INDIRA SOOCHNA SHAKTI

INDIRA SOOCHNA SHAKTI

AN INITIATIVE FOR EMPOWERMENT THROUGH Information Technology

Former Prime Minister the Late Smt. Indira Gandhi symbolised “shakti”, strength and power for our masses. In a knowledge society, shakti is synonymous with the power to harness technology and to access information and knowledge. Indira Soochna Shakti is Chhattisgarh’s tribute to India’s Great Leader.

Theme

Preparing the youth of Chhattisgarh for the challenges of a knowledge-society –

encouraging Chhattisgarh’s GeneratioNext for harnessing the global opportunities made possible by Information Technology and to create a seamless society with global opportunities; and
with a commitment for correcting gender biases against women and to empower young women through soochna shakti or INFORMATION POWER inspired by the example of Indiraji

Objectives

1.Computer Education and access to Information Technology for Girl Students

2. Creating environment for e-governance

3.Opening up possibility of distance learning and networking

4. Promoting Community / NGO / Private sector involvement

ISSY

1.ISSY is for Girls Students

2.Covers Classes 9,10,11 and 12

3.Started in Coeducational / Girls’ High Schools & Hr. Sec. Schools managed by PRIs/ULBs

4.Largest IT education scheme for girls at the secondary level in India.

5.Initially free enrolment targeted at all Girls belonging to SC/ST and those from BPL families belonging to OBC & other categories; all others including boys in coeducational schools required to pay

6.From the academic session in July, ISSY is free for all girls students in eligible schools

7.100 hours of IT education imparted each year on CBSE syllabus – spread over up to 10 months in an academic year

8. Boys’ only schools also have the opportunity to avail IT education on payment of nominal fee.

9. At least 5 Pentium computers with Internet connection per school with one IT instructor per batch of 20 students

10. ISSY is an example of public-private partnership

11. Private party is provided rooms in school premises – at least 400 sq.ft. – all other expenditure met by the party

12. Also undertakes commercial enterprise outside school hours with permission from school authorities

13. Comparison with earlier schemes introduced by GOI such as CLASS [Computer Literacy And Studies in Schools] and CLAP [Computer Literacy And Awareness Programme] would show the much faster pace of progress under ISSY.

14. Girls educated under the scheme are being involved in the preparation of Jan Rapat (People’s Reports) as part of the Gaon la chalav (On to Villages) drive

15. Under Jan Rapat - People will author their own state of development reports in all the 20,000 odd villages of Chhattisgarh – later to be aggregated as the State Jan Rapat/ Human Development Report

16. Girls educated under Indira Soochna Shakti will computerise the Citizens’ Database and Village Database created under the drive which will serve as the human and physical resource inventory of the strength of the rural communities of Chhattisgarh.

17. Girls educated under Indira Soochna Shakti will also be volunteers for operating computers and using IT for the benefit of rural societies in villages as part of CHOiCE (Chhattisgarh Online information for Citizen Empowerment) Project.

18. CHOiCE Project will provide seamless IT-enabled citizen services in Cities as well as Gram Panchayat headquarters. Pilot Projects are underway for the State Capital and three neighbouring Blocks in the State.

Implementation

a)at the policy level Chaired and monitored by the Chief Minister, every month.

b)at the level of officials : Secretary, School Education, nominee of the Tribal Welfare Department and the CEO of CHiPS (CHhattisgarh infotech Promotion Society). The Committee meets at least once every month.

•District Level Coordination Committee :

comprising CEO of Zila Panchayat, Municipal Officers, representative of Private partner etc. is coordinated by District Collectors. It meets every month and reviews progress.

•Block Level Coordination Committee :

with representation from Panchayats, Sub divisional administration, and Private partner meet every month and steer the Scheme.

•School Management Committee :

comprising parents, teachers and Panchayat representatives oversee the scheme at the school level.

•The Scheme is implemented by the Private Partner, who is selected on the basis of open competitive bidding on specified terms of lowest fee, instructor quality, hardware deployment, licensed software, and performance.

Budget

l Total Outlay 2001-02 = Rs.162 lacs

l Total Outlay 2002-03 = Rs.700 lacs

–From State’s Own Resources

Funding

Indira Soochna Shakti is being funded from the State budget

lCurrent year’s outlay is Rs. 7 crores @ Rs. 54 per student per month for an estimated 130,000 girls students.

lWe have also approached the Government of India in the Departments of Tribal Affairs and Women & Child Development for financial assistance for the scheme.

lIt is estimated that with increasing number of students, competition would drive the fee structure down in future.

Constraints

1.Internet connectivity not available in several villages; expansion in Reliance/Touchtel/BSNL’s network would solve this,

2.Some schools lack rooms and / or electricity for the computers. These resources are being created from other dev. Programmes.

ISSY
Month-wise Coverage (No. of Students)

S.No.	Months	No. of School	No. of Students
1	Sep.	280	24286
2	Nov.	389	32983
3	Jan.	540	41998
4	Feb.	662	46273
5	Aug.	1248	---
6	Target	1605	> 130000

ENROLMENT
district-wise
(all from BPL families)

S.N.	District (Education)	Schools	SC	SC/ST	Enrolment
1	RAIPUR	60	1571	929	3591
2	MAHASAMUND	45	256	431	877
3	DHAMTARI	11	283	668	1020
4	DURG	166	1929	2103	10961
5	RAJNANDGAON	33	666	829	1627
6	KAWARDHA	12	213	183	880
7	BILASPUR	47	1062	603	3593
8	JANJGIR-CHAMPA	33	1266	471	2593
9	KORBA	45	674	1279	2070
10	RAIGARH	16	581	543	1524
11	JASHPUR	29	323	2576	3045
12	SURGUJA	61	674	4153	5399
13	KORIYA	26	380	829	1435
14	BASTAR	26	420	2164	2497
15	KANKER	25	314	1854	2308
16	DANTEWADA	17	205	981	2853
	Total	662	10817	20596	46273

Physical and Financial Achievements

1. 1248 Coeducational / Girls’ Government High Schools & Higher Secondary Schools out of a total of 1605 such schools covered

2. In the very first year Free enrolment of 46,273 girls from 31,413 SC/ST and 14,860 BPL families belonging to OBC/General categories in classes 9-12.

3. Another 9,000 from Above Poverty Line families also enrolled initially on self-financing basis and now free.

4. Scope of ISSY extended to cover all girls irrespective of class, caste denominations.

MECHANISM FOR IMPLEMENTATION

•Block level coordination committees with representation from Janpad Panchayats, Sub divisional administration, and Private partner meet every month and steer the Scheme.

•School Management Committees comprising parents, teachers and Panchayat representatives oversee the scheme at the school level.

spin-offs

•Computerisation of Jan Rapats (People’s Reports) as part of course-related work . This is estimated to save the Government nearly half a crore Rupees (@ Rs. 250 per village for 20,000 villages).

•The volunteer corp activities for the CHOiCE Project pilot performed by girls acquiring Indira Soochna Shakti – in 3 Blocks comprising 250 Gram Panchayats – is estimated to save Rs. 25 lakhs annually (@ Rs. 10,000 per annum). When the Project is scaled up Statewide this will save approximately Rs. 9 crores per annum (there are 9,143 Gram Panchayats in the State), which almost equals the annual cost of the Scheme.

Monitoring & Evaluation

1. Students tested by instructors as per curriculum

2. Frequency : week/month/year.

3. Quality of training further evaluated through project activities of data base creation through “Jan Rapats”

4. Concurrent internal monitoring & evaluation at the State, District, Block & School levels – through district administration/panchayats/urban local bodies etc.

5. Mid-term and end-term external evaluations would be undertaken at one-and-a-half year and three year stages.

Post Script

lISSY symbolic of our campaign of IT for the masses

lA dedicated videoconference based public grievance system all over the State is an example

lSynergies with CHOiCE underscore the relevance of human development resources

lWe are tapping the all round enthusiasm, encouraged by the AWARD for the Second Best theme among pavilions in eGovernance category at the prestigious Bangalore IT.COM, 2001. Only Congress State to perform so.

lBhilai our Knowledge Capital has the first IT software park and international gateway hub set up by Sofware Technology Parks of India and CHiPS (Chhattisgarh infotech Promotion Society)