Rural awareness and development programmes

MASS has been involved in this activity for 20 years. 34 child marriages were actually stopped by MASS staff. Towards this end, schools and doctors (both play roles in confirming the ages of brides and grooms) have been informed of the basis on which age confirmations can be made, i.e. they cannot legally issue age certificates without supporting evidence.

• MASS’ Legal Support Service has played a major role in giving the organization visibility. The Legal Support Programme of MASS extends to non-MASS members and non-devdasi communities also. So far, it has been successful in resolving 718 cases of disputes out of courts and through the involvement of families, local leaders and Panchayath members.

• With funding support of ‘Child Rights & You (CRY), Bangalore, MASS is implementing a programme to secure rights of children (with focus on dalith children) in selected 16 remote villages of Chikkodi block. Under this programme, advocacy and lobbying has been carried out to ensure quality education, access to school for all children, ensure adequate nutrition intake, anaganawadi facility as per the norm etc. MASS has intensified its activities of curtailing child marriages, devdasis system, child prostitution, child trafficking etc. Apart from demanding good supplementary food to children from ICDS, supervises the status of PDS shop, conducts health camps for malnutrition children, ensures 100% enrolment of children and re-enrolment of drop out children to school, formation of adolescent , youth & mother collective, special coaching classes for students to get seats in the Novoday and Murarji schools etc are the main activities under this programme. So far 834 students were trained under this programme for the entrance exam and 71 of them have secured admission to special schools. Govt high school sanctioned in Jagnoor & Miraparatti village. 3 children are rescued under Pocso Act.