Advocacy

On 05^th March Usharani and Vanishree had took Advocacy session, Smt.Usharani has completed her M.phil in Rural Development and she is working with KHPT.

She started her session with our introductions then she told about her presentation contents those are like. Definition of Advocacy, Role of Advocacy, Different steps of Advocacy,

Basic elements of Advocacy

coalitions, Objectives, Data, Fund raising, Audience, support, Goal, influences by all the angels, messages, investing time, money and energy, effective Advocacy, Presentations, Evaluation etc.

Advocacy :

·         Advocacy is a process of people participating in decision making.

·         Putting problem on the agenda, providing a solution to the problem and building support for acting.

·         Strategies can including lobbying. social marketing, information education and community orgnisation or other trends.

Objectives:

Protect the women

Provide free legal advice

Promote self confidence

Prevent by stigma and discriminating.

Steps in Advocacy:

§  Select Advocacy objectives

§  Identifying advocacy audience

§  Develop and delivering Advocacy Messages

§  Presentation

§  Fund raising

§  Evaluating the Advocacy efforts

Later we had Group Activity on given topic of Stigma and Discrimination Who is living with HIV/AIDS. In my group Me,meenakshi,savita,Usha,Chandrashekar were discussed and wrote and present our views, in presentation we used following steps in our topic.

Objectives

To provide good condition in Society.

Preventing by stigma and discriminating.

Identifying advocacy Audience

Family members,

 neighbors,

same Community,

 other similar community,

society people.

Develop and delivering Advocacy Messages

Media,

demonstrations,

 networks,

Presentation

Live examples,

 heart touching slogans,

 mela of products.

Fund raising

Funding Agencies( national and international),

 Health departments Ex- ICHAP,KHPT,KASAPS.

 Volunteers.

Evaluating the Advocacy efforts

Regular Fallow ups,

 

Feedbacks

Improvements needed

Preparing successful case studies

Confident level

 

In the last session Vanishree from SPAD orgnisation shred her work experiences, challenges, approaches, IGA and other programs conducted for Sex worker.

Mann Deshi Chetana Guest speaker

Mannadeshi Chetna gala

History of the Mannadeshi: In 1987 Chetna along with her husband, went to Kolapur from Maswad to sell two tons of onion they grew, but the amount they got was lesser than what they had to pay for transportation. This gave her a thought to start up a Credit Co-operative Bank for farmers with the share value of Rs.10/-. During those days, it was monopolized by NABARD and the village had municipal council. This was observed till 1991-1994, during this period she found that women are better money managers and thought of starting something for women that can give financial stability. Then she started a women bank, for which she started working from the grass root level, writing proposals and thus it was started from the scratch. As per the rules it needed 5,00,000/- to start the bank, but at the end 6,00,000/- was collected with each person contributing Rs. 25/-. When approached the CGI of RBI for license, the proposal was rejected for the reason most of the women were illiterate and they can’t handle the financial aspects.

This was a setback for Ms.Chetna, and she went back crying, but the village women didn’t give it up. They all took it as a challenge and committed for study so that they are no more called as illiterate. When again proposal was made same question raised, but that time the women were so confident to challenge the officers with the skill they had to calculate the rate of interest. At last, the license was approved in August 1997. In the past ten years, the bank has 1,20,000 clients and has a share of 20 crore and with this huge amount, Manndeshi started Non Banking Finance Company. In the beginning no one came to take loan and shared a story in which husband tried to manipulate the situation and to borrow one lakh.

Meanwhile a video on Manndeshi was shown to the fellows. Later on she continued saying the bank has door step banking system in which the loan amount can be paid at door step. A pigmy collector collects the amount as per their convenience, where it can be paid daily, weekly, fortnightly or on monthly basis. The pigmy collector gets 3% of the amount collected.

In the year 2006, Business School on Wheels was started for the rural women which trains women on Computer and Tailoring. According to Ms.Chetna, women think reality where as men aspires. When asked the reason behind name Manndeshi, it says Mann-River (in maswad which is almost always dry), and in Marati it means Sand and Deshi is local.

The other activities are providing scholarship of girls, providing bicycle without interest on it. HSBC is also supporting in lending money under its Corporate Social Responsibility and also Business school of education. When asked about her vision, she said the focus is on expanding whole of Maharastra and North India specifically in Gujrath.

later Deshpande foundation Started supporting Manndeshi, it started a new branch in Hubli, Karnataka during August 2007. Then the Program Manager, Ms.Sheela answered for the questions asked about the Hubli branch. She shared about the challenges, saying she was worried of what can be done with the bus sent from the head office for the purpose of training. Those were the days she even thought of sending it back.  But after all the hard work now the situation is entirely changed and expressed the feel of joy to say, now two more buses are needed as the enrollments are taking place even long way back. The session was very much interactive, all the fellows got chance to ask questions and were addressed from the guests. Manndeshi has no funding from the Government, Ms.Chetna doesn’t not entertain as she faced the different views while tried taking those funds.

Entrepreneurial Activity

                     As a part of Social entrepreneurship program on March 16, 2009 all fellows all together  conducted Entrepreneurial Activity in BVB campus at canteen for that all fellows had planned before 5 days for  sale of different things. I have sold “ Chigali” made by tamarind. I prepared myself before a day and sold with 100% profit by 12:30pm later It was very popular and most of the customers  wanted more but there is no stock. and I wondered and all co fellows appreciated  and forced me to prepare some more chigali but it was not easy job to make in an hour therefore in next time I want to make more with different verity in quantity and colures, this is my first entrepreneurship activity and I feared  that whether it will sell or not that’s why I prepared limited Chigali’s it was a good platform to realize my idea and capacity now I can do any entrepreneurship activity. 

1.Money invested- 142 Rs 

2. Money returned - 322 Rs

 

3. Profit details     - 190 Rs 

4. Strategies used -

Before a day I planned for sell Chigali and brought needed things from market for prepare Chigali.

Next I cleaned tamarind and prepared Chigali at our guest house kitchen.

On  the next day I brought prepared Chigali sticks to BVB canteen and sold each for 2/- Rs.

4. Challenges:-

During cleaning tamarind I got around half Kg of wastage from it, it was little loss to me.

 Big quantity Chigalis was not possible to sale schoolchildren for 1 Rs, 50Ps.

5. Lessons learnt:–

How to prepare Chigali

How to attract and convince customers

What are the costumer’s needs? What they want to changes in prepared things.

How to make a better brand

How to manage money matters.

6. Next time if were to do the same marketing job what would you like to change.-

 I investment more for making different sizes, verities,

I want to increase the number of things,

I want to make different colures Chigali’s.

I want to get more profit.

7. Any things else you want to add.-  

Today I am very happy because before starting the sale I was very feared and thought college students are all young may be they are not interested to eat this thing but the assumption was wrong I sold and got better result and I did better Brand, this thing was most wanted thing throughout the day, many students took parcels for their house and  most of them searched for it many times but there is no stock, hence I would like to continue this entrepreneur activity  next time.

HOLI :

Holi is the Hindu carnival-like festival it has been celebrated every year across the world. Holi festival of colours marks the end of  winter season and heralds onse of spring and is marked by people splashing coloured water and smearing powder on each other.

On March 15th 2009 I have celebrated and enjoed with deshpande fellowship Program Director Mr.Naveen Jha,Depute director Mrs.Tyran and other sandbox fellows and Co fellows  this is un forgotable sutivation in my life 

RTI Act - 2005

RIGHT TO INFORMATION ACT - 2005

The RTI Act came into force on 12th October 2005.its purpose is to ensure that the the public has access to information which is under the control of various Government authorities. it is designed to promote transparency and accountability in the working of every Government department or institution at both central and state levels. 

INFORMATION

Information means any material in any form, includin records,documents,manuscripts,memos,emails,opinions,advices,file notings,ciruculars,orders,logbooks,reports,samples,images,electronic datas etc.

APPLICABILITY

Any authority,body,instution,department,panchayath,etc. which is part of the Government is covered.

The Act applise to the whole of India with the exception of the state of Jammu and Kashmir.

PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICERS (PIO)

Every public Authority (Government department) is supposed to appoint a PIO in all its administrative units to provide informationto citizens.