Socho Becho..... Becho Seekho... Seekho Socho......
National Institute of Industrial Engineering (NITIE) organized the latest edition of its iconic event, MahaMandi 2011 0n 6th Augest 2011. Around 1500 students donning black MahaMandi t-shirts and carrying red bags crisscrossed the crowded streets of Mumbai, in an event which can be counted among the largest single day educational events in the country.
The event, brainchild of Dr. T. Prasad, a senior faculty at NITIE, thrives on the idea that any learning is incomplete until experienced by self, and is based on the twin ideals of Corporate Social Responsibility and Ethics in Business Management.
The event was flagged of from the NITIE campus at 11:30 AM by Dr.Amitabh De (Dirctor, NITIE) Mrs. Aditi Govitrikar (former Mrs. World), business leaders Mr. Dev Bhattacharya (Executive President- Aditya Birla Group), Mr. Surendra Hiranandani (Founder and MD, Hiranandani Group) and Dr. Narasimhan (Executive Vice President, Kotak Mahindra Bank).
Speaking on the occasion, Mrs. Aditi Govitikar injected life into the event saying “Events like this need to be taken to a wider variety of educational institutes, be it medical schools, undergraduate level, even high schools”. Further, Mr. Dev Bhattacharya inspired the students, “One of the most important things is to develop the capability of spontaneity.” Mr. Surendra Hiranandani talked about learning through actions and reminded us to learn to expect failures in the real world. Dr. Narasimhan enlightened the crowd with words like, “I see not one thousand people here, I see three thousand- students, manager and entrepreneurs.” referring to the capabilities that students of NITIE and other B-schools possess.
The students thereafter moved on to their chosen destinations, with the aim of selling their range of products. The toys on offer were ‘Tangram’, ‘Jodo’, ‘Navrang’. The students made their sales pitch by emphasizing on the educational value of these toys and how they could effectively complement a child’s learning in the classrooms. Responses from the customers reflected their enthusiasm towards buying the products. According to Mrs. Shilpi Narang, housewife and mother of two, “These toys are a great way for me to teach the concepts of Mathematics to my children, where there is no disconnect and no need to mug things up, as they see the things live before their eyes.” For the students too, it was a fun filled learning experience. According to them, “The whole experience was fantastic. It gave us new insights into customer behavior and how to adapt to the needs of the customers and choose the right product and right strategy to pitch in to them.”
The success of the event could be easily measured from the numerous students seen discussing their unique learning and experiences, and with every other person on the street talking about the event and applauding students for their commitment. Truly MahaMandi has gone into the veins of the Mumbaikars. To top it all, it has given them a lot to ponder upon.
National Institute of Industrial Engineering (NITIE) organized the latest edition of its iconic event, MahaMandi 2011 0n 6th Augest 2011. Around 1500 students donning black MahaMandi t-shirts and carrying red bags crisscrossed the crowded streets of Mumbai, in an event which can be counted among the largest single day educational events in the country.
Led by the students of NITIE, with participation from their peers across other prestigious B-schools in Mumbai (NMIMS, SIBM-Pune, IIT-Bombay (SJMSOM), KJ Somaiya, IES-Bandra), they hit the streets of Mumbai in an attempt to sell educational toys for raising funds for the economically underprivileged children, and in the process, aiming to learn the basics of management outside their classrooms, in a unique action learning pedagogy – ‘learning by doing’.
Fundamental Beliefs of Maha Mandi Program
- Learning is INCOMPLETE unless it is practiced involving Head, Hand, and Heart of the learner.
- Real World can be a wonderful context for learning.
The event, brainchild of Dr. T. Prasad, a senior faculty at NITIE, thrives on the idea that any learning is incomplete until experienced by self, and is based on the twin ideals of Corporate Social Responsibility and Ethics in Business Management.
The event was flagged of from the NITIE campus at 11:30 AM by Dr.Amitabh De (Dirctor, NITIE) Mrs. Aditi Govitrikar (former Mrs. World), business leaders Mr. Dev Bhattacharya (Executive President- Aditya Birla Group), Mr. Surendra Hiranandani (Founder and MD, Hiranandani Group) and Dr. Narasimhan (Executive Vice President, Kotak Mahindra Bank).
Speaking on the occasion, Mrs. Aditi Govitikar injected life into the event saying “Events like this need to be taken to a wider variety of educational institutes, be it medical schools, undergraduate level, even high schools”. Further, Mr. Dev Bhattacharya inspired the students, “One of the most important things is to develop the capability of spontaneity.” Mr. Surendra Hiranandani talked about learning through actions and reminded us to learn to expect failures in the real world. Dr. Narasimhan enlightened the crowd with words like, “I see not one thousand people here, I see three thousand- students, manager and entrepreneurs.” referring to the capabilities that students of NITIE and other B-schools possess.
The students thereafter moved on to their chosen destinations, with the aim of selling their range of products. The toys on offer were ‘Tangram’, ‘Jodo’, ‘Navrang’. The students made their sales pitch by emphasizing on the educational value of these toys and how they could effectively complement a child’s learning in the classrooms. Responses from the customers reflected their enthusiasm towards buying the products. According to Mrs. Shilpi Narang, housewife and mother of two, “These toys are a great way for me to teach the concepts of Mathematics to my children, where there is no disconnect and no need to mug things up, as they see the things live before their eyes.” For the students too, it was a fun filled learning experience. According to them, “The whole experience was fantastic. It gave us new insights into customer behavior and how to adapt to the needs of the customers and choose the right product and right strategy to pitch in to them.”
The success of the event could be easily measured from the numerous students seen discussing their unique learning and experiences, and with every other person on the street talking about the event and applauding students for their commitment. Truly MahaMandi has gone into the veins of the Mumbaikars. To top it all, it has given them a lot to ponder upon.
