‘It is not just our responsibility to help society but also a dire need’

Apeejay Education is known for its quality education that is geared towards man-making and nation-building. Apeejay schools have a rich legacy of shaping individuals over decades into responsible human beings who consciously dedicate their lives toward the betterment of society.

Taking forward the legacy of the ideals and virtues imbibed by Apeejay’s chairperson Mrs Sushma Paul Berlia, Apeejay School, Noida, inducted the newly appointed office-bearers of the Interact Club of the school along with that of Apeejay School, Saket and Apeejay School, Pitampura, at a composite investiture ceremony held recently at the Apeejay Noida auditorium.

For the uninitiated, the Interact Clubs of Apeejay schools dedicate themselves to the service of the community through its close association with Rotary, a global community-based organisation that undertakes humanitarian initiatives to create lasting change. In line with this vision, members of the Interact Clubs endeavour to help those in need through all-year-round initiatives.

The grand investiture ceremony was graced by the presence of Rtn Dr Neha Berlia, Co-Promoter, Apeejay Stya and Svran Group, Chair interact/ Rotaract, Rotary Club of Delhi Premier. She was accorded a warm welcome by the newly inducted prefectorial board. Among the other guests present on the occasion were Rtn Hari Khemka, President, Rotary Club of Delhi Premier, Rtn Sudhanshu Pachisia, President-Elect (2023-24), Rtn Anish Goel, Honorary Secretary, and Rtn Dr Sonia Lal Gupta, Co-chair Interact Rotaract. All the guests received a ceremonious welcome from the school band outside the auditorium.

As the programme commenced with the lighting of the lamp and the national anthem, the principal of Apeejay Noida, Mr AK Sharma, welcomed Dr Neha Berlia and spoke of her exemplary achievements and versatile personality.

Dr Berlia introduced Rtn Hari Khemka, founder chairman of Aditya Group, in her address and spoke of her long association with him. “It is my personal privilege to welcome him; he is like family and each time I meet him I learn something new,” she said.

She further emphasised that human values were the cornerstone of Apeejay Education, and the noble values of founder chairman late Dr Stya Paul were embraced by all Apeejay students. “Apeejay has had a long association with Rotary. Years ago, Dr Paul was awarded the highest Rotarian honour in Jalandhar for his service. Since then, my mother Mrs Sushma Paul Berlia, followed by my brothers Mr Nishant Berlia and Mr Aditya Berlia, and I have worked closely with Rotary…In our schools too, we encourage students to take active responsibility for the benefit of the society. We also work in association with non-governmental organisations such as Prayas and Goonj, just to name a few.”

She went on to highlight the importance of the proactive participation of the newly inducted members in serving the community, which is in dire need of assistance following the pandemic. Cooperation, teamwork, and offering a helping hand to the underprivileged are crucial now. Apeejay schools have undertaken several initiatives to contribute to society in the past, she mentioned.

Rtn Khemka took the stage and blessed the new team of Interactors and stressed the need for good work to be undertaken by them. “It fills my heart to see such determination in the students. You will see how well you learn and discover new cultures as you interact. You need to deep dive and let social work activities teach you. One has to act to be able to make a difference. You have become part of the Interact clubs to learn the power of putting service before self.”

The newly appointed Interact club members were administered an oath by him. The outgoing presidents formally handed over their badges to the current leaders, who were then pinned by Rtn Khemka.

The esteemed guests were treated to some beautiful cultural performances as well. A student from Apeejay School, Saket, performed Bharatnatyam and won applause. Meanwhile, students from Apeejay School, Pitampura, presented a beautiful folk dance of Kerala.

Besides, both the outgoing and the current presidents delivered short speeches. The outgoing Interact Club Presidents of the three Apeejay schools also read their annual reports, highlighting the achievements of the previous year. The current presidents, on the other hand, talked about their future agendas.

Aaryan Mehra, a student of class 12 and former president of Apeejay Noida Interact Club, shared, “We organised a total of 18 activities last year, which I highlighted in my presentation. Some of the main events were three plantation drives as part of the Environment Day activity, a Kargil Diwas activity where we prepared a video and wrote slogans, ‘Mere Sapno ka Bharat’ where members of the club put forward their ideas of an ideal India, tying rakhis on trees as a symbol of protection, a blood donation camp, and ‘Daan’ Utsav–an online donation campaign which saw the participation of more than 80 students, to name a few.”

Talking about the ceremony, Apeejay Saket’s former Interact Club president Matangi Mishra from class 12, mentioned, “The investiture ceremony was a wonderful mix of speeches, presentations, and cultural performances.”

Community-based initiatives taken by Interact Clubs in 2021-2022

In the online mode, it was quite challenging to conduct social work initiatives, said Matangi. “I believe challenges are actually good for us to be the better version of ourselves, so we are ready to face the obstacles head-on. Throughout the year, we conducted a large number of online activities which were enlightening. We had a feeling of gratitude because providing service to others is a heart-warming feeling.”

Highlighting the initiatives undertaken by Apeejay Pitampura in the past year, former president Nitya Goel from class 12 said, “We conducted a grain donation camp where we collected more than 100 kgs of grain and gave it to an old age home. We also conducted an online ‘Buddy programme’ for Upasana, a school for the specially-abled, where we taught them basic Maths and English. We taught them how to use tools like PowerPoint and Excel. We also had many online sessions with doctors who shared health tips, busted Covid myths, and so on.”

Now that schools have resumed offline classes, the current Interact Club presidents look forward to undertaking various social work programmes to fulfill their mission to help humanity. Said Shreya Lal, a class 11 student from Apeejay School, Saket, and current president of the Interact Club, “I have been a part of the Interact Club for a very long time. I joined the club in class 6 and became a director in class 7 and then in class 10. This year, my teachers nominated me for the position of President. The candidates went through various interviews with the school principal, teacher coordinators, and so on. The final decision was made by our principal, senior secondary in-charge Ritesh ma’am and event coordinator Nalini ma’am.”

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Shreya has also been appointed the Zonal Interact Representative (ZIR), Delhi Premier, this time. “It is a huge honour for me! I cannot thank my school enough!” she exclaimed. “Now that our duties as Interact club members have begun, I am learning how to manage my tasks. As President, I am learning how to divide the work within the group so that no team member is overburdened with duties. We all make sure to work together in synergy,” added the Vice Head Girl of her school.

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Aaryan’s successor from Apeejay Noida, Ishita Soni, from class 11, said it was the club’s motto of helping others that inspired her to join it back in class 8. “It is our duty to help and uplift others. It is not just our responsibility but a dire need because we are all interconnected as a society. We cannot move forward if we only think about ourselves. It is a selfless act of giving.”

Talking about her new responsibility, she stated, “I am looking forward to the opportunity to lead the club and also grow at a personal level. I want to inspire others so that they also look forward to being a part of the club.”

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The youngest president elected among the three schools is Divisha Dua, a class 10 student, from Apeejay Pitampura, breaking the convention of electing class 11 students for the position. “I was told by many in my school that this is perhaps the first time that someone from class 10 was elected for President! I am very happy, humbled, and honoured that I got this opportunity, and I would like to do justice to it.”

Divisha officially enrolled in the club last year although she has been an active participant in the activities since she was in class 7. “Leadership has nothing to do with age. I want to bring about a change in society and do my best to achieve that goal,” she signed off.