Political awareness is key to stimulate self-mobilization and it is important for policy makers and public as well. Awareness raising campaigns requires strategies to reach the desired outcome. Public awareness is equally important
Public awareness is important to increase enthusiasm and support, stimulate self-mobilization and action, and mobilize local knowledge and resources. Raising political awareness is important as policy makers and politicians are key actors in the policy process of adaptation. Awareness raising campaigns require strategies of effective communication to reach the desired outcome. The combination of these communication strategies for a targeted audience for a given period can broadly be described as ‘awareness raising campaign’. The aim of awareness raising campaigns most often differs between contexts but generally includes increase concern, informing the targeted audience, creating a positive image, and attempts to change their behavior.
Awareness campaigns can address groups of people in a region affected by a particular threat, groups of stakeholders, the general public, etc. The ultimate aim of such campaigns is to achieve long-term lasting behavioral changes. Awareness raising campaigns addresses the knowledge of individuals and organizations. It aims to ensure that all relevant regional and sub-regional bodies understand the impacts of, and take action to respond to certain climate impacts. However they also can focus on a certain impact that is considered as the most tremendous e.g. The Netherlands “Live with Water”. Such campaigns are mostly considered as effective if several ways of communication are served: dissemination of printed materials; organisation of public meetings and training; professional consultation; communication and information through social and mass-media; using informal networks for information dissemination. It can be combined with the establishment of community self-protection teams that promote self-reliance among residents and businesses to minimize the risk to personal safety and property damage e.g. during a flood event.
Keeping above mentioned theme in consideration Equi-City Team started conducting awareness campaigns to achieve its objective of sensitizing 200,000 citizens in Nagpur. First awareness campaign on Swachh Bharat Mission was successfully held on 14th July, 2018 at Providence Girl’s High School, Nagpur. The event was coordinated by Equi-City, Centre for Sustainable Development along with Paper Traders Association.
The theme of the event was ‘Single Use Plastic Ban’ and 1500 students participated in it. The event progressed as follows:
Awareness on plastic and sanitary waste disposal through presentation.
Pledge to keep the Environment Clean
Drawing Competition on the theme ‘Plastic Ban’
Second Awareness Campaign took place on 18th July, 2018 at Saint Ursula High School, Civil Lines, Nagpur.
The theme of the event was also on ‘Single Use Plastic Ban’ and 1500 students participated in it. The event focused mainly on the menstrual hygiene and sanitary waste disposal which is a major source of single use plastic in the city. The session was conducted by Smt. Annusuya Kale Chabbrani representing Centre for Sustainable Development. She also touched upon the roles and responsibilities of a citizen to segregate waste at the household level into dry, wet and inert waste so that the waste can be further used in the formation of compost and recycling. This session was followed by a Drawing Competition on the theme ‘Plastic Ban’.
Focus group discussion for developing Community Scorecard
Moving forward with the ongoing activities of Municipal Rating System a Focus Group Discussion to develop Community Score Card was carried out in the NMC library located in the NMC School, Kapil Nagar, Nagpur. The area Kapil Nagar comes under Prabhag-2 of Zone-9. FGD was scheduled on 3rd August, 2018. People were informed a day before, about the location and theme of FGD. This information was given by Equi-city team by visiting houses in the locality covering almost entire area of Kapil Nagar. The response was reasonably good and around 35 people were present on the day of FGD. Out these six were female and the rest male. The discussion started at 8 am in the morning with the introduction of Equi-city project and reasons behind conducting FGD in the Kapil Nagar. People participated with keen interest along with 3 corporators to discuss the services provision by NMC regarding water supply, sewerage, drainage and solid waste management. Various parameters of the provision were discussed on these 3 major services. The feedback was obtained by listening to the people and by taking votes for the level of service provision by NMC.
The feedback according to the citizens was thatsome parts of zone are provided with better services as per the work efficiency of the corporators. Other areas are totally ignored. If people are giving more money to the worker or employee, the services are regular and efficient. Hence, financially sound households are getting better services than financially weaker households due to unaffordability to pay extra money for the services. Also, the funds provided for the particular scheme are not utilized. If a complaint is registered in NMC, it was found that in 80% of the cases employees demand for extra money. Sweepers and workers only mark the attendance but don’t work. Due to high charges of bills and extra money paid for the services, people are unable to invest more for education and house. To regulate and make efficient service delivery efficient, NMC employees should visit the area periodically. Also, meetings should be conducted to understand the demands and suggestions from the citizens. If the facilities are provided by NMC, then NMC should also take care of them.
According to the corporatorspeople are unaware about the procedure and time taken to provide the services. If a particular process is taking more time, people lose confidence on the corporator immediately. Also illegal construction activities that have taken place in many areas on the drainage lines damage the network and create inconvenience for the people.Corporator has to answer to the higher authorities and other citizens affected by the damage. Many meetings were taken in the past but there is no implementation yet.