New Delhi 2012:
The Sankara Eye Foundation and Asvathaa Pte. Ltd announced a unique initiative today for charitable giving through Social Gaming. Players of “Karma Kingdom”, Asvathaa’s Facebook game, will be able to purchase uniquely branded game element with half of the proceeds going to restore vision to the poor and the socially disadvantaged in India through Sankara Eye Foundation – USA, a first for a charitable organization.
The Facebook game is based on Indian mythologies and guides players through positive contemporary lessons. Sankara’s mission is to realize the goal of 20/20 vision for the people of India by the year 2020.
Sankara Eye Foundation (SEF) initiates and drives community eye care activities in India by working with Sankara Eye Care Institutions, which run the Sankara Eye Hospital in Coimbatore and 7 other locations in India. The Sankara Eye Foundation, USA is a 501 (c) (3) registered non-profit organization, with offices in Milpitas, CA.
The majority of fundraising is achieved through fundraising events, booths in major events, advertising and working with major donors. One of SEF’s unique initiatives is enabling a vision restoration cataract surgery for $30. Through these efforts, SEF, USA has played a significant role in increasing the number of free surgeries in India thirteen fold to over 120,000 in 2010-11 and increasing the number of Indian hospitals from 1 to 8. SEF USA raises funds for constructing the hospitals with its unique “founding donor” program, through which a donor gets his loved ones names on the hospital wall of founders for a $1000 donation.
Sankara Eye Foundation’s Executive Chairman, Mr. Murali Krishnamurthy stated, “We are pleased to work with Asvathaa to bring our fundraising efforts to the new and emerging social platforms such as Facebook. We know that this initiative will help us raise awareness and funds for SECI - India in a new demographic within this space.”
Elaborating on this initiative, Asvathaa’s CEO Mr. Ashok Desai stated, “Karma Kingdom was designed from the outset to include these types of charitable elements and we want this to be the next step for players to fulfilling the goal of ‘Creating a Better World’ within the game. We were highly impressed with the great work done by Sankara Eye Foundation over the past 13 years and hence unanimously decided to partner with them.” Added Mr. Desai, “A single Karma Kingdom player can make a significant contribution towards a surgery, given the price break that SEF has achieved in Cataract Surgery”.
Mr. Desai added, “This is a great step forward, and we hope the first of many partnerships with charitable organizations. We are uniquely positioned to help them leverage the power and reach of social gaming for the greater social good”.
Karma Kingdom was released recently for Facebook users globally and is currently being played by users in more than a dozen countries around the world. Asvathaa is constantly updating and finding new ways to bring these Indian Mythologies and their positive lessons to life.
About Asvathaa ,,,,
Asvathaa is an international independent entertainment and media company specializing in development, design and production of games and animated entertainment. The company has chosen a multi-shore approach to developing the games and has offices in USA, Singapore and India.
Asvathaa is founded by Mr. Ashok Desai, who brings over 20years with International Sales, Marketing, and Executive Management experience managing high-tech business with expertise across scientific, engineering, enterprise and media industries.
As Managing Director, Ashok spent several years with Silicon Graphics (SGI) in Asia during which time he started and managed the SGI operations in Singapore/ASEAN as well as India and ran the High End Systems Division for Asia Pacific.
He relocated to the US to build a start-up organization converging services, products, infrastructure & strategic alliances for high-end graphics, animation and special effects for Entertainment and Interactive Gaming. While at Sasken Communications and Symphony Services, he managed Global Sales, Support and Multi-Site Development Strategy for Tier I North American Companies and executed a multi-location and offshore development strategy across centers in US, Europe, Japan, China, Mexico and India.
About Karma Kingdom on Facebook:
Karma Kingdom is a journey, through virtual space, social space and spiritual space. On each step of the journey is a lesson learned, a good deed done, a quest fulfilled, a friend made; your world made better.
The theme of the game is that chaos and strife have beset the known world. Whole countries have been decimated by violence and war, poverty and disease are on the rise, and greed seems to be the only currency that has any meaning. You and a small group of leaders from other districts, provinces and states have decided that a new way of life must be found if humanity is to be saved.
As you return from your summit, however, a terrible storm strikes your homeland. You and some of your fellow citizens make it to a boat and you set out to sea where the weather seems calmer. As if guided by some force, you head further and further from main land. The journey is difficult and your rations are few. After weeks of hard travel, you arrive at an island.
You are greeted by the god, Ganesha, who reveals your destiny, greets you; to lead your people to build a peaceful and progressive community based on safety, health and education. Ganesha informs you that the lessons learnt here in this new virtual island should be shared to the wider known real world. He challenges you to a set of tasks that you must accomplish and informs that there are other gods and other tasks beyond his.
You have to attempt to complete the tasks of the gods you encounter along the way and your world will grow and thrive. While enjoying the game, you will be able to also directly contribute towards making the real world a better place by helping charities in the real world. The proceeds from your personal gaming will go to charities around the world, helping people and changing your own personal karmic destiny!
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