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PROPOSAL FOR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT THROUGH

YOUTH LEADERSHIP IN INDIA

The current situation

India is a very large country with a population of more than 1.1 billion people.
Unfortunately, there is a tremendous amount of disparity throughout the country
and although there are certain regions booming as a result of the recent influx of
IT outsourcing, the bulk of the population still suffers in complete poverty. Many
of these issues stem from overpopulation, rampant corruption across all levels of
government and business. The Police and the political leaders don’t always
protect basic human rights and the result is often that there is no justice or
security for the common person.

Some people in India are extremely rich and the large middle class in the cities is
growing but 70% of the population is still extremely poor. This social hierarchy
leads to many societal problems including high personal debts and a limited
access to resources which results in an epidemic of hunger. In rural areas these
problems lead to thousands of farmer suicides every year. Problems in rural India
are further compounded by little access to education and archaic values which
further segment the population into isolated groups.

Village Life

We have selected an isolated rural area, not connected with any major city, in
north India to promote change and enable economic development through
leadership. The village is between two minor roads close to the districts of
Ghaziabad and Meerut. There is limited industry in the area. The land in the
region is quite fertile, there are numerous tube-wells for the irrigation, and there
are a large number of villages nearby. Most of the residents of all these villages
work in the fields, there are some skilled labourers including carpenters, masons,
and tailors. There are also a few small shops to sell essential supplies to meet
the daily needs of the villagers.

Very few houses have electricity, which is unreliable at best, water is drawn from
hand pumps, and roads are unevenly paved with bricks, the drains are usually
clogged with either garbage or animal excreta. Most of the houses do not have
plumbing and the residents go to the fields to ease themselves.

Education

Practically, every village in this rural area has some form of primary education.
Some larger villages have Junior cum Senior High Schools to educate children
beyond the primary level. Some of these schools are managed by the State
Government and some are privately managed but are partially aided by the
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Government. Most of these established schools don’t have enough teachers and
are badly in need of repair. The general facilities consist of an open room
(usually with a roof, although most of them are in desperate need of repair), dirt
floors with a few tables and a chalk board. There are no playgrounds or sporting
facilities for the children, youths, or adults in the nearby vicinity. Most students
are unable to continue their education once they complete primary school.
Resources are limited and monetary restrictions prevent parents from sending
their children to neighbouring areas to continue their studies.

Health Care

There are no restaurants, cinemas, hospitals, doctors, nurses, pharmacies,

hotels, motels, or guest houses. Each village has a midwife with limited medical
training, and an untrained doctor who practices traditional medicine. When
somebody is gravely ill, the person is taken for treatment to the nearest city either
by a horse-cart or by taxi.

Most of the village residents have very bad teeth because due to improper oral
hygiene. Physical activity in the area is also limited, so generally overall health
within the village is not optimal. The general environment of the village which is
quite unhygienic is also a problem and leads to general disrepair and disease
within the area. All of these factors are a result of improper education and a poor
understanding of our environment.

With our simple training program, we will address many of the individual health
problems above at the preventative level in order to maintain good health in the
village over time.

The Opportunity

We believe that we can drastically elevate the conditions in the village and
promote economic development through youth leadership. We would like to start
the project in the Muzaffara Bagarpur area and its neighbouring villages by hiring
six (6) youths (at least 2 female). We will select these youths based on their
leadership skills and provide them with basic health care training, some exercise
and Yoga programs, healthy eating tips, and First Aid methods. We will also
ensure that they have a reasonable working knowledge of English. These hired
trained six (6) Youth Leaders will also be given training in simple home remedies,
based on Aloe Vera plant, ginger, turmeric, Neem tree, Tulsi plant, etc. Four (4)
of these trained youth leaders should be assigned to the 4 Junior cum Senior
High Schools (2 in Muzaffara Bagarpur, 1 in Gohra Alamgir, and 1 in Kithore), in
collaboration with the Principals of the 4 schools. Each school will provide one 45
minute period for each class of IX, X, XI, and XII to deliver this essential
knowledge. The trained Youth Leader in each School has a two-fold
responsibility: Firstly, to teach the youth in the schools about basic health and
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hygiene and secondly to teach them the necessary qualities for leadership (like
hard work, honesty, sincerity, patriotism).

Each trained Youth Leader will also teach English on alternate days to the
students. Each student will be provided with a notebook, eraser and pencil to
help with their studies. In addition, all students will be provided with a tooth brush
and Neem soap for the practice of basic hygiene. All the teaching will be done in
the school class room while all the practices will be conducted in the open
courtyard under the guidance of their trained Youth Leader. The first two months
will be used for teaching and practice of the Health and Hygiene concepts and
then the next two months will focus on leadership training. After the initial
training period, outstanding students will be selected from the classes and further
trained as trainers. The rest of the year will progress into further training for
classes V, VI, VII, and VIII in the same school.

The other 2 youth leaders will be assigned to the village itself. Each leader will be
responsible for half the village and will be required to visit the residents on a
regular basis to form relationships and provide support. The leaders will be
required to have classes once trust is established. The curriculum will be the
same as in the schools, but this program will be directed towards the women in
the village.

Execution and Supervision

It is expected that within 10 months most of the residents of village Muzaffara

Bagarpur will become reasonably trained and health care within the region
should start to improve. If the training Program is continued for one more year
with the same 6 hired trained Youth Leaders together with a number of newly
trained Rural Youth Leaders (on a part time basis and in an honorary capacity)
can expand the network and deliver the program to at least 10 more
neighbouring villages

Since it is the first Project of its kind, the Narayan Das Educational Society
representative will have to go initiate the program in India and hire the first 6
youth leaders. Once the Leaders are selected and trained they will be required
to live in the village in housing sourced by the Canadian contingent. An onsite
manager will also need to be selected in order to ensure all leaders are
performing as expected and that resources are being utilized as efficiently as
possible. For this effort, we will be partnering with the administration of the local
schools.
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Annual Budget

Expense Rs. Total in CAD

Salary expense of 6 trained Youth Leaders Rs.576,000 $ 14,050
Rs.8,000 X 6 X 12 months
Cost of supplies: Rs.185,000 $ 4,500
Neem soaps, tooth brushes, notebooks, pencils,
erasers (4000 of each), etc
Taxi charges + Bank charges + Phone etc. $ 450
Econ. Class Air Fare Calgary to Delhi and return $ 1,500
Lodging at Delhi, Meerut, & village for 1 month $ 2,000
TOTAL $22,500

A sum of about Can. $ 24,000 will be needed the second year of the project to
continue development and training.

Management and Evaluation

The Calgary Organizer for this Social Development and Training Project in rural
India will keep in touch with the honorary Supervisor in the village as well as with
each one of the Youth Leaders on a regular basis to ensure project performance.
The Narayan Das Educational Society representative will also go to village
Muzaffara Bagarpur and the neighbouring villages each year for the duration of
the project and complete a personal inspection to document the improved
conditions and to gather knowledge on how the program can be improved and
implemented to other rural areas in India over time.

Each one of the hired Trained Youth Leader will also be required to provide a
report on the Training Program and the personal experiences to the Narayan Das
Educational Society. We will also obtain a final Report from the honorary
Supervisor of the Program in the village. The services of the six (6) hired trained
Youth Leaders will be terminated at the end of the second year and they will be
encouraged to join a Degree College. The Programs for Social Development and
Training of Rural Youth Leaders will continue through the efforts of the large
number of newly trained youth who have benefited from the program. Our
organization will ensure oversight and guidance to ensure the program is
sustainable long term until it becomes second nature to the residents in the area.