And we begin...

SIFE DSE has kick-started the new academic session in full vigor, with brainstorming sessions and site-visits being carried out on a regular basis. It is heartening to see the junior team members share innovative ideas, backed with their passion to see the ideas through!
After the brainstorming sessions we have had, a promising new project is in the offing- only a few loose ends need to be tied, and then it should hopefully be taking-off! :)
Also, the team had gone for a site-visit on 01-10-12, Monday to carry out an Impact Assessment Survey for Project Boond. As we had hoped, the survey results revealed that customers of Project Boond had significantly reduced instances of diseases in families with children and senior citizens. The team will be
visiting the site again on 05-10-12, Friday to carry out a detailed Impact Assessment using PLA tools - it is going to be one of the best site-visits in terms of learning acquired! :) Let's see how it works out.

And we make it to the SIFE Nationals!!!

               After attending a comical demo presentation dressed in winter formals  (in June, in Delhi) like buffoons when the other teams came dressed in shorts and barmudas, working 6 hours non-stop on script writing, conducting numerous rehearsals of how to present, breaking into peals of laughter during the rehearsals, and finally arriving for the Regional with a team drunk on over-confidence ("Oh we'll get selected, it's just that we might not be able to attend the Nationals due to our internships" ! ), we finally made it to the Nationals!

               For all the facades of over-confidence, hardly any of us expected us to be a clear favorite after having witnessed the other presentations in our league, and so it is very hard to describe the extreme anxiety in the moments just before the results, the happiness and the high-pitched shrieking on hearing our name being announced, the pure ecstasy of a moment that none of us present their is likely to forget for the rest of our lives-  640 hours that affected 960 lives, has now morphed into "640 hours that affected 969 lives"...Cheers to SIFE DSE! 

              SIFE DSE takes this opportunity to sincerely thank all those people who have been associated with the team, no matter the duration, for without your contribution, this would not have been possible. A special mention of Kangkan Dev Chowdhary, whose baby Project Boond is- this one's for you, Kangkan. Cheers!  

Preparations for the regional!

         Preparations for the regional have been in full swing for some time now, though the ruthless heat has played spoil sport by limiting our site visits! Last week was fun, when 3 of us went to Savda Ghevra to get some pictures and videos for the upcoming competition-  our cameraman's huge Nikon DSLR managed to generate a lot of interest- some thought him a cameraman for some news channel, while some even thought him an NRI on a visit to explore his country (we don't blame them for this one, courtesy his Aviators + DSLR combo)!
         It proved to be a trying mission, but 5 hours into our visit, battling the blistering heat,intruding upon our interviewees' Sunday, we finally emerged victorious, and  armed with our prized catch, headed home.