Shisht Bharat Campaign Launched to Inculcate Public Civic Sense
Philanthrope, a not-for-profit organisation promoting Safety Preparedness recently launched a Shisht Bharat Campaign from New Delhi. The launch of the Civic Sense Inculcation campaign was witnessed by eminent dignitaries such as Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh, and the Speakers on the panel included Mr. Sandeep Marwah, Chancellor, AAFT Media University; Dr. Nand Kishore Garg, Chancellor-Maharaj Agrasen University; Dr. Jyoti Gupta, Principal, Delhi Public School (Ghaziabad) and Naresh Kumar, IAS, Chairman, New Delhi Municipal Council.
The key highlight of the Launch Event was a panel discussion on the topic, “Making India Shisht: Inclusion of Moral Science as a Subject in School/ College Curriculum is an Important Step.” While congratulating Dr. Angeli Qwatra (Director General and Founder, Philanthrope) for her efforts, Hon’ble Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh said, “As adults, it is our primary responsibility to be shisht (civil) before we can teach these values to our children. We have to be role models before we can implement shishtachar among these young minds.
“With the proliferation of information and knowledge through the media and the internet, it is now much easier to propagate and create awareness about these foundational values that have made our nation into a force to reckon with,” he further added.
Sharing her views at the launch of the campaign, Dr. Angeli Qwatra said, “Philanthrope is launching its second public campaign, after the Safety preparedness trainings, in India called Shisht Bharat. The primary objective is to re-introduce moral science as a subject in the school and college curriculum in the form of not just a bookish course, but a hands-on practical learning methodology.”
“(It is important to enhance) students’ access to people with diverse life experiences and points of view whereby kids learn about their duties and responsibilities towards others in family and society especially towards the elders, needy and poor workers, reducing wastage, conserving water and energy, planting and nurturing trees, and so on,” she further added.
The larger aim of the Shisht Bharat campaign remains to inculcate a sense of civic responsibility and to encourage moral values among our citizens including children.
Under Dr. Qwatra’s leadership, the campaign will employ a three-pronged strategy to inculcate civic sense amongst the citizens. It will aim to educate school and college children through innovative approaches and improve enforcement by collaborating with the Delhi Traffic Police and and carry out advocacy with governments to increase compliance of civic rules through monitoring and fines.
Students and staff of public schools in Delhi NCR will be infused with the spirit to raise civic sense through two hundred F1 (Formula One) clubs of Times of Sports company. A walkathon of all ages from India Gate in April, 2019 will broadcast the need of the initiative widely. Public ads have also been put up in free space provided by Pioneer Multimedia Ltd., as a daily reminder of the need to strengthen the moral fibre of our nation.
Cultivating civic sense is, quintessentially, a huge consciousness raising exercise, and Philanthrope has now taken up this massive and fruitful challenge.
