Abhijit Pawar,
MD, Sakal Media Group
Worshiping light as part of Diwali traditions, we will also celebrate Bhau-Beej tomorrow. The day is meant to strengthen a bond of trust and love between brothers and sisters. On the occasion of Bhau-Beej, we are launching yet another initiative in the form of ‘Tanishka Volunteers’ which unites sisters from across Maharashtra. Therefore, I appeal to all of you, my sisters, to join the ‘Tanishka Volunteers’ initiative, which is here to help women find solutions to their problems, help them associate with women from all walks of life, across villages, towns and cities. The initiative aims to unite and strengthen women. The Sakal Media Group will play the role of an elder brother, supporting all the sisters who join in. The initiative will seek contribution from women for the welfare of society, thus adding strength to the brother-sister bond.
Sakal always has endeavoured to pick up positive happenings and attitudes of society and always believed in bringing the light of good deeds into the lives of our readers. Over the last month-and-a-half, the Sakal Media Group, Saam Television and eSakal have been understanding the expectations of the common citizen of Maharashtra, while connecting them with the experts in respective fields, the administrators and the politicians through the ‘Maharashtra’s Expectations’ initiative. The main inspiration behind that initiative was to jointly lead the mission of development in the State.
All of Maharashtra enthusiastically participated in the activity, highlighting their expectations, shedding light on long-pending issues and suggesting solutions. Participation of experts, officials from various fields and political representatives helped strengthen the voice of the common man.
During this journey, women from all over Maharashtra tabled a new vision of development. It was clearly visible, how keenly women look at a certain issue before making a suggestion. The same was the experience while uniting women under the banner of the Tanishka Women’s Dignity Foundation and involving them in discussions on different issues. ‘The Tanishka Volunteers’ initiative being launched today, is a step in this direction.
On October 30, we launched the ‘Delivering Change Programme’, an initiative which aims at bringing about positive changes in Maharashtra over the next five years. We often see a lot of planning happening, but implementation remains a problem. The women of Maharashtra will now act as enablers by becoming a well-wishing pressure group to ensure proper implementation of development plans for different sectors. They will provide strength to the existing system while working towards bringing about positive changes in different areas.
Women can decide the direction for development. Nobody can understand better than a woman, what her family needs. Society is made up of united families and the importance of keeping the family together cannot be ignored while treading the path of development and progress. Therefore we strongly feel that women should make a contribution in this direction.
It is just like the role of the mother in a family. A mother selflessly acts for the well-being of her children and other family members. Similarly, we appeal to all the women to strive for the family called ‘Maharashtra’.
Realising that women can play a decisive role in this direction, the need was to provide them with a system that will give them a hearing with a view to understand their feelings. There will be two separate entities. Groups of Tanishka Foundation members and the Tanishka Volunteers. Both groups, in their different capacities, will assist the government in taking proper decisions for the benefit of the people.
Failure to consider the requirements of women while speaking about progress and development, will leave the entire process of development incomplete, thus creating an anomaly. Hence, it is important to know and consider what the whole State feels, what the people really want and how to deliver it, while speaking about progress and development in the future. The ‘Tanishka Volunteers’ network, which is being established by the Sakal Media Group, will be a strong step in this direction.
A strong and effective network of discerning women from various walks of life, from across the state will be formed through this initiative. Just like the network formed during elections, the Tanishka Volunteers will reach out to almost every household of the state. There are a total 90,095 polling booths spread across all the constituencies in the State. Every voting booth covers, average voting population of 1,000 individuals or roughly 250 families. Each of such polling booth in the State will have at least one Tanishka Volunteer connected to it. She will represent the interests of these 1,000 individuals or those 250 families.
Interestingly, following calls from Sakal’s Call Centre, many women from various parts of the State have expressed their desire to participate as volunteers.
This network now needs to multiply more aggressively. Women willing to volunteer for the betterment of society, are welcome, to join this platform which is open to women above the age of 16. Membership for the ‘Tanishka Volunteers’ will be absolutely free.
‘Tanishka Volunteers’ will constantly remain in touch with families residing in their respective areas which covers the geography of a particular voting booth. They will convey expectations and problems of the people in their areas to the Sakal Media Group.
Development works thus can be prioritised on the basis of these responses and the agenda for development of the State can be set. ‘Tanishka Volunteers’ will also create public opinion to ensure implementation of this agenda. Tanishka Volunteers will convey to each and every family in their contact, messages and relevant information for betterment of society, received from Tanishka Foundation as well as Sakal Media Group.
This will be an absolutely apolitical movement which will not be aligned to any political party or ideology nor will it ever become a political party. Only such an apolitical movement by women will help boost development and guide changes in the State.
Tanishka Foundation
A strong network of women has already been established through the Tanishka Women’s Dignity Foundation. Members of this forum, meet every month to discuss and undertake positive activities for the benefit of the society.
Consequently, small and big changes are already being witnessed all over the State. Reaching out to almost every household in the rural areas of Maharashtra, ‘Tanishka Volunteers’ will complete the functioning of the Tanishka Women’s Dignity Foundation.
Both the forums will help strengthen the voice of women in the State. This force will play an important role in bringing into reality, projects conceived by the people. Tanishka Volunteers, from respective areas, will be connected to the Tanishka Foundation groups of that particular area. Issues and subjects coming from the Tanishka Volunteers will be taken up for discussion and action at the Forum, in order to find solutions to them.
A group of women working at the local and State level will soon be elected from only among Tanishka members, who are more actively involved for the betterment of society. Only Tanishka Foundation members will be able to stand for the state-wide Tanishka election in the State. After being elected, members of the Tanishka Foundation will interact with the elected representative in the government and the members of bureaucracy as a well-wishing pressure group to ensure implementation of the plans which are in the interest of the society.
Tanishka Volunteers will not be able to contest these elections. However, they can cast votes and involve other women above the age 16 in the election process. A detailed election programme will soon be announced.
Tanishka Volunteers wanting to participate in the elections will have to become Tanishka Foundation members.
Members elected in the Tanishka elections will strive to solve problems and issues suggested by Tanishka Volunteers. The Sakal Media Group will extend every possible support to Tanishka members and volunteers to resolve their issues.
The Sakal Media Group will play the role of an elder brother linking the expectations of women from rural Maharashtra with the government machinery. Once active, the network of Tanishka Volunteers will function as a machinery to understand the views of each and every family in Maharashtra at any given time.
People’s participation in the path of development has now been commonly accepted. People’s participation and consensus will not anymore be limited to the elected representatives of a respective area, but the planning will be all inclusive only if the common man occupies the centre stage and hurdles in the path of implementation are removed.
This way, the huge investments required for the development of the State will be easily and freely available. Several laws have conscious provisions of people’s participation but awareness is hardly created about them, and hence, in absence of people’s participation, the provision remains only on the paper.
The gap can be bridged with a strong network like Tanishka Volunteers which reaches out to every family. The Tanishka Volunteers will provide a forum for the entire State to repeatedly express views about issues related to development.
The strength of women has so far been proved through the Tanishka Foundation , which has now been fully stabilised. Tanishka Volunteers is an initiative which will take this activity a step ahead through its extensiveness. Bhau-beej, therefore, seems to be the best occasion to link families with each other. Considering the special importance of this moment, Sakal Media Group will assist every woman participating in this initiative. Women participating in this initiative will play an important role in shaping the Maharashtra of the future.
This is one opportunity to join the network which has the strength to finalise the path of the State, besides deciding developmental works. Appeals made by the Sakal Media Group have always evoked an overwhelming response from the masses.
This initiative, which has been conceived for the better future of Maharashtra, will no doubt evoke an equal response. Contact the Sakal Call Centre (9225800800) and be a part of ‘Tanishka Volunteers’. Greetings on the occasion of Bhau-beej.