Social Service Centre, Shillong

About the Agency: Social Service Centre

Social Service Centre (SSC) is the social action wing of the Catholic Archdiocese of Shillong, Meghalaya and works towards the integrated development of all sections of the society irrespective of caste, ethnicity and religion with special emphasis on the tribal groups and other vulnerable communities operating mainly in East Khasi Hills and Ri Bhoi districts of Meghalaya. It is a non-profit, non-political, secular voluntary organisation registered under the Meghalaya Societies Registration Act XII of 1983 (SR/SSC-8/88 of 1988) owned and managed by the Catholic Archdiocese of Shillong. Social Service Centre was started in January 1988 and its office is located at Archbishop’s House, Laitumkrah, Shillong.

SSC is an organisation with a motto of “Renewing vision, enriching life” with the vision of visualising a holistically developed tribal society, which is directing its own destiny and living in harmony with all people and the natural environment. The organisation’s mission is to bring about a qualitative change among vulnerable groups especially of tribal society (at family, village and society level) through animations; formation of people’s organisation and advocacy.” The organisation was set up with the objectives, such as; to devise schemes and projects towards fostering qualitative education amongst the underprivileged community. To mobilize community towards disaster preparedness and mitigation to undertake programmes aimed at imparting better and qualitative leadership and to build a healthy community by sensitizing them on environmental and gender issues also to look for convergence with collaborating agencies.

Unemployment in India

Introduction

Unemployment (or joblessness), as defined by the International Labour Organization, occurs when people are without jobs and they have actively looked for work within the past four weeks.[1] The unemployment rate is a measure of the prevalence of unemployment and it is calculated as a percentage by dividing the number of unemployed individuals by all individuals currently in the labour force.

India is a developing economy, the nature of unemployment, therefore, sharply differs from the one that prevails in industrially advanced countries. Lord Keynes diagnosed unemployment in advance economies to be the result of a deficiency of effective demand. It implied that in such economies machines become idle and demand for labour falls because the demand for the products of industry is no longer there. Thus, Keynesian remedies of unemployment concentrated on measures to keep the level of effective demand sufficiently high so that the economic machine does not slacken the production of goods and services.[2]

Child Soldier

~ T. Zamlunmang Zou @ Pupu Zou

CHAPTER 01: INTRODUCTION

“Over 20 million children of conflict are out of school. Education is often forgotten.”

~ Angelina Jolie, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador

A child soldier is anyone under the age of eighteen who is part of any kind of regular or irregular armed force or armed group in any capacity. Child soldiers are boys and girls who fight in adult wars, missing out on the safe childhood that many of us take for granted, but to which every child is entitled according to the Convention on the Rights of the Child.^[1] 

According to the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers:  “Child soldiers perform a range of tasks including participation in combat, laying mines and explosives; scouting, spying, acting as decoys, couriers or guards; training, drill or other preparations; logistics and support functions, portering, cooking and domestic labor; and sexual slavery or other recruitment for sexual purposes.” ^[2]

I Mou Vanken Dan Uh (Our Dowry System)

India gam sunga kolte’n a ta nei chiengua ana mullit mama uleh ana ki khuul jel jel na zieh uh tanu – ta numei nei zieh ahi nuom leng hi. Bang zieh a tanu nei zieh a tam bang silte pieng adiei? Tuni’a i gen nuom mou vanken i chi te zieh a hi nuom deu hi. Kolte’n atanu te uh a haah chiengun a nei a lam teng uh seng in innkal kitawi jen in pang vevaw uhi. Tuaban ah a tanu uh kiteenpi ding ten a dei jaja uh ana iih thei jel uhi. Tuatham lou in tanu nei te’n a du, a dei u zong lei ngam vevaw lou in a mu sun sun uh a kim khat a tanu te uh haahna ding in saving ana bawl vevaw uhi.

What's Wrong With Sadar Hills District Demand?

~ T. Zamlunmang Zou @ Pupu Zou

It has been more than 30 years since the demand for creation of Sadar Hills as a full-fleged district started way back in the early 1970s. Two outstanding records have been created out of this demand. Th Lupheng, a Social Worker from Saikul opine that: "One, the people of Sadar Hills created history for demanding a mere district for more than 30 years without a break. Secondly, the State Government of Manipur too created history for putting a genuine demand of the people on hold for than 30 years". I think the State Govt. is taking pride for being able to suppress and neglect a people’s movement for a mere district for such a long period. A good job indeed! but a shameful pride. It is high time for the State govt. to come out with valid reasons to justify for its act of suppression and negligence of a genuine & rightful demand of the people. In the past, we came across with the State govt. racking up some ‘not-much-important’ matters like the boundary issue, consensus issue etc. etc... If these issues are the real hindrances to the inauguration of Sadar Hills as a full-fleged district? Or any other else? Let’s see how far the so-called problems (as stated by the State govt.) have any merit worth consideration or not.