Health is an integral part of better quality of life. Unfortunately, even after 58 years of independence, illness is a major problem of the Rural Poor in India. Way back in 1946, Mahatma Gandhi established a Nature Cure Centre at Urulikanchan to promote community health. Gandhiji emphasized that with simple interventions such as hygiene, sanitation, immunization and nutrition, the incidences of illnesses can be reduced significantly. This is the basic principle of community health.

Community health being an integral part of wadi (orchard development), training of local mid wives, traditional healers and local health guides has been undertaken to create awareness, provide primary treatment and assist the families in chlorination of drinking water in the project villages. For immunisation and curative services, the communities are linked with primary health centres. Local healers have been trained in naturopathy and they have established their own centres to treat cases from their villages and from far away places.

BAIF health programme is implemented through various projects in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. Various programme initiatives are taken for bringing about a change in health behaviour, ensuring safe drinking water, sanitation and primary health care. Programmes that focus on reproductive health and child health are also implemented through promotion of ayurveda and traditional system of medicine that are still in use and are simpler for the rural people. Some of the projects also focus on mental health, illness and treatments. There are activities that are targeted towards controlling malnutrition in pregnant women and children in the age group of 0-5 years.

BAIF aims at a holistic and integrated health strategy for enhancing the health status of women. With disease prevention, the health programme also focuses on promotion of healthy practices, improvement of health services by building linkages with women's groups, incorporating gender perspective in health activities by involving women in decision making processes and building women's capacity in health programme.

A special project was introduced to address malnutrition of children, pregnant and lactating women and infant mortality through production and distribution of special nutritional supplements using locally grown cereals and millets as major ingredients. The project covering 6000 children and feeding of enriched mix hygienically produced and distributed through 16 SHGs, to children below 6 years suffering from Grade I-IV malnourishment, was initiated in 100 villages of Jawhar and Mokhada blocks in Thane district. Fully aware of its social responsibilities, BAIF will continue its endeavour of providing better health to rural communities by conducting studies in health insurance schemes through People's Organisations, strengthening of village health guides and traditional healers and bringing them into the mainstream of life and popularising the cultivation, use and marketing of herbal medicines.

For more details please visit to - http://www.nisargopcharashram.org

The aim of universalization of elementary education will not be achieved unless the issue of relevance of the education is addressed. The present education system hardly provides any scope to learn from actual life experiences and then to apply the gained knowledge into life situations. The whole teaching-learning process is detached from the actual life processes. The emphasis is on classroom interactions in the four walls. It results in ever-existing dichotomy in formal education and practical life.

Secondly the existing system directly as well as indirectly upholds urban centered career choices. It has ignored the possibilities of career development based on natural and other resources available in rural-tribal areas. Therefore, it is commonly observed that most of the educated youths lose their roots in local productive resources on the one hand and on the other hand the formal education doesn’t necessarily provide a reliable option of earning. Therefore 10th passed youths are found to be engaged in unskilled, unorganized jobs. It discourages them and their parents from investing the important years of their childhood and puberty in schools.

It has resulted in mass eviction of tribal students from the existing system. In the year 2003-04, 48.38% tribal children dropped out of the school at primary level and 70.01% dropped out at middle level while 79.03% dropped out at secondary level. (Source: India Department of Secondary and Higher Education. Abstract of selected educational statistics: 2003-04)

Students’ self image largely depends upon their achievements and failures in school. The whole process of developing unconfident, submissive personalities through school system is serious concern especially in tribal areas, as they are already a vulnerable group.

In order to address the above issues, the existing education system needs to be restructured by creating opportunities for practical application of classroom education and equipping students with necessary skills of earning their living by making best possible use of existing local resources. It should be introduced in free and democratic environment with opportunities for team work and active participation right from the decision making by students. Such education model would facilitate development of competencies like effective articulation and communication, analytical thinking, multi-angled thinking, problem solving, decision making, co-working which are significant in future personal as well social life. All these in totality would build in self confident, self reliant personality, which would enable the person to find his/her own way in today’s society.

Introducing changes in main-stream though tough and challenging, is of utmost importance, otherwise successful models isolated as development islands do not really benefit the needy group at larger level. Similarly changes evolved in the system itself are likely to be more suitable and contextual and therefore more acceptable by the system. Therefore Shikshan-Mittra programme designed by MITTRA aims to address the problem of relevance of education with above mentioned approach through working with the formal system.

The ashram school development programme, later named as Shikshan-MITTRA programme, was started with 52 residential Government and Private Aided Tribal Ashram-Schools in 15 districts of Maharashtra in 2003.

Programme Goal

	Introducing changes in existing education system to make it more relevant for the students in Tribal Areas
	Facilitating the Process of Residential Ashram Schools becoming the Development Centers for the surrounding Tribal Areas

Specific Objectives

	To equip the tribal students with life skills and information
	To provide avenues for personality development
	To facilitate better career choices by tribal boys & girls
	To facilitate a complementary interaction between the ashram schools and the community / parents
	To develop a sense of ownership about the programme in the ‘school community’ through effective participation of the school community, more specifically students in the planning, implementation and monitoring of the programme.
	To develop direct linkage of the programme with the school pedagogy
	To provide relevant insights into policy making by establishing appropriate feedback mechanisms

Programme Approach -

Work with the system: The programme works with the main-stream Gov and aided ashram schools, which has helped in reaching to the larger group of tribal children. Similarly the programme is being evolved as per the needs and context of these schools.

Life Education: The Programme is not restricted to giving only vocational skills but it aims at developments of life skills through practical work.

Active and Meaningful Involvement of the Children: Tribal students are at the center of the program. The active involvement of the students is expected from planning level and continues up to evaluation stage. It is being achieved step by step through Students’ Activity Groups under mentorship of teachers.

Ownership by the ashram school: Ownership by tribal ashram school community, which includes students, teaching and non-teaching staff, HM, Tribal Development Dept, Trusts running aided ashram schools, is the core of the programme. The schools are encouraged to design their own action plan depending upon the resources available, priorities and needs. Participatory planning meetings facilitate this process.

Reciprocal relation with the community: The programme expects to channelize the complementary interaction between the ashram schools and the surrounding tribal community. Especially the school is expected to work as ‘Development Center’ for the community

Major components -

Agriculture: Students are given practical exposure through field-work in agricultural activities which include kitchen garden, vermi compost, flower garden, herbal garden, nursery and horticulture and forest plantation. Demonstration of economically viable, eco friendly technologies in watering the plants is also given.

Health : Critical health problems like rampantly prevalent contagious diseases are treated. Students are provided with health education on how to prevent such contagious as well as waterborne diseases. Focus is on to translate this theoretical education in behavioral pattern by providing material like nail-cutters, forming students groups to monitor the health habits.

Social Awareness: Along with these, exposure visit to civil institutions such as PHC, bank, police station are also arranged for creating social awareness. Other inputs to make the students aware of their social environment and develop skills for effective dealing with that environment are given through camps and project works.

Vacation Projects: Vacation Projects Students are motivated to transform their exposure in advance technology and development issues to their families and hamlets through vacation projects.

Publications: Asha Vartapatra, is a magazine which provides a platform for expression of ashram school teachers and Balkhajina is wallpaper published quarterly for expression of students.

Under Vikas Arth (Development Finance), 9123 Self Help Groups have been promoted through various programmes spread over Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, which have collectively saved 11.08 crores and accessed cumulative credit to the tune of 24.18 crores, with 1923 groups having taken loan from banks to meet their credit needs. Conducting need-based trainings is a continuous process along with documentation and research studies. 6901 groups promoted through various programmes of BAIF are spread over 7 states of India & have collectively saved 6.60 crores & accessed cumulative credit to the tune of 15.73 crores.

2580 groups are linked to banks to avail of additional credit to meet their needs and for micro-enterprises. An effort to work with banks under the Business facilitator model has been initiated. Direct credit disbursement has also been taken up as a critical component of the wadi programme.

Capacity building of the teams from associate organisations of Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka is an ongoing process. These teams in turn facilitate and train the members of Self help groups formed under various projects and at various locations. Relevant training modules and specific training material has been prepared to conduct these need-based trainings in local languages. Developing SHG members as trainers and entrepreneurs has been the focus. Networking with INAFI - India is ensuring wider reach and cross learning.

Key Role of Women : Traditionally, managing the home, nurturing and grooming children have been considered to be the primary responsibility of women. Apart from fulfilling these responsibilities, women also substantially contribute to the livelihood of the family. However, women do not receive due recognition inspite of their immense contribution to the development of their families. Due to gender stereotypes, they are not treated as equal partners in the family. The major concerns of women are lack of education and technical skills, marriage at an early age, neglect of their health and little or no control over resources. Hence, they are denied opportunities for their development and active participation in society.

BAIF's Strategy : Realising their prominent role, women empowerment has been considered as an integral component of all the sustainable rural livelihood programmes. Based on long experience, BAIF has developed a strategy for women empowerment. Reduction in hardship along with capacity building of women and gender sensitisation of various sections of the community are the major aspects. This will lead to enhancement in the status of women and enable them to participate in decision making processes.

Reduction of Hardship : Rural women have to face a lot of hardships in their day-to-day life. In order to reduce their drudgery, the following hardship reduction measures have been introduced :

	Creation of safe drinking water sources closer to their houses.
	Establishment of community grain banks and promotion of nutrition gardens.
	Promotion of energy conservation devices: improved stoves, biogas, solar devices and energy plantations.
	Establishment of linkages to address various needs These activities have created a very favourable impact on their quality of life.

Health : Neglect of women's health is common and women take this situation as 'given'. Therefore, efforts are made to build awareness on improvement in hygiene, sanitation, maternal and child health, family welfare and family planning. Upgrading the skills of local healers and midwives, training of mid-wives, herbal healers and local youth as health guides for first-aid, are some of the key approaches adopted by BAIF. Encouraging the community through Self Help Groups (SHGs) for enrollment of girls in schools and prevention of child marriage are other interventions which support community health as well. Women members in SHGs are encouraged to conduct annual health check up and avail of health insurance schemes for themselves and their family members. Kitchen garden is promoted at the family level which ensures supplementary nutrition for the family at their doorsteps.

Gender Equality : The elder male members in the family may not want women to go out on their own. They may feel threatened. Therefore, it becomes necessary to sensitise men about the need for women empowerment. Opening of joint bank accounts and registering assets and land titles jointly also need persuasion. Recognition of women's services to the family and society can empower them further and provide them equal status in the society.

Gender Responsive Approach to Women Empowerment

	Hardship reduction to facilitate participation in economic development.
	Identification of practical gender needs and addressing them.
	Involvement in decision making process.
	Capacity building in technical skills, information sharing and leadership development.
	Formation of SHGs for solidarity, awareness and motivation, addressing common problems and micro-financing.
	Economic development : Enhance abilities to contribute to family income, access to credit and assets and reduce economic dependence.
	Staff orientation to adopt suitable approaches to address the problems and encourage participatory development.
	Gender vigilance to ensure women's participation on all fronts and access to benefits of training, entrepreneurship and activities of Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs).

Capacity Building : Building of women's capabilities to improve their skills, develop leadership and link with technologies, trade, financial institutions and local Governments empower them to take active part in socio-economic development at par with others. There are a number of success stories where they have developed mutual trust, social security, skills and access to technology and credit through their SHGs and various People's Organisations. Women groups have motivated the entire community to take up hygiene, sanitation, family planning and health care activities with the community. Several groups have established their grain banks to ensure food security for their members. There has been increased awareness about education for children, particularly, girls. Prevention of child marriage has been an important agenda of many SHGs which has been endorsed by other sections of the community as well. Such steps have led the community towards a literate and progressive society, directly benefitting every member of the family.

Wavli : Wavli is a unique, traditional custom which ensures the exclusive rights of tribal women over their own earnings. Traditionally, women have been engaging themselves in vegetable cultivation in their backyards or in collection of minor forest produce and men have never staked their claim over these earnings. Realising that wavli can be an excellent opportunity to empower women, several new activities such as nurseries of fruit and forestry plants, mushroom production, large scale vegetable production and shared cropping by women's groups were introduced by BAIF in early 80's in the Tribal Rehabilitation Project at Vansda in South Gujarat. A large number of women were attracted to this concept and the men also extended their cooperation. The earnings from wavli were used by the women for food, clothing and procurement of utensils and ornaments from the surplus money. Hence, wavli turned out to be a golden opportunity for BAIF to promote empowerment of women on a large scale.

Promotion of Livelihood : Most of the women SHGs promoted under various development programmes are involved in savings through periodic collection from the members, recycling of this money among the members as microcredit for consumptive and productive purposes, and training of women members for initiating various micro-enterprises. Many SHGs have progressed further to deal with various social issues such as education of girls, prevention of child marriages, struggle against liquor sale, promotion of community health, sanitation, establishment of community grain banks and protest against violence.