Manoj Rai receives Godfrey Philips bravery award

KalimNews, Kalimpong, 20 March 2013: Manoj Rai recipient of Excellence in Journalism Award 2011, awarded by Kalimpong Press Club is conferred with Godfrey Phillips Bravery Awards on March 20th 2013 at Kolkata. 

He was nominated for the award for the States of West Bengal, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. The Award was given away on March 20, 2013, at the Crystal Hall, Hotel Taj Bengal, Kolkata. 

He is awarded for his bravery and courage for helping the victims of earthquake of 18 September 2011 by covering the news of the helpless victims and sending relief to them by himself. Manoj basically a videographer of Dainandini a news based informative channel of Kalimpong, in the district of Darjeeling of West Bengal alone went to the affected field called Mandir Gaon and Sankhey Gaon of Kalimpong Subdivision in the Kalimpong Block II just on the second day of the disaster. 

He walked about 7 hrs journey on foot to reach the affected areas to find the plight of the 395 families of earthquake victims who were totally cut off from the rest of the country. He captured their condition in his video and later in the night returned and broadcasted the news by editing the footages himself. With no loss of human lives many houses of the two villages were swept away with their agricultural land and livestock in the disaster. 

The visuals and the story of the people showing pathetic condition of the homeless, sick and old aged people and their tears broadcasted in the local cable news touched the hearts of the concerned citizens of Kalimpong who came forward for help. 

Some of them contacted Manoj just after the news broadcast and approached him to take the initiative in sending the relief items and other helps including essential food, medicine and clothings. They were of the opinion that government mercenaries cannot reach there as it is a remote area and possible routes were cut off at the same time Manoj knew the route and location well. 

Manoj was supported by his news team and a journalists club, Kalimpong Press Club and a few concerned social activists to mobilise the people for collecting required items and volunteers to help the victims. 

A small temporary relief team was constituted and people were requested to deposit the relief items. 

People from all quarters flooded with relief items and cash, an old aged poor woman gave all her savings for the forth coming Dushera celebration. Manoj was moved by the charity of the people and finally a team of volunteers was sent to the affected and adjacent areas led by Manoj with headloads of items of food, shelter, clothings, and medicines. They went to the affected areas in the drenched in the rain with the relief items. People in the relief camps were relieved of their anxiety as the team arrived there with all the necessary items and help which was followed by more reliefs after some days. 

Eventually some more NGOs contacted Manoj and some houses for a few needy people were constructed for them and some students and families were also given cash money for their fees and rehabilitation. The Godfrey Phillips National Bravery Awards (formerly: Red and White Bravery Awards) is a social initiative of Godfrey Phillips India, instituted in 1990, to honour courageous people in Indian society. 

The award intends to recognise the ordinary citizens who have selflessly performed extraordinary, little-known acts of physical bravery and social acts of courage, thereby setting an example for others to follow. Presented annually, these awards are the only awards of their kind instituted by a corporation. The award was formerly known as Red and White Bravery Awards but its name was changed in 2003, in response to protests from various quarters about surrogate advertising for the Red and White cigarette brand. In 2006, film actor Preity Zinta was appointed as the brand ambassador of the awards. 

Bravery awards for courageous acts are presented in 5 zones, consisting of 20 states: Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Orissa, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Uttar Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Jammu & Kashmir and Jharkhand. The winners of the Zone Awards are further nominated for the prestigious National Awards. The Godfrey Phillips Bravery Awards are presented in four categories, Physical Bravery, Social Act of Courage, Mind of Steel Award, and Amodini Award. Physical Bravery Award This award is for performing a selfless act of bravery at great personal risk to save life, or property of someone else. This honour can be given posthumously as well. 

Social Bravery Award This award recognizes valiant efforts against social evils like drug abuse, dowry, child labour, corruption, illiteracy, environmental pollution, etc. Individuals as well as social organizations registered in India are eligible for this award. Mind of steel Award This award recognizes people who despite having their limitations have performed far beyond the ordinary and pushed the limits of courage and performance to a new level. This award also recognizes people who have stood by their personal convictions in a social situation, without thinking at all about the consequences. 

Lifetime Achievement Award for Social Service This award is given to an outstanding citizen for his/her remarkable lifetime contribution in the field of social service and who have selflessly spent their lives working for the betterment of society. The Social Lifetime Achievement Award is the most prestigious of the National awards and is presented to individuals who have dedicated their entire lives to a social cause. 

Some earlier recipients have been Padmashree Sister Sudha Varghese, Jaya Arunachalam, Drs. Prakash and Mandakini Amte and, recently, Smt. Ruchira Gupta and Rongo Souria of Kanchanjunga Uddhar Kendra for their acts of social courage. Over the past two decades, the Bravery Awards have honoured over 1200 bravehearts. 

The aim of the Godfrey Phillips Bravery Awards is to motivate many more to show acts of courage in their daily lives, thus instilling the culture of selfless action. Judged by a panel comprising personalities from fields like administrative services, police and retired judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts, social workers and media celebrities, the selection process involves thorough checking of cited events, persons and places, in order to ensure that only deserving individuals are given the awards. 

Surf on 8 parts of the documentary relief report prepared by DAINANDINI. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ehv5cWUuy3g&list=UU2gqAxtADl4ea7vr1Wwo4Wg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNrjI03BcWM&list=UU2gqAxtADl4ea7vr1Wwo4Wg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kh_Fm7WL2E&list=UU2gqAxtADl4ea7vr1Wwo4Wg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fds5ensySYU&list=UU2gqAxtADl4ea7vr1Wwo4Wg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=au74ipUfSlA&list=UU2gqAxtADl4ea7vr1Wwo4Wg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0a1OeCb5dw&list=UU2gqAxtADl4ea7vr1Wwo4Wg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToN89-DYbT4&list=UU2gqAxtADl4ea7vr1Wwo4Wg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-WUnGierGI&list=UU2gqAxtADl4ea7vr1Wwo4Wg