HCL Foundation Organizes Pan India Kabaddi & Volleyball Excellence Tournament in Chennai under the ‘Sports for Change’ Initiative
· HCL Foundation (HCLF), the CSR arm of HCLTech, organized a pan-India Excellence Tournament for kabaddi and volleyball at D.B. Jain College in Chennai as part of its special initiative ‘Sports for Change’ (SFC).
· Mr. T.S. Murugan, Inspector, Kannagi Nagar, Chennai, and Mr. Reegan, Project Manager, Don Bosco Anbu Illam, felicitated the tournament winners.
· Boys’ and girls’ teams from Chennai won in the kabaddi category while the boys’ team from Madurai won in the volleyball event. The boys’ and girls’ kabaddi teams from Bengaluru and the boys’ volleyball team from Chennai were the runners-up in the tournament.
· The event was aimed at providing competitive exposure to the underprivileged students who are being trained and supported by HCL Foundation under its ‘Sports for Change (SFC)’ special initiative.
· The students participating in the event were identified from the ‘Sports for Change’ competitions at district, state, zonal and national levels. These children are provided daily training, nutrition, high-performance camps, etc. as part of the HCL Foundation’s support.
· HCL Foundation, through SFC, aims to create a pool of talented athletes from beneficiary communities and government schools in collaboration with NGO partners and other development institutions.
· Sports scholarships are also provided to the most promising students through the My Scholar project under the Power of One program. Power of One is an employee volunteering and payroll giving program as well as the cornerstone of the HCL Foundation’s work for positive urban transformation. It is based on the belief that a small contribution made by the employees or time spent in community service can make a significant difference to society. The scholarships help athletes in accessing comprehensive coverage comprising academic, nutritional, equipment support, and competition-related travel support.· HCL · · · Foundation’s ‘Sports for Change’ initiative was launched in 2017, which marked the start of the Foundation’s journey to promote sports as a part of holistic education. These efforts help nurture talented children from underserved rural and urban communities across various sports categories. HCL Foundation believes in providing an equal opportunity platform to all children. Sport is an integral part of their holistic development. Professional coaching and mentoring play an important role in refining their talent and preparing them for the state, national and international levels. Close to 27,000 children have benefited through this program and 115 students are supported with sports scholarships under Power of One.
· HCL Foundation (HCLF) was established in 2011 as the CSR arm of HCLTech. It is a not-for-profit organization that aims to improve socio-economic as well as environmental conditions and achieve inclusive growth and development. Various flagship programs and initiatives of the Foundation endeavor to contribute towards national and international development goals, bringing about lasting positive impact on the people and planet through long-term sustainable programs, ensuring equitable access, opportunities, and holistic development for all. Active community engagement ensures optimal long-term gains and upward accountability. HCL Foundation works through life cycle-based, integrated community development approach with a thematic focus on education, health, skill development & livelihood, environment, and disaster risk reduction & response. Child protective strategies, inclusion and gender transformative approaches remain central in all initiatives of the HCL Foundation. At present HCL Foundation is implementing five flagship programs, namely HCL Samuday & HCL Grant – Rural Development programs; HCL Uday & Clean Noida – Urban Development programs; HCL Harit (The Green Initiative) – Environment Action program; and 4 Special Initiatives – Power of One, Sports for Change, HCL Foundation Academy and My E-Haat.
Dr. Nidhi Pundhir, Vice-President and Director, HCL Foundation, “Sports help children develop holistically by instilling good health habits, comradeship, and a spirit of friendly competition. HCL Foundation is dedicated to promoting sports among the underprivileged and providing them with a platform to showcase their abilities. Such tournaments will help to inspire the country’s youth to dream big and work hard to achieve their goals because nothing is impossible. With a thriving local sporting culture, we can expect an increase in the number of athletes representing the country at the national and international levels. My congratulations go out to all participants and winners.”
