Pehchaan engages with young girls and boys from disadvantaged communities in 10 blocks of 5 districts of Gujarat, strengthening their leadership and active citizenship by facilitating their learning and leadership journeys around social perspective, orientation of constitutional values & civic actions. Through youth-oriented work, IST also equips the youth with relevant skilling and livelihood training to enter the workforce through wage employment or self-employment, holistically equipping the youth to interface and negotiate with the state and the market.

The program aims to achieve the following:

  1. Developing leadership among young women and men from diverse marginalized communities that is value-based, able to live with multiple identities, and can facilitate conflict transformation among diverse youth. This will also help the youth leaders take collective action on issues affecting them  and strengthen local civic spaces to make them more democratic, inclusive, and secular.
  2. Strengthening the livelihood security of young women and men through skilling and livelihood training for entering the workforce. For young women, the focus will be on non-traditional livelihood training. With the strengthened livelihood security and integrating the perspectives of democracy, equality, and secularism, these youth will be able to live with economic independence and remain active citizens wherever they are.
  3. Facilitating and supporting youth leaders in setting up community learning centers and/or youth development centers that are run and managed by them only.
  4. Building institutional capacity of CSOs and CBOs to build competencies and leadership within organizations to work effectively on the youth leadership and livelihoods mandate.

Locations:-
1. Himatnagar
2. Idar
3. Modasa
4. Borsad
5. Umreth
6. Thasra
7. Halol
8. Kalol
9. Jambughoda
10. Gogambha

Case Stories of the Youth

Empowering Girls in Mangadh Village

A Story of Inclusion and Change Mangadh, a village in Idar Taluka, Sabarkantha District, has undergone a transformative journey through Pehchaan. The youth group here was spearheaded by 22-year-old YCL member Poonam from the Dalit community. Most girls in the village belong to Dalit and Muslim backgrounds, but early on, Muslim girls were notably absent from the group. With guidance from Youth Facilitator Zareena Bain and support from a local Anganwadi worker, Poonam initiated conversations with the families of these girls.

Many families were hesitant, fearing that participation in mixed-gender groups could lead to romantic entanglements. Through repeated dialogues and trust-building, families began allowing their daughters to engage in village-level activities.

Youth-Led Initiative for a Playground in Sureli Village

In Sureli village, youth faced challenges in preparing for physical fitness exams due to the absence of a proper playground. Despite submitting a request five years ago, no action was taken by the Panchayat. A group of local youth, including Aleem Bhai, formed a Youth Citizen Leaders (YCL) group under Pehchaan’s guidance. With more than 200 members, they engaged persistently with government officials, including the Panchayat and Taluka officers. Their efforts led to an official land survey and the approval of a playground under the MGNREGA scheme.

However, facing bureaucratic delays, the youth took matters into their own hands. They raised funds and cleaned the site themselves to make it usable immediately.

Today, the playground serves as a hub for cricket, running practice, and community events. It has already helped over ten young people clear police fitness tests, with Sanvar Khan notably winning a 5 km race in just 19 minutes. Inspired by this success, neighboring Dhuletta village has launched a similar initiative. A cricket tournament is also being planned to support ongoing maintenance, demonstrating how youth can lead community transformation and build inter-community solidarity.