IIDSC 2022, 15th to 18th of Sep’22 – 3 Days of Fun and Learning
DAY 1 - Inauguration
It was time to welcome everyone from the various parts of the country. The excitement was palpable as the group created for the event was filled with excited faces coming from their location, all raring to come to Raipur for 3 days that everyone was looking forward to.
The 15th of September 2022 was a day to welcome our esteemed guests for the event. All our guests including the speakers, the participants and the hosts themselves were welcomed with one of the traditional folk dances of Chhattisgarh.
The inauguration was a grand affair. The Chief Guest for the evening was Mr.Kuldeep Singh Juneja elected member of the legislative assembly from Raipur North & Chairman Chhattisgarh Housing Board. His humility and his ‘from-the-heart” speech was welcomed by all present, who also enjoyed his witty remarks during the inauguration.
Mr. T.R. Narayanaswamy, the sibling of Babli was there to give a speech that left many teary-eyed. It was so inspirational, the common refrain from parents was “That is the kind of brother I would want for my child”. He spoke about how he felt and what he would like to do, what any siblings’ innermost fears were – everything that the audience could relate to.
Chair – Organizing Committee IIDSC 2022, Dr. Priya Biswakumar spoke about what the audience could expect for the 3 days and gave a short, crisp speech that set the tone for the 3 days of IIDSC 2022.
Or Guest of Honor was Mr. Himanshu Dwivedi, Editor-in-Chief, INH News. Like a true journalist, his speech was short and conveyed his emotions well. He spoke about how he as a journalist would be glad to be a part of the journey to create a better world for persons with disabilities
Dr. Surekha Ramachandran, President, DSFI was as usual the star speaker. The thunderous applause that welcomed her “Namashkar Hamsafar walon” could have brought the roof down. 10 minutes that kept the audience in their seats, her speech was all about where DSFI is today and where she wants it to be.
Mr. Mahendra Agarwal from Aarna Foundation, the host who made this event a very special one spoke – about how Aarna changed his life and the life of his family. One could see the love for his daughter and how much she was responsible for making him the person he was. It was heartwarming and encouraging at the same time.
The final speaker was the Ambassador of DSFI, Unnati Surana. The livewire left people watching her in awe. Her clarity of thought and expression was just confidence personified. It was a moment of joy for parents who now know that persons with Down syndrome can do so much.
The vote of thanks for the evening was given by Ms. Surbhi Agarwal, who has been instrumental in getting IIDSC 2022 to Raipur along with her husband Mahendra Agarwal. She thanked the audience for being there. Her voice was the voice of hope for the whole of Chhattisgarh to enable them to understand Down syndrome and help them believe in their children. Her thank you was the beginning of a wonderful 3 days.
The Raipur team then came up with some fantastic performances – dances, mono-acts, a beautiful and touching skit that had the audience glued to their seats and a poem sung by a blind singer. The atmosphere was one of peace and calm.
And then it was time to let our self-advocates do what they are best at – Dancing. The stage was full of life and masti as the self-advocates ruled it with their celebratory moves.