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DIGJYOTI SCHOLARSHIP FOR MERITORIOUS ORPHAN & POOR CHILDREN FOR HIGHER EDUCATION

DIGJYOTI- a Charitable Educational Trust has been helping meritorious orphan and poor children in Odisha on merit-cum-poverty basis for higher studies in Arts, Science & Vocational Courses after Matriculation since 2006. Physically and socially challenged children coming under the aforesaid categories are given special attention for their higher education to help settle them in life.

This year the Trust will award annual scholarships of Rs.10,000/- to candidates pursuing courses in Arts & Commerce while scholarships of Rs.11,000/- each will be awarded to candidates pursuing Science & Technical education. Deserving candidates may apply within 15th June, 2013 to the Trust (DIGJYOTI, C-24, HIG-Housing Board Colony, Baramunda, Bhubaneswar- 751 003) for assistance in the prescribed form of “APPLICATION FOR DIGJYOTI SCHOLARSHIP” which may be downloaded from the Trust’s Website- http://www.digjyoti.org or collected from nearby orphanages/Krishi Vigyan Kendras/Centres of Bharat Gyana Vigyan Samiti.

Prof. Khageswar Pradhan, Founder & Chairman of the Trust appeals to Orphanages, , Balashrams, Care Centres, Social Activists and Principals of Colleges in Odisha for recommending cases of meritorious and needy children coming under the aforesaid categories for DIGJYOTI Scholarships.

DIGJYOTI OFFERS NEMICHAND JAIN SCHOLARSHIP FOR HIGHLY MERITORIOUS NEEDY CHILDREN FOR HIGHER EDUCATION AFTER +2

DIGJYOTI- a Charitable Educational Trust offers one sponsored scholarship namely, “NEMICHAND JAIN SCHOLARSHIP” to a needy & outstandingly meritorious candidate seeking admission in 1st Year +3 course in Commerce, Science or any other professional/technical Degree Courses after +2. This scholarship of Rs.24,000/-(Rupees Twenty-four thousand) per annum will continue till the awardee completes his/her Degree Course successfully without break.
Deserving candidates may apply to the Trust (DIGJYOTI, C-24, HIG Housing Board Colony, Baramunda, Bhubaneswar-751003) latest by 30th June, 2013, the Scholarship in the prescribed form of “NEMICHAND JAIN SCHOLARSHIP” which may be downloaded from the Trust’s Website- http://www.digjyoti.org or collected from nearby Centres of Bharat Gyan Vigyan Samiti. The application may be sent through the Bharat Gyan Vigyan Samiti who will scrutinize and recommend to the Trust for consideration.

Early in the morning of 29th January, 2012 while most of the denizens of the city vying not to lose a moment’s warmth of their cozy bed in the winter Sunday, the OUAT Guest House was agog in welcoming a stream of visitors who evidently battered by overnight Train/Bus journeys, were gently putting their numb and weary feet in.

But all faces were lit up at the prospect of an imminent union of their family – the family of DIGJYOTI. And these DIGJYOTIANS were our dear Sudhansu Sekhar Nath of Kurujanga, Laxmipriya Sahoo of Sabalakana, Chagala Das of Gopalpur – all prized products of Sabalakana High school who were accompanied by their teacher & mentor- Mrs.Deepanjali Mishra and two guardians- Mrs. Nirmala Sahoo and Krupasindhu Guru; Puspalata Jena of KGNM Trust, Satyabhamapur with her caring Trust Superintendent, Mrs. Shyamali Pati; Chaitanya Pradhan from Angul District; Shyam Sundar Pati from Balasore District; Ganesh Prasad Dash father of Rashmi Dash from Bhadrak District, Sumitra Pradhan from Ganjam District accompanied by her mentor, Mrs. Chandana Mishra of Nehru Seva Sangh, Banpur; Ms Sibani Biswal from Khurda District, Durga Prasad Swain of Jagatsinghpur District, Prasanta Kumar Mishra with his guardian, Kshirodra Budek from Balangir District; Sudhansu Padhan & his guide Nilakantha Kar from Sonepur District and Bipin Kumar Patra from Phulbani District.

The whole forenoon was spent by the participating students in educational tours to the city’s famous Science Park and Regional Natural History Museum. Mr. Jayant Pati, Extension Education Scientist, who accompanied the Group all along, showed them the exhibits of the Centres and organized a video show with the assistance of Pathani Samanta Planetorium which was very educative for the children.

The afternoon session of the interaction was marked by emotional union of the awardee children, exchanging ideas and experiences symptomatic of a strong family bondage. The session was attended among others br the Vice-Chancellor of Orissa University of Agriculture & Tecchnology Prof D.P.Ray ,the Chairman of DIGJYOTI, Prof. Khageswar Pradhan; Trustees- Mrs. Sucheta Pradhan & Mr. B.C. Das; noted socialites associated with the Trust- Prof. B.C. Nayak, Prof. M. Roy, Prof. S.K. Rout and the Trust’s Executive Associate, Mr. B. Bastia .

Initiating the proceedings of the meeting, the Chairman formally requested Dr.D.P.Ray to preside over the meeting and Sri B.C.Das to present the progress report of the Trust.

Self-introduction and exhaustive introspection by the awardee children revealed the rewarding efforts put in by DIGJYOTI round the year. The participants were spell bound at the touching revealations of the children for hours especially that of an orphan child from Kandhamal who was being supported by the Trust for last five years. Now he is a teacher & well settled in life.

Joining the emotion, Mrs. Sucheta Pradhan wished the children happiness and prosperity in the year ahead. She reflected how nice it was to receive season’s greetings from some children and wished that others should follow suite to similar niceties which strengthen the bonds of love of the Digjyoti family. She also advised the children to concentrate on their studies and do well in their chosen field- be it Science, Arts,Commerce or some professional education. There is vast scope for career development in each and every field and it is to us to chose the one which we like most.

Prof. B.C. Nayak, Prof. M. Roy and Prof. S.K. Rout who are associated with DIGJYOTI right from its formation for screening the deserving candidates and helping them through their expert advice & guidance, spoke to the children at length and advised them to concentrate on their goals in life. They should feel proud that their achievements and dedication have been singularly recognized by DIGJYOTI from among the scores of applicants and that they should redeem this faith imposed on them to make them accomplished citizens in our society.

Mrs. Deepanjali Mishra of Sabalakana High School- a pioneering figure in pleading the cause of education for meritorious poor and socially disadvantaged children, in her emotion- filled discourse, appreciated the achievements of the Trust even at its infancy and hoped that over the years it shall grow from strength to strength and redeem the vision and mission of the Founders in greater measure.

The chairman, DIGJYOTI, Prof. Khageswar Pradhan wished that the New Year bring to the children good health and all goodness in their life. To him this interaction is very important and unique in the sense that it gives an opportunity to know each other more intimately, dispelling doubts and inhibitions which help building their self-confidence. The Chairman observed encouraging phenomena in the midst of a very free and frank expressions of the Awardee children and expressed satisfaction that they are so eager and enthusiastic to achieve their goals in life. This is indeed a very welcome improvement in their mind set which the Trust has been striving to arouse in them. Interalia, the Chairman indicated that the Trust will create an Alumni Association when the numberof Awardees reach 50 and he hoped that these DIGJYOTIANS will carry forward the mission as our brand ambassadors.

Prof. D.P. Ray in his Presidential address recollected his long association with the Trust serving a noble cause in our state. He further indicated that as its activities spread over the state,  our scientist  Krishi Vigyan Kendras are extending all help and will continue to so. He also reiterated his offer that the Kendras will continue to render timely advice and assistance sought by the children.

Before winding up the business, Dr. Ray advised the awardees to concentrate on their education and try to excel in the field they have chosen which will help them settle in life honourably and be role models as DIGJYOTIANS.

The fift Interactive Meeting of Digjyoti Trust was held on January 2, 2011 in Orissa University of Agriculture and Technology Guest House, Krishi Bihar, Bhubaneswar. There were participation from beneficiary students and Trust members in the event.

The Chairman, DIGJYOTI, Prof. K. Pradhan initiated the proceedings of the 5^th Interactive Meeting of the Trust by wishing all participating dignitaries, social activists, Trust members and beneficiary students, a happy and prosperous New Year.

He explained that the idea behind formation of the Trust covers a wide range of socio-economic factors which have to be addressed in order that the orphan, disadvantaged and socially challenged meritorious children are adequately empowered to make positive impact on our national development and their livelihood security. He hoped that the deliberation will provide rich input to the Trust for shaping its future course of action looking to the ground realities.

Prof. D.P. Roy Vice–Chancellor, who presided over the Meeting commended the objectives of the Trust to educate the distressed and deprived children in our  society which he considered a noble and effective tool for bringing about socio-economic development of the country. He assured of his continued association and assistance for the cause of the Trust through the vast network of ICAR – OUAT’s rural development mechanism – Krishi Vigyan Kendras located in all the districts of the state. He advised the children to contact the nearest Kendra for any help and guidance.

Mrs. Sucheta Pradhan greeted the participants and wished all the best for the New Year. She reminded the children that DIGJYOTI is not an organization like an N.G.O. It has a strong ideology behind its formation which keeps everybody binding just like an emotional bondage of a child and parent. She however regretted that some senior children have not been maintaining contact once they complete their education and join the mainstream in life. She stressed the need for continued interaction of the DIGJYOTI family and implored the children to keep maintaining constant contact.

The fourth Interactive Meeting of Digjyoti Trust was held on December 27, 2009 in Orissa University of Agriculture and Technology Guest House, Krishi Bihar, Bhubaneswar. Thirty people including 14 students of the Digjyoti family attended the event.

The meeting began with the Chairman of Digjyoti,  Prof. K. Pradhan , requesting Prof. D. P. Roy, Vice Chancellor of the University to preside over the meeting, who set the tone for a very fruitful interaction among students, Digjyoti functionaries and other volunteers. Explaining the primary objectives of the meet and ways to realize the objectives, Prof Pradhan said that there is a need to bridge the communication gap between the beneficiary students and the Trust. The students should feel confident as a part of the Digjyoti family and share their concern and problems. He also asked the students to access the Trusts’ Website www.digjyoti.org and make attempts to tell others to do so.

Mrs. Sucheta Pradhan, a Trustee expressed her happiness and joy to see and meet in one place so many students of the Digjyoti family. She explained how the founder Chairman cherished this dream all through his life to help economically underprivileged but bright students to achieve academic excellence. She expressed the hope that the children should strive not only to prove themselves above expectations of the Trust, but should also develop a sense of accountability in as much as the Trust is accountable to various public authorities for the money it spends. The Dean of Extension Education of the University  advised  the students to approach the nearest Krishi Vigyan Kendras and their officers for any assistance including health care , career counselling etc which they will be happy to extend. The members functionaries of the Trust – Dr.M. R. Ray, Dr. S. K. Rout, Mr, B. C. Das, Mr. B. Bastia , Mr. S. K. Samal and others spoke in great detail about their experience being associated with the activities of the Trust and the students supported by it. They advised the children to utilize the opportunities to achieve the goal in life.

The participating boys and girls actively participated in the discussion and spoke about how they all have been benefited by the Trust. They all feel part of the Digjyoti family and want to meet more often so that they could get opportunities to exchange ideas and experiences since they come from different cultural backgrounds. It was nice to see the change in their attitude and their willingness to share their opinion this time compared to the earlier meetings. Digjyoti is proud of them.

The Chairman further informed the attendees that the Trust provides annual educational grants for post high school courses and also organizes sponsorships for technical and professional courses for those who show excellence in their studies and get admission in these courses. This year two such students, Lalmohan Alada for a medical college and Maya Dhal for hotel management courses have been sponsored by an international organization. They will receive grants to meet entire expenditure for the duration of the courses. The Chairman expressed his hope that all the boys and girls of the Digjyoti family could achieve excellence and attract similar sponsorship grants. The Chairman desired to initiate action in establishing an alumni association of Digjyoti.

The Vice Chancellor Prof D.P.Roy who presided over the meeting, expressed his happiness on the progress made by the Trust during last 4 years. He felt proud being associated with this Trust since its inception. He assured that all help and support in promoting the cause of orphan and poor boys and girls for their education and settlement in life will be provided by university officials located in all districts of the State. This is a noble service for humanity. He thanked the Digjyoti and its founder Chairman for associating him in various activities of the Trust.

The third interactive meeting of Digjyoti was held on February 12, 2009 at 5:00 PM in the Conference Hall of the Directorate of Extension, OrissaUniversity of Agriculture and Technology, Bhubaneswar.

Forty five people including the Chairman attended the meeting and actively participated in the discussions. Among the present were the members of the Trust, the Vice-Chancellor of the University, the Dean of Extension, Program Coordinators and others helping the cause of Digjyoti as volunteers. All the Digjyoti scholars were also in attendance.

In the meeting the Chairman, Dr. K. Pradhan informed the attendees that the Earthstone Group, a multinational Company, through its Earthstone World Wide Scholarship Program had agreed to sponsor some deserving students for their higher education via Digjyoti Educational Trust. This was welcomed by all the members present in the meeting.

Students explained about their problems, progress in their studies, and future goals. The volunteers were requested to address thestudents’ problems by keeping in touch with the students. The Program Coordinatorswere also impressed upon to play a proactive role in spreading the message of the cause of the Trust and its determination to help educate orphan and poor boys and girls to become respectable citizen of the society.

Mrs. Sucheta Pradhan, a Trustee member held a meeting exclusively with the students. A message was conveyed to them that they should treat Digjyoti like a family where the trustees are the elders and the scholarship holders are rest of the members of the family and that they should keep in touch with each other as well as the trustees. Immediately there was an exchange of addresses. This will go a long way in reaching the goal.

We are pleased to announce that Earthstone Foundation has agreed to begin sponsoring scholarships via Digjyoti Trust. The Earthstone scholarship is being awarded to Digjyoti scholars Lal Mohan Alada and Maya Dhal. Earthstone Holdings Ltd. is a Diversified Multinational Group with established presence in Mines and Minerals and developing interests in Energy, Agriculture, Roads, Airports, Ports, Rail Networks and other Allied Infrastructure.

Earthstone Foundation works with local partners in India, Africa and Indonesia on numerous projects in the areas of education, healthcare, women and children welfare, etc. Education is one of the key pillars of Earthstone’s CSR strategy.

Earthstone Worldwide Scholarship Programme is focussed on helping young bright students to attain higher education and achieve their dreams. Founding Shareholder Mr. Pankaj Shah, being a native Indian, feels that Earthstone’s effort should benefit his home country by strengthening the youth and equipping them with the asset of education for better tomorrow. To this end, they studied the experience of many NGOs, orphanages, trusts and organization, involved in the education area. They found two trustworthy organizations – Vikash Educational Charitable Trust and The Digjyoti Educational Trust.

More information on Earthstone Holdings Ltd. and Earthstone Foundation can be found here: http://www.earthstonegroup.com

Proceedings of the 2nd Interactive meeting of the Digjyoti with the sponsored students and others held on 22.12. 2007 the O.U.A.T,Bhubaneswar.

Following a very illuminating and brain-storming interaction organized by DIGJYOTI on 22nd December lasted among its scholarship holders, resource persons and social scientists, the Board of Trustees deliberated to give headway to some of the emerging resolutions in the following thrust areas for vindication of its mission.

• Recognizing the challenges involved in admission for higher education, DIGJYOTI promptly offered to meet the expenses on entrance examinations and crash courses for coaching in various professional courses after +2 examination.
• The Trust will expeditiously work out modalities to provide extra funds for making the recipients computer literate.
• It is necessary to organize frequent visits to various Orphanages by local co-coordinators and volunteer groups comprising retired teachers and social workers to encourage the socially deprived children and make them aware of the opportunities available to them for education.
• To identify bright children early in life and motivate them for higher studies to shape a good career track in life while taking utmost care to help unfolding their natural talents.

Three More Students Receive Financial Assistance.

Digjyoti Trust has entered the second year of its mission to provide support and guidance towards higher and professional education of orphans and other disadvantaged students. In this second year of its operations, the Trust continues to support the students who were selected last year. Additionally, three more students have been selected for financial assistance. Congratulations to the latest members of the Digjyoti family!

On March 17, 2007 the Digjyoti Trust held its first Interactive Meeting in the Conference Hall of OUAT, Bhubaneswar. In attendance were the Trustees, the five scholars who were the recipients of the first scholarships given out by the Trust and many distinguished people from academia and the social sector. We were also fortunate that Dr. D. P. Ray, Vice-Chancellor, OUAT was able to find time out of his busy schedule to attend the event.

 
Prof. Pradhan, Managing Trustee addressed the gathering to kick off the meeting. Thereafter, the meeting became very interactive. There were many useful suggestions on the scope and direction of the Trust’s activities. The minutes of the meeting are attached.

The scholars who were also in the meeting spoke about their aspirations and why higher education was so important for their futures.??The number of attendees and their interest and participation greatly encouraged all the people who are contributing to the Trust in different ways. Prof. Pradhan was later interviewed by the local TV stations.??The meeting ended with tea and snacks and some group photographs.