[D9640general] [eFlash_Rotary] Digest Number 764

[Garry Krischock]

  1. 1452: Indian Rotarian to donate $2 million to help end polio 
Thu Jan 24, 2008 8:30 pm (PST) 
Rotarian to donate $2 million to help end polio 
By Tiffany Woods 

Rotary's efforts to eradicate polio have gotten a US$2 million boost 
from a Rotarian diamond and jewellery magnate. 

Harshad Mehta, a native of India who is a senior partner in the 
Belgium-based Rosy Blue diamond and jewelry company, has pledged to 
donate the money to Rotary's polio eradication efforts over the next 
three years. 

Mehta, the largest Indian donor to The Rotary Foundation, was 
inspired to make the commitment after learning about the Bill & 
Melinda Gates Foundation's $100 million challenge grant for polio 
eradication. Rotary must match the grant dollar for dollar over a 
three-year period. 

Foundation Trustee Chair Robert S. Scott recalls a conversation with 
him in December, when Mehta suddenly said, "I will give $2 million 
toward the match." It was "a very exciting development and an 
extremely generous" commitment, says Scott. 

Mehta, 60, joined the Rotary Club of Bombay Metropolitan in 1986 as a 
charter member. His previous contributions to The Rotary Foundation 
have totaled more than $1 million. Some of the money has been used to 
endow an Ambassadorial Scholarship that finances recipients' studies 
at universities. 

Mehta serves as chair of the United Arab Emirates operations of Rosy 
Blue, a family business that employs more than 15,000 people around 
the world. He's also Armenia's honorary consul in Mumbai and the vice 
chair of the Dubai Diamond Exchange. He is a past chair of the Gem 
and Jewelry Export Promotion Council and a past vice president of the 
Federation of Indian Export Organizations. 

In his spare time, he enjoys reading, listening to music, walking, 
swimming, playing cricket, and spending time with his wife, three 
children, and five grandchildren. 

In the final push to stop polio, Mehta urges Rotarians not to give 
up. "We must further strengthen our resolve as we are so close to the 
ultimate goal," he says. "Any slackening at this point will result in 
a total loss of all the time, effort, and money put in over the past 
years." 

Source: Rotary International News
Courtesy: eFlash_Rotary

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