Tata Tea urges the youth to pledge against corruption
TTL launches Vrath Yatra, interactive web platform and corruption index
Tweet-- 'The future is India' - one of the fastest growing democracies in the world. To spur this growth and development, the Government has announced several programs in the area of infrastructure building, rural employment, rural health, urban development, basic utilities etc. However one of the single largest deterrents of the speed at which public and private investment and sectorial and social reforms can impact the life of 'Aam Admi' is corruption.
It is with this in mind that the Jaago Re campaign was recrafted to create widespread awareness on the issue of corruption. Aaj Se Khilana Bandh, Pilana Shuru transends well beyond just creating an awareness and has been presented as a platform where every Indian citizen can be 'the change he wants to see' by taking a pledge not to aid and abet corruption. The idea of the awakening is that in every situation of corruption the greater onus lies on 'Jo Khilata Hai' the person giving the bribe rather than the one taking it.
Aaj se Khilana Bandh Pilana Shuru will empower every ordinary Indian citizen to believe he can get his work done without having to pay a bribe.
Tata Tea launched an integrated media campaign - "Khilana Bandh, Pilana Shuru" in August this year, with a promise to come back on Anti-Corruption Day and take the campaign to the next level. In concurrence with that promise, Tata Tea launched a Corruption Index, a 3-city study to bring out the perceptions of citizens, across socio-economic classes, about corruption and its impact on the social and economic fibre of society in the nation.
On the occasion of the Anti-Corruption Day, Tata Tea relaunched its website www.jaagore.com. JaagoRe.com was synonymous with voting applications since its launch last year. The relaunched jaagore.com will be a portal which facilitates the flow of information and resources between individuals / groups / organizations. It aims to bring together, onto a common platform, those who possess info and resources and those who need them - it is thus envisaged as a portal for people & NGOs, by people & NGOs.
In keeping with the thought of the Khilana Bandh, Pilana Shuru campaign - i.e. if individuals stop paying bribes, they can help check and reverse corruption - Tata Tea has been urging citizens to take a pledge to stop bribing. Over the last 3 months it has collected over 3.1L pledges through various routes - internet, mobile, retail and even schools. In continuation with the campaign objective of awakening citizens to become the change they want to see, it launched the Tata Tea Jaago Re Vrath Yatra - a 38-day bus journey across the country to connect with the youth and urge them to pledge against corruption. The Vrath Yatra, which has been designed in association with Radio Mirchi and Fever, was flagged off by Justice Santosh Hegde, Lokayukta, Karnataka State and Ms. Sangeeta Talwar, Executive Director, Tata Tea.
The Vrath Yatra, which starts on December 9th, International Anti-Corruption Day, will travel from Bangalore to Kolkata via Mumbai and Delhi, touching a total of 12 cities on the way, there by covering a significant cross section of the country.
Flagging off the Yatra, Shri N Santosh Hegde, Lokayukta Justice, Karnataka State said, "Eradication of any social evil can happen successfully only when every member of the society works towards it. Corruption is a systemic issue in our country and the only way to uproot this menace is by working towards change from the grass roots. Highlighting this issue to youth and getting them to understand the importance of tackling the issue is a wonderful way of starting to address the problem. I wish this Yatra a grand success and wish it achieves its objective of reaching out to youth and getting them to pledge against corruption."
Speaking about the campaign, Ms. Sangeeta Talwar, Executive Director, Tata Tea Limited, said, "In 2009, Tata Tea migrated the Jaago Re campaign from voting to address what is the single largest malaise hampering the future of our nation - Corruption. "Har subah sirf utho mat but Jaago Re" to the change you want to see - stop aiding and abetting corruption. It has the power to pin us down and root us to where we are, severely hampering entrepreneurial activity, denying economic opportunity and limiting prosperity.
The Vrath Yatra and the internet site will connect with the hearts, minds and souls of young India's emerging social consciousness and hopefully make a huge difference."
The branded bus, which will be the central factor of the Yatra, will interact with the youth in every city, understand their perspectives on the issue of corruption and impress upon them the need for their involvement - all in a fun and relaxed manner that they would associate and respond to.
Fever 104 FM has partnered for the Tata Tea Vrath Yatra to help maximize Tata Tea's campaign reach and provide touch-points to the ordinary citizen. In every station of Fever, the RJ's will lead the march by themselves fasting against corruption and encouraging their listeners to join the fasting morcha.
The other radio partner is Radio Mirchi 98.3 FM where the central creative idea is "Khilathe Khilathe desh ko indigestion ho gaya hai - is liye Aaj Se Khilana Bandh Pilana Shuru". And therefore citizens need to take a fast - a Vrat - against corruption.
Notes to Editor
About Tata Tea Limited
Tata Tea is a leading player in the global beverages market with significant presence in over 40 countries. The company has steadily transformed itself from being a plantation business to emerge as a key player in the branded segment. Tata Tea's operations spans the entire value-chain in tea, including research and development, tea cultivation, manufacture of black and instant tea, blending, packaging, branding, marketing, sales and distribution.
About Jaago Re
Jaago Re campaign was initiated in the year 2007. The objective of this campaign was to transform tea from a medium of mere physical and mental rejuvenation to a medium of social awakening. In 2008, Jaago Re One Billion Votes campaign was conceived as an extension to the Jaago Re campaign that focused on awakening the youth to the power that lies in their hands, the power to influence, the power to choose, the power to vote. Jaago Re! One Billion Votes was a non-partisan campaign to facilitate informed civic participation amongst youth. It attempted to simplify the voter registration process through www.jaagore.com and enabling youth to be the change agents.