Inspiring Stories - Nagnayakanahalli

Set 2.5 kms off the highway, Nagnayakanahalli in the Sommananhalli GP of the Uttarahalli hobli, is reached by a long winding road that cuts through the surrounding greenery till one reaches the group of 97 houses tucked away in the foliage. Further on are the two hamlets Gudipalya and Mallipalya. Access to these places is through the government run bus that comes in twice a day which in turn determines the timings for the Govt Lower Primary School . There are no other facilities in the village for children necessitating that older children walk a long distance to school while young children loiter and play around the village as they are not able to walk the required 2 kms to reach the nearest anganwadi.

There has been very little representation of the community's issues at the local administrative level. The tradition of appointing the member from a higher caste background has been followed even though there is only one family of the higher caste in the village and the rest of the people of the village belong to a ‘ lower' caste. Based on the secondary data collected in the Uttarahalli hobli it did appear the village required an efficient early child care & education facility, which was then reconfirmed by the GP President.

The School Development and Monitoring Committee of the local Government school primarily took up the responsibility of initiating a facility in the village. Ably supported by the local school teacher who was appreciative of the difference such a preschool facility would make to the continued education of village children, a survey was undertaken of the village and the neighbouring hamlets, identifying 70 preschool aged children. The parents, SDMC members, Stree Shakti Sangha members congregated to discuss the issue of Early Child Care in a Makkala Sabha.

This discussion on issues of ownership and accountability was a totally new perspective, triggered by a discussion on the issue of fees. Since the first reaction is a comparison of the community approach to the government run anganwadi, there was an intense discussion on what the community could determine for itself. A person donated Rs. 200 for any materials that needed to be purchased. The govt. school teacher later accommodated the preschool within the govt. school premises and the community run preschool began to function with a total of 26 children. The community of Nagnayakanahalli managed to run their preschool completely of their own volition for a period of three months before they initiated processes to strengthen their facility by seeking outside donor support.

The Makkala Sabha is crucial in that it marks the coming together of different stakeholders – traditionally divided by various social and economic barriers – on the issue of early childhood care. The equal emphasis on each individual to participate in the meeting, express opinions and arrive at a collective decision, binds the gathering into a ‘community'. It also ensures that decision-making about such a critical issue is not the privilege of a favoured few but the right of every stakeholder; equally significantly, it ensures that all members present share the responsibility to realise this collective vision . The shared concern and will of the community to address its need for early childcare finds expression in the joint decision to share available and new resources while also assuming responsibility to mobilise externally whatever else might be required.