Bal panchayat (childrens Parliament) is an initiative supported

by UNICEF (United Nation Childrens Fund) has been adopted

by some Panchayats in different parts of India to encourage the
involvement of children in self governance for their own
development. Through this model of child or adolescent
participation based on the concept of providing children a
suitable democratic platform to directly engage with adult duty
bearers in order to elicit their attention and action on issues that
concern them.
School going children in the age group of 5 to 18 years become
members of the Bal Panchayat. Each Panchayat has its own
President, Secretary and Reporter who are elected members
and hold office for a period of six months. Children elect the
office bearers themselves through a vote. Panchayat meetings
are held on a regular basis during which children get together
for discussions, to set goals, to formulate plan of action etc.
Based on these decisions children design and implement their
activities.
Function/Concept of Bal panchayat
(i) Through creative projects, consultations and community
Programmes children learn about their human rights and
duties through acquiring knowledge, skill, behavior and values
for citizenship. It improved their understanding on the
concepts of freedom, teamwork and the consequences of their
actions on each other.
(ii) It aim to reduce the school dropout rate, achieve hundred
percent literacy, wean away social evils such as child
marriages, female infanticide or foeticide, ensures availability
of basic amenities such as protected drinking water, sanitary
facilities etc.
(iii) Contributes to reduction of school drop-out rate, support to
School Management Committees as prescribed under RTE Act,

identifying child labour, drop-outs and mapping the issues

related to child protection in the neighbourhood.
(iv) In Rajasthan, Ajmer District has thirty Bal Panchayat
functioning. According to UNICEF, 82 % of the girls in the
state are married by the age of 15. The child sex ratio from
1901 to 2001 census has reduced against the girl child. Thus
involvement of children through different activities can help
local people to be more aware to take actions to eradicate
social evils.
(v) A democratic platform for expression of the voices of
children in the true spirit of child or youth governance, i.e.
participation of young people in the decision-making process
on issues affecting them, was resulting in a better outcome for
children and families, and an improved policy process.
(vi) Listening to develops self belief, confidence and leadership
skills in them and empowers them to speak out and challenge
their situations thereby making them active citizens of
tomorrow.
(vii) Bal Panchayat or childrens council is a unique platform that
addresses child rights and issues. It is a forum through which
children can express themselves and at the same time learn
about themselves, their rights, their duties and their world.
(viii) Bal Panchayat endeavors to bring out the best in a child,
focusing on the individuals growth and personality
development. The distinctive aspect of Bal Panchayat is that it
is a forum of children by children and for children.
(ix) What this essentially means is that Bal Panchayat is truly a
childrens movement where children decide for themselves the
issues they want to focus on, the goals they want to achieve
and how those goals will be achieved.
Operational structure of Bal Panchayat
(i) Bal Panchayats formed at each panchayat-level, mandal-level
and district-level.

(ii) The panchayat level childrens collective meet regularly to

discuss and collate their issues before presenting the same
before the village Panchayats and other duty bearers or
officials.
(iii) Children representatives nominated by children themselves
as members of the Block level childrens collective highlight
the issues of the entire block; this process is repeated for
choosing the District level childrens collective to present
issues concerning children in the district before the Zila
Panchayat and district administration.
(iv) The expected culmination is an annual Childrens Assembly
organized during the State Assembly session, to enable a
democratic interaction between the children and the states
policy makers, to seek accountability and action on the rights
of children.
(v) The periodicity of the Bal Panchayat meetings (with adult
duty bearers) would be:
a. Village Level: Once every month;
b. Block level: Quarterly;
c. District Level; Annual;
d. State Level: Annual