SEEDS received the prestigious Subhash Chandra Bose Aapda Prabhandhan Puraskar 2021 – a national award for the excellence in Disaster Management. The award was presented by Honourable Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi on the 125th birth anniversary of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose in a ceremony held on 23 January, 2022. The award was instituted by Government of India to recognise and honour the invaluable contribution and selfless service rendered by individuals and organisations across India.
Enabling community resilience through practical solutions in the areas of disaster readiness, response and rehabilitation has been the primary focus of SEEDS. Since 1994, the organisation has worked extensively on every major disaster in the Indian subcontinent – grafting innovative technology on to traditional wisdom. It has reached out to families affected by disasters and climate stresses; strengthened and rebuilt schools and homes; and has invariably put its faith in skill-building, planning and communications to foster long-term resilience.
Over last 2 decades, SEEDS reached several milestones in some of the most difficult terrains and environment. We are a humanitarian organisation with rich and diverse experience of working with communities across the country and in the Asia-Pacific region has some unique aspects that make it stand out than others in the sector.
The organisation has developed strong capacity in handling large scale interventions while upholding highest global standards of quality and accountability. We have successfully advocated resilience approaches, influenced the policy environment globally, launched global action agendas, advised inter-governmental agencies, UN, governments and civil society. We have pioneered cutting edge approaches, supported community innovations, created spaces on the interface of high-end technology and community-based approaches. Affected people have been the core of our approach. We have leveraged their strengths, their traditions and their aspirations.
SEEDS is also India’s first agency to be certified for the global Core Humanitarian Standards – an international certification system for quality and accountability in humanitarian response. We have responded to over 35 emergencies spanning across the length and breadth of the country from the 2001 Gujarat earthquake, the 2004 India Ocean Tsunami, the 2010 Ladakh flash flood, the 2014 Jammu and Kashmir floods, the 2015 Gorkha earthquake (which took us beyond Indian borders) to the 2018 Kerala floods, the 2019 Cyclone Fani, the 2020 Cyclone Amphan in West Bengal and lately our extensive work during the pandemic – our resolution to help create resilience in vulnerable communities has merely grown stronger over the years.
A national award such as this one, not only boosts our morale but also strengthens our resolve to move forward with iron conviction. Our founders, Dr Manu Gupta and Dr Anshu Sharma, have worked extensively on disaster risk and climate emergency issues. They have been at the forefront advocating resilience approaches, helping form environment policy globally, launching global action agendas, advising inter-governmental agencies, UN, governments and civil society.
On receiving the award, our co-founders, Dr Manu Gupta and Dr Anshu Sharma said, “We are humbled and honoured to receive the Subhash Chandra Bose Aapda Prabandhan Puraskar 2021 from the Government of India. This award on the eve of our 27th anniversary only strengthens our resolve to continue our work with communities in strengthening disaster resilience. The recognition of SEEDS efforts has underscored the importance of bottom-up approaches ensuring agency of affected communities and ensuring no one get left behind. Our sincere gratitude goes to all the members of the SEEDS family, our co-workers, donors, and friends with whom we share this honour.”