11 Jul 2025
New Fellow of Engineering New Zealand Shirish Paranjape FEngNZ CPEng IntPE(NZ) graduated as an engineer in India in the pre-internet era when logarithmic tables, slide rules and T-squares were among the tools used at university. Throughout his career, first in India and later in Aotearoa, he has been in a variety of client-facing roles, including site commissioning engineer, systems engineer, product development, plus project management and business development, often involving extensive travel.
After moving to New Zealand in 2002, Shirish found he had more spare time than he’d had in Mumbai and decided to use it for community work. His community and voluntary work includes being a Justice of the Peace, a Rotarian and one of the Christchurch Peace Train drivers.
How did you get involved with community work?
I became a member, and later treasurer, of the Indian Social and Cultural Club, which led to my involvement with the Christchurch Multicultural Council. After the Canterbury earthquakes, a new Rotary Club, New Horizons, was formed in Christchurch and I became one of its founding/charter members in 2012. The following year, I became a New Zealand Justice of the Peace.
How and why did you get involved with the Peace Train?
Christchurch City Council was seeking volunteer crew members to operate the new Peace Train in 2022. [The Yusaf Islam Foundation donated a model, ride-on train to the people of Christchurch to recognise the response of support and compassion after terror attacks on 15 March 2019.] I put my hand up without a moment’s hesitation – after all, this was my chance to fulfil my childhood dream of becoming a train engine driver! On the day of the inauguration, I got a few seconds of fame on national television – enough for friends all over New Zealand to notice.
Photo: Lightchasers
What do you enjoy most about community work?
I enjoy all my community activities because each of them provides a different satisfaction. The Peace Train brings a smile to every passenger’s face, whether they are locals or visitors, children or adults, first-time riders or returning passengers. As a JP, I become part of people’s life journey, even though my involvement may be for a very short time. Many clients become repeat clients and often refer me to their friends and colleagues.
What project/work makes you most proud?
A group of 30 Rotarians from India were doing a “peace rally”, travelling from the Bay of Islands to Milford Sound, staying in Christchurch for one night. My New Horizons Rotary club hosted them, together with many officers of the Rotary District. I managed to get a member of Parliament to “flag them off” the next morning, an event that was covered live on TVNZ’s Breakfast. Later, during their journey south, the visiting Rotarians reported that a Subway store owner recognised them and provided special treatment, leaving the visitors feeling like celebrities. Also as a Rotarian, my prose, and my daughter Neha’s poem about the unfortunate Christchurch mosque attack made it to the Rotary Down Under magazine, published in Australia.
How do you juggle this work with your engineering work?
“Time-division multiplexing” as an engineer would say! My weekday work hours are dedicated to my professional engineering work. I attend to my JP clients during weekday evenings. The Peace Train operates on Sundays, with Rotary club meetings on Wednesday evenings and Rotary service projects on Saturdays. When a new weekday evening JP service desk recently opened at Christchurch Central Library, I was able to assist.
How would you sum up why you enjoy volunteering in just a few words?
I love giving back.
Tell us something about your connection to voluntary work that might surprise people.
My family name Paranjape – pronounced paraan-zapay in Marathi (my mother tongue) means “caring for others” or “protecting others” or “being there for others”. (My family often comments that I care more about others than for myself and immediate family!)
This article was first published in the June 2025 issue of EG magazine.
