Empowering Voices: Makkala Grama Sabha in Yadagiri

In a significant initiative led by the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (RDPR) department, around 350 children from five villages in Ramasamundra Gram Panchayat, Yadgir taluk and district, actively participated in the Makkala Grama Sabha (MGS) on 22 November 2023. The MGS encouraged children’s involvement in discussions related to village and school developments.

Facilitated by Mr. Govinda Rathod from the District Child Protection Unit, Yadagiri, the children interacted with key officials, including Mr. Moula Ali Aikur, Panchayat Development Officer (PDO), Mrs. Anandamma Mallikarjun, President, Ramasamundra Gram Panchayat, representatives from CHILDLINE etc. During the MGS, children voiced their concerns and demands for improved school infrastructure, essential amenities like plates and glasses, water facilities, school compound walls, playgrounds, and the construction of an anganwadi building in Ashanal tanda. The officials carefully listened to the children’s demands, assuring them that the issues would be addressed in the coming two months. They pledged to take appropriate actions, incorporating the proposed works under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

Don Bosco Centre for Social Action in Yadagiri played an active role in the MGS by organising 40 children from its four activity centres in Ramasamundra and Bangarammanagudi villages. These activities were part of the “Empowering Children through Education and Child Rights Promotion” project, a collaborative effort between Azim Premji Philanthropic Initiatives (APPI) and Bangalore Rural Educational and Development Society (BREADS).