“I like to laugh a lot”, is how this effervescent girl introduces herself. Parna hails from Assam where she completed a her Masters in Sociology. “I also like to meet new people, learn about different cultures. I make an effort to talk to people all the time,” says Parna.

 
Under the Youth For Development programme, Parna spent six months in Jagori, an organisation working in the field of women’s rights. “Jagori was my first choice as I had done my degree in sociology in development and I was always interested in the gender studies,” explains Parna her reasons for choosing the NGO.
 
She was chosen to work in Jagori’s rural community programme where the organisations works with the communities in Kangra district in Himachal Pradesh and has initiatives for building a women’s rights movement to bring about gender equality.
 
“My main task was to work in collaboration with a youth group and a make a baseline survey. I wanted to make a profile with young people keeping their aspirations, skills, experience as parameters,” explains Parna. “I also worked on making a village profile which was a requirement of the organisation,” adds Parna.
 
“I also attended workshops on gender, sexual rights and self defence. I also worked on a few radio community programmes on health and women’s ratios,” adds Parna. The radio programmes were the result of her interactions with volunteers of Manthan during YFD’s mid-term project review.
 
What were her apprehensions before going on the programme?
“I wasn’t afraid, as I told you, I like to meet people and I want to see new place. But my only fear was if my health would keep up with the strains of living in the hills. I’m from the plains and Himachal Pradesh in December is quite cold,” recounts Parna her apprehensions before setting off to volunteer for Jagori .

Those fears were to come true in the coming months. Unfortunately Parna fell ill and could only complete the 5 months of the six month schedule and had to return home.
 
“I learnt how an NGO works. Before I went on the programme, I was emotional and impatient. Now there is some sort of professionalism,” says Parna. There were some serious hardships that she faced as a volunteer. “My stint at Jagori was not quite smooth where I felt there were some communication gaps with my mentor and others at the organisation,” she laments.
 
“A lot of proposals were rejected, maybe because they were not interested in my ideas,” says Parna. Though she adds, “I had a theoretical knowledge but the opportunity to practice them at Jagori was precious. They taught me how to document reports and compile them.”
 
She has fond memories of the community that she was working with. “The community that I was working with was so helpful and welcoming that I didn’t feel like an outsider,” she laughs.
 
How has she changed after her YFD experience? “There is a confidence now. Something that I’d owe to Pravah is the belief that they instilled in me, of tiding over hurdles and difficult situations with a smile,” she smiles.
 
She wants to do a PHD and is contemplating studying abroad. In the same breath she adds that she wants to be associated with the development sector throughout her life.
 
She is currently working for Church Auxiliary For Social Action (CASA) an organisation striving for the upliftment of weaker sections of society. 
 
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