Promoting Children led DRR in Sundarban

Promoting Children led DRR in Sundarban

Background:

PUS Project formulation Team made the gap assessment of one year pilot phase of the CLDRR project. The gap assessment and lesson learning of the project recommends continuing the same for the capacity building of the community children to cope up the disasters. The program needs to continue for build up more confident and stability to the said children to cope up disaster risk for their own betterment. The recurring flood and cyclone bring saline water from Bay of Bengal and fertile agricultural land becoming barren.

The present CLDRR situation of the target community is in initial phase. They need to be capacitated continuing in the process of preparedness as early warning to face the disaster in different ways. The pilot phase of the CLDRR project build up capacity to project staffs who facilitated to form and strengthen the Task Forces, organize the Local Clubs and monitoring team that played a vital role for successfully completion of DRR project intervention.

This project covers approximately 7763 families covering 38336 populations in 16 Gram Sansad of 2 GP under Gosaba Block in Sundarban in district of South 24 Parganas, West Bengal.

The operational area of CLDRR project has a high or extreme degree of sensitivity to climate change, due to acute population pressure and a consequential strain on natural resources and increased incidence of natural disasters.

The Sundarban is declares as disaster prone area by the government and UN as well. It is a coastal, underdeveloped area and most visible victims of the ravages of climate change in India. Fragility of the ecosystem coupled with underdevelopment has made this region particularly vulnerable.

The ability of the children has to capacitate to cope with frequent disaster and reducing their vulnerability to disasters is giving an alarming command. The millennium goal prioritizing the most vulnerable and ensuring their participation in disaster management has not effectively been realized with respect to children. Experience from the humanitarian and development fields shows that unless the needs of children are catered for specifically, efforts to promote sustainable development and poverty reduction will continue to fall short. As a result, PUS Baruipur has taken a lead role in developing a distinctive rights-based approach to Disaster Risk Reduction that proposes a shift from children as passive victims to children as agents of change for their own well-being and the development of their communities.

Project Context:

The proposed program has emerged to a need to adapt to a situation by the vulnerable children and communities of Gosaba island of Sundarban. The Islands in Sundarban have been facing several disasters concurrently like Flood, Cyclone and soil erosion. The repeated disaster is creating a long lasting adverse impact to the children and whole the community.

The proposed programme emphasized disaster prevention, mitigation and preparedness disaster response with participation of community children. Vulnerability and Disaster risk reduction in response to climate adaptation.

Climate change increasing disaster risks in Gosaba island in two ways, firstly through increase in extreme weather events and hydrological hazards, and secondly through increases in the vulnerability of children to hazards, particularly through ecosystem degradation, reductions in water and food availability, and changed pattern to find out means for livelihoods. Climate change has added yet another stress on children abilities to cope with even the existing levels of weather hazards.

The proposed Children-centered DRR is based on development of children potentiality and appropriate actions to reduce the impact of natural disasters through proactive actions and has the capacities fight for it. The goal of the programme is to build their capacity to reduce the loss of life and property and to strengthen their adaptive capacities using appropriate local as well as scientific technologies with community at the periphery.

Strategic Approach:

The protection of children against any hazard due to disaster is one of the most fundamental rights in India. The Sundarban is declares as disaster prone. It is a coastal, underdeveloped area and most visible victims of the ravages of climate change which also repeatedly affect to the children. To address this right our strategic approach is to participate and contribute of children in this DRR process. The project activity will build up capacity of the children and rise up leadership in preparing themselves to cope up disaster like flood and cyclone. Through this CLDRR process, the community people identified their Hazard and its impacts, Vulnerability and Capacity and make DRR plan of action jointly with the children as per the identified problems. Consultation meeting with Stakeholders help to build up rapport with Panchayet Prodhan Up-Prodhan Siskha Bandhu and other official of two proposed G.P & CLDRR team for intervene and solve the problems.

Children are the more vulnerable in the situation of any kind of disasters and they are the more neglected section of the society. During any kind of emergencies like flood cyclone etc. they live with danger in family to temporary shelter. As per the experiences of last disasters, children faced the difficulties for lacking of proper food, cloths, medicine, proper drinking water, safe shelter, sanitation facilities and open child friendly space. Children have rights to protect themselves from any king of harms, negligence, abuse, discrimination as per the law of Indian constitution and it is fundamental. But in our society, children are not safe from his/her childhood to adolescence period. Beside that from the ICDS to Schools, there is no proper school safety plan and infrastructure to protect the children from any kind of disaster, mainly in the more hazard prone area.

Therefore minimize the disaster impact, especially for children and the community in general, chosen 10 schools and 16 gram Sansads under 2 gram Panchayets of Gosaba block.

The fact is natural hazard cannot be minimize, but vulnerability and risk of the community, especially of children can be reduced through sensitized and capacity building of the community and children.

Through the CLDRR project intervention through Hazard Vulnerability and capacity analysis, School and ICDS level workshop on School Safety, Climate Change and DRR, Workshop on Child Rights and Protection, Mock Drill and regular intervention, the project able to design Child Centered community based Disaster Risk Reduction Plan with the active involvement of the children and other key stakeholders and gradually it will be create a safer environment and the risk dimensions communicated to adults through children and incorporate the Plan in to Govt. Disaster Mitigation Plan for protect the children from disaster risk.

The project contribute toward fulfill the rights of the Children who are the most vulnerable and neglected at times of pre-post disaster situations. It is therefore vital importance that a strong intervention is needed in the worst affected areas of Gosaba to make the physical space safe for children and the community in general.

Objectives:

Vulnerable children and communities will have greater resilience towards the negative impact of natural disasters in Sundarban

Activities:

v Facilitate and strengthen the Children Groups (CG)

v Strengthening SHGs on DRR

v Facilitation of Vulnerability and Capacity Analysis towards community based adaptation and mitigation

v Children Centered Community Based DRR Plan

v Develop/align with School Safety Plan in consistency with CCDRR Plans

v Observation of National and International DRR Day

v Consultation meeting with Stakeholders

v Engagement of community in mobilizing Government resources for livelihood

v Consultation workshop for developing community assets useful in the DRR context through MNREGS

v Workshop and orientation of ICDS and school level for school safety and DRR orientation and linkages

v Workshop on Child protection Mechanism

v Capacity Building of the Panchayet Representatives for the validation and integration of community DRR plans in Panchayet level planning

v IEC development in local language

v SHG training on WASH and protection

Achievement:

1. Increased capacity of children, community and local bodies on DRR issues and set up prioritized actions.

2. Key stakeholders and Institutions are organized towards understanding roles of duty bearers in DRR

3. Community and children are equipped with greater understanding on risks and associated vulnerabilities related to natural disasters and management strategies/actions

4. Increased Capacity of the community about Local Governance ( PRI) towards effective planning for DRR (specific focus on children)

5. Strengthening Community Resilience to food insecurity & livelihoods as well as health and protection

6. Institutionalisation of Child Centred Disaster Risk Reduction is under process.

Lesson learning through achievements and challenges of the CLDRR pilot projectÂ

v The projects personnel shared the objective and activities of CLDRR project with whole community. The community aware about the gaps, risk, vulnerability, capacity of children in detail and ensure their leading with active participation to cope up disaster.

v HVCA (Hazard Vulnerability & Capacity Analysis) had been conducted at targeted gram Sansads. Each participant exposed their experience and 3 mixed groups have been formed in each HVCA process as per the experience.

v Through this CLDRR process, the community people identified their Hazard and its impacts, Vulnerability and Capacity. People realize to make DRR plan of action jointly with the children as per the identified problems.

v Consultation meeting with Stakeholders help to build up rapport with Panchayet Prodhan Up-Prodhan Siskha Bandhu and other official of two proposed G.P & CLDRR team for intervene and solve the problems.

v The CLDRR project staffs gather experience thatâ€™s they identified by HVCA and focus group discussion.

v 5 task force groups have been formed; the interested students Shows their interest in 5 following teams.

1. Early warning

2. Rescue

3. Water & Sanitation Team (WASH).

4. Environmental Action Team

5. Coordination team.

v Identified 152 SHG members and trained them about DRR for lead the community to aware about Disaster including early warning and technical skills to survive during and post disaster.

v Identified and sensitized 830 students from 10 schools on School Safety, Climate Change adaptation, DRR and involved those students in CLDRR process.

v Successfully conducted 5 consultation meetings with school teachers to discuss the CLDRR process, problems and difficulties of schools in terms of DRR and learn to mitigate the risk.

v The consultation meeting with two targeted Gram Panchayets with PRI members and officials about CLDRR help to identify and discussed the different problems and gaps of the schools, ICDS and Community. As per the discussion PRI personnel remodelling their plan for solve the problems of Schools, ICDS and community.

v 20 School level Children groups formed to facilitate early warning; rescue, WASH and action against destroy ecological balance and environmental pollution for their own betterment.

v Identified key community members, SHGs, local club members and children of 10 villages as stakeholders. They have been analyzed their Hazard vulnerability, Capacity and prepared Children Centred Community DRR plan based to present before next Gram Sansad meeting.

Promoting Children led DRR in Sundarban

Get In Touch With Us

Send us an e-mail or call us

Office time: 09:00 am to 5 pm (Monday to Friday)