Krishnagiri has a total of 10 blocks and 337 Panchayats. The Children Parliament program, supported by the UNICEF, was initiated in September 2009 in 8 blocks which cover close to 260 centers in 220 Panchayats. Children’s Panchayat is one in which children from villages in each panchayat meet regularly, comes up with a list of their needs in the community, have discussions among them and campaign strongly to fulfill their needs.

Bala Sabha

The objective of Bala Sabha was for the children to think about their needs and present it as a petition to the panchayat president during the Grama Sabha meeting. Finally, the three most important needs that had the maximum vote were taken up for discussion and the top three needs with discussion points were written on a paper as a petition. The petition along with the tick marked charts were given to the Panchayat Presidents during the Grama Sabha meeting. The Panchayat presidents were impressed with the children’s proactive steps and had replied to the children in positive regarding taking steps to fulfill their needs. The bala sabha programs were also featured in Doordarshan TV Channel on 6th Sep 2009.

Children Panchayat - Snapshots

Snapshots of Village Mapping, Need identification and petition made by children
Children submitting the petition and presenting their needs in the Grama Sabha meeting

Winds of Change in the Villages

In each village, children prioritized the top 3-5 concerns that needed to be addressed most urgently. The ones that came up covered a whole spectrum of issues ranging from need for a hand pump, water tank, lack of sports facilities and playgrounds, need for street lighting to sanitary needs. Out of 260 villages, 25 have witnessed the demands of the children being addressed within a few days. All village panchayats promised to meet the demands raised by the children at the earliest.

Snapshots of the impact in the villages

Play ground and Sports material provided in Mathur Block – Madralli and Nadupatti villages
Closed Library started functioning in Gundalapatti Village in Kaveripatnam Block
Road in the process of construction - Gundalapatti village, Kaveripatnam Block
Sewage was cleaned – Jagadap Village, Kaveripatnam Block
Road in the process of construction – Kaveripatnam Block
School Environment cleaned and dust bin built – Kaveripatnam Block
Drinking water facilities arranged - Kondepalli and Pedathapalli villages, Krishnagiri Block
Fence for school - PK Palli village and School environment was cleaned at Vepanapalli village, Vepanapalli Block
Library in Construction – Jingan Kathirampatti Village, Bargur Block	An old building demolished inside the school campus - Jedukuthur village

Panchayat President Workshop >>