am. In the middle of nowhere, hoping to do my little bit.

Rahul Kaul

My name is Rahul Kaul, I am a third year student at B.I.T.S. Pilani, doing my graduation in Mechanical Engineering. I am interning here at G.D.L. this summer through the Practice School-1 program at B.I.T.S. Pilani. At G.D.L. I am working with the Source for Change BPO which is aims at empowering women in this rural area by generating employment for them through a BPO model. The experience so far has been fruitful, I have had the chance to interact and work with some brilliant people. I have learned a lot about the challenges faced by a new startup which has been an education in its own.

Rahul Reddy

My name is Rahul Reddy and I am originally from a small town in the Midwest of the United States. I am pursuing my Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Political Science at the University of Pennsylvania, with an interest in questions of development, and India in particular. At the Bagar Employment Exchange (BEX), the career guidance arm of GDL’s Bagar Employment Institute (BEI), I hope to improve the system for managing job aspirants’ data and to contribute to BEX’s work by meeting with job aspirants each day. By the time I leave Bagar in late July, my aim is to setup an efficient, easy-to-use system for entering and sorting job aspirants’ data. I also hope to gain a better understanding of the employment and education situation here. On a more personal level, I would like to leave Bagar having made new friends, gotten to know the community, and having reached some useful level of Hindi proficiency.

Shalin Soni

I am a rising senior studying biology at Emory University in Atlanta Georigia. I am part of the water teak and am developing a consumer profile/health survey of Sarvajal customers. I am also designing a study to assess the impact that the water has on public health.

Shrikant Rao

Hi, I am Srikant Rao currently studying Electrical and Electronics Engineering at BITS Pilani. I am interning at GDL for a period of seven weeks and I am working on the all women rural BPO Source for Change. I am involved with the computer training of the new associates and the system administrator. The first four weeks have been a very interesting and enriching experience for me. I am excited to be a part of SFC at this point of time with so much happening. I intend to be associated with this innovative social initiative for a very long time to come.

Stephanie Searles

I am from America and I study at the University of Pennsylvania. At GDL, I am working with Radhika on building a website for Bagar both for its residents and also to help put Bagar on the map for tourists. I hope to ultimately create a cyber area that brings together many aspects of Bagar and attracts tourists to the village. The site will also contain hyperlinks to help citizens get more information about other GDL projects and where to find help on learning English, finding jobs, and other such subjects.

Vijaysai Patnaik

I graduated with a Bachelors degree in Electrical Engineering from IIT Delhi this year. At GDL, I am working with the Bagar Drinking Water Initiative. My responsibility is to setup different water delivery mechanisms and ensure their smooth operation on a daily basis. By monitoring the efficacy of each model, I hope to recommend the most suitable one for Bagar and other places. On a personal level, I want to understand the thought process of the local community and the ideologies of my fellow GDL-ers. My own ideology at GDL? The sun rises in the east, everything else I debate

Zainab Kakal

I am studying Social Entrepreneurship at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai .I am currently working at Source For Change (SFC), the rural BPO and aims to learn as well as create value for SFC. Born and brought up in Mumbai, I love to explore new ground and ask questions.