An enterprise helping to meet Swachh Bharat Mission goals to PM Modi launching Fit India Movement - the top social stories this week
These stories will inspire and motivate you to stay healthy and fit, and give you great Swachh Bharat goals.
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This week, we celebrated National Sports Day to commemorate the birth anniversary of Major Dhyan Chand, who is regarded as the greatest Hockey player of all time.
On this day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also launched the Fit India Movement, and urged every individual to change their lifestyle in order to prevent diseases like diabetes and hypertension.
Read the other top social stories of this week here:
This Indian-origin scientist has more US patents than Thomas Alva Edison himself
History is littered with a slew of innovators and scientists who have redefined the way we live, work, and function. Be it Nikola Tesla’s work with electromagnetism, Rosalind Franklin’s contributions to DNA sequencing, or Alan Turing’s strides with artificial intelligence - the world’s best minds have birthed some crucial inventions and discoveries that have reshaped mankind.
Gurtej Sandhu (Image: Idaho Statesman)
And India too has its own of bunch of inventors. Gurtej Sandhu is an IIT Delhi alumnus living in Idaho, US, who has more patents than the famed inventor Thomas Edison himself. For the past 29 years, Gurtej has racked up 1,299 US patents. This is more than Edison, who had 1,093 US patents.
How this social enterprise is helping India meet the goals of Swachh Bharat Mission
According to the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (Unicef), 79 percent of the rural population in the country do not have access to sanitation facilities. A staggering 40 percent of the population is still known to defecate in the open. A report published by international NGO, WaterAid, reveals that 19 percent of people in India are deprived of clean drinking water.
Moreover, inadequate water supply and dysfunctional sanitation systems are known to have a lasting effect on the well-being of people.
The core team of Caya.
To tackle the issue alongside the government’s Swachh Bharat Initiative, Caya, a Delhi-based social innovations enterprise, has been one of the largest contributors to Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, impacting a million people across 200 rural areas.
The organisation designs, produces, and installs prefabricated toilet blocks in rural communities, and has helped bring down the turnaround time of building and delivering a toilet from three weeks to two days.
Declared ‘dead’ at birth, this physically challenged woman is now a KBC winner
In a recent episode of Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC) hosted by Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan, 29-year-old Noopur Singh, a physically challenged contestant, won Rs 12.5 lakh after answering 12 questions.
Noopur Singh (Image: Jagran)
What makes Noopur’s appearance on the show stand out is her life story and the difficulties she overcame. As a child, she was declared ‘dead’ and thrown into a garbage bin by doctors at a Kanpur hospital. Thanks to one of her relatives who saw some signs of life in the baby, Noopur was rescued and cared for.
On National Sports Day, we remember legendary hockey player Major Dhyan Chand
Every year, August 29 is celebrated as National Sports Day in India. On this day, the entire nation revels in the achievements of various sports persons and acknowledges the importance of physical activity in our lives.
Major Dhyan Chand
Image credit: Shutterstock
But the man behind National Sports Day is none other than legendary hockey player, Major Dhyan Chand, who is widely regarded as the greatest hockey player of all time.
Known as the ‘Wizard of Hockey’, he was popular for his brilliant goal-scoring feats and his mastery over the control of the ball. Chand scored more than 400 goals in his international career, and also bagged three Olympic gold medals for the country in 1928, 1932, and 1936.
Recognising his contribution, the Government of India awarded him with India’s third-highest civilian honour, the Padma Bhushan, in 1956.
Prime Minister Modi launches Fit India Movement on National Sports Day
On the occasion of National Sports Day on Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the nationwide 'Fit India Movement', which is aimed at encouraging people to adopt physical activity and sports in their daily life.
Narendra Modi
Modi said technology has contributed to a sedentary lifestyle, which has led to lifestyle diseases like diabetes and hypertension.
Moreover, the Prime Minister hailed the 'Fit India Movement' as it will inspire people, and further urged people to lead the campaign as it is the need of the hour, and will take India towards a healthier future.
(Edited by Megha Reddy)
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