The Hindu Business Line : All for a cause

Sadya, an annual fund-raiser for a Chennai-based school for children with special needs, is an occasion for corporates to hone their skills and have a go at adventure games as well.

Amid the roaring waves of Mahabalipuram, blind-folded IT professionals struggle to put up a tent, while their team captain hollers, "Come on boys, we've almost made it." Braving the heat on a Saturday morning, eight corporates flex muscles and grey cells at Sadya, the annual fund-raiser for Vidya Sagar, a Chennai-based school for children with special needs.

Competition gets fierce among the companies, but this time around, the coveted prize is not a huge profit margin, but the Sadya Trophy. Each team scales dizzying heights with rappelling ropes and tries war-game tactics in an obstacle course.

The Sadya committee, on its part, also had to overcome hurdles while organising the event. The fund-raising activities of NGOs have been badly hit now, as most corporates face a resource crunch, following the tsunami relief efforts. "For the last four years, more corporates have been involved with Sadya. Despite the tsunami, our long-time sponsors have helped us," says Shiva Sundaram, a Sadya Committee member and an entrepreneur.

For Major Roy, the promoter of Adventure Zone, conducting Sadya 2005 has been quite a feat. His sports equipment got washed away at the Silversands resort in Mahabalipuram by the tsunami waves. But the ex-armyman soon swung into action and re-built his camp at another resort. "Please don't try this at home," he tells in jest to the participants during a rock-climbing demonstration.

Poonam Natarajan, Founder and Director of Vidya Sagar, feels that Sadya has evolved "as a community fund-raising event," since many young professionals have been actively involved in roping in corporates such as Ma Foi Consultants, Johnson Lifts, Ajuba Solutions, iSoft, Thinksoft, VA Tech Wabag and GAVS Information.

Adds Rajul Padmanabhan, Deputy Director of Vidya Sagar, "This is not just about Vidya Sagar, but an act of civic society." The adventure trophy was the brainchild of an Englishman, Jeremy, who has been a long-time friend of Vidya Sagar, and Rajul believes that it is the first such corporate social responsibility initiative in India.

Anuradha who runs a placement company, zeroed in on her corporate contacts along with the fellow-members of the Sadya committee. "There's no point in just issuing cheques for charity. The companies must have a feel of the cause," she says, as she records the scores of a shooting contest. Most IT pros are stowed away in the hi-tech ivory towers and this event can give them an exposure to disability issues, feels Anuradha.

In the long run, some of them may even individually pitch in for the cause. The adventure game is a win-win situation for both corporates and the NGO, Shiva Sundaram reasons. Each participating company donates Rs 1 lakh, and in return, its employees have a go at adventure games, hone their HR skills and also get footloose for two days.

"After sitting in front of the computer for weeks, it is fun to participate in this event which is for a good cause," says an official from GAVS Information, a Sadya sponsor for the second time.

Ma Foi's E.N. Neelakantan gets geared up for an exhilarating rock climbing contest to earn higher scores for his team. But he also wants to enrich his skills: "This helps us improve communication skills and we get to share ideas with the military experts."

The two-day adventure ends with a touch of tinsel town, as the national award-winning actor Vikram hands over the trophy to the winning team. Groups clad in bright-coloured T-shirts also bag rolling trophies designed by a sculptor with hearing impairment.

Like Humphrey Bogart said in Casablanca: "It's the beginning of a beautiful friendship" for India Inc. and the differently-abled.

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