By Dr. Ashok Dyalchand | Director
Rojina (name changed) lives in Bramhangaon village, which is at a distance of 10 kilo metres from the road. There are many Muslim families in this village. Her parents are both illiterate and conservative. Her mother works as agriculture daily wage labourer and father is mason.
Rojina enrolled for the Life Skills Education (LSE) course. Initially she hardly spoke in the class and was very shy. The girls in the LSE class selected her as a Peer Leader because she was immensely talented. She learnt about roles and responsibilities and qualities of a good Peer Leader during the life skills education. This motivated her to do something for her group. She talked to her friends about the importance of cleanliness during menstruation and provided them knowledge on menstrual hygiene so that girls from her LSE batch feel confident and are empowered to make informed decision about how they manage their menstruation.According to a study by IHMP, 40-50% of the girls in this village have unsanitary menstrual practices, which keep them at home and away from peers in class.This makes affordable and safe solutions urgent and imperative. Worse, due to high costs, 50% of girls and women in India don't use sanitary pads and resort to fabric, ash, sand and bark of trees instead. IHMP started a campaign with the aim of giving 500 vulnerable girls two high quality reusable pads which will serve them for a whole year before needing to be replaced. Rojina spearheaded this campaign with the result that the awareness levels regarding menstrual hygiene and the demand for reusable pads increased significantly in her village.
Rojina said “I was also trained to conduct sessions of Life Skills Education course. During the training I learnt about how to prepare a lesson plan. I learnt how to use a tablet to access information from the internet. I organized visits to the police station and bank for girls from my Adolescnet Girls Club (Kishori Mandal). The role of a peer educator gave me confidence that I can take responsibility and do any task that is assigned to me. Because of the LSE course, my communication skills and my confidence on the stage improved. I started taking part in debate competitions in the school.
My mother, and other women from my neighbourhood attended the LSE classes taken by me and they were very proud of me. I conducted art and craft sessions in my village, which motivated girls to attend the LSE classes regularly. With the help of my friends from the Kishori Mandal I also organized a program for the International Women’s Day in my village.”
Savitribai Phule is my role model. She was an Indian social reformer and poet. In the 19th century she played an important role in improving women's rights in India during British rule. She started the first school for girls and was the first female teacher In India.
“I am very interested in theatre. So one day I decided to do a mono play in my school and I called it “I am Savitribai Phule speaking”. The play was highly appreciated by my teachers and peers. I have been asked to present this play at various functions”.
In future I would like to become a teacher like Savitribai Phule.
The Life Skills Education conducted by Institute of Health Management has produced hundreds of peer leaders like Rojina who have become champions in their villages for improving the agency of adolescent and securing their rights.
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By Dr. Ashok Dyalchand | Director
By Dr. Ashok Dyalchand | Director
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