Kalpana Kalpana (Editor)

Odisha Citizens' Initiatives, Tumudibandha

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Type
  
Technical educational

Gender
  
Coeducational

Denomination
  
All faiths

Affiliation
  
Jesuit, Catholic

Odisha Citizens' Initiatives, Tumudibandha

Established
  
2008; 9 years ago (2008)

Director
  
Fr. Biranchi Soreng, SJ

Odisha Citizen's Initiatives, Tumudibandha, (OCI), Odisha, is based at Divy Anugrah (Divine Grace) Catholic Church, serving the adivasis and dalits in the area. Through this outreach the Jesuits of the Jamshedpur Province run training programs for teachers and for the rural poor. OCI was formed as a response to racial violence in August 2008, and has been institutionalized as an educational effort that is effective for aboriginal and disadvantaged rural peoples, as indicated below.

Initiatives

  • 2009: The Orissa Citizen's Initiative (OCI) under Jesuit leadership called for serious thinking into issues affecting Kandhamal immediately after the violence, and took a number of steps to initiate relief and rehabilitation activities in Kandhamal, one of which was to do something for the youth of Kandhamal. A computer lab was set up. Sr. Sophie, DSA, person-in-charge for the girls, looked after the day-to-day running of the programme. Nineteen boys were given a two-wheeler and fourwheeler Driving License along with the Certificate of Training and 15 girls were given Certificate of Completion in Computer and Spoken English courses. Further provision was made for training 40 boys in driving, and 60 girls in computer and spoken English; also for a 6-month skill training for both boys and girls.
  • May 2012: Training for School Management Committee members (SMC) at Dhungiaponkhal: 7 presidents and 7 members turned up for the training. Mr. Ullash spoke on the Right to Education Act (RTE) and the roles of the SMC, the Parent Teacher Association (PTA), and the Mother Teacher Association (MTA) in managing a school.
  • June 2012: Training for SMC members of government schools within the area, with 35 members from 10 schools participating.
  • Oct. 2012: At Batobadi Mr. Ullash highlighted the qualities of Mahatma Gandhi for 36 school children, 23 women, and 8 men, the first program of its kind in their remote village. ... A one-day training program on motivation for entrepreneurship for self-help group (SHG) members at Deopata village, Mundigodo GP: 51 members attended. Gyanprakash and Mr. Ullash are researching income-generating activities for SHGs.
  • November 2013: In Mundigadaand and Subarnagiri GPs, “Group Formation and Management” for new SHGs, Animal Health Camps, and Model Farmers' Training on vegetable cultivation. ... Several training programmes for the SHGs of both Panchayats that are dying from mismanagement or violation of SHG guidelines. ... As many as 350 (Mundigada) and 400 (Subarnagiri) children registered for the programme "The children of today are the citizens of tomorrow."
  • January 2014: The usual SHG training programmes, and also non-timber forest products (NTFP) training programmes. Many government schools of both Mundigada and Subarnagiri GPs are inoperative, so that the SMC training programme works for the correction and edification of the inoperative schools.
  • February 2014: NTFP and SMC training programmes in both Mundigada and Subarnagiri GPs and a volleyball tournament that drew 16 teams from Mundigada GP, fostering peace and fellowship.
  • March 2014: Leadership Training and Present System program for youth of Mundigada and Subarnagiri GPs, directed toward training local leaders for Kandhamal District which has 68% of its people living below the poverty line (BPL), the highest percentage in Odisha. Under the scheme of model farming, a first in the area, bumper production of vegetables – potato, tomato, brinjal, cabbage, cauliflower – is reported in both GPs.
  • May 2014: Staff development programme and School Chalo Abhijan (education awareness). ... OCI sponsored Farmers' Day with various agricultural officers introducing the farming community to wide-ranging government schemes and subsidies.
  • August 2014: "Film Show" on Teacher's Day Celebration to build confidence among teachers and students, in Mundigada and Subarnagiri. ... In-field demonstration organized for the farmers of Subarnagiri GP; in the Mundigada GP, a training programme on ground-nut cultivation – instead of chemical fertilizers, vermicompost is used throughout Kandhamal.
  • September 2014: Animal Health Camps organized in both Mundigada and Subarnagiri GP. ... OCI conducted "Income Generation Training" for some advanced SHGs about to take up poultry farming, goat-rearing, leaf-plate making, turmeric powder making, and soap making.
  • October 2014: Horticulture Training Programme for over 60 farmers willing to try vegetable gardening on a larger scale through vermin-compost.
  • April 2015: Women's Convention brought more than 100 women from both Mundigada and Subarnagiri GPs to Athabadi village to awaken the dormant spirits of women for their "active participation and tangible contribution towards socio-economic transformation."
  • July 2015: Four education awareness programmes, four SHG trainings for its effective management, and two SMC training programmes which are producing greater attendance in many government schools.
  • August 2015: Livestock vaccination (with OCI training overcoming former fears), agriculture training on System of Rice Intensification and Line Method Cultivation, and School Chalo Avijan which brought over 200 participants.

    • References

    Odisha Citizens' Initiatives, Tumudibandha Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA