The Economics Club organized Eco Week from August 21st to 28th. ‘Eco Week 2019-20’ aimed to provide students with a platform to discover their artistic potential while nurturing in them a love for the discipline of Economics.
The Inaugural of ‘Eco Week 2019-20’ was held on 21st August 2019. The activities planned for the rest of the week were explained at the outset of the programme by Ms. Stesa Pereira, the convener of the Economics Club.
The inauguration of ‘Eco Week 2019-20’ commemorated World Senior Citizens Day which began by Principal Dr. Prita D. Mallya addressing the gathering. She spoke about the importance of having such programmes in order to sensitize students and to spread awareness on social issues among the youth; which isn’t always possible to achieve in the classroom. Short films made by the students were screened during the programme. This was a part of the short film-making competition ‘Golden Oldies’ which was the first competition of Eco Week 2019-20.
The participants were asked to make short films in order to sensitise the youth about the various issues faced by the elderly. The judges for this event included Dr. Prita D. Mallya, Dr. Rodney D’Silva and Mr. Dattaprasad Pawaskar from Help Age India. Golden Oldies saw a total of 26 participants. The first place was secured by Ms. Shreya Naik, Mr. Semiulla Yallapur, Mr. Pranav Rivankar, Mr. Akshay Bhosale, Mr. Saiesh Avkhale, Mr. Zameer Shaikh and Mr. Ali Aga from BCA. The second place was won by Mr. Najahat Sayed, Mr. Nikhil Lobo, Mr. Kunal Naik, Ms. Chaitali Naik, Mr. Kedar Sawant, Ms. Falguni Khatri and Mr. Jakson Fernandes from BBA(FS). The third place winners were Mr. Ganesh Kumavat, Ms. Yakshita Vengurlekar, Mr. Runal Thakur, Mr.Raju Gupta, Mr. Aylman Fernandes from B.Com. The event was coordinated by Ms. Stesa Pereira and Ms. Mayuri Damale was the student in-charge.
The Chief Guest and speaker for the inaugural function was Mr. Dattaprasad Pawaskar from Help Age India, a national level non-profit and non-government organisation working for the cause and care of disadvantaged older persons. After the short films were screened and judged, Mr. Dattaprasad Pawaskar delivered his speech where he highlighted the problems that the aged face, the legal implications of abandonment or ill treatment of the elderly and how most of us are oblivious to these. He appreciated the short films made by the students and suggested collaborating with more of the youth to encourage them to work towards this initiative. The inaugural ended with the vote of thanks which was delivered by Dr. B.P. Sarath Chandran.
The Design Guru (Rangoli-Logo) Competition was held on August 22nd. The students were asked to design a logo for the Economics Club. 29 students from across all programmes participated in this competition. Ms.Yakshita Vengurlekar, Mr. Runal Thakur and Ms. Sailee Pai Raiker secured the first place. The second place winners were Ms. Saloni Pattanshetty, Ms. Sakina Shaikh, and Ms. Kezia Da Costa. Ms. Yeshda Prabhu, Mr. Mark Mascarenhas and Ms. Sonam Shetkar won the third place. The competition was judged by Dr. Sheetal Arondekar, Ms. Samiksha Vengurlekar and Ms. Namrata Haldankar. The student in-charge for the event was Ms. Karishma Satardekar while the teacher in-charge was Mr. Shrikant Madar.
Eco Flash, a photography competition was the third event of ‘Eco Week 2019-20’ held on 23rd August at 12.00 pm. As part of the event, each participant had to submit 5 photographs which captured the best of the Goan Economy. The participants had to present their photographs before the judges and provide a brief explanation of what they captured. The judges for the event were Dr. Edwin Barreto, Dr. B.P. Sarath Chandran and Ms. Sheryl da Silva. 11 students from across all streams participated in the event. Ms. Yashda Prabhu bagged the first place followed by Mr. Semiulla Yallapur and Ms. Shreya Naik who won the second and third places respectively. The event was coordinated by Ms. Stesa Pereira and Ms. Karishma Satardekar was the student in-charge.
Sketchnomics was held on 24th August from 12.pm to 1.00 pm. The participants were asked to sketch their idea of India in 2030. This competition saw out of the box ideas and innovative sketches by the 5 participants. Mr. Semiulla Yallapur secured the first place, Mr. Pranav Rivankar and Ms. Reneta Costa won the second and third places respectively. This competition was judged by Ms. Meher Fedda Rodrigues, Mr. Sandesh Gaonkar and Ms. Madhumeeta Dhar. The student in charge of the event was Ms. Hazel D’Silva while the teacher in charge was Mr. Shrikant Madar.
A debate competition titled EcoStorm was held on August 26thon the topic – “India’s Dream of a $5 Trillion Economy: A Reality or a Myth”. 9 students participated and more than 50 students formed the audience. The judges for the debate were Ms. Mamta Kumari – Assistant Professor in Mathematics and Ms. Seema Dharani, Assistant Professor in Commerce (PG Dept.). The moderator for the debate was Ms. Sheryl Da Silva, Assistant Professor in Commerce (PG Dept.). The debate comprised of two rounds; in the first round, the participants were supposed to speak individually on the topic, giving their point of view for two minutes. In the second round, the teams had to debate between themselves on the topic. On the whole, the debate was very interactive wherein the students brought out interesting facts with respect to the topic. The debate ended at 12:30 p.m. Mr. Aman Makandar was adjudged the best speaker and Mr. Hemant Phodwari was adjudged as the best interjector for the debate.
Eco-Wiz – a quiz competition – was the sixth event of ‘Eco Week 2019-20’ and was held on 27th August 2019 at 12.00 pm. The quiz consisted of four rounds: the preliminary round was an elimination round, after which the top three teams proceeded to the next three rounds. The second round consisted of a crossword based on economic concepts. The third round had the top three teams identifying different popular advertisements. The final round consisted of a spelling bee on economic terms. Eco-wiz received a total of 18 very enthusiastic participants. Ms. Ariti Kumari Singh and Mr. Yogesh Yadav of M.Com were the first place winners of the quiz. Mr. Hemant Phoolwari and Mr. Vikas Shenvi bagged the second place while Mr. Kailash Prajapat and Mr. Sadik Khidmatgar won the third place. The audience for the quiz too was very responsive and participative. The event was coordinated by Ms. Stesa Pereira and Mr. Akash Paswan who was the student in-charge.
Gastronomics – Cooking without fire – was held on 28th August 2019 from 9.30 am to 11.00 am at the College Multipurpose Hall. 45 students participated. The judges for the competition were Dr. Lina Sadekar, Associate Professor in Commerce and Ms. Prachi Kolamker Assistant Professor in Commerce. The students were given 90 minutes to prepare 2-3 dishes of their choice without the use of fire or even an induction heater. The dishes were judged on the following criteria – Health and Nutrition, Attempt at Uniqueness and Efforts and Creativity. The students prepared and displayed their dishes in very innovative ways keeping the criteria for the competition in mind. The first place was bagged by Ms. Saloni Pattanshetty, Ms. Rachana Kurtarkar and Ms. Sakina Shah, the second place was secured by Ms. Sanjan Kamat, Ms. Siddhi Guinde and Ms. Harini and the third place was bagged by two teams, one team consisting of Mr. Sagar Vashisth and Ms. Daisy Braganza and the other team consisting of Ms. Senalda Loes and Ms. Movishka Rebello.
The Valedictory Function of ‘Eco Week 2019-20’ of VVM’s Shree Damodar College of Commerce & Economics was held on 28th August 2019 at 12.00 pm in the smart classroom. Ms. Stesa Pereira, the Convener of the Economics Club, presented a report on the activities that took place over the week, right from Day One. The participants were asked to give their feedback about the event where they expressed that they were pleased to be a part of the event which was well-organised and a good experience.
Dr. Prita D. Mallya addressed the gathering. She appreciated the response to this initiative of the Economics Club and spoke about the importance of having such programmes that relate the subject to various practical activities over the course of the week. Dr. Lira Menezes Gama, Head of the Department of Economics and Banking announced the winners and certificates were awarded for each event. The overall winner with the highest number of points was Mr. Semiulla Yallapur of TY BCA, who won the title of ‘Economist of the Year 2019-20’. The Valedictory function came to an end with Asst. Professor Ms. Lizette D’Costa proposing the vote of thanks.
