rice bucket

Indian Version to Indian Needs

The popular Ice Bucket Challenge is soaking people with ice cold water around the world. The good side of this challenge is the raised amount of charity in million dollars. But wait! Can’t we think of a little more pragmatic and a little less dramatic way of helping the needy?

Rice Bucket Challenge it is!
This is what has attracted people of India.

Initiated by a 38 year old journalist Manju Latha Kalanidhi describes her inspiration:

“People dumping water on themselves, shrieking, taking videos, the whole idea sort of went over my head…I felt that as Indians we could not connect to it at some level.”

Ms. Manju has been honored with the Karmaveer Puraskar and the Rex Karmaveer Global Fellowship by iCONGO, an international confederation of NGO’s, and the United Nations for doing something small, yet significant. Her efforts and initiatives will be promoted at the global level. She is also going to be featured in the second edition of Karma Kurry, a bookbyiCONGO.

The response which came for this idea has been enormous. Over Five Lakh people have liked the Facebook page of Rice Bucket Challenge and over 10,000 kg of rice has been already donated to the needful.

Critics have poured cold water on the ice bucket challenge. How far do they convince us is the question! When half of the world is suffering from the lack of water, won’t it be meaningless for the other half to waste water in the Ice Bucket Challenge? Now, think about the rice bucket challenge where you fill a bucket of rice and donate it to the nearest needy person, click a picture – upload it on Facebook with #RiceBucketChallenge and finally, tag your friends and invite them to take up this challenge.

Don’t you agree to the fact that the Rice Bucket challenge is a more practical idea? And that, it is a much more direct and striking action plan for helping the ones who are in need. Gradually, the Ice Bucket Challenge is losing its charm. The positive benefits of this challenge are commendable, but something like the Rice Bucket Challenge will inspire us to be more sensible and hit the cause undeviatingly.

Image Courtesy: TheHindu.com

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