Social Welfare: Nigrani Dal Women fuel village development
Introduction
In Jhabua, Madhya Pradesh, a group of Bhil women have taken the initiative to battle hunger and promote overall village development. As part of its Hunger and Malnutrition Eradication (Humane) Programme, the Indo-Global Social Service Society (IGSSS) helped to facilitate the effort.
Each village forms a Women Watch Group (Nigrani Dal) with the active involvement of women. The women watch groups get a variety of capacity-building programs for leadership development, communication skills, and monitoring abilities. In their meetings, the empowered women discuss their problems and lay out a plan of action. The monitoring groups are responsible for identifying families who are shut out of government programs. The organizations put together the necessary applications for the chosen families and submit them to the appropriate department. Thus, the families benefit appropriately from numerous programs. Women Watch organizations take the initiative to improve important health and nutrition indicators in their community. They assume responsibility for their hamlets' involvement in health and nutrition-related events like VHND, health fairs, Bal Suraksha mah, etc. for children under the age of five and expectant or nursing mothers. The malnourished youngsters are identified using MUAC tape, and they are then admitted to NRC. They keep a close eye on the actions taken by government agencies to make sure that the standard of services is upheld.
Results of women's watch groups' actions
9674 families have benefited from and are connected to various government programs on social security, food security, MGNREGS, etc. After receiving different health and nutrition-related benefits, 120 severely undernourished children and 297 moderately undernourished children were treated and made healthy. At the family level, 264 nutrition gardens have been installed. From the horticulture department, 1150 families have received masala kits and vegetable seeds. By cultivating little millets and conventional seeds, 70 families have recovered their ancestral food traditions. At the household level, they now employ compost and natural pesticides. By organizing admission campaigns, 202 school dropout kids have been re-admitted into their former schools. There has been a 17% increase in immunization rates among youngsters and expectant moms. Increase in institutional delivery has been noted.
By working together, the members of the village health sanitation and nutrition committee (VHSNC) have increased the availability of safe drinking water facilities in nine hamlets throughout seven villages. Following the efforts of the watch group members, 98 out of 122 Anganwadi centers, 36 out of 50 VHSNCs, and 23 out of 31 PDS centers have been successfully executing their services. With the convergence of the MGNREGS scheme, 28 CC roads, three pond deepenings, 23 poultry sheds, 58 goat sheds, 94 irrigation wells, and 19 fruit orchards have been established. Following Gram Sabha clearance, 1578 families built toilets as part of the Swachh Bharat Mission.
Influence on nutrition
The intervention's distinctive features include a convergence model between community and government, women's ownership and participation in leadership roles, strategic mobilization of women and service providers, and a social rather than a medical approach to the problem of malnutrition.
Through the establishment and strengthening of Watch Groups, Village Level Committees, and service providers, food and nutrition programs have impacted 23000 families. Second, there have been noticeable behavioral and attitude changes in the community around child care, nutrition, and the care of pregnant and breastfeeding mothers. These changes are long-lasting and represent a project's priceless gift to the community. Malnutrition and the care of girls and women who are pregnant or nursing are being handled at the community level through institutions and community-owned systems.
Sustainability
Only if the women's groups are appropriately oriented in action plan design and implementation on identified issues can the interventions be sustained. It is crucial that they coordinate and link up with other structures. The interventions have been duplicated from the original 10 villages to 50 villages, which will aid in problem understanding and promote group decision-making.
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