2010-2011 Report 2010-11.pdfThe 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act (CAA) mandated 33.33% reservation...

annual report 2010-2011

contentsprogramme strategies 4strengthening women’s leadership 6making panchayats effective 16influencing public opinion 20advocating for change 24new initiatives 28highlights 2010 -2011 34partnerships 36finances 40governance 46directory 48

about the hunger projectThe Hunger Project (THP) is a global strategic organization working in 14 countries committed to ending hunger. In India it is committed to enthuse and sustain the leadership spirit in women elected to village Panchayats. The 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act (CAA) mandated 33.33% reservation for women in all three tiers of the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs), bringing more than one million women into public political life. In several states this reservation has been increased to 50%. It is THP India’s conviction that the active participation of women in political and decision making processes of local governance will help bring economic and social development to the villages of India.

The Hunger Project aims to strengthen the role of elected women representatives (EWRs) in grassroot governance so that they are able to exercise leadership within their constituencies and practice gender responsive governance and transformative leadership based on the principles of women’s human rights and social justice.

The Hunger Project works across nine States in India, focusing on the mobilization and empowerment of women representatives in Panchayats. Through effective strategies and partnership with more than 52 civil society organizations, The Hunger Project has reached out to more than 100,000 women representatives in the last 10 years.

THP India commissioned a review of its work in the field. This evaluation was aimed to assess THP’s strategies so as to sharpen programmatic interventions in the coming years.

THP India was awarded the Edelgive Social Innovation award in the governance category in March 2011. THP India is proud to win this award for its excellent work in SWEEP 2010 – the Gram Panchayat pre-election campaign in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.

the hunger project4

programme strategiesThe Hunger Project (THP) India uses a multi-pronged strategy to strengthen the political leadership and participation of elected women representatives (EWRs) in Gram Panchayats (GPs). The strategies aim to build the capacities of individual EWRs and also an enabling environment for the EWRs to exercise their leadership with success.

THP’s four strategies are:

1. Strengthening Women’s Leadership

2. Making Panchayats Effective

3. Influencing Public Opinion

4. Advocating for Change

These four strategies come together in a proven and systematic methodology based on strategic interventions following the five year terms of the Gram Panchayat and the tenure of its EWRs.

After elections most women come to hold public offices for the first time. The Hunger Project is committed both to staying the course with the EWRs in Gram Panchayats for the full five year cycle and to support them in the next round, should they wish to stand for re-election. THP contextualizes its four strategies to meet the local needs and cultures of each state and region.

The Hunger Project works in the States of Bihar, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Uttarakhand. It has six State offices—in Jaipur, Bhopal, Bangalore, Patna, Bhubaneshwar and Chennai. The National office is in New Delhi.

THP India is able to successfully fulfill its objectives with the support of institutional donors, government agencies and field level partner organizations. Partnerships forged by THP in the past 10 years have had high standards, been fruitful and the mainstay of its success.

the hunger project annual report 2010-20116 7

women’s leadership, follow-up and need based workshops Women’s leadership workshops (WLWs) are three-day workshops for first-time EWRs, and manifest as the first major capacity building initiative of the THP five-year cycle. Participatory in nature, WLWs are conducted primarily to build confidence among first time elected women and provide them with information and knowledge about their key roles and responsibilities in the Panchayats. It is the first step towards transformative leadership. WLWs seek to facilitate:

Creation of a sense of self-esteem and dignity

A shift from an ‘I cannot’ to an ‘I can’ mindset

Understanding of the self as a woman, a citizen, a member of caste, class, and religion, and as a leader

Understanding of political citizenship

Clear articulation of community vision and goals

Understanding of society as a system and the balance/imbalance of power within it

A sense of solidarity and partnership with other grassroots women leaders

During this reporting period, the states of Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan conducted WLWs and follow up workshops.In all, 144 women’s leadership workshops were conducted to train 4086 EWRs. 130 follow up workshops with 3712 EWRs were also conducted. These workshops covered a range of issues such as domestic and caste based violence, MNREGA, RTI and other obstacles that come in the way of practicing good governance in the Gram Panchayats.

strengthening women’s leadership

the hunger project annual report 2010-20118 9training of trainers (tot)

Training of Trainer workshops are conducted prior to each set of capacity building initiatives for EWRs. Trainers and field-level professionals of THP partner organizations are trained in each planned intervention and their capacities are built on thematic issues. Contemporary perspectives and debates are explored, new information is imparted and new training skills and methodologies are taught. 15 TOTs trained 290 women and 101 men trainers during this reporting period.

shobha singh, sarpanch, budgauna gram pancahyat, sidhi district, madhya pradesh

I filed my candidature for the post of Sarpanch of Budgauna Panchayat when asked by my family members to contest. My husband and other male family members canvassed for me and I won by record number of votes. My participation in the Women’s Leadership Workshop taught me the importance of being free for the first time.

‘I didn’t know it was OK to say what I thought’. Once I realized that I could express my opinion, I started taking interest in the ongoing work of selecting beneficiaries for a social security scheme for the aged. Relationships strained with my husband who threatened to desert me.

I told my husband, ‘I can’t stand your abuses, I like working and this is what I will keep doing’. Later on I stopped a child marriage from being solemnized with help of other federation members. Now my priority is to work on alcoholism and close the liquor shops in my Panchayat and surrounding areas.

Though women gain a foothold in local government and decision making systems, EWRs continue to face challenges while attempting to fulfil their duties in office. Need for additional inputs are expressed by them during workshops, meetings, and Samellans. THP designs need based thematic workshops and focuses on equipping EWRs with the skills necessary to address and resolve specific, often context-related challenges. In Uttarakhand and Tamil Nadu they were organized to recapitulate the functions of the EWRs in Panchayats, provide information on various Government schemes like MNREGS, Social Welfare Schemes, and Right to Information.

Workshop Type

No. of workshops

Elected Women Participants

Block Level Workshops to Launch WLW

21 1669

WLWs 144 4086

Follow-Up Workshops 130 3712

Need Based Workshops 49 1154

TOTAL 295 9467

women’s leadership, follow-up and need based workshops


SWEEP in Bihar secured the support of the State Election Commission and the Panchayati Raj department so as to access timely information and permissions.

workshops were held in 47 blocks across 17 districts to build the capacity of potential women candidates identified in the simulation camps. In total, 1928 potential women leaders were trained in these workshops. 929 village meetings were held to build rapport with the community and provide information on elections. Potential women leaders who had undergone trainings used these meetings as a platform to announce their candidature and also their manifesto which they promised to fulfill as an elected member. 41 interface meetings, 495 Padyatras, 254 street plays were also conducted. 16 resource centres were opened to provide election related forms and information to women and men. The radio programme reached out to approximately 3.8 million households in 38 districts of Bihar.

The SWEEP campaign resulted in increased participation of women and sensitizing the community towards their role as responsible citizens and voters. Women contested in numbers larger than previous years from both reserved and unreserved seats.

36 cases of violence were identified, out of which 22 were of serious concern. In order to protect the political rights of women, THP allied with the women’s network, WAMA – Women’s Association for Marching Ahead - and pushed for formal registration of cases, conducted fact-finding investigations, and advocated for police follow-up.

highlights of bihar sweep

Citizens voted and filed nominations (especially women) for the 1st time since 2001 in some Gram Panchayts in the districts of Jamui and Gaya.

More than 90% members of THP supported EWR federations filed their nominations. Of them, 50% won the elections.

1454 women have acted as proposers.

Women have also shown their presence as polling agents (30) and counting agents (1120).

strengthening women’s empowerment through electoral processes (sweep)SWEEP is an extensive pre-election campaign undertaken in the fifth and final year of a State’s Gram Panchayat election cycle. SWEEP’s objective has been to encourage women to contest for every seat, even beyond reservation. The Bihar Panchayat elections were held in April-May 2011 in 10 phases. SWEEP was carried out in 27 districts, 71 blocks and 1065 Gram Panchayats. SWEEP reached out to approximate 21,30,000 persons. This was the first time that such extensive campaign was undertaken to promote women’s leadership in Panchayats in Bihar.

Significantly, this was the second term of the 50% reservation in Bihar and the usual practice of rotation of reserved seats was not undertaken for the 2011 Panchayat elections. The key objective of SWEEP in Bihar was to promote women’s participation in the Panchayat election - as informed voters, polling agents, counting agents, proposers and most significantly to promote women’s leadership. Overall the aim of the SWEEP campaign is to increase the visibility of women in the entire electoral process as – voters, citizens, candidates and electoral officers and agents.

Several interventions were designed and implemented to make SWEEP successful in the context of Bihar. Simulation camps were held in 45 blocks across 16 districts. These camps marked the participation of 14,767 community members. Potential leadership

the hunger project annual report 2010-201112 13when the SWEEP campaign was carried out by The Hunger Project that I came to know that women can also contest from unreserved seats. Before coming in contact with THP, I had never realized, worried, or cared about my political rights. But when I got associated with the campaign which was encouraging women and community to promote women’s leadership, I filed the nomination for the post of Mukhiya. I know that poverty is rampant in my constituency and until and unless the services are improved and implemented rightfully, people will be deprived of their rights. With such a pow erful and responsible position as Mukhiya, I would be able to take concrete steps against deforestation, child marriage, and alcoholism and can improve the facility of drinking water. I would work towards the welfare of the community.

With such a hope, I travelled from one village to another and visited each and every individual, and asked them to support me in the election. I would campaign during the day time but could not manage to travel at night as this area is Naxal-affected area. I did not spend enough money during campaign as compared to the other candidates. I also did not tempt people with liquor and money. I was hopeful that people would understand me and my intention and support me with their precious votes.

A leader is not one who acts only after being in power and position, but one who always make people feel that they are powerful and can change the situa tion and condition of the position holders. I will keep working towards creating awareness among the community against alcoholism and child marriage with the help of SHGs, women federations, and beedilabourers. I’ll also inform people about the schemes of Panchayats and keep working towards the over all development of Panchayat, inspire people about strong leadership and raise awareness against the social evils.

sugia soren, candidate for the post of mukh iyagram panchayat elections 2011 chai gram panchayat, jhajha block, jamui district, bihar

For 35 years I did not know what development of Panchayat meant, what the role of citizens in the development of Panchayats could be? The women of our Panchayat, especially of Santhal Tola suffer from water crisis, lack of electricity; but, we did not know whom to approach for this. How can we improve the services in our Panchayats? But, just a few months before the Panchayat elections 2011, I heard from someone about a campaign which pro moted women’s leadership and encouraged women’s participation in the electoral process. I came in contact with the SWEEP campaign of The Hunger Project.

In Chai Panchayat we did not know when the elec tions were held and who won. People did not participate in Panchayat elections in the last decade. In such circumstances, the decision of contesting for the post of Mukhiya during Panchayat Elections 2011 was not an easy task. Along with me, for the first time, male candidates also filed nominations in large numbers.

I was the only female candidate from my Panchayat contesting against 17 male candidates for the post of Mukhiya. The women in my area had never thought that they could also contest from the unreserved seats, which were considered as male-seats. It was only

the hunger project annual report 2010-201114 15In September 2010, the new members of SUGRAMA state federation in Karnataka held their first annual general body meeting at a SAMAVESHA in Bangalore. The new steering committee elected its office bearers which took charge from the old and also set up an advisory committee. 230 SUGRAMA members from 53 blocks and 19 districts attended the two day meetings, met with their steering committee and office bearers, passed resolutions related to their functioning and developed a manifesto for the coming years. The State Minister of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Mr Jagadish Shettar was the Chief Guest on the final day of the SAMAVESHA.

monitoring and evaluationTHP has initiated systematic and detailed impact assessment of its interventions across India. Under this assessment, a baseline and an outcome assessment survey is conducted for elected women representatives (EWRs) who undergo THP capacity building training programmes. The baseline is designed to capture EWRs’ degree of understanding and knowledge of various functions of Panchayat prior to the training. The survey intends to collect demographic data and qualitative data on parameters such as knowledge, perception and level of information and understanding of EWRs on Panchayats, their functioning, their roles and responsibilities etc. In this reporting period, the baseline was piloted in two States (Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan). The Baseline collects data on different parameters of functioning of EWRs such as personal profile, family profile, political/electoral profile, public participation, awareness of Panchayati Raj Institutions, roles and responsibilities as a panchayat representatives and women’s leadership issues.

federations for a greater voiceFederations provide EWRs a platform for sharing of experiences and common issues, collaborating on projects, advocating for women’s political rights, fighting social injustices, and jointly lobbying against adverse policies. It is a platform for co-learning which encourages EWRs to work with one another to increase their impact on their communities and the government. The Hunger Project initially facilitated federation building processes during the third year of the five year tenure of an EWR. Yet positive feedback, consistent federation success stories, and repeated requests on the part of EWRs for more and earlier coalition building has brought federation building into the agenda of the first year of the five year cycle.

Across 8 States, elected women have grouped together to form 115 block federations, 29 cluster federations, and one state federation with a total membership of 7000 EWRs.

These federations continue to forge ahead by building linkages with the state governments, disseminating governance related information to its members and addressing issues of social and gender justice in the Gram Panchayats. In this reporting period, THP held more than 200 federation building workshops and 300 federation meetings to build the capacities of over 10,000 EWRs across 8 States of India.

achievements of federations

Increased joint ownership of households (JOH) and strengthened implementation of Government Order on joint ownership

Improved Public Distribution System (PDS) through monitoring by and intervention of EWRs

Decreased incidences of Violence against Women (VAW) through interventions by EWRs in Gram Panchayats

Strengthened Panchayats through increased participation of citizens in Gram Sabhas

Improved relations between EWRs and elected male representatives (EMRs) through interface meetings

Awareness on Social Audit and RTI

Alliance-building dialogue between newly elected women leaders and media and administration


gram sabha mobilization campaignsThe constitutionally mandated Gram Sabha is the mechanism by which constituencies hold Panchayats accountable. If women’s leadership, both in government and in other aspects of village and community life, is to be effective, having women speak and participate in these meetings is crucial. Yet in the past, participation of elected women representatives, and other women in general has been very low in such meetings. Intensive Gram Sabha Mobilization campaigns conducted by THP with the support of EWRs and partner organizations have been conducted and inputs regarding the need, role, rules, regulations, and participation in Gram Sabha meetings provided. In all, 94 Gram Sabhas have been mobilized in this reporting period.

Puppet shows, street plays, lectures, and audio and video material are used to impart the importance of the Gram Sabhas. These tools have also been used to highlight development and women’s issues in Gram Sabha agendas. In States such as Bihar where Gram Sabhas are rarely held, EWRs hold ward sabhas to mobilize people to demand Gram Sabhas.After a 21-day awareness campaign on Gram Sabha Mobilization across Tamil Nadu, attendance of both men and women increased in the Gram Sabha participation and issues regarding water facilities and drainage, early marriage, and environmental conservation were collectively raised and followed up more cohesively than before.

gram sabha trackingTo evaluate the impact of trained EWRs in Gram Sabhas, THP initiated the tracking and monitoring of Gram Sabhas. Quarterly Gram Sabha meetings were attended to observe and document the role of women representatives in these meetings, the impact of the

making panchayats effective

the hunger project18Hunger Project’s training programs, and the progress towards true and effective collective grassroots decision making. Tracking Gram Sabhas enables THP, EWR federations, and THP partner organizations to remain consistently aware of the different issues and challenges facing different EWRs in particular and Gram Sabha meetings as a whole. In all 23 Gram Sabhas were tracked in this period.

panchayat meetings In order to maximize the efficacy of the Gram Sabha mobilization initiatives, EWRs meet regularly at Panchayat level meetings. The meetings help to mobilize community women to have greater roles and participate more effectively in the Gram Sabha. A critical outcome of these meetings is the collective community spirit developed by coming together as a group. The monthly Panchayat meetings enable EWRs to prepare their agenda and synthesize ideas and issues much before the official Gram Sabha meetings. In Madhya Pradesh, Gram Sabha meetings identified work to be executed under right to work Scheme MNREGA-Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and effected the constitution of working committees through the official Panchayat Meeting.


Partnerships with the regional and national media have been integral to THP’s programme and have helped to change the cynical opinion regarding women’s leadership in Gram Panchayats. Working with the media enables EWRs to tackle particular issues in a more systematic way. In Bihar, 4 district level media workshops were organized and a total of 64 media personnel and 56 EWRs participated in the workshops. The EWRs shared their ongoing plans and strategies to address issues of sex-selective abortion, child marriage and domestic violence with the media. In all 22 media workshops were organized across the country.

While radio coverage has always been an integral aspect of SWEEP campaigns, radio programmes have proven to be an useful means for disseminating information to grassroots constituencies and influence public opinion. In Madhya Pradesh, several workshops with radio producers took place across the State covering inspiring stories of EWRs for 30 minute radio programs. Similarly, radio plays were produced in Hindi and Bagheli on RTI, MNREGA, Domestic Violence, and Women’s Leadership.

influencing public opinion

the winnersENGLISH — Ms Preethi Nagaraj for her article, ‘From Homeless Tribal to GP Chief,’ published in The Deccan Herald, Mysore, Karnataka

HINDI — Ms Rumni Ghosh for her article, ‘Beware, Here Lives Amaso Bai,’ published in Dainik Bhaskar, Indore, Madhya Pradesh

OTHER INDIAN LANGUAGE — Ms Bornali Boruah for her article in Assamese, ‘Panchayati Raj Brings Change Amidst Two Leaves and a Bud,’ published in Ajir Asom, Dibrugar, Assam

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celebrating 10 years of the Sarojini Naidu PrizeIn 2010 Sarojini Naidu Prize turned ten. The Prize, instituted by The Hunger Project-India in 2000,was first awarded in 2001 to mark the beginning of a partnership with the print media. Given annually ‘For Best Reporting on Women and Panchayati Raj’ it was launched to promote and encourage sustained reporting in the media on the issue of women’s political participation in Panchayats and foster an environment of positive opinion that supports their leadership.

Awarded to journalists in three language categories – English, Hindi and Other Regional Languages, it aims to encourage the press to energetically and prominently report on the breakthroughs and success stories of women in leadership in India. Winners receive a cash prize and a personalized citation. The winners are selected by a panel of eminent jurors.

The tenth Sarojini Naidu Prize was hosted by the Global Office in New York. Ms Amita Devi, Sarpanch of Dadar Kolhua Gram Panchayat, Kanti Block, Muzaffarpur District, Bihar was the Guest of Honour in New York.


two child norm Two child norm (TCN) does not allow women (and men) with more than two children to stand for elections. It is a practice that tends to undermine women and (men’s) effective participation in local governance. With the mandate given by 73rd and 74th Constitu-tional Amendment Acts, the grass root leadership that has emerged has specifically been targeted for population control. It is enacted by some States as part of the conformity legislations.

THP upholds that the imposition of TCN on Panchayat representatives would adversely affect the lives and health of women in particular, whether as elected representatives or their wives. TCN encourages sex-selection, increases discrimination against the girl child, and worsens the already declining sex-ratio, in addition to barring a significant percentage of the grassroots population from [their natural] right to self-governance.

THP has been advocating for the removal of TCN in Odisha and for preventing the norm from being implemented in Bihar. A series of consultations have been held with multi stakeholders in Odisha to strategize for its removal before the next Gram Panchayat elections. EWRs, EWR federations and Mahila Adhikar Samukhyas (MAS) have been actively involved in this advocacy. They have met with the Human Rights Commission, SC/ST Commission, Child Rights Commission and Women’s Commission. Memorandums have been presented to the MLAs, MPs, bureaucrats and other stake holders.

advocating for change

the hunger project annual report 2010-201126 27other advocacy issuesThe Hunger Project India supported the ‘Alliance for 33%’ asking for reservation of women in the Indian Parliament. The elected women representatives from across India and members of federations supported by THP India undertook signature campaigns in their blocks and sent banners endorsing their support. 77 banners with thousands of signatures were received and displayed at the demonstration venue on Parliament Street, New Delhi. 54 elected women representatives and THP partners participated in the demonstration.

The EWRs of Uttarakhand have demanded for a Panchayati Raj Act to be drafted specifically for their State. In addition, EWRs are also advocating for honorarium for Ward Members in Gram Panchayats. At the state level, EWRs have demanded the appointment of more Panchayat Secretaries.

section 40 of madhya pradesh pri actSection 40 pro vides for removal of an elected representative who is found to be not working in public interest, guilty of misconduct or failing to carry out the duties assigned. Sub Divisional Magistrates (SDMs) are empow ered to take action under this particular section after appropriate investigation. On the basis of reasonable evidence they may remove the elected representative from the post. Such a person is declared ineligible to contest for any post for a pe riod of six years.

In Madhya Pradesh, THP has found that this section is being regularly misused against elected women. Often, EWRs are unable to perform their duties and develop their constituencies due to the registered cases. Most importantly, given that the power to remove an elected representative is vested with the bureaucracy, this section goes against the basic spirit of decentralization and impinges on functioning of effective local governance.

One State level consultation and two regional consultations were held with multi -stakeholders. The consultations concluded that there was an urgent need to repeal the section from the PRI Act since it violates the basic principle of decentralization—power should remain in the hands of the people, rather than in the hand of a bureaucrat. In order to take this advocacy initiative forward a status report on the impact of Section (40) has been commissioned.

section 46 of karnataka pri actSection 46 of the Karnataka PRI Act states that the tenure of the President and the Vice President of all three tiers of the Panchayats shall be for 30 months from the date of her/his election. Members of SUGRAMA Grama Panchayat Chunayitha Mahila Pratinidhigala Sangha, an autonomous state federation built by THP, feel that the 30 month tenure is not enough for them to learn their roles and responsibilities and also establish their credentials. Along with SUGRAMA, THP commissioned a study to understand the impact of Section 46 on the development of the Panchayats.

SUGRAMA demanded that the Government of Karnataka commit to a full five year term for the post of the President as is constitutionally mandated for Presidents across the country. The study was conducted in 17 blocks of Karnataka and concluded that 30 months was insufficient to nurture the leadership of women at the grassroots. Also EWRs were being intimidated to vacate their posts earlier than the 30 month period and several rounds of indirect elections were being undertaken to elect new Presidents. The findings of the study were disseminated at a roundtable in Bangalore in January 2011. 48 representatives of over 20 organizations participated in the roundtable.


jagruk manch Jagruk Manch is a new initiative launched during this reporting period. A programmatic intervention initiated under the THP-UN Women Partnership, Jagruk Manch functions as a platform for elected and non-elected women at the Gram Panchayat to support the work of the elected women representatives and at the same time strengthen the participation of women in panchayats as informed citizens. EWRs have taken a lead in all Jagruk Manch platforms as mentors, facilitators, and political leaders, thereby strengthening women’s agency as decision makers in the community and engendering sustainable egalitarian governance processes. The process of formation of Jagruk Manch was initiated across three States of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha.

objectives of the jagruk manch

To build a support structure for elected women representatives so that they can exercise their leadership effectively.

To engage women citizens in Gram Panchayats with issues of governance and build their political understanding of rights, roles, responsibilities and duties of citizens, elected representatives, local bureaucracy and the State.

To provide a common platform for elected women and women citizens in Gram Panchayats to advocate for good governance and accountability in their Panchayats; and ensure that their Panchayats are sensitive to issues of social justice and gender justice.

new initiatives

the hunger project30Overall, 315 Jagruk Manchs have been formed with participation of elected women and women community members from 635 Gram Panchayats in the 3 States of Rajasthan, Odisha and Madhya Pradesh. In Rajasthan these forums are referred to as Mahila Jagruk Manch, in Odisha MAS, and are known as Sajha Manch in Madhya Pradesh. 5898 elected women representatives and 17053 women citizens have been participating in Jagruk Manch meetings across the three States in this reporting period.

Regular meetings were conducted at the Panchayat and cluster level to introduce, build and strengthen Jagruk Manchs which included building objectives, vision, membership, structure, scope and functionality of the Manch. Membership criteria included partici-pation of EWRs and only women citizens, especially the marginalized. The average membership is forty per Jagruk Manch. Non-elected women participants include members of SHGs, youth groups, forest rights groups, ASHA workers, ANMs, teachers, school attendants, Anganwadi workers, and other community women.

Jagruk Manchs focus on State-specific issues. In Rajasthan, Jagruk Manch meetings have focused on issues related clean drinking water, sanitation, MNREGA and education. In Odisha, MAS groups focused on rights of women and children, domestic violence, and alcoholism. MAS members were informed about the Domestic Violence Act. They collectively monitored ICDS centers, and formed local committees to track and ensure its regular and proper functioning. The Sajha Manch in Madhya Pradesh has focused on alcohol and sanitation. In addition, action has been taken against private encroachment on Government land earmarked for community projects, such as school building, community centre, Anganwadi, and health center construction. Sanjha Manch members have also advocated for the rightful implementation of MNREGA, land entitlements under Forest Rights Act for tribal communities, accountability of Anganwadi and ICDS centers, and mid-day meal service delivery at local schools.

jagruk manch ensures accessibility of services to marginalized communities

Lakhakhera Panchayat of Katni district had schools, health centers and even a community hall. How ever, access was limited to upper caste members. Lakhakhera sarpanch and a Sajha Manch mem ber, Tulsa came to know of the problem once she started holding the manch meetings. She encouraged women from all castes to attend Gram Sabha meetings. She constructed roads and ensured electricity in the neglected settlements. This bought her confi dence and support of the people of her Panchayat. Thereafter, women manch members took the initiative to visit different hamlets, motivating mothers to send their children to schools and anganwadis. Manch member Shanti says, “Till we and our children start going to these centers and show the way, how would others go? So we did, and soon others followed.”

the hunger project annual report 2010-201132 33EWRs found it very difficult to change the mindset of people on this. This intervention provided an excellent platform to engage with elected women on the issue of gender discrimination and gender justice in a comprehensive and focused manner. This has also helped them to build a base to campaign in the upcoming Panchayat elections for greater participation of women in Panchayats and also for some to re-contest for the Elections. Elected Women have emerged as responsible and effective leaders and will continue to be citizen leaders in the future – advocating against gender discrimination and upholding the dignity and rights of women in their Panchayats. This intervention was a result of THP – UNFPA partnership.

building awareness on climate changeAnother new initiative, this aimed to build the capacities of the elected women leaders to understand climate change issues and its impact on their own Panchayats. Understanding climate change helped EWRs to exercise their leadership in taking steps to reduce their vulnerability as well as formulate strategies to mitigate the climate change risks. To this effect, the EWRs conducted baseline survays and climate change camps in their respective Panchayats.

interface meetings at block and district levelInterface meetings of EWRs with different line department officials at the block and district level is yet another new initiative of THP. Initial meetings enable EWRs to break the social divide that exist between them and higher, predominantly male political officials. These forums and subsequent follow-up also demonstrate to EWRs the power and influence of the federations, as well as enable EWRs to work with respective line departments more efficiently and thus, administer their roles more effectively within the Panchayat.

building linkages with mlasInterface with Parliamentarians and Legislators in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Odisha at the district and block level was a first time intervention that received a positive response from both the Parliamentarians / Legislators and elected women. The objective was to support the elected women representatives to engage with the State, in order to demand implementation of commitments made. The direct interface with the Parliamentarians has provided the elected women with a platform where they can bring to the notice of MLAs and MPs the challenges that affect their respective Panchayats,thus demanding good and accountable governance. The exercise has helped in strengthening the elected women’s leadership. They have become more confident, aware and sure of their own political agency. For the Parliamentarians too, this opportunity has resulted in sensitizing them to the issues and challenges in the Panchayats, especially those faced by the elected women while exercising their political roles. Each new interaction has ensured increased mutual respect for each other’s political agency.

building awareness on gender discriminatory practices in biharIn April 2010, THP designed and implemented an intervention to build awareness on gender discrimination with a focus on reproductive rights (RR), reproductive health (RH) & gender justice. This was the first time when THP India worked with elected women representatives to address gender discriminatory practices. The nine month programme reached out to 37,500 citizens in 8 blocks of four districts through the leadership of 208 EWRs. EWRs prioritized issues of sex selective abortion, child marriage, dowry and domestic violence. Of the 268 trained EWRs, 208 EWRs were able to take the message forward in their Panchayats. Despite being sensitive topics, EWRs easily accepted to work on the issue of sex selection, domestic violence, and child marriage and have been accepted as the change agents in the community. Dowry remained a sensitive issue as

the hunger project annual report 2010-201134 351. THP India trained EWR Sharmi Bai, along with Rita Sarin of THP, met US President Mr

Barack Obama in Mumbai and presented the work of The Hunger Project and its efforts to strengthen democracy at the grassroots. Sharmi Bai spoke of her own achievements and shared her journey of empowerment with President Obama.

2. THP India hosted a delegation led by the Ambassador for Global Women’s Issues, Ms Melanne Verveer. Ambassador Verveer met with THP team and several EWRs in Jaipur to understand the role of EWRs in bringing development and to understand THP’s role in building the political leadership of women in India.

3. THP India commissioned an evaluation of its work with the aim to assess THP’s strategies and its impact so as to sharpen its interventions in the coming years.

4. The President and the CEO of THP Global, Ms Mary Ellen McNish visited THP India in September 2010 along with Vice President Dr John Coonrod. The Global team met with two THP partners and participated in the Women’s Leadership Workshop.

5. 18 investors from 6 countries visited 4 Panchayats in two program districts of Katni and Umaria in Madhya Pradesh. They interacted with 45 EWRs and saw the development work initiated by EWRs in their Panchayats. EWRs discussed issues regarding implementation of forest rights act, ICDS, status of domestic violence and gender, and held discussions around these issues.

6. Representatives of Ribbink Van Den Hoek Foundation, which has supported the Madhya Pradesh programme for the last five years, interacted with women Panchayat Presidents and other EWRs trained by The Hunger Project. The representatives visited an ICDS centre, a mid-day meal centre as well as a local school where they had initiated positive changes and improved services post their trainings.

7. In order to strengthen the leadership of EWRs across 9 States, THP organized a gender workshop for THP staff in association with JAGORI. The workshop also focused on Women’s Rights and Women’s movements in India.

8. The Hunger Project organised an exposure visit for EWRs of Gram Panchayats of Maharashtra to the Kerala Institute of Local Administration (KILA) in Thrissur, Kerala. A total of 18 EWRs along with 5 escorts participated in the visit. The visit was a combination of classroom training sessions and field visits to an Anganwadi centre, Panchayat office, Kudumbashree office, on-site village development work, and a ration shop.

9. THP hosted a delegation of SDC representatives from Switzerland, Bangladesh and India along with the officer to the DG of Independent Directorate of Local Governance, Kabul (Afghanistan) for a 3 day meet at Pune to share the work of THP.

10. Ms Rajeswari Devadass, President of Berahatty Gram Panchayat and President of the Coonoor EWR block federation was awarded the Utthamar Gandhi Award for best performance amongst 12,620 Panchayats in Tamil Nadu.

highlights 2010-2011

the hunger project annual report 2010-201136 37In this reporting period, The Hunger Project India has partnered with the following donors to implement the programme at the grassroots:

UNFPA for Awareness Building on Gender Discrimination with a focus on Reproductive Rights (RR) & Reproductive Health (RH) & Gender Justice in Bihar

Swiss Development Cooperation for federation building in Maharashtra

Environmental Defense Fund for raising awareness on climate change issues in Uttarakhand and Maharashtra

SKL International to support the newly elected members of SUGRAMA

Forum Syd for facilitating federations in Uttarakhand

Ribbink Van Den Hoek Foundation for Women’s Leadership Workshops and Followup Workshops in Madhya Pradesh

UNDEF for Women’s Leadership Workshops and Follow up Workshops in Rajasthan

UN Women for Strengthening women’s political leadership in local governance in India in 5 states of Karnataka, Odisha, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthanpartnerships

the hunger project annual report 2010-201138 39odisha people’s cultural centre (pecuc) people’s institute for participatory action research (pipar) development agency for poor and tribal awakening (dapta) ayauskam nari surakhya samiti (nss) institute for women’s development (iwd)rajasthan cecoedecon astha sansthan society for all round development (sard) society to uplift rural economy (sure) alwar mewat institute for education & development (amied) jan shiksha evam vikas sansthan mahila mandal barmer agor (mmba) urmul setu sansthan jan chetna sansthan jatan sansthan prayas unnati

tamil nadu island trust centre for social education and development (csed) centre for education and empowerment of marginalised (ceema)

uttarakhand mahila haat kasturba mahila utthan mandal (lakshmi ashram) association for rural planning and action (arpan) grameen utthan samiti (gus)

state field based partners

assam north east social trust (nest)

bihar bread izad abhiyan parivartan vikas bihar sewa samiti harijan adivasi shikshan prashikshan kalyan sansthan nirdesh irada

karnataka jana shikshana trust (jst) sumana vikasana organisation of development of people (odp) organisation for bidar integral transformation (orbit) action for social and educational development association (aseda)

madhya pradesh rachna mahila samiti manav jeevan vikas samiti om shiksha samiti gram sudhar samiti bhopal rehabilitation sampark samaj sevi santhan anupama education society

maharashtra parivartan resource and support centre for development (rscd)


rupees %

Interest on FDR/Savings 3,878,286 4.33

Grant 83,770,877 93.56

Donation 1,090,569 1.22

Others 796,169 0.89

Total Receipts 89,535,901 100

financial facts

fund receipts during the financial year 2010-11

cost centre-wise expenses for the financial year 2010-11

rupees %

Administrative 10,708,042 13.34

Programme 57,018,265 71.02

Programme Support 12,555,731 15.64

Total Expenses 80,282,038 100

finances


As at March 31, 2010

Rs.

Rs.

As at March 31, 2011

Rs.

ASSETS

fixed assets

8,368,072 Gross block 9,361,842

6,700,686 Less: Depreciation 7,199,418

1,667,386 Net block 2,162,424

current assets, loans and advances

43,462,656 Cash and bank balances 58,173,630

1,384,426 Loans and advances 1,486,239

46,514,468 61,822,293

LIABILITIES

funds

8,500,000 Corpus fund balance 8,500,000

general fund balance

1,389,498 Opening balance 1,389,498

32,258,042 Income and Expenditure Account 38,949,981

33,647,540 40,339,479

Unutilised earmarked funds for:

Others:

3,849,306 Opening balance 2,646,636

28,376,204 Add: Transferred from income and expenditure account 48,145,683

(29,578,874) Less: Transferred to income and expenditure account (46,082,491)

2,646,636 4,709,828

current liabilities

1,720,292 Accounts payable and accrued liabilities 8,272,986

46,514,468 61,822,293

balance sheet as at march 31, 2011

Notes to the accounts - Schedule - I Per our report attached

For SMS & ASSOCIATES.Chartered Accountants

Shukdev SadhooPartner. Membership No. 84188

Place: New Delhi / 30.08.2011

For THE HUNGER PROJECT

trustees

auditors’ report

1. We have audited the attached balance sheet of The Hunger Project – India (“The Project”) as at March 31, 2011 and the income and expenditure account for the year ended on that date annexed thereto. These financial statements are the responsibility of the Project’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements based on our audit.

2. We conducted our audit in accordance with auditing standards generally accepted in India. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. An audit also includes assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall financial statement presentation. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.

3. Further, we report that :

a) we have obtained all the information and explanations, which to the best of our knowledge and belief, were necessary for the purposes of our audit;

b) the balance sheet and income and expenditure account dealt with by this report, are in agreement with the books of account;

c) in our opinion, and to the best of our information and according to the explanations given to us, the accounts give a true and fair view in conformity with the accounting principles generally accepted in India :

i. in the case of the balance sheet, of the state of affairs of the Project as at March 31, 2011;

ii. in the case of the income and expenditure account, of the surplus of the Project for the year ended on that date.


Shukdev SadhooPartnerMembership No. 84188

Place: New Delhi Date: 30.08.2011

the hunger project annual report 2010-201144 45schedule - i

THE HUNGER PROJECT – INDIA

notes annexed to and forming part of the accounts for the year ended march 31, 2011

1. Significant Accounting Policies

a) The financial statements are prepared under the historical cost convention on an accrual basis.

b) Fixed assets are stated at cost of acquisition less accumulated depreciation. Cost is inclusive of freight, duties, taxes and incidental expenses.

Depreciation is provided on the written down value method mainly at the following rates:

nature of assets rate of depreciation percentage

Computers 40%

Vehicles 25.89%

Furniture and Fixtures 15%

Office Equipment 13.91%

2. The figures of the previous year have been regrouped/ recast to conform to the current year’s classification.

Year ended March 31, 2010

Rs.

Rs.

Year ended March 31, 2011

Rs.

INCOME

74,850,112 Grants and donations 86,671,869

Less : Unspent grant returned 1,810,423 84,861,446

2,693,807 Interest 3,878,286

2,102,327 Other income 796,169

79,646,246 89,535,901

EXPENDITURE

8,622,675 Administrative and general expenses 10,708,042

61,656,720 Other expenditure on objects of the Trust 69,573,996

498,335 Depreciation 498,732

70,777,730 80,780,770

8,868,516 Surplus/(Deficit) for the year 8,755,131

22,186,856 Balances brought forward from previous year 32,258,042

(28,376,204) Specific grants transferred to earmarked funds (48,145,683)

29,578,874 Expenses transferred from earmarked funds 46,082,491

32,258,042 Balance carried to general fund 38,949,981

income and expenditure account for the year ended march 31, 2011

For THE HUNGER PROJECT

trustees

Notes to the accounts - Schedule - I Per our report attached


Shukdev SadhooPartner. Membership No. 84188

Place: New Delhi / 30.08.2011


governing council Ms. Kanika SatyanandMs. Rita SarinMs. Amarjeet K. Ahuja, IAS (Retd.) Ms. Brinda Dubey Dr. Sanaya Nariman

national team Rita SarinSriparna G ChaudhuriRuchi YadavVeda BharadwajaAtreyee KarN. K. MalhotraParitosh SasmalGuneet SethiBharani SundararajanDarshan S.Amit GoyalEunice ThongKanika KaulSourabh GhoshNidhi KumariSubrataSahooJesse Dhuka

state teamSukanta Mohapatra Litali DasBimal Kumar SahuSujeet Kumar VermaBimal KantShahina PerweenSanju DeviSibani SharmaAshish RajvaidyaSriram KevatSubhadra GuptaReshma SwarajD. Irudaya RaniParigi VedavyasaE. KamalakannanE. Vinayaga MurthyVirendra ShrimaliMahendra Kumar PatodiaGanga GuptaKamla Bhatt

auditorsSMS & Associates

governance

bihar officeThe Hunger ProjectMehmanSarai (First Floor)Behind Imarat Rizvi, Bank RoadPatna – 800001 (Bihar)Phone: 0612-2207705

karnataka officeThe Hunger Project 316/E, 1st Floor 9th A Main, 40th Cross, 5th Block, Jayanagar Bangalore – 560041Phone: 080-22459115

rajasthan officeThe Hunger project, A-5, HawaSarakOpposite Ram MandirNear Yes BalMandir SchoolCivil LinesJaipur – 302 006 (Rajasthan)Phone: 0141 2223123

madhya pradesh officeThe Hunger ProjectA-450, Mansarover ColonyShahpura, Bhopal – 462016Madhya PradeshPhone: 0755-2424736Fax: 0755-4246259

tamil nadu officeThe Hunger ProjectHouse No-1, 2nd Main RoadNehru Nagar, AdayarChennai – 600020Phone: 044-24452520/42695225

odisha officeThe Hunger ProjectFlat – No. D-701, Rajendra Vihar ApartmentsForest Park,Bhubaneswar – 751 009OdishaPhone: 0674 – 2596601

the hunger project – national office

directory

the hunger project – state offices

The Hunger Project Shaheed Bhavan, 18/1, Aruna Asaf Ali margQutab Institutional AreaNew Delhi – 110067Ph: 011- 41688847-51Fax: 011-41688852Email: [email protected]

2010-2011 Report 2010-11.pdfThe 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act (CAA) mandated 33.33% reservation...

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Transcript of 2010-2011 Report 2010-11.pdfThe 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act (CAA) mandated 33.33% reservation...