Pehel towards progress

Meet an agent of change for inclusive social development with a commitment towards amplifying people's voices

What does it take to change a country of 1.15 billion people? For a start, a small infectious act called 'initiative' and a handful of determined people to spread it around.



Jagran Pehel, a social project of Jagran Prakashan Ltd is going beyond the truism that bringing public improvement is only the government's job. By putting into use one of the largest media networks of the country, it is steadily nudging multilateral/ bilateral agencies, government and non-government organisations to improve the quality of human life.

Run by Shri Puran Chandra Gupta Smarak Trust, a non-profit charitable trust of the Jagran group, it has been dealing with issues like health, education, gender equality, population, poverty alleviation, water conservation and environment protection among others.u00a0 "It started in 2002, with sporadic charity activities but today in 2010, it has graduated into result oriented and sustainable programmes for a wider outreach," says Anand Madhab, National Head of the organisation.

Wings of fire
In 2010 by joining hands with the World Bank India office, Jagran Pehel gave wings to one of the dreams it conceived in 2009. Identifying 21 high burdened districts in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh it initiated a campaign to sensitize the masses about child malnutrition.u00a0
Pamphlets were distributed, panel discussion undertaken, advertisements and a film 'Kadam Badhayein Kuposhan Bhagayein' (Step Forward! Beat Malnutrition) screened. "The result-12 MPs, 25 MLAs, nine mayors among the masses who pledged to commit and a group of extremely exhausted but grinning from ear to ear with satisfaction Pehel workers," says Vishwa Mohan Prasad, Chief Manager.u00a0u00a0

Champions of change
Another case in point, 'Sapno Ko Chali Chooney', a joint initiative of with UNFPA and BSWDC prompted by a simple phone call from a young girl in Darbhanga. 'After reading your advertisement on gender equality, my parents have now started to acknowledge my importance,' she thanked. "The call got us thinking that there might be thousands of other girls whose life we can change. Thus, we started this project," says Pooja Singh, Manager Development. Consequently, Jagran Pehel reached out to 50, 000 girls from 21 colleges, across 6 districts of Bihar creating 50 young girls as 'Champions of Change' who today in their own capacity championing the crusade of minimizing gender discrimination in the society.

Finding answers
"During one of the discussion on eve-teasing a young girl responded that if she starts responding back to eve-teasers she will be a social pariah among her friends," says Pooja Singh.u00a0 "I had no answer when she asked what should her response be then to the problem," she adds. It is these questions, Jagran Pehel faces, that egg on it to move forward. Hence, water becoming a scarcity, is a Goliath it challenges and so is global warming and demographic overburdening. It prints and distributes a newspaper for neo-literates in 17 districts and 23,000 primary schools in Bihar andu00a0 shouts out aloud, Zindagi Zindabad in Jharkhand through a mass media campaign to tackle HIV/AIDS.

So what does it take to change a country of 1.15 billion people? For a start, a small infectious act called 'initiative' and a handful of determined people spreading it among the 1.15 billion others. That's Jagran Pehel for you.