New Delhi, India, September 10, 2024  – The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation and the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organization of the World Economic Forum, today honoured Mr Akshay Saxena of Avanti Fellows with the esteemed Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award - India 2024. The award was presented by Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas in the presence of distinguished personalities from industry, government and civil society at a ceremony held at New Delhi.

Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, congratulated the winner and finalists. He appreciated the innovative challenges undertaken by social entrepreneurs in positively impacting lives and environment. Minister Puri said, “Social enterprises have been part of Indian fabric for a very long time. They typically cater to low income communities, typically agriculture, financial inclusion, health and education, clean energy.” He complemented government, social sector and corporates working together in partnership. He highlighted that Social enterprises have played a crucial role in upward mobility of millions of Indians over the years.

Speaking at the ceremony, Ms. Hilde Schwab, Co-Founder and Chairperson of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship highlighted, “Social entrepreneurs have achieved remarkable milestones by addressing challenges in unconventional ways. Today, when the world is moving from an industrial age to an intelligent age, social entrepreneurs are catalysts for innovation and positive impact, benefiting both people and the planet. Their dedication to delivering impactful solutions for unmet needs has been truly extraordinary.”

Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder & Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum and Co-Founder of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, observed the growing alignment between corporates and social entrepreneurs. He mentioned how India’s social innovation landscape is offering globally relevant models for the sustainable development agenda. “The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship is proud to have partnered with the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation in recognizing the outstanding contributions of Indian social entrepreneurs over the past 15 years”, he said.

Mr. Shyam S Bhartia, Chairman and Founder, Jubilant Bhartia Group and Founder Director of Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, congratulated the winner and all the finalists.  In a significant announcement, Mr. Shyam Bhartia stated, “I am happy to announce that Jubilant Bhartia Group has signed the Rise Ahead Pledge, a new initiative of the Schwab Foundation and the Global Alliance for Social Entrepreneurship. The Rise Ahead Pledge is a commitment towards increasing investments into social innovation. Thus, Jubilant Bhartia Group has become the first Indian company to sign this pledge.” In alignment with their commitment and the Global Alliance, Mr. Bhartia announced the establishment of the “Jubilant Bhartia Centre for Social Impact” supported by the Schwab Foundation. This centre will nurture emerging innovators and entrepreneurs, foster collaboration among past Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) winners, and support social start-ups. By offering resources, mentorship, networking opportunities, and world-class facilities, they aim to empower social entrepreneurs to achieve significant societal impact. Additionally, there would be a partnership with IIM-Ahmedabad Ventures.

Mr. Hari S Bhartia, Co- Chairman & Founder, Jubilant Bhartia Group, in his vote of thanks commended the enterprising spirit of social entrepreneurs and said that the corporates can learn from the experience of social innovators, their problem solving abilities to address the needs of the society.

Shereen Bhan, Managing Director, CNBC TV18 presented the stories of the three finalists and unfolded their inspiring and innovative journey.

Mr. Akshay Saxena on winning the SEOY Award India 2024 shared, “I am delighted! Thank you Jubilant Bhartia Foundation and the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship for recognising us. The recognition given to our work means so much not only to me but the entire team behind this platform. I hope this serves as an inspiration for others to join us in this journey. “
The other finalists for SEOY Award India 2024 were:

• Madhura Dasgupta Sinha, Aspire For Her, Mumbai
• Hunny Bhagchandani, Torchit, Ahmedabad

Over the past fifteen years, the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) Award has become one of the most prestigious accolades for social entrepreneurs in India. Since 2010, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation have collaborated to promote social innovation in India through this award, recognizing and supporting the expanding field of social innovation in the country.

       About the winner
Akshay Saxena
Avanti Fellows
www.avantifellows.org
Year Established: 2010
Sector: Education

Avanti Fellows operates India's largest free program aimed at helping economically disadvantaged students pursue technical careers. They partner with nine major government school systems to provide intensive tutoring for over 30,000 students annually. Their initiatives have also offered free materials, assessments, and test preparation support to more than 1.5 million students. Their NEEV program specifically targets 16 million students currently in Grades 9 and 10 in government schools across India. This program is focused on developing at-home learning models to enhance Math and Science achievement in these grades, with the goal of increasing the number of government school students who choose Science in Grade 11 and pursue STEM careers. Over the past eight years, Avanti has collaborated with the Haryana government to implement state-run interventions both in-school and at-home, aimed at boosting Math and Science performance among high school students. Additionally, Avanti Fellows stands out as the only organization to have successfully developed high-scale at-home learning programs in partnership with state governments. They are also unique in their commitment to influencing state spending and policy on test preparation. Since its inception, Avanti’s intensive after-school programs have reached over 75,000 students, and their curriculum, online content, and assessments have been utilized by more than 5 million students.

Noida, Uttar Pradesh, March 01, 2024: Jubilant Bhartia Foundation and Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, a sister organisation of the World Economic Forum, invite applications for the 15th edition of the annual competition - Social Entrepreneur of the Year – India Award 2024 (SEOY). The application for the award will be accepted till April 30, 2024. Interested candidates may submit the application form available at www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com or can email the filled form to jbf.seoy@jubl.com

The winner of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year – India Award 2024 will be announced on 10th September 2024 in New Delhi.

The winner of the SEOY – India Award will become part of the world’s largest and the first inter-sectoral community of social innovators affiliated with the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship to engage, build, and sustain their social enterprises.  

The participating individuals and organisations will be evaluated on the key parameters of Market-based, Technology-enabled, Sustainability, Direct Social Impact, Reach & Scope and Replicability.

The finalists will be selected following an extensive search and selection process, including expert reviews, interviews and site visits. The winner is selected by a jury of eminent leaders and professionals from Government, Business, Media, and Civil Society.

The Social Entrepreneur of the Year – India Award aims to promote and celebrate leading social entrepreneurs and their unique ventures in India that help address the different societal gaps in our country. Through providing recognition, the SEOY – India Award hopes to inspire many other potential social entrepreneurs in India every year.

In 2010, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation came together to promote social innovation in India through the Social Entrepreneur of the Year – India Award, and they have since recognised and supported the growing field of social innovation in India. This year, the award celebrates its 15th year and has established itself over the last decade as one of the most respectable awards for social entrepreneurs in India.

The award recognises individuals and organisations who implement innovative, sustainable and scalable solutions to address pressing issues under-served communities face to make inclusive growth a reality in India. They work in diverse areas such as health, education, employment, water, clean energy, building identity & entitlements, financial literacy, and access to information and technology.

Key Highlights

Who can participate: Accomplished social change leaders across diversity of large-scale, system change and social innovation models in society

How to participate: Submit application form available at www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com or email filled form to jbf.seoy@jubl.com.

Last Date: April 30, 2024

Evaluation parameters: Market-based, Technology-enabled, Sustainability, Direct Social Impact, Reach & Scope, Replicability.

Benefits:

• Access to the world’s most influential network
• Showcase awardees’ solutions to the highest level of decision-makers
• Build leadership capacity of awardees by strengthening their organisational and business strategies through executive education programmes at top universities, practitioner-oriented research and curated programming at global and regional meetings
• Create spaces for reflection and peer-to-peer mentoring

Past winners:

Dr Shuchin Bajaj from Ujala Cygnus won the Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award - India 2023, presented by Mr Amitabh Kant, G-20 Sherpa, during its presidency, Government of India. Dr Shuchin Bajaj, through Ujala Cygnus’ chain of low-budget-and-patient-friendly tertiary-care hospitals, is enabling access to high-quality integrated healthcare infrastructure and services for underserved communities in tier 2 & 3 cities of India. It works with a mission of ‘Building trust by saving and caring for lives with dignity, affordability and quality’. Ujala is bringing the revolution of super-speciality tertiary health care to the untouched and un-served communities at the convenience of their home town and a basic cost. Ujala Cygnus is also mobilising the community on various facets of health awareness through health/medical camps for rural outreach. Ujala Cygnus has been a pioneer and champion of the Ayushman Bharat PMJAY initiative. All Ujala Cygnus are NABH accredited andempanelled with prominent TPAs and government panels, including ESI, increasing their accessibility. Ujala Cygnus hospitals are currently present in 18 districts and five states of Northern India, reaching a population of over 5 crore people. In FY 22-23, Ujala Cygnus treated 3,42,656 inpatients and 4,59,891 outpatients and undertook 61,516 surgeries. Ujala Cygnus envisions expanding to the farthest corners of North India and institutionalising at least 30 units of medical excellence by 2025. The organisation is currently present in 5 states in North India, including Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Haryana. In the near future, it plans to expand to Odisha, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan.

About

Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship: In partnership with the World Economic Forum, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship convenes a global pioneering community of social innovators who seek to advance the field of social innovation towards more systemic change. The Schwab Foundation supports these changemakers’ efforts to collectively create a more just, equitable and sustainable world. The Schwab Foundation's Global Alliance for Social Entrepreneurship is the largest multi-stakeholder coalition in support of the social innovation sector. Its 110+ members represent over 100,000 social entrepreneurs and bring together a growing ecosystem of corporations, investors, philanthropists, governments, researchers, media, and industry actors.

For more info please visit: www.schwabfound.org

Follow the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship on:
LinkedIn: Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship
Instagram: @schwabfoundation
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/schwabfound/

Noida, Uttar Pradesh, August 25, 2023: The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation and the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organisation of the World Economic Forum today conferred Dr. Shuchin Bajaj of Ujala Cygnus Healthcare with the prestigious 14th Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award - India 2023. The award was presented by Mr. Amitabh Kant, G-20 Sherpa, Government of India, at a grand ceremony in the presence of eminent personalities.

Congratulating the winner and finalists and lauding the work of social entrepreneurs worldwide, Mr. Amitabh Kant, G-20 Sherpa, Government of India, said, “I have great admiration for the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, World Economic Forum and the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation for consistently supporting social entrepreneurship and social innovation. We must recognise the transformative power of social economy. This platform of social entrepreneurship has been greatly instrumental in highlighting the innovative models that have the potential to shape a better India of tomorrow. Social entrepreneurs are the driving force behind positive change, crafting a narrative of progress and impact.  Their dedication has not only ignited hope but has translated into tangible transformations for individuals and communities across India.”

The SEOY Award - India 2023 winner, Dr. Shuchin Bajaj is bringing the revolution of super-speciality tertiary health care to the untouched and unserved communities at their convenience and cost. Through its chain of low-budget-and-patient-friendly-tertiary-care hospitals, it is enabling access to high-quality integrated healthcare infrastructure and services for underserved communities in tier 2&3 cities of India. Ujala Cygnus has benefitted over 2 million patients with over 500 doctors & medical experts in 17 cities and trained over 55,000 community medical practitioners.

Ms. Hilde Schwab, Co-Founder and Chairperson, of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, and Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder & Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum and Co-Founder of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship applauded the work of the social entrepreneurs and congratulated the winner & finalists and shared, “Social entrepreneurs play a critical role as the driving force for innovation, applying creativity and commitment to develop ground-breaking solutions that tackle pressing systemic issues. The rich social innovation landscape in India provides globally relevant models for the sustainable development agenda. The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship has been proud to partner with the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation in recognising the exceptional work of Indian social entrepreneurs over the past 14 years. This year’s winner and finalists of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award - India embody the spirit of social innovation and entrepreneurship, exemplifying their dedication to creating lasting societal impact.”

Congratulating the winner and the finalists, Mr. Shyam S Bhartia, Chairman and Founder and Mr. Hari S Bhartia, Chairman & Co-Founder, of Jubilant Bhartia Group and Founder Directors of Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, shared, “This year is extremely special for our relationship with the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship as we complete 14 years of our partnership. We are proud of our unique and rewarding partnership through which we have been able to provide social entrepreneurs with a global platform to showcase their work, scale up their initiatives and cross-learn from a rich alliance of similar high-spirited individuals. Congratulations to the deserving winners and finalists of this year’s SEOY Award - India 2023. The showcase of their work will be an inspiration for many others.”

Highlighting the importance and role of social entrepreneurs Mr. Bórge Brende, President, World Economic Forum said, “We need to create the right environment for social entrepreneurship and we have a long way to go. Social Entrepreneurship under India’s presidency of G-20 has further underpinned its importance.”

“For 25 years, Prof Klaus and Hilde Schwab rightly predicted for Social entrepreneurship to be a significant sector in the world. And we witness this with the momentum of the United Nations resolutions that has just been passed for the social economy and the need for business to partner with social enterprises.” said François Bonnici, Director, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship; Head of Foundations, World Economic Forum

Dr. Shuchin Bajaj of Ujala Cygnus Healthcare on winning the SEOY Award - India 2023, shared, “My heartfelt gratitude to the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, Schwab Foundation of Social Entrepreneurship and the World Economic Forum for this esteemed national recognition. This award carries profound significance, reaffirming our unwavering dedication to enhancing the quality of life in India. We must together make sure to bring down the number of 60 million people slipping below poverty line due to health expenditures.”

The winner of the SEOY Award- India, Dr. Shuchin Bajaj of Ujala Cygnus Healthcare will join the world’s largest and the first inter-sectoral community of social innovators in the world affiliated with the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship.

Ms. Sheeren Bhan, the Managing Editor of CNBC TV 18 hosted the award ceremony.

The other finalists for SEOY Award - India 2023 were Dr. Aparna Hegde from ARMMAN, Ms. Bijal Brahmbhatt from Mahila Housing Sewa Trust and Ms. Anuradha Parekh & Mr. Dhimant Parekh from The Better India. The winner and finalists of SEOY Award - India 2023 will also get an opportunity to apply for the Hindustan Times Fellowship for the Stanford Seed Transformation program.

This year the SEOY Award – India celebrates its 14th year. Over the last decade, it has established itself as one of the most respectable awards for social entrepreneurs in India. In 2010, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation came together to promote social innovation in India through the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) Award – India.

The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation and the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organisation of the World Economic Forum, are pleased to announce that Mr. Amitabh Kant, G-20 Sherpa, Government of India will be the Chief Guest at the 14th Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award India, 2023 on August 25, 2023. The award will be presented by Mr. Kant at a ceremony in New Delhi amongst distinguished global leaders and representatives from various sectors gathered to celebrate the spirit of social entrepreneurship. This year, the award ceremony is being held on the side-lines of B-20.

The winner of this year’s Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award India, 2023 will be chosen by a distinguished jury comprised of industry stalwarts and eminent personalities from different backgrounds.

The winner will be selected from amongst the four high-impact social innovators as finalists.

These four social innovators have been selected after an extensive selection process based on parameters such as the organisation’s orientation towards addressing social inequalities, exclusion and marginalisation; uniqueness of the social model, ability to create sustainable systemic level changes and demonstrated social impact:

1. Dr. Aparna Hegde from ARMMAN, Mumbai - ARMMAN leverages mHealth to create cost-effective, scalable, gender-sensitive, non-linear, systemic solutions to improve access of pregnant women and mothers to preventive information and services along with training health workers to reduce maternal and child mortality/morbidity.

2. Ms. Bijal Brahmbhatt from Mahila Housing Sewa Trust, Ahmedabad – Aimed at improving the habitat of poor women from the informal sector in cities, MHT invests in women’s collectives and leadership that advances a constructive dialogue and responsible urban development.

3. Mr. Dhimant Parekh & Ms Anuradha Parekh from The Better India, Bengaluru - The Better India (TBI) ushered a whole new positive movement in the country - by using the power of stories to effect large-scale social impact.

4. Dr. Shuchin Bajaj from Ujala Cygnus Healthcare, New Delhi - Ujala Cygnus through its chain of low-budget-and-patient-friendly-tertiary-care hospitals is enabling access to high-quality integrated healthcare infrastructure and services for underserved communities.

For more details on the finalists, please click here.

The winner of the SEOY Award India 2023 will join the social innovators’ community of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, a leading global platform that has accelerated outstanding models of social innovation for over 25 years. The Winner and Finalists of SEOY Award India 2023 will also have the opportunity to apply for the Hindustan Times Fellowship for the Stanford Seed Transformation program.

Now celebrating its 14th year, the SEOY Award India has established itself as one of the most reputed and coveted awards for social entrepreneurs in India.

In 2009, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation came together to promote social innovation in India through the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) Award India 2023 and has since recognised and supported the growing field of social innovation in India. Over the last decade, it has established itself as one of the most reputable awards for social entrepreneurs.

Note to the Editors:

The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, founded in 1998, is a not-for-profit organization which provides a global platform that advances the world’s leading models of sustainable social innovation. In collaboration with the World Economic Forum, for more than 20 years, the Schwab Foundation has selected and curated a community of over 400 late-stage social innovators who work in 190 countries and highlighted leading social innovation models to top decision-makers in business and government.

Learn more at www.schwabfound.org
Follow The Schwab Foundation on:

Twitter: @SchwabFound
Facebook: www.facebook.com/schwabfound/
Instagram: www.instagram.com/schwabfoundation/
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/schwab-foundation-for-social-entrepreneurship/

Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship in partnership with the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, today announced the finalists for the most awaited 14th edition of the ‘Social Entrepreneur of the Year’ India Award 2023. The prestigious award recognises and celebrates the outstanding contributions of social innovators in India who have transformed lives and communities through their exceptional socio-business initiatives.

The extensive selection process is based on various parameters such as the organization’s orientation towards addressing social inequalities, exclusion and marginalization; uniqueness of the social model or initiative, and ability to create sustainable systemic level changes. The Schwab Foundation and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation teams also conducted background research, personal and team interactions, impact assessment, expert reviews and reference checks to select the following four high-impact social innovators as finalists:

1. Dr. Aparna Hegde, ARMMAN, Mumbai
www.armman.org

2. Ms. Bijal Brahmbhatt, Mahila Housing Sewa Trust, Ahmedabad
www.mahilahousingtrust.org

3. Mr. Dhimant Parekh & Ms. Anuradha Parekh, The Better India, Bengaluru
www.thebetterindia.com

4. Dr. Shuchin Bajaj, Ujala Cygnus Healthcare, New Delhi
www.ujalacygnus.com

The winner of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year India Award will be chosen by a distinguished jury comprised of industry stalwarts and eminent personalities from different backgrounds. The award will be announced on August 25, 2023 in a grand ceremony in New Delhi amongst distinguished global leaders and representatives from various sectors gathered to celebrate the spirit of social entrepreneurship. This year, the award ceremony will be on the side-lines of B20 - Business 20 of G20 in India.

The SEOY India Award 2023 received 110 diverse applications this year, with around 60% of them being first-time applicants, reflecting the reach of the platform to newer organisations. The top five sectors in applications consisted of Education, Health, Rural Development, Environment (waste management), Water and Enterprise Development.

Through their humanitarian approaches, the shortlisted finalists, have exhibited unparalleled commitment towards addressing some of India's most pressing social challenges. Their contributions range from:

a) providing support to maternal and neonatal cases in remote regions by leveraging technology to connect and resolve primary health complications of pregnant women and new-born babies

b) bringing constructive advancements for women of urban-built landscapes in poor communities by improving their housing, living, and working environments

c) bringing innovative solutions of affordable and accessible healthcare services in poor housing localities

d) bringing the stories of positivity and change from the unseen India to the mainstream for amplification as well as bringing societal optimism and inspiration lead impact

As part of the award, the winner of the SEOY India Award 2023 will join the social innovators community of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, a leading global platform that has accelerated outstanding models of social innovation for over 25 years. The Winner and Finalists of SEOY India Award 2023 will also have the opportunity to apply for the Hindustan Times Fellowship for the Stanford Seed Transformation program.

In 2010, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation came together to promote social innovation in India through the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award 2023 and has since recognised and supported the growing field of social innovation in India. Over the last decade, it has established itself as one of the most reputable awards for social entrepreneurs.

Meet the finalists:

Dr. Aparna Hegde
ARMMAN
www.armman.org
Year Established: 2008
Sector: Health

About: With the vision of a world where every mother is empowered and every child is healthy, ARMMAN leverages mHealth to create cost-effective, scalable, gender-sensitive, non-linear, systemic solutions to improve access of pregnant women and mothers to preventive information and services along with training health workers to reduce maternal and child mortality/morbidity. It adopts a blended ‘tech plus touch’ approach by leveraging the health worker network of the government and partner NGOs along with deep mobile penetration. ARMMAN leverages deep mobile penetration with existing health worker network and infrastructure to, provide preventive care information to women through pregnancy and infancy enabling them to seek care in time and train and support health workers for timely detection and management of high-risk conditions. ARMMAN is currently implementing the largest mobile-based maternal messaging programme (Kilkari) and the largest mobile-based training programme for frontline health workers (Mobile Academy) in India. Since its inception in 2008, its programmes have impacted the lives of almost 40 million pregnant women, new mothers and their families and trained over 3.24 lakh health workers in 20 states and Union Territories of India.

Bijal Brahmbhatt
Mahila Housing Trust (MHT)
www.mahilahousingtrust.org
Year Established: 1994
Sector: Women-led development, Inclusive and Climate Resilient Urban Development

About: With a vision of improving the habitat of poor women from informal sector in cities, MHT invests in women’s collectives and leadership that advances a constructive dialogue and responsible urban development. It acts as an anchor organisation to Awaas SEWA Pvt. Ltd. and Credit Cooperatives, both owned by poor women. MHT mobilises women for good governance and empowers them thereby to take charge of their habitat improvement. By forging a unique relationship between poor communities and local governments, it advances access to basic services, promotes climate resilience, and deepens participatory and inclusive governance. Over the last two decades, MHT through its presence in 9 states, has helped poor women in accessing over US$ 20 million worth of public resources. It is serving 1126 slum settlements, reached 4,50,857 households and created around 16,000 Community Action Group women leaders. With its efforts, 53,500 households get potable water; 59,870 got access to toilets; and 1,81, 708 access grid electricity. It has trained 13,732 women as climate sathis.

Dhimant Parekh and Anuradha Parekh
The Better India,
www.thebetterindia.com
Year Established: 2008
Sector: Media

About: The Better India (TBI) ushered a whole new positive movement in the country - by using the power of stories to effect large-scale social impact. It is the world’s largest positive stories platform publishing in English, Hindi, Gujarati, Bangla & Marathi. It unearths stories of ordinary unsung heroes, community change-makers, remarkable ideas and ground-breaking innovations that often go unnoticed by traditional media. The platform inspires millions of Indians on a daily basis to be a part of a movement of change and is working towards making every citizen a force of good. It has also undertaken several impactful campaigns that have brought long-lasting change in the country. TBI's stories have led to positive changes in government policies, brought water & sanitation in villages, helped farmers come out of poverty, raised funds for slum schools, taken social enterprises global and much more.

93% of TBI’s readers have found inspiration in their stories, fuelling their drive to actively contribute towards positive social change. The Better India reaches out to over 200 million people every month across all its channels.

Dr Shuchin Bajaj
Ujala Cygnus Healthcare,
www.ujalacygnus.com
Year Established: 2011
Sector: Healthcare

About: With a mission of ‘Building trust by saving and caring for lives with dignity, affordability and quality, Ujala Cygnus through its chain of low-budget-and-patient-friendly-tertiary-care hospitals is enabling access to high-quality integrated healthcare infrastructure and services for underserved communities in tier 2&3 cities of India. It is bringing the revolution of super-speciality tertiary health care to the untouched and unserved communities at their convenience and cost. Ujala Cygnus is also mobilising the community on various facets of health awareness through health/medical camps for rural outreach and has launched several initiatives for community education and empowerment like the unique Sehat Chaupals among others. It also conducts interactive academic sessions called Continuous Medical Education (CME) programs for community medical practitioners by expert doctors. Over 5000 CMEs have trained over 55,000 community medical practitioners so far. With a network of 20 hospitals across 15 cities in tier 2&3 cities of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Delhi, and with the support of over 300 doctors and medical experts, the Ujala Cygnus hospitals have catered to over 2 million patients since inception.

About Us:

The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, founded in 1998, is a not-for-profit organization which provides a global platform that advances the world’s leading models of sustainable social innovation. In collaboration with the World Economic Forum, for more than 20 years, the Schwab Foundation has selected and curated a community of over 400 late-stage social innovators who work in 190 countries and highlighted leading social innovation models to top decision-makers in business and government.

Learn more at www.schwabfound.org
Follow The Schwab Foundation on:
Twitter: @SchwabFound
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/schwabfound/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/schwabfoundation/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/schwab-foundation-for-social-entrepreneurship/

Call for India’s Social Change Leaders: Applications invited for the Prestigious ‘Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) - India Award 2023’ Noida, Uttar Pradesh, April 10, 2023: Jubilant Bhartia Foundation and Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organisation of the World Economic Forum, invite applications for the 14th edition of the annual competition - Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award 2023. The application entry for the award will be accepted till April 30, 2023. Interested candidates may submit the application form available at www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com or can email the filled form to jbf.seoy@jubl.com

The winner of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award 2023 will be announced in the last week of August, 2023 by an eminent personality in a magnificent ceremony at New Delhi.

The winner of the SEOY Award - India will join the world’s largest and the first inter-sectoral community of social innovators in the world affiliated with the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship to engage, build and sustain their social enterprises.  

The participating individuals and organisations are evaluated on the key parameters of Market-based, Technology-enabled, Sustainability, Direct Social Impact, Reach & Scope, Replicability. The finalists will be selected following an intensive search and selection process, including expert reviews, interviews and site visits. The winner is selected by a prominent jury consisting of eminent leaders and professionals from the Government, Business, Media, and Civil Society.

The Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award aims to promote and celebrate leading social entrepreneurs and their unique ventures in India that help in addressing the various gaps in our society and country. Through providing recognition, the SEOY India Award hopes to inspire many other potential social entrepreneurs in India every year.

In 2010, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation came together to promote social innovation in India through the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) Award – India and they have since recognised and supported the growing field of social innovation in India. This year the SEOY Award – India celebrates its 14th year. Over the last decade it has established itself as one of the most respectable awards for social entrepreneurs in India.

The award recognises individuals and organisations who implement innovative, sustainable and scalable solutions to address pressing issues faced by under-served communities to make inclusive growth a reality in India. They work in diverse areas such as health, education, employment, water, clean energy, building identity & entitlements, financial literacy, access to information and technology among others.

Key Highlights

Who can participate: Accomplished social change leaders across diversity of large-scale, system change and social innovation models in society

How to participate: Submit application form available at www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com or email filled form to jbf.seoy@jubl.com.

Last Date: April 30, 2023

Evaluation parameters: Market-based, Technology-enabled, Sustainability, Direct Social Impact, Reach & Scope, Replicability.

Benefits:

• Access to the world’s most influential network
• Showcase awardees’ solutions to the highest level of decision-makers
• Build leadership capacity of awardees by strengthening their organisational and business strategies through executive education programmes at top universities, practitioner-oriented research and curated programming at global and regional meetings
• Create spaces for reflection and peer-to-peer mentoring

Past winners:

Aniket Doegar from Haqdarshak Empowerment Solutions won the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) Award - India 2022, presented by Shri. Anurag Singh Thakur, Hon. Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting and Minister for Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India. Haqdarshak Empowerment Solutions is solving the information and access gap between citizens and the government’s welfare schemes at the last mile, through its tech-enabled intervention. Present in 24 states in India it has trained over 22,800 agents and provided benefits worth Rs 4,000 crore for over 20 lakh families and 35,000 micro businesses.

About

Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife Hilde. For over twenty years, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship has supported the world’s leading social innovators in their efforts to create a more just, equitable, and sustainable world. The Schwab Foundation provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation.

For more info please visit: www.schwabfound.org

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Presented by Shri. Anurag Singh Thakur, Hon. Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting and Minister for Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India

Noida, September 15, 2022: The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organisation of the World Economic Forum and the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation of Jubilant Bhartia group today conferred Aniket Doegar of Haqdarshak Empowerment Solutions with the prestigious 'Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award - India 2022'. The award was presented by Shri. Anurag Singh Thakur, Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting and Minister of Youth Affairs & Sports Government of India, at a grand ceremony in the presence of eminent personalities.

Congratulating the winner and finalists and lauding the work of social entrepreneurs, Shri. Anurag Singh Thakur, Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting and Minister for Youth Affairs & Sports Government of India, said, “In a world driven by uncertainties, geo-political upheavals, the role of social entrepreneurs is increasingly becoming critical to nation building. It is imperative to know investments in environment, sustainability and governance will play a crucial role in not only meeting our shared goal of 5 trillion dollar economy, but also sustainable development goals by 2030 and achieving net zero emissions by 2070.” He further added, “Social Entrepreneurs put their innovative ideas to action, build a team, align beneficiaries and stake-holders, raise necessary funds and drive the organisations with their passion and energy towards solving critical issues, be it reduction of poverty, education of children, empowerment of women, climate change mitigation, healthcare etc.”

The SEOY India Award 2022 winner, Aniket Doegar of Haqdarshak Empowerment Solutions is solving the information and access gap between citizens and the government’s welfare schemes at the last mile, through its tech-enabled intervention. Present in 24 states in India it has trained over 22,800 agents and provided benefits worth Rs 4,000 crore for over 20 lakh families and 35,000 micro businesses.

Ms. Hilde Schwab, Co-Founder and Chairperson, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, and Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder & Executive Chairman of World Economic Forum and Co-Founder of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship applauded the work of the social entrepreneurs and congratulated the winner & finalists. They shared, “Over these last challenging years, we have seen such depth of civic action, entrepreneurialism and innovation in India. Social entrepreneurs are the driving force behind innovations that improve the quality of life of individuals not only in India but around the world. Their role in creating a just, inclusive and sustainable COVID-19 response and recovery is pertinent. The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship has been proud to partner with Jubilant Bhartia Foundation in recognising the exceptional work of Indian social entrepreneurs in alleviating environmental and social problems over the past 13 years. This year’s winner and finalists of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year India Award represent the ethos of social innovation and entrepreneurship.”

Congratulating the winner and the finalists, Mr. Shyam S Bhartia, Chairman and Founder and Mr. Hari S Bhartia, Chairman & Co-Founder, Jubilant Bhartia Group and Founder Directors of Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, shared, "The last two and a half years of the COVID-19 pandemic have showcased social entrepreneurs across the world as a different breed of individuals, going beyond the realm of possibility and serving humanity with all their might. Their creativity, resilience, commitment, potential and reach have been simply outstanding. Today we are proud to celebrate and felicitate all our finalists as extraordinary individuals with remarkable achievements and contributions towards society. We are proud of our 13 years of unique and rewarding partnership with the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship. Through our partnership, we have been able to give the social entrepreneurs in India a global platform to showcase their work, scale-up their initiatives and cross-learn from an enriching alliance of similar high-spirited individuals from across the world."

Aniket Doegar, Haqdarshak Empowerment Solutions on winning the SEOY Award India 2022, shared, “I want to thank all our Haqdarshaks on-ground. This award will go a long way in supporting us as a young tech company. A big thanks to the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation and the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship. With this recognition we hope to achieve our goal of reaching 100 million citizens.”

The winner of SEOY Award India, Aniket Doegar will join the world’s largest and the first inter-sectoral community of social innovators in the world affiliated with the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship.

The other finalists for SEOY Award India 2022 were Osama Manzar from Digital Empowerment Foundation (DEF), Ajaita Shah from Frontier Markets, Wilma Rodrigues from Saahas Zero Waste and Meera Shenoy from Youth4jobs. The winner and finalists of SEOY Award India will also get an opportunity to apply for the Hindustan Times Fellowship for the Stanford Seed Transformation program.

This year the SEOY Award – India celebrates its 13th year. Over the last decade it has established itself as one of the most respectable awards for social entrepreneurs in India. In 2010, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation came together to promote social innovation in India through the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) Award – India and has since recognised and supported the growing field of social innovation in India.

This year's jury members for the SEOY Award India included Shobhana Bhartia, Chairperson & Editorial Director, HT Media Ltd; Hilde Schwab, Chairperson & Co-Founder, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship; T V Narendran, CEO & Managing Director, Tata Steel Limited;  Sudha Pillai, Former Member Secretary, Planning Commission, Government of India; Aashti Bhartia, Non-Executive Director, Jubilant FoodWorks Limited; P R Ganapathy, Regional Director, Stanford Seed, India; Pranshu Singhal, Founder - Karo Sambhav, Winner SEOY 2021.

About the winner:

Haqdarshak Empowerment Solutions was formed with the objective to address the information and access gap related to the various government schemes at the last mile. The heart of all Haqdarshak’s innovative methods lies in their app-based technology platform. Haqdarshak digitizes information on schemes in 11 simple vernacular regional languages makes it available to intended beneficiaries through it’s various B2C channels and an agent-led model. All its products and services are available in 24 states of India. Over the last six years they have unlocked benefits worth Rs 1788 crore for over 16 lakh families.

To achieve their objective, Haqdarshak uses a two-pronged approach- i.e. by creating awareness about the applicable schemes for citizens and by training rural entrepreneurs in using their app and providing application support for the citizens. The entrepreneurs trained by Haqdarshak are local agents, who screen the family/citizen to determine the eligible welfare schemes applicable to them. They also have a proprietary ‘scheme eligibility engine’ that can identify entitled schemes based on the profile information provided by the beneficiaries. Haqdarshaks or the field agents track the applications and follow up with the government offices till the benefits are received by the citizens. Haqdarshaks earn a stipend during an initial program funded by philanthropic or corporate sponsors and are gradually able to earn a sustainable livelihood by using the app and charging a small fee to citizens. Haqdarshak has also built a similar platform to support the 63.5 million micro businesses in India, who form the backbone of the MSME sector. It has developed a curated list of schemes and documentation requirements for MSMEs along with a dedicated web & mobile platform too. Entrepreneurs can access the schemes’ information including benefits, application process and documentation required to apply, and check their eligibility. It has reached more than 20,000 micro-businesses in the last 12 months.

Note to the Editors:

The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman, World Economic Forum, and Hilde Schwab, Co-Founder and Chairperson, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship. For over twenty years, the Schwab Foundation has supported the world’s leading social innovators to create a more just, equitable, and sustainable world. The Schwab Foundation provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global, to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation.
Learn more at www.schwabfound.org

Follow on:
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LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/schwab-foundation-for-social-entrepreneurship

 Jubilant Bhartia Foundation (JBF), established in 2007, is the not-for-profit organisation of the Jubilant Bhartia Group. It focuses on conceptualising and implementing the Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives (CSR) for the Group. The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation’s activities include various community development work, healthcare programs, cultural and sports events, environmental preservation initiatives, vocational training, women empowerment, educational activities, and promotion of Social Entrepreneurship.
Learn more at www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com

Follow on:
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LinkedIn: https://in.linkedin.com/company/jubilantbhartiafoundation

For media queries, please contact:
Vivek Prakash
Jubilant Bhartia Foundation;
Ph: +91 120 436 1804/ 1811;
E-mail: vivek.prakash@jubl.com

Noida, Uttar Pradesh, April 04, 2022: Jubilant Bhartia Foundation and Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organisation of the World Economic Forum, invite applications for the 13th edition of the prestigious annual award - Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India 2022.

The last date for receiving applications for the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award is April 20, 2022. Candidates can participate by submitting the application form available at www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com or email the filled form to jbf.seoy@jubl.com.

The Social Entrepreneur of the Year - India Award is a joint initiative between the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation and the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship (the sister organisation of the World Economic Forum). The award recognises individuals and organisations who implement innovative, sustainable and scalable solutions to address pressing issues faced by under-served communities in India. The winner of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award 2022’ will be announced in September 2022. The winner is awarded by a prominent chief guest in a magnificent ceremony every year.

These promising and successful social entrepreneurs with excellence in large-scale system change models work in diverse areas such as health, education, employment, water, clean energy, building identity & entitlements, financial literacy, access to information and technology, among others.

A Global Platform: The Indian Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award gives the winner and finalists of the award an introduction to a global community of fellow entrepreneurs so that they can engage with public figures as peers, directly influence decision making, draw funding and enable further partnerships, hence helping them to extend their reach and impact exponentially.

Benefits to winners through a three-year core programme:

• Access to the world’s most influential network: Opportunity to connect with key partners at regional and global summits and Schwab Foundation’s digital platform TopLink and to learn sector-specific best practices and scale solutions through partnerships
• Showcase awardees’ solutions to the highest level of decision-makers through award ceremonies, media campaigns, videos and speaking roles
• Build the leadership capacity of awardees by strengthening their organisational and business strategies through executive education programmes at top universities, practitioner-oriented research, and curated programming at global and regional meetings
• Create spaces for reflection and peer-to-peer mentoring to equip awardees with the support systems to lead their organisation and drive trust-based collaborations

Parameters for Selection: The participating individuals and organisations are evaluated on the critical parameters of Market-based, Technology-enabled, Sustainability, Direct Social Impact, Reach & Scope, Replicability. The finalists every year are selected through a rigorous process, including expert reviews and site visits. The winner is chosen by a prominent Jury consisting of eminent leaders and professionals from the Government, Business, Media, and Civil Society.

The Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award aims to promote and celebrate leading social entrepreneurs and their unique ventures in India that help address the gaps in society and the country. The SEOY India Award not only inspires existing social entrepreneurs to further amplify their work and impact so as to become a part of this select community of social innovators but also inspires individuals with a penchant to bring change to choose the path of social entrepreneurship.

About Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife Hilde. For over twenty years, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship has supported the world’s leading social innovators in their efforts to create a more just, equitable, and sustainable world. The Schwab Foundation provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation. Learn about us at www.schwabfound.org and follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/schwabfound

Noida, October 7, 2021: The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organisation of the World Economic Forum, and the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation of Jubilant Bhartia Group today conferred Pranshu Singhal of KARO SAMBHAV with the prestigious Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award - India 2021. The award was presented by Prof. K. VijayRaghavan, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India at a virtual ceremony in presence of eminent personalities from different fields from across the world.

Felicitating the winner and congratulating the finalists of this year’s SEOY Award India 2021, Prof. K. VijayRaghavan, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India said, “This global pandemic has been a major crisis and the social entrepreneurs have come forward in each section of the society as emergency rescuers for the most vulnerable, by stretching their means to the maximum possible. We need to take important lessons from these change makers working at the grass-roots offering unique solutions to seemingly impossible challenges. Recognising their ideas, work and contributions towards solving challenges will help them scale their work and increase their efficiency. I compliment the Schwab Foundation and the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation for this unique initiative of recognising these social entrepreneurs for over a decade now.”

The SEOY India Award 2021 winner Pranshu Singhal from Karo Sambhav is working to make circular economy possible and is enabling enterprises to close their material loops. Karo Sambhav covers e-waste, plastic packaging waste, battery waste and glass and continues its exploration towards less scrutinised sectors like mattresses and textiles. Pranshu aims to shape and catalyse the set-up of a well-governed and accountable end-of-life waste management industry with transparent practices.

Ms. Hilde Schwab, Co-Founder and Chairperson, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder & Executive Chairman of, World Economic Forum and Co-Founder of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship commended the role of social entrepreneurs and congratulated the winner & finalists. They shared, “The global pandemic has emphasised the critical role of social innovators in identifying urgent needs and responding to realities on the ground. This year’s winner and finalists of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year India Award represent the ethos of social innovation and entrepreneurship. They are actors who have selflessly dedicated their lives to improving the state of the world by reaching and strengthening marginalised communities on the fringes of society. Social innovators are pioneering agents of change, revitalising the way our institutions operate, and are critical to achieving a more equitable world. The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship is proud to have been partnering with Jubilant Bhartia Foundation over the past 12 years to award social innovators from India who are not only driving change but are also shifting systems towards a more inclusive and sustainable future.”

Applauding the winner and the finalists, Mr. Shyam S Bhartia, Chairman and Founder and Mr. Hari S Bhartia, Chairman & Co-Founder, Jubilant Bhartia Group and Founder Directors of Jubilant Bhartia Foundation said, "The pandemic brought to the forefront the extraordinary role of social entrepreneurs as front line workers and showcased their vast reach and penetration in the country. The social entrepreneurs have acted as Corporate India’s implementation partners, working hand-in-hand. Despite the shattering second wave of COVID-19, this year we received close to 100 diverse submissions out of which 28 were women social entrepreneurs & two of them have been selected as finalists. The award submissions reflect the indomitable spirit and resilience of the social entrepreneurs. The social entrepreneurs have also set an example for collaborative efforts worldwide by displaying the power of working together and leveraging each other’s strengths. To amplify the work of these social entrepreneurs especially on post COVID rehabilitation, we now part of the World Economic Forum’s initiative - the ‘COVID Response Alliance for Social Entrepreneur’s. The alliance will provide a platform to showcase the work done by the social entrepreneurs in India as well as globally. Kudos to all our finalists and the winner who have made through several stringent rounds of evaluation. This year marks the 12th year of our strong partnership with the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship. Over the years we have seen over 1700 high impact submissions. We stay committed to recognising and empowering these high spirited individuals in their endeavours.”

Pranshu Singhal on winning the SEOY Award India 2021 shared, “We are today in the decade of action. We need a movement where people, organisations, enterprises, governments collaborate and co-create solutions. I thank the SEOY India Award for kick starting the journey of making things circular. This award will go a long way in helping us be a catalyst in this space.”

Pranshu Singhal from Karo Sambhav will join the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship’s Community, the world’s largest and prestigious network of social innovators from around the world. The winner of SEOY Award also participates in World Economic Forum (WEF) events which offer unique opportunities to engage with global decision-makers from the public, corporate, media, academic and civil society sectors. The other finalists of SEOY Award India 2021 were Dr. Aparna Hegde from ARMMAN, Seema Prem from FIA GLOBAL and Dr. Shuchin Bajaj from UJALA CYGNUS.

The SEOY Award aims to recognise promising and successful social entrepreneurs, who are key enablers of inclusive growth addressing challenges in numerous areas with excellence in large-scale, system change models. The SEOY Award - India has established itself as one of the most reputable awards for social entrepreneurs in India. This year the award celebrates its 12th year. In 2010, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation came together to promote social innovation in India through the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) Award – India and has since recognised and supported the growing field of social innovation in India.

This year’s jury members for the award included, Ms. Shobhana Bhartia, Chairperson & Editorial Director, HT Media Ltd; Ms. Hilde Schwab, Chairperson & Co – Founder, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship; Mr. T V Narendran, CEO & Managing Director, Tata Steel Ltd & President, CII; Ms. Sudha Pillai, Former Member Secretary, Planning Commission, Government of India; Mr. P R Ganapathy, Regional Director, Stanford Seed, India; Ms. Rohini Nilekani, Chairperson, Arghyam Foundation; Ms. Ashraf Patel, Founder, Pravah & Commutiny Youth Collective Winner SEOY 2020 and Mr. Ramraj Pai, Chief Executive Offi­cer, India Impact Investor’s Council (IIC).

About the winner:

Pranshu Singhal from Karo Sambhav aims at making recycling a way of life in India and beyond.  The organisation is working to make circular economy possible by building systems, platform, and infrastructure for end-of-life (eol) waste collection and recycling, and utilisation of recovered materials. It is creating an inclusive social movement, which drives long-term behaviour change, ensures participation from different sections of the society, is supported by the producers and provides a fair value and opportunity to all the stakeholders involved in the waste management value chain. It collaborates with producers on circular economy and EPR frameworks for multiple waste categories.

Through pioneering practices, and strategic alliances with organisations like IFC, GIZ, ILO, WEEE Forum, PACE, Karo Sambhav’s programmes are helping shape contours of the eol waste management industry. Together with the world’s leading CPG brands, Karo Sambhav launched India’s first industry-led venture to solve the plastic waste crisis. It is the first organisation in the country to design and implement solutions for nationally regulated as well as voluntary waste streams. It covers e-waste, plastic packaging waste, battery waste and glass and continues its exploration towards less scrutinised sectors like mattresses, textiles.

A critical aspect of Karo Sambhav is its engagement with the informal sector (waste pickers, and aggregators). It has helped increase the average incomes of the marginalised informal waste pickers by providing them a fair value, built capacities and created livelihoods. Karo Sambhav’s technology platform (mobile and web-app) gives it an edge by establishing transparency and traceability across the waste value chain and allows multiple stakeholders to be on a single platform. Karo Sambhav has collected and enabled responsible recycling of over 23,000 MT of e-waste and plastics waste in the past four years and has prevented 21,100 MT of CO2 emissions. It has engaged with over 3,000 schools, over 500 bulk consumers, more than 5,000 informal workers in over 60 cities across 29 States of India.

Note to the Editors:

Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Hilde Schwab and Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum. For over twenty years, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship has supported the world’s leading social innovators in their efforts to create a more just, equitable, and sustainable world. The Schwab Foundation provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation.

Learn more at www.schwabfound.org and follow on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/schwabfound
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/schwabfound/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/schwab-foundation-for-social-entrepreneurship

Noida, September 20, 2021 : The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organisation of the World Economic Forum and the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, a not for profit organisation of Jubilant Bhartia Group today announced the finalists of the 12th Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) Award - India 2021.

The following accomplished high-impact social entrepreneurs have been selected as finalists for the SEOY Award – India 2021:

1. Aparna Hegde, ARMMAN; www.armman.org
2. Seema Prem, FIA GLOBAL; www.fiaglobal.com
3. Pranshu Singhal, KARO SAMBHAV; www.karosambhav.com
4. Shuchin Bajaj, UJALA CYGNUS; www.ujalacygnus.com

An eminent jury panel comprising industry stalwarts and distinguished personalities from different fields and backgrounds will select the final winner of the award.

The winner of the ‘Social Entrepreneur of the Year’ Award - India 2021 will be announced in a virtual ceremony on Thursday, October 7th, 2021. The virtual award ceremony will be attended by various dignitaries from across the globe to celebrate and appreciate the exemplary contribution of these high spirited individuals.

The SEOY Award aims to recognise promising and successful social entrepreneurs, who are key-enablers of inclusive growth addressing challenges in numerous areas with excellence in large-scale, system change models. The winner of the SEOY Award - India will join the world’s largest network of high-impact social enterprises affiliated with The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship.

The finalists of the SEOY Award – India 2021 are high-spirited transformational individuals selected through the stringent criterion of evaluation, based on several parameters, including COVID-19 response & efforts, background research, personal & on-ground team interactions, impact assessment, expert reviews and reference checks.

The chosen finalists are tech-enabled experts working in fields of maternal and child health care, financial services inclusion of the underserved, circular economy (recycling of e-waste, plastic packaging waste), battery waste and glass and high-quality tertiary healthcare services to the under-privileged.

Using ground-breaking innovation in their respective initiatives, these social entrepreneurs are bringing impact through the inventive use of technology, working on frameworks of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), development of AI powered Fintech platform, availability of low-cost super-specialty hospitals in tier-2 & tier- 3 cities of India.

The SEOY Award – India 2021 opened for applications in March 2021 and received over 100 diverse submissions from 28 cities of India including 28 from women social entrepreneurs. The categories of the intervention included healthcare, clean technology, media communication, disability, energy, enterprise development, labour conditions, microfinance, nutrition, sustainable farming and water & sanitation.

The SEOY Award - India has established itself as one of the most reputable awards for social entrepreneurs in India. This year the award celebrates its 12th year. In 2010, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation came together to promote social innovation in India through the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) Award – India and has since recognised and supported the growing field of social innovation in India.

Brief Descriptions of the Finalists:

Dr Aparna Hegde from ARMMAN
Founder and Managing Trustee
Sector: Healthcare
Established: 2008
www.armman.org

ARMMAN is a non-profit organisation that leverages technology to create cost-effective, scalable, non-linear, systemic solutions with proven impact to improve maternal and child health in the first five years. ARMMAN’s programs provide pregnant women/mothers with critical preventive information to improve health seeking behaviour. It also supports health workers and systems with technology-enabled comprehensive training.

It adopts a ‘tech plus touch’ approach and leverages the health worker network of the Government and its partner NGOs along with the deep mobile penetration. It is currently implementing its ‘Kilkari’ (largest mobile-based maternal messaging program across the world) & ‘Mobile Academy’ program (largest health-worker training program globally), in partnership with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. ARMMAN has also partnered with Google AI for Social Good for predictive analytics/AI and with Turn.IO to pilot WhatsApp as a health platform to improve maternal and child health.

It has reached over 25 million women and children and 197,000 frontline health workers in 19 states of India with aims to reach 123 million women and children and 1 million health workers by 2030.

Seema Prem from FIA GLOBAL
CEO, Co-Founder
Sector: Financial Services & Social Inclusion
Established: 2012
www.fiaglobal.com

FIA is an impact ‘fintech’ organisation that redefines the way financial services are distributed to low income individuals in South Asia, particularly women. FIA’s AI powered Fintech platform - FINVESTA aggregates, designs and delivers sachet financial products to rural customers through its wide network of banking agents. With its distribution expertise it makes financial services more accessible, intuitive and indispensable to the underserved communities. Started to tap the ‘un-banked’ market in India.

FIA today offers an umbrella of services at its inclusion centres which comprises of accounts, cash in/cash out, fund transfers global remittances, investment and protection products, credit and distribution of Government subsidies among others. These services are specially designed for women and women-owned businesses and other financially-excluded populations who live or work in un(der) served geographies. FIA’s local banking agents receive start-up and ongoing training and professional development services from FIA.

FIA has one of the largest rural digital banking infrastructures serving 40 million customers through 30,000 inclusion centers. It aims to provide banking services to over 100 crore people across India, Nepal and Bangladesh.

Pranshu Singhal from KARO SAMBHAV
Founder
Sector: Waste Management 
Established: 2016
www.karosambhav.com

Karo Sambhav is a social enterprise, with an aim to make recycling a way of life for people.  It covers e-waste, plastic packaging waste, battery waste and glass and continues its exploration towards less scrutinised sectors like mattresses, textiles and tyres. Karo Sambhav collaborates with leading enterprises, strategic alliances and governments on ‘Circular Economy’ and ‘Extended Producer Responsibility’ (EPR) frameworks. Karo Sambhav utilises its core strengths of deep technical expertise, grassroots action, technology and systems thinking approach to create impact at scale.

A critical aspect has been the successful integration of the informal sector with the EPR programmes as collection partners. This has resulted in the growth of over 200 formal businesses and a channelisation of USD 8.2 million in collective revenue, while creating new pathways of formal job growth.  Karo Sambhav has collected and enabled recycling of over 23,000 MT of e-waste and plastics waste in the past four years and has prevented 21,100 MT of CO2 emissions. It has directly engaged 3 million people in 60 cities in 29 states of India through its on-ground awareness programmes with over 3,000 schools and 500 organisations.

Dr. Shuchin Bajaj from Ujala Cygnus Healthcare Services
Founder Director
Sector: Healthcare
Established: 2011
www.ujalacygnus.com

Ujala Cygnus Group of Hospitals was established with an aim to address the tertiary healthcare needs of the poorest of the poor individuals. It aims to provide global standards of healthcare to the masses at affordable prices. It aims to do so by bringing the revolution of super-specialty tertiary health care facilities to tier-2 & tier- 3 cities of India. In addition, it also ensures free medicines and offers discounts on pharmacy, consultancies and surgeries to the economically weaker sections of the society. Ujala Cygnus also mobilises the community on various facets of health awareness hence contributing to healthcare equity. It conducts CMEs (Continuous Medical Education) programmes (over 4000 conducted) through its expert doctors to other medical practitioners (over 50,000 reached) in the community to create sustainable healthcare solutions.

It is currently present in 14 districts and four states of India. Each day Ujala hospitals perform over 70 surgeries, provide consultation to over 650 patients and admit over 200 patients on an average. It plans to expand its presence to five new states in near future.

Note to the Editors:

Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Hilde Schwab and Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum. For over twenty years, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship has supported the world’s leading social innovators in their efforts to create a more just, equitable, and sustainable world. The Schwab Foundation provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation.

Learn more at www.schwabfound.org and follow on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/schwabfound ;
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/schwabfound/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/schwab-foundation-for-social-entrepreneurship

Jubilant Bhartia Foundation(JBF), established in 2007, is the not-for-profit organisation of the Jubilant Bhartia Group. It focuses on conceptualising and implementing the Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives (CSR) for the Group. The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation’s activities include various community development work, healthcare programs, cultural and sports events, environmental preservation initiatives, vocational training, women empowerment, educational activities and promotion of Social Entrepreneurship.

www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com
Learn more at www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com and follow on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/indiaseoy ;
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IndiaSEOY
LinkedIn: https://in.linkedin.com/company/jubilantbhartiafoundation

For media queries, please contact:
Vivek Prakash
Jubilant Bhartia Foundation;
Ph: +91 120 436 1804/ 1811;
E-mail: vivek.prakash@jubl.com

Noida, March 31, 2021: Jubilant Bhartia Foundation and Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organization of the World Economic Forum, announces the opening of entries for the 12th edition of the annual competition - Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award 2021. In 2010 the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation joined hands to promote social innovation through the social entrepreneurship awards in India.

• Social Innovation Takes Off in India: A total of over 1600 unique social innovation applications have been received in 11 years.
• 11 years have seen a total of 523 women applications across India!
• Women Change Makers: 7 out of 11 winners of the SEOY India award are women social entrepreneurs.
• Turnover of participating social organisations range from Rs 1 million to Rs 600 million!
• More stringent evaluation: Two new parameters for evaluation of social entrepreneurs – Market-based and Technology-enabled solutions added this year.
• New Trends: In the recent years, sustainable farming and clean technology have emerged as new areas of social entrepreneurship

The application entry for the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award 2021’ will be accepted till April 30, 2021. Interested candidates may submit the application form available at jubilantbhartiafoundation.com or can email the filled form to jbf_seoy@jubl.com

The winner of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award 2021 will be announced on October 7, 2021.

The award recognizes individuals and organizations who implement innovative, sustainable, and scalable solutions to address pressing issues faced by under-served communities to make inclusive growth a reality in India. They work in diverse areas such as health, education, employment, water, clean energy, building identity & entitlements, financial literacy, access to information and technology among others.

The participating individuals and organizations are evaluated on the key parameters of Market-based, Technology-enabled, Sustainability, Direct Social Impact, Reach & Scope, Replicability. The finalists will be selected following an intensive search and selection process, including expert reviews and site visits. The winner is selected by a prominent Jury consisting of eminent leaders and professionals from the Government, Business, Media, and Civil Society.

The winner of SEOY India will join the world’s largest network of social enterprises affiliated with The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, to engage, build and sustain their social enterprises. The winner is awarded by a prominent chief guest in a magnificent ceremony every year.

The Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award aims to promote and celebrate leading social entrepreneurs and their unique ventures in India that help in addressing the various gaps in our society and country. Through providing recognition, the SEOY India Award hopes to inspire many other potential social entrepreneurs in India every year.

About Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife Hilde. For twenty years, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship has supported the world’s leading social entrepreneurs in their efforts to create a more just, equitable, and sustainable world. The Schwab Foundation provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation. Learn about us at www.schwabfound.org and follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/schwabfound

New Delhi, November 26, 2020: The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organisation of the World Economic Forum and the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation of Jubilant Bhartia Group today announced Ashraf Patel of Pravah & ComMutiny Youth Collective (CYC) as the winner of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award - India 2020. The award was presented by Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani, Hon. Minister of Women & Child Development & Textiles, Government of India at a virtual ceremony in presence of eminent personalities from different fields from across the world.

Congratulating the winner and appreciating the finalists of this year’s SEOY Award India 2020, Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani, Hon. Minister of Women & Child Development & Textiles, Government of India said, “I acknowledge and appreciate the contribution of Schwab Foundation and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation in celebrating social entrepreneurs. I would like to congratulate all the social entrepreneurs who have been considered by the esteemed jury for this prestigious award. This award today highlights to the rest of our country, that compassion is not only the most endearing but also an equally profitable business skill. Those who have come to this platform are the champions of digital India.”

The SEOY Award India 2020 winner – Ashraf Patel has been bringing revolutionary change through development of a generation of empathetic, sensitive youth change-makers in India. It is doing so, through psycho-social interventions and helping them build more inclusive identities & societies.

Prof Klaus Schwab, Founder & Executive Chairman, World Economic Forum and Co-Founder the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship announced the winner of the SEOY Award India 2020 and added, “The World Economic Forum is very much involved in helping fight the pandemic. I am looking forward to having India very well represented in our activities because India is a major force in shaping the future and has to be very prominently engaged.”

Commending the winner and the finalists of SEOY Award India 2020, Mrs. Hilde Schwab, Chairperson and Co-Founder of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship said, “This year’s winner and finalists of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year India award all exemplify what our community is about – actors who have selflessly dedicated their lives to improving the state of the world around them. Social innovators are pioneering agents of change re-inventing the way our institutions operate, and are critical to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. The current global pandemic has highlighted the crucial role of social innovators in identifying urgent needs and mobilizing responses to realities on the ground. The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurships is proud to have been partnering with Jubilant Bhartia Foundation over the past 11 years to award social innovators from India who are not only driving change but are also shifting organisations and systems towards a more just, inclusive, sustainable future.”

Applauding the winner and the finalists, Mr. Shyam S Bhartia, Chairman and Founder and Mr. Hari S Bhartia, Chairman & Co-Founder, Jubilant Bhartia Group and Founder Directors of Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, said, “Over last eleven years, we have seen a diversity of applications coming from the remotest corners of the country. The award process has so far seen over 1600 diverse applications. This year, inspite of trying times of pandemic, we received over 100 applications, with over one third women social entrepreneur applicants. The enthusiastic participation reflects the resilience & the tenacity of the social sector in these challenging times. It hearting to see that the finalists of this year have brought disruption in their own fields with their innovative ideas and approach. They have done path-breaking work in the fields of Healthcare, Youth Development and Solid Waste Management. Congratulations and kudos to the winner and the finalists for their extraordinary efforts. Their commitment to the cause is incomparable.”

Ashraf Patel, on winning the SEOY Award - India 2020 said, “This recognition for youth leadership has come at a moment when it was needed the most, the world right now is beset with inequality, conflict and environmental issues. Never before have we needed more collaboration and shared leadership with young people to create a better world.”

Ashraf Patel will join the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship Community, the world’s largest and prestigious network of social innovators from around the world. The winner also participates in the annual and regional meetings of the World Economic Forum (WEF) which offer unique opportunities to engage with global decision makers from the public, corporate, media, academic and civil society sectors. The other finalists were Sujoy Santra of IKure, Kolkata & Sandeep Patel of NEPRA , Ahmedabad .

Celebrating its 11th year, the SEOY Award India has established itself as one of the most reputed and coveted awards for social entrepreneurs in India. The award recognises entrepreneurs who implement innovative, sustainable and scalable solutions to solve India’s social problems. In 2010, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation came together to promote social innovation in India through the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award.

The SEOY Award - India 2020 received applications from 23 cities this year, with interventions in diverse fields including clean technology, media communication, youth development, disability, energy, enterprise development, labour conditions, microfinance, health & nutrition, sustainable farming and water & sanitation.

This year’s jury members for the award included, Shobhana Bhartia, Chairperson & Editorial Director, HT Media Ltd; Hilde Schwab, Chairperson & Co – Founder, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship; Sudha Pillai, Board Member, Jubilant Life Sciences Ltd & Former Member Secretary, Planning Commission, Government of India; Uday Kotak, President, CII & Executive Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Kotak Mahindra Bank; Rakesh Mohan, President and Distinguished Fellow, Centre for Social & Economic Progress; Rohini Nilekani, Chairperson, Arghyam Foundation; P R Ganapathy, Regional Director, Stanford Seed, India and Dipesh Sutariya, Co-founder - EnAble India, Winner SEOY 2019.

About the winner:

Pravah has been facilitating the development of a generation of empathetic, sensitive youth change-makers in India through psycho-social interventions, helping them build more inclusive identities and societies bringing about revolutionary changes. With a belief that leaders are created in spaces which are safe, empowering, and inclusive, a unique approach to youth development in the form of the ‘5th Space’ has been developed. The 5th Space focuses on transforming young people by engaging them in deep self-exploration and supporting their social action experiments to become change-makers and awakened active citizens. It nurtures social inclusion, holistic development and fosters social hope by promoting feelings of freedom, ownership, love and learning and growth. With credence in its strategy and approach of creating ‘Abilities beyond skill’ Pravah has produced over 50 different designs of self to society journeys for different youth audiences ranging from urban middle-class young people to youth from rural and tribal backgrounds.

ComMutiny - The Youth Collective: Incubated by Pravah in collaboration with some of the best youth engaging organizations in the country acts as a vibrant national community of practice that promotes youth centric spaces through joint programming and public engagement on contemporary issues. A multi-sectoral formulation, called the vartaLeap coalition is also emerging from this eco-system to realise the mission of 'Every Youth a Jagrik and Every Space Nurturing Jagriks', that places youth duties and rights at the centre of all programming and policies in relation to youth and spaces that engage and influence young people in the country. Together Pravah and ComMutiny- The Youth Collective (CYC) have nurtured 6,80,000 young leaders, worked with over 1200 youth-centric organisations and 100 civil society groups across 17 states in the country.

Note to the Editors:

Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife Hilde. For over twenty years, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship has supported the world’s leading social innovators in their efforts to create a more just, equitable, and sustainable world. The Schwab Foundation provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation.

Learn more at www.schwabfound.org  and follow on: Twitter: @indiaseoy and Facebook: www.facebook.com/schwabfound

Jubilant Bhartia Foundation (JBF), established in 2007, is the not-for-profit organisation of the Jubilant Bhartia Group. It focuses on conceptualising and implementing the Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives (CSR) for the Group. The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation’s activities include various community development work, healthcare programs, cultural and sports events, environmental preservation initiative, vocational training, women empowerment, educational activities and promotion of Social Entrepreneurship.

Learn more at www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com and follow on: Twitter: @indiaseoy and Facebook: www.facebook.com/IndiaSEOY

For media queries:
Vivek Prakash
Jubilant Bhartia Foundation
Ph: 9810674758
E-mail: vivek.prakash@jubl.com

New Delhi, November 20, 2020: The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organisation of the World Economic Forum and the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, a not for profit organisation of Jubilant Bhartia Group are pleased to announce that Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani, Hon. Minister of Women & Child Development & Textiles, Government of India will be the Chief Guest at the 11th Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) Award - India 2020 on November 26, 2020. The prestigious award will be presented by the Hon. Minister at a virtual award ceremony in presence of esteemed dignitaries and guests from different fields.

The winner of the SEOY Award – India 2020 will be chosen by a distinguished jury comprising industry stalwarts and eminent personalities from different backgrounds. The winner will join the world’s largest network of social enterprises affiliated with The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship.

The following accomplished social innovators are competing for the coveted SEOY Award - India 2020:

1. Sujay Santra, iKure, Kolkata – iKure has been working for a decade towards bringing quality, affordable and accessible healthcare at the doorstep of communities in India. It works with the vision of achieving zero mortality due to lack of primary healthcare.

2. Sandeep Patel, NEPRA, Ahmedabad - With the notion that ‘waste is a commodity’, NEPRA endeavours to solve India’s dry waste management problem through its inclusive, transparent and tech-driven socio-business model.

3. Ashraf Patel, Pravah & ComMutiny, New Delhi - Pravah has been facilitating the development of a generation of empathetic, sensitive youth change-makers in India through psycho-social interventions, helping them build more inclusive identities and societies bringing about revolutionary changes.

These social-innovators have been selected from amongst over 100 diverse applications received this year from across 23 cities of India. They have been selected through a rigorous process of evaluation based on various parameters, including background research, personal and on-ground team interactions, impact assessment, expert reviews and reference checks among others. The efforts of these social-innovators are helping bridge the gap between the marginalised and the mainstream in India. For more information on the finalists, read here: https://www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com/media/press-releases

Now celebrating its 11th year, the SEOY Awards – India has established itself as one of the most reputed and coveted awards for social entrepreneurs in India. In 2010, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation came together to promote social innovation in India through the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) Award - India. The annual award recognises entrepreneurs who implement innovative, sustainable and scalable solutions to solve India’s social problems. These entrepreneurs address pressing issues faced by under-served communities.

To watch the event live on November 26, 2020 please click on the following links:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/jubilantbhartiafoundation/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_bd0RAw2ho_xNh-uXZRLtA
https://twitter.com/indiaseoy
https://www.facebook.com/IndiaSEOY
https://www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com/social-entrepreneurs-live

Note to the Editors:

Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife Hilde. For over twenty years, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship has supported the world’s leading social innovators in their efforts to create a more just, equitable, and sustainable world. The Schwab Foundation provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation.
Learn more at www.schwabfound.org and follow on: Twitter: https://twitter.com/schwabfound

Jubilant Bhartia Foundation (JBF), established in 2007, is the not-for-profit organisation of the Jubilant Bhartia Group. It focuses on conceptualising and implementing the Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives (CSR) for the Group. The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation’s activities include various community development work, healthcare programs, cultural and sports events, environmental preservation initiative, vocational training, women empowerment, educational activities and promotion of Social Entrepreneurship. www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com
Learn more at www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com and follow on: Twitter: @indiaseoy Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IndiaSEOY

For media queries, please contact:
Vivek Prakash
Jubilant Bhartia Foundation
Ph: 9810674758
E-mail: vivek.prakash@jubl.com

New Delhi, November 2, 2020: The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organisation of the World Economic Forum and the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, a not for profit organisation of Jubilant Bhartia Group today announced the finalists of the 11th Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) Award - India 2020.

The winner will be chosen by a distinguished jury comprising industry stalwarts and eminent personalities from different backgrounds. The winner of SEOY Award India will join the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship community, a prestigious network of social innovators from around the world.

The following accomplished social innovators have been selected as finalists for the SEOY Award - India 2020:

1. Sujay Santra, iKure, Kolkata

2. Sandeep Patel, NEPRA, Ahmedabad

3. Ashraf Patel, Pravah & ComMutiny, New Delhi

These social innovators have been selected through a rigorous process of evaluation based on various parameters, including background research, personal and on-ground team interactions, impact assessment, expert reviews and reference checks among others. The chosen finalists are tech-enabled, accomplished social entrepreneurs working in the fields of waste management, rural health and youth leadership. Their efforts are helping to bridge the gap between the marginalised and the mainstream in India. Using disruptive innovation in their respective initiatives, these innovators are bringing change through livelihood generation for rural women, improving primary health facilities, organising BoP communities of rag pickers and shaping vulnerable groups of adolescents and youth.

The SEOY Award - India 2020 opened in March this year and received over 100 diverse applications from 23 cities including 20 applications from women social entrepreneurs. The categories of the intervention included clean technology, media communication, disability, energy, enterprise development, labour conditions, microfinance, sustainable farming and water & sanitation.

Out of the total number of applications, health sector leads the nomination tally with (47%) applications followed by the environment (37%) education and livelihood (35%) and rural development (23%).

Now celebrating its 11th year, the SEOY Awards India has established itself as one of the most reputed and coveted awards for social entrepreneurs in India. In 2010, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation came together to promote social innovation in India through the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) Award - India. The annual award recognises entrepreneurs who implement innovative, sustainable and scalable solutions to solve India’s social problems. These entrepreneurs address pressing issues faced by under-served communities.

Brief Descriptions of the Finalists

Sujay Santra
iKure, Kolkata
www.ikuretechsoft.com

With the inspirational dream of achieving zero mortality due to lack of primary healthcare in India, iKure has been working towards bringing quality, affordable, and accessible healthcare to the doorstep of communities for over a decade. iKure delivers primary healthcare, wellness & prevention services through innovative technology, trained frontline community health workers, a network of Hub & Spoke clinics with a focus on the continuum of care across rural, semi-urban as well urban settings.

Its doorstep community health workers are equipped with point-of-care (POC) devices, which enables them to provide monitoring and diagnostic support. In the geographical areas where it operates iKure offers wide-ranging health services packages, door-to-door consultation assisted telemedicine with appropriate referral and escalation, drugs and medical supplies, pathological tests, eye & dental tests, and spreads awareness among others. Through its proprietary software, Wireless Health Incident Monitoring System (WHIMS) iKure analyses patient information for health screening, early detection, and monitoring of diseases. It brings in data science and research capabilities to analyze collected data and find the root causes of ailments and addresses them holistically through a combination of health & hygiene, water & sanitation, nutrition, etc.

With its unique combination of technology intervention, skill development, and outreach initiatives iKure has served a population of over 10.2 million people in 5,200 villages across 7 states of India. With the belief in co-creation, it has created a unique ecosystem by partnering with local NGOs for on-ground mobilization, device partners for the latest technology, supply chain partners for consumables, hospitals for secondary & tertiary care and research organisations for clinical & technical knowhow of various ailments.

Sandeep Patel
NEPRA, Ahmedabad
www.letsrecycle.in

NEPRA endeavours to solve India’s dry waste management problem through its inclusive, transparent and tech-driven socio-business model. NEPRA’s waste management services spread pan-India include Environmental compliance Advisory, collection, waste processing & recycling by creating state of the art Material Recovery Facilities. NEPRA has been demolishing the challenges faced by the Indian waste management sector one by one through its simple strategy of ‘Innovate and Improvise’, NEPRA works with the motto of ‘Zero waste to landfill’.

NEPRA engages in city-level waste management services, ranging from awareness and collection of dry waste from several big & small waste generators to sorting (according to the type of waste), processing it at its mechanized Material Recovery Facilities (MRF) and finally recycling it. The waste processed into recyclable form is traded to recyclers to churn new products and non-recyclables are channelled for energy recovery. NEPRA’s model makes the informal sector workers (waste-pickers, sweepers, and other Bottom of the Economic Pyramid members) as one of its main stakeholders. It helps in organising the unorganised waste management sector and changes the way waste is collected and dumped through the use of technology like GPS, Facial Recognition making it more efficient and transparent. Through Facial recognition, NEPRA has helped create first of its kind database of the waste pickers in the cities where it operates. It has helped curb exploitation by ensuring fair and equal payment to waste pickers, who in turn are also trained and employed at NEPRA’s MRF facilities giving them economic security.

NEPRA has so far engaged with over 2000+ waste pickers. For multi-layered packaging, NERPA has it’s tie-ups with urban local bodies and upliftment of small waste management NGOs or start-ups in 18 states in India. In last one year, NEPRA has worked with 40 local Government authorities. In the last two years, NEPRA has successfully recycled 67108.93MT of dry waste.

Ashraf Patel
Pravah & ComMutiny- The Youth Collective, New Delhi
www.pravahindia.org; www.commutiny.in

Pravah has been facilitating the development of a generation of empathetic, sensitive youth change-makers in India through psycho-social interventions, helping them build more inclusive identities and societies bringing about revolutionary changes. With a belief that leaders are created in spaces which are safe, empowering, and inclusive, a unique approach to youth development in the form of the ‘5th Space’ has been developed. The 5th Space focuses on transforming young people by engaging them in deep self-exploration and supporting their social action experiments to become change-makers and awakened active citizens. It nurtures social inclusion, holistic development and fosters social hope by promoting feelings of freedom, ownership, love and learning and growth. With credence in its strategy and approach of creating ‘Abilities beyond skill’ Pravah has produced over 50 different designs of self to society journeys for different youth audiences ranging from urban middle-class young people to youth from rural and tribal backgrounds.

ComMutiny - The Youth Collective, was incubated by Pravah in collaboration with some of the best youth engaging organisations in the country and is a sustainable and vibrant national community of practice that nurtures 5th Spaces with and for young people, through joint programming, partnerships, capacity building and public engagement on contemporary issues focusing on youth-centric development and constitution values. A multi-sectoral formulation, called the vartaLeap coalition is also emerging from this eco-system to realise the mission of 'Every Youth a Jagrik and Every Space Nurturing Jagriks', that places youth duties and rights at the centre of all programming and policies in relation to youth and spaces that engage and influence young people in the country.

Together Pravah and ComMutiny- The Youth Collective (CYC) have nurtured 6,80,000 young leaders, worked with over 1200 youth-centric organisations and 100 civil society groups across 17 states in the country. The organisations have nurtured and empowered spaces with and for young people, through joint collaborative programming and partnerships; capacity building of people and organisations and engaging with multiple stakeholders in the adolescent and youth space.

Note to the Editors:

Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife Hilde. For over twenty years, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship has supported the world’s leading social innovators in their efforts to create a more just, equitable, and sustainable world. The Schwab Foundation provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation.

Learn more at www.schwabfound.org and follow on: Twitter: https://twitter.com/schwabfound

Jubilant Bhartia Foundation (JBF), established in 2007, is the not-for-profit organisation of the Jubilant Bhartia Group. It focuses on conceptualising and implementing the Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives (CSR) for the Group. The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation’s activities include various community development work, healthcare programs, cultural and sports events, environmental preservation initiative, vocational training, women empowerment, educational activities and promotion of Social Entrepreneurship. www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com

Learn more at www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com and follow on: Twitter: @indiaseoy
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IndiaSEOY

For media queries: Vivek Prakash
Jubilant Bhartia Foundation
Ph: +91 120 436 1805/ 1811
E-mail: vivek.prakash@jubl.com

The Stanford Seed Transformation Program is a one-year certificate program that partners with entrepreneurs in emerging economies to build thriving enterprises that transform lives and communities. The high-touch program provides management training, one-on-one support and networking opportunities to empower business owners to lead their regions to greater prosperity.

The Hindustan Times Fellowship will be granted to one or more person(s) per year to participate in the Seed Transformation Program in India. The fellowship will be offered for five years.

Ms Hilde Schwab (Chairperson and Co-Founder, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship) said “We are excited to collaborate with Stanford Seed, Hindustan Times, and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation to expand the Stanford Seed Transformation Program’s impact in India. The practical knowledge that our members will gain through this immersive programme will allow them to sharpen their skills, broaden their reach and take their enterprises to the next level. We are grateful to all organizations for their commitment to the field of social innovation.”

Mr Shyam S Bhartia (Founder and Chairman, Jubilant Bhartia Group) and Mr Hari S Bhartia (Co-Founder and Chairman, Jubilant Bhartia Group) said, “Starting with the Stanford Seed Transformation Program – India Class of 2021, a fellowship is being endowed and called ‘Hindustan Times Fellowship’. In combination with other philanthropic contributions, this fellowship will enable finalists of Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award (SEOY) to participate in the one-year Seed Transformation Program in India. We feel that this will go a long way to help social entrepreneurs gain the leadership and practical management skills.”

“Companies that complete the Seed program not only grow their revenue, they create jobs and impact their communities at large. We are pleased to bring into our program India's Social Entrepreneur of the Year, thanks to the generous support of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation,” say Mr Darius F. Teter, Executive Director of Stanford Seed.”

About the organisations

Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife Hilde. For twenty years, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship has supported the world’s leading social innovators in their efforts to create a more just, equitable, and sustainable world. The Schwab Foundation provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation.

Follow the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship on:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/schwabfound

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/schwabfound/

Jubilant Bhartia Foundation (JBF), established in 2007, is the not-for-profit organisation of the Jubilant Bhartia Group. It focuses on conceptualising and implementing the Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives (CSR) for the Group. The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation’s activities include various community development work, healthcare programs, cultural and sports events, environmental preservation initiative, vocational training, women empowerment, educational activities and promotion of Social Entrepreneurship.

Follow Jubilant Bhartia Foundation on:

Twitter: @indiaseoy

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IndiaSEOY/

Stanford Seed partners with entrepreneurs in emerging economies to build thriving enterprises that transform lives. The Seed Transformation Program is a one-year certificate program delivered by Stanford University through Stanford Graduate School of Business with locations in East Africa, Southern Africa, West Africa, and South Asia. The program provides management training, one-on-one support, and networking opportunities to growth-minded business owners and CEOs.

Follow Stanford Seed on:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/StanfordSeed

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/seedstanford

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Stanford.seed/

LinkedIN: https://www.linkedin.com/company/stanford-institute-for-innovation-in-developing-economies/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxq_lXOUlvQCB_IGR5ERMLkxfDkIKpVGZ

Shri Hardeep Singh Puri presents the Social Entrepreneur of the Year- India Award 2019

New Delhi, October 03, 2019, – The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organisation of the World Economic Forum and the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation of Jubilant Bhartia Group today announced Shanti Raghavan & Dipesh Sutariya of EnAble India as the winner of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year India 2019 Award. The award was presented by Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Hon’ble Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs & Ministry of Civil Aviation and Minister of State in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India in presence of over 250 participants in New Delhi. The award ceremony was a part of the India Economic Summit hosted by World Economic Forum in collaboration with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the Government of India.

The SEOY India Award 2019 winner, has been instrumental in building an ecosystem of skilling, employment and entrepreneurship for persons with disabilities (PwDs) through the use of technology innovations, breakthroughs in skill trainings, new workplace solutions and behaviour change tools. EnAble India has positively influenced and changed the mind-set of 729 business houses and built the frameworks of inclusion in universities and government agencies for the employment of PwDs in formal and informal sectors across India.

Over the years, SEOY India award has established itself as one of the most reputed and coveted award for social entrepreneurs in India. This year the award celebrates its 10th year. In 2010, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation came together to promote social innovation in India through the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award. The award has seen over 1500 applications in the last 10 years.

The winner of SEOY India Award participates in the annual and regional meetings of the World Economic Forum (WEF) and will join the world’s largest network of social enterprises

affiliated with The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship. These meetings offer unprecedented opportunities to engage with global decision makers from the public, corporate, media, academic and civil society sectors. The winner will be invited to join the Schwab Foundation’s global community of over 390 social innovators.

Congratulating the winner and applauding the work of all finalists of this year’s SEOY India award, Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs & Ministry of Civil Aviation and Minister of State in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India said, “I would like to express my appreciation, for the hosts of this evening, the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation and the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, who have for the last one decade provided a crucial platform to recognise the effects of the social entrepreneurs. Each one of them who have been featured here have done outstanding work.”

“I am very happy to see how youngsters are becoming change agents in the society.”

“The announcement of a Social Stock Exchange, in the Budget this year will help social enterprises access to finance. The Finance minister recently announced that Companies can now invest in social enterprises which are aligned with government supported incubation centres.”

Appreciating the winner and the finalists, Mrs. Hilde Schwab, Chairperson and Co-Founder of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship said, “This year’s winner and finalists of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year India award all exemplify what our community is about – actors who have selflessly dedicated their lives to improving the state of the world around them. We mark the 10th year of our partnership with Jubilant Bhartia with an unprecedented number of finalists, all of whom have made significant contributions to their country by addressing a myriad of issues in innovative ways. We look forward to continuing our work with Jubilant Bhartia to identify, recognise and serve the country’s leading social entrepreneurs in the years to come.”

Congratulating the winner and the finalists, Mr. Shyam S Bhartia, Chairman and Founder and Mr. Hari S Bhartia, Chairman & Co-Founder, Jubilant Bhartia Group and Founder Directors of Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, said, “The winner and finalists of the SEOY India award are the tech-enabled social entrepreneurs who are helping bridge the gap between the marginalised and the mainstream. In the last decade of this journey, we have witnessed diversity in social innovations coming from remote corners of India. Social entrepreneurs have been harnessing the vast untapped resources and investing time and resources to understand various underlying layers to social issues and create highly customised solutions. It has been a privilege to be partners with the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship in recognising social entrepreneurs in India for the last 10 years.”

The entries for this year’s SEOY India award were in categories including enterprise development, disability, water & sanitation, labour conditions, women empowerment, micro finance, housing, fair trade, energy, sustainable farming, communication media, clean technology and nutrition among others.

This year’s jury members included Mrs. Hilde Schwab, Chairperson & Co – Founder, Schwab Foundation for Entrepreneurship; Ms. Shobhana Bhartia, Chairperson & Editorial Director,

HT Media Ltd; Ms. Sudha Pillai, Former, Member Secretary, Planning Commission Government of India; Mr. Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog, Government of India; Ms. Rohini Nilekani, Chairperson, Arghyam Foundation; Mr. Vikram Kirloskar, President, Confederation of Indian Industry; Ms. Prema Gopalan, Founder, Swayam Shikshan Prayog, Winner SEOY 2018; Mr. Vikram Singh Mehta, Chairman, Brookings India and Mr. P R Ganapathy,

Regional Director, Stanford Seed India.

About the winner

Shanti Raghavan and Dipesh Sutariya

EnAble India, Bengaluru

EnAble India (EI) is rapidly building the Indian eco-system of skilling, employment and entrepreneurship for persons with disabilities (PwDs) through technology innovations, breakthroughs in skill trainings, new workplace solutions and behaviour change tools. By changing the mindset of 729 business houses and building frameworks of inclusion in universities and government agencies, EI has created a robust business case for employing PwDs in formal and informal sectors across India.

Over 20 years, Shanti, Dipesh and their teams have cumulatively transformed the lives of 2,20,000 individuals with disabilities and their families, community leaders and employers, across 28 states. Working across a wide bench of 14 disabilities, all EI trainees perform at par, and receive salaries at par with their non-disabled peers. Through partnerships with 200 non-profit organisations, EnAble India is set to transform one million PwDs as confident tax payers, active citizens and nation-builders over the next three years.

Note to the Editors:

Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife Hilde. For twenty years, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship has supported the world’s leading social entrepreneurs in their efforts to create a more just, equitable, and sustainable world. The Schwab Foundation provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation. Learn more at www.schwabfound.org and follow on Twitter: https://twitter.com/schwabfound

Jubilant Bhartia Foundation (JBF), established in 2007, is the not-for-profit organization of the Jubilant Bhartia Group. It focuses on conceptualizing and implementing the Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives (CSR) for the Group. The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation’s activities include various community development work, healthcare programs, cultural and sports events, environmental preservation initiative, vocational training, women empowerment, educational activities and promotion of Social Entrepreneurship.

www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com

Learn more at www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com and follow on twitter: @indiaseoy
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IndiaSEOY/

Chief Guest: Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs & Ministry of Civil Aviation and Minister of State in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry Government of India.

New Delhi, September 25, 2019: The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organisation of the World Economic Forum and the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, a not for profit organisation of Jubilant Bhartia Group today announced the finalists of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY)- India 2019 award. The finalists were identified following an intensive search and selection process, including expert reviews, background research, reference checks and site visits.

The seven finalists of the award are:

• Gaurav Mehta of Dharma Life, New Delhi
• Shanti Raghavan and Dipesh Sutariya of EnAble India, Bengaluru
• Mukteshwari Bosco of Healing Fields Foundation, Hyderabad
• Nand Kishore Chaudhary of Jaipur Rugs, Jaipur
• Bijal Brahmbhatt of Mahila Housing SEWA Trust, Ahmedabad
• Aakash Sethi of Quest Alliance, Bengaluru
• Sanjeev Kumar of The Goat Trust, Lucknow

Of the seven finalists, the winner will be chosen by a distinguished jury. Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs & Ministry of Civil Aviation and Minister of State in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry Government of India will present the award at a special ceremony on Thursday, 3rd October, 2019 which is part of the India Economic Summit organised by World Economic Forum and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

The winner of SEOY India will join the world’s largest network of social enterprises affiliated with The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship.

The finalists of the SEOY India award are the tech-enabled social entrepreneurs who are helping in bridging the gap between the marginalised and the mainstream, by working in fields of livelihood generation for rural women, livestock entrepreneurship, creating safe & sustainable habitats, improving rural health, empowering people with disabilities and art preservation through empowerment of artisans. These social entrepreneurs have brought disruption in their respective fields with their innovative ideas. They have demonstrated that through empowerment of marginalised rural women, people with disabilities, small livestock farmers and grassroots artisans, India can move closer to inclusive growth.

Over the years, SEOY India award has established itself as one of the most reputed and coveted award for social entrepreneurs in India. This year the award celebrates its 10th year. In 2010, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation came together to promote social innovation in India through the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award. The annual award recognises entrepreneurs who implement innovative, sustainable and scalable solutions to solve social problems. These entrepreneurs address pressing issues faced by under-served communities.

The SEOY India award 2019 opened in March this year and received over 120 applications from 19 cities. This year saw over 30 applications from women social entrepreneurs. The categories of intervention include enterprise development, disability, water & sanitation, labour conditions, micro finance, housing, fair trade, energy, sustainable farming, communication media, clean technology and nutrition. In this year’s applications, health sector (43%) lead the nomination tally followed by education (40%), environment (27%) and rural development (26%).

Brief Descriptions of the Finalists:

Gaurav Mehta
Dharma Life, New Delhi (www.dharmalife.in)
Echoing the belief that economically empowered women leads to empowered families; Dharma Life is providing women in rural India the opportunity to earn a livelihood while driving social change in their villages. These reformed women entrepreneurs, also referred as ‘Dharma Life Entrepreneurs’ (DLE) are changing the face of women empowerment in India..
Determined to create the largest network of female change agents, Dharma Life has trained and engaged around 16,000 Dharma Life Entrepreneurs (76% women) across 13 states in India. By honing the entrepreneurial skills of rural women Dharma Life is optimising a woman led entrepreneur-based model that delivers critical products and services to low income households. This includes creation of livelihoods for the DLE, training and certification of the DLEs in rural sales entrepreneurship (certified by the National Skills Development Corporation (Government of India) and IFC), sustainable income creation for the Dharma Life Entrepreneurs as well as increased equity in society for them. Reached more than 1,50,000 households and over 1.3 million women with financial literacy campaign.
It addresses key and interlinked levers of social change – livelihood creation, digital empowerment, water, hygiene & sanitation, menstrual hygiene & family planning, energy access & clean cooking and nutrition.

Shanti Raghavan and Dipesh Sutariya
EnAble India, Bengaluru (www.enableindia.org)
EnAble India (EI) is rapidly building the Indian eco-system of skilling, employment and entrepreneurship for persons with disabilities (PwDs) through technology innovations, breakthroughs in skill trainings, new workplace solutions and behaviour change tools. By changing the mindset of 729 business houses and building frameworks of inclusion in universities and government agencies, EI has created a robust business case for employing PwDs in formal and informal sectors across India.

Over 20 years, Shanti, Dipesh and their teams have cumulatively transformed the lives of 2,20,000 individuals with disabilities and their families, community leaders and employers, across 28 states. Working across a wide bench of 14 disabilities, all EI trainees perform at par, and receive salaries at par with their non-disabled peers. Through partnerships with 200 Page 3 of 5 non-profit organisations, EnAble India is set to transform one million PwDs as confident tax payers, active citizens and nation-builders over the next three years.

Mukteshwari Bosco
Healing Fields Foundation, Hyderabad (www.healing-fields.org)
Healing Fields Foundation (HFF) is building vibrant eco-systems of rural health care in areas where basic health services are absent or severely deficient. It is doing so by transforming once- voiceless and marginalised women into community healthcare entrepreneurs and health leaders who have a stake in the well-being of their communities. Backed with training in basic health care and innovative technologies (including a health decision-support app), more than 5000 trained community health entrepreneurs have taken healthcare information to nearly 12,50,000 individuals in the most backward districts of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Telangana and Jharkhand. 66% report a 100-200% income increase as a local health entrepreneur. HFF has also kept its eye on enhanced health outcomes. 98% of service users have reported improved health knowledge; 71% regularly practise positive health behaviours and 89% families are immunising their children. Additionally, 1000 school health champions trained by HFF across Telengana have reached 150,000 people with information on health education, nutrition and healthcare products. The HFF model is currently being replicated in Indonesia.

Nand Kishore Chaudhary
Jaipur Rugs Ltd., Jaipur Living, Jaipur Rugs Foundation
Jaipur (www.jaipurrugs.com)
Jaipur Rugs has catapulted more than 40,000 artisans (weavers and spinners) into artists, designers, entrepreneurs, teachers and quality control experts in the high-end, global, luxury carpet segment in 600 villages. By tripling incomes for women carpet weavers and enhancing their well-being and leadership, it has demonstrated that business success can combine as much meaning and purpose for customers, as it does for its rural and tribal artisans, and their families.

Jaipur Rugs is an exclusive, handmade carpet and rugs company, serving consumers across 62 countries. Upturning the exploitative practises of the carpet weaving industry, it has integrated ethical business practices with grassroots women’s entrepreneurship and created a business culture of empathy and care. Sharing growth benefits with its artisans, Jaipur Rugs runs an exclusive line of ‘Artisan Originals’ where weavers are the designers of their own rugs, showcasing their artistic creation on national and international platforms.
Impacted over 1,29,000 lives across Rajasthan, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand, Jaipur Rugs has put the locus of control back in the hands of village level bunkar sakhis and artisans not just through enhanced incomes, but also through leadership trainings, financial literacy and health services.

Bijal Brahmbhatt
Mahila Housing SEWA Trust (MHT), Ahmedabad (www.mahilahousingtrust.org)
By putting poor women in charge of their neighbourhoods, Mahila Housing SEWA Trust (MHT) is changing the face of India’s sprawling urban slums. Viewing habitat as essential to the well-being of a person, MHT mobilises, organises and trains women leaders or ‘Vikasinis’, to participate, design and drive urban planning and the development of their areas. The women map infrastructure gaps, deploy clean energy solutions and partner with local governments and the private sector for basic services like water, sanitation, power, sewerage and advocate for tenure rights. By building the social and leadership capital of resource-poor urban women, MHT ensures they access secure habitats and a quality of life deserving to all citizens.
Serving four lakh poor households, MHT has scaled its work to 34 cities across eight states in India. Reaching 1.7 million poor individuals, it has legalised power connections for nearly two lakh households, and potable water to 48,000. Close to 57,000 households have built toilets and 30,500 have invested in energy saving products. In a major win, 22,563 Households have secured registration of property titles, resulting in a tangible asset for the poor. With urban population set to increase by nearly 50% by 2030, the MHT model offers a solid women and citizen-led strategy for transforming India’s squalid slums into safe, clean, climate friendly, vibrant socio-economic hubs.

Aakash Sethi
Quest Alliance, Bengaluru (www.questalliance.net)
65% of children starting school today will hold jobs that do not exist yet. They are likely to have four or five careers over the course of their working life. Additionally, technology is rapidly changing job roles and rendering trade-specific skill trainings irrelevant. For Quest Alliance, self-learning and 21st century skills are then, the new life skills that youth will need to thrive, not just survive, in fast digitising economies.

Quest Alliance has integrated education technologies, curriculum and the culture and practise of self-learning and 21st century skills into India’s education and skill-training system. By doing so, it is transforming institutions, educators, skill trainers, while enabling unemployable youth to respond to a fast digitising economy, enhance their learnability and build rewarding career pathways.

Through partnerships with 100 non-profit partners and state governments, the Quest Alliance model has been embedded in 5,000 government schools and 800 vocational training centres and ITIs across nine states. It has impacted 3,00,000 adolescent and youth (of which 50% are women) from rural, peri-urban, minority and other excluded communities. 70% of the youth who go through the Quest model are placed in jobs, with a majority reporting an average upward mobility of income of 170% (income compared to their current annual family incomes). A formal Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of India opened the pathway for more than five million adolescent and youth to be impacted by the Quest Alliance model over five years.

Sanjeev Kumar
The Goat Trust Group of Social Ventures (www.thegoattrust.org)
Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
The Goat Trust Group of Social Ventures is revitalising ailing, rural economies by transforming once marginalised and scattered women goat farmers into formidable network of small livestock entrepreneurs. Sanjeev and his team take a three-pronged approach for putting women in charge of small livestock husbandry: Innovations in micro-leasing (allowing a woman to lease and rear a goat); a network of 10000 ‘pashu sakhis’ or mature women goat farmers who offer scientific livestock rearing and veterinarian services for a fee; and innovative technologies, including a goat health app and an e-commerce platform for women farmers to connect with distant markets and access fair price for their livestock.
Together, this approach has enabled 3,00,000 ultra-poor women from marginalised communities to scale their small livestock farming value chains. They have enhanced their annual incomes from upwards of Rs 70,000 to Rs 900,000. Collectively, they have organised into 25 producer organisations with annual turnover of Rs 500 million. The Goat Trust group has scaled its model in 18 states through the state rural livelihoods mission machinery, focussing on difficult agro climatic zone like dry lands, forest fringe villages and floodaffected areas. More than 84 non-profit organisations across India, West Africa and Afghanistan, have been trained in its ‘Goat Gurukul’ to create the groundswell of women small livestock husbandry leaders.

Note to the Editors:
Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife Hilde. For twenty years, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship has supported the world’s leading social entrepreneurs in their efforts to create a more just, equitable, and sustainable world. The Schwab Foundation provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation.
Learn more at www.schwabfound.org and follow on: Twitter: https://twitter.com/schwabfound
Jubilant Bhartia Foundation (J(JBF), established in 2007, is the not-for-profit organisation of the Jubilant Bhartia Group. It focuses on conceptualising and implementing the Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives (CSR) for the Group. The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation’s activities include various community development work, healthcare programs, cultural and sports events, environmental preservation initiative, vocational training, women empowerment, educational activities and promotion of Social Entrepreneurship. www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com
Learn more at www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com and follow on: Twitter: @indiaseoy  
Facebook: www.facebook.com/IndiaSEOY

Noida, July 16, 2019: Jubilant Bhartia Foundation and Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, a sister organisation of the World Economic Forum, celebrate 10 years of a vibrant partnership in bringing the most coveted social entrepreneurship award in India. In 2010, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation came together to promote social innovation in India through the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award.

The SEOY India award 2019 will be presented at a high-profile event in New Delhi on 3rd October this year coinciding with the ‘India Economic Summit’ of the World Economic Forum and Confederation of Indian Industry.

The annual award recognises entrepreneurs who implement innovative, sustainable and scalable solutions. These entrepreneurs address pressing issues faced by under-served communities in an effort to make inclusive growth a reality in India. They work in diverse areas such as health, education, employment, water, clean energy, building identity & entitlements, financial literacy, access to information and technology among others. The applications are evaluated on the key parameters of Innovation, Sustainability, Direct Social Impact, Reach & Scope, Replicability. The year 2019 sees the addition of two new parameters of ‘Market-based’ and ‘Technology-enabled’ solutions. The finalists will be selected following an intensive search and selection process, including expert reviews and site visits. The winner is selected by a prominent Jury consisting of eminent leaders and professionals from Government, Business, Media and Civil Society.

The winner of SEOY India will join the world’s largest network of social enterprises affiliated with The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, so as to engage, build and sustain their social enterprises. The winner is awarded by a prominent chief guest in a magnificent ceremony every year.

The Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award aims to promote and celebrate leading social entrepreneurs and their unique ventures in India that help in addressing the various gaps in our society and country. Through providing recognition, the SEOY India Award hopes to inspire many other potential social entrepreneurs in India every year.

About Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum and his wife Hilde. For twenty years, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship has supported the world’s leading social entrepreneurs in their efforts to create a more just, equitable, and sustainable world. The Schwab Foundation provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation. Learn about us at www.schwabfound.org and follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/schwabfound.

Prema Gopalan of Swayam Shikshan Prayog is Social Entrepreneur of the Year - India Award 2018 Winner
Dr. Rajiv Kumar, Vice Chairman, NITI Aayog presents the Social Entrepreneur of the Year- India Award 2018

New Delhi, India, 11 October 2018 – The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organisation of the World Economic Forum and the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation of Jubilant Bhartia Group today announced Prema Gopalan of Swayam Shikshan Prayog as the winner of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year India 2018 Award. The Award was presented by Dr. Rajiv Kumar, Vice Chairman, National Institution for Transforming India, NITI Aayog, Government of India in the presence of over 150 participants in New Delhi.

The SEOY India Award 2018 winner, is revitalizing rural economies by putting women in charge. Working in areas affected by global climate change, it has unleashed women farmers, entrepreneurs and grassroots business leaders who are solving the problems of their communities through small businesses. Prema Gopalan and her team have built vibrant eco-systems to enable 145,000 women to succeed in remote and ailing markets. The SSP model comprises four ventures: a federated network of 5000 SHGs; a resilience fund for women-led businesses; a rural school of entrepreneurship and leadership for women; and a market aggregator that provides warehousing, branding, marketing and distribution services to last-mile business women. In addition, it has catalyzed the government, investors, financial institutions and Indian and global corporations to partner directly with grassroots women business leaders.

The SEOY India Award promotes social entrepreneurs in India by recognising organisations that work to promote inclusive growth and contribute to bring change in the society through their entrepreneurial vision. The winner of SEOY India Award participates in the annual and regional meetings of the World Economic Forum (WEF). These meetings offer unprecedented opportunities to engage with global decision makers from the public, corporate, media, academic, and civil society sectors. The winner will be invited to join the Schwab Foundation’s global community of over 300 social innovators. The finalists are evaluated on key parameters of Innovation, Sustainability, Scalability, Reach and Direct Social Impact.

Applauding the work of the two finalists of this year SEOY India award, Dr. Rajiv Kumar, Vice Chairman, National Institution for Transforming India, NITI Aayog, Government of India said, “India is at the forefront of social entrepreneurship and the Social Entrepreneur of India Award, in my view, is the platform where real transformation is taking place. Social Entrepreneurs are the people who are doing well by doing good and are creating long-term value with their work. Social Entrepreneurs are devoted to serving the underserved and I feel privileged to be here at the award ceremony.”

Congratulating the winner, Dr. Rajiv Kumar said, “I congratulate Ms. Prema Gopalan of Swayam Shikshan Prayog (SSP) for winning this prestigious award and hope that she will continue the good work in creating value by building resilient communities.”

“The World Economic Forum has long championed gender equality on the global agenda,” said Hilde Schwab, Chairperson and Co-Founder of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship. “The 2018 winner, Prema Gopalan of Swayam Shikshan Prayog, has demonstrated that investing in rural women is a good investment. Female entrepreneurs are critical actors to help bring about the transformation that India seeks!” added Ms. Schwab.

Congratulating the winner, Shyam S Bhartia, Chairman & Founder Jubilant Bhartia Group and Founder Director of Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, said, “We are entering 10th year of partnership with Schwab Foundation. In the last 9 years, we received more than 1400 applications for this award. The response is indeed overwhelming and the quality of the applications very competitive. We are glad to see how SEOY India Award is able to identify and bring to the forefront the enterprises who are achieving social impact at a larger scale. We hope that this year’s SEOY India Award winner will serve as an inspiration to future generations of social innovators.”

This year, the SEOY India Award received over 100 applications of exceptional quality which were evaluated on key parameters of innovation, sustainability, scalability, reach and direct social impact. An independent panel of distinguished jury selected the winner. This year’s jury members included Ms Hilde Schwab, Co-founder & Chairperson, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship; Ms Shobhana Bhartia, Chairperson & Editorial Director, HT Media Ltd; Mr Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog, Government of India; Mr Sunil Kant Munjal, Chairman, Hero Enterprise; Ms. Urvashi Sahni, Study Hall Educational Foundation, Winner SEOY 2017; Mr Srivatsan Rajan, Chairman, Bain & Company, India; Ms Chetna Sinha, Founder, Manndeshi Group of Ventures, Winner SEOY 2013 and Mr Paul Basil, Founder & CEO, Villgro Innovation Foundation.

About the winner

PREMA GOPALAN
SWAYAM SHIKSHAN PRAYOG (SSP)
Pune, Maharashtra

The SEOY India Award 2018 winner, Swayam Shikshan Prayog (SSP), is revitalizing rural economies by putting women in charge. Working in areas affected by global climate change, it has unleashed women farmers, entrepreneurs and grassroots business leaders who are solving the problems of their communities through small businesses.

Prema Gopalan and her team have built vibrant eco-systems to enable 145,000 women to succeed in remote and ailing markets. The SSP model comprises four ventures: a federated network of 5000 SHGs; a resilience fund for women-led businesses; a rural school of entrepreneurship and leadership for women; and a market aggregator that provides warehousing, branding, marketing and distribution services to last-mile business women. In addition, it has catalyzed the government, investors, financial institutions and Indian and global corporations to partner directly with grassroots women business leaders.

Over two decades, this has had a domino effect in 2000 climate-threatened villages across 6 states of India. 97,874 women in drought and flood-affected villages have set up enterprises in clean energy, sanitation, basic health services, nutrition and safe agriculture. They have transitioned from self-employment to diversify their ventures, aggregate into value chains and mentor thousands of others to get on the path of entrepreneurship. 46,750 women have claimed their identities as farmers. A majority have land deeds in their name. 900 women are recognized locally as climate resilience leaders and 500 are playing a role in local governance. Family incomes have increased by 45%- 55%. 30,000 acres of arid land have been converted for organic farming and cultivation of food crops.

SSP’s grassroots women entrepreneurs are taking their communities forward as part of their business success. As SSP partners with the government to scale its model, it is demonstrating that investing in rural women entrepreneurs can be a solid strategy for transforming India.

Note to the Editors:

Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife Hilde. For twenty years, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship has supported the world’s leading social entrepreneurs in their efforts to create a more just, equitable, and sustainable world. The Schwab Foundation provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation. Learn about us at www.schwabfound.org and follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/schwabfound

Jubilant Bhartia Foundation (JBF), established in 2007, is the not-for-profit organization of the Jubilant Bhartia Group. It focuses on conceptualizing and implementing the Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives (CSR) for the Group. The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation’s activities include various community development work, healthcare programs, cultural and sports events, environmental preservation initiative, vocational training, women empowerment, educational activities and promotion of Social Entrepreneurship. www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com

Follow Jubilant Bhartia Foundation on:
Twitter: @indiaseoy 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IndiaSEOY/

Noida, Monday, April 9, 2018: Jubilant Bhartia Foundation in collaboration with The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, a sister organization of the World Economic Forum, announces opening of entries for the annual competition –Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award 2018. The applications will be accepted till April 30, 2018. Interested candidates may submit the application form available at jubilantbhartiafoundation.com or can email the filled form to jbf_seoy@jubl.com or india@schwabfound.org
The winner will be announced during a high-profile ceremony to be held in the month of October.

The SEOY India Award promotes social entrepreneurs in India by recognizing organizations that work to promote inclusive growth and contribute to bring change in the society through their entrepreneurial vision. The winner of SEOY India Award earns a chance to participate in the annual and regional meetings of the World Economic Forum (WEF).  These meetings offer unprecedented opportunities to engage with global decision makers from the public, corporate, media, academic, and civil society sectors.

SEOY India Award- Selection Process

Step 1: Assessment of applications key parameters of innovation, sustainability, reach, replicability and social and environmental impact

Step 2: Due diligence process- expert reviews, site visits, shortlisting of semi-finalists

Step 3: Selection of finalists basis the due diligence report

Step 4: Jury consisting of eminent professionals from different walks of life selects the winner

Step 5: Winners are announced at a high-profile event in New Delhi

This year, SEOY ventures into its 9th successive edition, commemorating the partnership between Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, by building and sustaining an ecosystem to promote social entrepreneurship in India. Last year, Ms. Urvashi Sahni of Study Hall Educational Foundation, Lucknow was conferred this prestigious award for her exceptional contribution in the field of education, empowering and building leaders among India’s most disadvantaged girls. She was felicitated for her work by Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu, Minister of Commerce & Industry, Government of India in the presence of over 300 distinguished guests at a high-level celebration in New Delhi.

The SEOY India award celebrates and applauds social entrepreneurs and their ventures that implement innovative, practical and sustainable solutions to address poverty and the lack of basic services and resources in ‘Bottom of the Pyramid’ and ultra-poor communities, i.e., health, education, job creation, water, clean energy and access to information and technology. Social entrepreneurs develop a revenue stream through the sale of products, services, fees or develop key partnerships to stay sustainable.

Quick Links:
Download the application form: SEOY India 2018
Applicants can email the filled form to: runa_pathak@jubl.com, jbf_seoy@jubl.com & india@schwabfound.org

Note to the Editors:
The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship is a not-for-profit, independent and neutral organization, co-founded in 1998 by Prof. Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife, Hilde. The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation. It identifies a select community of social entrepreneurs and engages it in shaping global, regional and industry agendas that improve the state of the world in close collaboration with the other stakeholders of the World Economic Forum.
Follow us on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/schwabfound

World Economic Forum: Committed to improving the state of the world, is the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation. The Forum engages the foremost political, business and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas.

Jubilant Bhartia Foundation (JBF): Established in 2007, is the not-for-profit organization of the Jubilant Bhartia Group. It focuses on conceptualizing and implementing the Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives (CSR) for the Group. The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation’s activities include various community development work, healthcare programs, cultural and sports events, environmental preservation initiative, vocational training, women empowerment, educational activities and promotion of Social Entrepreneurship. www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com

Follow Jubilant Bhartia Foundation on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/indiaseoy
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/IndiaSEOY/

~ Winner gets a chance to enter the World Economic forum network, enhance the learning curve with course opportunities at Harvard University, Stanford University, INSEAD and benefit from dialogues with the industry stalwarts for funding and business opportunities ~

New Delhi, India, 4 October 2017 – The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, a sister organization of the World Economic Forum, in partnership with the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation announced Urvashi Sahni of Study Hall Educational Foundation (SHEF) as the winner of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year India 2017 Award. The Award was conferred by Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu, Minister of Commerce & Industry, Government of India in the presence of over 300 participants at a high-profile gathering in New Delhi. The award ceremony also served as the welcome dinner of the India Economic Summit organized by the World Economic Forum (WEF) and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

Applauding the work of all the three finalists of this year SEOY award, Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu, Minister of Commerce & Industry, Government of India said “Social Entrepreneurs deal with different aspects and challenges that exists in the society. They are bringing technology with their commitment and passion to transform lives of many people. I firmly believe that changing lives is far more important than anything else and hence to have a happier society we need many more social entrepreneurs like we have seen today.”

Social entrepreneurs are the change agents who are addressing the needs of underserved communities in both scalable and sustainable ways. The winner of SEOY India 2017 Award was able to impress the eminent jury by scoring high on the parameters of Innovation, sustainability, Direct Social Impact, Reach & Scope and Replicability. The winner qualified as a candidate who is actively bringing social change by transforming traditional practice and is apt to be a role model for future social entrepreneurs and the general public.

“This year’s three finalists are all working to address different aspects of the education ecosystem – mid-day meals to help students focus in school, increasing girls’ enrolment in marginalized areas, and helping to change attitudes and culture around gender roles through schools. Our three finalists are operating at significant scale across India, pioneering advances in technology, community engagement, and learning methodology to build a strong educational foundation that will enable India’s future as a prosperous, innovative, and inclusive society”, said Hilde Schwab, Chairperson & Co-founder, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship.

Congratulating the winner, Shyam S Bhartia, Chairman & Founder and Hari S Bhartia, Co-Chairman & Founder, Jubilant Bhartia Group and Founder Directors of Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, said, “We feel inspired by the passion of all the three finalists. High technology can brighten potential of India's social entrepreneurs and this has been proved by this year’s finalists by their use of modern technology in implementing change. The last eight years of organising the SEOY India Award has been an insightful and enriching experience for us. Even for the winners, the SEOY India platform has offered several opportunities to network, identify new avenues for funding and enhancement in their learning curve.  We are glad to see that the platform of SEOY India Award has evolved to become one of the most distinguished honor for social entrepreneurs in our country.”

Urvashi Sahni of Study Hall Educational Foundation (SHEF) was awarded for her exceptional contribution in the field of education that includes, empowers and builds leaders among India’s most disadvantaged girls. Aided by technology, policy push and partnerships with the state governments of Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, SHEF has scaled its model of education to 900 government schools, trained 5000 government teachers and impacted 1,50,000 girls directly and 2,70,000 girls indirectly in the hotbeds of poverty and gender discrimination.

Schwab Foundation and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation warmly congratulate the finalists and for their outstanding contributions. This year’s SEOY India Award winner, Urvashi Sahni of Study Hall Educational Foundation (SHEF)  will be invited to join the Schwab Foundation’s global community of over 300 social innovators.

Of over 100 applicants received for this year’s Social Entrepreneur of the Year selection process for India, three finalists emerged after several stages of rigorous assessment. An independent panel of distinguished jury selected the winner. This year’s jury members included Ms Hilde Schwab, Chairperson & Co founder, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship; Ms Shobhana Bhartia, Chairperson & Editorial Director, HT Media Ltd; Ms Sudha Pillai, Board Member, Jubilant Life Sciences Limited & Former Member Secretary, Planning Commission, Government of India; Mr Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog, Government of India; Mr Sunil Kant Munjal, Chairman, Hero Enterprise; Mr Paul Basil, Founder & CEO, Villgro Innovation Foundation; Mr Neichute Doulo, Founder, Entrepreneur Associates & Winner SEOY 2016 and Ms Neelam Chhiber, Founder, Industree Crafts Foundation & Winner SEOY 2011.

The SEOY Awards have been in existence in India for 13 years now. 2017 celebrates eighth year of partnership between the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation.

Note to the Editors:
Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Prof. Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife, Hilde. The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation. It identifies a select community of social entrepreneurs and engages it in shaping global, regional and industry agendas that improve the state of the world in close collaboration with the other stakeholders of the World Economic Forum.

Follow us on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/schwabfound

World Economic Forum, committed to improving the state of the world, is the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation. The Forum engages the foremost political, business and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas.

Jubilant Bhartia Foundation (JBF), established in 2007, is the not-for-profit organization of the Jubilant Bhartia Group. It focuses on conceptualizing and implementing the Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives (CSR) for the Group. The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation’s activities include various community development work, healthcare programs, cultural and sports events, environmental preservation initiative, vocational training, women empowerment, educational activities and promotion of Social Entrepreneurship. www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com
Follow Jubilant Bhartia Foundation on:
Twitter @indiaseoy | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Social-Entrepreneur-of-the-Year-India-Award

The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organisation of the World Economic Forum and the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation of Jubilant Bhartia Group today announced the finalists of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY)- India 2017 Award. The finalists for the Award were identified on the basis of rigorous due diligence process. The finalists are:

• Madhu Pandit Dasa, Akshaya Patra, Bengaluru
• Safeena Husain, Educate Girls, Mumbai
• Urvashi Sahni, Study Hall Educational Foundation, Lucknow

The SEOY India Award puts a spotlight on the most remarkable change makers from the country. The finalists are addressing the needs of underserved communities in both scalable and sustainable ways. Their efforts span poverty, hunger, gender inequality, women empowerment and education.  The efforts of all the finalists are aligned with United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals. This year’s SEOY winner will be chosen by a distinguished jury and announced at an Award ceremony in the first week of October in New Delhi. The event coincides with the India Economic Summit organized by the World Economic Forum (WEF) and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

SEOY India Award has emerged as one of the longstanding recognition of global repute for country’s social entrepreneurs. The Award celebrates the finest model in social entrepreneurship and the entrepreneur who dream of creating value for their community. The three finalists of 2017 are working through government as well as private partnerships to bring grassroot changes through their enterprise model.

According to Mrs Hilde Schwab, Co-founder & Chairperson, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, “The work of social entrepreneurs is more important than ever in a world marked by rapid change, and I congratulate the impressive achievements of the three finalists for the Social Entrepreneur of the Year India 2017 Award. Their work represents a strong commitment to make a lasting impact on issues like healthcare and education in India, and we hope that these entrepreneurs will serve as an inspiration to future generations of social innovators in India and beyond.”

Congratulating the finalists, Mr. Shyam S Bhartia, Chairman & Founder and Mr. Hari S Bhartia, Co-Chairman & Founder, Jubilant Bhartia Group and Founder Directors of Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, said, “We are proud to be associated with the Schwab Foundation for last eight years in bringing this prestigious Award to India.  The finalists of this year have overcome several challenges and addressed some deep-rooted social issues. We are committed to promote social innovation and hope that the annual Social Entrepreneur of the Year India Award continues to spark more entrepreneurs to find innovative solutions that drive transformative change and serve communities.”

The SEOY India 2017 Award opened in March this year and received over 100 applications of exceptional quality. Through a five-stage selection process, the finalists were shortlisted after on-site visits, background research, reference checks and multiple rounds of deliberations.

Brief Descriptions of the Finalists

Madhu Pandit Dasa
Chairperson
Akshaya Patra Foundation (AP)

Founded in 2000, with a mission that “no child in India should be deprived of education because of hunger”, Akshaya Patra (Sanskrit for ‘inexhaustible vessel’) provides nutritious, and hygienic meals to children in government schools through India’s ambitious mid-day meal scheme (MDM). In less than a decade, it has established itself as the world’s largest MDM provider – feeding 1.6 million children a day across 12 states.

To deliver meals on time with the highest quality of hygiene, nutrition and culinary preferences across urban geographies, Akshay Patra has designed kitchen that operate on the backbone of technology to produce 100,000 meals per day, with minimum human handling. 13 out of AP’s 26 urban kitchens are ISO 22000:2005 certified for excellence in Food Safety Management System (FSMS). Improvement strategies like Kaizen, Continual Improvement Projects and Six Sigma are constantly being implemented in APs’ kitchens to ensure food safety, efficiency and cost reduction.

For its founder Madhu Pandit Dasa, every child in school is a child free from labour. Under his leadership AP has scaled rapidly, setting an ambitious target to feed 5 million children by 2020.

Safeena Husain,
Educate Girls (EG)
Mumbai, Maharashtra

Safeena Husain and her venture, Educate Girls are working indefatigably to address the gender inequality in education.

At the heart of EG’s model is a highly motivated, mission driven cadre of 10,000 volunteers called ‘Team Balika’.  Drawn from the village community, they are local role models, going door-to-door to identify out of school girls and convincing parents through multiple strategies to send them to school. Tackling the issue of poor infrastructure, they work with School Management Committees to prepare school improvement plans, including building toilets for girls. Trained by EG to deliver its creative learning and  life skills kits, they promote girls leadership through lifeskills training.

From a pilot project in Pali and Jalore districts in Rajasthan, EG has grown in ten years into a 16000+ schools program, with over 1,50,000 girls enrolled in school till date (with 90% retention), and reaching over 3.8 million total beneficiaries.  Safeena is also piloting the Development Impact Bond – an innovation that has the power to transform how government, business and civil society invest in the long-term to ensure that no girl is out of school in India.

Urvashi Sahni,
Study Hall Education Foundation (SHEF)
Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh

Study Hall Education Foundation has shaped and scaled a model of education that includes, empowers and builds leaders among India’s most disadvantaged girls. SHEF runs a network of schools, based on two critical innovations. The first is ‘feminist pedagogy’ or a gender- empowering method of education. Delivered through ‘critical dialogue’, it enables girls and boys to go beyond academics, understand and build the agency needed to transform their worlds. SHEF’s second innovation is the Universe of Care practice. Recognizing that care itself is a vehicle for empowerment, SHEF creates classrooms where teachers and learner are held in relationships of respect, trust and empathy; where teacher and student are equal and learning is conducted through dialogue; where art, music, sport are integral to schooling.  

To ensure that women from ultra-poor communities have the resources to keep their daughters in schools, Urvashi Sahni has spun off Didi’s – a catering and tailoring venture that
is run by urban poor women. Didi’s has captured the Lucknow market for corporate meals and has doubled the incomes of its women employees.

Aided by technology, policy push and partnerships with the state governments of Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, SHEF has scaled its model of education to 900 government schools, trained 5000 government teachers and impacted 1,50,000 girls directly and 2,70,000 girls indirectly in the hotbeds of poverty and gender discrimination. More than 1412 videos of transformative classroom sessions, created by SHEF are being accessed and practiced across remote rural government and private schools of India.

Note to the Editors:
Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Prof. Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife, Hilde. The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation. It identifies a select community of social entrepreneurs and engages it in shaping global, regional and industry agendas that improve the state of the world in close collaboration with the other stakeholders of the World Economic Forum.
Follow us on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/schwabfound

World Economic Forum, committed to improving the state of the world, is the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation. The Forum engages the foremost political, business and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas.

Jubilant Bhartia Foundation (JBF), established in 2007, is the not-for-profit organization of the Jubilant Bhartia Group. It focuses on conceptualizing and implementing the Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives (CSR) for the Group. The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation’s activities include various community development work, healthcare programs, cultural and sports events, environmental preservation initiative, vocational training, women empowerment, educational activities and promotion of Social Entrepreneurship. www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com
Follow Jubilant Bhartia Foundation on:
Twitter @indiaseoy  | Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Social-Entrepreneur-of-the-Year-India-Award-252375598433808/

Start Up! is a Delhi-based social enterprise which manages the outreach, due diligence and jury presentation of the SEOY India awards on behalf of the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation.

• Apply before April 30, 2017 to India’s most coveted award for social entrepreneurs
• Assessment on key parameters of innovation, sustainability, reach, replicability & social impact

The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, a sister organization of the World Economic Forum, in partnership with the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation announces opening of entries for the annual competition –Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award 2017. The applications will be accepted till April 30, 2017. Interested candidates may submit the application form available at jubilantbhartiafoundation.com or can email the filled form to jbf_seoy@jubl.com or india@schwabfound.org

The SEOY India Award promotes social entrepreneurs in India by recognizing organizations that work to promote inclusive growth and contribute to bring change in society through their entrepreneurial vision. The winner of SEOY India Award earns a chance to participate in the annual and regional meetings of the World Economic Forum (WEF).  These meetings offers unprecedented opportunities to engage with global decision makers from the public, corporate, media, academic, and civil society sectors.

2017 celebrates eighth year of partnership between Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation. Last year, Mr. Neichute Doulo of Entrepreneurs Associates (EA) from Nagaland was awarded the Social Entrepreneur of the Year India Award for his work in promoting entrepreneurship and peace building in north-eastern India by Mr. Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road Transport, Highways and Shipping of India in the presence of over 300 distinguished guests at a high-level celebration in New Delhi.

SEOY India Award- Selection Process

• Step 1: Assessment of applications key parameters of innovation, sustainability, reach, replicability and social impact.
• Step 2: Due diligence process- expert reviews, site visits, shortlisting of semi-finalists
• Step 3: Selection of finalists basis the due diligence report
• Step 4: Jury consisting of eminent professionals from different walks of life selects the winner
• Step 5: Winners are announced at a high-profile event in New Delhi

The award celebrates and applauds leading social entrepreneurs and their ventures that implement innovative, practical and sustainable solutions to address poverty and the lack of basic services and resources in ‘Bottom of the Pyramid’ and ultra-poor communities (i.e. health, education, job creation, water, clean energy and access to information and technology). Social entrepreneurs develop a revenue stream through the sale of products, services, fees or develop key partnerships to stay sustainable.

Quick Links:

Download the application form: SEOY India 2017
Applicants can email the filled form to: runa_pathak@jubl.com, jbf_seoy@jubl.com & india@schwabfound.org

Note to the Editors:

Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Prof. Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife, Hilde. The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship provides unparalleled platforms at the regional and global level to highlight and advance leading models of sustainable social innovation. It identifies a select community of social entrepreneurs and engages it in shaping global, regional and industry agendas that improve the state of the world in close collaboration with the other stakeholders of the World Economic Forum.

Follow us on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/schwabfound

World Economic Forum, committed to improving the state of the world, is the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation. The Forum engages the foremost political, business and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas.

Jubilant Bhartia Foundation (JBF), established in 2007, is the not-for-profit organization of the Jubilant Bhartia Group. It focuses on conceptualizing and implementing the Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives (CSR) for the Group. The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation’s activities include various community development work, healthcare programs, cultural and sports events, environmental preservation initiative, vocational training, women empowerment, educational activities and promotion of Social Entrepreneurship. www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com

Follow Jubilant Bhartia Foundation on:
Twitter at https://twitter.com/indiaseoy and Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Social-Entrepreneur-of-the-Year-India-Award-252375598433808/

New Delhi, India, 6 October 2016 – The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, a sister organization of the World Economic Forum, in partnership with the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation announced Neichute Doulo, Entrepreneurs Associate (EA) as the winner of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year- India 2016. The awards were conferred by Mr. Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road Transport, Highways and Shipping of India in the presence of over 300 participants at a high-level celebration in New Delhi. The award ceremony also served as the welcome dinner of the India Economic Summit organized by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road, Transport, Highways and Shipping said "Politics is an instrument of social and economic reforms. There is a need to create awareness on social consciousness and social responsibility." He applauded the work done by the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation in recognising and rewarding the efforts of the social entrepreneurs over the years. He also congratulated the finalists and all the social entrepreneurs for working towards a greater cause at the grassroot level."

Neichute Doulo of Entrepreneurs Associate (EA) was awarded for his work in promoting entrepreneurship and peace building in north-eastern India. The Naga movement, one of the oldest unresolved armed conflicts in the world, has hampered economic development in the region. For over 20 years, EA has successfully launched the first generations of Naga and Manipuri entrepreneurs, built up vibrant local markets, catalysed local production, generated local jobs, activated financial institutions and steered government will to demonstrate that entrepreneurship can be the route to peace building.

Of over 100 applicants considered at this year’s Social Entrepreneur of the Year selection process for India, five finalists emerged after several stages of rigorous assessment. An independent panel of distinguished jury selected the winner. This year’s judges included Ms Shobhana Bhartia, Chairperson & Editorial Director of HT Media Ltd; Ms Hilde Schwab, Chairperson and Co-Founder, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship; Ms Sudha

 Pillai, Board Member Jubilant Life Sciences Ltd and Former Member Secretary of Planning Commission, Govt. of India; Mr Amitabh Kant, CEO, Niti Aayog, Govt. of India; Mr Harish Hande, Managing Director,  Selco Solar Light Ltd; Ms Poonam Bir Kasturi, Founder, Daily Dump & Winner SEOY 2015; Ms Rohini Nilekani, Chairperson, Arghyam Foundation; Mr Sunil Kant Munjal, Chairman, Hero Corp. Services Private Limited; Mr Vikram Gandhi, Founder and CEO, VSG Capital Advisors & Mr William Bissell, Managing Director, Fab India Overseas Pvt. Ltd.

Commenting on the finalists, Hilde Schwab, Chairperson and Co-Founder of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, said, “We are delighted to see that this year’s finalists are all strong contributors to the key social priorities of the Government of India. They are all operating at significant scale across regions including north-eastern India and supporting social and economic inclusion in many ways – by creating access to basic services, skills and digital connectivity.”

Congratulating the winner, Mr. Shyam S Bhartia, Chairman & Founder and Mr. Hari S Bhartia, Co-Chairman & Founder, Jubilant Bhartia Group and Founder Directors of Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, said, “Jubilant Bhartia Foundation is committed to promoting social entrepreneurship in the country. SEOY India Award aims at rewarding passion, dedication to a cause and the ability to drive change through innovation and modern technology. We congratulate all the participants for their efforts in addressing social problems and bringing about transformational change.”

Neichute Doulo will be invited to join the Schwab Foundation’s global community of over 300 social innovators. Social Entrepreneurs are driven by their mission to create substantial social change and promote inclusive growth, developing new products and service models that benefit underserved communities.

Note to the Editors:
The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife, Hilde. Since its inception in 2000, the Foundation has been identifying the world’s leading social entrepreneurs and involves the community of 300 award winners in advancing the field of social innovation in collaboration with corporate, government and academic stakeholders. Selected social entrepreneurs of the Schwab Foundation network participate in World Economic Forum events, thus providing unique opportunities for them to connect with business, political and media leaders. Find out more about the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship on our website. Follow us on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/schwabfound

 The World Economic Forum, committed to improving the state of the world, is the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation. The Forum engages the foremost political, business and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas.

Jubilant Bhartia Foundation (JBF), established in 2007, is the not-for-profit organization of the Jubilant Bhartia Group. It focuses on conceptualizing and implementing the Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives (CSR) for the Group. The Jubilant Bhartia Foundation’s activities include various community development work, healthcare programs, cultural and sports events, environmental preservation initiative, vocational training, women empowerment, educational activities and promotion of Social Entrepreneurship. www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com

Excellence in Social Entrepreneurship
Five outstanding social entrepreneurs, representing high impact social ventures are finalists of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year-India 2016 Award

~ Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road, Transport, Highways and Shipping to give away the awards ~

New Delhi, Friday, September 23, 2016
Following a rigorous due diligence process, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organization of the World Economic Forum and the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation today announced the finalists of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY)- India 2016 Award. The finalist are:

• Shanti Raghavan and Dipesh Sutariya of EnAble India, Bengaluru
• Neichute Doulo of Entrepreneurs Associate, Kohima
• Vikas Shah of WaterHealth India Pvt Ltd, Hyderabad
• Mrinalini Kher of Yuva Parivartan/ Kherwadi Social Welfare Association, Mumbai
• Hilmi Quraishi and Subhi Quraishi of ZMQ, New Delhi

The winner will be chosen by a distinguished jury and announced at an awards ceremony on October 6, 2016 in New Delhi. Mr Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road, Transport, Highways and Shipping will be the Chief Guest and present the award. This year the SEOY award ceremony is part of the India Economic Summit organized by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the World Economic Forum (WEF).

The finalists of the SEOY India – 2016 Awards are building vibrant eco-systems in the fields of disability; skilling, employment and entrepreneurship; health; water sanitation and hygiene; and technology for development. They are working to equip isolated and marginal communities & to change behaviours and take charge of their own lives. All five enterprises are working through government partnerships to bring fresh ideas in flagship initiatives of the country such as Smart City, Skill India, Start Up India and Digital India.

According to Mrs Hilde Schwab, Co-founder & Chairperson, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, “We are delighted to see that this year’s finalists are all strong contributors to the key social priorities of the Government of India. They are all operating at significant scale across regions including north eastern India, and supporting social and economic inclusion in many ways – by creating access to basic services, skills and digital connectivity.”

Congratulating the finalists, Mr. Shyam S Bhartia, Chairman & Founder and Mr. Hari S Bhartia, Co-Chairman & Founder, Jubilant Bhartia Group and Founder Directors of Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, said, “We are happy that over the last seven years we have been able to create an annual platform, where social entrepreneurs across the country are recognized. The winner gets a chance to join the world’s largest network of social enterprises affiliated with The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship. This enhances their professional linkages and offers them an opportunity to learn from peer groups. This year, the finalists have shown a dedication towards diverse social issues like inclusion of specially able people, mainstreaming of youths in conflict areas through Entrepreneurship, Technology for development, employability, drinking water etc. which require urgent attention.”

The SEOY Awards, India 2016 opened in March this year and received over 100 applications of exceptional quality. Through a five-stage selection process, the finalists were shortlisted after on-site visits, background research, reference checks and multiple rounds of deliberations.

~ Education, Health, Environment and Rural Development emerges as top agenda for country’s social innovators ~

Noida, Wednesday, June 29, 2016: The country’s coveted award, Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award, 2016, is set to witness intense competition this year. Over 100 inspiring Social Entrepreneurs, have applied to one of the most prestigious award. The winner of SEOY India gets a chance to join the world’s largest network of late-stage social enterprises affiliated with The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organization of the World Economic Forum. 

The year 2016 marks the 12th year of existence for the SEOY Awards in India. Over the past few years, quality of applications to SEOY India awards has improved tremendously, making India stand out in the growing global movement of social entrepreneurship.

The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the sister organization of the World Economic Forum, partnered with the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation in 2010 to organise competition for India. Year 2016 celebrates seventh year of partnership between the two organisations. As next steps to the applications received, The Schwab Foundation and experts from the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation will review the applications. The applicants are evaluated on key parameters of innovation, sustainability, scalability, reach and social impact. Finalists will be selected following an intensive search and selection process, including expert reviews and site visits. The winner is selected by a prominent Jury consisting of eminent professionals from different walks of life. The award will be presented at a high-profile event in New Delhi in October.

Additional information on Social Entrepreneur of the Year India Award

• 2016 applications trend:
  • Education sector (55%) leads the nomination tally followed by Health (52%), Environment (43%) & Rural Development (42%). More than half of the applicants having education as an agenda is an evidence of growing consciousness about Social Entrepreneurship in that sector.
  • The sectors which participated most actively were Education, Health, Environment, Rural Development, Enterprise Development, Technology, Water sanitation, communication/media, Microfinance respectively.
  • Other than these sectors Fair Trade, Research, life skill Development & Training, Women Empowerment, Labor Condition, Human Rights, Agriculture, Climate Change etc. like sectors have also applied for the SEOY India Award
  • North region displayed enthusiastic participation with maximum applications
• Highlights of previous SEOY India Award
  • Year 2015 was the year of all women finalists; Ms Poonam Bir Kasturi of Daily Dump (Bengaluru) was awarded as the Social Entrepreneur of the Year India Award 2015 by Shri Piyush Goyal, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Power, Coal, New & Renewable Energy Government of India. Daily Dump, has brought together design thinking, traditional pottery and the science of composting to develop more than 50 aesthetic products and services that enable urban Indians to compost their waste at home and be part of the solution to the country’s waste management. The other three finalists were: Ashraf Patel (Pravah and Commutiny Youth Collective, New Delhi), Prema Gopalan (Swayam Shikshan Prayog, Pune) and Suparna Gupta (Aangan Trust, Mumbai)
  • Over the last seven years, since Schwab Foundation and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation joined hand, over 1000 applications have been evaluated. The pool comprises of projects across the sectors such as Skill development, Financial Inclusion, Renewable Energy, Women Empowerment, Sanitation and Healthcare.
  • Some of the projects that stood out during these past few years are of the SEOY India winners, which are:
    • Rajiv Khandelwal & Krishnavtar Sharma, Aajeevika Bureau, Udaipur (Winner SEOY India 2010)
    • Neelam Chhiber, Industree Crafts, Bengaluru, (Winner SEOY India 2011)
    • Anshu Gupta, Goonj, New Delhi (Winner SEOY India 2012)
    • Chetna Vijay  Sinha, Mann Deshi, Satara (Winner SEOY India 2013)
    • Dr H Sudarshan, Karuna Trust, Bengaluru (Winner SEOY India 2014)

About the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship
The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife, Hilde. Since its inception in 2000, the Foundation has been identifying the world’s leading social entrepreneurs and involves the community of 200 award winners in advancing the field of social innovation in collaboration with corporate, government and academic stakeholders. Selected social entrepreneurs of the Schwab Foundation network participate in World Economic Forum events, thus providing unique opportunities for them to connect with business, political and media leaders. http://www.schwabfound.org Follow the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship on Twitter at www.twitter.com/schwabfound

Jubilant Bhartia Foundation (JBF), an initiative of the Jubilant Bhartia Group, is committed to contribute towards inclusive growth. The foundation’s objectives include various community development work, health care, cultural & sports, environment preservation initiative, vocational training, women empowerment and educational activities. www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com
Follow Jubilant Bhartia Foundation on Twitter at https://twitter.com/indiaseoy

- Apply before April 30, 2016 to India’s prestigious award for social entrepreneurs

- Winners to participate at the annual meeting and regional meetings of the World Economic Forum (WEF)

Noida, Friday, March 18, 2016: The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, a sister organization of the World Economic Forum, in partnership with the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation announces opening of entries for the annual competition –Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award 2016. SEOY India searches for leading social entrepreneurs from the country. The applications will be accepted till April 30, 2016. Those interested may submit the application form available at jubilantbhartiafoundation.com or can email the filled form to jbf_seoy@jubl.com or india@schwabfound.org

The applicants are evaluated on key parameters of innovation, sustainability, reach and social impact. Finalists will be selected following an intensive search and selection process, including expert reviews and site visits. The winner is selected by a prominent Jury consisting of eminent professionals from different walks of life. The award will be presented at a high-profile event in New Delhi. The winners of ‘Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award 2016’ will participate in the annual and regional meetings of the World Economic Forum, which provides unprecedented opportunities to engage with global decision makers from the public, corporate, media, academic, and civil society sectors.

The Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) India Award, organized annually by Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, attracts hundreds of social entrepreneurs from all over the country. The award celebrates leading social entrepreneurs and their ventures that implement innovative, practical and sustainable solutions to address poverty and the lack of basic services and resources in ‘Bottom of the Pyramid’ and ultra-poor communities (i.e. health, education, job creation, water, clean energy and access to information and technology). Whether they are set up as for-profit entities, hybrid social ventures or not-for-profit organizations, their primary focus is transformational social change. Social entrepreneurs develop a revenue stream through the sale of products, services, fees or develop key partnerships to achieve sustainability. The award promotes social entrepreneurs in India by recognizing organizations that work to promote inclusive growth and contribute to bring change to society through their entrepreneurial vision.

2016 celebrates seventh year of partnership between Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation. Last year, Ms Poonam Bir Kasturi of Daily Dump (Bengaluru) was awarded as the Social Entrepreneur of the Year India Award 2015 by Shri Piyush Goyal, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Power, Coal, New & Renewable Energy Government of India.

Quick Links:
Download the application form: SEOY India 2016
Applicants can email the filled form to: runa_pathak@jubl.com, jbf_seoy@jubl.com & india@schwabfound.org

About the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship
The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife, Hilde. Since its inception in 2000, the Foundation has been identifying the world’s leading social entrepreneurs and involves the community of 200 award winners in advancing the field of social innovation in collaboration with corporate, government and academic stakeholders. Selected social entrepreneurs of the Schwab Foundation network participate in World Economic Forum events, thus providing unique opportunities for them to connect with business, political and media leaders. http://www.schwabfound.org Follow the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship on Twitter at www.twitter.com/schwabfound

Jubilant Bhartia Foundation (JBF), an initiative of the Jubilant Bhartia Group, is committed to contribute towards inclusive growth. The foundation’s objectives include various community development work, health care, cultural & sports, environment preservation initiative, vocational training, women empowerment and educational activities. www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com
Follow Jubilant Bhartia Foundation on Twitter at https://twitter.com/indiaseoy

Noida, Tuesday, November 3, 2015 – The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, a sister organization of the World Economic Forum, in partnership with the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation announced Poonam Bir Kasturi of Daily Dump, as the winner of the Social Entrepreneur of the Year- India 2015 Awards. The awards were conferred in New Delhi at a high-level celebration, in the presence of Piyush Goyal, Minister of State for Power, Coal, New & Renewable Energy, Government of India, and over 250 participants.

According to government estimates, homes generate 75% of all organic waste produced in urban India. Daily Dump targets to manage this waste right where it is generated – within families. Daily Dump, has brought together design thinking, traditional pottery and the science of composting to develop more than 50 aesthetic products and services that enable urban Indians to compost their waste at home and be part of the solution to the country’s waste management.

Shri Piyush Goyal, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Power, Coal, New & Renewable Energy Government of India complimented the winner, Poonam Kasturi and other finalists- Ashraf Patel, Prema Gopalan and Suparna Gupta, for their outstanding contribution to the society. They deserve the highest accolades for the work they are doing and are the true women of substance. He also appreciated Schwab Foundation and Jubilant Bhartia Foundation for their efforts in recognizing social entrepreneurs in India.

Over 150 applicants entered the eleventh annual Social Entrepreneur of the Year selection process for India, and four finalists emerged after several stages of rigorous assessment. An independent panel of pre-eminent judges met on 3 November to select the winner. This year’s judges included Mr Sunil Kant Munjal, Joint Managing Director of Hero Moto Corp; Ms Shobhana Bhartia, Chairperson & Editorial Director of The Hindustan Times; Ms Rohini Nilekani, Chairperson of Arghyam Foundation, Ms Hilde Schwab, Co-founder & Chairperson of Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship; Mr Anshu Gupta, Founder Director, Goonj; Ms Sudha Pillai, Board Member Jubilant Life Sciences Ltd and Former Member Secretary of Planning Commission, Government of India; Dr H Sudarshan, Winner SEOY 2014 and Founder, Karuna Trust and Mr Ajit Mahadevan, Country Director, Acumen India.

Commenting on the finalists, Hilde Schwab, Chairperson and Co-Founder of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, said “We are delighted that we have four women finalists for the Social Entrepreneur of the Year India 2015 Awards – all four entrepreneurs are working on social priorities high on India’s policy agenda including skilling, entrepreneurship promotion, and sanitation.”

Congratulating the winner, Mr. Shyam S Bhartia, Chairman & Founder and Mr. Hari S Bhartia, Co-Chairman & Founder, Jubilant Bhartia Group and Founder Directors of Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, said, “SEOY India award acknowledges contributions of social entrepreneurs in addressing social problems and bringing about transformational change. In the last six years of organising SEOY in India, we have received and evaluated over 1000 applications from across India. We are delighted to see an increase in number of applications and the passion that these entrepreneurs bring to the fore.”

The winner will be invited to join the Schwab Foundation’s global community of over 300 social innovators. Social Entrepreneurs are driven by their mission to create substantial social change and promote inclusive growth, developing new products and service models that benefit underserved communities.

Finalists

Ashraf Patel, Pravah, Delhi, India
Pravah is building vibrant eco-systems across India to launch young social entrepreneurs, changemakers and active citizens and propel their models of positive social change. Pravah has pioneered a unique youth-centric approach to development called the ‘5th Space’. The 5th space rejects the instrumentalization of youth for political, economic and development gains. Instead, it focuses on transforming the youth and building their leadership potential to then transforming society through them.

Prema Gopalan, Swayam Shikshan Prayog (SSP), Pune, India
Working with the most vulnerable communities of climate change and disaster-affected areas, the SSP group of ventures is building a new generation of disaster-resilient women entrepreneurs and grassroots women community leaders. Over two decades, it has equipped more than 70,000 women to partner with global and local businesses and architect sustainable rural social businesses - in clean energy, sanitation, basic health services, nutrition and safe agriculture. This has opened up new markets, non-traditional livelihood incomes, tripled household incomes and revitalized ailing village economies.

Suparna Gupta, Aangan Trust, Mumbai, India
Aangan Trust is converting India’s hot spots of child violence into communities that are safe and responsive to children. It works with the full range of actors and institutions that a vulnerable child encounters – both before and after the occurrence of harm- and transforms them into child protection champions. In communities marked by intense poverty and violence, Aangan sets up local, child safety circles that are powered by unusual allies- parents, government officials and young change makers.

To nominate a social entrepreneur or apply for the 2016 award, please visit www.schwabfound.org.

Notes to Editors

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About the Schwab Foundation

The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife, Hilde. Since its inception in 2000, the Foundation has been identifying the world’s leading social entrepreneurs and involves the community of 200 award winners in advancing the field of social innovation in collaboration with corporate, government and academic stakeholders. Selected social entrepreneurs of the Schwab Foundation network participate in World Economic Forum events, thus providing unique opportunities for them to connect with business, political and media leaders.

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The World Economic Forum is an independent international organization committed to improving the state of the world by engaging business, political, academic and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas.

Incorporated as a not-for-profit foundation in 1971 and headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the Forum is tied to no political, partisan or national interests (www.weforum.org).

Jubilant Bhartia Foundation (JBF), an initiative of the Jubilant Bhartia Group, is committed to contribute towards inclusive growth. The foundation’s objectives include various community development work, health care, cultural & sports, environment preservation initiative, vocational training, women empowerment and educational activities. www.jubilantbhartiafoundation.com