BIJAPUR
Bijapur, once a majestic City under the rule of the kings, is today one of the most backward districts of Karnataka.The Bijapur Jesuit Mission Comprises of 52.54% of Northern Karnataka with a population of 42.78 % including seven districts culled from three states of Bombay, Hyderabad and Madras.
Except Belgaum district the rest of the territory is maidan with scarce rainfall, drought-prone, lacking forest and underground resources, with poor economic infrastructure, industry or developed markets. HRD indicators show that the mist backward districts in terms of education, health and social progress lie in this area and Bijapur is one of them.
It is only from 1997 a bigger team of Jesuits landed in Bijapur and seven other congregations sent their Sisters to work with them as a team with common goal, approach and objectives. The Sisters build awareness and organize weaker sections of women in 15-30 villages, train women members of panchayat to participate in local governance and to take responsibility in making the common institutions and government programmes run efficiently.
Forming SHGs and their constant animation and training to make them self-sustaining goes a long way in empowering the weakest groups and introducing them into the process of liberation and development. Attention is also paid to universalizing primary education with special emphasis on the girl child, Dalits and child-labourers. Community health is fostered along with alternate systems of medicine including herbal medicine. Prayer as a means of physical healing is used as often as possible. This is in line with the traditions of the region and is accepted as a means of healing and harmony building.
Fruitful work is being done by the Jesuits in raising consciousness and organizing in the slums of Bijapur. In the heart of the slums is a school, which serves as a resource centre for the surrounding primary schools, for remedial education and skill training.
We identify the most vulnerable groups in Bijapur district, study them and decide on the action in positive intervention. Thus we are specially concerned about the 120,000 out of school children of age groups 6-14 years. A Child Labour School is being run very successfully for 50-100 schools. For the school dropouts and unemployed above the age of 14 technical training for self-reliance is imparted.
The Karnataka Open School has its Centre at our Technical School providing Xth Std. education for those who have been deprived an opportunity to attend regular school. Reaching out to the youth in rural areas for imparting skills for self-reliance and employment is an initiative that is slowly being developed.
We are committed to make Jesus’ Manifesto of healing, liberation and development a reality among the majority deprived and the marginalized and thus contribute towards social and cultural transformation of society in collaboration with every person and group striving towards the same goal. Reading the action of the Spirit in North Karnataka history, persons and movements we will enter into genuine dialogue with our people and inculturate ourselves into their ethos. A non-threatening servant Church will be the leaven transforming society into a civilization of love.