By aman chhabra | Project Leader
Dear Donor,
Hope you and your loved ones are safe and healthy!!
Mentioning below some of the key highlights of our work between April and August 21.
Priti stands up for her Rights!!
Priti lives in Shivpur Karmaha village Campierganj block of Gorakhpur. Priti’s father who had migrated outside for livelihood returned home during the lockdown and started planning for 15-year-old Priti’s marriage. Priti was initially hesitant to talk to her father. But she shared her concern with Breakthrough trainer. When Breakthrough trainer went to persuade Priti’s father, her mother also joined in convincing Priti’s father against her daughter’s early marriage. Priti told her father that if he did not change his decision she will call 1098 for support. This surprised her father. He asked from where she had learned about this. Priti and her mother then told him about Breakthrough ‘Taaron Ki Toli’ programme and it’s messaging. They finally convinced him to change his decision of marrying under aged Priti (Priti was part of our Ujjwal Tara Programme and is currently part of our Roshan Tara programme under Adolescent Empowerment Programme).
India is home to about 120 million adolescent girls, an astounding number of whom are still restrained by poor nutrition and health, lack of complete and quality education, early marriage, early and repeat pregnancies, susceptibility to domestic violence, little agency and compromised potential. If this picture does not change drastically, India will miss out on the unique opportunity of leveraging its greatest advantage globally – its demographic dividend.
Breakthrough has been working with adolescents through an umbrella program idea namely, Adolescent Empowerment Programme (AEP) since 2012. This program is implemented to better the gender attitudes and behaviours at a stage of life when the views are still malleable. Breakthrough does this through an innovative life skills curriculum and youth club formation called Taaron ki Toli(Legion of Stars) in schools, and in communities. The initiative empowers girls and boys to tackle harmful social and gender norms that contribute to girls facing discrimination or violence, and encourages them to be confident, develops their leadership skills and enables them to make decisions about their own lives. The programme builds their negotiation skills, enabling choice making on matters like higher education and marriage, and starts seeding the discussion on sexuality and reproductive health. We hold these sessions with two age-group cohorts-our Ujjwal Taras (11-14 year olds) and Roshan Taras (15-18 year olds)
The second and more severe wave of the pandemic posed a major challenge during this reporting period. We used various online modes to stay connected with communities and deliver our ‘Taaron Ki Toli’ curriculum through digital mode too. As the situation eased, we began on ground face-to-face sessions too. A major focus of our work during the reporting period was to motivate our Team Change Leaders (TCLs) to mobilize people to undergo COVID vaccination. Team change leaders are our select youth of 19-25 age group who have been groomed to work as agents of change in communities. Besides adolescents in different places celebrated MHM day leaving behind hesitation and myths surrounding it. Few other special days were also celebrated by adolescents and TCLs.
Celebration of MHM Day in UP and Bihar
Donning up red costumes and palms painted with red spots the adolescents, TCLs and their mothers in many intervention areas celebrated MHM day on 28th May and vowed to always support their daughters. Besides this, the MHM day celebration included wall painting, poster making, signature campaign, slogan writing on kites and balloons and setting them afloat to signify that mothers will not let daughters be tied to age old taboos related to menstruation, or other patriarchal norms. In some places trees were planted signifying a new beginning. At some places even men’s group members took part in the celebration. These celebrations took place in 30 villages of Lucknow, 27 villages of Gorakhpur and 6 villages of Bihar. In all about 1270 adolescents and TCLs took part in these celebrations. (612 Gorakhpur, 639 Lucknow and 18 in Bihar). Head of Srijan Foundation, Mr. Amit Saxena, held a google meet with 67 participants from Lucknow intervention areas on the occasion of MHM day. He discussed in detail the correct way of using pads and how hygiene needs to be maintained by changing pads at required intervals.
Celebration World Environment Day, led by TCLs in UP and Jharkhand
World Environment Day was also celebrated by TCLs with other adolescents, youth and community members. 67 saplings of trees were planted in Gorakhpur while 65 were planted in Lucknow. Besides adolescents made posters, wrote slogans and held small group meetings on environmental protection too. In Bes village of Katmadag block of Jharkhand too, World Environment Day was celebrated by adolescents. Total 12 Roshan Taras and 15 Ujjwal Taras held small group discussions. Saplings of trees were planted in 17 spots.
Village Warriors task force comes into action in UP
35 Team Change Leaders of UP were part of a training organized by Noora Health. Post Noora Health training, the ‘Village Warriors Task Force’ was set up in UP which majorly includes TCLs. This task force has been active in villages spreading awareness related to COVID and COVID related guidelines. The TCLs have been motivating adolescents too to join these initiatives. Following activities have been conducted buy this task force-
The work is coordinated through WhatsApp groups formed at village, block and district level.
This all work is happening because of support of DONORS like you. We would request you to continue your support and if possible recommend our project to like-minded people.
With Hope and Gratitude,
Aman Chhabra.
Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can receive an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.
Support this important cause by creating a personalized fundraising page.
Start a Fundraiser
