Today was very busy with Industry visits and NGO's (non govt org.).
First stop was Infosys, it is the second largest Indian company responsible for developing software. The Hyderabad centre we visited was located on 50 acres and had 14,000 employees. Employees are again all highly educated and must speak English. The campus has hostels for employees, shopping centre and food outlets, along with extra curricular activities. Employees never have to leave the landscaped, clean life provide by their employer.
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| Infosys conference room (looks pretty boring - but lucky for me I'm a geek and I love this stuff) |
We then travelled to tour thru ICRISAT (International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid tropics). This company was actually started by an Australian and they research and develop agricultural methods and varieties that will produce higher yields with less water and environmental impact for semi-arid regions across Asia and Africa. They work alongside other NGO's including World Wildlife Fund, World Health Organisation and IWMI(International Water Management Institute).
Priyanie from IWMI took us to a charitable organization located on site of ICRISAT called IACD. It is a community development program that educates people aged 15 upwards. They run computer courses alongside English, sewing and other handicraft skills. Students studying here are also given employment training at the research centre to improve their skills and employability. This group is fantastic in particular for local women to learn basic English and math to be able to manage basic home finance and to learn valuable skills to bring extra income into their home. There is no government funding for this group and through donations and the manufacturing of products they can run. Programs like this change peoples lives.
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| IACD - sewing class |
Priyanie then took us to her office of IWMI to learn about what they do. IWMI is located in a few Asian countries and work to improve the management of land and water resources for food, livelihoods and the environment. I enjoyed this visit and had the opportunity to speak to a few environmental officers about the issues facing India and the Asian community in trying to become more sustainable. Ii is such a privilege to talk to world experts on such a variety of globally important topics.
Back to the hotel to get tizzed up and to head off to the Paradise restaurant for delicious Briyani with all the students. We had some delicious starters then ordered the special Briyani which arrived on a massive platter for us all to share. It was amazing with mint yoghurt sauce, garlic naan and fresh Spanish onion smothered with lemon juice. It is quite funny to have to eat onion to cool down the hot chilli taste in your mouth. Fantastic meal and awesome company.
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| Chicken Briyani |
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| Michael, Ebrahim & Lucy |
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| Charlene, Dee and Chantal - Pinky posing |
Alvida!
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