Annexure III

Friday, June 07, 2002

Partners in progress

Charkha Features

Kavita Ratna

Despite recognising the right of the children to participate in the decision-making process it is often debated whether they have the potential to articulate their concerns and influence the decision-making at the local governance level. Kavita Ratna highlights their potential to contribute to the governance at local level, sharing the experiences of the first ever Children’s Gram Sabha at Keradi in Karnataka. 2002

Small feet, eyes wide with expectation, hundreds of children pour into the schoolyard of the Higher Primary School at Keradi, a tiny-sized village in Udupi district; Most of them, not taller than four feet have walked a couple of hours to get there. They have crossed boulders, thickets and jumped across creeks and streams to take part in the first ever children's, Gram Sabha of Karnataka.

Keradi had never before seen such excitement. It is a typical example of a very remote Indian village, which has been ignored for several decades by the political parties as well as administrators. The few officials who have paid a rare visit to Keradi cannot forget it, in a hurry. The terrain is challenging and the infrastructure is far too scanty to cater even to half the population. There is not a bus leaving Keradi after 6 pm. Out of sight and out of mind of the majority of the country. This is one of the reasons why the event in Keradi, in the foothills of the Western Ghats takes on a special significance.

The children of Keradi have been preparing for this Gram Sabha since several days. The Makkala Panchayat in Keradi took the lead for the Gram Sabha, which is one of the eight such Panchayats in Karnataka. These are parallel Panchayats of children, elected by all children in the Panchayat with representatives of working children, school going children and children with disabilities. The Makkala Panchayat was supported by the Bhima Sangha, a union of, by and; for children right beside them, holding discussions and consultations in eight different wards of Keradi.

Bhima Sangha and Makkala panchayat, both powerful advocates of rights of children have been facilitated by The Concerned for Working Children, a non-government organisation popular as CWC. Working towards enabling and enhancing the participation of children in decision-making and governance on all matters that concern them, CWC is committed to the eradication of child labour and facilitation of children's empowerment.

The CWC has been working in the rural areas of Karnataka through the Toofan Panchayats Programme, which is a comprehensive programme of community development aimed at creating an environment where children are not involved in any form of work that is detrimental to their development, and where all children’s rights are recognized and realised. The programme works for the empowerment of all the actors in the community, through their partnership and participation. Under this programme, the organisation has facilitated the formation of Bhima Sangha and Makkala Panchayats in all the Toofan Panchayats. These groups have been playing proactive roles as change agents in the community. Members of Makkala Panchayats and Bhima Sangha have conducted research studies, made interventions on the basis of the information they collect, lobbied with the officials at various levels for developments in their communities, collectively fought for their rights as children. They have made themselves heard in the state, national and international policy discussions and have advocated for consulting children in matters that concern them.

Keradi is one of the Toofan Panchayats. CWC has been working in this Panchayat for six years and over the years the incidence of child labour has come down --from 300 school dropout children below 18 years to 54 at the end of 2001 with none in the age group of 6-11. The quality of life of the children in Keradi has also tremendously improved. In fact the panchayat will be declared child labour free within a few months.

The children of Keradi are giving the local Panchayats a new lease of life with their active involvement in not only identifying the problems they face, but also proposing solutions. More than a thousand children of Keradi Panchayat took part in the Gram Sabha, which was successfully conducted on January 29.They made detailed presentations regarding the issues and problems they identified related to education, basic facilities, personal problems, gender discrimination, disability and child labour.

The issues collected from each ward were compiled after detailed discussions. For instance, one of the problems that came up was the lack of footbridges that severely hampered the mobility of children as well as adults. When children discussed this further they realised that if they wished to suggest specific solutions, they had to collect more details such as where exactly the footbridges were required, of what length, how many people would benefit from that, etc. Adult facilitators helped them in this process by asking critical questions and pointing out the significance of some of their observations.

When they listed their problems, children made it amply clear that they had explored the matter thoroughly. They went into great details and so they were able to not just raise a problem but also propose solutions that were most appropriate to them. For instance, their list in connection with children with disabilities was in-depth and showed a tremendous empathy towards children challenged by disabilities. The list included problems of children who had no one in the family with whom they could communicate or where despite being well off, the family members did not understand the special needs of the children. They pointed out that deaf children could not hear the horn of a bus and were in danger because their village roads were full of steep curves. They also suggested ways by which the quality of life of these children could be improved. What was most significant was that children included 'attitudinal issues in their observations as well as analysis.

Children clearly demonstrated how they could use political space to negotiate with the local governments and influence decision-making processes.

The government schools in these areas were the venues for the programmes where children discussed issues, what they think needs to be done and about their vision for a dream Panchayat. Fourteen-year-old Sukumar, Vice President of the Keradi Children's panchayat represents the feelings of the children when he says, until now, hardly any one had bothered to ask us what we thought or felt. This is the first time we had such an opportunity. We can solve some of our problems. For the others, the adults will have to be responsible. We will make them responsible.

The Children's Gram Sabha was markedly different than the usual. Gram Sabha as children enjoyed the gathering by making colorful kites, telling stories to each other, learning pottery and involving themselves in many such interesting activities. The most enjoyable was cooking and eating. All of them joined preparing the food using the fistful of rice, lentils or vegetables each one of them had bought for the occasion. Children and their family members had walked long distances to take part in this event, which they described, was like a village festival. Prior to this, eight ward level Gram Sabhas had been conducted where children had taken part in child-rights workshops discussed issues and spent several hours on creative activities. Their products had been displayed in Keradi along with the wall-news magazines prepared by children of each of the wards, a testimony to their pride and sense of achievement.

Damodar Acharya, Executive Director, CWC explains how our education and societal processes give very little, if at all, scope for children's participation which is critical to the development of the children. The children's Gram Sabha is an interface between children and the political system, perhaps the first of its kind he says. "Unlike the many mock-parliament sessions which children participate in, what we have here is real and will surely lay the foundation for a very sound practice of children’s participation. Processes such as these that start from the grassroots bring in long lasting transformations".

The Children's Gram Sabha at Keradi, which was the first of its kind in Karnataka, shows the potential of children to articulate the problems in the village substantiate this with data and evolve responses, which are rooted in children's concerns and rights. It also shows that children can think laterally and responsibly if efforts are directed towards recognising and building their capacities, giving them opportunities to participate in the decision-making process. More importantly, it is a step towards recognising the child’s right to participate, voice concerns and ensure that the political decisions are made in partnership with them.