Youth are the pillars of tomorrow. And yet, in many communities, youth are often chided away from discussions regarding important matters for their inexperience and age. Little is done for them in terms of training so that they can be better equipped with things when they finally take up the mantle. It is important for youths to be given a chance to make their own decisions under the mentorship of elders. Many communities still sit on the edge when it comes to including children/youth in the village council while many communities regard this as quite improbable. The light, however, has started shining for the young ones of Umsawwar, a progressive indigenous community in the East Khasi Hills of Meghalaya.
The Umsawwar community was among one of the first communities from Meghalaya to include women into their Durbar (village council) and have now opened their Durbar doors to the youth. They have started a Children’s Durbar since 2021. The idea was first conceived in a group discussion among the Village Headman and community members recognising the potential and knowledge youth possess which can transform the community.
The Children’s Durbar is seen as a platform where there is a transmission of knowledge from elders to young children. Children below the age of 17 have been taking part in the Durbar activities at Umsawwar. It takes place once in three months. One of the main reasons for taking this approach is to give children a holistic experience in decision making and to allow them to contribute novel ideas and knowledge related to the improvements and development of the village community. Trainings on civic sense, cleanliness, building self esteem, respect to elders, etc are being given to the children by the older members of the Durbar. Another important aspect of the orientation given to the children is lessons on preserving and protecting the environment. The essential idea that they (children) are the natives of the land and the community and that they are responsible for the preservation of their community and its natural resources is being imparted to the children members. Among the many members of the Durbar, Kong Sita Mary Nongrum, who is also a member of the Agroecology Learning Circles (ALCs), is trying her best to promote the agenda of traditional farming in the children’s durbar.
Sex Education, which is often a taboo in the rural communities, is also being taught to the teenagers where they are advised against getting married at a young age. Measures to prevent teenage pregnancy are also taught to the children members. Most of these meetings and trainings take place outside of school with the children members encouraged to actively engage in school activities too.
The youth/children have also shown great content in getting the chance to attend the village Durbar where they get to interact with one another and take part in the activities that are assigned to them. For the children, one of the biggest challenges is during the monsoon season where heavy downpours make it difficult for the children to attend the village durbar. However, this hasn’t deterred most children from still making the best use out of the experience. Merciful Nongrum, school student, 13 years, expressed, “The purpose of attending the children’s durbar is to raise awareness amongst other children to respect and look after the well being of the environment as a whole”. Another youth, Sharailang Nongrum, 13 years, expressed that his main takeaway from attending the village durbar is to learn how to build “a better future for the community as a whole” and how together, the youth as well as the elders must work for the betterment of their livelihoods.
Kong Sita Mary, Custodian Farmer, Umsawwar, believes the integration of youth as well as women to the village durbar has led to more efficiency in decision makings in the community. It has also led to many of the youngsters stepping up as leaders in their own circles, “Through the sharing of knowledge and ideas of the Durbar that youth have started becoming educated and have become leaders as well”. The remark from Kong Sita Mary is affirmed by the comment of one of the youth, Syrpailin Nongrum, 15 years, who shared, “My main aim is to follow what has been taught to us and to bring out the changes in the community. By this we must encourage each other so one day we can become leaders”.
NESFAS has always encouraged youth to come forward and become future leaders to preserve and uphold traditional knowledge which has passed down to them. The organisation expresses admiration towards Umsawwar community for initiating the change, and also hopes that a movement can spring out of this, where Children/Youth Durbar becomes a thing for every partner community.
