From Communities through Rights-Based Preparedness Programme in Patharpratima, Sunderban
Lives Touched
2011 - 2014
Sunderban, South 24 Parganas, West Bengal
The Story
The Right to Education Act, which has made school enrolment a prerogative, mandate all children- particularly children on the fringes to be included and enrolled in mainstream education. However the school enrolment rate in its truest sense has miles to go before it arrives at the desired figure and the rural scenario, in this context, is not unfamiliar. Six out of the thirteen blocks of Sunderbans are riverine, which perhaps rationalizes the predominance of low performers in terms of school enrolment since the inhabitants lead a life of their own literally secluded from the rest of the world and progress. Apart from the consideration of low enrolment in numbers and dropout, regular absenteeism or disguised drop out and low-quality education have been issues of serious concern. Further in general, regular school goers often do not belong to the age-appropriate levels of education, which conflicts with the directives and special provision for special cases of the Right to Education Act.
Including the Excluded Children from Communities through Rights-Based Preparedness Programme of INSPIRATION with the funding of JRD Tata Trust (JRDTT), conceived the programme on the tenet of a child’s Right to Education, Right to Participation and Right to Health and paved the path towards a holistic change in the lives of those children.
The approach to the programme was bridging their age-appropriate curricular learning gap through joyful preparedness programme and community sensitization. The project also aimed at the holistic development of the child and had provisions for supplementary nutrition, health monitoring and were inculcated the habit of good hygiene and health. Along with Learning Centres for children , Mother’s Literacy Centres were initiated- linked with the Learning Centres. The idea was to bring all mothers of enrolled children into the realms of functional literacy.
Outstanding Centres - Highlight
A Special mention is needed here for the Indraprastha Centre
The Sabar community living in seclusion in Indraprastha village has been one of our target locales. Extreme Poverty, Seclusion and Ostracism from Society are dominant traits here, which contradict the child’s Right to Participation. Addiction, jeopardising the child’s Right to Health and no history of education through generations characterize this community and most naturally children of this community are deprived of the basic rights. Inculcating the habit of attending the centre, and finally mainstreaming these 50 children to schools through a multiple approaches of building capacity among children, sensitizing community, sensitizing school teachers and getting the Panchayat involved has been the greatest achievement in itself.
Satyadaspur Centre in a riverine village in ensuring rights
Children of Satyadaspur (in G-Plot of Sunderbans) are accustomed to leading school-less lives. Their parents (both father and mother) spend time fishing and crab hunting to sustain themselves and their families. Many of them fall prey to the hungry tiger and so many of them vanish without a trace. Elder siblings and grand-parents take up parenting and fend for the young babies/toddlers in the family when the parents go out.
Although a few of them are initially enrolled in schools, daily hardships and routine domestic work often get in the way and they slowly become ‘dropouts’. School, therefore, never features in their daily list of activities or assumes a role of importance.
When INSPIRATION opened their two Centres at Satyadaspur, 25 such children were identified and mobilized. Parents were oriented and exposed to the world of education and the important role it could play in their children‘s lives in future. Eventually, they agreed to send their students to School and to the Centres subsequently. Absentees at the Centres were monitored and home visits were conducted on a need basis, counselling was a regular feature. Such measures have been instrumental in turning the tide from non-school children to school children in Satyadaspur.
Impact
- Including the 300 excluded children into the realms of education and ensuring them Right to Education, Right to Participation and Right to Health through 12 Learning Centres.
- Mothers sensitized to play a supportive role in the education and retention of children.
- Mothers enhanced their functional literacy skills through 6 Mothers’ Literacy centres.
- Institutional stakeholders mobilized to extend support in the mainstreaming exercise and to adopt it as a model project.
Highlights :
- Upward climb in attendance and performance in schools.
- An overall enthusiasm to join a learning setting.
Champions of Change
Sumaiya Khatun
From Uttarabad cleared her 10th standard board examinations and is currently studying in class 11. She has 9 siblings. Her father’s source of income is agriculture.
Marjina Khatun
Daughter of a peddlar will be appearing for her 10th standard board exams in 2021.