internationalcentregoa.com ICG-Goa University Essay Competition 2014 : International Centre Goa

Name of the Organisation : The International Centre Goa (internationalcentregoa.com)
Type of Announcement : ICG-Goa University Essay Competition 2014

 http://www.internationalcentregoa.com/ideas_unleashed/ideas_unleashed.htm#rules
Home Page : http://www.internationalcentregoa.com/launch-of-ideas-unleashed-icg-goa-university-essay-competition-2014/

The 1st ICG-Goa University Essay Competition 2014 – under the newly created banner “IDEAS UNLEASHED” was launched at a Press Conference, on 11th January 2014 by Dr. Raghunath A Mashelkar, National Research Professor and Dr. Satish Shetye, Vice-Chancellor of Goa University. The logo, poster and rules of the Competition were also released at this Press Conference. Mr. Yatin Kakodkar – President of the Board of Trustees of ICG and Ms. Nandini Sahai – Director of ICG were also present.

Topic: Innovative Ideas for Raising Goa’s Human Development Index to the Very High Human Development Group Level By 2025: Role of Government and Society

Essay Topic:
Human Development Index (HDI) is a composite statistic made popular by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). HDI measures the average achievements in a country in three basic dimensions of human development: a long and healthy life, access to knowledge and a decent standard of living. HDI has enabled innovative thinking about progress by capturing the simple yet powerful idea that development is about much more than income. The HDI value is minimum zero and maximum one.

Human Development Report 2013 published by UNDP ranks India 136 in human development among 186 countries. India’s HDI value is 0.554. The world average is 0.694. Norway with HDI of 0.955 is ranked first. America with HDI of 0.937 is ranked third. Niger is ranked 186 with HDI of 0.304.

India is placed in the group medium human development. Sri Lanka with a HDI of 0.715 is ahead of India at rank 92 and is in the group ‘high human development’. Bangladesh and Pakistan tie at rank 146 (below India) with HDI of 0.515 and are in the group ‘low human development’.

Planning Commission of India has published India Development Report 2011, prepared by Institute of Applied Manpower Research. The report covers 23 states, is based on data from 2007-08 and calculates an HDI of 0.467 for India. Kerala stands first with HDI of 0.790 and Goa comes second with HDI of 0.779. Chhattisgarh is placed last with HDI of 0.358.

Goa’s high HDI vis-à-vis other Indian states is a matter of pride for Goa. But how does Goa compare with the rest of the world, especially the very high development group mentioned in UNDP’s Human Development Report 2013? Though there are some variations in the statistical methodology used in the reports of UNDP and Planning Commission, and therefore the HDI values of the two reports are strictly speaking not perfectly comparable, it is reasonable to assume that Goa’s human development significantly lags behind the human development in countries represented in UNDP’s very high development group.

What does Goa – Government and Society – need to do to raise Goa’s human development to the level of the ‘very high human development group’ mentioned in the UNDP report? To elicit answers to this question, The International Centre, Goa and Goa University are conducting an essay competition:

Innovative Ideas for Raising Goa’s Human Development Index to the Very High Human Development Group Level by 2025: Role of Government and Society

Essays should focus on boosting education, health and income, and should display critical and original thinking, solid arguments, and offer innovative solutions and creative, even out-of-the box ideas, which will inspire decision-makers in Government of Goa, academics, policy-makers, media and civil society. Without being a critique of the Human Development Report 2013 and the India Human Development Report 2011, the essay should cover the role of Government and Society in raising Goa’s human development to the level of the ‘very high human development group’ by 2025.

Rules for the Essay Competition :
i. The Essay competition is open to students currently enrolled with Goa University, colleges affiliated to Goa University, Birla Institute of Technology & Science (Goa Campus), Goa Institute of Management and National Institute of Technology who are in the age group 18-25 years.
ii. The Essay should not exceed 2500 words.
iii. The Essay, along with the ‘Personal Information Form’, should be sent by email to program@incentgoa.com and a printed copy should be sent to The Director, Dr. E Borges Road, Dona Paula, Goa 403004.
iv. The Essay should be submitted before 28th February 2014.
v. The Essay should be the original work and must not have been submitted to any other essay competition(s) or otherwise published. Participants will not be allowed to make any revisions to the essay, once it has been submitted.
vi. The participant will be required to declare any assistance received during the writing of the essay.
vii. The participant will be required to submit personal information along with the essay. The personal information form, available on the website, pertains to name, address, contact details, age and college particulars of the participant.
viii. A Screening Committee constituted by ICG and Goa University will first review the essays received. The selected essays will be submitted to a panel of judges for final review. The panel of judges will be selected by ICG and Goa University. The decision of the screening committee and the panel of judges will be final and binding on the participant.

ix. The top three ranked essays will receive cash prizes as follows:
First Rs. 25,000 (Rs. twenty-five thousand)
Second Rs. 20,000 (Rs. twenty thousand)
Third Rs. 15,000 (Rs.fifteen thousand)

x. The final review of the essays by the panel of judges will be completed by 10th April 2014.
xi. The winners of the competition will be contacted at the email address mentioned in the personal information form.
xii. Prizewinners will have to submit identity proof.
xiii. All the essays will become the joint property of ICG & Goa University. Each participant automatically grants ICG & Goa University the right to reproduce, publish, transmit or otherwise communicate to the public their entry, in whole or in part, or using any media for any purpose without permission or payment.
xiv. Persons who have written prize-winning essays will be felicitated at a function at ICG.
xv. Names of the persons who have written the prize winning essays will be informed to local media by press release, and will be displayed on ICG and Goa University website.
xvi. Every effort will be made to publish the prize-winning essays in local media, but this should not be construed as a commitment from ICG and Goa University.
xvii. ICG and Goa University reserve the final right, where necessary, to make amendments to the above rules and to select the winners of the competition.