About Project Kandwar and the People Who Make It Happen

The following people are involved in philanthropic work in Kandavara, directly or indirectly. They are listed under three concurrent organizational levels, namely, local, national, and global.

The people who are most active in the transformational effort are part of the tripartite partnership of local, national, and global Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs). They are: (1) the Kandavara Development Committee (KDC) of elders and the Kandavara Task Force (KTF) of youth, at the local level; (2) The XVIII Horse Foundation (TEHF) based in Bangalore, Karnataka, India, at the national level; and (3) Project Kandwar (PK) based in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, at the global level. “We”, in this document, means this tripartite partnership.

The best person to contact at the local level is Mr. Chandrashekara (Chandru) N. Kandavara. He is an Instrumentation Engineer with General Motors, Bangalore, who lives in Kandavara and commutes. The email address for Chandru is: Chandru_anj@rediffmail.com.

The best person to contact at the national level is Mr. Srikanth P. Amalladinna. He holds an MBA and works as a Manger with the global IT company, IFLEX Solutions, based in Bangalore. The email address for Srikanth is: srikanthap@gmail.com.

The best person to contact at the global level is Mr. Narasim M. Katary, the Secretary of PK. Narasim retired in august 2006 as a Member of the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB), a quasi-judicial body, after serving for 17 years. The email address for Narasim is:narasimkatary@gmail.com.

Organization at the Local Level

  • Kandavara Development Committee (KDC)
  • Kandavara Task Force (KTF)
  • Organization at the National Level
  • The XVIII Horse Foundation (TEHF)
  • Organization at the Global Level
  • Associates of Project Kandwar (PK)
  • Founding Board Members of Project Kandwar (PK)
  • Organization at the Local Level: KDC/KTF

The elders of the village go by the name Kandavara Development committee (KDC) and the youth of the village go by the name Kandavara Task Force (KTF). The division of labour is for convenience but they operate as one entity for all practical purposes. The elders are long sanding activists in the community and the youth are attempting to follow in their footsteps. The members of the two groups are broad based and reflect the community. Upon reflection, no effort has been made thus far, to develop one line biographical sketches for either the elders or the youth. In due course, if and when the need arises, we may do so.

The Kandavara Development Committee (KDC)

  1. Mr. K. M. Srinivas
  2. K. V. Venkatesh
  3. K. N. Narayanaswamy
  4. K. Rangaswamy
  5. K. N. Manjunath
  6. K. Nanjappa
  7. K. M. Krishnappa
  8. K. L. Venkatramaiah
  9. K. N. Ramakrishnappa
  10. K. A. Kanthappa

Mr. Chandrashekar (Chandru) N. Kandavara from KTF and Mr. Manjunath S. Thimmapur from The XVIII Horse are ex-officio members to keep the lines of communication open at all times among the principal actors.

The Kandavara Task Force (KTF)

  1. Mr. Chandrashekara (Chandru) N. Kandavara
  2. Mr. Thilak V. Kamarathi
  3. Mr. Jagadishkumar N. Kandavara
  4. Mr. Satish S. Kandavara
  5. Mr. Naveenchand S. Kandavara
  6. Mr. Murali S. Kandavara
  7. Mr. Umesh S. Kandavara
  8. Ms Bibijohn A. Kandavara
  9. Ms Rina S. Kandavara
  10. Mr. Gangadhara D. Kandavara
  11. Mr. Venkatesh V. Kandavara
  12. Ms Archana N. Kandavara.

A larger group of youth volunteers who are service minded in Kandavara constitute the group of Associates of KTF. The distinction between the full-fledged members of the KTF and the Associates is that the former would take the initiative in organizing developmental work whereas the latter would take part in implementation subject to time constraints. The distinction should not be made much of because it is merely for convenience.

The Associates of KTF are (the last names of all of them is Kandavara shown in the end of two initials):

  1. Ms Bharathi K. K.
  2. Ms Malathi S. K.
  3. Mr. Vinayak Kumar V. K.
  4. Mr. Arun Kumar, S. K.
  5. Mr. Ravi, S. K.
  6. Mr. Sripathi S. K.
  7. Mr. Lakshmana T. K.
  8. Mr. Ravi V. K.
  9. Mr. Shivakumar M. K.
  10. Mr. Manjunatha M. K.
  11. Mr. Pillaraja A. K.
  12. Mr. Narasimha Murthy V. K.
  13. Mr. Manjunatha V. K.
  14. Mr. Shiva Kumar K. K.
  15. Mr. Prakash S. K.
  16. Mr. Chetan N. K.
  17. Mr. Mukunda M. K.
  18. Mr. Lakshmisha M. K.
  19. Mr. Venkatesh N. K.
  20. Mr. Shivappa (?) N. K.
  21. Mr. Vijayakumar K. K.
  22. Mr. Gunashekar L. K.
  23. Mr. Manjunatha K. K.
  24. Mr. Bharat N. K.

The last names of many in the village are Kandavara because they take the place of origin as their last names with the middle names being the names of their fathers.

The best person to contact at the local level is Chandrashekara (Chandru) N. Kandavara. He is an Instrumentation Engineer with General Motors, Bangalore, who lives in Kandavara and commutes. The email address for Chandru is: Chandru_anj@rediffmail.com.

Organization at the National Level: The XVIII Horse

The XVIII Horse Foundation (TEHF) is a not for profit charitable trust organization based in Bangalore founded by five young graduates (3 men and 2 women) with Master’s degree in Business Administration. The Eighteenth Horse is the implementing partner of Project Kandwar. For details please go their website: www.theeighteenthhorse.org. You can access their website through the link from the Home Page of this website.

The XVIII Horse is a NGO that is committed to community development rooted in self-reliant business enterprises. The team also believes that NGOs ought be run like any other business enterprise. In fact, they were instrumental in securing the first ISO 9000 certification in Asia and were invited to present a paper at an international conference in Bangalore and received some award for their innovative approach.

The following are the most active members at the time of this writing:

  1. Mr. Harish D. Rao, a mechanical engineer with an MBA, in Pune, Maharashtra, working with Kalyani Net Ventures Ltd.
  2. Mr. Srikanth P. Amalladinna, an MBA in Bangalore working with i-flex solutions.
  3. Mr. Manjunath S. Thimmapur, an MBA currently based in Bengaluru, Karnataka, working as a manager with The Indian Tobacco Company (ITC).
  4. Ms Manjula V. Rao, an MBA in Bangalore.
  5. Dr. Manjunath D. Byadigere, a family physician doing graduate studies in Hubli, Karnataka.
  6. Ms Lakshmi Athreya, an MBA in Bangalore, working with Reuters.

Detailed biographical sketches on these are available on the website of The XVIII Horse.

The best person to contact at the national level is Mr. Srikanth P. Amalladinna. He holds an MBA and works as a Human Resources Planner with the global IT company, IFLEX Solutions, based in Bangalore. The email address for Srikanth is: srikanthap@gmail.com.

 

Organization at the Global Level: Project Kandwar

Associates of Project Kandwar

Associates are active partners of PK. They make substantive contributions to further the goals of PK. The officers and the Board of Directors of PK, however, are responsible for all matters pertaining to PK. The distinction is made so that people who are able and willing to contribute to advance PK can do so without the burden of being held accountable in a formal legal sense. The operative principle here is that when things go right, they take credit, and if things go wrong, PK takes responsibility, regardless of where the blame lies. It is highly likely that some Associates may make greater contributions to PK than either the officers or members of the Board of Directors. Associates have already brought and will bring their time and talents to assist people who earn less than two dollars a day in India. The following paragraphs demonstrate how invaluable their contributions have been so far and likely to be in the future. All names are listed in alphabetical order, an art that Is not easy in India.

Ms Anita Reddy
Managing Trustee, Dwaraknath Reddy Ramanarpanam Trust (DRRT). She has done yeoman service in helping 15 Lowest Income Neighbourhoods (LIN’s, also called slums) in Bangalore in the past 25 years. She conceived and executed the heritage restoration of the U-shaped 1845 primary school building in Kandavara in less than six months in 2006. This is the school that one of India’s greats, Bharata Ratna Vishweshwaraiah Mokshagundam, attended and served as a passport out of poverty and enabled him to achieve extraordinary things in his life.

Mr. Matt Livingstone, R. G. D.
Lead Graphic Designer for the City of Greater Sudbury, Mr. Livingstone designed the Project Kandwar logo and website and is providing graphic design, creative and communications consultation to Project Kandwar.

Mr. Raghuram, N.
Advocate (barrister and solicitor) in Chik Ballapur who resides in Kandavara. In a practical sense, he is one of the local establishment leaders. Without any fanfare he has been paying the electricity bills of the primary school in Kandavara so that teachers and students can use the facilities during nighttime for study. He assisted the DRRT team in their rehabilitation work on the heritage Primary School in Kandavara.

Mr. Ravi Menon
Chief Executive Officer, Sharada Hamsamba Mokshadam Trust (SHMT). He and his wife Lakshmi have converted a 15 acre parcel of land with a derelict building that was formerly a brick plant into a fully functioning ashram. The Sai Maa ashram is at the foot of the larger Nandi Hill and is approximately 11 km south of Kandavara. The Sai Maa Foundation provided medicines for distribution to the needy in Kandavara.

Mr. Ronald E. Winter
He retired after a distinguished career as a Professional Engineer in Ontario. He created and operated his own consulting firm, R. E. Winter & Associates (1955 – 1991) before his employees bought his shares in the company in 1991. Although he “retired”, he continues to be consulted by his earlier clients and contacts on a number of matters as of this writing.

Swami Nirmalanandanatha
Head, Chikballapur Branch, Sri Adichunchanagiri Mahasamsthana Mutt (diocese of a Hindu Sect). A highly competent engineer with a social conscience and has a great deal of influence in the Mutt hierarchy. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in engineering from University of Mysore and a Master’s degree in Engineering from the elite Indian Institute of Technology, Guindy/Chennai. He is deeply committed to helping the poor. He is the spiritual head of the S. J. C. Institute of Technology (SJCIT) near Kandavara/Chik Ballapur. He was instrumental in getting the faculty and students of the Civil Engineering Department at SJCIT to conduct the field survey of Kandavara and develop order of magnitude cost estimates for the infrastructure projects.

Dr. Sridhar, M. K.
Reader, Canara Bank School of Management Studies. Committed to applying management methods to NGO’s and social service in general. He has been guiding The XVIII Horse Foundation (TEHF) team in the preparation of the Business Plan for Kandavara.

 

Founding Board Members of Project Kandwar

Debra A. McIntosh
She is the Executive Director of the Rainbow Routes Association. In that position she developed both short-term and long-term goals for non-motorized trails in Sudbury with links to the continent wide Trans Canada Trail. Under her direction the Association produced in early 2006 the first comprehensive trail map and guide incorporating the latest graphic communication technologies.

Carmen Simmons
She is Executive Director of the Sudbury Community Foundation. She chaired the steering committee to set up the community foundation in Sudbury in 1996 and has been a part of its development over the past ten years first as its founding president and then as executive director.

Frank Reynolds, BA, CFP, CLU, ChFC, RHU, (retired)
Financial Planner and Insurance Agent for Clarica from 1972 to 2005. During over 33 years of experience in the financial services industry, he was a member of the Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) for 31 years. His outstanding achievement as a financial planner has enabled him to continue as a member of the MDRT. MDRT consists of the top 4 percent of advisers in the world.

Narasim Katary
He retired in August 2006 after serving for seventeen years as a member of the quasi-judicial body, the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB). He introduced the “structuring of discretion” in selected decisions by explicitly formulating neutral decision criteria that are used in analysing the evidence.

For More Detailed Biographical Sketches, Please Scroll Down

Debra A. McIntosh

She is the Executive Director of the Rainbow Routes Association. In that position she developed both short-term and long-term goals for non-motorized trails in Sudbury with links to the continent wide Trans Canada Trail. Under her direction the Association produced in early 2006 the first comprehensive trail map and guide incorporating the latest graphic communication technologies.

She is credited with developing and nurturing partnerships with the three sectors of the economy, namely, private, public and not for profit. By working tirelessly with all three levels of government and private corporations, she was able to marshal one million dollars in 2005 for trail development projects.

Prior to her current position she created her own consulting business in general accounting and led her firm for 17 years. The firm offered a wide range of accounting services to a variety of organizations ranging from service commercial businesses to charitable not for profit organizations. The services offered by the firm included but not limited to: financial planning, preparing business plans, training and supervising client bookkeepers, preparing annual budgets, and the like. In spite of her success as a professional accountant, she elected to pursue on her own volition more challenging and psychically rewarding activities, with less financial rewards.

For two years (2003 – 2005) she was the Youth Worker with the St. Andrew’s United Church. In this position, she conceived and executed a variety of activities for youth at the Church resulting in much acclaim for her work.

For nine years (1994 – 2003) she was the Executive Director of Banque d’aliments Sudbury Food Bank. Her initiatives led to coordinating over 35 food providers so that the Food Bank was well stocked throughout the year to deal with peaks and troughs in demand by the needy.

For two years (2001 – 2003) she was the administrator for Camp Manitou Capital Campaign. Her drive and skills led to the raising of $350,000 thus far.

For nine years (1992 – 2001) she taught part-time at the Cambrian College of Applied Arts and Technology. The courses included: Financial Accounting, Managerial Accounting, etc.

Throughout her adult life she has been actively involved in voluntary work. The following are indicative. For 16 years she has been active with the Anglican Church Senior Girls Camp Manitou that has provided outward-bound living experience for hundreds of young women in their formative years. For 8 years she has been the Captain of the Out of the Cold Team organized by the St. Andrew’s United Church. For 2 years she was the Treasurer of the Sudbury Community Birth Centre. In 1987 she was one of the founders of the Jubilee Heritage Family Resource Centre and worked as a volunteer for 6 years.

Carmen Simmons

She is Executive Director of the Sudbury Community Foundation. She chaired the steering committee to set up the community foundation in Sudbury in 1996 and has been a part of its development over the past ten years first as its founding president and then as executive director. During this time, she was a professor of sociology, human relations, and English at Cambrian College in Sudbury, retiring in 2003.

Carmen has been heavily involved in voluntary sector work over the past 25 years both at local and national levels. Nationally, she has recently completed terms with Community Foundations of Canada, the umbrella organization for Canada’s 153 community foundations and, previously, the YWCA of/du Canada (four years as Chair of the National Nominating Committee).

Locally, she has been a board or committee member with numerous organizations including the Sudbury YWCA (President), Career Preparation for Immigrants (Steering Committee Chair and member of the Board), University Women’s Club (Program Chair), Legal Education and Action Committee’s Women’s Day Breakfast, Bingo Charities Advisory Panel, City of Sudbury, and Mayor’s Children’s Round Table.

Currently, Carmen is completing doctoral studies in executive management at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. She has a Mandel fellowship with the Mandel Center for Nonprofit Organizations at Case. Carmen completed a Masters of Management degree from McGill University and a BA from Laurentian University.

Frank Reynolds, BA, CFP, CLU, ChFC, RHU, (retired)

Financial Planner and Insurance Agent for Clarica from 1972 to 2005. During over 33 years of experience in the financial services industry, he was a member of the Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) for 31 years. His outstanding achievement as a financial planner has enabled him to continue as a member of the MDRT. MDRT consists of the top 4 percent of advisers in the world.

His extraordinary achievements in his professional work is matched by his voluntary work in various positions in the not for profit sector of the economy. The following activities are indicative.

He has been an active member of the Lions Club September 1980. Has held many positions in three different Lions Clubs including President (6 terms in all), Secretary, and Treasurer. He has also served on the District Cabinet of Lions as Membership recruiting chair. He has extensive experience in running and organizing fundraising events.

He was one of the founders of the Manitoulin Trade Fair in 1987. He has been the chief organizer of the event since its founding that has run continuously with great success every two years in Little Current, Ontario. The Trade Fair in 2004 attracted over 12,500 visitors in 3 days to a town with a population of 1,600 people. He and his wife Connie plan on retiring from the Fair activity after the May 2007 Trade Fair.

He was one of the founding members of the Northern Ontario Business Awards. The program honours business excellence in Northern Ontario. By dint of hard work he helped to grow this prestigious program for over 15 years and retired from the Board in 2003 after two years as Chair. The program is on going and has become one of the premier Awards programs in Canada.

He was the founder of the Manitoulin Island Sunsite Estates Owners Association in 1981 and remained head of the organization for most of those years until moving to southern Ontario in 2005. The Association helped create and maintain parks, tennis courts, beach, and marina areas, and most recently participated in the building of a new water treatment plant that will come on-line in September 2006.

Frank has successfully organized over 300 events in his lifetime from Rock Concerts to dinner auctions.

Narasim Katary

He retired in August 2006 as a member of the quasi-judicial body, the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB). He introduced the “structuring of discretion” in selected decisions by explicitly formulating neutral decision criteria that are used in analysing the evidence. Viewing “Rule of Law as Law of Rules,” in appropriate circumstances, has resulted in a body of jurisprudence on property rights and consistency in decision-making. His reasoning in decisions on several contentious concepts such as interpretive principles inside and outside the text, “tragedy of the privates”, compatibility, experience of place, “right to a view”, regulatory expropriation, to mention a few, are regarded as most helpful in exercising judicial discretion.

Under the leadership of Mike Atkins, the publisher of Northern Ontario Business, he established the Northern Ontario Business Awards program that has been recognizing excellence in business achievement every year since its inception in 1987.

In January 1986, when he was the head of long-range planning in Sudbury, he conceived and executed the first plan for a city in North America devoted entirely to the goal of sustainable development for cities. This plan emphasized the need for and the desirability of creating an entrepreneurial climate where businesses could flourish and make the city self-reliant.

As the chairperson of the International Conference ‘85 of the Canadian Institute of Planners (CIP), he conceived and executed the first conscious self-renewal effort of the planning profession based upon the theme “Sustainable Community”. The Conference attracted the largest number of corporate sponsors and remains the best-organized annual conference - prior to or since then.

He is a co-founder of the organization Sudbury 2001 which was (1977-1986) a multi-partite self-help group consisting of leaders from business, labour, government, journalism, academia, and other key interest groups dedicated to initiating economic development. The principal focus of 2001 was the creation and support of businesses appropriate for the community relying entirely upon local entrepreneurship and innovation. 2001 is credited with the transformation of the mindscape of the community to look beyond the accepted norms to match coincident needs and resources.

His formal professional experience includes work in all three sectors of the economy, namely, private, public, and non-profit, in both Canada and the United States. He has written a variety of articles, monographs, and technical papers in the fields of economic growth and development and land use planning. Prior to joining the OMB, he was a frequent guest speaker at seminars and conferences organized by professional associations, business groups, academic institutions, and other organizations throughout North America, Sweden, England and South-eastern Australia. His formal education includes Civil Engineering (University of Mysore/Bangalore), City and Regional Planning (University of Pennsylvania), and Regional Economics/Economic Geography (University of Wisconsin-Madison).

Ronald Winter
Founding Associate of Project Kandwar

In 1955 he created his own Engineering Consulting Practice, R. E. Winter & Associates, after working for other consulting engineering firms. The firm started with the private land development industry in the Greater Toronto Area and evolved into a multi-disciplinary consultancy with clients in both the public and private sectors, in North America and elsewhere.

In 1959 he became the Chairman of the Township of York Development Committee composed of the Chief Executive officers of ten major industrial corporations in the Municipality. Later York became part of Metropolitan Toronto.

In 1962 he became a Director and Executive Vice-President of the land development company, S. B. McLaughlin Associates that became a major public corporation in 1969. As a member of the management team, he planned the emergence of Toronto Township into the City of Mississauga. In his professional capacity he planned the downtown core of Mississauga, Square One, the largest enclosed shopping mall at the time in Canada. S. B. Mclaughlin Associates morphed into Mascan Corporation with holding across North America.

In 1966 he became a principal of Leisure Consultants and conducted numerous studies for Human Resources, Recreational, Park and Community master Plans in Ontario, Nova Scotia, and Alberta.

In 1983 he was one of the founders and President of AeroCan Aviation Specialists Inc., a consortium of Specialist Consultants. In this capacity he conducted several studies for infrastructure operation, management, and design of facilities for the aviation industry.

In 1993 he was a member of a select group of professionals taken to China to consider the development of a Harbour City for Chaozhou. During the following five years, the consortium was greatly expanded to investigate numerous other developments throughout China.

In 1996 he was one of the founders of Global Management Solutions Inc. to address international issues on Development and Housing, with a focus on the Caribbean Islands.

After building his consultancy into an international operation, he retired in 1991, when the employees purchased his shares in the company. Although he “retired” in 1991, he continues to be consulted by his earlier clients and contacts on a number of matters as of this writing.

Ron Winter was born and raised in Toronto and graduated in Civil Engineering from University of Toronto in 1949. In 1979, he was inducted into Lambda Alpha International, an honorary Land Economics society.

 

The best person to contact at the Global Level is Mr. Narasim M. Katary.