Head Office: BMC School Building

Topiwala Lane, Off Lamington Road,

Mumbai 400 007

Phone: (022) 61381100

Email: responsedignity@gmail.com

Pune Chapter: Savio Villa,

78/4, Divya Nagar, Wanawadi.

Pune - 411 040

Phone: (020) 30458092

Email: dignitypune@gmail.com

Kolkata Chapter: 20 L, Dhakuria Station Road,

P. O. Dhakuria,Kolkata - 700 031

Phone: (033) 24187937

Email: kolkata.dignity@gmail.com

Chennai Chapter: Plot 43/44, Flat 8, Sri Kamakshi

Apartments, MM Ramasamy Street,

Ashok Nagar, Chennai- 600 083.

Phone: (044) 24717232

Email: dignityfoundation.chennai@gmail.com

chennaidignity@gmail.com

Bengaluru Chapter: 383, 33rd Cross, 17th Main,

Jayanagar 4th T Block,

(Opp: BES ladies Hostel).

Bengaluru - 560 041

Phone: (080) 4151 1307; 4166 1122

Email: dignity.bengaluru@gmail.com

Website: www.dignityfoundation.com

www.dignitysecondcareers.org

Dignity Foundation

ANNUAL REPORT April 2011 - September 2012

Founder President's Message

Founder President’s Message 2...4

Mumbai Activities and Services 5...14

Pune Chapter 15...18

Chennai Chapter 19...24

Kolkata Chapter 25...27

Bengaluru Chapter 28...30

Photo Gallery 31...32

Dignity Foundation Trustees & Management 33...34

It is my proud privilege to present the Seventeenth Annual Report of Dignity Foundation.

The year under reference starts with the financial year commencement in April 2011 and ending with

not just March 2012, but I also give coverage to activities we undertook in the remaining 6 months till

last month – September 2012. Since World Elders Day falls on October 1, a day we have chosen to be our

annual day of thanksgiving to the staff and volunteers who have tirelessly toiled the past 18 months.

Our annual report narrative covers a span of 18 months. This year also sees the separation of reports of

our two Trusts – Dignity Foundation and Dignity Lifestyle Trust – the latter becoming a stand alone

Report presented on the Foundation Day of our Township at Neral on April 4 of each year.

At Dignity Foundation my colleagues will bear with me my description of the year gone by as one of

intense trial and tribulation. In an endless stream of difficulties – some financial, some social, some

partnership related – we have seen very difficult days in the entire 17 year span of work Dignity

Foundation has undertaken. It is almost like what Henry Kissinger always said: "There cannot be a crisis

next week. My schedule is already full.”

Starting with the termination notice of a deeply funded long term programme and shocking betrayals

of trusted partners and assistants, we have seen it all in just a year and a half. We learnt painfully that it

was not enough to have striven in unchartered territories, breaking records in the mission to serve, and

coming up with socially innovative schemes. One had also to provide quantitative values to qualititative

change one brought about. The infinite fascination of the corporate sector with monetary successes

and bottom line emphasis of management has also come to dominate the development sector -- a

sector that once used to engage itself wholesomely and entirely, to improving lives, out of charity that

was given to it. When the number of NGOs increased making the charity portion inadequate to be

shared between all, each NGO had to find its own funds to deal with their mission. The concept of social

entrepreneurship gained ground and we evolved our own model of self-sustenance.

However in a reverse osmosis as it were, such mission-driven enterprises proved attractive to the profit-

driven corporate sector, which has made ‘CSR’ its legitimate field of application. The Corporate Social

Responsibility (CSR) movement calls upon corporations to act as good corporate citizens and put the

welfare of society as a whole over their need to make individual profit. There are calls for a shift from the

2

the same guru, Peter Drucker. In this composition I have been lucky enough to retain dedicated staff,

who ran along with me all the mile to realise life cannot sink deeper. These are tough times, but from

tough times come tough people -- people who know how to pull themselves up by their bootstraps, how

to disregard an endless stream of negative news and negative projections, and make good things

happen out of the ashes of adversity!

One of those perennial wisdoms is that life is composed of dual opposites. For every ‘up’ there must be a

‘down’, for black there is white. We see it everywhere, left brain thinking paired with right brain

thinking, logic balanced with emotion, imagination in opposition to facts, and form juxtaposed against

spirit. Just like the head and tail of the coin, complementary and balancing forces create the life we

experience. Our lives are created out of these forces and are reflections of their cause and effect.

Without opposites, life itself would not exist. For example, without science, we would be living in a world

of confusion and chaos. Without spirit, we would be soul-less machines, lacking art, beauty, and the

creative energy needed to manifest life and the results we desire. Up-down, black-white, good-bad,

science-spirit brings about the balancing of opposites that creates the wholeness of life, like the head

and the tail create the coin.

For the past 17 years I have been at the helm of affairs at Dignity Foundation. The time has come for my

successors to take charge and they will during the coming year 2013. In the same spirit in which Google

co-founder Sergey Brin observed, obviously everyone wants to be successful, but I want to be looked

back on as being innovative, very trusted and ethical and ultimately making a difference in senior

citizens’ lives. I would like to be remembered as having left an organisation which is not a soulless

machine of activity but a vibrant, creative, living organisation operating from a deep sense of purpose

and healthy relationships.

In the pursuit of this mission, to a small number of large companies who extended steadfast financial

support during the year and a large number of smaller companies, Trusts and individuals who gave us

donations in cash and kind we owe our grateful thanks. Without them it is unthinkable how we could

have advanced in delivering our mission. On page 11 and 12 we proudly present the list of supporters.

At the national level I had the opportunity to share the responsibility of preparing the draft for the

National Policy of Senior Citizens 2012 yet to be announced by the Ministry of Social Justice and

Empowerment (MSJE). Several other advocacy efforts were undertaken by Dignity Foundation through

representations submitted to the Finance Ministry, to MSJE, and by serving on the Advisory Board for

Research and Monitoring of projects and schemes of the Govt of India in the field of Ageing, Disability

and Drug Abuse.

Sheilu SreenivasanFounder President

“Shareholder Model” to the “Stakeholder Model,” a shift away from focusing solely on the return only

for shareholders to a wider picture that focuses on the needs of all stakeholders: employees, customers,

suppliers, and society at large. So the corporate sector and the NGO sector are today inter-locked in

influencing each other in an infinitely nebulous situation of trial and error.

For sheer survival, hybrids like ourselves, are now compelled to likewise generate revenues more

vehemently than generate social change. I am out of depths really in my search for a wherewithal to

attribute monetary value to emotional positives such as loneliness mitigation, self-actualisation and a

person’s happiness quotient, which senior citizens come to enjoy due to our intervention at the

grassroots. If our services are pointed at delivering such intangible benefits how are we to measure

their impact in monetary terms? When life itself has changed for the better, the mere lack of

concomitant economic indicators has rendered my mission futile. In our balance sheet projections, we

at Dignity Foundation ache for mechanisms to balance emotional and economic wellbeing of the

organisation as of individuals whose life we seek to enhance.

Along the paths of even NGOs, whose prime raison d'être for existence is living for others,

characteristics of the commercial sector such as rivalry and one-upmanship have penetrated and

raised their ugly heads. Marring the sanctity of working as a Trust in the true sense of Trusteeship, we

find we are short-changed and proven ineffective in the face of cheating and malpractice. The

Retirement Expo 2011 that was the brainchild of Dignity Foundation, successfully showcased in 5 cities

in 2011 today stands stolen as a concept in the retirement space by fellowmen in Ageing whose

ungentlemanly action comes to us as a shock!

"God places the heaviest burden on those who can carry it's weight " consoled a senior citizen who was

familiar with the battalion of woes besetting us in 2012. "Whenever you see darkness”, he said “there is

extraordinary opportunity for the light to burn brighter." True to this dictim, we have indeed become

leaner and have shut down activities that proved unviable in terms of goal fulfillment. Dignity Second

Careers has been one such unfortunate casualty, where neither the employee nor the employer found

attraction and commonality of purpose. Resulting in frustration for all concerned, our mission of

wanting to find jobs for senior citizens proved futile and ineffective. Fourteen years of trial and error did

not result in commendable placements. It was closed as of this year.

The Accounts department was yet another area of darkness which we identified for the light to burn

brighter from now on. Social workers like myself had to learn it the very hard way to accord highest

priority to the management of this department within the overall canvas of NGO’s mission

implementation. Lack of knowledge and poor quality of staff resulted in many a milestone being

delayed, rendering the top management ineffectively equipped with MIS, analyses and concomitant

corrective action. “Efficiency is doing things right; effectiveness is doing the right things," said the social

ecologist and management consultant Peter Drucker. Striking a balance between the two, we have

finally arrived at a newer arrangement of hiring highly qualified number crunchers (a CA firm) who will

feed the management with analyses on a regular basis from now on. With two new professional

advisors – Mr Sameer Bhakri and Mr Rajeev Singhal – who have volunteered their inputs to raise the

bar as it were in key areas, we commence another year of more effective services to senior citizens.

"No institution can possibly survive if it needs geniuses or supermen to manage it. It must be organised

in such a way as to be able to get along under a leadership composed of average human beings," said

3 4

MumbaiActivities at the Head Office, Mumbai, have been majorly masterminded and implemented under the guidance of General Manager, Social Support Services, Neha Shah, with Loneliness Mitigation Centres being championed and ably managed by Manager Anarkali Velkar.

Suraksha Bandhan

On the need for children to be sensitised to elder

care, we in Mumbai have revived our old Event

called Suraksha Bandhan, launched in 2001 by the

then President of India Dr A P J Kalam, whereby

children buy wrist bands of Dignity Foundation

from their teachers, bands that have words printed

on them: “I protect your security with dignity” .

Children take home these bands to tie to their

grandparents on their wrist.

In Mumbai alone in the course of a month we will

reach out to 200 to 300 schools and distribute more

than a lakh of such bands. All-India there is another

2 lakhs bands our chapters will be sending to

schools in 4 cities. We are very grateful to BLUE

DART for sponsoring all courier-related activities in

Suraksha Bandhan.

Dignity Dementia Day Care Centre

Alzheimer's is a barren disease, as empty and

lifeless as a desert. It is a thief of hearts, souls

and memories.

At our day care centre in Dadar we deal with 19

dementia afflicted persons coming from all

localities far and near to Dadar. For some of them it

like going on a daily picnic, for some it's like going to

a club, for some it's a temple they come to everyday.

Each one of them carries their pet world with them

when they come to the centre. The seven caregivers

and the coordinators are the main pillars of this day

care centre. Come rain or Sun , they are there

always smiling and caring for the dementia

members of the centre. At Chembur our second

centre was functional till August 2012, taking care

of three patients. When the rental space had to be

given up due to unaffordable hike in rent, the centre

also had to be closed.

In Chennai at Palavakam, at the Dignity Dementia

Day Care Centre some 8 members are taken care,

followed by Kolkata of some three. There is much

scope for strengthening these 2 city centres, and

starting a new centre in Mumbai in the northern

suburbs.

An Endowment Fund of Rs. 9 lakhs in the name of

K G Benevolent Fund was established in 2007 by

Trustee Nagesh Alia in memory of his mother, for

expenses to be defrayed from interest accruing in

this Fund.

Dignity On Wheels (DOW)

Our mini Foundation, the DOW, was on the move

from March to Sept 2011, completing one round of

visits to all the 24 wards of Mumbai. Our mission is

to reach out to seniors who cannot came to HO, to

provide all the services of Dignity Foundation at the

doorstep of nearly 5000 older population who took

advantage of this service. Thereafter the bus went

for repairs, followed by three monsoon months

when it was grounded. We were very fortunate to

have in Trustee Gopal Srinivasan, a donor for

undertaking major repairs of the vehicle and a fresh

coat of painting costing Rs. 95,000. The spanking

new DOW will start to roll in October 2012.

Dignity Helpline

In the year 2011-2012 almost 4,000 elderly called us seeking various types of assistance – ranging from help for

getting admission in old age homes in and around Mumbai, to a desperate cry for protection for a mother of

three children who on her own had brought them up, but now in their adulthood, they have started physically

abusing her and mentally torturing her for giving away a small part of her assets! Distress calls, crisis cries,

seeking information and assistance on a variety of subjects have been the calls received from senior citizens on

Helpline 61381111 -- a free service to all who call.

Says Neha Shah: “Despite having a family around, our elderly are facing loneliness in their twilight years. I think

loneliness is a more distressing condition than being abused by one's own. In loneliness either you have a family

around but no one has the time for you, or you live alone and left to fend for yourself, with no one by your side

even to have dinner with. Through our extraordinary volunteer network we have managed to render assistance

to all such lonely elders”. We encourage more and more senior citizens to take the help of Helpline.

From June 2011 to January 2013 this project has been fully supported in all the 5 cities through grants

worth Rs. 73 lakhs from Infrastructure and Financial Leasing Services Ltd. Our heartfelt gratitude for this

financial assistance.

65

Senior Citizen Counseling Centre

Iit is paradoxical that our legal counseling cell , which is

voluntarily serviced free of cost by dedicated lawyers, who

otherwise have their own private practice, is chocablocked

with senior citizens wanting legal advice! In a country which

takes pride in elevating parents to the status of God (Matru

devo bhava and pitru devo bhava), the parents have to seek

legal help in getting the monthly maintenance from their

own children! Working for senior citizens also means we

have to work with children to influence their value system

which has today deteriorated into a don't-care-attitude.

We need to invest in today's youth by creating awareness

that they are the ones who will have to take care of their

parents and parents-in-law.

Dignity Dialogue A Report from its Editor Shobha Nair

One of India's foremost national magazines

exclusively for the 50+, 'Dignity Dialogue' was the

frontrunner of Dignity Foundation, making its first

appearance in 1995. Despite turbulances

throughout these 16 years, it has been steadfast in

its despatch to subscribers on the 29th of every

month, thanks to our subscription department ably

headed by Hemang Desai and assisted by Shreya

Sawant and Neeta Joshi. It has seen many avatars on

the way, strating with a four coloured magazine on

art paper to a tabloid format each alternate month,

to black and white versions, now finally onto a

colourful modern layout from 2010.

What has been consistent over these years is the

quality of its 'contents', which has been receiving

creditable reviews from its readers, who have

become 'passionate collectors', carefully storing

away copies of every issue over the years for an

encore reading! The magazine comes with an

ecclectic mix of health, wellness, spiritual

awareness, environment, modern technology,

personal finance, travel options, personalities to be

emulated, senior cuisine, books for you, brain

games l ike crossword and sudoku, and

contributions from readers on poetry, humour,

nostalgic reflections as well as snippets of

information from around the globe.

We had come out with a Hindi edition in 2010,

accepted with open hands by our Hindi-oriented

readers, who opine it is difficult to find a high quality

magazine from its first issue. Kudos to our Hindi

Editors Dr Usha Mantri and Menu Jain! It is an

honour for me to point out that Dr Usha Mantri, a

retired professor from Meerut University, became a

tech-savvy editor, overcoming her hesitation on

computer technology in a matter of weeks, to ably

steer the Hindi edition to greater heights. A feat

worth emulating for all senior retirees… The fact

that the Sar-La Trust under the stewardship of

Trustee Shri Vinaya Mehrotra came forward to

support our Hindi edition speaks volumes for its

endearment to the readers.

Unfortunately, we could not penetrate the Hindi

belt with proper marketing and lack of Chapter

presence, which prevented it from spreading its

wings further. This stagnancy made us rethink its

position, and we had to stop the edition with a

heavy heart from April 2012. But what little impact

it had on the market is purely due to the huge

support from the Sar-La Trust and the able

captaincy of our Hindi editors! I would like to reveal

that we still get requests to re-start our Hindi

edition…

Let me present you with some gems from the huge

fan mail we receive every month:

“I would like to congratulate you on the quality of

DD, which has improved beyond recognition since I

last subscribed to it. The company from which I

retired pays my subscription to Harmony since its

inception. But I sincerely believe the quality of DD in

its improved form is much better than any other

magazine of the same genre.” writes Suresh M

Mody from Mumbai.

“It is the best!” says Advocate Sandeep Jalan, Janhit

Manch, Mumbai. “As a matter of fact, I read Dignity

Dialogue after a gap, and I have to say the editorials

chosen are gracely bundled, perhaps the best

magazine I have come across.”

In our endeavours to re-invent the magazine every

year and make it more attractive for our readers, we

have been adding professional columns on various

lifestyle issues, consumer problems, photo

features, and highlighting on current issues,

technology to keep you updated with the times, and

awareness on the environment around you. A

special section focusing on the younger generation

helps in strengthening intergenerational bonding.

Retirement Planning Workshops for Retirees in the Corporate Sector One would think retiring was the simplest thing in the world. With a little

thought and planning, 'retire in peace' can become a reality and not just a line on some board. While some only dream of a blissful life after 60, some actually get down to achieving it. The dream can be a reality for everyone as well, only that one just need to outline a plan and be disciplined and patient. Retirement is a major milestone in anyone's life. Proper Planning for retirement is a lot more important. Companies have realised this reality, and have been inviting Dignity Foundation for holding such workshops in their premises. The aim of this workshop is to help people plan for their retirement and lead a healthy and a meaningful life post retirement. We normally invite spouses of employees too for such workshops. Many of the spouses might be housewives having very little or no formal education. A small panel of Dignity volunteers who are professionals in diverse fields normally join hands to make this journey to retirement, blissful and enjoyable for retirees and their spouse.

Dignity Foundation has reached out to following companies and conducted the retirement planning workshops

during year 2011-12: In IDBI Bank we held two workshops on January 27th and 28th and again in May 22nd and

23rd; in Nuclear Power Corporation of India one workshop on March 30, 2011; in NRB Bearings one workshop

on April 5, 2011; at Tata Motors on March 27 and 28, 2011; at Bharat Petroleum on March 29 and 30 2011; and

again April 20, 2011 and two workshops were held in Coromondel Fertilizers Ltd on Sept 5 to 8, 2012 at Kakinada

for Managers and Supervisors and their spouse.

– Avid reader Nergaze Unwala (86)

87

Dignity Ration Project

In the service for the poor old, who have no other support to depend on,

monthly rations are supplied worth Rs.1,000. Faced with the threat of

closure, due to poor donations to the project, the general manager

scrambled at the last minute to successfully spot a donor in the Estate of

Late Smt. Bhadra Ranjitlal Sukhadwala, executed by Shri Deepak Golwala.

A donation of Rs.2.5 lakhs has been earmarked for this project from the

above estate. A special note of gratitude to volunteer Usha Thanawala

whose untiring efforts for Dignity Foundation is highly commendable.

All religious festivals were celebrated with sincerity

of purpose in all the centres. Chembur Centre

deserves a special mention for even organising

Cheti Chand -- the Sindhi New Year's day as per the

Hindu calendar falling on the first day of the Chaitra

month, known as Chet in Sindhi. It is also celebrated

as the birth anniversary of Ishtadeva Uderolal,

popularly known as Jhulelal - the patron saint of

Sindhis. "The occasion is considered to be very

auspicious. On this day, people worship water, the

elixir of life," said Mr Khilnani who gave a small Talk

on the significance of this event. Mr Rajpal, our

member, was the main pujari. Sindhi as well as non-

Sindhi members participated in the puja.

Members of Versova Centre attended a half day

camp at the Yoga Institute, Santacruz (East),

Mumbai on the June 20, 2012. An Interactive

session with Smt. Hansaji, Director of the Institute

was also held. The subject was 'how to take care of

our self'. The day ended with Sattvic lunch.

The third anniversary celebrations of Dadar Centre

brought many talents to the forefront.

Versova Chai Masti members visited Dhobi Ghat,

Mahalaxmi and thereafter went on a sightseeing

tour of South Mumbai on July 25, 2012, followed by

a sumptuous thali at Chetana Similarly, Dignitarians

from the Grant Road Centre greatly enjoyed

the Heritage Walk organised by Dignitarian

Dileep Wagle.

Enthusiastic Dignitarians from the Grant Road

Centre participated in a solo record Dance

competition on March 14, 2012. The competition

was organised by their Dance choreographer,

Neeta Mane.

With the Ganesha festival nearing, members of

Dignity Versova centre participated in a hobby class

to make their own Ganeshas. One of the members,

Jayalakshmi, guided them to make Lord Ganesha

from clay. The Grant Road centre held a mini show

and display of Lord Ganesha pictures .

We would like to present our bouquet of thanks

to the huge author bank we have been blessed with

consisting of professionals such as Dr Manu

Kulkarni, Dr Jamuna Pai, Gopal Srinivasan, Tarla

Dalal, Advocate Anju Aggarwal, Advocate Sandeep

Velkar, K R K Moorthy, Anil Mulchandani and Dinesh

Shukla who never refuse an SOS to fill in last minute

gaps, Anoop Verma, B K Trehan, Nina Kapasi of

BCAS, Advocate Sumedha Rao, Vasanthi Rao, and

our numerous authors who help us make it

colourfully informative and inspiring month after

month. A part of the credit also goes to our

designer Jayesh Kamat and printer Neha Vaghani

who help us keep up our deadline each month.

Dignity Dialogue has been blessed with a dedicated

readership over the years, many of whom are not

interested in the social services on offer. It has also

found a place in the 'retirement benefits' of

corporates such as RBI, ITC, BPCL, MICA and many

more… Our readers enjoy sharing their pleasure by

gifting the magazine to their near and dear ones.

We c o n c l u d e w i t h S u l ta n Fa ze l b h o y ' s

summation….. “It is a pleasure to send this gift to

people as I thoroughly enjoy reading the well-

presented material every month and would like my

friends and family also to share in that joy..”

Letter from the daughter of one of our members:

Conventionally, I don't fall under the category of

Senior citizen, since I'm only 40. Still I read with

tremendous interest your valuable publication

Dignity Dialogue. My father, N K Dhar, is a member

of Dignity Foundation (Kolkata). This letter is to

express my sincere thanks and gratefulness to you

for publishing such an attractive magazine. The

language is exceptionally smart and of good

standard.

The articles are very enriching. And I get lots of

valuable information from your magazine. The

articles inspire me tremendously and help me as a

friend to deal with life's problems more easily.

Dignity Dialogue is indeed a magazine for

'productive living' for people of all ages. My sincere

wishes that your valuable contribution to our

society receives the Blessings of the Almighty.

Ranu Dhar, Kolkata

Loneliness Mitigation Centres

These centres have been growing in popularity and

strength during the year under review. Picnics

continued to be the all time favourite sport, with

each centre taking its members several times a year

on an outing.

On January 18, 2012 we added a new centre at

Thane. The inauguration was by Dignity Brand

Ambassador, Tanuja. Mrs. Medha Joshi, Chief

General Manager, Personal Banking(West Zone), of

IDBI bank was the chief Guest. Tanuja enthralled the

audience by delivering a spirited exposition of how

liberating life can be after retirement. Medha Joshi

encouraged the people to build a positive attitude

towards ageing. Enthusiastic members from Grant

R o a d , M i r a R o a d , C h e m b u r s t o l e

the show by their amazing dance performances and

songs during the inaugural. They helped us to

establish a tradition of inaugurating each

centre by members' performances on the stage!

They danced to the latest Bollywood tunes and

sang hindi film songs.

109

Govt of Maharashtra ID Card Centres

The ID Card centres issuing Govt of Maharashtra Senior Citizens card increased in number both in Mumbai and in the state of Maharashtra. Mumbai centres now total 24 and state centres total 110.

Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services Ltd 2,816,666.00

Charities Aid Foundation India 2,134,208.00

Sar-La Educational Trust 12,00,000.00

Kotak Mahindra Payroll Giving 980,040.00

United Way Mumbai - SCMM 2012 788,300.00

Garware Charitable Trust 300,000.00

Estate of Late Smt. Bhadra Ranjitlal Sukhadwala 250,000.00

ONGC 247,000.00

Shree Mahalakshmi Temple Charities 105,000.00

N.H. Israni H.U.F. 100,000.00

Siddharth Hariharan 100,000.00

Ramgopal Kundurthi 100,000.00

Somasekhar Sundaresan 75,000.00

Gopal Srinivasan 95,000.00

Bhuvan Garodia 51,000.00

Nagesh Ganesh Alai 50,000.00

Ajay Garg 50,000.00

Ajit Thomas Stephen 50,000.00

Tewari Bros Mithaiwala 35,000.00

Anand R. Dalal 26,000.00

Anuradha Prabhu KP 25,001.00

Urmi Bhagwandas Sampat 25,000.00

Sunil Ghanekar 25,000.00

Sindhu Charitable Society 25,000.00

Ramesh Narayan 25,000.00

Ramal Charities 25,000.00

Sapana charitable Trust 24,000.00

Vasant J. Patki 22,000.00

Alcon Electronics Pvt. Ltd. 21,000.00

Hardcastle Restaurant 20,000.00

NKGSB Co-op Bank Ltd. 20,000.00

Kumud S. Shah 20,000.00

Susheil Ahluwalia 20,000.00

Magma Fincorp Ltd. 20,000.00

Nergish Olia 20,000.00

Prashant Shetty 15,000.00

Thakkar KM Bhatia Niwas & VMC Trust 15,000.00

Varsha Rani Kapadia 12,500.00

D.M. Chitnis 12,000.00

Baaqer Shirazi Managing Director 12,000.00

Shantikumar Dalal 12,000.00

Neela V. Patki 12,000.00

Reddy Hymavathi 12,000.00

Lakshmi Srinivasan 12,000.00

Uma Srinivasan 12,000.00

Amit Kumar Singh 12,000.00

Nexus HR Consultants Pvt. Ltd. Sonal Jain - Director 12,000.00

Memmara S. Chidambaram Charitable Trust 12,000.00

Gitanjali Balani 11,037.50

New India Coop Bank Ltd. 10,000.00

Shantha Kikkeri 10,000.00

Nalin Thakor 10,000.00

Ramal Charities 10,000.00

Prabhakar S. Gurjar 10,000.00

Kanchan Singh 10,000.00

Ramprakash Podar Charitable Trust 10,000.00

Shobha Govind Shanbhag 10,000.00

Vidya Shenoy 10,000.00

Sadashiv S. Rao 10,000.00

Nirmala George Mathews 10,000.00

Zahid Husain 10,000.00

Meenakshi Doraiswami 9,000.00

Nina Prabhu 9,000.00

Kantilal C. Mehta 7,500.00

Estate of Saroj P. Shah 7,000.00

Ajanth Bolar 7,000.00

Kantilal C. Mehta 7,000.00

Shyamala Rajagopalan 7,000.00

Grants and Donations

Our grateful thanks are due to the enormous financial support we have received during Fy 2011-2012 from a number of donors.

Events

Donors

Dignity Open Bridge Tournment 2012

Dignity Open Bridge Tournament (under the auspices of the Maharashtra Bridge Association) took place on February 12, 2012, at the Swastik League Hall, South Mumbai, as a one day tournament(Pairs Progressive) conducted in two sessions.

The game of Bridge, said to be a brain booster, has become popular among the Dignity members, with a lot more catching up with it. Every passing year, the tournament has grown in popularity. This year we had an overwhelming response with 23 pairs participating from all over Mumbai. Our members competed with professional and national level Bridge players from all over Mumbai.

As in the earlier years, the tournament was sponsored by Shri Anand Dalal (R L Dalal & Co Pvt Ltd, one of India's reputed engineering and contracting firms)

Chandersen D. Jatwani 5,000.00

Amit V. Karkhanis 5,000.00

Ravinuthala Kalyan C. Rao 5,000.00

Ajay Services 5,000.00

Dhirendra S. Parikh 5,000.00

Sukanta Styamurti 5,000.00

Meenakshi Ramaswami 5,000.00

Ramesh Krishnamurthy Iyer 5,000.00

Shankar Subramanian Iyer 5,000.00

Earthstone Energy & Natural Resources Ltd. 5,000.00

Nita Tanna 5,000.00

Susy Thomas 5,000.00

Vimal C. Kamath 5,000.00

Amal Kumar Ghosh 5,000.00

Adhyaatmam-Bhamini 5,000.00

Sanjeevani Trust 5,000.00

Dewandas B Karamchandani 5,000.00

Sandhya Nagesh Kini 5,000.00

Kakad Udyog Unit Bhavan Co-op Society Ltd. 5,000.00

Sunil Jagtiani 5,000.00

Josephine Dsilva-Coutinho 5,000.00

Satish Rao 5,000.00

Shamala Baliga 5,000.00

Madhukar H. Narurkar 5,000.00

Surendra Shetty 5,000.00

Lovejee Nadirshah Wankadia 5,000.00

Rupawala 7,000.00

Association for Service and Healing of Animals (ASHA) Brinda Upadya 6,000.00

Sundaresan Shastry 6,000.00

Parsi Anjuman Jabalpur 6,000.00

Google Inc. 5,147.32

Indravadan V. Bhagat 5,001.00

V. P. Chadda 5,001.00

Brijmohan Maroo Charitable Trust 5,000.00

K. D. Vasudeva 5,000.00

Dewandas B Karamchandani 5,000.00

Keshoe Chandra Rai 5,000.00

Hymavathi B Reddy 5,000.00

Adhuaatmam-Bhamini 5,000.00

Mangesh Shashikant Hadkar 5,000.00

Tewari Charitable Trust 5,000.00

Sunil Jagtiani 5,000.00

Saaol Heart Centre Mumbai 5,000.00

Satyendranath N. Bhat 5,000.00

Thomas Menezes 5,000.00

Miditech Pvt Ltd. Ganesh Kunju 5,000.00

Pankaj P. Shah 5,000.00

Josphine Coutinho 5,000.00

Shastry Sudaresan 5,000.00

Gomathinayagam N 5,000.00

Aspi Davierwala 5,000.00

Chandersen D. Jatwani 5,000.00

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17th Anniversary of Dignity Dialogue

The 17th Anniversary of Dignity Dialogue was celebrated on March 15, 2012, at Shree Manav Seva Sangh, Savani Hall, Sion to a full audience of 400 senior citizens.

It started with the enactment of the 29th April 1995 inauguration of India's first magazine for senior citizens -- Dignity Dialogue -- followed by a skit by the Dignitarians of Chembur Centre, on “Sashtiabdapoorthi” or the second wedding celebrating life@60.

To understand the beginning and growth of Dignity Dialogue there was a presentation by our Founder President Dr. Sheilu Sreenivasan. She stressed upon how Inspiration, Motivation and Information were the three functional pillars of the magazine exclusively designed for senior citizens.

To play LIVE the importance of knowing celebrities who have featured on the covers of various issues over the 17 years, nine gracious leaders of the thinking world were invited to stage – Gerson da Cunha, Vithal C Nadkarni,, Jayasinh Mariwala, Anil Kilachand, Deepak V. Bhimani, Dr. Jamuna Pai, Katy and Adi Merchant and Gopal Srinivasan.

They gave all the readers a chance to meet them in person and talk to them. This was a great experience for all and the hall went abuzz with informal chit chats.

We also celebrated our authors who were called and gifted with a small memento.

The evening's highlight was a spiritual discourse on “Prayer – Why, What, How, Where and When does one Pray” by the 24 year old graduate of BITS Pilani , Shri Dushyanth Sridhar, who took the hall by storm and enthralled the audience with his mesmerising exposition laced with songs in a mellifluous voice.

The same event was replicated in all our chapters and was a great success and very welcome opportunity to meet the authors and VIP's of our magazine.

Dignity Film Festival 2012

The five -day Film Festival organised by Dignity Foundation, between June & July 2012, in the cities of Mumbai (in 2 venues), Bengaluru, Chennai and Pune, stood out for its splendid reception from the members. It gave a great sense of satisfaction to the Foundation for having been responsive to the members' interests by putting together a selection of films in five different languages, each one celebrated, discussed and reminisced for the content, message and above all the entertainment provided. The 'old box office' brought back nostalgia to the members who enjoyed the bouquet of films reflecting essence of life in various perspectives of drama, comedy and simple entertainment, and got immersed in the flow, as witnessed in Chennai. A quiz contest on every film kept them absolutely engrossed. In Mumbai, they walked the ramp attired as their favourite actor to make the grand finale of the festival highly memorable.

Adding colour to the nostalgic festivities was the presence of well-known film personalities such as Tanuja, Bhagyashree (Hindi) and Nagabharana, Sundar Raj, and Tara Venu (Kannada), who have supported this venture over the years. That, with the ready support of Sathaye College, Vile Parle, Mumbai, as well as Suchitra Film Society and NMRKV College, Bengaluru, in extending their auditoriums for screening, underlined the goodwill for Dignity Foundation.

New Member Induction and Welcome

On July 30, 2012 for the benefit our new members and renewals, Dignity Foundation/Mumbai organised a Member Induction program to Welcome New Dignity Foundation members at the Dadar Chai Masti today 4.00 pm. The Dignity staff put up a Pyscho Drama to introduce the Dignity Foundation services to them. Psycho drama involves enacting real life situations to understand problems. A very unique way to present Dignity Foundation. We want to make our members to feel very special and a very warm Welcome to our new members to the Dignity Family!

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PuneDear Dignitarians,

The year 2011-2012 has been one of challenge and change for the Pune chapter. While our

enrichment centers became even more vibrant and warm we faced significant challenges

on the fundraising and sustainability front. Our team has had some changes and this year

will also see me handover my charge as Head of the Pune chapter. However my connection

to Dignity will continue as I volunteer my services to the Helpline in Pune.

I am happy to welcome Ms. Disha Barve who takes over as Head of the Pune chapter from September 2012

onwards. I am sure she will build on the work that has already been done and pave new paths to self sustenance.

I am happy to present the Annual report for the Pune chapter for the year October 2011-September 2012. This is

a culmination of the effort and spirit of my colleagues Jackson Abnis, Neha Pawar, Payal Iyer, Margaret Pereira

and Abdul Kalyani under the positive leadership of Dr. Sheilu Sreenivasan.

Very sincerely,

Lakshmi Ramamurthy

General Manager, Dignity Foundation, Pune chapter

Handing over charge to Disha Barve

40 volunteers for Expo and events7000 footfalls at our Enrichment Centers 66 cases were handled on the Helpline. The callersbenefited from Professional Counseling andCompanionship. The Pune chapter now has 173 tieups that offer discounts to members.

Dear Dignitarians,

It gives me immense pleasure in representing the

Pune Chapter. I know what a rock Lakshmi and her

team have been and I hope to continue her legacy.

My special focus in the next year will be to make the

Pune chapter financially sustainable which will

go on to support our other

initiatives in the area of elder

care and engagement.

Sincerely,

Disha Barve

October 2011: Retirement India Expo 2011

November, 2011: Ballroom Dance and Warli painting class

December 2011: Outing to Pu La Deshpande Park; Computer Class

January, 2012: Picnic to Hidden Oasis ; Computer Class

February, 2012: Visit to Chinmaya Vibhuti, a spiritual retreat in Kolvan Computer Class

March 2012: Visit to Dignity Lifestyle, Neral, Computer Class

April, 2012: Celebrated the 17th Anniversary of DD, visit to Darshan exhibition, Computer Class

May 2012: Visit to Connecting NGO for volunteering opportunities; Computer Class

June, 2012: Visit to Astha, an assisted living facility; Computer Class; Film Festival

July, 2012: Outing to Holistic Health Centre in Bibvewadi to understand the various alternative

therapies available; Computer Class

August, 2012: Visit to Phulgaon SHG called Ishwari Cooperative; Computer Class

September, 2012: Visit to NavKshitij, a home for mentally challenged adults- to explore volunteering

opportunities; Computer Class

Highlights

Year 2011-2012 in Review(October 2011 – September 2012)

Being challenged in life is inevitable, being defeated is optional. - Roger Crawford

The third year at Dignity Pune was marked by some triumphs and lots of learning. The loneliness mitigation programme has evolved over the year and member interactions and camaraderie bring us the satisfaction of a job well done. On the other hand, we have struggled to get the Pune chapter on the road to self sustenance. The learning in this year will form the basis for our focus areas next year. We however continue to steer our ship with purpose and confidence, reaching out to more elders in Pune.

Retirement workshops

After the successful Retirement Workshops for Kirloskar Pneumatic Co Ltd, for its employees and their spouses, we have seen that the corporate sector has acknowledged the need and the value for these sessions. The two day workshop covers very interesting and useful topics like psychological preparation for retirement, health, nutrition and fitness after 60, Financial planning, Second Career opportunities, Redefining relationships, Spiritual wellness and Yoga.

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Significant donors

Every little drop counts and we are grateful to several smaller contributions we have received this year. As always our efforts are to make the best use of the donations to increase the facilities for the elderly.

The Year Ahead

In the year ahead, I look forward to continuing the existing mix of activities and services. Some of the areas I would like to focus on are

1. Getting Pune chapter on the way to financial self sustenance.

2. Building a pool of volunteers to commit themselves to fund raising, helpline and companionship.

3. Open one more Enrichment Centre in Pune

I look forward to the help and support of corporates, members, donors and well wishers to come forward and help

Dignity Helpline and Professional Counseling for the elderly

Our helpline service has been attending calls of distress from the seniors. Attending these calls brings into sharp focus the problems the elderly face in urban India. From loneliness, depression and disease to abuse and harassment issues, the diversity of issues brings out the complete lack of social support for the elderly.

It is encouraging to see the difference that the helpline makes to elders and their families in times of stress and difficulty.

“Our best comments are reserved for the legal counseling that we have received from Advocate Vrushali. I am not aware of any other NGO who is providing this type of service. We have benefited immensely and have got tremendous peace of mind after discussing and implementing advice to solve some very tricky and sticky legal problems that we had got into.”

- Kaushik and Manju Shah,who utilised the services

Dignity Health Camps

Among others, a Bone Density Camp, Basic Life Support (first aid) workshop, Dementia workshop, Diabetes Awareness camp (including free Sugar test) and Magneto therapy workshop was conducted at Pune.

“I have completed one year of my membership in Dignity Foundation. I am pleased to see the staff working with zeal, honesty and dedication to cater the needs, health and welfare of the senior citizens. In my life I have found a new beginning, an opportunity to interact with loving, friendly members of this foundation. Pray the lord almighty bless the staff of this Dignity Foundation in their future plans. The enrichment time has proved so fruitful and blessed as I gain knowledge in respect to health issues. We meet as a family, sharing our views. This has made me active and I feel dignified.”

- Mr. Albano Alvares (66)

Dignity Computer classes

Our Computer Classes continue to be a big hit among our members. The trainers have found the perfect balance between patience, knowledge, humor and friendship thus leading to an extremely well attended class. Sessions on using Internet, opening and operating a Facebook account, adding friends, having a conversation on Skype etc have opened new and exciting doors for the elders.

“Actually, it is a blessing in disguise for me. Apart from giving me opportunities to go out and making new acquaintances, I have benefited a lot. Firstly, I took computer class conducted by Mr. Bal Gurjal. I had some knowledge of computers before but it made me more confident. Now I am able to operate the computer confidently and stay well connected with my family and friends…..”

- Mrs. Raj Arora, Member

Events of Dignity Pune

This year the Pune chapter hosted several events. We started with the Retirement India Expo in September 2011 which saw over 5000 footfalls. The 17th anniversary of Dignity Dialogue was celebrated in April 2012 and saw a wonderful turnout of Dignitarians. Ms. Anu Aga (ex Chairperson, Thermax India) graced the occasion and spoke about her life journey. Dr Vasanta Ramaswamy, Mrs. Arnavaz Damania, Mr. S. Joglekar and Mrs. Vinita Deshmukh were the other special celebrities.

We also organised the annual Film festival at Nehru Memorial hall which saw a very poor turnout.

Dignity Enrichment Centers

Men do not quit playing because they grow old; they grow old because they quit playing.- Oliver Wendell Holmes

The Enrichment Centers are the mainstay of the Pune chapter. The year saw 7000 footfalls and the warmth, love and camaraderie at the centres is palpable. Members bookmark activities and make it a point to attend and participate. The programming is balanced with activities meant to stimulate, engage and entertain.

We have seen cases of complete transformation in members from being hesitant and withdrawn to taking on leadership roles at the centre! The seed of kalyana mitrta – friendship for everyone's wellbeing- has taken root at the Pune centers with so many elders finding closeness, companionship, solutions and anchors amongst themselves.

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ChennaiResolution of significant problem situations

Mr. C had filed under provisions of Senior Citizens Maintenance Act in 2007, a complaint against children's

abandonment, at the collector's office, Chennai. An Enquiry was held at the Collector's office, at Singaravelan

Malligai where the respondents were present, and the case heard. After the case was heard for more than 8

months even after repeated reminders by Mr C, the judgment was not declared. On behalf of Mr C who lived in

Mumbai, our Founder President submitted a request letter to the Chennai Collector for early disposal of the

judgment. In 15 days time, the Collector had arranged for the Judgment to be posted to Mr C. The client was

naturally very relieved and thanked our President and the chapter offices who delivered the request letter in

person and appealed for assistance.

Mrs. LMrs. L (60) had registered her daughter's name with Bharath Matrimony for a period of 3 months in search of a bridegroom. She received responses from many bridegroom's family but was not able to access any of the them since her registered period had expired! Her claim was that she had sent the details of her daughter within the registered period, the response came late, and that she must be allowed to see the responses for those details which have been sent during the registered period. Dignity Foundation Social Worker intervened on behalf of Mrs. L and spoke to the customer service head and resolved the problem. Mrs. L was given access to all the responses. Mrs. L thanked the Foundation for quick action taken.

Mr. R. N. P Mr. R.N.P (65) called us to seek help for a problem he was facing with the landlord. The Social worker through the brother of the land lord and came to know that Mr. R.N.P had not paid the rent for past 2 months, and hence such a problem had arisen. The social worker spoke to Mr. R.N.P to either pay the rent or vacate the place. Mr. R.N.P agreed and said he would try to vacate the place shortly. Dignity social worker informed the same to the owner and requested her not to trouble Mr. R.N.P till he vacates. The problem was soon resolved.

Ms. DMs. D (62) lived alone at Madipakkam. An executive from Aircel came to her home to sell mobile connection. She was convinced about the offer, gave the initial amount for the SIM Card. The Aircel Executive informed her saying the SIM will be activated in 24 hrs. She waited for one day and since the SIM card was not activated she called Dignity Help line for help. She thought the executive might have been a fraud and that she was cheated. The social worker got all the details from her; spoke to the Aircel Manager to activate the mobile. Aircel executive immediately responded and activated the mobile without any delay and Ms. D was happy for the timely help provided by Dignity.

Mr. N Mr. N (76) met with an accident. He called our helpline for companionship. He stayed in Anna Nagar and his wife was a sugar patient. We had sent our volunteer to meet him, who spends time with him frequently.Small problems appear huge and humongous to senior citizens. A timely help or two resolves the situation bringing a happy smile to their face.

Sr Details No of Calls o. asked for ReceivedN

1 Trusted Information 98

2 Companionship 6

3 Dementia 18

4 Coffee with Dignity 90

5 Second Career 36

6 Membership query 54

7 Tie-Up query 28

8 17th Anniversary Calls 8

9 Volunteering 23

10 DD Meeting 43

11 Health and Medical 10

12 Abuse 2

13 Film Festival 20

14 Others 135

TOTAL 571

(Oct 2011- Sept 2012)

Helpline Calls

2019

Dignity Film Festival

The five day film festival was held from July 18 to 22, 2012. Dignitatrians laughed out loud each time actor Nagesh the protagonist of film Server Sundaram was seen in a comic situation. While watching Adhe Kangal, a murder mystery, some members almost let out a shrieking scream like how children do while watching a horror film! During the screening of Waqt some of the members were singing along with songs that came on the screen. Such were the reactions of the Dignitarians who attended the film festival conducted at MM Preview Theater at Kodambakkam. The films screened were “Athey Kangal, Pachai Vilakku, Waqt, RajapartRangadurai, Server Sundaram.

Our grateful thanks to our members who contributed in cash and kind for the film festival: Mr. M. P Balakrishnan, Mr. Dayakar, Mr. Thiyagarajan, Mr. Vishwanathan andMr. Daivasigamani.

Workshops and Special Programmes

Securities and Exchange Board of India – The regulator for securities market in India conducted a workshop exclusively for our members on Financial Education on January 27, 2012.

Tamil Nadu Police Academy had invited pour members on February 21, 2012 for a special meeting at Vandalur, in their sprawling campus of 235 acres! Mr. Pradeep V. Philips, Inspector General of Police and Mr. Nagarajan, IPS took their chair and spoke about the role of police

concerning seniors. Mr. Philips also included a few points mentioned in the National Draft Policy for Seniors 2012. In the dialogue that ensued topics brought forward by members were jotted down for action. Having had the opportunity to meet and discuss with police officers of the upper echelons, Dignitarians felt that they can with ease approach the police without fear or distrust.

17th Anniversary of the Dignity Dialogue Magazine

On March 29, 2012 the Chennai chapter celebrated the 17th anniversary of the magazine Dignity Dialogue in a grand manner at Chinmaya Heritage Centre, Harrington Road, Chennai. The theme for the evening was “ Celebrating our Celebrities “

The keynote talk was given by Swami Atmajnanadaji Maharaj on “Being Old and Wanted” – a Spiritual Discourse.

The following celebrities were honoured – the well renowned dance couple the Dhananjanyans, Mr. Balakrishnan of Bala Taxi Service , Mr. Nirmal, Exnora Chief, Mr. Vidyadhar of Udavum Karangal. Mrs. Vijayanthi Mala, Actor/dancer, and Mrs. Savithri Vaithi of Vishranthi Old Age Home.

About 25 members of Dignity foundation of Chennai were facilitated for writing articles in the magazine. More than 200 members attended the event. They had an opportunity to chit chat with celebrities, and relive nostalgia.

Events & Social Service Activities

Workshop on Leader and Leadership

On November 25, 2011 a workshop on Leaders and Leadership was taken by Mr. C. S Sampath Kumaran, a Specialist attached to Technology Management Consultancy.

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Memory Check

A camp on Memory check for seniors to improve the quality of life was held by Eisai and Apollo Counsellors on March 14, 2012.

Coffee with Dignity

Activities of coffee with dignity sessions varied from m u s i c to s e l f h e a l i n g techniques and learning of computer basics, getting to know Facebook and the like.

Dignity Dialogues

We continued the tradition of holding an evening chat once a month with significant professionals who spoke on the cover feature of that month's Dignity Dialogue - Members and subscribers in Chennai enjoy the intellectually stimulating sessions.

1. Starting of few Chai Masti centres in few locations.

2. Focused Tie up in health care services

3. Strengthening our volunteer network and focusing on helpline calls.

4. Brining enrichment to members through a variety of programmes and learning sessions

Report Presented by The Management Team

Aruna Damodaran

Lakshmi Kumar

V .Shanmugam

A day in the life of Chennai Dignity Dementia Centre

The members are collected daily from their homes and brought to the centre by 10 a.m. in a bus donated to Dignity Foundation two years ago. They are given a refreshing drink, and stimulated to say a small group prayer. A brief orientation is done by the social worker where in the clients are reminded about the day, month, year and name of the season. Each member then introduces himself/herself.

Armchair exercises, simple yoga, OM chanting and mild breathing exercises are conducted. The members are then given cognitive activities (e.g.: Colouring, Writing, Word search, Calculations, Find out missing letters, Sorting of playing cards, Word/ letter/ number search, Matching the pictures, Find out the difference and similarities, Identification of objects/ people/ colour/ shape etc). Lunch is provided at 12.30 p. m. as specified by the dietician, followed by music therapy sessions where familiar songs are played. Some of the members also sing along.

During rest of the day group activities and games are conducted such as ball games, cards, caroms etc. Also some members show interests in watching movies. There are also interactive sessions among the members where some of them relate their life stories and jokes. Coffee is served at 2.45 pm. By 3.00 pm they get ready to leave. Each one is dropped back home by 5 p.m.

Activities are conducted by Social Worker Jijo Varghese and funding support is managed by Mr K Radhakrishnan, Director of Chennai Chapter.

Vision for the year 2012-2013

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Kolkataof the Year

Wednesday - 09/05/2012 - Rabindra Jayanti Celebration

Monday - 28/05/2012 - Birthday Celebration

Friday - 01/06/2012 - Health Camp by All Asia Medical Institute(AAMI)

Monday - 04/06/2012 - Nazrul Jayanti Celebration

Wednesday - 06/06/2012 - Geeta Discourse by Mr. Alok Banerjee

Thursday - 28/06/2012 - Health Camp By RG Urology and Laparoscopy Hospital

Wednesday - 30/06/2012 - A talk on “Buddhism” by Our Member, Mrs. Sumita Ghose

Monday - 02/07/2012 - A special Musical Programme By Ms. Deboshree Bose, A renowned Singer.

Wednesday - 18/07/2012 - Shruti Abhinoy by Ms. Sunita Dutta, a famous Stage Artist.

Sunday - 22/07/2012 - A day's Out to “Khardah Shyamsundar Mandir”

Wednesday - 25/07/2012 - A tribute to our “Mahanayak Uttam Kumar” on his Birth Anniversary.

Monday - 30/07/2012 - Birthday Celebration

Monday - 06/08/2012 - Celebrating Janmaashtami

Wednesday - 08/08/2012 - Death Anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore on “ Baishe Srabon”.

Tuesday - 21/08/2012 - Programme on Reverse Mortgage in Collaboration with Help Age India.

Monday - 10/09/2012 - Special Songs By TV Artist, Mr. Saikat Sekhareshwar Roy.

Wednesday - 12/09/2012 - A talk on “ Enjoy Sunrise in your Sunset period” by Mr. Dilip Kumar Ghose.

Friday - 14/09/2012 - Uday Shankar Culture Centre Performed a special dance programme, directed by Mrs. Amala Shankar, Our brand Ambassador, in Mahajati Sadan from 6:30 p.m. onwards..

Total Queries in the Helpline: 383 and Total Marketing Alliances: 216

In the next 12 Months, we want to work hard for more memberships, more events, and more donations so that our Dignity Foundation Kolkata Chapter will have a unique position among all the NGO s that are serving the Senior Citizens in Kolkata.

All of us will try our best to execute our job responsibilities so that we will not let our Dignity Foundation down at any Cost.

HighlightsThursday - 11/08/2011 - Health Camp by Eye Care and Research Centre

Tuesday - 13/09/2011 - Vivekananda Yoga Society conducted Yoga Session.

Monday - 9/10/2011 - Bijoya and Deepawali Celebration

Thursday - 23/11/2011 - A Presentation of Dignity Services was conducted At South City residential complex on evening from 5 p.m. onwards with the special assistance of our member, Mr. K. S Parasuram.

Wednesday - 30/11/2011 - Birthday Celebration.

Monday - 5/12/2011 - Camp on Universal Tourism

Wednesday - 7/12/2011 - A Special talk on “Understanding Alzheimer disease and its prevention” by Dr. Gautam Bhaduri.

Thursday - 15/12/2011 - Launch Picnic on the Ganges

Monday - 26/12/2011 - Christmas Celebration

Wednesday - 11/01/2012 - Vivekananda Sardho Sataborsho Celebration

Friday - 27/01/2012 - Birthday Celebration

Thursday - 02/02/2012 - Annual Picnic at Falta

Tuesday - 14/02/2012 - Health Camp By Bengal Speech and Hearing Pvt. Ltd.

Wednesday - 15/02/2012 - A session on “the Art of Living” By Mr. Arnab Acharjee

Monday - 12/03/2012 - Celebrating Holi as “Basanto Utsav” In Bengal

Wednesday - 14/03/2012 - Bhagawad Geeta Session by Sri Amitava Sen and songs by Mr. Ashim Pyne.

Friday - 30/03/2012 - Birthday Celebration

Thursday -05/04/2012 - 17th DD Anniversary Celebration

Monday - 16/04/2012 - Barsho Baran Utsav i.e. Welcoming the Bengali New Year

Wednesday - 02/05/2012 - Greeting Mrs. Sanjukta Sengupta, a dignitarian and a famous writer of modern times for winning the Academy Award for her Book “Ashamikoron”.

2625

Report presented by the Management Team in Kolkata

Moitrayee Chatterjee

Lina Das

Narendranath Mukherjee

Shibshankar Banerjee

Kolkata Dignity Dementia Day Care Centre has a very small clientele

numbering three. It would appear that stereotypical issues and prejudice against the disease itself might be factors behind families preferring home care over professional care at the centre. By 2012 December end this centre will be closed. Funding for the centre has been managed by a small group of core committee headed by Preeti Roy, as Director of Kolkata chapter of Dignity Foundation.

BengaluruDear Dignitarians,

I have immense pleasure in presenting the Fourth Annual Report of the Bengaluru Chapter of Dignity Foundation for the year 2011-2012. Since its Inception in May 2008, the Bengaluru Chapter has seen a a good amount of growth in memberships and establishment of Coffee Chavadis. There was a change in stewardship from November 2011 and the new team is trying its best to rise to the challenges of meeting the mission of Dignity Foundation.

Sincerely,

SANDHYA S. N.Senior Manager and Head, Bengaluru Chapter

Our Ambassadors

Film personalities Mr. Ramesh Aravind and Mrs. Tara Anooradha have been our Ambassadors for the past three years and have been advocating the need to care for senior citizens. Mrs. Tara Anooradha is the Chairperson of Karnataka Chitrakala Academy and was nominated as MLC in 2012. Both the ambassadors have done a great deal of good by spreading the cause of senior citizen in Karnataka.

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HighlightsRetirement India Expo 2011

The Expo which was held on Sept 17 to 19, 2011 received an over whelming response from the Bengaluru public and 4000 senior citizens took part in various activities such as music, dance, talks and exercises, apart from getting to know of products and services showcased by exhibitors.

Kannada Rajyotsava

For the first time the Bengaluru Chapter celebrated the Kannada Rajyotsava 8th in December, greatly appreciated by the Dignitarians.

Outdoor Sports Meet for Elders

For the first time an Outdoor Sports Meet was organised in Bengaluru Chapter in 2012 along with Lioness- Anjanadri. Some 30 members attended the Meet and played 5 different games. Prizes were sponsored by Lions Club.

Award Received

Dignity Foundation Bengaluru was recognised, felicitated and nominated for Namma Bengaluru Awards in April 2012. This award is given every year to individuals and NGOs for their contribution to society. Some 15,000 applicants are reported to have sent in their applications, out of which 5 NGOS were selected for the Award, and Dignity Foundation is one of them.

Humour Talk

Dr. Hirannaiah, a renowned theatre artist in Karnataka visited the Bengaluru Chapter and regaled the Dignitarians with his Humour Talk.

Dignity Film Festival

The annual Film Festival was held in June 2012 by screening movies of five different languages –English, Hindi, Kannada, Telugu and Tamil. Each day saw the presence of a celebrity such as Mr Nagabharana, renowned film director, Dr Sunder Raj actor, Mr Sabhapathy of Suchitra Film Society and Mrs Thara Anooradha.

Tie-Up With Radio One

The “Music Healing” Programme with Radio One was conducted in July 2012 with the main aim of bringing younger singing talents together with Senior citizens. As Chief Guest former Chief Justice Santosh Hegde did the honours and noteworthy mention must also be made of Singer Rajesh Krishnan. The Music Healers Facebook page is popular even among Dignitarians.

Aliance Partnerships

Tie up with 150 service providers in Bengaluru, of relevance to senior citizens were accomplished this year. Significant among them are – the Mallya Hospital, Apollo Hospital , Fortis Hospital, and Manipal Hospital.

Health Camps and Health Related Talks

There were 15 Health Camps and Health Related Talks conducted in chavadis. Significant among them were check ups for diabetes, Orthopedic problems, urological illnesses, bone density issues.

Govt ID Cards

Total number of cards issued were 1257

Nutrition Support

Under this programme 40 beneficiaries were supported during the year with monthly rations

Dignity HelpLine

Total calls received and attended were 1453. These include psychological, emotional, legal and financial counseling, trusted information and companionship.

Dignity Coffee Chavadis

Dignity Coffee Chavadis are the backbone of our chapter. We have at present 5 centres working towards providing daily enrichment to members.

Significant Donors

We are most grateful to donors for their contributions:

Point cross – Rs. 1, 50,000

VMWare – Rs.40,000

Tata Nano cars -- Rs. 10,000

Damask – Rs.15,000

IDBI Bank – Rs. 2000

Mr. Sampath Kumar – Rs. 5000

Mr. Chandra Mouli – Rs. 5000

Mr. Girish – Rs. 5000

British Biologicals, Nestle India, ITC Confectionaries gave donations in kind during events. Mrs Kanakavalli Pandu gifted us with a camera and microphone systems.

Looking Ahead

We look forward to a challenging, productive and meaningful year ahead. Some of our plans are:

A tie-up with Akshaya Patra as avenue for members to engage in voluntary social work

Increasing the number of Coffee Chavadis.

Strengthening our volunteer base.

Soliciting Govt. support towards setting up a day care centre.

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Kolkata Members performing inaugural songRama Dutta with classical songs

Photo Gallery

Dignity Dementia Daycare residents dance at their picnic to Maharashtra Natur Park

Dignity Open Bridge Tournament

Dignitarians become puppets for Thane Chai Masti inauguration

Introduction to Facebook in Chembur by Aon Hewitt staff

Celebrities and awardees at DD Event in Chennai DD Event in Chennai

Pune DD Event - Celebrities from R to L - Mr S. A. Joglekar, Ms. Arnavaz Damania, D. Vasantha Ramaswamy, Ms Anu Aga, and Ms Vinita Deshmukh

Launch of “Music Healers,” a joint initiative byDignity Foundation and 94.3 Radio One,by Justice Santosh Hegde (seated in red shirt)

Bengaluru Dignitarians flaunt their fashion Bengaluru Dignitarians flaunt their fashion

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Shobha Nair,Editor, Dignity Dialogue magazineM.A., PGCTE, M. Phil.

Ujwal Thakar

Sonali Sinha,Chief Operating Officer

Perviz Menon,Manager Events and Funds, B.A

Anil Achrekar,ID Card State

Hemang Desai,Manager, Database B.Com.

Trustees - Dignity Foundation

Management Staff - Dignity Foundation

Vinaya Mehrotra,Philanthropist

Gopal Srinivasan,Executive Director, GKW

Anarkali Velkar,Manager, Enrichment CentresM.Com., Dip. in Computer Mgmt.

M Subramnaiam,Manager,Statutory CompliancesM.A., Dip. in Advt., Public Relations & Mktg.

Kranti Gangan,ID Card Mumbai.

Arun Saha,Executive Director IL&FS

Nagesh Alai,C.A and Advocate, FCB Ulka, Mumbai

Dr Sheilu Sreenivasan,Social Worker President, Dignity Foundation

V Radhakrishnan, Director

Indu Phadke, Member

Yamuna Nair, Member

Geetha Kumar, Member

Preeti Roy, Director

V K Krishnamurthy, Member

Uddalak Chatterjea, Member

Dipak Nag, Member

Senior Managers - Dignity Foundation Chapters

Chennai Chapter Core Committee

Kolkata Chapter Core Committee

Aruna Damodaran

CHENNAI PUNEDisha Barve

BENGALURU Sandhya S N

Neha Shah,General Manager, Social Support SystemsM.Com. Certificate Social Work; Counselling

HEAD OFFICE Dignity Foundation, BMC School bldg, Topiwala Lane, Mumbai 400007Tel: 61381100 (100 lines) email: responsedignity@gmail.com www.dignityfoundation.com www.dignitylifestyle.org www.digntysecondcareers.org

CHEMBUR OFFICESion-TrombayRoad, at ADAPT, Behind St.Gregorias High School. Mumbai 400071. Tel: 022-25203872, 3873.

CHENNAI CHAPTER Plot 43/44 Flat 8 Sri Kamakshi AptsM M Ramaswamy Street, Ashok Nagar, Chennai 600083. Tel: 044 24717232Email: dignityfoundation.chennai @gmail.com

KOLKATA CHAPTER20 L, Dhakuria station road P.o.-Dhakuria, Kolkata-700 031 Tel: 033 24187937Email: kolkata.dignity@gmail.com

BENGALURU CHAPTER 383, 33rd Cross, 17th Main, Jayanagar, 4th T Block (Opp: BES Ladies Hostel) Bengaluru - 560 041Tel: 080-4151 1307; 4166 1122

PUNE CHAPTERSavio Villa, 78/4, Divya Nagar, Wanawadi, Pune - 411040. Tel: 020 30458092Email:dignitypune@gmail.com

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Shashikant Shah,CA and Finance Manager