5th Pillar partners with SRM University at AARUUSH 2011

                                       

5th Pillar was an 'Anti-Corruption NGO partner' at AARUUSH 2011, SRM University's Techno-Management festival. The inaugural was on Tuesday, 6th May at 3 pm, followed by a students rally within the sprawling SRM University campus, with student volunteers of the institute carrying banners, charts and placards of 5th Pillar along with few other participating NGOs. The festival organizers had provided a stall for 5th Pillar throughout the 4 days of the event.

There was a panel discussion on Wed 7th Sep on the topic "CORRUPTION FREE INDIA REALITY- YOUTH ROLE". It was conducted with 5th Pillar's inputs and summarizing at the end. Around 150 students joined 5th Pillar as student members, and more than 500 students have registered to be added to our volunteers/newsletter database. The festival organizing committee has promised to connect with us in the first week of October to brainstorm and kickoff the 5th Pillar SAC unit at SRM University.

Thanks to all the 5th Pillar team members- Mrs.K.R.Selvamani(State President-TN), Mr.Bhanu Kumar(Executive Director), Mr.Jayaselvan(Admin Manager-HQ), Mr.Natarajan(Ooralvaaimozhi, Tirunelveli Dt Cooridnator) Mr.Mohammed Moideen(Pudukkottai Dt Coordinator), Mr.Jaganathan(Programs & Chapter Coordinator), Ms.Sabitha(Executive Assistant-HQ), Bagyam(Admin Assistant-HQ), Ms.Priya Francis(Student volunteer from Ramanujar College of Engg), Ms.Hema Raju(Patron & supporter)..

And of course, all these would never have been possible but for all the wonderful leaders and volunteers of the AARUUSH team- Pallavi Bulusu, Varun Vijay, Harleen Kaur, Umasankar, Kirthika, Avani Bahuguna, Amrita, Aditya Katiyar, Bhargav, Pragya, Anusha, Neeraj, Urmeelan, Mukunda Priya, Indu Prakash, Mahati, Dhiren, Shrinjoy(forgive me if I left out anyone by chance). These people inspired me and the rest of the 5th Pillar team that went from Headquarters and they have reinforced our confidence in achieving our goal sooner than later. Their selfless attitude, commitment, sincerity, organizational skills and the clarity in execution was highly impressive. And all the above qualities were consistent throughout the festival and not just in spontaneous bouts of excitement that typically happens among many people. Kudos to the entire AARUUSH team and special thanks to all the student volunteers who facilitated the 5th Pillar campaign at the festival.

Regards,
Vijay Anand

5th Pillar motivates students & public of Coimbatore to form Human chain and sit on fast to urge the Government to implement the Lokpal Bill

Today, 5^th day of 5^th Pillar’s indefinite fast in support of Anna Hazare’s fasting began with large number of students joining us and extending their support. Later the students and public formed a human chain supporting our indefinite fast nearby our venue at Presidents Hall, Avinashi Road, Coimbatore. As the time went nearly 5000 students from 36 different colleges got united and the human chain extended to more than 3 kms on either side of the road. 

After the human chain, members of 5th Pillar and people from other organizations motivated the students with their valuable speech for eliminating corruption. Many students voluntarily shared their views about Janlokpal bill and their support for anti-corruption. Zero Rupee Notes were distributed to all participants and they pledged against corruption and signed the zero rupee note banner. 

They also signed the 'Petition to PM' to request for implementing Anna Hazare’s Janlokpal bill. After that about 500 students sat with us for one day fast. Later 3 students Mr.Manikandan, Mr.Lingesh & Mr.Prasath decided to sit for indefinite fast with us. The day ended with inspiring the young minds on a "unified India free of corruption". 

5th Pillar organizes hunger strike in Coimbatore under the banner "Coimbatore against Corruption"

5^th Pillar organized a hunger strike on 19 August 2011 in Coimbatore in front of Hotel Tamil Nadu, under the banner “Coimbatore against Corruption” in which many organizations like ACM, AIMS INDIA, Annai Trust, Assoc. RTI & CSO of TN, Bharatha Vote Bank, Catalyst Trust, Coimbatore Consumer Action, Coimbatore-Peelamedu-Pollachi Consumer Voice, Eeram, FEDCOT, Helping Hearts, IC Centre for Governance, KEXWWS, KURAL, NACM, Sigaram, Velicham, Women’s Empowerment Trust took part. 200 students from many colleges took part in this protest and distributed the flier and voiced their opinion. 

Vanitha Mohan-Managing trustee of Siruthuli inaugurated the event. Dignitaries of Coimbatore like Ms. Anusha Mahesh- CEO of Park Institution, Mr. Shankar Vanavarayar- National President of Young Indians (Youth body of CII), Mr. Mohan Sankar- Patron of 5^th Pillar & Chairman of Coimbatore consumer forum, Mr. Krishnan- President of Indian Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Mr. Pratap Gokuldas-Former Rotary Dst Governor, President of Gujarat Samaj, Mr. Kandasamy- President of CODISSIA took part in this protest and addressed the gathering. Student volunteers went around collecting signatures for the petition to the Prime Minister from the public. 

Hunger strike will continue tomorrow, 20 August at 5^th Pillar’s office at 69 Barathi Park Road, 7^th Cross, Saibaba Colony, Coimbatore. 

Mr. Vijay Anand- Co-founder & President of 5^th Pillar has started on indefinite fast from 11 AM on 19 August and will end the fast when Anna Hazare will end his fast. Mr. Rajkumar Velu- Director of Operations of 5^th Pillar, Coimbatore has begun his indefinite fast from 10 AM on 20 August. 5^th Pillar members , students and public will participate in relay fasting starting from 20 August. 

Public are welcome to join the fast or take part in the signature campaign by visiting the 5^th Pillar office, Coimbatore. The petition to the prime Minister is attached below.

Zero Rupee Note ruffles a policeman in Chennai Airport

On 22 April 2011, I took an auto to the Chennai Domestic Airport to board a flight at 10:40AM. The auto I was travelling on was stopped at the entrance of the Airport and I was asked to walk with my luggage all the way to the domestic airport. It was a long walk from the entrance and as I had my luggage, I asked the policeman the reason for him to stop all the vehicles at the entrance. I got a very offhandish reply from him saying that he is not the person to be questioned and he is simply following the instructions given to him by the Airport manager. I got out from the auto and handed over a Zero Rupee Note to him explaining that he can use it when someone asks him for a bribe when he needs to get a electricity or water connection for his residence. He looked intrigued by the note and I went on to tell him that when he hands this Zero Rupee Note to any authority he would get his services without having to pay the bribe and if there is some resistance or unwarranted delay he can contact the address indicated at the back of the Zero Rupee Note and action would be taken right away. I told him that we have chapters in all the districts of Tamil Nadu and also in major cities in India, and we would inform the vigilance department if we receive complaint from the public and follow up on the action. The policeman said that the auto can go inside and drop the passenger in the Domestic Airport entrance. This is a victory for the Zero Rupee Note and I feel happy to know that we are able to get our rights without having to indulge in confrontation and by just handing over a Zero Rupee Note and creating awareness that we have an organization to back up against corruption and bribery.

Thanks & Regards,

Vijay Anand

Anti-corruption Summit at the India Habitat Centre in New Delhi, on April 27-28, 2011

Dear Friends,

A cancerous strain has besieged the soul of India.

Amidst corruption woes that the country and its patriotic citizens have been reeling from, Transparency International India (TII) and 5th Pillar are hosting an anti-corruption Summit at the India Habitat Centre in New Delhi, on April 27-28, 2011.  As you may already be aware, TII is the India chapter of Transparency International, an international civil society organization headquartered in Berlin advocating transparency and ethical governance worldwide.  5th Pillar, a citizens' movement, was founded as a grass-roots initiative with a mission to enable and empower every citizen to seek transparency and accountability in governance.

In line with our desire to have a conference with very actionable outcomes, we have  an agenda that covers topics such as the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) treaty ratification, empowering civil society coalitions against corruption, and 'Stolen Assets Recovery'. The Summit  will be a convergence of many international and national domain experts, Youth voices, business visionaries, politicians, bureaucrats and grassroots development specialists.   The Summit promises to be 2 days of inspiring talks, actionable ideas and aspirational forums…..with experts from the UN, World Bank, SHERPA (France) and more, including many national experts like Arun Maira, S.Y. Quraishi, Aruna Roy and more  who will engage in interactive sessions with the audience.   For more details, please visit the website www.freedomfromcorruption.in

We hope this convention, rather than being a one-time event, will signify a springboard for more engaged conversations, sustained collaborations and ACTION from all relevant constituencies. It is our desire that we ally, collaborate and bring together bright minds from around the country, harboring the aspirational spirit and fondness for the idea of a truly vibrant India that we want to see. In that spirit, we would like to invite you to attend this Summit.

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Thanks and regards,  
Shobila Kali

Director - 5th PILLAR