YuwaShastra Report, March 2018
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Report Contents
Introduction Page 3
Operations
Mobilization Page 4
Re-Imagining Futures Workshop Page 5
Career Options Workshop Page 5
Choice Making and Mentoring Page 6
Partnerships Page 7
Output and Impact Page 7
Program Impact Page 8
Graduate Profiles Page 9-11
Insights Page 12
Concerns & Opportunities Page 12
Plans for Next Year Page 13
Annexure I: List of Training Partners Page 14
Annexure II: List of Employers Page 16
YuwaShastra Report, March 2018
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Youth Development and Futures Program (Yuwashastra)
Introduction
The question often asked by members of SHGs is ‘what would our children become and what
kind of life they would have’? It is evident that they do not see their children having same life
and they are concerned about their having a brighter and secure future with lesser vulnerabilities.
In this light, youth have been identified by as one segments to engage and explore with them
about their aspirations, insecurities and efforts and how they may have a secure future and also
help family, others and their village society. It is with the belief that youth hold the potential to
the future and growth for the rural households and a better quality of life for their next
generation. The current outreach is as under:
Youth Outreach Total Definition
Mobilized and Registered for
Program participation
1306 Those who have participated in any of the
concept seeding event and enrolled for
participation in the program
Participation in ‘Reimagining
Future Workshop’
889 Those candidates who have successfully
participated in the 3 day residential
workshop.
Participation in ‘Choice Oriented
Workshop’.
786 Total Youth who have participated in one
day choice oriented workshop.
The Program was initiated at erstwhile Mandla team and is current spread over four teams of
Mahaksuahal DC namely Narayanganj, Karanjia, Samnapur and Mohgaon.
Teams Mohgaon Narayanganj Karanjia Samnapur Total
Youth Participants 497 374 94 313 1306
Operation Model
Being demand driven, the objective of the program is to help youth articulate their aspirations
and in the process understand and make an assessment of their strengths, weaknesses, and
aptitude so that to they are able to make a choice for their future. Such an engagement takes
place over four phased process – a) Mobilization, b) Re–Imagining Future Workshop (c) Career
Options Workshop (d) Choice Making under the guidance of a designated Mentor. At the end of
this process, as the youth make a choice for their future, the program works along with its
partners for skill training, and helps with get placed and also providing post-placement support.
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Program Engagement Model
A. Mobilization and Registration
This is the first step for grounding and initiating discussion about the engagement and different
activities. As first of such concerns were raised in the SHG and VLC meetings, the collectives
play an important role in youth mobilization process. VLC leaders take responsibility to
communicate with SHG members informing them about program interventions and opportunity.
The issue is also discussed in the meetings of SHG Federation. To generate interest and sustain
it, youth clubs have been promoted at the village level. These are informal groups where any
youth can join-in and participate. In addition, occasional village level events are organized at
VLC level and with youth cub to involve youth in different group based events.
The mobilization process is able to,
- Develop a space to engage with youth, their futures and concerns
- Create awareness and generate interest about the program opportunities that comes with it
for the youth and their families
- Initiate movement of the youth to PRADAN office for enquiry and enrollment.
Towards the end of mobilization, interested youth reach their Federation office and initiate
contact with a designated community service provider and register themselves for the program.
At the time of registration, their profile, with basic details is recorded and youth are briefed about
the specific program offerings. Participation in the next Reimagining Workshop is finalized
during registration. A total of 1306 youth have been mobilized so far for participation under the
program.
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B. Re-Imagining Future Workshop
This is the first concrete offering of the program to the participant youth wherein they begin to
discuss and explore about their aspirations, current situation and problems and all subsequent
functions emanate from this engagement. The idea is also help youth share about any imagined
bottlenecks, stereotypes based on family or social constructs and expose them to world of
possibilities. It is a 3-day residential workshop where about 20-25 youth come together to work
together, share and learn from each other. Workshop is designed in a manner to initiate
conversation with youth on:
a) Idea of secure and growing future; Aspirations
b) Self Exploration – strengths and weaknesses
c) Difference between village and world outside
d) Social constructs and how it impact our life and future choices
e) Opportunities for youth in their existing situation
f) Life, Livelihoods and Career
After the workshop, youth continue to engage with a designated mentor and discuss with family
and peers to reflect on what futures excites them and what aims can they set for themselves. Till
now, 42 batches have been completed wherein 889 youth have participated in reimagining
workshop.
C. Career Options Workshop
The core focus of the Career Options Workshop is to expose youth to different future choices
available to them. This orientation helps youth explore pathways to future and how to pursue
these pathways. It provides them
specific information about different
vocations, eligibility, preparation
required before and after getting into
that vocation and demands it would put
on youth and their environment. It helps
youth establish a bridge between their
aspired life, meaningful life and
livelihood engagement and concrete
steps to reach up to them. So far, 786
youth have participated in career options
workshop.
During the workshop, youth are able to
articulate and exposed to:
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a) Idea of a desired life
b) Strengths and Weakness including family preparedness
c) Introduction to vocations - skill matching and assessing
d) Routes to different vocations and support available
e) Guide to prepare for outside world or alternate futures career
In the next phase, the participants go one to discuss their ideas, options, do-ability along with
their concerns with their designated mentor so that they are able to reach to a decision.
D. Choice Making and Mentorship
The Program structure was redesign in this year and each of the youth participant are now
assigned a designated mentor. These mentors play a critical role in choice making by rural youth.
The conversation between a mentor and guide (protégé) takes place over a period of 3-4 week
and usually includes three stages;
Exploration - Listening to the youth and understand and explore about initial knowledge,
early choices and dilemmas
Bring in New Possibilities - Expand boundaries, bring new ideas and possibilities and add
new knowledge and information along with providing help to remove confusions
Set Goals and Help in action - Support make a clear career goal and action plan and lend
a hand for implementing the action plans
Teams have selected mentors and provided training for such an engagement.
Mentors Mohgaon Narainganj Karanjia Samnapur Total
Selected 17 20 9 13 59
Trained 6 15 3 13 27
Guided Youth - 75 27 60 162
Mentors are one of the critical elements that help youth make choices and help them actualize it.
As I had mentioned, they are from local area so that youth can easily access them. Few of the
mentors that have been identified are teachers, farmers, Sarpanch, local entrepreneurs, govt
servants among others and they have been given trainings to be able to play this role. Trained
mentors have been guiding the assigned youth through group meetings and also have organized
one to one interaction sessions. Mentors give time to youth to reflect and help them make an
informed decision. They also remain connected on mobile and mentors interact with their family
members, as required.
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Partnerships
Program works with training and employment partners. Depending on future choices made by
youth, programs helps them link with training partners. Such trainings are organized by partners
and program’s role is limited to help youth link and create more opportunities.
Skill Training in their desired vocation
(including currently undergoing training)
312 Those who have completed or are
undergoing any vocational training
Successfully Placed in jobs 107 Past completion of skill-training
placed with formal jobs or engaged in
self-employment including farming
Few of the training partners have their own placements cells and youth who graduate from their
courses and placed without much effort. List of partners is attached in annexure-I and annexure-
II.
Program Outputs
Thus far, program has helped more 1300 youth undergo undergone re-imagining futures and
choices workshop and these youth have been given an opportunity to make a choice about their
future. Such futures are related to jobs outside as well as being gainfully employed in the local
area and at times within the village. Few of the youth have found motivation in improved
farming. Youth being able to discuss, explore and make a choice relatively free of current
constraints and this in itself is a significant contribution of the program and large proportion of
them have been able to realize their aspirations with the support provided by the program.
Key Program outputs are:
1. More than 1300 have been mobilized under the program
2. About 800 youth have undergone the choice making program and a select few (162) have
participated in recently initiated detailed mentorship program
Actualizing the plans
3. 300 youth have successfully completed skill training
4. 148 youth have been placed in jobs outside their villages
5. 50 plus have started self-employment set-up in local area using their enhanced skills
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Program Impact
The impact of the program has been manifold;
- Secure Future – Youth have been able to find employments (self and job) with enhanced
skills and confidence. Those youth, who are placed in formal jobs are also covered with
social security benefits.
- Increased income – Most youth have been earning at least 6000 per month adding more
than 72000 additional income to their household and turning these into lakhpati
households
- Contribution to home economy – Youth have helped their families invest in their homes –
construction and repair. These have been regular investments in terms of investing in
farm inputs, purchase land, and reconstruct/refurbish their homes, investing on education
of their siblings among others contributions.
- Youths are reflecting on their life choices, efforts and preparedness to pursue by quoting
successful examples from their known village settings. Parents have more tested avenues
especially for their girl child and accept their option to work in outside village settings.
- Program has helped create a few local role models who are leading an assured life and at
the same time contribute to improve village problems like education, improvements in
MGNREGS and work towards social issues like violence, early and forced marriages,
practices related to dowry, forest conservation. Association of Youth at village level and
their leadership at Block level is providing inputs to work on such agenda in their hamlets
and villages. In Karanjia and Mohgaon, based on the spark and orientation, youth are
playing more active role in Panchayat and Gram Sabha Functioning
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Graduate Profiles
1.
Shivkumari Baghel
Village: Sudgaon, Panchayat: Sudgaon,
Block: Mohgaon,
District: Mandla
Program Intervention: Orientation
Training and ANM Training at Helen Rose Nursing College, Umri
Present Status: Staff Nurse at District
Hospital, Anuppur, Madhya Pradesh
Present Salary: Rs.12000 pm
Impact: Supported her family in making a pucca house, purchased motor bike for younger brother. Also have some savings at bank
2.
Dumaru Pandro
Village: Jamaniya, Panchayat: Nakaul,
Block: Bichiya,
District: Mandla.
Program Intervention: Reimagining
Futures and Career Options Workshop;
Trained at Shaksham, Dehradun
Present Status: Police Officer at Madhya Pradesh Police Department
Present Salary: Rs.24000 pm
Impact: Supporting Father’s medical
treatment and only source of income for family.
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3. Ramoti Putta
Village: Bijegaon, Panchayat: Gujarsahni,
Block: Narayanganj, District: Mandla
Program Intervention: Reimagining
Futures and Career Options Workshop;
Trained at Pratibha Syntex, Indore
Present Status: Operator Overlap
machine at Pratibha Syntex, Indore,
Madhya Pradesh
Present Salary: Rs.11000 pm Impact: Supporting her family and also have a good savings at bank and PF account.
4.
Shukhchain Marawi
Village: Pondi, Panchayat: Pondi, Block:
Mohgaon,
District: Mandla.
Program Intervention: Reimagining
Futures and Career Options Workshop;
Trained at PACE, Dhamtari
Present Status: Head Trainer at PACE, Sukma, Chhattisgarh
Present Salary: Rs.25000 pm
Impact:
Made his own pucca house
Purchased land
Purchase a 2– wheeler
Children are studying in English medium school
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5.
Nilu Dhareshwar
Village: Siligitti, Panchayat: Siligitti,
Block: Mohgaon, District: Mandla.
Program Intervention: Reimagining
Futures and Career Options Workshop;
Trained at Pratibha Syntex
Present Status: Machine operator at
Pratibha Syntex, Indore, Madhya Pradesh
Present Salary: Rs. 7500 pm with food &
accommodation
Impact:
Purchased 2.5 acre of agricultural land at her village.
Supported her younger brother in buying an auto rickshaw.
Around I lakh savings in PF account and 50000 in savings account
6. Naveen Yadav
Village: Malpahri, Panchayat: Malpahri
Githar, Block: Mohgaon,
District: Mandla.
Program Intervention: Reimagining
Futures and Career Options Workshop;
Trained at Don Bosco, Pune
Present Status: Motor mechanic at
Mohgaon, Mandla, MP
Present income: Rs. 5000 pm
Impact: Supporting his family being only source of income for family
YuwaShastra Report, March 2018
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Insights
The program experience has generated significant insight to the aspirations and decision making
of youth – both boys and girls and it also as well throws up challenges that need to be dealt with
in the subsequent periods. The experience indicates that;
- Youth are keen to play a different role in their life than their parents so too are parents
looking forward to them having different future
- Most youth participants share that such an intensive engagement has never happened in
their lives and there are no such spaces and opportunities to discuss about future choices.
They are keen to know about options however, they are not yet ready and equipped to
make a future out of such options of their own..
- It is important to find suitable employment and jobs in local areas which may be low
paying but helps remain youth to remain connected with their families and villages. SHG
based mobilization and Federation playing a central role helps build connect.
- Such a process is playing an important contribution to youth as almost all share that they
have previously never had such an interaction and exploration about their futures. For
many having given up to their fate, there is an immediate shift from being in a state of
hopelessness to a hopeful bright future.
Concerns & Opportunities
Being a new initiative, there have been quite a few operational challenges. The key concerns that
also offer opportunities for the programmatic level are;
1. Strengthening concrete program offering to all future pathways – This is particularly
important for self-employment initiatives wherein it is required to prepare sound business
plans, help them raise capital and provide hand-holding support. This is required so that
program is able to meet the enhanced aspirations of youth participants.
2. Youth being able to provide services in the local area are a new vocation with full of
opportunities. These could be in their livelihoods activities like farming, veterinary,
enterprises and also other needs that emerge.
3. Having an MIS and Tracking systems – Program has a basic progress record keeping
system in place. Integrating it with PRDAN MIS would help track incomes and others
inputs like training.
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Plans for Next Year
While having worked with over 1300 youth, the program is in a position to increase the intensity
and work with higher number of youth. There are systems and linkages in place to support
traction of higher number of youth.
The program would develop concrete offerings for other stream of choices. Those youth who are
keen to go for intensive farming would be linked to departments and private agencies so that they
are able to apply new technologies along with trainings and hand-holding support. Similarly,
those who are keen on initiating their self-employment around a set of services or products
would be linked with banks and other financial institutions to raise finances and also helped and
trained for preparation of business plans. We would link those youth who are keen on higher
studies and creative field with appropriate guides and mentors so that they are able to pursue
their interested for a purposive future. The existing linkages with training partners and
employers would continue and new partners would be added to the portfolio so that wider
choices are available to youth.
Youth Mohgaon Narainganj Karanjia Samnapur Others Total
Mobilized and Prepare
plans
450 400 400 400 400 2050
Convert their plans to
action
250 200 200 150 200 1000
Program would continue to function in four teams of Mahakaushal DC. Few others teams
namely Bhoura have shown interest and it is expected that a few youth from that location would
participate. Altogether, it would mobilize about 2000 youth out of which, it aims to help over
1000 youth make an informed choice about their futures and subsequent help them to actualize it.
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Annexure-I: Training Partners
Sl. Training Partners Location Available Training Courses
1 PACE (Pratham
Arora Center For
Education)
House No-:90, Kaushal
Nagar,Nirmal Estate, Near
T.S.School,Misrod,Bhopal-
462047, Madhya Pradesh
Automotive
Automotive Service
Technician Level-3
(ASC/Q1401) (4 wheeler)
Automotive Service
Technician Level-4
(ASC/Q1411) (2 wheeler)
2 PACE (Pratham
Arora Center For
Education)
Village-Gehukheda, Post-
Nayapura, Near St. Joseph
School, Kolar Road,
Bhopal -462042, MP
PACE Dhamtari, CG
Hospitality
Housekeeping Service.
Food & Beverage.
3 Ambuja Cements
Foundation
Jail Road, Amarwara, Dist:
Chhindwara (M.P) –
480221
Transport Nagar,
P.O - Upparwahi, Tal.-
Korpana, Dist: Chandrapur
Maharashtra – 442 908.
P.O - Rawan, The : Baloda
Bazaar, Dist: Raipur,
Chhattisgarh – 493 331.
Hospitality
Driving
Security
Retail
Automobile
Electrical
Construction
Carpentry
Beauty Culture
Tailoring
Fitting & Welding
Computer Training
4 MIEC (Montfort
Integrated
Educational
Center)
Nagpur Sawner Road, Near
Toll Plaza, Patansawangi,
441113
Electrical & House Wiring
Refrigeration & AC Mechanic
Motor Mechanic
Welding & Fabrication
Hotel Management & Hospitality
Beauty Culture
5 Saksham Saksham The Noetic Hub
1, Nehru Enclave,
GMS Road, Dehradun
Uttarakhand- 248001
Academic & Physical preparation
for all kind of defense jobs.
6 Cent rural self-
employment
training center
Dindori, Jabalpur Tailoring
Electrician
Computer
Life - Skills
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7 CSTI (Larsen &
Toubro)
Plot No.144-146,
Chacharwadi,
Opp.Zydus Cadila Factory,
Sarkhej Bawla Road, On
Ahmedabad Rajkot
Highway (NH 8)
Ahmedabad - 382 210.
Formwork Carpentry
Bar Bending and Steel
Fixing
Masonry (Brick Work &
Block Work)
Plumbing and Sanitary
Electrical
Scaffolding
General Assistants
Welding (Pipe Welding) &
(Structural Welding)
Tiling
Concrete laboratory and
field testing
Pre-Stressing
Transmission Line Tower
Erection
Railway Electrification
Solar Electricians & Solar
Non - Technical
Site Enabling Service
Technician (Plant &
Machinery
8 Don Bosco Near St. Andrew’s High
School, Balaji Chowk,
Chinchwad, Pune,
Maharashtra 411019
Motor Mechanic
Electricians
Beauticians
Carpenters
Welders
Fitters
BPO
9 Black Pal
Enterprises
Jabalpur Deals in cheap disposable plates
and glass making commercial
machineries.
10 R-mitr Varanasi Deals in retail & wholesale
marketing and supply of FMCG
products in rural UP.
11 Helen Rose
Christian Hospital
Umri Nursing (ANM and GNM)
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Annexure-II: Placement Partners
Sl. Name of Organizations Location
1 Larsen & Toubro Limited (Designated Contractors) Mumbai, Hyderabad
2 Airtel Pune
3 Knorr Bermse Pune
4 Taj Hotels, Resorts and Palaces Mumbai
5 Mahindra & Mahindra Pune
6 Pratibha Syntex Limited Indore
7 IFMR Chennai
8 Tata Business Support Services Limited Pune
9 Aegis BPO Pune
10 RuralShores BPO Chhindwara
11 Sadanand Regency Pune
12 Spree Longer Pune
13 Tamanna Inn Pune
14 Highland Hotel Ooty
15 Ivy Studios Pune
16 JBR Grand Lucknow
17 Hotel Goradia's Shirdi
18 Sayaji Indore
19 Orchid Hotels Pune
20 Central Court Hyderabad
21 Park Prime Jaipur
22 Una Humble Amritsar