THE ROTATOR - Issue 44

Happy reading!
Your Rotator Team 2025–26

A Lake of Hope at the Open Air Jail, Devanahalli

Spread across 100 acres, the Open Air Jail at Devanahalli is home to over 75 inmates who have earned the privilege of being housed here because of their good behaviour and discipline. Unlike conventional prisons, the inmates here move around with greater freedom, preparing themselves to reintegrate into society.

One of the most inspiring aspects of this facility is its focus on rehabilitation through farming. The inmates cultivate vegetables within the campus, supplying fresh produce to the prison at Parappana Agrahara Central Prison on Hosur Road. However, during visits to the campus, it became evident that the lack of a dependable water source was limiting the scale of cultivation.

Recognising this need, the Rotary Club of Bangalore undertook a landmark initiative creating a lake within the Open Air Jail campus for the very first time.

The newly developed 2-acre lake has a remarkable storage capacity of 3.5 crore litres of water and is expected to transform agricultural activity within the prison campus.
With assured water availability, the inmates will now be able to cultivate larger quantities of vegetables, making the project both sustainable and meaningful.

The project was completed at a cost of ₹50 lakhs and was generously sponsored by Collins Aerospace, valued CSR partners of RCB for more than seven years. Their continued commitment towards impactful community initiatives has once again made a lasting difference.
Special thanks to PP Rtn Ranga Rao for facilitating this invaluable support and helping turn this vision into reality.
-Rtn. Manjunath A

Laughter to beat the Monday blues!

Last Monday the house was packed and the mood was festive. It was the annual Rotarian’s night hosted by the Inner Wheel club of Bangalore.
The Inner Wheel Club, presided by President Sharmila Perumal took the stage with the serenity and the enthusiasm of a team leader. What followed was a list of achievements and community reach accomplished so far.
Scholarships for students, furniture for schools in Chikkaballapur, support for Anganwadis, competitions for children and under community service, they had built an entire floor at a boys’ shelter home, promoted dignity of workers, helped differently abled students, cared for seniors in old age homes, and even installed rainwater harvesting systems. If that wasn’t enough, they organised safaris for children at Bandipur, championed animal welfare, marched for Pulse Polio, and promoted kidney health. Prez Sharmila announced that the club had impacted over 10,000 lives.
But the evening’s pièce de resistance was yet to come. Enter Dr. Anil Abraham, dermatologist by profession, standup comic by passion, and self-styled “DermaDramatist.” His prescription for the evening was not ointments or creams but laughter therapy, skin deep humour that penetrated straight to the funny bone. For 47 minutes, he held the audience spellbound, not with medical jargon but with the drama and trauma of the great Indian husband. He began by announcing that his standup therapy was really “situp” therapy, and from that moment on, the Rotarians were rolling in their chairs.

Dr. Abraham’s central character was the Great Indian Uncle, a species so ubiquitous that it deserves its own entry in the zoological records. He described five characteristics of this creature, each more hilarious than the last. First, the age bracket,40s to 60’s where the hair is jet black but thoughts are fifty shades of grey, with a dash of orange thrown in for political seasoning. Second, the Uncle is a know it all, a graduate of WhatsApp University, armed with unsolicited advice and conspiracy theories. Third, he is entitled, believing not only his house but also his neighbour’s house belongs to him. Fourth, he forgets to laugh at himself, which is perhaps the most dangerous symptom of all. And fifth, he is not endangered but dangerous, a species thriving in every colony, wedding, and WhatsApp group. To add spice, Dr. Abraham crowned Shashi Tharoor as the brand ambassador of big words.
The laughter was relentless. Every punchline landed, every anecdote resonated, and every Rotarian forgot their Monday blues. For nearly an hour, the hall was transformed, proving that humour is the best moisturiser for the soul. Dr. Abraham signed off with a prescription: “Don’t be like the Great Indian Uncle.” It was advice delivered with the authority of a doctor and the timing of a comic. As the applause died down, the evening segued into a sumptuous dinner, accompanied by music that was, quite literally, food for the ears.
If Rotary meetings are meant to inspire, this one inspired laughter, camaraderie, and perhaps a resolution to check one’s WhatsApp forwards before forwarding them !!

ShieldHer 62nd Session: Reaching the Unreached, Empowering Ground Staff at Alliance University

The 62nd session of ShieldHer: United Against Cervical Cancer at Alliance University, Bengaluru, focused on extending cervical cancer awareness to ground staff through a Kannada-language program. Dr. Premalatha, Professor of Gynaecologic Oncology at St. John’s Medical College Hospital and President of KSC-AGOI, delivered an insightful session on prevention, early detection, and the importance of screening.

A total of 125 supporting staff participated, engaging in open discussions and sharing personal experiences, while highlighting gaps in awareness about screening. Informative videos shared by the Indian Cancer Society on the importance of screening, vaccination, and early treatment further strengthened the impact of the session. The program effectively built understanding and confidence around preventive healthcare.

Encouragingly, several participants expressed a desire to undergo cervical cancer screening, leading to the commitment of a follow-up screening camp for these women to be scheduled on campus on May 16, 2026.
Sincere thanks to the Alliance University management and coordinators Ms. Sakshi Jauhari and Ms. Arathi Jose for their support.
– Rtns. Dr. Sowmya P. R. & Dr. Nita Roy

Exemplars 2026 is now OPEN for nominations!

Dear Fellow Rotarians,

Now in its 9th edition, Exemplars is RCB’s annual celebration of individuals and organisations who have made a lasting impact on Bengaluru.

7 categories:
* Youth Icon
* Corporate Citizen
* Environment Conservation
* Start-Up Success
* Community Service
* Pride of Work
* Citizen Extraordinaire

Nominations open: 2nd May 2026
Last date: 16th May 2026
Event Nite: 4th June 2026

@ Radisson Blu Atria, Bengaluru

Know someone deserving?

Nominate them here:
www.rcb1934.in/exemplars

Please share this with your network – every nomination counts!