NSS IIPS-DAVV Unit is the International Institute of Professional Studies, Devi Ahilya University chapter of the National Service Scheme, institutionalized under the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports Govt. of India. Our sole aim is to motivate students at IIPS to indulge in nation building activities through various events and projects which are aimed towards the benefit of people in and around IIPS. We share the belief that such activities are almost always means of great satisfaction and joy.
The Unit aims to inculcate social welfare in students, and to provide service to society without bias. NSS volunteers work to ensure that everyone who is needy, gets help to enhance their standard of living and lead a life of dignity. In doing so, volunteers learn from people in villages how to lead a good life despite a scarcity of resources. It also provides help in natural and man-made disasters by providing food, clothing and first aid to the disaster’s victims.
The Motto of NSS “Not Me But You”, reflects the essence of democratic living and upholds the need for self-less service. NSS helps the students develop appreciation to other person’s point of view and also show consideration to other living beings. The philosophy of the NSS is well doctrined in this motto, which underlines on the belief that the welfare of an individual is ultimately dependent on the welfare of the society on the whole and therefore, the NSS volunteers shall strive for the well-being of the society.
The symbol for the NSS has been based on the giant Rath Wheel of the world-famous Konark Sun Temple (The Black Pagoda) situated in Odisha, India. The wheel portrays the cycle of creation, preservation and release. It signifies the movement in life across time and space, the symbol thus stands for continuity as well as change and implies the continuous striving of NSS for social change. The eight bars in the wheel represents 24 hours of a day. The red colour indicates that the volunteer is full of young blood that is lively, active, energetic and full of high spirit. The navy blue colour indicates the cosmos of which the NSS is tiny part, ready to contribute its share for the welfare of the mankind. It stands for continuity as well as change and implies the continuous striving of NSS for social transformation and uplift.
The basic unit of NSS normally comprises of 100 volunteers at school/ college level. Presently, there are two NSS units at IIPS which are led by teachers designated as 'Program Officers (PO)' Dr. Kapil Jain and Dr Sujata Parwani which play a pivotal role as an educator, organizer, coordinator, supervisor, administrator and public relations person for the NSS units. They are supported by all faculty and staff members. The team is obviously incomplete without the volunteers (students) of the Institute who make the events successful with their enthusiasm.
At University Level, there is an NSS Cell and a designated Programme Coordinator (PC) Dr. Prakash Garhwal to coordinate the NSS activities in respect of all NSS units in the University and its affiliated colleges.
Similarly, At State level, there is a State NSS Cell headed by a State NSS Officer (SNO), located in one of the Departments of the State Government.
At the National Level, there is a Directorate of NSS, which functions through 15 Regional Directorates (located at Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Patna, Pune and Thiruvananthapuram).
In addition, there are Advisory Committees at National, State, University and Institution level, comprising of official and non-official members, to provide necessary guidance to the NSS functionaries.
Dr. Kapil Jain is associated with Devi Ahilya University (Accredited Grade ‘A’ by NAAC) since last more than a decade and presently serving as Sr. Assistant Professor in Management Science at International Institute of Professional Studies, a teaching department of DA University, Indore. He is PhD in (Management), MBA (Finance), M.Phil., M.Com. and B. Com. with Computer Application from Devi Ahilya University, Indore. He specializes in accounting, finance and research methodology. His early research interests centered around consumer perception and satisfaction towards e-Commerce, behavioural finance, globalization and economic development. His recent work has focused on financial economics, macroeconomic policy, economic growth, and e-Learning. He is Co-author of Accounting and Finance for Managers (Dreamtech Press, 2012) and Co-Editors-in-Chief of Journal of Applied Accounting and Finance, USA. He has been invited as an expert by Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, New Delhi and Dr. Harisingh Gour Central University, Sagar to deliver lectures on Finance and Research Methodology. He has been reviewer for Massive open Online Courses (MOOCs) through SWAYAM and many International referred Journals. He has handled several administrative responsibilities at University including OSD at CVC, Warden etc. He has been awarded external research funding from UGC to undertake research and presently working on Major Research Project. Since last many years, he is actively involved in many social service activities and also handling the charge of NSS Program Officer (National Service Scheme) and Coordinator, MPSACS Red Ribbon Club. Further, he has rendered his services for MP Public Services Commission, Professional Examination Board, Bhopal as Administrative Observer / Technical Observer etc. He has several research publications in International/ national journals and conferences and also reviewed books for well known publisher.
Dr. Sujata Parwani is associated with Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya since last 18 years and presently serving as Assistant Professor in Management Science at International Institute of Professional Studies, a teaching department of Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya, Indore. She is Ph.D.(Social Science), M.Phil. (Economics) and M.A. (Economics) from Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya, Indore.
Apart from her regular teaching work, she is a Research Guide in Social Science and Management. Published several research papers in reputed national and international journals. Participated in national and international seminars/conferences. She has been awarded research funding from Devi Ahilya University to undertake Seed Money Research Project. She has also published a book on the topic “Structure Holistic Development Program: A Tool for success”. Since last many years, she is actively involved in many social service activities and also handling the charge of NSS-Program Officer (National Service Scheme) and cultural Coordinator at depatment level as well as Univercity level.
In India, the idea of involving students in the task of national service dates back to the times of Mahatma Gandhi, the father of the nation. The central theme which he tried to impress upon his student audience time and again, was that they should always keep before them, their social responsibility. The first duty of the students should be, not to treat their period of study as one of the opportunities for indulgence in intellectual luxury, but for preparing themselves for final dedication in the service of those who provided the sinews of the nation with the national goods & services so essential to society. Advising them to form a living contact with the community in whose midst their institution is located, he suggested that instead of undertaking academic research about economic and social disability, the students should do “something positive so that the life of the villagers might be raised to a higher material and moral level”.
The post-independence era was marked by an urge for introducing social service for students, both as a measure of educational reform and as a means to improve the quality of educated manpower. The University Grants Commission headed by Dr. Radhakrishnan recommended introduction of national service in the academic institutions on a voluntary basis with a view to developing healthy contacts between the students and teachers on the one hand and establishing a constructive linkage between the campus and the community on the other hand.
The idea was again considered by the Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) at its meeting held in January, 1950. After examining the various aspects of the matter and in the light of experience of other countries in this field, the Board recommended that students should devote some time to manual work on a voluntary basis and that the teachers should also associate with them in such work. In the draft First Five Year Plan adopted by the Government of India in 1952, the need for social and labour service for students for one year was further stressed. Consequent upon this, labour and social service camps, campus work projects, village apprenticeship scheme etc. were put into operation by various educational institutions, In 1958, the then Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru in his letter to the Chief-Ministers, mooted the idea of having social service as a prerequisite for graduation. He further directed the Ministry of Education to formulate a suitable scheme for introduction of national service into the academic institutions.
In 1959, a draft outline of the scheme was placed before the Education Minister’s Conference. The Conference was unanimous about the urgent need for trying out a workable scheme for national service. In view of the fact that education as it was imparted in schools and colleges, left something to be desired and it was necessary to supplement it with programmes which would arouse interest the social and economic reconstruction of the country. It was viewed that if the objectives of the scheme were to be realized, it was essential to integrate social service with the educational process as early as possible. The Conference suggested the appointment of a committee to work out details of the proposed pilot project. In pursuance of these recommendations, a National Service Committee was appointed under the Chairmanship of Dr. C.D. Deshmukh on August 28, 1959 to make concrete suggestions in this direction. The committee recommended that national service for a period of nine months to a year may be made compulsory for all students completing high school education and intending to enroll themselves in a college or a university. The scheme was to include some military training, social service, manual labour and general education. The recommendations of the Committee could not be accepted because of its financial implications and difficulties in implementation.
In 1960, at the instance of the Government of India, Prof. K.G. Saiyidain studied national service by students implemented in several countries of the world and submitted his report under the title “National Service for the Youth” to the Government with a number of recommendations as to what could be done in India to develop a feasible scheme of social service by students. It was also recommended that social service camps should be open to students as well as non-students within the prescribed age group for better inter-relationship.
The Education Commission headed by Dr. D.S. Kothari (1964-66) recommended that students at all’ stages of education should be associated with some form of social service. This was taken into account by the State Education Minister during their conference in April 1967 and they recommended that at the university stage, students could be permitted to join the National Cadet Corps (NCC) which was already in existence on a voluntary basis and an alternative to this could be offered to them in the form of a new programme called the National Service Scheme (NSS). Promising sportsmen, however, should be exempted from both and allowed to join another scheme called the National Sports Organisation (NSO), in view of the need to give priority to the development of sports and athletics.
The Vice-Chancellors’ Conference in September, 1969 welcomed this recommendation and suggested that a special committee of Vice Chancellors could be set up to examine this question in detail. In the statement of national policy on education of the Government of India, it was laid down that work experience and national service should be an integral part of education. In May, 1969, a conference of the students’ representatives of the universities and institutions of higher learning convened by the Ministry of Education and the University Grants Commission also unanimously declared ‘that national service could be a powerful instrument for national integration. It could be used to introduce urban students to rural life. Projects of permanent value could also be undertaken as a symbol of the contribution of the student community to the progress and upliftment of the nation.
The details were soon worked out and the Planning Commission sanctioned an outlay budget of Rs. 5 crores for National Service Scheme (NSS) during the. Fourth Five Year Plan. It was stipulated that the NSS programme should be started as a pilot project in selected institutions and universities.
On September 24, 1969, the then Union Education Minister Dr. V.K.R.V. Rao, launched the NSS programme in 37 universities covering all States and simultaneously requested the Chief Ministers of States for their cooperation and help. It was appropriate that the programme was started during the Gandhi Centenary Year as it was Gandhi Ji who inspired the Indian youth to participate in the movement for India.