Good Governance

Good governance has 8 major characteristics. It is participatory, consensus oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable and inclusive and follows the rule of law. It assures that corruption is minimized, the views of minorities are taken into account and that thevoices of the most vulnerable in society are heard in decision-making. It is also responsive to the present and future needs of society.

Escape from Marriage to Childhood

With a long term of objective of protecting the rights of children by reducing the incidences of child marriages and violation of child rights, BDSSS established community based structures such as children’s groups, adolescent girls groups, Child Protection Committees, women SHGs and youth groups to carry forward the changes that have been initiated. BDSSS’ work has created positive impact by reducing the incidence of child marriage in Kalghatagi taluka of Dharwad district where child marriages were rampant in the past. At the policy level the strong network has influenced the government to set up Justice Shivaraj Patil Committee to look into the status of child marriages in Karnataka and make recommendations. UNICEF, one of the key civil society stakeholders in the State has also taken up the issue of child marriage as its priority concerns in Karnataka.

Integrated Rural Development Program (IRDP)

In order to leverage opportunity to the villagers in rural Kalghatagi, BDSSS worked with Community based organizations, including women Self Help Groups to cater to the livelihood, health, educational and gender equitable needs of women. BDSSS worked with 400 SHGs with credit linkage, training and development and forward linkage. Women are successfully running their income generation venture buoyed by the success of the capacitating drives of BDSSS.

Water and Sanitation

BDSSS handled Govt. of Karnataka’s watershed project. Individuals are now able to judiciously use water, talk to their communities, monitor progress, and ensure better decision making and management of groundwater. As a resultof concentrated efforts of BDSSS, communities are more aware of the uses of water bodies and check dams –what their purpose is, and what that means for the rural areas. Panchayats are also now asking for knowledge and facilitation. By partnering with microfinance institutions, self-help group federations, housing finance corporations, social enterprises and the Government, BDSSS is sharing knowledge to increase access to improved sanitation and safe water. BDSSS also campaigns for safe and potable water indry areas of Bagalkot and Gadag districts.

Development of Urban Slum and Poverty Reduction

Micro studies have always suggested that 75% of urban poor dwells in slums. The reasons for poverty in slums are illiteracy, joblessness, health and hygiene issues, discrimination, zero income generation plans, unorganized women and community power, etc. Below Poverty Lineis aneconomic yardstickandpoverty thresholdused by the government of Indiato indicate economic disadvantage and to identify individuals and households in need of government aid. A large chunk of such people live in slums and majority of them are illiterate and unskilled. They are always involved in third degree shoddy jobs. BDSSS provides:

• Rapprochement building with community through entry point activities.
• Educational, livelihood and human rights support
• Assessing the existing community based organizations and ascertaining their functionality.
• Social mobilization through formation of new SHGs and revival of existing SHGs through capacitybuilding.
• Identification of issues based on area specific problems through community participation.
• Formation of senior citizens forum
• Formation of unorganized construction workers group
• Formation of slum tuition classes for overall education of the children living in slums
• Child rights training and child participatory programs

BDSSS works in 9 slums of Dharwad empowering people at the bottom of the pyramid.

Health and Hygiene

BDSSS has been instrumental in tackling HIV AIDS in Hangal Byadgi talukas of Haveri and Khanapur taluka of Belgaum district. The project has put up strong community based organizations and mechanisms that have made bottom of the social pyramid impact. Community organization’s like District’s Positive People’s Network and SHG movement of women tested positives have developed information education and communication, awareness and training on Do’s and Don’ts and created. BDSSS executes health camps, awareness drives and campaigns across its projects to enable people’s focus on enhanced quality of healthcare facilities. It also builds capacity of the people to ensure that they network with the primary health centers, community health centers and taluka networks for enhanced healthcare amenities. Special emphasis is always laid on children’s health especially during the times of disaster, epidemic and pandemic. Various health stakeholders such as the Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA) and Anganwadi workers work closely within the projects.

Farm Resource Optimization for Sustainable Practices

Belgaum Diocesan Social Service Society (BDSSS) has many institutional farms located in its operational area covering Belgaum, Bagalkot, Dharwad, Gadag and Haveri districts of Karnataka and Chandgad taluka of Kolhapur district in Maharashtra. There are boarding attached to some of these larger farms and BDSSS envisaged adding some more boarding to some of the farms and make these institutional farms self-sustainable.

Sujala Integrated Watershed Programme

Integrated Watershed Development (Sujala) project was undertaken by BDSSS as partner NGO with Watershed Department, Government of Karnataka. The project functioned in 15 cluster villages of 5 gram panchayats in Dharwad taluka.In principal rejuvenation, conservation and maintenance of national resources such as soil and water, vegetation, plantation is spread over an area of 8761 hectares. As a result, cropping pattern intensified and diversified as a result per acre income increased. Land value is increased in the post project periodand Farmers started livestock maintenance and management. This enhanced the family income. Water bodies were created, green coverage got maintained, shortage of food, fodder, fuel and fruit was solved, food and economic security was ensured and women enjoyed economic freedom.

Astitva –Elderly Care

Under this project, financially sponsored by India’s famous elderly care organization HelpAge India, BDSSS made Elderly Self Help Groups and capacitated them for income generation and emotional care and support. There are 80 Elderly Self Help groups being created in the Dharwad taluka and all these elderly beneficiaries have access to governmental schemes and entitlements. Their savings have ensured that internal loan facility happens at regular interval andthe elderly too get into small businesses and enterprises to keep their income intact.

BDSSS works with 80 Elder Self help Group’s consisting of 550 elders. Periodical training’s, awareness programs, linkage to Government departments, referral to health department to get health services, advocacy and lobbying with various stakeholders to demand for the rights of the elderly and enabling the elders to avail seed capital to start their own small scale business to improve their economic conditions are the keydeliverables. These are the activities combined with self-help group’s as result of which elderly people are seen in the forefront. Not letting their confidence, elderly people are equally concentrating on their business to earn profitable income. Good rapport and linkage with banks, government department and NABARD is another source of strength to connect elderly people to access and avail maximum benefits.

Disaster Risk Reduction

Natural Disasters like floods cause deaths and damage to property and infrastructure.Monitoring floods and managing the rescue and rehabilitation operations during and after the calamity, has been BDSSS’ forte ever since 2005.Under the aegis of Caritas India, BDSSS has partnered and participated in its PEACH program which is European-Asian Partnership for Building Capacities in Humanitarian Action. Since 2005, BDSSS supports in emergency flood relief and post flood recovery initiatives. The organisation has even conceptualized projects in facing droughts in its work area.

BDSSS built 200 houses for the Bagalkot flood sufferers in 2005 and continued the same in 2019 North West Karnataka floods. It has partnered with institutional donors like Caritas India, Kindernothilfe, Habitat for Humanity and Karnataka Regional Organization for Social Service (KROSS) and CSRs such as Collins Aerospace, United Way of Bengaluru and United Way of Mumbai. In 2019, with ample experience and expertise in dealing with floods, BDSSS reached out to 8500 families in 61 villages of nine talukas in three districts of North Karnataka-Bagalkot, Belgaum and Dharwad. Relief materials worth Rs. 4, 67, 50,000/-was provided. The individual relief kit amounted to Rs. 5,500/-each.