(IGP) Special Current Affairs Material for IAS (Pre) 2013
Chapter: Gist of Press Information
Bureau Articles
Topic: NFCH For Promoting Communal
Harmony Proactively
Q. National Foundation for Communal Harmony (NFCH)?
-
The National Foundation for Communal Harmony (NFCH) is an
organization under the aegis of the Ministry of Home Affairs which works
towards maintaining communal harmony. -
NFCH was registered on 19th February 1992 under the
Societies Registration Act. -
The Governing Council (GC) of the Foundation has 24
members, with the Union Home Minister as its Chairman. -
The mandate of NFCH, inter-alia, includes undertaking
programmes for providing assistance to the children of families affected by
communal, caste, ethnic or terrorist violence; activities for promotion of
communal harmony & national integration and encouraging activities to
strengthen the bonds of unity and affinity among different religious and
other groups. -
In the 15th meeting of the Governing Council of the
Foundation, held under the Chairmanship of the Union Home Minister on
January 6, 2010, it was decided that a five-year ‘Vision Statement’ for NFCH
should be prepared by a Committee. NFCH envisages a vision of ‘India free
from communal or any other form of violence where all citizens especially
children & youth live in peace & harmony’; with the mission ‘Building
Communal Harmony, Strengthening National Integration and Promoting Unity in
Diversity through collaborative social action, awareness programs,
assistance to children affected by violence, interfaith dialogue &
leadership for our Shared Security, Peace & Prosperity.’
Q. What are the strategic goals of NFCH?
NFCH strategic goals are:
-
Education & Awareness- Offering and supporting
educational programmes for children and youth, public awareness, research
and knowledge generation that will facilitate peaceful coexistence, mutual
respect and trust; -
Partnerships & Outreach- Creating greater impact by
drawing on shared expertise and commitment of the partners and stakeholders
at grassroots, state, national and international levels; -
Recognition & Awards- Recognizing and awarding
outstanding contribut ions of individuals and institutions for communal
harmony, social cohesion and national integration; -
Affirmative action for children affected by violence-
Identifying children from communal, caste, ethnic & terrorist
violence-affected areas, ensuring their rights to survival, protection,
education, vocational training and development; and -
Resource mobilization- Developing and fostering
collaborative efforts including fund-raising with key stakeholders including
Government, Public & Private Sectors and Civil Society.
Q. What are the key activities of NFCH?
-
To realize its goals, NFCH undertakes the following key
activities: -
Education & Awareness: This involves organizing seminars,
workshops, debates, painting competitions, etc. to reach out to masses;
introducing awareness generation programmes at school/university level;
organizing an Annual Public Awareness Campaign on Peace & Harmony in
partnership with other like-minded organizations; awarding fellowships &
financial assistance for studies on communal harmony and national
integration; initiating a media campaign for making people aware of the ill
consequences of violence and communal clashes and their adverse effects on
children and youth; and promoting community celebrations for peace and
harmony by organizing interactive get-togethers at festivals and cultural
programs. -
Partnerships & Outreach: It organizes communal harmony
campaigns – working with educational, governmental and religious
organizations; identifies all the like-minded institutions in the country
and makes a directory of individuals and academics who are active in this
field; facilitates a ‘Volunteers for Peace & Harmony’ initiative which will
provide people, particularly the youth, a chance to work for peace, communal
harmony & national integration; partners with VOs/NGOs, RWAs to promote NFCH
objectives; and develops and publishes books, films and audio-visuals aimed
at promoting communal harmony & national integration. -
Recognition: NFCH invites nominations to award
individuals and organizations working towards promoting communal harmony and
national integration; organizes meetings of the Jury, headed by the
Vice-President of India and recognizes & awards outstanding contribution of
an individual and organization every year. -
Affirmative Action: NFCH takes affirmative action by way
of providing financial assistance to children affected by communal, caste,
ethnic and terrorist violence for their education; identifying fresh cases
of children affected by societal violence; renewing assistance to existing
cases of children and getting evaluation/impact assessment studies
conducted.
Q. What is Volunteers for Peace & Harmony programme?
-
NFCH has recently launched the programme ‘Volunteers for
Peace & Harmony’ (V for Peace-n-Harmony) to create a network of volunteers.
Inspiration to set up a network of volunteers emanated mainly from the
Gandhian concept that played a significant role in creating an atmosphere of
peace and harmony. -
The objectives of the Programme are: to create a network
of volunteers to act as facilitators/ change agents for promoting social
harmony, when peace and social cohesion between communities is disturbed as
well as during peaceful times for inclusive development; to spread awareness
on peace and harmony in their respective communities and neighborhoods; to
strengthen the sense of unity in diversity amongst citizens of the country
and to take active participation in the Communal Harmony Campaign Week from
19th-25th of November observed by NFCH every year in the country. -
The minimum age to be a Volunteer is 15 years and minimum
educational qualification is Class 10th. A volunteer is expected to possess
the following qualities: love for people of the country, positive attitude,
aptitude for knowledge/ skill-sharing and mentorship skills.
