WDC Bihar

5.1 Gram Varta

Gram Varta literally translates to “village dialogue”, which in a large sense is what the intervention aims to do. It empowers community with the knowledge and skills to disseminate maternal and child nutrition information to their families and their communities.

It is a process of participatory learning and action based meeting cycles which are delivered to self help groups every fortnight. The technical content is delivered through games, stories and activities that make the meetings interesting and help the group to identify and prioritize problems. The content of the Gram Varta meeting cycles integrates nutrition, health, hygiene and water sanitation issues with a special focus on the children with respect to their ‘first 1000 days’ of life.

            Beneficiaries under the programme: SHGs women and community.

5.2 Violence against Women (VAW)

Violence against Women is a serious problem pertaining in the society. The issues relating to women atrocities in Bihar include domestic violence, rape, trafficking in women and girls and forced prostitution in varied manifestations. It also includes honour killing, dowry-related violence, female infanticide and prenatal sex selection in favour of male babies, witchcraft and other harmful practices and traditions against women and girls.

Government of Bihar with its highest commitment to bring about gender equality in the state has launched various women empowerment schemes and programmes. Women Development Corporation under Social Welfare Department has been notified as the nodal agency for implementing these schemes and programmes. The main thrust of all women empowerment programmes launched in the state so far has been on identifying issues and challenges related to specific themes and encourage remedies not just for rehabilitation and reinstatement of women into the mainstream but also to make institutional arrangements to bring about gender equality in favour of women from all strata of the state. All programmes designed to achieve this have a strong emphasis towards providing capacity building inputs, ensuring psychological and legal counselling to the women through institutional strengthening and restructuring of women helplines and short stay homes, making services more accessible to women in the farthest regions such as establishing Block referral units at block levels and providing support of para-legal cadres.

                  In the area of Violence against Women, WDC has made a pioneering effort to address this issue through the following strategies. The strategies including key set of activities are listed below-

A. Strengthening Women Helplines and Short Stay Homes in all districts:

• Infrastructure Support-

The infrastructure strengthening of 38 women helplines and short stay homes is completed and further process has been initiated to provide computer & printers to all the 38 HL. Plan for strengthening the SSH in the same line adopted for HL.

Training and Capacity Building Support-Seven round of , for the project staff of Helpline & SSH has been organised.

• Ensuring 24 X 7 accessibility to women victims/survivors through provision of CUG     mobile facilities for Women helpline. Further CUG mobile to RTOs of SSH is under process.

• Streamlining Helpline and Short Stay Home Functioning Standard Operating Procedure on role of protection officer under DV act has been prepared and is under process for field testing in three districts namely Patna, Gaya & Purnea. SOP on PWDV act approved by the Social Welfare Department (SWD).Similar protocol for Short Stay home functioning is also proposed.

 

B. Police Intervention-

The objective behind the concept is to develop synergy with police, and also to sensitize the police officials towards addressing the multidimensional issues of women atrocities through conventional techniques. Special cells in 23 police stations covering 12 blocks of Patna district have been established on Pilot basis. The objective behind the concept is to develop synergy with police, and also sensitize the police officials towards addressing the multidimensional issues of atrocities on women through conventional techniques. Multiple trainings & workshops have been organized for counsellors in coordination with Police department at State level.  Scaling up of special Cell in 112 Police Station  of 112 sub division in Bihar has been planned.

C) Health sector intervention- Domestic Violence has severe public health implications as seen from both global and national evidences; its consequences can be witnessed in low weight babies, forced abortions, foetal and infant mortality, maternal mortality and morbidity, low immunization and public health service uptake. This initiative is intended to provide timely response and to enhance support to pregnant women through professional support at institution level. This will also prevent pregnant women and unborn children from resultant poorer health condition such as loss of life or ill health. Recently MoU had been signed between WDC and State Health Society for this intervention.

D) School based intervention-Gender attitude and norms, such as those around roles and responsibilities of women and men are learned at young age. The Gender Equity Movement in School (GEMS) is an initiative to promote gender equality and reduce violence among middle and high school children using Group Education Activities (GEA). The initiative will target students beginning 6th grade (ages 12-14) for one year and will aim to develop critical thinking among young boys and girls on issues of gender equality and equity through self reflection tool using other participatory approaches such as role playing and games including extracurricular activities.

E) Gender Resource Centre- The Government of Bihar desires to establish the Gender Resource Centre under Women Development Corporation, Bihar to co-ordinate the efforts of different sections of society and the government to make a noticeable difference to women’s lives in the state and to serve as a nodal agency for all gender related initiatives in the state. GRC will attempt to develop and make available the resources at a single place to share them across organizations in order to make their efforts in the sector more streamlined, efficient and effective. GRC would aim to sensitize and facilitate Government Departments, NGOs, Academic Institutions, International agencies and Independent experts in planning, implementing and evaluating gender sensitive programs, policies, laws and schemes. The GRC would undertake research, impact assessment studies of policies, programmes and schemes of the Government, and liaise with existing structures/institution relating to women’s empowerment. The GRC would also device media strategies to highlight the programmes and schemes of the Government as well as awareness generation programmes to focus on retrograde social practices affecting the society. It will assist the Women Development Corporation and the  concerned department in planning, implementing, monitoring and reviewing the programmes relating to women’s empowerment using synergy approach. Gender Resource Centre is to be formed for holistic empowerment of women in the state  under DFID supported SWASTH Programme which is also implemented  by Women Development Corporation, Bihar.

Gender resource centre has been established in Patna for addressing women related issues and is the nodal agency for Gender Budgeting for the state of Bihar.

 

F. Sapnon Ko Chali Chhoone: Sapnon Ko Chali Chhoone (SKCC) is a joint initiative of Jagaran Pehel (a unit of News Daily Dainik Jagaran), UNFPA and Women Development Corporation, to empower young women enrolled in colleges of Bihar. The programme is to cover more than 50,000 girls in 18 colleges of 9 districts of Bihar. The aim is to build capacities of young women, resulting in women empowerment and reduction of gender disparity in the state. During the course of six months, 36 talented girls were selected through various competitions and observations as local champions whom we call “champions of change”. The program has the following objectives:

• To promote awareness on gender equity amongst the students and faculty of girls colleges in Bihar.

• To provide a platform for girls studying at the target colleges to enable them to make strong statements based on their perspectives, experiences and expectations related to gender equality and rights.

• To improvise and sustain a process of dialogue and cross-sensitization among girl students of the target colleges and opinion makers in the media

• To provide to emerging advocates amongst the students many opportunities to share their views on gender equality and rights with the community at large, and motivate them to be strong change agents in society.