IT professionals Shyam Murali from Cognizant and
Sidharth Sivasailam from Microsoft talk to
Ergo about their week-long holiday in Spain.

Bengal will
look to turn
the tables
on Services,
who had
drubbed the

at the last
edition of
the Santosh
Trophy in

n the rural schools of Udumalpet (Coimbatore) and Ramakalmedu (Idukki), where infrastructure is

inadequate, day time is \ufb01lled with the joy of learning. What adds colour to these classrooms are the pieces of furniture made out of packing wood from Europe. It is Corporate Social Responsibility of a different kind for Vestas Wind Technology India.

High-end packing wood used by Vestas to transport generators, bear- ings, gear boxes and other heavy ma- chinery is recycled to be made into desks, benches and other learning tools with the help of NGO Aid India. And giving artistic shape and touch to these wooden crates are 25-odd men and women working in a small \ufb01shing hamlet in Koovathur, near Kalpak- kam.

It is three years since Vestas India has been supplying the raw material for this initiative titled \u2018Scrap yard to school room\u2019. Wood that would have otherwise been sold on a kilo basis to the vendor comes to four-fold use.

\u201cThe wood is \ufb01rst de-nailed to recy- cle effectively; the end product (furni- ture)

learning conditions; it is a means of training- cum-livelihood for the \ufb01sher folk working; and the project prevents fell- ing of trees,\u201d says Madhu Kumar Bop- pana,

About 189 tonnes of wood has been sent so far from Vestas India in Chen- nai to Koovathur, located between Chennai and Puducherry.

Aid India trains and employs peo- ple who have \u201cindirectly\u201d lost their li- velihood post-tsunami, assuring them a \ufb01xed income every month.

Taking credit for this task along with others is Peter Bakos, a volunteer with Aid-India. Bakos is an Australian who retired as Marine Engineer from the English Merchant Navy. He initi- ated the concept and oversees the day-to-day functions and trains peo- ple. In fact, he has made the campus

\u201cThe idea was to build a commu- nity centre that would bene\ufb01t tsuna- mi-affected people. Today, we are happy that \ufb01ve to six boys have even left us to start their own enterprise in carpentry,\u201d says Bakos.

For Aid India this project promises to pave way for many other initiatives. The NGO is looking at taking this pro- ject one step ahead as it is getting re- quests from other social organisations to supply them furniture. Akshara Foundation, for example, has already placed orders for its schools.

\u201cWe had made an investment of a few lakhs, but this has now grown to become a self-sustained unit,\u201d says A. Ravishankar, joint secretary of Aid In- dia who is also a visiting faculty at IIT-Madras. \u201cWe are also looking at setting up a much larger unit in Vel- lore, where other industrial waste in- cluding rubber and scrap iron can be recycled as a livelihood enterprise.\u201d

The \ufb01nished furniture is bought over by Vestas for its many schools it is supporting \u2013 25 schools in seven states, that is.\u25a0

The wood is \ufb01rst de-
nailed to recycle
effectively; the end
product (furniture)
improves the learning
conditions; it is a means
of training-cum-livelihood
for the \ufb01sher folk
working; and the project
prevents felling of trees

Bata has launched its latest monsoon collection
of shoes in pinks, reds, silver and golden. The
collection is priced at Rs. 299.

(Clockwise) Women at the carpentry
unit, students in a class and
Peter Bakos

black-and-white bungalow on Harrington Road is the supply source of tableware for a majority of the star hotels in Chennai \u2013 Taj, GRT, Le Meridien, ITC, The Park, Residency,

Stocking international glassware and porcelain brands like Libbey of U.S.A., Spiegelau of Germany, Riedel of Austria and Ismo of Japan, to name a few, Acira is a mix of the old classic gold-rimmed \ufb02ower- patterned crockery and the more stark mono- chrome ones that are in demand today. Some of the stuff is also picked from Thailand and Sri Lanka.

IT companies and Consulates form a major chunk of the loyal clientele at Acira. The store even does printing for corporates. Besides, there are also walk-ins from those looking for domestic purchas- es.\u201cOur biggest USP is that we have a lot of ready

stock, so that when people really want something, they need not wait. Also, we have a large variety,\u201d says Sonali of Acira.

In terms of variety, glassware is Acira\u2019s strong point. (Especially, watch out for the twisted and bent stem glasses from Libbey.)

When you\u2019re done shopping, let your attention wander to the furniture on which the fragile pieces rest \u2013 a result of proprietor Anil Punjabi\u2019s fascina- tion for antique pieces. The furniture, though, is not for sale.\u25a0