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The Kudumbashree Noorang team of Thirunelly of Wayanad district of Kerala won the State Government Award constituted by Department of Agriculture for cultivating a variety of tubers that many people have not even heard of, such as Narakizhang, Noora, Thun Kachil, Sugandha Kachil, Payasa Kachil, Makkaleppotti, Karinthal, Velunthal and Karimanjal.

 

The 1085 Onam Market Fairs conducted by Kudumbashree throughout Kerala are important among the interventions made by the State Government to contain the price hike during Onam, said Shri M. B Rajesh, Minister, Local Self Government Department and Excise Department, Government of Kerala while performing the State Level Inauguration of the Onam Market Fairs of Kudumbashree at Police Training Ground, Thycaud, Thiruvananthapuram.  Shri. Antony Raju, Minister for Transport, Government of Kerala presided over the function.

Kudumbashree's greatest asset and capital is the credibility it has gained among the people through its activities spanning a quarter of a century. These marketing fairs build on that credibility. The minister said that every new step Kerala takes has the stamp of Kudumbashree on it and the sky is the limit for Kudumbashree. The minister also inaugurated the marketing stalls at the Onanilav-Onam Marketing Fair.

Even if Maveli does not come, Onam will be held, but if there is no Kudumbashree, there is no Onam in Kerala, commented Shri. Antony Raju, Minister for Transport, Government of Kerala. He also said that the reason why the Kudumbashree movement, formed in Kerala, has become a model for the world, is the recognition of the selfless service of the NHG members.

Adv. D. Suresh Kumar, President Thiruvananthapuram District Panchayat conducted the first sale at the fair by receiving the same from Ms. Jazeera, JLG Member. Shri. Jafar Malik IAS, Executive Director, Kudumbashree explained the project.

The Onam Markets organized under the leadership of Kudumbashree are started across the state. The aim of the Onam Markets is to provide pure and unadulterated unique products at fair prices. Kudumbashree's unique products will be available at the fair, from Kudumbashree's own flowers for flower arrangements to fruits and vegetables for preparing the feast. Kudumbashree and local self-government bodies are organizing 1085 fairs across the state with the aim of providing pure and unadulterated products to consumers at fair prices.

The state-level fair, which will be held till 28 August 2023, will have special Onam counters and a food court besides 50 stalls selling products of Kudumbashree entrepreneurs and Kudumbashree Joint Liability Groups. The flower market will have flowers grown by Kudumbashree farmers in the countryside in large quantities. Stalls for flowers are specially set up in the state fair. A variety of arts and cultural events will also take place every day.

Ms. Geetha Nazir, Kudumbashree Governing Body Member and District Panchayath Member, Elected Representatives and CDS office bearers were also present at the function. Artistic performances by the children of BUDS School, Pothencode were also staged during the function.

BUDS Institutions are one of the best and humane social services among the many alternatives that Kerala has created so that India can emulate them, said Shri. M. B Rajesh, Minister, Local Self Government Department, Government of Kerala while performing the Day Announcement and State-Level Inauguration of BUDS Day at the function held at  Kerala Arts and Craft Village, Vellar, Kovalam. He added that 16 August 2023, which is celebrated as the first BUDS Day will be a memorable day in the history of BUDS Institutions run by Kudumbashree in association with Local Self-Government Institutions, a model that can be extended all over India. From this year onwards, 16 August will be observed as a day for Intellectually Challenged Children in the name 'BUDS Day' under the auspices of Kudumbashree. 

 

Shri. Jafar Malik IAS, Kudumbashree Executive Director, Kudumbashree explained the project. Dr. Sekhar L Kuriakose (Member, Kerala State Disaster Management Authority) released the Sajjam Handbook by giving the same to the Minister. 

 

August 16 is the day when the first BUDS School in the state started functioning in Venganoor Gram Panchayat of Thiruvananthapuram district under the auspices of Kudumbashree in 2004. The Day Announcement and the Week Celebration have been set up with the aim of making BUDS Institutions more popular and raising intellectually challenged children into the mainstream of the society, in the context of the achievements accomplished by Kudumbashree in collaboration with the Local Self-Government Institutions in this field within the last nineteen years. The day also aims to integrate more children into BUDS institutions and to provide mental support to parents. Ahead of the announcement of the day, the BUDS Week celebration was ongoing from 9-16 August 2023. As a part of this, various programmes were organized in all BUDS Institutions across the state.

At present BUDS Institutions are functioning in 359 Local Self-Government Institutions. There are 167 BUDS Schools for children up to 18 years of age and 192 BUDS Rehabilitation Centres for those above 18 years of age. Vocational and livelihood training is given priority in Rehabilitation Centres. 11,642 people are being supported in daily living, rehabilitation and job training through BUDS Institutions. He also said that 495 teachers and 622 caretakers are serving in BUDs Institutions. The main objective of BUDS institutions is to transform intellectually challenged children from dependence to self-reliance.

A special livelihood scheme involving parents of children in BUDS Institutions is also being implemented. Rs. 3.5 crores have been sanctioned by the Government for this purpose. Programmes are designed and implemented to include the mothers 

of the children studying in BUDS Institutions keeping in mind that they often have to spend time with their children in the institutions. Vocational training is also being provided to the trainees above 18 years of age to ensure a steady income. Various vocational training like paper & pen making, paper file making and umbrella making are provided in this way. Currently 162 enterprises are part of BUDS Institutions.

The products prepared by the children of the BUDS Institutions under Kudumbashree District Mission are being branded under the name 'Ithal' and are brought to the market. Products like notepad, office file, seed pen, cloth bag and paper bag are branded and marketed from 14 BUDS Institutions in the district. All beneficiaries of BUDS Institutions are covered under Niramaya, a comprehensive health and safety scheme. The policy amount of the scheme is fully paid by the state government.

BUDS Institutions also give maximum encouragement to arts and sport activities to support the mental growth of the beneficiaries. BUDS Arts Festivals are organized every year for this purpose. BUDS Arts Festivals are organized at institutional, district and state levels. The curriculum at BUDS Schools includes a wide range of subjects such as music, dance, other arts and sports items and yoga. He also pointed out that Sanjeevani  Agri Therapy activities are also implemented for the physical and mental awakening of children in BUDS Institutions. All BUDS Institutions are conducting agricultural activities aimed at the mental refreshment of the beneficiaries. 

The State Government has been providing excellent support to BUDS Institutions, including an allocation of Rs 12.5 lakh each to 200 local bodies for infrastructural development in BUDS Institutions. He also said that 28 master trainers and 608 district-level resource persons have been trained as part of Sajjam- Building Resilience Project, which prepares about one lakh Balasabha members to deal with natural calamities.

 

Shri. Chetan Kumar Meena, Director, Social Justice Department, Shri, Bhagath Roofus R.S, Member, District Panchayath Division, Ms. Geetha Nazir, Kudumbashree Governing Body Member and District Panchayath Member, Ms. Jaya Nalinappan, Chairperson, Welfare, Athiyannoor Block Panchayat,  Adv. Smitha Sundaresan, Kudumbashree Governing Body Member and Varkala Block Panchayat President,  Ms. Anitha Y.V, Chairperson, Kudumbashree Venganoor CDS, Shri. Roofus Daniel, Former President, Venganoor Grama Panchayath, Ms. Shobana, Former Chairperson, Venganoor CDS,  were also present at the function.

 

Dr. B Sreejith, Programme Officer, Social Development, Kudumbashree welcomed the gathering and Shri. Ashtapalan V.S, Member, Venganoor Grama Panchayath, delivered vote of thanks. 

 

 

Training for Balasabha Members as part of 'Sajjam'- Building Resilience Programme has started on 15 July 2023. The programme envisages preparing the new generation to face natural calamities. 608 District Level Resource Persons in 14 districts were trained by 28 trained Master Trainers and representatives of the State Disaster Management Authority on 30 June 2023 and 1 July 2023. Through these 608 Resource Persons around 1 lakh children aged between 13 and 17 years of age across the state will be trained in disaster preparedness.

The Two- Day National Workshop on PRI-CBO (Panchayati Raj Institutions-Community Based Organisations) Convergence Universalization Programme jointly organized by Ministry of Rural Development and Kudumbashree at Udaya Samudra Beach Hotel, Kovalam, Thiruvananthapuram has concluded. Shri. Vikas Anand, Joint Secretary, MoPR talked on 'VPRP-GPDP (Village Poverty Reduction Plan-Grama Panchayat Development Plan) Integration: Scope of Convergence between CBOs and PRIs and Role of SIRD (State Institute of Rural Development), DoPR (Department of Panchayati Raj)'.

On the second day of the workshop, the Experiences from the Field Visits were shared by the Field Visit Teams in the session moderated by Ms. Kavita Maria, National Mission Manager, NMMU (National Mission Management Unit). The delegates were divided into 6 groups and they made field visits to Venganoor, Balaramapuram, Kottukal, Kanjiramkulam, Pallichal and Karakulam Panchayats and visited BUDS Institutions, Anganwadi, ALMSC (Anganwadi Level Monitoring and Support Committee, Budget Hotel (Janakeeya Hotel) and Haritha Karma Sena. They also made interactions with Panchayat, CDS and line department officials regarding Structure of Panchayat and CBO, Preparation of CDS Action Plans, Evaluation Committee, Women Component Plan, Destitute Free Kerala Programme, Micro Plan for Extreme Poor, Citizen’s committees, Sustainable Development Goals, VPRP- GPDP integration mechanisms and integration of schemes of line departments with GPDP. Prior to the presentation of the field visit teams, Ms. Priya Paul, Manager, PRI-CBO Convergence, Kudumbashree NRO explained the Three-Tier Community Structure of Kudumbashree in Kerala.

According to the delegates, the field visits gave them a wholesome experience and helped them to identify the gaps in their implementation and replicate the Kerala model. According to Dr. Prasada Rao Vaddarapu, CEO, Tripura SRLM, the Grama Panchayats in Kerala acts as a 'Mini Secretariat' and it is highly impressive. He added that Kerala has made tremendous achievements and Kerala should be considered a 'Global Model'. The delegates also mentioned about the effective convergence system they experienced and how this convergence is coming out. They also mentioned how systematically Haritha Karma Sena in the state is working. They also suggested that Janakeeya Hotels and BUDS Institutions are unique models from Kerala.

Dr. Sharmila Mary Joseph, Principal Secretary, Local Government Department, Government of Kerala moderated the Panel Discussion - PRI CBO Convergence: Role of MoPR (Ministry of Panchayati Raj), DoPR (Department of Panchayati Raj), NIRD (National Institute of Rural Administration), SIRD (State Institute of Rural Development).

Ms. Usha Rani, Lead IBCB, NRLM, moderated the Panel Discussion on 'Pilot experience of PRI-CBO Convergence' of Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand and Meghalaya. Whereas, Ms. Jui Bhattacharya, National Mission Manager, NMMU moderated the State Operational Framework (SoF) Presentation of Tamil Nadu, Tripura and Himachal Pradesh.

Ms. Smriti Sharan, Joint Secretary, MoRD spoke about the Way Forward. Shri. S. M Vijayanand, Former Chief Secretary of Kerala, Dr Prathyusha Bhatnaik, Assistant Professor, NIRDPR, Dr. Nirmala Sanu George, Advisor, Kerala State Finance Commission, Government of Kerala were also present at the function. Dr. B. Najeeb, District Mission Coordinator, Kudumbashree Thiruvananthapuram District Mission delivered the vote of thanks. A Cultural Programme by a tribal group from Attappady was presented during the function.