A well-equipped IT Centre with educated and proficient staff can be of help in channelising more government welfare funds for the poor and needy, spreading awareness about documentation, and enhancing IT skills. This Centre is aimed at enhancing digital literacy and financial empowerment amongst the marginalized. It is established in the fond memory of (Late) Professor Jamshed Siddiqui, one of the major donors and supporters of the MSUS.
Being citizens of a welfare state like India, the poor and marginalised sections of the community are offered many government schemes, scholarships, and sponsorships every year. Most of the processing these days is done online via the World Wide Web. However, on account of a lack of literacy, accessibility, and knowledge on the nitty-gritty of the application process, a majority of deserving beneficiaries remain devoid of making use of these opportunities. In view of this, the Ministries taper off the funding of these schemes, and the allocated welfare funds do not reach the grassroots.
To address this issue, civil society (NGOs/CSOs) can play a major role. The MSUS was established in 1987 in Aligarh, enjoys a trustworthy reputation amongst the local Muslim population of the city, and is committed to the cause.
OBJECTIVES:
1. Capacity building with IT: free of Cost IT training to the underprivileged. Armed with Computer Literacy, they will be truly empowered. If they have a need, how can they be helped with procuring devices like a tablet, smart smartphone, laptop, or PC?
2. IT Help Desk: Free of cost, the IT facility will be made available to the underprivileged and marginalized. Assistance in filling up forms, applying for schemes, obtaining e-documents, downloading stuff, etc, using the internet connection and IT infrastructure will be provided. Sufficient hands-on time will also be given in a conducive atmosphere to the girls and women for browsing the relevant websites and finding suitable funding schemes.
3. Education and Awareness: The Help Desk personnel will regularly monitor the announcements on the websites of various Ministries/CSOs to track the welfare schemes and scholarships announced from time to time. They will take appropriate measures to publicise the offers of financial help from various Government and Non-Government Agencies and prepare flyers. Banners, brochures, etc. Due care will be taken to prepare the same in the e-format also, so that they are sent out in the community using digital platforms. The number of the help desk personnel will be shared on all promotional material.
4. Madarsa Students: Digital Literacy and IT-based empowerment will be extended to the candidates who have passed out from the Madarsa. The facilities will be tailor-made for them. Special focus will be on building outreach for these students in Urdu in familiar terms.
5. Ministry/Welfare Schemes: The Centre will also research and translate into Hindi/Urdu sach documents from various Ministries of the Government of Indu, like the booklets on welfare schemes for minorities prepared by the National Commission for Minorities.
Plan of Action:
The MSUS has allocated spacious office space and a hall towards the outer periphery of the building to ensure smooth accessibility. The setup includes:
1. Lounge area with notice board, etc.
2. Two Workstations with PC, Printer, etc, one each for men & women.
3. One Recording Room for short video production.
4. The existing Computer Lab will be refurbished for training purposes.
5. The Professor Jamshed Siddiqui IT will operate from a separate bank account under the MSUS.
The donors have donated an initial grant of 10,00,000 Rs. and they will continue to donate every month for staff salary and other running expenses. Periodically, the progress report of the Centre and the balance sheet will be submitted to the MSUS governing body.
