Tribal

MPs need an emotional trigger to commit themselves to the issue of maternal health. The fact that 60,000 to 80,000 women die in India during child birth,  a matter of concern and politicians need to prioritize womens health.

More than half a million women and girls all over the world continue to die due to pregnancy related causes. 

In India, more women die every year during childbirth or pregnancy than in any other country in the world. A majority of these deaths are directly linked to obstetric complications such as haemorrhage, obstructed labour, or eclampsia (pregnancy-related seizures). For every woman who dies, 20 to 30 suffer from maternal morbidity.

Unless the focus is on underserved areas, the Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5 could not be achieved. Underserved, it was spelt out, was not just the tribals and poor in remote rural areas but also the illiterate, Dalits and poor living in urban slums.

Globally, it was now accepted that the financial investment has to match the verbal commitment made by governments at international fora. A whopping $ 42 billion has been committed by international donors at a meeting organized by the WHO. 

The status of women has to improve, the age of marriage age has to be raised and anaemia has to be tackled for improved maternal health.

Traditional Folk Culture

I read this article in Hindustan Times about  Shamkara Singh Suthar, one of the best kamancha 
(The Kamancha, the folk fiddle of Rajasthan, is a three-stringed ancestor of the violin. It has a bowl-shaped chamber covered by goatskin) makers – out of the handful that remain and resonates with a deep, impressive sound. Eight months a year, in the countrymoves from his home in the deserts of Rajasthan and uses his skilled hands, honed by generations of kamancha-making, to make sofas for the rich and the wealthy in the city of Pune.


There’s nothing about the folk music scene in India to write home about. Bollywood and flashy commercial artists ensure a slow, choking death for the tradition. There just isn’t enough business. For part of the year, many Manganiyars are forced travel to cities looking for work. Others survive on subsistence farming.

Indian as whole world knows has a very rich culture & tradition & we Indians must be really very proud to have it. But unfortunately the youth of today is forgetting our own rich culture & tradition & getting inspired by foriegn culture (mostly american) & adopting American culture.

Also to be blamed are the parents of the children  who are very busy in their work & tend to forget to teach their children to carry forward our culture & tradition. Teaching our children about cultures of different countries is fine & good they get to know culture of other countries. But at the same time they must only have a knowledge about other cultures but must always follow our own culture. India is valued in the world because of it's culture & tradition. If we do not teach our children to value them, then our country will loose it's value in the world.

A country is what its history and old glories are. If we don't Respect or traditional folk culture and continue to run after Western culture it will not lead it progress but regress.

Slum Development and Education

While making my docu feature on Slum Development, I read many articles on Slum Development. But one of them on which I decided to write a blog post was on sifynews.in. 

It was about an NGO Asha . It is a community health and development society that works with over 400,000 people in nearly 50 slum colonies of Delhi.  

Only 30 percent of Delhi's slum children make it to school beyond the age of 14. But defying the statistics and the odds, a clutch of bright-eyed youngsters is now studying humanities and even engineering in well known colleges - with a little help from this NGO.

 Eighteen-year-old Babita who joined Delhi University as a political science student. She  thought that she would be married off as her  mother could not afford her higher education. 

There were times when her two brothers and she did not have anything to eat and slept empty stomach She did not have a penny.. But "Asha" came to her rescue by paying her college fees.

Mahesh, 19,got 83 percent in Class 10, there was a mixed feeling of wanting to earn and study too. He took an education loan of around Rs.1.5 lakh and the NGO helped him in all the formalities , besides guiding him and providing study materials.

According to a report by Asha, every third Delhi resident lives in a slum colony and around 86 percent of the urban poor in Delhi is illiterate. By the age of 14, only 30 percent of children in Delhi slums attend school. Delhi has some 1,500 slums.

Slum children are denied opportunities and very few aspire for higher education even if they manage to complete schooling. Even the brightest children, particularly girls, are not sent to college due to lack of money. Social pressures, the obvious barriers of tuition fees and other expenses, and lack of confidence keep young people from slums out of higher education.

One of the problems all these children face is difficulty in concentrating on studies in a one-room house with their families carrying out their daily activities.The outside noise, TV blaring nearby, cooking and people outside talking loudly makes it difficult to study.

Safe Drinking Water

While reading a few articles on  oneindia.com , I came across an interesting yet benificial piece  on November 19th . It said that this day is celebrated as the World Toilet Day, to raise awareness on the use of toilet, sanitation and clean water.
 Every day 4000 children across the world die due to diarrhoea, which is caused due to poor sanitation and dirty water. 

World Toilet Day was stared by World Toilet Organisation in 2005. It is a 53 country organisation and aims at toilet training and sanitation. 

The world health organisation has also pointed out that most of the sewage from toilets are flowed into rivers and lakes without being treated which leads to occurrence of epidemics and mass death. 

A major population across the world squat in the fields due to lack of toilets but even people who have the facility of toilet believe in defecating on roads which not only spreads diseases but also speaks of the living culture and standard of the society. It can be embarrassing for the reputation of the country in itself. On World Toilet Day let's understand the importance of the need of toilet. Defecating in the open can lead to -

1.Spread Diseases – The germs tend to get mixed up with air and can travel a long distance. People living near the area can be infected with major illness. Diarrhoea and other stomach borne diseases can be caused. Lack of clean water can lead to many serious illnesses like typhoid, malaria etc..

2.Contaminate the soil – People who defecate in the fields should be aware of the fact that the germs seep in the soil and make it contaminated. This contamination does not remain in that area alone. It is carried on and can lead to contaminate a large area of the land a part of which can also be the land of cultivation.

3.Contamination Of Water – River and sea water gets contaminated when sewage water is poured into it. It effects the aquatic life. The water often carries the germs to other water bodies as well thus spreading the germs. The fishes and other sea food which we consume may as well be infected with it.

Thus, on World Toilet Day, spread the awareness of proper toilet use, clean water and sanitation. It is our environment and our responsibility to make it a better and safe place to live in.


Such innovative ideas can seriously have magical effect on the environment and state of well being of people in both direct and indirect ways.
Such pieces of intelligence and creativity with a blend of concern for the society and conscience always leave a positive impact. Always looking forward for such ideas. :)

Energy & Environment

I read this article on indiablooms.com, about Tata Power Energy Club

bagging  a gold medal in the Environmental Communication category at the Association of Business Communicators of India Golden Jubilee Annual Awards recently.

 The other category winners were Tata Chemicals Limited, Indian Oil Corporation Limited, Larsen & Toubro, Kirloskar Brothers and ACC Limited.These children have further reached out to more than 1 lakh people, taking the total sensitisation figure to more than three lakh citizens.

As of date, there are more than 250 Energy Champions and 10,000 Energy Ambassadors. The Energy Champions have collectively saved 30,000 units of electricity.

It is indeed a big deal as in today's rush and hustle. The big industries and MNC's should come up with such things as it will not only be benificial for today but for ages to come.

With initiatives being undertaken on changing the current energy mix in India to a more varied one using the non-conventional or renewable forms, the energy and environment scenario in the country is likely to witness changes which will help conform to international standards on climatic norms on curbing emissions and sustaining a cleaner environment.

Emission of greenhouse gases leading to climate changes has become a major concern globally. Under the Kyoto Protocol's terms, industrial country parties will be under obligation to limit their greenhouse gas emissions by 2008-12. India has also signed the treaty and under the protocol, India now focusses to drive a clean development mechanism (CDM) aimed at protecting the environment by reducing carbon emissions.

Sustainability is a key mission for us. I am overwhelmed at the growth achieved by  various  programmes and pleased by the enthusiasm shown by the people in embracing the cause and spreading the message of energy conservation.

Poverty

                             "Poverty is like punishment for a crime you didn't commit"

The queen of all the problems to manhood is POVERTY! Poverty is something which one sees everyday-roadside beggars, household maids, labourers, and street vendors.

Though people want to come out of the cob webs of poverty, its too difficult. If a person is poor his up coming generations and forefathers are generally the same too.

The condition of the Poor is appalling. Today I saw a video on you tube on people and Hunger. It contained some really thought provoking images which literally brought a lump in my throat.

The children were looking like skinned skeletons with eyes like that of a rat. They seemed to be made of paper. They were starved . One of them was trying to drink milk from a cow and the other was bathing in cow's urine. These images compelled me to think that even animal's life is better than a poor person's life.

Even death seems to be an easy option as compared to leading such a pathetic life.

On the way to my college, every day I see an old lady sitting on the stairs in the same old , torn saree and a bowl in which the passers by put a few coins sometimes.

In today's time when an average upper middle class or high class person can not even imagine his life without TV, designer clothes, A.C, posh restaurants, luxurious cars..These people are unable to get minimum basic nutrition or even clean clothes to wear.

Who is responsible for their plight? The Govt. ? The people themselves? Their fore fathers? We?

There is no precise answer but every citizen can do his bit to eradicate poverty. "Each One Teach One", its a simple concept but not that simple to follow, if every educated citizen teaches just one of the unfortunates, these situations can surely be improved.

We should or we must do their bit in charity , if not financially, then materially -our old clothes , toys, left over food , sometimes water is of no use for us but to the poor it can mean a lot!!

Women Empowerment

I was Googling  about Women Empowerment and I came across this quote by Abigail Adams, “If we mean to have heroes, statesmen and philosophers, we should have learned women.”

Women indeed are the most crucial part of our society, the society can not move ahead without a female, woman is life, woman is progress. In spite of this fact, women still do not enjoy the righteous status.

I still don't know weather the woman of today is empowered or not? The dictionary meaning of Empowerment is "  increasing the spiritual, political, social, or economic strength of individuals and communities."

Women have out shined men in all the fields be it  Politics,science, management or education. But still, biasness prevails at every step.  

I was reading today's Hindustan Times and I read this article about a lady from Najafgarh, the lady ,Geeta was married 2 years back. She gave birth to a girl 10 days ago, and her in-laws started demanding a dowry of  1 lakh. Her refusal led to a fight  and she was beaten up, she was hit with a sharp edged weapon and lost vision in the eye.

Her family alleged that in the past too, they had tried to kill her on dowry issue but she was rescued after her parents gave  70,000 to the in-laws.

No one has been arrested in this case till now. 

Who is to be blamed? The Husband, who after 2 years of marriage did not support his wife ? The in-laws , who didn't care about the mother of a new born? The family of the girl, who didn't take a step and made their daughter suffer? Or the Girl who went through torture for ' 2 whole years'.

Take the Women Reservation Bill  for instance, the Lok Sabha has failed to walk the talk to make 33% reservation for women in Parliament a reality.

I read in the Economics Times, that even Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nepal provide such rights to women. .

The issues relating to land rights to women have still remained unresolved. In many states, laws on inheriting properties are gender bias. 

In India, tribal women in most cases are more empowered than their counterparts in the general category.

The Azad India foundation believes that,

 Empowerment is a major step for development but it has to be seen in a relational context. A clear vision is needed to remove the obstacles to the path of women's emancipation both from the government and women themselves. Efforts should be directed towards all round development of each and every section of Indian women by giving them their due share.

If I were the PM of India...

India, the seventh largest country of this word with the second highest population is the most populous democracy in the world. Being the Prime Minister of such a culturally diverse country is actually a 'Big Deal'.


If I were the PM of India, the job would have been really very difficult but definitely would try to do every thing with dedication and discharge my duties to the best of my ability.


 15th of August i.e., The Independence of our country is the most important day in every Indian's life.  Our country, India, is going through a difficult phase now, Though we are
progressing , in some fields we still see much corruption, suffering and mismanagement. If
I were the Prime Minister of our country, I could do something about these
problems.


* The Ladakh  tragedy is one of the main recent issues which has shaken our country, I would take steps for the rehabilitation of the affected  people .


* Food Grains would never go waste, it will either be distributed among the poor people or it will be sold at subsidised rates.


* Today we are facing communal problemsRiots and violence have become common. These problems would have to be solved. I would start by giving primary importance to education to make people aware of the results of such violence.


* Naxalism is a serious challenge to our internal security. Critical mobility shall be provided to the police ,build basic roads for the forces so they have mobility in otherwise inaccessible areas. Periodic review and close monitoring of rebel activities.


* The north eastern states and the tribals are a part of India and they should never feel alienated.


* The Kashmir issue should be take care of.


* The Commonwealth Games will start in Delhi after about one and a half months. All the countrymen   should treat the Games as a national festival and no stone shall be left unturned to make them a success.

Health and Family Planning

Family planning is the planning of when to have children, and the use of birth control and other techniques to implement such plans. Other techniques commonly used include sexuality education, prevention and management of sexually transmitted infections, pre-conception counseling and management, and infertility management.

Since the 1970s, India’s economic growth  rate has risen, poverty has declined, and social indicators have improved. Nevertheless, over a quarter (28.6%) of India’s population currently  lives below the national poverty line, and 80% of the entire population lives on less than $2 per day. Twenty-eight percent of the population lives in urban areas. India’s social indicators remain weak by most measures of human development, and   living   standards   are   still   among   the poorest in the world.

In  1952, the  Indian  Government  was  one  of the first in the world to formulate a national  family  planning  programme,  which  was  late of  modern  prenatal  diagnostic  techniques, expanded  to  encompass  maternal  and  child largely for sex-selective abortion. health,  family  welfare,  and  nutrition.  India is committed to promoting a small family norm and supporting population control and development  programmes. 

In a country with population more than 1.17 billion, there is an urgent need to check the increasing population but there will be no forced family planning drive for that. In the Lok Sabha it was recently said  by our Health Minister, Azad that there will be no stringent law, force, but only through awareness, efforts would  be made to control population.

Population stabilisation should be the top priority of the central and state governments because unchecked population adds to poverty, unemployment and food shortage.

It has been reviewed that southern states had beaten northern states in family planning by targeting two children and they are paying more attention to the stabilization plan of the country which is facing unpredictable and erratic phases due to rising population.

Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad clarifies in parliament that government has a target of achieving Total Fertility Rate (TFR) of 2:1 which means two kids per couple but unable to accomplish it because northern states have not participated in realizing this goal, they fail to maintain the average family size.

In Parliament, many of the MPs hold a view that couple with single or two kids should be given some incentives whereas Sumitra Mahajan of the BJP disagreed with this notion and said that development would be the best contraceptive to curb the increasing population. He said that all the issues like price rise would be solved if population would get controlled. At last he concluded the discussion that all targets can be achieved only through awareness.

Family Planning, Health , Poverty and Unemployment are inter related issues and each has its solution in the other. Education and Awareness is the key solution to all these problems.

Sources: 
hindustantimes.com
wikipedia.com
searo.who.int

Agricultural Extension

 Agriculture in India has a long history dating back to ten thousand years.

Today, India ranks second worldwide in farm output. Agriculture along with sectors like - forestry and logging accounted for 16.6% of the GDP in 2007, employed 52% of the total workforce and despite a steady decline of its share in the GDP, is still the largest economic sector and plays a significant role in the overall socio-economic development of India.

India is the largest producer in the world of milk, cashew nuts, coconuts, tea, ginger, turmeric and black pepper. It also has the world's largest cattle population (281 million). It is the second largest producer of wheat, rice, sugar, groundnut and inland fish. It is the third largest producer of tobacco.  India accounts for 10% of the world fruit production with first rank in the production of banana and sapota.

India's population is growing faster than its ability to produce rice and wheat.
So, there is a need for  certain steps so that agricultural produce is improved and increased in order to satisfy the need of the burgeoning population and also supply the surplus to foreign market.

Agricultural extension was once known as the application of scientific research and new knowledge to agricultural practices through farmer education. Now a days it  encompasses a wider range of communication and learning activities organised for rural people by professionals from different disciplines, including agriculture, agricultural marketing, health, and business studies.

The term extension was first used in the United States of America in the first decade    of this century to connote the extension of knowledge from the Land Grant Colleges to the farmers through the process of informal education.  In India, the terms community development & extension education became more popular with the launching of “Community Development Projects” in 1952 & with the establishment of the “National Extension Service” in 1953. Since then, Community development has been regarded as a programme for an all-round development of the rural people, & extension education as the means to achieve this objective. Extension education is an applied behavioural science, the knowledge of which is applied to bring about desirable changes in the behavioural complex of human beings by applying the latest scientific & technological innovations. Extension education has now developed as a full-fledged discipline, having its own philosophy, objectives, principles, methods & techniques which must be understood by every extension worker & others connected with the rural development. Extension education is  applicable not only to agriculture but also to veterinary & animal husbandry, dairying, home science, health, family planning, etc.

                                  

                       

Principles of extension education

The extension work is based upon some working principles & the knowledge of these principles is necessary for an extension worker.

1. Principle of interest & need:

Extension work must be based on the needs & interests of the people. These needs & interests differ from individual to individual, from village to village, from block to block, & from state to state &, therefore, there cannot be one programme for all people.

2. Principle of cultural difference. 

Extension work is based on the cultural background of the people. Improvement can only begin from the level of the people where they are i.e.,  the extension worker has to know the level of the knowledge, skills of the people, methods & tools used by them, their customs, traditions, beliefs, values, etc. before starting the extension programme.

3. Principle of participation.

 Extension helps people to help themselves. Good extension work is directed towards assisting rural families to work out their own problems rather than giving them ready-made solutions. Actual participation & experience of people in these programmes creates self-confidence in them & also they learn more by doing.

4. Principle of adaptability.

 People differ from each other, one group differs from another group & conditions also differ from place to place. An extension programme should be flexible, so that necessary changes can be made whenever needed, to meet the varying conditions.

5. The grass roots principle of organisation. 

A group of rural people in local community should sponsor extension work. The programme should fit in with the local conditions. The aim of organising the local group is to demonstrate the value of the new practices or programmes so that more & more people would participate.

6. The leadership principle. 

Extension work is based on the full utilisation of local leadership. The selection & training of local leaders to enable them to help to carry out extension work is essential to the success of the programme. People have more faith in local leaders as they can relate to him.

7. The whole-family principle. 

Extension work will have a better chance of success if the extension workers have a whole-family approach instead of piecemeal approach or separate & unintegrated approach. Extension work is, therefore, for the whole family, i.e. for male, female & the youth.

8. Principle of co-operation.

 Extension is a co-operative venture. It is a joint democratic enterprise in which rural people co-operate with their village, block & state officials to pursue a common cause.

9. Principle of satisfaction. 

The end-product of the effort of extension teaching is the satisfaction that comes to the farmer, his wife or youngsters as the result of solving a problem, meeting a need, acquiring a new skill or some other changes in behaviour. Satisfaction is the key to success in extension work. "A satisfied customer is the best advertisement."

10. The evaluation principle.

 Extension is based upon the methods of science, & it needs constant evaluation. The effectiveness of the work is measured in terms of the changes brought about in the knowledge, skill, attitude & adoption behaviour of the people but not merely in terms of achievement of physical targets.

                                                  Revitalizing  agriculture extension

Public   research   and   extension   has   played   a   major   role   in   increasing   production and   productivity  in   agriculture   and   allied   sectors   in   the   past. The   nature   and   scope   of agricultural     extension     has   undergone     fundamental       changes    since    then.   Transferring research     results   on   farmers’    fields  is  an   important    challenge     facing   us   today.   The Department of Agriculture and Cooperation has taken several initiatives to revitalize the agriculture extension system in the India.

These initiatives include:

Support       to  State    Extension      Programmes         for  Extension      Reforms:

    

This scheme, launched during 2005-06, aims at making extension systems farmer driven and farmer      accountable      by    way     of   new    institutional     arrangements       for   technology dissemination in the form of ATMA at the district level to operationalize the extension reforms.     ATMA   will   have   the   active   participation   of   farmers/farmer   groups,   NGOs, KVKs,   Panchayati   Raj   Institutions   (PRIs)   and   other   stakeholders  operating   at   district level and below.

Multi-agency        extension      strategies:  

 Minimum       10   per  cent   of   allocation    on recurring activities at district level is to be used through non-governmental sector viz.    NGOs,      Farmers      Organisations       (FOs),    PRIs,    para-extension       workers, agricultural entrepreneurs, input suppliers, the corporate sector, etc.

Mass Media Support to Agriculture Extension:   

           

This is a central sector scheme  launched in April 2005 in its current form. The existing infrastructure of DD and AIR is  being utilised for the production and telecast of 30-minute agricultural programmes five  or   six  days   a  week.    Programmes  are  being    produced    by   36  narrowcasting      centres (high/low power transmitters), 18 regional kendras and DD’s national channel, as well as 96    FM    stations   of  AIR.   Farmers’     feedback    is  being   collected    regularly   through    the Audience       Research     Units   (ARUs)      of  DD     and   AIR.    State/district-level    monitoring committees   are   mandated   to   guide   and   monitor   implementation   of   the   scheme   at   the respective levels.

Agri-Clinic and Agri-Business Centres: 

     

This is a central sector scheme which aims to promote the delivery of extension and other services in a self-employment mode. Graduates in agriculture and allied sectors are eligible under the scheme. The full cost of training in agri-business development is supported. NABARD monitors the credit support to agri-clinics through commercial banks.  

The provision of a credit-linked back-ended subsidy at the rate of 25 per cent of the capital cost of the project funded through a bank loan, as well as full interest subsidy for the first two years on the bank credit, has recently been approved under the scheme. The   subsidy   would   be   33.33   per   cent   in   respect   of   candidates   belonging  to   scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, women and other disadvantaged sections and those from North- Eastern and hill states.

 Agriculture   Summit  2006:   

The    Agriculture     Summit      2006    on   the  theme  ‘Reforms   for   Empowering   the   Farmer’, was   organized   by   the   Ministry   of   Agriculture jointly with FICCI at Vigyan Bhavan on 18–19 October 2006. It sought to accelerate and consolidate   the   process      of   change   in  the  farm   sector,   while   simultaneously   creating awareness and better understanding of such a process. A large number of farmers from different     states,   representatives     of   private   sector    companies,      Central    and    State Governments, scientists and others had participated in the Summit.

Manage:  

      

This   institute   provides   training   support   to   senior   and   middle-level  functionaries of the State Governments.           It also provides necessary support to the states in the implementation of the extension reforms (ATMA) scheme.

The  self-financing  educational   training   courses     viz.   the   two-year postgraduate   programme   in   agri-business   management, one-year   postgraduate diploma in agri-warehousing and cold chain management, and one-year distance education   diploma   in   agricultural   extension   services   for   input   dealers  are   being  continued during the year 2006-07 at MANAGE.

Model      Training      Courses:  

  

These    courses,    on   thrust   areas   of   agriculture,  horticulture,    animal    husbandry,     and  fisheries   etc.,  are   supported   by   the DOE  through   SAUs,   ICAR   and   other   national   institutes.  

Research–Extension Interface:   

    

A system of season-wise interface between the Department   of   Agriculture   and   Cooperation,   the   ICAR   and   the   Department   of   Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries (DAHD&F) was initiated during the pre-Kharif and pre-Rabi     phases   in  January   1995.  

                                                   Objectives of extension education

Before starting any programme, its objectives must be clearly stated, so that one knows where to go & what is to be achieved. 

The fundamental objective of extension education is the development of the people.
Agricultural extension in our country is primarily concerned with the following main objectives:

(1) The dissemination of useful & practical information relating to agriculture, including improved seeds, fertilisers, implements, pesticides, improved cultural practices, dairying, poultry,nutrition,etc.;

(2)The practical application of useful knowledge to farm & home.

(3) To improve all aspects of the life of the rural people within the framework of the national, economic & social policies involving the population as a whole.