Project Insaniyat ’17: NUST’s solution to a ticking time bomb
Every once in a while, a wave hits NUST that goes beyond academics and connects directly with the personal soul of each individual. One such wave of the current year is Project Insaniyat’17. An initiative that goes a step ahead of providing relief to the destitute by turning students into volunteers who work to uplift the society independently.
You might be wondering what Insaniyat has to do with you? Well, you’re about to find that out. All these charity bake-sales and donation drives happening across NUST in the past two months have been mostly under the label of Project Insaniyat’17. You might even have donated at some of them. You also must’ve been worried about the proper utilization of the donations you provided. Well, Project Insaniyat can assure you they’ve been used responsibly, and they’ve got proof.
Insaniyat, as mentioned before, is a community service initiative aiming to spread the essence of community service among different members of the society. Project Insaniyat is its annual event where the classes of the Freshman Batch at NUST are motivated and encouraged to take up multiple community service projects and take them to completion on their own. This works to create an experience among these participants which not only involves them into a constructive thinking process but also creates a bridge between them and those who are deprived in our society.
These efforts are further utilized to create awareness among those who were not a part of the process. This is done by arranging a platform for the classes to raise their voices through a set of presentations and videos regarding their respective projects. This plays a key role in amplifying the impact of the cause.
Coming to the present year, Project Insaniyat’17 has covered 6 different schools from across NUST by taking more than 500 students and 30+ independent projects under its umbrella. Furthermore, approximately 8000 people have been influenced positively by this year’s event.
Project Insaniyat’17, after two months of its initiation, reached its culmination on Wednesday, 27th December 2017 at SEECS Seminar Hall. At this occasion, 10 teams from across the 6 different schools presented their projects in front of a panel of audience. These teams had made it to the Final Stage after being shortlisted from 24 teams through the Zonal Presentation Stages at their respective schools.
The revered, Master Ayub, a well-known educationist, philanthropist and civil servant graced the occasion as the Guest of Honour. With his seasoned words, he furthered the cause of community service and charity among the audience. Before his address, the Founders of Insaniyat Mr. Saif ul Islam and Ms. Rabail Khan announced the Best Project and Runner-Up Project awards for Project Insaniyat’17 to SNS Batch 2017 Section B from SNS and BEE 9D from SEECS respectively. The ceremony concluded with the presentation of momento to Master Ayub by Dr Safdar, the Faculty Sponsor of NCSC.
Project Insaniyat has a very important message to give. The expansion of the gap between different financial groups of the modern society has set up a ticking time bomb waiting to explode. This gap is mainly due to the lack of interaction between different social groups along with the self-centred inward focus of the members of the society. Resultantly, empathy and compassion are becoming luxuries than necessities as opposed to the past.
Realizing the gravity of the situation, initiatives like Insaniyat come in as a breeze of fresh air in to prevent further suffocation of the society. They bridge the gap between the different social groups and promote unity among all the members of the society. Initiatives like these are, perhaps, the way to go about if we are to diffuse the time bomb of disparity and cultivate hope for a coherent and united society in the future.