1. Full name : MITRANIKETAN (represented by Dr Reghu Rama Das, Joint Director)
2. City, Country : Trivandrum, India.
3. Designation/organization: Dr Reghu Rama Das, Joint Director of Mitraniketan
4. 500 word narrative about yourself (organizations and chapters may use up to 750 words)
5. Member of AWE since (mention year): 2000
Mitraniketan is a non profit organisation established in the year 1956 at Vellanad village in Trivandrum district of Kerala state. The organisation is engaged in Science & Technology and education based development activities in the state focused on rural development. There are special programs focusing on the development of tribal children, rural youth, farmers and women in Kerala since its inception.
Mitraniketan functions based on the Gandhian principles focusing on community based education and development leading to individual empowerment, self-sufficiency at the household level agriculture production, utilization of local resources for income generation, and development & transfer of appropriate technology. Mitraniketan promoted traditional crafts in the field of pottery, silk weaving, coir, bamboo & reed craft, and khadi. The organisation contributed to the total literacy achievement of the state through its literacy programs in the Vellanad Block and many tribal villages in Trivandrum district.
Mitraniketan pioneered in promoting village cooperatives (farmers cooperatives, khadi cooperatives and bamboo cooperatives), and appropriate technologies like bio-gas, low cost sanitation, farming technologies, water harvesting. Similarly the organisation has contributed its might in creating rural employment in farm and non-farm sector on a large scale.
Progress of society through the total development of individuals is the avowed vision of Mitraniketan. The Mission of Mitraniketan is to “evolve an alternative development paradigm leading to the development of individual and community”.
Mitraniketan has a 60 acre campus located at Vellanad, which houses a community of 500 members who are engaged in various education and development activities. The 500 members of the community are the permanent residents of the campus consisting of school children, rural youth, trainees of the short term training program, volunteers and research students and staff members of Mitraniketan.
of exposure visit/study tour, field trips/research, volunteer work and placement.
Since Mitraniketan maintains a community environment where all of them working, living and learning together, the students have much better opportunities for outside class room learning, interaction, and work practice.
Website: https://www.mitraniketan.org/