Ashoka Innovators in collaboration with the Nagaland Board of School education (NBSE) and Entrepreneurs Associates (EA), Nagaland, organised “Ashoka Changemakers Day” at Kevilhouü Rio auditorium, G Rio School, Kohima on February 22.
Special guest, chief secretary Temjen Toy asserted the students to utilise their talents to achieve their goals. He also told them to have determination and discipline to compete in today’s generation, stating that students from Nagaland sometime feel very small and inferior to others. However, he advised them to break from that barrier and move forward and connect to the world. He also urged the students to be the ambassador of change and bring changes in the society.
Resource persons for the day included a distinguished team of Ashoka fellows and changemakers, comprising of Ajit Singh, founder & CEO Anant Innovations, Hasina Kharbhih, founder and MD of Impulse Social Enterprises; Aayush Gupta, founding team, Fampay and Disha Shah, Ashoka Young Changemaker 2019 including three Ashoka team members from Bangalore.
Chairman of the NBSE, Asano Sekhose in her welcome speech stated that this programme was the first of its kind in Nagaland and expressed her desire to see students becoming changemakers and problem solvers in society.
CEO of EA Neichute Doulo also encouraged the students to embrace change stressing that it was the way forward to succeed in the coming days. Since early February NBSE and EA had been encouraging students from across Kohima to send in their ideas that they felt could solve problems they had encountered. 10 entries were selected from the 40 entries and the top 10 were given to pitch their ideas to the gathering of 1500 students from 44 schools and dignitaries at the Kevilhouu Rio auditorium.
Jury comprising of Shanavas C, principal director, SE; Rangumbuing Nsa, addl secy, NBSE; Ajit Singh, Hasina Kharbhih, Aayush Gupta, Disha Shah & Neingulie Nakhro selected the top three winners who will be invited to Ashoka’s national launchpad to be held in a few months time. Mesele Doulo of Little Flower School won the competition proposing “Express queues in hospitals & mobile vans or mobile clinic to provide door to door medical treatment to persons with severe disabilities”. The second position was bagged by Roshni of Stella Higher Secondary School who shared the idea of “Traffic – no parking signboard” while the third place was won by Jentina Yaomei Shangkhu of Little Flower Higher Secondary School who pitched for solutions on cramped “Urbanization”.
Speaking to the students during the Idea Pitch session, the principal secretary, School Education and SCERT, Menukhol John appreciated the students for their problem solving ideas for a better Nagaland and opined that the government of Nagaland should conduct such changemaker day in all the districts of Nagaland. He promised to ensure that all the idea pitches should be directed to the concerned departments so that the solutions they proposed would benefit the state while also keeping the students informed about the developments taking place. The cash prize for the first, second and third positions along with consolation prizes for all the 40 entries were sponsored by department of School Education.