Now, a grama sabha for children

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a society where elders fix priorities and requirements of children, the Karakulam Grama Panchayat here has taken the lead in conducting a grama sabha exclusively for the future citizens.

The panchayat committee has decided to provide a forum for the children where they will get a chance to air their demands and also get to know what they can expect from the panchayat as well as the Government.

Preliminary step


As a preliminary step to conducting the sabha in June, the panchayat recently organised a get-together of 10 children. And the response was very enthusiastic.

According to the president, R. Sivarajan, the children who came for the meeting were initially shy, but soon were in their elements with each speaking his mind on a number of serious issues.

First in the State


Mr. Sivarajan, who is also the general secretary of the Grama Panchayat Association, claimed the children's grama sabha was a first in the State.

"We are the first to conduct a grama sabha for children. This is the first step for making Karakulam a child-friendly panchayat. We should ideally not take the children for granted. Elders should try to solicit their views on all important issues. Without anyone to prompt them, the children who attended the meeting started listing out their needs and also held forth on what they expected from the panchayat and also the Government. We were really inspired by their performance and now we have determined to do something creative for them," says Mr. Sivarajan.

Lack of playground and libraries was one of their major complaints. Since there was not enough open space, they were being deprived of a chance to hone their skills in sports and games. Suggestions to open more libraries also came up at the discussion.

Suggestions galore

They demanded a change in school timings. A majority of them wanted their classes to begin at 7 a.m. - and had a valid reason, too. Crossing the roads after 8 a.m. is an arduous task on weekdays. Often, they have to wait till they get the help of elders to go to school safely. A change in timings is the best option, they said.

The panchayat had formed a `Kala Gramam' to promote the artistic and cultural instincts of the people.

The children had a genuine grievance that the `Kala Gramam' is in a remote place and out of their reach. They made a fervent request to open more branches of the `Kala Gramam' at different parts of the panchayat.

Some of them spoke about the issue of child labour in the panchayat.

"They emotionally spoke about children of their age working in nearby shops for a pittance. It appeared as if they were agitated by the plight of their friends," Mr. Sivarajan said.

All these were spontaneous responses and the committee is planning to hold a bigger session with better participation.

A peer group has been formed to organise the sabha where the children will prepare a charter of demands and present it to the panchayat.

The committee will discuss their demands and take suitable action in the interest of the children, says Mr. Sivarajan