SHILLONG, July 14: Inner Wheel Club of Shillong organised its 38th Installation Ceremony on Thursday where outgoing president of the club Dr Meena Sehdave passed the baton to Poonam Goenka.
Goenka is now the president of Inner Wheel Club, Shillong, for the second term having taken up this office in 2018-19 as well.
Before the ceremony, which took place at Hotel Pegasus Crown, Shillong, outgoing secretary of the club Kamla Verma read out an annual report which included the donation of a labour room fitted with equipment to Ramakrishna Mission Sohra in November last and a blood donation camp at Nazareth Hospital among other endeavours.
The club had also worked towards creating awareness among the vendors at Police Bazar on the imperative to take the COVID-19 vaccination as a precautionary measure.
One umbrella each was given to the vendors to shelter them from the rains.
A gynaecologist having worked for over two decades at Nazareth Hospital, Dr Meena is sensitive to the needs of pregnant mothers and ante-natal care. Accordingly, the club created awareness among new mothers on the importance of breastfeeding.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr Sehdave said, “As a doctor at Nazareth Hospital for over a quarter century and a gynaecologist at that, my heart would pain to see the condition under which women in labour were brought to the hospital for want of proper facilities in the rural health centres. Hence, our club decided to raise funds to create a labour room at the Ramakrishna Mission Health Centre so that pregnant women from adjoining villages who go into labour can avail the facilities at the Mission Health Centre. We raised close to Rs 4 lakh with Governor Satya Pal Malik contributing Rs 1 lakh while friends, well-wishers pooled in the rest. A tambola was also organised to raise funds for this project.”
A doctor couple was also trained to handle pregnancy and labour cases at the Mission Health Centre.
Guest of honour Geeta Sarin, who is the District ISO Inner Wheel Club, lauded the activities of the outgoing office-bearers and welcomed the newly installed president and her team.
Chief guest of the occasion Patricia Mukhim, Editor of The Shillong Times, while speaking on the occasion, reminded the Inner Wheel members of their founder Margarette Golding who set up the first Inner Wheel Club in Manchester, United Kingdom, because she and others like her realised that a woman’s place is not just inside the domestic walls. Thus was born the Inner Wheel Club in 1924.
Speaking on women’s empowerment, Mukhim said, “The Inner Wheel Club of Shillong is a hub of educated, empowered women but empowerment also means giving voice to the concerns of the less empowered women who do not have the agency of voice. It is pointless being educated if we do not speak up for the right causes at the right time and at the right platform.”
Mukhim also reminded the Club members of the importance of communication, especially with the media because the Club’s activities can only be highlighted through the media.
“People will only know of the activities of the Club through the media and those with a commitment to philanthropy will either join the Club or donate to the causes it takes up,” Mukhim reminded the Club members.
Later, Poonam Goenka was administered the oath of office to serve the Club to the best of her ability and to build the team around the theme of the year as outlined by the Inner Wheel International, which is ‘Work Wonders’.
