Udaan project gives wings to the hopes of PVTG families of the state

Ranchi: There are about Seventy-Three thousand Special Tribal (PVTG) families in Jharkhand who mainly depend on nature, or rather live among nature and away from education and other basic needs and have their own social and cultural identity. Thousands of such PVTG families of the state are still away from the mainstream of development.

These groups live in poverty and lack basic facilities like education, and medicine among them. In order to connect them with the mainstream of development, the State Government and the Jharkhand State Livelihood Promotion Society (JSLPS) under the Department of Rural Development are ensuring the holistic development of PVTG families by working continuously through the UDAN project.

Under this project, the targeted PVTG families are being linked with self-help groups, so that they can be linked to the means of livelihood through the National Rural Livelihood Mission. So that, they can get a regular source of income. For this, a cadre of local people PVTG Change Maker (PCM) was started.

In this, they have been selected, who understand the problem of their community well and want to bring change in their society. Meena Malto is a PVTG Changemaker (PCM) in Haldara village in Littipada block of Pakur district. “Initially I had no identity in my village,” she said that there are very few people in her community who have passed matriculation.

Despite being educated she never thought about the development of my community but when she was selected and trained as a changemaker she came to know about various government schemes and programs through which she helped the needy people in my village. Today the village head and elected representatives appreciate her work she said adding that apart from getting satisfaction from work as change makers her social status among the people has also improved. PVTG Changemaker is at the core of this change effort.

Changemakers are selected from within the PVTG community. Such youth who are eager to bring some change in their community and are educated. They are selected and given special training by JSLPS. In which he is told about the various schemes being run for the PVTG community, as well as how he can bring these schemes to his community. Presently 369 PVTG Changemakers (PCMs) are active in 16 districts of the state.

Trained changemakers motivate women from PVTG families and self-help groups to join these schemes by explaining them about the benefits and working of government schemes. Along with this, the needy poor families get the benefits of pension, housing, insurance, PVTG Postman Scheme etc.

With the effort of the Jharkhand State Livelihood Promotion Society (JSLPS), ‘PVTG Pathshala’ has been started in 2020 under UDAN project to keep the children of PVTG community engaged in studies. Through which about 4500 PVTG children are studying in the most backward areas of 11 districts (Pakur, Dumka, Deoghar, Godda, Garhwa, Latehar, Palamu, Gumla, Seraikela Kharsawan, Lohardaga and East Singhbhum) where even the infrastructure is not developed.

Simon Malto, Change Maker, Littipada, Pakur says I realized that the foundation of community development lies in education. So soon after I passed the Intermediate, I understood the importance of education to parents and children in my village. They should come to PVTG school. Today I am a method to children along with my graduation studies, my dream is that my village becomes poverty free by getting 100 percent educated and all the people live happily. Pathshala Changemakers play an important role in PVTG Pathshala.

They are selected from amongst the PVTG group present in the village so that the children are comfortable in their studies. These Change Makers provide basic education to young children by organizing school in the morning and evening. PVTG Pathshala proved to be a milestone in this difficult time of pandemic when children of the PVTG community were completely cut off from their primary education. Not only is the interest of the children in school rekindled, but now the parents have also become a little free from worry about the importance of education and the future of their children.