The Hindu : `Mysore model' training for local bodies

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Dec 15, 2002

Southern States

Southern States - Kerala

`Mysore model' training for local bodies

By J. S. Bablu

THRISSUR DEC. 14. The State Planning Board secretary, S. M. Vijayanand, has said that various suggestions, including the satellite training programme devised by the Mysore-based State Institute of Rural Development (SIRD) for the local bodies in Karnataka, were being explored for training the local bodies in the State.

Mr. Vijayanand told The Hindu that one of the suggestions being mooted include the `Mysore model' which involves `two-way audio and one-way video' training programmes through satellite networking.

The participants located in distant places could actually view the expert who was engaging the training classes and hear his or her voice as well as talk to them. He said that the Mysore model would not be very expensive as the Karnataka Government had spent only Rs. 4.5 crores.

"The ISRO had also helped them in setting up this technology. The ISRO here would also be willing to help us. By this method, a very busy expert can even spend half a day and could share his or her experiences.''

``Also another suggestion of organising a panel of experts, who were experts in various disciplines, and to train them was being explored. These experts could be trained intensively say for 10 to 15 years. The Government could also interact with them in a period of six months. Some of them may leave in between. But finally, we will be left with highly-qualified and trained experts who could help the local bodies in their planning process. The possibility of including this training module as the second phase of the CAPDECK programme of the Kerala Institute of Local Administration (KILA) was also being explored.''

The exploring of training options for local bodies assume significance in the wake of reports of lack of proper training to resources who were involved in giving training to local bodies in the just concluded preparations for the Tenth Five Year Plan.

Many of the experts in local planning had also pointed out that the fact that the KILA and the SIRD at Kottarakara were equipped to training for only 200 and 50 persons respectively. But the number of office-bearers of the local bodies in the State itself would come to about 17,000 coupled with the large number of Government officials concerned with local level planning.

Hence the exploration of a hi-tech model of training programme had been widely discussed at different levels.

The experts in local-level planning had pointed out that the current training programmes by the resource persons at the local bodies had also failed to convey on these bodies the spirit of planning as envisaged by the Planning Board and the Government. Hence, even the quality of the projects prepared by these bodies also suffered. Lack of proper training had also left these bodies a confused lot at the end of the day.

Mr. Vijayanand also said that the Government officials had been made to participate in many of the training programmes being organised in connection with the Kerala Development Project (KDP) campaign.

"An intensive training programme for Government officials had already been started. These officials would be also given training in familiarising with the project forms being newly introduced in the Tenth Five Year Plan process.''

He said that the project forms were not very difficult to be filled up by the local bodies. He said that the guidelines for the preparation of Tenth Five Year Plan had suggested the utilisation of locally available consultants in planning process by the local bodies.

"Also many of the local bodies had not organised discussions with stake holders. The idea that the Planning Board had when it suggested discussion with stake holders was that the stake holders, most of them organised groups, would be expressing their real needs so that the local bodies could prepare their plans in accordance with their real needs."

He said that the Planning Board had this year given emphasis to `watershed development approach' to kick-off overall development in the agriculture sector. "The response cannot be estimated now. But in a two to three months when all the Plan documents were analysed, we would be able to judge the response. But we would be repeatedly emphasising this approach in the coming years.''

The experts in local-level planning had been emphasising the need for building up a voluntary technical core, a core of experts, who could be utilised by the local bodies.

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