LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Your comments and suggestions are very important for us, which is why we give the highest priority to our Letters to the Editor section. Your response will help us streamline Charkha Vikas Samvad. And the best letter that we receive shall be carried in a special position in our next issue. So do write to us at samvad@charkha.org.

A Dialogue with young Tibetan Painter, Tenzin Jamyang

It was Jamyangs first painting exhibition at IIC from April 24 to May 1, 2005. I stepped into the art gallery and was immediately struck by a beautiful landscape of Dharamsala, striking bright colors in green, mauve and blue.

After a brief silence, I just mentioned that I am no expert in painting but like the work of Vincent van Gogh and Monet. I felt these few words connecting us there. He told me how he once came across an article on van Gogh in an old India Today magazine with few of his paintings. That sparked his passion of painting. It was the mountains and green lush valley of Dharamsala, where he spent all his life that gave him the content. Jamyang has had no formal training in painting. After getting rejected three times from Art College, he applied for Jamia Milia University for one-year diploma course, but had to leave mid way because of his personal grief. In the course of the conversation, he told me that the first painting is for her mother because she never believed that his painting will find place in such art gallery and people will even pay for them.

It was my time to listen to this young painter, his dreams and hopes in alien land where they are born and living as Tibetan but not knowing the Tibet, except through their elders and writings /films. After his schooling, he joined in the Security group of His Holiness and at present posted in Chattisgarh. According to him, the most successful story of the Tibetan settlement is Chattisgarh, where the settlers have now acquired more than three seasonal crops and they are also working as farm labor for the local people.

Painting from his tiny one-room studio with just one tubelight, in winters, he only keeps warming his fingers to paint. May be that is one of the reasons his paintings are so bright and colorful. When asked about his experience in Delhi, he softly whispered that this has given him a self-confidence and talked about supporting those who are not as fortunate like him in having a safe passage.

In those few hours, I realized that there resides in this painter, a soft tender young man with a mission to help those who are vulnerable, through his paintings. May be that is why the paintings speak about peace and harmony in truest sense.

Sunita Roy, Programme Coordinator & Manager, Charkha

A Media Interface - Getting to Know mainstream media

Charkha organised a two-day media interface, held in Vishwa Yuva Kendra, New Delhi on 21-22 March 2005 on the significance of social issues in mainstream media. Supported by British High Commission, the objective was to facilitate dialogue between mainstream media representatives in Delhi, both electronic and print and social activists/rural writers drawn from the six states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Chattisgarh, Uttaranchal, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. A focus was kept on the challenges and issues of the grassroots activists based on their first-hand experience of the media. Attended by almost 30 participants, the media interface was the culmination of Charkha activities in the six states over the financial year 2004-05.

Creative Collaborations - New areas

Meeting at Gandhi Peace Foundation

Charkha participated in a meeting held at Gandhi Peace Foundation, New Delhi on April 9, 2005 with Shri Bal Raj Puri, an eminent journalist and Human Rights activist. The objective of the meeting was to discuss and facilitate the process and issues of peace and development in Jammu and Kashmir. Attended by Sunita Roy, Programs Coordinator, Charkha, Charkha shared its perspectives on how the writings received through the Charkha-Sanjoy Ghose Fellowship for Peace & Development in conflict-ridden region of J&K, provides insight of people's dreams and aspiration for peace.

The Meeting also stressed the role of media in this direction and a need was felt for an open Jammu & Kashmir discussion forum. Other innovative conclusions were reached such as creating Kashmir columns in newspapers, allowing trade and business for economic growth across the border, organising cultural festivals and setting up of Coordination Committee of eminent journalists headed by Mr. Balraj Puri, under the aegis of Gandhi Peace Foundation.

Dream Chattisgarh Meet

Chattisgarh-e-group, a virtual interactive group of activists, journalists, ICT experts and researchers interested and involved in holistic development of Chattisgarh met for its first face-to face meeting during April 8-9, 2005 at Devpur Forest Guest House in Barnawapara Sanctuary near Raipur, Chattisgarh. The objective of the meeting was to develop an in-depth understanding on pertinent issues like Agriculture, Water, Industry & Mines, Labor, and Tribal & Forests in the context of the development model and policies adopted by the state government.

The focus was to develop an alternate vision and action plan keeping in mind the aspirations and needs of the people of Chattisgarh. Charkha supported this initiative seeing its relevance in opening up grassroots communications and media channels for highlighting issues from the peoples perspective. Charkha personnel, Aman Namra and Sujata Raghavan participated in the meeting and shared the experience of initiatives like community radio and the potential of alternate media in this context. For more information please visit. www.groups.yahoo.com/group/Chattisgarh-net/files

NEW RELEASE

Why does Bihar lack a capacity to aspire? Representation & Empowerment A field view on 2005 Bihar Assembly Elections by Dr. Rahul Ramagundam.

This monograph is the result of a research project on the elections in Bihar by Dr. Rahul Ramagundam, with the support of Charkha. The observations and findings of this project have been published in different newspapers, in a series of articles, based on which the monograph has been prepared. It looks into complex political processes in Bihar that has enabled a single man stay in power for 15 years, even as the socio-economic conditions of the rural communities continues to deteriorate. Hailing from Bihar, Dr. Rahul Ramagundam is an activist-scholar and has done his doctoral thesis from JNU. The findings of this monograph have been much useful in understanding the process of development in Bihar, where until now, Charkha has been conducting capacity-building workshops.

Vikas Samvad: A Manual for Social Activists

This Hindi publication, supported by the British High Commission, is a Manual for social activists and grassroots writers to assist and facilitate them to write more effectively. Drawn from our ten years experience of Charkha skill-building workshops and our interaction with both grassroots writers and the national media, the manual is an attempt to both help the activists to highlight their social challenges and to sensitize the mainstream media. Although it has no formal curriculum, the manual takes the reader on an interesting and learning journey through a first person narration of the sutradhar.

Visual Documentation of our Jharkhand Community Radio Initiative

"Pechuwail Man Ker Swar" ("Voices of the Marginalised")

Produced by Charkha and directed by Ershad Ahmad, Associate Editor, Charkha, this 20-minute film takes its viewer on a journey to a tribal block of Jharkhand. The critical voices of the marginalised people here do not reach outside their walls of their village, as they lack a medium to communicate to the larger world, although they do have their own dialects and cultural modes to communicate among themselves. The film explores the role of community radio, a programme initiated by Charkha in Angada Block, Ranchi district, Jharkhand, in creating a dialogue between state and communities. The programme has empowered these marginalised groups to communicate in their own style and language with the world outside.

Charkha Candidate awarded the CII Woman Exemplar 2005 Award

Charkha had the opportunity to make a unique contribution to the National Conference and Annual Session of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) held at the Hotel Taj Palace, New Delhi on 16-17 May 2005.In the plenary session, Honble Finance Minister P.Chidambaram awarded three outstanding women social activists the Woman Exemplar Award or Adarsh Sthree. The Award comprising a cash award of Rs. One Lakh, a medallion and a citation have been instituted by CII to honour the spirit of women in the area of social development and inspire others to emulate them.

Charkha had proposed the name of one of the recipients, Poonam Sinsinbar, a young woman working to educate underprivileged children in Haryana. The two other awardees are Tejo Devi of Rajsamariya village in Dumka district, Jharkhand and Kavita Santosh Shinde of Maharashtra.

Over the last six years, Poonam followed her dream of teaching young and adolescent girls and break the shackles of ignorance, deprivation that is often the reality for many girls in rural India. She began her journey as a teacher at Neb Sarai centre of Nav Shrishti, an organisation dedicated to empower economically weaker sections of society. After marriage she moved to Faridabad, where she looked for opportunities for continuing work and began with the slums of Azad Nagar.

The initial years were of struggle with very little support from the community and practically no financial resources for the project. Poonam had to master the balancing act of her duties as a young bride and yet dedicate herself in her chosen task. However her sincerity and determination slowly paved the way ahead. Today there is a centre in Azad Nagar, where 200 children attend Balwadi and girls are learning skills like tailoring and beauty culture, enabling them to generate an income and take control of their own lives. What is noteworthy is, that the centre is not dependent on external sources of funding and is managed through contributions by the community.

In an ensuing session of the Conference Unsung Heroes-Stories that must be told main speaker Mr. Shankar Ghose, President Charkha spoke on the importance of recognizing this multitude of talent in rural India. He said that urban India holds a somewhat erroneous perception of rural India viewing it as bleak, backward and stunted. Nothing, he said could be further from the truth. Rural India in fact reflects tremendous joy, dignity, hope and the rare spirit to rise above problems. Mr. Ghose recounted several examples of women with initiative and enterprise from Jharkhand, Uttaranchal and Rajasthan bringing a sea change amongst the communities they live in.

What is unfortunate is that this does not reach urban audiences. Charkha is positioned to bridge this wide gap by linking grassroots issues with the media which has the power and influence to reach policy makers and the intelligentsia. Industry too must address this issue and delineate a role for itself in the present scenario.

Let Global Market First Value Our Crafts

Awanish Somkumar

Would you like to stay in Sharjah and keep on adorning the palms of our sisters and mothers? This request came to Sushma Jain of Bhopal from some Arabian families at Sharjah. Known as creative Mehandi artiste, she was recently in Sharjah as a part of a group of rural artisans craftsmen from Madhya Pradesh to participate in Ramadan Festival of Shopping - a unique shopping extravaganza for Id-Ul-Fitr. The group of rural craftsmen comprising at least 40 brilliant craft masters attended the Ramadan Festival of Shopping. "It was a business promotion enterprise to showcase the rural crafts in the global market, says Rural Development Minister, Narendra Singh Tomar.
The rural crafts in Madhya Pradesh manifest artistic sensitivities and unforced creative pursuits of rural artisans. Chanderi, Maheshwari saris, bell metal, wood and leather crafts, Zardozi work, Jute- craft, terracotta artifacts and those made of betel nuts constitute a rich legacy of craftsmanship in Madhya Pradesh.

Oblivious to the urban markets inundated with the products from Multi National Companies, the rural artistes take great pains to transform their aesthetic perceptions from abstract into concrete. "They need exposure to expanding international market, says Ms. I.M. Chahal, the Principal Secretary Rural Industries.

The grandeur of craftsmanship from the state mesmerized the buyers at Sharjah. "The state government must list out the emerging markets for rural artifacts, suggests Abhinandan Kunder of Rewa. He uses betel nuts to carve out idols of Indian gods, table lamps, walking sticks and replicas of India's great monuments like Tajmahal. His beautifully carved out replica of "Dar-E-Kaba" was treated like a gem at Sharjah.

I earned a net profit of Rs. 65 thousand by selling Kalamkari works, says Shashi Kori of Ujjain, who uses vegetable colours to paint natural landscapes, flowers, flowery creepers on cloth. Profit and loss hardly matters for me. The biggest satisfaction is that I am encouraged to keep alive my family tradition.

Let international markets first realize the value of rural craftsmanship before our crafts enter such markets, says Rajendra Bichhve, who is passionately carrying forward a cherished Maheshwari sari weaving tradition. He says, The magic weavers create, textile mills cannot even think of. Bichhve realizes that the Maheshwari sari is finding space in the global market.

I never thought the fame of my Jute-craft would take me abroad one day. The jute -made file covers, Jhoomars, hand bags and wall-hangings made a brisk business at Sharjah, informs Shamim Bano of Bhopal while it was a learning experience for Sushma Jain. I started learning various conventional and modern designs as a hobby, which is my profession now. My designs specially of Marvadi style were deeply appreciated, she says enthusiastically and informs that she earned more than rupees eight lakh in a couple of weeks.

Nasreen Khan - a Zardozi artiste from Sehore is happy to have showcased her art out side the country. Sharing her Sharjah experience, she says, Foreigners have a special liking for Indian garments and Zardozi work.

Similarly, Govind Sharma a leather crafts master from Indore says - "global exposure to my leather craft items has boosted my confidence and also increased my understanding of international market." He informed that leather purses, toys and handbags fetched him handsome profit. Devideen Prajapati - a terracotta artiste from Chhatarpur was overjoyed about the sale of his decorative art pieces. "The Sharjah experience would keep on motivating me to vigorously continue my creative pursuits, he added. Charkha feature

Lending Chhau a new idiom

Rina Mukherji

Daka Kendu, Bhalobasha and Hesla are nestled in the hills of Purulia town. Untouched by civilization in their pristine purity, these villages are free of all the trappings of modernity. In fact, if one were to pun on the name of the village-Bhalobasha (Love), one would suppose the state and local administration actually believe humans to survive on love and fresh air.

Basic necessities elude the inhabitants of these primarily scheduled caste/backward caste/scheduled tribe villages here. There is no power, no water supply or sewage facility, and the nearest phone facility is some 17 km away. Macadamized roads are few and far between. Where tube-wells have been provided for- a village like Bhalobasha with 1500 inhabitants has just one workable tube-well to provide drinking water for its residents. A journey from Purulia town to any of these villages needs to be undertaken by day, lest one loses the way or skids off the hilly roads.

Schools are few, and far off. The ones around provide only primary education. Middle school must be availed of by walking nearly 10 km. There are no government buses plying in these parts. A retired government servant has started a private bus service to Purulia town. But often, in the absence of a full load, the bus returns back to base after a few kilometres. No one cares for people like us who must make the weekly trip to town on work, laments community health worker Tusu Rani Mahato, who happens to be the only woman with a higher secondary education in the block.

There is no primary health centre operating in these parts. A health centre at Rajnaogaon is inoperative owing to the lack of medical supplies and frustrated doctors who soon find a way out of the posting. There is no livable accommodation the medical man can avail of; choosing to travel from the town is too tedious given the dearth of public transport in these parts. Consequently, the closest medical facility is at Manbazar block hospital, which is more than 17 km away.

It is no small wonder then that mothers prefer to deliver their children at home rather than risk a backbreaking journey to a hospital.The few opting for an institutional delivery are those in dire need owing to complications. But, even then, they may not be lucky. For instance, Gita Roy Mahato lost her baby in spite of having moved to hospital. The baby had breathing problems and needed an incubator. The distance to the hospital, and the difficult delivery, however, worked against its survival, explains health worker Santosh Mahato.

In such a scenario, the Daka Kendu Womens Development Society and Hesla Hara Parbati Club working under the aegis of the West Bengal Voluntary Health Association (WBVHA) have taken to disseminating the message of the central governments Reproductive and Child Health (RCH) project using the local Chhau a highly stylized form of dance modeled on the principles of the Tandava element in Bharatamunis Natya Shastra. This dance style has its origins in the assimilation of the tribal and Aryan cultures of yore, practiced in the tribal belt of Jharkhand-Orissa-West Bengal.

Chhau has three distinct forms. The Seraikella and Purulia chhau are a little different from the Mayurbhanj variety, in that they use masks as against the Mayurbhanj style, which does not use masks. But Santosh Mahato and others of the Daka Kendu Womens Development Society have worked on this concept to introduce a novel Samajik Chhau in these parts. The Society has been working door to door to convey the message of better hygiene, and nutrition at the obstetric level for pregnant and lactating mothers since the last few years.

Its been an uphill task, given the fact that the population is nearly illiterate, and at best, half-literate. As farmer and petty businessman Binar Rahman admits, We only knew what the dais told us. My wife did not bathe for ten days, and did not eat solid food for a week. It was only gruel for her when my son was born. Not surprisingly, a nursing mother is prone to reproductive tract infections, and severe anaemia.

But things are changing now. We started off by training women from the Sais community who work as traditional Dais (midwives) and command a lot of respect here. Where challenging their authority was concerned, the right knowledge needed to be imparted to the masses. Calling people over for discussions hardly brought more than a handful. But each Chhau performance commands an audience of at least 800 people, says Tusu Rani.

Instead of the traditional Durga themes, and Gods and Goddesses to view, the Samajik Chhau, the WBVHA and its grassroots NGOs use a play like Poojar Sansar (Poojas World) to depict the evils of a large family and its effect on a womans health. It shows how an alcoholic husband, repressive in-laws and the resulting domestic violence, along with lack of appropriate nutrition for a pregnant woman can become fatal for her.

Unlike the traditional Chhau, where nearly all characters are male, Samajik Chhau has a fair number of female characters that enact the roles of village level workers, housewives, and family members. Of course, the style of dancing remains the same and so does the basic get-up, including the masks and the stockings that characterize Chhau.

The Chhau troupes themselves are extremely happy with the venture, and feel happy contributing to a cause while learning something in the bargain. It is something new to us, and I have learnt a lot in the bargain, admits Ananda Kalindi, a musician in the troupe. Perhaps that is why the troupes do not demand much for any performance. We only give them a meal for the trouble, admits Tusu Rani.

Maternal and infant mortality continue to remain high in these parts. However, the near-ignorant women and men who have been attending the Chhau sessions have come a long way in the several months of indoctrination. Shyama Kumhar, a woman from the potter community, says, I know now that I must take two injections when pregnant, keep clean and bathe every day.

The chattering group of Kalindi (bamboo sculptor community) women enjoying the Chhau performance admits, We know now that pregnant women must go to the clinic, and get capsules for strength, and two injections so that they do not become sick. Arresting maternal and infant mortality may take time. It will be some time until the present level of 2.66 per thousand mothers and 51 per thousand infants born in the State is caught up with.

But the first initial steps to hygiene and a balanced nutrition are on the way to being achieved using this form of folk media. For now, Chhau has proved the mover and shaker for a healthier society. Charkha Feature

MILESTONE 10th Anniversary of Charkha
	As we stand on the threshold of the 10th Anniversary of Charkha, we cannot help but think of the young Sanjoy Ghose whose vision it was such as ours. He is our pride, our inspiration and our guiding force, especially when we have reached our 10th year. Today, Charkha continues its attempt to build a bridge that connects the wide chasm between grassroots activism and the mainline media.
The challenges have been many and have only grown. Most NGOs know that the continuation of grants is a tedious process. Moreover, social change is more than a collection of figures and statistics; it involves a gradual change of attitudes and understanding. For Charkha, the challenge is more thought provoking, for we need to make people believe in the efficacy of communication as a tool of social change. It is through our work that we can educate people in the same. Over the years, we have delved into a myriad of activities; however, the following have been, we believe, our prime achievements:
	Growth of our Feature Service The growth of the Hindi Feature Service has been significant, with 85 articles having already been published in regional and national dailies in the year 2004. Similarly, articles written in English and translated from Hindi are regularly being sent to such newspapers and journals as Humanscape, Looking Beyond, Tehelka, Green Hope, Grassroots, I4d, The Pioneer and The Sahara Times, among others. We have entered into collaboration with Civil Society, a new monthly magazine, to regularly carry development features and stories, as part of the Giving Voices to the Un-heard. The Establishment of Fellowship Awards to rural writers and social activists for success stories on local initiatives of Peace and Development As most of the coverage given to Jammu and Kashmir is usually dismal, revolving around acts of terror, political upheaval and border tensions, we felt that the stories highlighting positive and constructive aspects of the development get lost or remain unheard.
The Sanjoy Ghose Fellowship for Peace and Development, supported by the Unniti Foundation (India) and the National Foundation for India, initiated for the year 2003-2004, is an attempt to encourage writers working with development issues at the grassroots in the Kashmir Valley. Moreover, it is an attempt to get the message across that the people of Kashmir themselves desire peace and harmony and are steadfastly working for it.
	Development of Alternative Media Comics for Social Change One of our most innovative efforts, Comics for Social Change is an expression of people, by themselves, of their problems and issues relating to development through cartoons and comics. This initiative explores the immediate impact of the images and pictures that are so much louder than words successfully used in villages through posters and wall magazines.
	We were able to assist in the establishment of the Mizoram Forum for Advocacy and Learning (MFAL) This body of intellectuals, academicians, media persons, PR experts, artists and writers will work in synergy with Charkha in our efforts to explore the potential of communication linkages in Mizoram and consequently providing us an opening to other states in the Northeast region. Charkha believes that this region is a much-neglected area and deserves media attention not only on the issues of political insurgency, but also with regard to the constructive aspects of social development and peoples initiative.
We believe that the vast and the myriad forms of communication have been rather underused as a tool of development. We have used for our purposes an interesting blend of appropriate media ranging from print media to wallpaper, comics for social change, community radio, folk theatre, puppetry and the Internet. Over the next five years, we will be exploring further the use of audio-visual media, while strengthening our base in print media. Looking back, we realize we have come a long way. This 10th year offers us an opportunity to sit back, evaluate our programmes and activities and strategize a better future. Over the years, the paths have been traced and re-traced and yet the mission remains the same to enable the voiceless and marginalized people of rural India to speak for its own, on its own. In the mean time, we only hope to evolve and to grow as facilitators or catalysts to influence the lives of these people in a small yet significant way.

[ Back to top ]

CHARKHA STAFF PRESIDENT & CHIEF FUNCTIONARY Mr. Shankar Ghose EDITORIAL Ms. Pragya D Verma, Executive Editor Mr. Aman Namra, Resident Editor Ms. Pratibha Jyoti, Associate Editor-Hindi Ms. Sujata Raghavan, Associate Editor-English ADMINISTRATION Mr. Sanjay Mishra, Manager Administration	PROGRAMS Ms. Sunita Roy, Manager Programs & Projects Ms. Indrani Dey, Assistant Editor (English), Programs & Projects AUDIO VISUAL Mr. Ershad Ahmad, Associate Editor ACCOUNTS Ms. Manju James, Manager Accounts
ASSOCIATES Ms. Viji Balakrishnan An eminent journalist, researcher and consultant on development of proposals, initiating projects and documentation of the same. Mr. Atanu Roy A leading illustrator and a creative consultant on visual media.	Mr. Anindya Roy An eminent filmmaker on development issues and consultant on the audio-visual media for Charkha. Mr. Swaraaj Chauhan Senior journalist who has worked with the Statesman, The Hindustan Times and is now a freelancer. He provides us the essential media linkage.

[ Back to top ]

Previous Issues of Charkha Vikas Samvad: March 2005, December 2004, October 2004, August 2004

CHARKHA: Ground Floor, G-15/11-12, G - Block, Malviya Nagar, New Delhi - 110 017
Email: samvad@charkha.org Website : www.charkha.org Phone: +91-11-26680816, 26680688