Upcoming Events

Designed with expert knowledge of working professionals, development practitioners and academicians, Society for Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA) and Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) have collaboratively launched a Master’s Programme in Participatory Development (MAPD). Keeping working professionals, new graduates and development practitioners in mind, MAPD will help in strengthening the understanding of the concept and practice of participatory development and developing knowledge and skills for managing development projects and programmes in a participatory manner. Through course work, assignments, field exposure and interactions with students and instructors, learners will explore the process of participation in development and governance interventions as well as strengthen understanding of key elements of managing developing organizations.
For more details of "Master of Arts in Participatory Development"click here...

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It has been three decades – 30 years – since PRIA (Society for Participatory Research in Asia) began its journey as a development organization committed to social change.

To celebrate 30 years of PRIA, teams of current PRIA staff have begun undertaking journeys to revisit and reconnect with our roots – the people we have touched, the project sites we have worked in, the partners who have helped us along our way, and ex-colleagues who contributed to building PRIA. We want to learn what we did, how we did it, what difference it has made – to help strengthen us as we re-commit ourselves to ‘empowering the poor and the excluded such that they can claim their rights and improve their lives’.

PRIA’s operating ‘mantra’ has been –‘KNOWLEDGE IS POWER’. What has been the impact of PRIA’s interventions in the lives of the poor and the marginalized? How did knowledge support from PRIA strengthen local and grassroots efforts? What different forms of interventions of knowledge—from knowledge sharing to dissemination to synthesis of practice—support our efforts? In what ways have capacity enhancement interventions of PRIA empowered the work of our partners? How did our partners sustain their own capacity enhancement to continue to deepen their own work? PRIA has used the twin processes of collectivization and learning for empowerment; did this approach support others’ efforts we worked with?

If you have been associated with PRIA in the past or are currently, and would like to share with us any stories, anecdotes, photos, documents—anything that demonstrates the nature of connections you and your work has had with PRIA over these three decades—please send them to rajeshtandon1@pria.org.

We look forward to your comments and feedback as we share with you our journey of reconnecting with our roots during the course of 2012.

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The CORE project will hold its mid-term conference at Banaras Hindu University in Varanasi, India, to present initial results from the research carried out in the project. Reports from the 6 case studies in Europe and India will be presented together with general reflections on the linkage between governance and conflict resolution from project members and international speakers.

To know more about the project, click here

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Historically, panchayats have been an integral part of rural India. Although the framework for panchayati raj was laid on 2 October 1959 in Nagaur district, Rajasthan by Jawaharlal Nehru, it received constitutional status (with the passing of the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act) only in 1993.

The three-tier panchayati raj system will complete 20 years of existence on 24 April 2012. In these 20 years, panchayats have given a new direction to rural development, and women, scheduled castes and tribes, and other marginalized sections of society have become actors in the socio-economic development of their communities through representation in these local bodies. Today, via the gram sabha, citizens have the space to get involved in the development of their village. People are more aware of their rights. Yet, despite these changes, how successful have panchayati raj institutions truly been in letter and spirit as envisaged in the constitution? On the occasion of completing 20 years as constitutionally mandated institutions of local self-governance, this is a pertinent question to ask.

More than a decade after PRIA published Panchayati Raj Institutions: A Balance Sheet in which it raised critical issues for the effective functioning of panchayati raj institutions, the balance sheet is still unfavourable. The issues remain:

• - Inadequacy of the gram sabha
• - Lack of participation of women and other marginalized sections in the gram sabha
• - Delimitation of panchayats
• - Puppet candidates in panchayat elections
• - Poor representation of women and other marginalized sections in panchayats
• - Lack of plan preparation at the gram sabha and panchayat levels
• - Economic non-viability of panchayati raj institutions

Nearly two-thirds of the country’s population resides in its 640,867 villages. There are 247,000 panchayats and 30 lakh directly elected representatives to panchayati raj institutions. These institutions and representatives are responsible for the economic development with social justice of this large section of the population. Looking at the condition of panchayats today, what should be done to strengthen panchayati raj institutions so that they can fulfill this role? How can they become more effective players in bringing about equitable socio-economic development? In this context, it is also crucial to look at the formation and functioning of state election commissions, state finance commissions and district planning committees.

PRIA is facilitating half-day workshops with civil society organizations and networks of panchayati raj institutions in Bihar, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh to debate these and other issues. Join us and participate in these discussions to find the best way to take forward the mandate for local governance in letter and spirit.

Click here for Hindi version

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Historically, panchayats have been an integral part of rural India. Although the framework for panchayati raj was laid on 2 October 1959 in Nagaur district, Rajasthan by Jawaharlal Nehru, it received constitutional status (with the passing of the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act) only in 1993.

The three-tier panchayati raj system will complete 20 years of existence on 24 April 2012. In these 20 years, panchayats have given a new direction to rural development, and women, scheduled castes and tribes, and other marginalized sections of society have become actors in the socio-economic development of their communities through representation in these local bodies. Today, via the gram sabha, citizens have the space to get involved in the development of their village. People are more aware of their rights. Yet, despite these changes, how successful have panchayati raj institutions truly been in letter and spirit as envisaged in the constitution? On the occasion of completing 20 years as constitutionally mandated institutions of local self-governance, this is a pertinent question to ask.

More than a decade after PRIA published Panchayati Raj Institutions: A Balance Sheet in which it raised critical issues for the effective functioning of panchayati raj institutions, the balance sheet is still unfavourable. The issues remain:

• - Inadequacy of the gram sabha
• - Lack of participation of women and other marginalized sections in the gram sabha
• - Delimitation of panchayats
• - Puppet candidates in panchayat elections
• - Poor representation of women and other marginalized sections in panchayats
• - Lack of plan preparation at the gram sabha and panchayat levels
• - Economic non-viability of panchayati raj institutions

Nearly two-thirds of the country’s population resides in its 640,867 villages. There are 247,000 panchayats and 30 lakh directly elected representatives to panchayati raj institutions. These institutions and representatives are responsible for the economic development with social justice of this large section of the population. Looking at the condition of panchayats today, what should be done to strengthen panchayati raj institutions so that they can fulfill this role? How can they become more effective players in bringing about equitable socio-economic development? In this context, it is also crucial to look at the formation and functioning of state election commissions, state finance commissions and district planning committees.

PRIA is facilitating half-day workshops with civil society organizations and networks of panchayati raj institutions in Bihar, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh to debate these and other issues. Join us and participate in these discussions to find the best way to take forward the mandate for local governance in letter and spirit.

Click here for Hindi version

Read More ...