An Initiative of Gram Sabha
We all know that many Primary Schools were built in Jharkhand. After 2019, many of those Schools merged, leaving the School buildings unusable. One such Primary School is in Lockeshera village. This village comes under East Singhbhum District of Musabani Block.
After the merger of the School, the employees of the Block came to demolish the building. The village head Matu Mardi and other women of the village - Santala Mardi, Bindu Mardi, Singo Mardi, Baby Patar and Federation members Hisi Mardi, Bharat Mardi etc. together stopped the work of demolishing the building. In the meeting of Gram Sabha Federation Kolhan Zone in the last year 2021, it was decided that the Gram Sabha would take the building under its control and use it for the village. From the year 2020 to 2022, there was a period of School holidays because of Corona Pandemic.
On January 8, 2022, the workers of the block came again to demolish the building. Then the residents of the village again protested and prohibited the demolition of the building. After that, in the meeting of the Gram Sabha on January 22, it was proposed that an application should be made in writing to take the School building under the control of the Gram Sabha, so that the employees of the block do not try to demolish the building again and again. According to the decision in the meeting, the responsibility was entrusted to make applications to Matu Mardi, Santala Mardi, Sango Mardi, Baby Patar, Bindu Mardi as representatives.
After the tireless efforts of the villagers, the building was taken over from the block in writing on 22 January 2022. Now the women's office and village secretariat have been kept at that school. In this way, with the special initiative of the Gram Sabha, the Gram Sabha secretariat is being used as a permanent office in the merged schools for smooth functioning of the Gram Sabha.
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Educated Youth towards Organic Farming
Santal Adivasi resides in Mahadevraidih Model village that comes under Jama block of Dumka district. Chhotelal Tudu, an educated youth, also lives in the same village. Tried for three years in search of a job, but he could not get a job anywhere, Chhotelal Tudu also used to go to Dumka market for daily wages. A one-day camp on organic farming practices was organized by SAMVAD on April 2021 at Chigalpahadi Panchayat Bhawan in Jama Block.
Chhotelal Tudu also joined the same camp. In that camp, methods of organic farming and benefits of organic farming were told. Through this training, the profit from organic farming was told in the cultivation of vegetables like pumpkin, bitter gourd and watermelon in fruits etc.
Chhotelal Tudu understood the benefits of organic farming and he planted various vegetables, including radish, pumpkin, chilli, okra, bitter gourd, shrimp etc. on his 1 bigha of land. Chhotelal Tudu got a lot of profit from this cultivation.
He did many social works in his village, such as making application for the scheme, solving the problem of the village, helping people by going to other villages, providing benefits to the people by taking initiative on schemes like hand pumps, irrigation wells etc.
Presently, Chhotelal Tudu is leading a happy life with his wife and two children's education and food and his financial condition has improved a lot. Other people of the village are also influenced by Chhotelal Tudu and are starting organic farming.
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Operation of literacy center by village secretariat
On June 26, 2022, in village Dawar village of Siyari Panchayat, Gomia block, discussion was held in the meeting of the Education Committee of the Village Secretariat and it was decided that the women of the village who are illiterate would be made literate.
After this decision, the literacy center was started on 23rd July. 30 women started coming to the village secretariat from 1 am to 3 pm on 24th July.
Meena Devi, a member of the Education Committee, runs the literacy center. Due to the continuous operation of the center till the present month, illiterate women have learned to read their name and book and now the literacy center will be started for the second batch from the month of November. Such a decision has been taken by the Education Committee.
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Identified right person of Panchayat Head (Mukhiya) by a Model Gram Sabha
Mohan Kisku's father is a resident of Baju Kisku, Village - Lalpur, Tola - Bichkodwa, Panchayat - Jabhaguri, Block - Madhupur, District - Deoghar.
Mohan Kisku lives with his family. His financial condition is not so good and due to this, he used to go to Bengal to work for their livelihood to run the family. When the work stopped during Corona, he came back to his house, he had to face difficulties to run his family.
But for the last three years, Mohan Kisku in his village Bichkodwa which has become a model village. He regularly participates in the meetings of the Gram Sabha and also SAMVAD’s meetings and training programs. By participating in many types of training, he brought a change in his mindset and understood that only the Gram Sabha can give its rights to the downtrodden and the last person.
He did many social works in his village, such as making application for the scheme, solving the problem of the village, helping people by going to other villages, providing benefits to the people by taking initiative on schemes like hand pumps, irrigation wells etc.
Seeing his work, it was decided in the Gram Sabha meeting that Mohan Kisku has to be put up for the post of head in the Panchayat elections. The resolution was passed unanimously and Mohan Kisku nominated for the post of Mukhiya. After this, Mohan Kisku and other villagers participated in the Gram Sabha meeting of all the villages of Jabhaguri and appealed to the people to vote and they also won.
Now he is handling the work of his Panchayat by becoming a Mukhiya. Mohan Kisku has become recognized as an ideal leader and is expressing his desire to create an ideal society by connecting with the ideas of dialogue. Now he is handling the work of his Panchayat by becoming a Mukhiya. Mohan Kisku has become recognized as an ideal leader and is expressing his desire to create an ideal society by connecting with the ideas of dialogue.
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Solution is possible only through awareness
Lodwadih village is under Pradhankhanta panchayat of Topchanchi block of Dhanbad district. This village is 40 km from district headquarter and 15 km from block headquarter.
Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, Muslim and Backward Class communities resides in this village. A total of 150 families reside in this village. Before the intervention of SAMVAD, there was the effect of untouchability and middlemen in this village. In the meetings of the Gram Sabha, attendance was very less in which only men were present. The effect of untouchability was so widespread that if a woman was touched to a woman of another community, she did not go inside the house without taking a bath. Women of other communities did not use to sit together.
Ever since the work of SAMVAD started in this village, a change started in the thinking of the villagersh. First of all, a women's group was formed with the tireless efforts of the worker of the organization and Anganwadi worker of Lodwadih village, Smt. kaushalya Devi. The first group formed was named 'Nari Shakti Group'. Untouchability was constantly discussed in the group along with other discussions. Then 8 more women's groups were formed with the joint initiative of the organization workers and women of Nari Shakti group. The practice of untouchability was constantly discussed. Simultaneously, the importance of Gram Sabha was discussed. The women of the group participated in many programs of the organization. This increased the awareness among the women of the group, now the village is completely free from untouchability.
There has also been awareness among women about Gram Sabha. Women now strongly oppose fake gram sabhas. Women from all communities sit together in all the meetings. Full participation of women in Gram Sabha has increased.
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A Successful Experiment of Dobha
In Charka Pathar village of Budhai Panchayat of Madhupur block, a dobha of 30x20x10 size was constructed last year by SAMVAD, due to which the work of paving the crops was done successfully at the time of water scarcity.
Devki Devi and Malti Devi, single women farmers of Charka Pathar village, cultivated potatoes, wheat and mustard in an organic way in their one acre of around Dobha. These crops were irrigated with the dobha created by SAMVAD. As a result, 10 quintals of crop were produced, for which he received 16000 rupees in cash.
Due to this income, the enthusiasm of both the women farmers increased a lot. Seeing the success of the women and inspired by them, Nemu Rai and Vinod Rai of the village have decided to produce potatoes, wheat and mustard on a large scale in their fields by organic methods next year.
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