Monday, January 15, 2018

Folk school on Torture & Human Dignity
















On the occasion of ‘International Human Rights Day’, Acharya Mritunjay Tripathi and Mufti Haroon Rashid inaugurated the new block of ‘Helma Ritscher Centre for Human Dignity’ constructed by PVCHR / Jan Mitra Nyas and equipped on latest standard with help of  “Engagement Global gGmbH - Service für Entwicklungsinitiativen Deutschland weit und international” and “ Indo-German Society e.V. Affiliate Remscheid (DIG Deutsch-Indische Gesellschaft Remscheid / Germany)”.
Event on facebook and other sites:

The newly from PVCHR built “Helma Ritscher Centre for Human Dignity“ on top of the “Savitri Bai Phule Women Centre” offers new and progressive chances for further training for the members of the Dalit community, especially girls and women, and it will strengthen their awareness for their rights to education. Furthermore the Centre offers up-to-date facilities with the most modern media and adequate furnishings in a dignified atmosphere.

The spatial union of the „Savitri Bai Phule Women Centre“ and the new Centre is a symbol for building a bridge between the past and the modern in order to promote access to education and the universal application of human rights.

Whereas the Women-Centre focuses on girls and women, the new Centre offers trainings for all members oft he Dalit community regardless of their age and gender. Thus this Centre also serves as a model of Dalit youth education as it offers training and access to the modern digital world and opens chances for further acceptance in society and the job market.

I’d like to especially mention and honour one supporter from DIG Remscheid, Mr. Hans-Gerd Grote-Beverborg, who died last year. He and his wife had always shown great interest and support for the plight of the Dalit. Even beyond his death he considered „our Dalit friends“ in his last will. His wish was that instead of any grave offerings people should donate to the “Women Centre”. In coordination with his wife and Dr. Lenin, Ms. Helma Ritscher decided to utilise his “gift beyond death” for purchasing computers for the Centre. A wonderful gesture towards our Dalit friends! 

PVCHR CEO Dr. Lenin said: Helma Ritscher is the chairperson of Indo-German Society e.V. Affiliate Remscheid, Germany, and that the Centre has been established with its active cooperation. The Centre is dedicated to protecting the human dignity of the marginalised sections, he said. The land for the Centre has been donated by Urmila Singh, the mother of the organisation’s managing trustee Shruti Nagvanshi. He further informed that PVCHR / Jan Mitra Nyaas’s office would come up on the first floor of the new building. It may be recalled that the Savitri Bai Phule Mahila Kendra was established in 2012. (Project 01-11/ GIZ/DIG/PVHR)

After the inauguration ceremony, a seminar on ‘Atrocities and Human Dignity’ was held under the aegis of PVCHR , IRCT and Sanjha Sanskriti Manch. The chief guest of the seminar, Yogesh Dubey, state commissioner Hindustan Scouts and Guides and special executive officer (Maharashtra government) said the Human Rights Day should be observed as a national festival. He said as human beings, we should be aware of human rights and always strive to protect it for ourselves and others, so that every person lives with dignity as provided under the Constitution. Besides to propagate its concept in society, the government should compulsorily introduce it in the academic curriculum. Others present in the seminar viz. Ballabhacharya Pandey, Dr Mohd Arif, Sandhya Jha, Dr Mahendra Pratap, Lal Bahadur Ram, Prof Saina Rizvi, Ragib Ali, Dr Iftekhar, Idrish Ansari, Lallan Jaiswar, Rajendra Kumar etc also shared their views on human rights and stressed its protection. 

After the seminar, a joint meeting of the PVCHR /Jan Mitra Nyaas Board of Trustee, Governing Board and Management Committee was held, wherein the financial report and activities of the previous year was put before the members of the Board. Action plan for the coming year was also discussed and prepared. 
Senior officials of the health and labour departments posted in Varanasi district participated in the inauguration ceremony and seminar. In his written message, German Member of Parliament Sven Wolf congratulated the Social Democratic Party’s regional chapter of the German state of Rhine-Westphalia and noted the Centre would be pivot to human rights protection. 

Helma Ritscher said the occasion was emotionally moving for her. The Centre would  is touted to becoming the focal point of the joint social activities and educational projects of PVCHR / Jan Mitra Nyaas , community of Varanasi and Baghvanala and Indo-German Society of Remscheid (Germany).
Helma Ritscher’ son Axel Ritscher observed his mother, was a living example of espousing deep human values. “I call her ‘Mahatma Ma’ for her continuous and unabated work in India,” he said.

The UN Human Rights Commission has coined the slogan of ‘Stand for Human Rights’ on the 70th year of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. To commemorate 21 years of PVCHR and 20 years and Janmitra Nyas, the two organisations are celebrating 2018 as ‘Human Rights Protection Year’. 

Their contributions to society include 7-room school and a three-room community-centre in the temple courtroom at Baghanvala in Varanasi , two community centres and an aanganwadi centre at Belva, an aanganwadi centre in Mushar locality at Aayar village, a room in Shivrampur primary school, two toilets and a pumping set in a Mushar settlement at Anai village, an aanganwadi centre in Mushar locality at Barhikala village. Besides, a 4-room centre and a toilet was constructed at Raup Ghasiya locality in Sonbhadra district, apart from installing a pumping set,  in the memory of senior journalist late Sushil Tripathi. An aanganwadi centre also operated there. A 2-room centre and a pumping set were gifted to the Mushar community at Sakra village in Jaunpur district. 

Under the joint aegis of PVCHR / Jan Mitra Nyaas and Insec Nepal, Bablu Ram, a resident of Sarai village in Varanasi, has become the first person from the Mushar community to be selected under the F K Fellowship of Norway. He would take part in the International Youth Camp at Oslo Norway in January 2018. Manish Kumar of Baghvanala slums and Anamika Sonkar would also accompany him.




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