What is AIESEC? “the international platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential.", they say. "AIESEC helps people become change agents and have a positive impact on society". "AIESEC bridges gaps between cultures and provides amazing internships in 107 countries!"
Hey AIESEC, let me introduce to you AIESEC Chandigarh!
I don't know where to start really. Instead of writing all of my complaints in paragraph form (which I don't think I have enough space for) , I'll just write a quick world jumble, if you will, to describe my experience with AIESEC CHandigarh during my 2 months internship last summer.
Here goes: No airport pickup, no bus terminal pickup, locked up in room for 5 hours with no info or food after a 15 hour flight,no trainee house for the first two weeks, internship didn't start on time ( 2 weeks late), job description not fulfilled, stayed later in a house with 8 people while it was clear it has only space for 4 or 5, no toilet seat for the first week, no washing machine, took A big ammount of money from me as insurance 3000 R which i almost didn't get back even though i was Dt, took the same ammount from MTs but described it as rent, kicked me out of my house a week before i was supposed to leave because they didn't want to pay money for my rent because i was a DT. Phewwww, that's about it!... I think.
Now to be fair, i still managed to have a great time,and an experience that will cherish for a long time, but that's because of the amazing country and great people i meet there. The work of AIESEC Chandigarh can be described as abysmal at most.
Which brings me to my question to every AIESECer out there: Are we losing sight of what we are about?
From Unhappy AIESEC Chandigarh Intern # 3
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
AIESEC CHANDIGARH = Terrible Housing Situation!
AIESEC Chandigarh has a stated aim of becoming the best LC in the world. Because of the way this is measured, they are looking to bring as many interns to their LC as possible, and have brought about 350 interns last year. It seems to us, however, that the excessive focus on bringing in more interns has led them to lose focus on the quality of the interns’ stay.
Our main problem was the housing situation. While we expected India to be a challenging place to live and work in, we never expected to be mistreated in the way we have experienced here. In the end, some of us found the situation unbearable and we felt forced to start looking for another place to stay. Others, who are staying for shorter periods of time, do not have that option, and have to put up with AIESEC Chandigarh's management. These are the main complaints we have about our housing situation so far:
- During the summer houses had been overcrowded(May-November= This is specifically true for one of the houses, where one floor housed 9 interns in two bedrooms and a living room.
- Basic amenities are missing. There is no possibility for hot water, there is no washing machine and we lack closet space and other basic furniture. Previously, up to 18 people were sharing a single WI-FI network. Few times we were without any internet connection for many weeks, even though we paid for it. During the same period, we were also lacking gas in the kitchen, which made cooking at home impossible.
- We are being overcharged. Every person has been paying Rs. 3,000 for one month(plus internet and electricity), which for the previous months has added up to more than the rent AIESEC Chandigarh is paying to the landlord. While they assure us that this money is being spent for investing in housing or to cover for periods when they have fewer interns, we have still not seen any documentation of this fact, even though we have asked for it on several occasions. During our search for another place to stay we have discovered that the price the landlord is demanding for our unfurnished apartment is the same as many others are asking for fully furnished places in the same neighbourhood.
- The management of the house has been horrific. Mr. Baldeep, an AIESEC alumnus who was previously in charge of all the AIESEC intern houses, listened to our complaints and concerns, but did nothing. A simple thing, such as replacing a broken toilet seat, took over a month to accomplish. Few months ago, Mr. Baldeep resigned, and came to our house in the middle of the night, while the trainees were sleeping, to take back “his” things, such as the internet router, gas cylinders and... the light bulb. After his resignation, we have been promised a new and better management system, but we have not seen any changes. What's more, Mr. Baldeep is still being given responsibilities by AIESEC Chandigarh.
- Our rights as tenants have been disregarded. Several examples could be listed here. Some months ago, five people from one of the trainee houses were forced to move to the empty second floor for four days because the landlord wanted to use the rooms they stayed in for a wedding. The concerned interns were first told on the morning of the day they had to move. At the end of October, a meeting was held to discuss the housing situation with the leaders of AIESEC Chandigarh, including Vikram Jain, LC President, Deepvansh Khurana, LC VP, and Shalika Sharma, also LC VP. We talked about our interest in moving out of the house and said we would give them notice. A few days later Vikram turned on us saying we had already said we were moving out and followed by informing us that they were “evacuating” the first floor, effectively kicking us out with only one week’s notice. Those interested in moving out were now forced to look for a place to live with no help from the LC whatsoever. One intern, who had never planned to move out, was thus forced to move to another intern house, with notice from. It should be agreed that interns are not suppose to deal with such situation to put them at such unease in a foreign country by their guest LC. This kind of treatment is totally unacceptable.
- Deposits have not been returned to us as per our contracts. Those of us who were put in the position that we were forced to move out, have received their full security deposits back after 6 weeks. However, many people who were finishing their interships, did not get their deposits back and just went back home because they did not want to fight with AIESEC Chandigarh
- Registration with the Foreign Regional Registration Office has not been completed for many interns. This registration is mandatory for the interns staying for more than six months, and is therefore of great importance to many interns, since their stay here otherwise would be illegal.
The above should cover most of the complaints we have about the situation we have been dealing with for the last months. We would like to repeat that while we are dealing with our situation as best as we can, we want to make absolutely certain that interns in the future do not face these kinds of problems. Any action that could be taken by both LCs and MCs to improve the situation and management we believe should be seriously considered.
While all of the interns here are enjoying the stay and are grateful to AIESEC for the opportunity to complete these internships, there is no denying that our experiences with the Chandigarh LC have done nothing to uphold the good name of AIESEC. We feel that we owe the organization less and less, which is very unfortunate indeed, especially for the hard-working LCs of our native countries, who have done nothing wrong in this situation.
Yours sincerly,
A concerned group of interns
Our main problem was the housing situation. While we expected India to be a challenging place to live and work in, we never expected to be mistreated in the way we have experienced here. In the end, some of us found the situation unbearable and we felt forced to start looking for another place to stay. Others, who are staying for shorter periods of time, do not have that option, and have to put up with AIESEC Chandigarh's management. These are the main complaints we have about our housing situation so far:
- During the summer houses had been overcrowded(May-November= This is specifically true for one of the houses, where one floor housed 9 interns in two bedrooms and a living room.
- Basic amenities are missing. There is no possibility for hot water, there is no washing machine and we lack closet space and other basic furniture. Previously, up to 18 people were sharing a single WI-FI network. Few times we were without any internet connection for many weeks, even though we paid for it. During the same period, we were also lacking gas in the kitchen, which made cooking at home impossible.
- We are being overcharged. Every person has been paying Rs. 3,000 for one month(plus internet and electricity), which for the previous months has added up to more than the rent AIESEC Chandigarh is paying to the landlord. While they assure us that this money is being spent for investing in housing or to cover for periods when they have fewer interns, we have still not seen any documentation of this fact, even though we have asked for it on several occasions. During our search for another place to stay we have discovered that the price the landlord is demanding for our unfurnished apartment is the same as many others are asking for fully furnished places in the same neighbourhood.
- The management of the house has been horrific. Mr. Baldeep, an AIESEC alumnus who was previously in charge of all the AIESEC intern houses, listened to our complaints and concerns, but did nothing. A simple thing, such as replacing a broken toilet seat, took over a month to accomplish. Few months ago, Mr. Baldeep resigned, and came to our house in the middle of the night, while the trainees were sleeping, to take back “his” things, such as the internet router, gas cylinders and... the light bulb. After his resignation, we have been promised a new and better management system, but we have not seen any changes. What's more, Mr. Baldeep is still being given responsibilities by AIESEC Chandigarh.
- Our rights as tenants have been disregarded. Several examples could be listed here. Some months ago, five people from one of the trainee houses were forced to move to the empty second floor for four days because the landlord wanted to use the rooms they stayed in for a wedding. The concerned interns were first told on the morning of the day they had to move. At the end of October, a meeting was held to discuss the housing situation with the leaders of AIESEC Chandigarh, including Vikram Jain, LC President, Deepvansh Khurana, LC VP, and Shalika Sharma, also LC VP. We talked about our interest in moving out of the house and said we would give them notice. A few days later Vikram turned on us saying we had already said we were moving out and followed by informing us that they were “evacuating” the first floor, effectively kicking us out with only one week’s notice. Those interested in moving out were now forced to look for a place to live with no help from the LC whatsoever. One intern, who had never planned to move out, was thus forced to move to another intern house, with notice from. It should be agreed that interns are not suppose to deal with such situation to put them at such unease in a foreign country by their guest LC. This kind of treatment is totally unacceptable.
- Deposits have not been returned to us as per our contracts. Those of us who were put in the position that we were forced to move out, have received their full security deposits back after 6 weeks. However, many people who were finishing their interships, did not get their deposits back and just went back home because they did not want to fight with AIESEC Chandigarh
- Registration with the Foreign Regional Registration Office has not been completed for many interns. This registration is mandatory for the interns staying for more than six months, and is therefore of great importance to many interns, since their stay here otherwise would be illegal.
The above should cover most of the complaints we have about the situation we have been dealing with for the last months. We would like to repeat that while we are dealing with our situation as best as we can, we want to make absolutely certain that interns in the future do not face these kinds of problems. Any action that could be taken by both LCs and MCs to improve the situation and management we believe should be seriously considered.
While all of the interns here are enjoying the stay and are grateful to AIESEC for the opportunity to complete these internships, there is no denying that our experiences with the Chandigarh LC have done nothing to uphold the good name of AIESEC. We feel that we owe the organization less and less, which is very unfortunate indeed, especially for the hard-working LCs of our native countries, who have done nothing wrong in this situation.
Yours sincerly,
A concerned group of interns
My small room
Ok this my room I got when I arrived - we were two people living in this cell for two almost two months.. both of us paying 3000 rupees.. :) There wasnt enough space to open my luggage.. had to put it outside! It was 3 x 2.5 meters plus small bathroom.. on the backyard of someones house..
From Unhappy AIESEC Chandigarh Intern # 2
Disappointed
I left my country knowing I gona work in Chandigarh and have my accommodation in Panckula, the childrens home. And that everything was planned as per my taste. Well I get here and I'm moved from place to place, Ambala to Chandigarh and back like thrice. Them finally i get settled in Ambala which is 1 hour away from Chandigarh. I take it all. Not forgetting the weather and that is was my first time in winter. So after my two weeks, the drama starts. we are forced to go to the Global Village when we were extremelly tired. We get there and in two days its' done , so we leave for Ambala but as soon as we arrive we are told that we should pack up and that we are going back to the school where the Global village was. We had no idea this plan was being made when we were there. We pack up and leave the next day. We arrive at the school and accommodation and meals were not thought of like we are gona starve and live on the streets. The director offers us his office as accommodation. I don't know if anyone has ever experienced living in the school with only a guard in it. We complain because we are 3 people in one bed. They organize a school store for us. I wass so in AIESEC chandigarh for having decided to invite us here and we leave the comfort of home for the comfort of the store....WOW!!! the things we go through.
did i mention that the picture i have attached up is situated in the school, has no bath room and the nearest bathroom is 100 meters away and we were three girls. the windows were broken and it was the current kitchen for non-staff members which turned into the intern house...it was near to the gate and the guard slept like 500 yards away so who would protect us?coz we live in the middle of the city. i wonder what kind of picture EPs who have just been introduced to AIESEC get and are having their first experience as this;what will they think about the organisation? its so sad that we can portray something like this to them because we will lose out on a lot of potential just because of AIESEC Chandigarh. we should work upon it.
From anonymous
did i mention that the picture i have attached up is situated in the school, has no bath room and the nearest bathroom is 100 meters away and we were three girls. the windows were broken and it was the current kitchen for non-staff members which turned into the intern house...it was near to the gate and the guard slept like 500 yards away so who would protect us?coz we live in the middle of the city. i wonder what kind of picture EPs who have just been introduced to AIESEC get and are having their first experience as this;what will they think about the organisation? its so sad that we can portray something like this to them because we will lose out on a lot of potential just because of AIESEC Chandigarh. we should work upon it.
From anonymous
INTRODUCTION
After being extremely dissatisfied with how I was treated by AIESEC Chandigarh I started to talk to other interns and realized most other interns felt exactly the same way.
One night sitting in our intern house with no electricity, water or gas, a conversation began on how we wanted to stop this happening to future interns. In the past many attempts have been made by other equally dissatisfied interns but yet AIESEC Chandigarh still became the number 1 LC in the world for 2009. Extremely frustrated by this, I asked another intern why there was so many unhappy interns but yet nothing has changed??? The intern replied-
“There are 3 types of people: those who say they are going to do something but never do, those who follow others but won’t actually initiate action themselves and those who say they are going to do something and ACTUALLY do it!”
I hope to be the latter by starting this blog (and do give complete credit to another intern for the idea :) In starting it though, I am extremely realistic when I say I don’t think I can COMPLETELY stop the mistreatment of all AIESEC Chandigarh Interns but I do hope that this blog will at least contribute towards AIESEC Chandigarh not becoming the number 1 LC for 2010!!!
Please help me in my attempt and share your stories- please feel free to share your name OR keep it anonymous (what I will be doing initially or until I finish my internship) and PLEASE share this blog with as many other interns whom you know that are also unhappy with their experience!!!
Lastly I want to make it VERY clear- I am not saying I regret coming to India, nor am I disrespecting AIESEC as a whole. I greatly respect what they do and think they are a wonderful organization that positively contributes to helping so many different people, in so many locations all over the world. What I am saying is that I think AIESEC Chandigarh only cares about the QUANTITY of interns that they bring here and have complete disregard for the QUALITY of the interns stay! For example, AIESEC Chandigarh often never respond to interns as they are too "busy" at functions and events celebrating their title of best LC in the world, eating lavish meals and singing AIESEC Chandigarh chants, applauding themselves for the numbers and figures they have achieved. Meanwhile many interns are begging for a clean place to stay, beds, blankets, water and gas, whilst still paying ridiculous amounts of fees. It makes you sick right! Let’s do something about it this time!!!
Yours truly,
Unhappy AIESEC Chandigarh Intern # 1
One night sitting in our intern house with no electricity, water or gas, a conversation began on how we wanted to stop this happening to future interns. In the past many attempts have been made by other equally dissatisfied interns but yet AIESEC Chandigarh still became the number 1 LC in the world for 2009. Extremely frustrated by this, I asked another intern why there was so many unhappy interns but yet nothing has changed??? The intern replied-
“There are 3 types of people: those who say they are going to do something but never do, those who follow others but won’t actually initiate action themselves and those who say they are going to do something and ACTUALLY do it!”
I hope to be the latter by starting this blog (and do give complete credit to another intern for the idea :) In starting it though, I am extremely realistic when I say I don’t think I can COMPLETELY stop the mistreatment of all AIESEC Chandigarh Interns but I do hope that this blog will at least contribute towards AIESEC Chandigarh not becoming the number 1 LC for 2010!!!
Please help me in my attempt and share your stories- please feel free to share your name OR keep it anonymous (what I will be doing initially or until I finish my internship) and PLEASE share this blog with as many other interns whom you know that are also unhappy with their experience!!!
Lastly I want to make it VERY clear- I am not saying I regret coming to India, nor am I disrespecting AIESEC as a whole. I greatly respect what they do and think they are a wonderful organization that positively contributes to helping so many different people, in so many locations all over the world. What I am saying is that I think AIESEC Chandigarh only cares about the QUANTITY of interns that they bring here and have complete disregard for the QUALITY of the interns stay! For example, AIESEC Chandigarh often never respond to interns as they are too "busy" at functions and events celebrating their title of best LC in the world, eating lavish meals and singing AIESEC Chandigarh chants, applauding themselves for the numbers and figures they have achieved. Meanwhile many interns are begging for a clean place to stay, beds, blankets, water and gas, whilst still paying ridiculous amounts of fees. It makes you sick right! Let’s do something about it this time!!!
Yours truly,
Unhappy AIESEC Chandigarh Intern # 1
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