THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The move to conduct the state’s, also the country’s, first-ever ‘Vulnerability Mapping’ has been driven by a single thought: A murder like that of Jisha’s should never ever happen. Vulnerability Mapping (VM) is a massive exercise, which the Social Justice Department intends to complete in six months, to identify homes where children live in vulnerable conditions.
Fundamentally, the mapping will light up hitherto dark areas. Meaning, it will find dwellings, not just of the poor, that are generally ignored, or abandoned, by society. Here are some indicators that will guide the search: homes with a single parent, in poramboke land (like Jisha’s), homes with ailing or mentally-challenged parents, single-room shacks, homes standing in desolate places, singe-or two-room shacks with multiple families.
The process will begin from ‘anganwadis’, with focus-group discussions in all the 33,200-odd anganwadis in the state. A focus-group will have anganwadi support groups, the ward member, Kudumbashree representatives, teachers, and citizen representatives; in general people closely associated with the area around the anganwadi.
The objective of the focus-group discussion is to draw up a list of ‘vulnerable houses’. This list will then be put up in the ward or panchayat office for the public to review. They can make additions or deletions to the list. Once the anganwadi-level list is finalized, a formal survey will be conducted in the listed houses. This survey will assess the material condition of the house and also the mental and physical health of its residents. A report will be evolved on the basis of the survey.
These anganwadi-level reports will be compiled at the panchayat level, which will then be added to the block list, and would be further brought together to form the district-level report. All the district-level reports will be consolidated to make the state list. Once the state list is ready, the segregation process will begin.
These vulnerable houses will be separated according to their kind; the ones in poramboke land, ones with single parents, and so on. There will be overlaps, and the houses will be graded according to the level of their vulnerability. “Such a vulnerability map will help planners to target welfare assistance, and more importantly to respond swiftly to crises,” a top Social Justice official said.
