Jidnyasa

This is a 3 day, 6 module adolescent education program. This project is a joint effort of IPH, SMS (Stree Mukti Sanghatana) & Mumbai Police.

Stree Mukti Sanghatana (Women's Liberation Organisation) has directed its efforts towards the upliftment of women by creating social awareness about women's issues and issues related to equality, peace and development. It is an apolitical, autonomous, voluntary organisation based in Mumbai, Maharashtra, INDIA. Stree Mukti Sanghatana realized that Adolescent education is crucial to prevention of problems in the later ages which then affect women. Hence they are key partners in Jidnyasa. Today people approach SMS for these programs.

Sessions are conducted by trained volunteers

Initial focus was on adolescents studying in municipal schools & hailing from lower & lower middle class.

Areas covered in this program are: adolescence as a life stage, stress management, sex education, substance abuse prevention, value education and career education.

• Adolescent age is one in which we have more independence than childhood and have fewer responsibilities than adulthood, so we have more freedom.
• This is the age in which we learn many skills, which prove useful or significant in our personal, family and social life in future.

This age is a base for personality development of an individual. The project Jidnyasa was not designed to provide readymade solutions to their problems, but to give directions. Therefore instead of lecture method a more interactive dialogue method was selected. The speakers are supposed to communicate through interactive way with children and not impose or give lecture to them. So those volunteers interacting with children were called 'communicators' (Samvadak in Marathi) rather than lecturers. They were expected to give directions:-

• Towards awareness through dialogue.
• Towards knowledge through information
• Towards rationality through thinking and
• Towards constructive behavior.

The first training program was held on 30th, 31st of March and 1st of April 1996 at police-club, which was attended by over 150 members (around 40 were from Mumbai police). Throughout the 3 days the participants were enthusiastic. For administrative purpose entire Mumbai was divided into 7 zones.

Zone 1- South Mumbai up to Grant Road & Byculla
Zone 2 - from Mumbai Central to Worli & Byculla to Lalbaug.
Zone 3 - from Lalbaug to Sion
Zone 4 - from Worli to Mahim
Zone 5 - from Bandra to Andheri
Zone 6 - form Jogeshwari to Dahisar
Zone 7 - from Kurla to Mulund

Currently this project is running and active in Twelve Cities across Maharashtra namely Latur, Kolhapur, Kudal, Alibag, Ahmednagar, Sindhudurg, Nagpur, Pune, Buldhana, Aurangabad, Jalna and Satara.

The project was launched on 26th June 1996 (Anti narcotic day)

IPH has developed the modules and trained the volunteers. A detailed workbook as to how to take the sessions with role plays and the content has been developed by IPH which is available for sale as well. Please click here to check out Books for the details of this book.