Save the Children in partnership with NGO ASHA-Odisha, working in Boden block of Nuapada district for reduction of child and maternal mortality, organised a festival called lalita & Babu Mela at Boden on Friday. The objective of the programme was to give adolescent girls and boys and their discussion leaders an opportunity to share experience and learning of their involvement in generating knowledge in the society on child rights.
The festival deciphered how discriminations existing at different levels and in varied contexts in the society violate rights of children. The girls and boys often suffer in the existing unjust power structures. Children and young people are subordinate to adults. Women are subordinate to men and some men are also subordinate to other men. There is, therefore, a real need among children and young people for an opportunity to discuss about important issues around demystifying gender discrimination and its root causes, strengthen their self-esteem, make them aware on their rights and become active agents of change.
The objective of the festival was to spread this message to a larger audience. Young children of different villages of Boden block expressed their inner ability through various activities like drawing competition on the theme Health is Wealth, Role Play on Gender Violence, Dance Show on Nuakhai, lalita Babu theme and Kalachhir, Early Marriage, etc.
“The lalitha and Babu method is based on the founding principles of UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and intends to make children aware of gender discrimination by adopting a perspective based on equality, justice and rights,” said the organisers. It was adapted to Indian context in 2010 by the Save the Children from the original Sweden version — Ellen — handbok för samtalsledare 2006 and Allan - metodmaterial för samtalsgrupper 2008.
The Save the Children and the ASHA Odisha have adopted this method in Boden block to train young children, who, as the discussion leaders, are generating awareness within other children.The festival held at Boden brought these discussion leaders and other adolescent girls and boys to a platform to share their learning, experiences and feelings with a larger audience for preserving the children rights.
Besides children, the festival also witnessed participation of parents, frontline workers of health and ICDS departments, NGO representatives and media representatives. The guests were ZP Member lambodar Nial and National M&E Manager of Save the Children Pradeep Mishra and State Programme Coordinator Dr Soumyakant Mishra.
Government officials like District Child Protection Officer Baldev Rath, MOIC, CHC Boden, Dr Asutosh Pattnaik, District Programme Manager NOP, Harishchandra Dhala, District Manager, RCH, Prasant Baral and GKS Manager Tarun Sahu also participated in the programme.