Savitribai Phule Mahila Ekatma Samaj Mandal - SPMESM

#friday_focus_by_spmesm (217) ‘’दीपों का त्यौहार दिवाली आओ दीप जलाएँ | भीतर के अंधियारे को हम मिलकर दूर भगाएँ। | (दीनदयाल शर्मा/ कविता कोश) This week, the Friday Focus message is reaching you three days earlier! The most important reason for it is to *Wish You a Happy and Prosperous Deepawali!* But there is another reason, too! SPMESM’s Community Radio- *Radio Deogiri 91.2 FM* is celebrating Diwali in a special way. *Samadhanachi Diwali*, an initiative by Radio Deogiri is sharing the joy with the less- privileged families. Radio Deogiri Team has appealed the Chhatrapati Sambhhjinagar citizen to share one or two Diwali Sweets for the less- fortunate families who are unable to celebrate. A call to 9405877912 and we will collect the Diwali Faral items from you and share with the needy.  Let’s spread the joy of Diwali together! (The Diwali Sweet/ Faral collection and distribution is limited to Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar City Limits and for a short period only. But you can also contribute by donating us in cash via our website: www.spmesmandal.org) #HappyDiwali #happydiwali2024 #radiodeogiri #spmesm

#friday_focus_by_spmesm(216) कोई दुख  मनुष्य के साहस से बड़ा नहीं.. वही हारा  जो लड़ा नहीं.. (कुँवर नारायण) … But this courage (साहस) is displayed when one gets the assurance that someone is firmly standing by them! Many girls have to face the unfortunate sexual misconduct and abuse. Fear of defamation, violence prevent them from opening up or resisting to such abuses. Many a times, they just prefer to burry the incidences bearing its consequences on the personality.  SPMESM’s Kishori Vikas Project recently had an event in a big school for pre- adolescent and adolescent girls. Samvadinis (female facilitators) and female trainers/ counsellors discussed a variety of topics related to abuses and sexual misconducts. They used innovative communication methods like ‘role- play’ to elaborate the complexity of the topic.  As a result, 5 girls came forward at the end of session with tears in their eyes and shared that they too were subjected to such misconducts and had not spoken about it before! The school session had given them the courage to speak up! A swift follow up action by our tram, school administration and family members resolved the issue and the girls were relieved of fear and shame! This year, KVP is working with 24 schools. Over years, we have been empowering thousands of adolescent girls in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar City and Rural areas on changes in adolescence and coping skills. The range of the awareness programs is from ‘Good Touch- Bad Touch’ awareness to ‘Management of emotions in adolescence’ Thanks to Minex Foundation, Mumbai for their ardent support!

#friday_focus_by_spmesm (215) Sanjivani was one of the less privileged girls from SPMESM’s project areas, who was on the verge of giving up education. There wasn’t any formidable arrangement and the family couldn’t afford any.  SPMESM’s Project Ashish came to her rescue. It picks up needy boys and girls for vocational training at Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. Sanjivani, too, could pursue her Paramedical Skills Course and subsequently got a job as a Patient Assistant. She now works at SPMESM’s Shri Guruji Mobile Clinic Project.  Her father had to give up the irrigation pipeline laying work due to lack of money. Sanjivani, with her salaries, proudly help her father complete that. With her, the family has become self reliant! Every year, project Ashish sponsors stay, food and vocational training for 50 rural girls in Paramedical Skills and 50 boys for Industry related skills. All of them get placements immediately.  Thanks to Canpack India Pvt Ltd for making this possible!

#Friday_Focus_by_SPMESM (214) 2023-24 was a busy year for SPMESM. We expanded at a decent pace in this year.  - We covered 12 Districts.  - Outreach expanded to 950 villages and 80 Slums.  - 84 projects.  - 430 Individual and Institutional Donors supported us during the year and the total donation went upto 16.5 Cr Rs.  - We touched over a million lives.  - The strength increased to 200 staff and 300 Volunteers.  Happy to share the 2023-24 Annual Report of SPMESM in Flip book format. This can be best viewed on larger screen.  Your comments and suggestions are welcome.  This was impossible without your support and guidance.  Thank You for being with us!

#friday_focus_by_spmesm(213) *Our Radio Goes Global!* Community Radios play a vital role in developmental discourse. SPMESM’s CommunityRadio- *Radio Deogiri 91.2 FM* is doing a remarkable work in creating awareness on developmental initiatives along with entertainment as well as giving voices to the common people.  Its 2.5 years’ journey has been fascinating.  As it is to all the Community Radios, Radio Deogiri also had a limitation of few kilometres for its transmission.  But it is no longer there! We now have an *Android App* of Radio Deogiri with which we have gone global!! Here is the link to download the app: https://lnkd.in/dbbKyufa Else, one can scan the QR code in the graphics below to download it.

#friday_focus_by_spmesm(212) “झेंडा भल्या कामाचा जो घेउनी निघाला.. काटं कुटं वाटं मंदी बोचती त्येला.. रगत निगंल, तरी बी हसंल, शाबास त्येची.. तू चाल पुढं तुला रं गड्या भीती कशाची.. पर्वा बी कुनाची…” This is a popular retro Marathi Song which hails the energetic men and women marching ahead carrying the flag of a noble cause ahead, despite facing hurdles! The song is apt for these boys and girls of 3 villages of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. They too, are fighting for freeing their villages from Addictions, stress and mental health issues! The occasion was a Marathon of 5 Kms- Run for Mental Health organised by SPMESM’s Arunoday Mental Health Project This was one of the 5 such Marathons being organised this year.  Mental Health issues are alarmingly on the rise in rural areas, but no one cares! This project of SPMESM though is doing some pathbreaking work in De- addiction and Suicide Prevention. The highlight is the community involvement.  The results are exemplary! We thank Wipro Cares for their strong backing to this project!

#FridayFocusbySPMESM (211) पानी की महिमा धरती पर ,है जिसने पहचानी । उससे बढ़कर और नहीं है, इस दुनिया में ज्ञानी ।। *Satala*, a hilly village in Chhatrapati Sambhjinagar Block; was affected by water scarcity and back to back draught years. Although it has water conservation structures previously created but many of them are defunct. The common issue is the leakage from the foundation wall. If these structures hold the water, the groundwater levels are up and the farmers in the surrounding areas would get more water in their wells and additional crops. SPMESM considers the repair and rejuvenation of such defunct structures an important task in water sustainability work in the villages. SPMESM is implementing *Canpack Jal Abhiyan* in Satala and Kankora villages this year. We prioratised the rejuvenation of defunct water structures in this village. The foundation leaks were halted with *Cut- Off Trenches* technique. As a result, unlike the usual picture of empty structures immediately after the rains, the structures are full of water this year. *Mr. Bhausaheb Kalushe*, a farmer of Satala, himself shot this video today and shared the success. The satisfaction of successfully completing the water- mission and hopes for the future are evident in his sharing. We have been successfully working for the water sustainability in 5 parched villages in the vicinity with the villagers. *Canpck India Pvt Ltd* have extended their ardent support to this important initiative which is making a significant difference in the lives of the poor farmers.

#FridayFocusbySPMESM (210) *कौन कहता है कि आसमान में सुराख नहीं हो सकता* *एक पत्थर तो तबियत से उछालो यारो* (दुष्यंत कुमार) Miseries of small farmers and Agrarian Crisis are often discussed on various platforms. Farmers’ Producers, Organisation/ Companies could be the panacea on these issues and we are now hearing some success stories of it, too! SPMESM, with the support and guidance from *NABARD* has now established the network of 32 FPOs in Maharashtra. This is helping hundreds of small and marginal farmers in Agri related Backward and Forward Linkages, Produce, Processing and Marketing. This small video of our *Dharmabad Farmers Producer Company* highlights the success. This FPO is helping its 450 shareholder (all small farmers) in the border area of Maharashtra- Telangana. They have tactfully managed the local varieties of Sesamum, Turmeric and Chilli getting higher rates. The Annual Turnover of all our FPOs for the last year is over 133 Crore Rs. Video Courtesy- FB Page @महाराष्ट्र शेतकरी

#FridayFocusbySPMESM (209) The non- profit sector of Bharat is rapidly changing.  Especially over the last decade, everything about the NGOs is changing. The funding patterns, the laws- compliances and the expectations are forcing every NGO to change. The concepts are changing too! From ‘Donations’ to ‘Partnerships in Development’; from ‘Charity/ Philanthropy’ to ‘Social Returns on Impact Investment’…! Suddenly, the non- profit sector has become dynamic. Most of the non- profit organisations struggling to cope up with the pace of the change.  As our partenrs, supporters and mentors, you should rest assured because at SPMESM, we have been constantly learning, changing and adopting the best practices.  Presenting here two relevant articles for you which fairly portray the current scenario. 1. “Funders of NGOs should realise that this isn't a T20 cricket game” by Mr Anurag Beher, CEO, Azim Premji Foundation. (Published in The Mint, Aug 1, 2024) 2. “सीएसआर दशकपूर्तीचे धडे” (Lessons of the decade of CSR) by Dr. Prasanna Patil, SPMESM, (Published in Maharashtra Times, Jan 13, 2024) And yes, one thing has not changed; will never change, at SPMESM- the spirit of Seva!! Thank you for your support for all these years!