INTRODUCTION:-

Non-governmental organization, or NGO, is a legally constituted organization created by natural orlegal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations (UN), and is normally used to refer to organisations that do not form part of the government and are not conventional for-profit business. In the cases in which NGOs are funded totally or partially by governments, the NGO maintains its nongovernmental status by excluding government representatives from membership in the organization. The term is usually applied only to organizations that pursue some wider social aim that has political aspects, but that are not overtly political organizations such as political parties. Unlike the term "intergovernmental organization", the term "non-governmental organization" has no generally agreed legal definition. In many jurisdictions, these types of organization are called "civil society organizations" or referred to by other names. The number of internationally operating NGOs is estimated at 40,000. National numbers are even higher: Russia has 277,000 NGOs; India is estimated to have around 3.3 million NGOs in year 2009 that is one NGO for less than 400 Indians, and many times the number of primary schools and primary health centres in India

DEFINATION OF NGO:NGOs are difficult to define and classify due to the terms inconsistent use. NGO, non-profit organization (NPO) and private voluntary organization (PVO) are the most used terms and are used interchangeably despite differing definitions. Classifying non-governmental organizations within defined boundaries excludes NGOs that fall outside each specific boundary. Additionally, it is beneficial for NGO networks to create a classification that allows similar organizations to exchange information more easily. To attempt a classification of NGOs requires a framework, that includes the orientation and the organization's level of operation. An NGO's orientation refers to the type of activities an organization takes on. These activities might include environmental, development, or advocacy work. An NGO's level of operation indicates the scale at which an organization works on, like the difference in work between an international NGO and community or national NGO.[5] One of the earliest mentions of the term "NGO" was in 1945 when the UN was created. The UN introduced the term "NGO" to distinguish between the participation of international private organizations and intergovernmental specialized agencies. According to the UN, all kinds of private organizations that are independent from government control can be recognized as "NGOs." "NGOs" cannot seek to diminish a nation's government in the shape of an opposing political party; NGOs also need to be non-criminal and non-profit. Professor Peter Willets, from the City University of London, argues the definition of NGOs can be interpreted differently by various organizations and depending on a situations context. He defines an NGO as "an independent voluntary association of people acting together on a continuous basis for some common purpose other than achieving government office, making money or illegal activities." In this view, two main types of NGOs are recognized according to the activities they pursue: operational and campaigning NGOs. Although Willets proposes the operational and campaigning NGOs as a tool to differentiate the main activities of these organizations, he also explains that they have more similarities than differences. Their activities are unrestricted; thus operational NGOs may need to campaign and campaigning NGOs may need to take on structural projects.

HISTORY:-

International non-governmental organizations have a history dating back to at least 1839.[13] It has been estimated that by 1914 there were 1083 NGOs.[14] International NGOs were important in the anti-slavery movement and the movement for women's suffrage, and reached a peak at the time of theWorld Disarmament Conference.[15] However, the phrase "non-governmental organization" only came into popular use with the establishment of the United Nations Organization in 1945 with provisions in Article 71 of Chapter 10 of the United Nations Charter[16] for a consultative role for organizations which are neither governments nor member statessee Consultative Status. The definition of "international NGO" (INGO) is first given in resolution 288 (X) of ECOSOC on February 27, 1950: it is defined as "any international organization that is not founded by an international treaty". The vital role of NGOs and other "major groups" in sustainable development was recognized in Chapter 27[17] of Agenda 21, leading to intense arrangements for a consultative relationship between the United Nations and non-governmental organizations.[18] Rapid development of the non-governmental sector occurred in western countries as a result of the processes of restructuring of the welfare state. Further globalization of that process occurred after the fall of the communist system and was an important part of the Washington consensus.[11] Globalization during the 20th century gave rise to the importance of NGOs. Many problems could not be solved within a nation. International treaties and international organizations such as the World Trade Organization were centred mainly on the interests of capitalist enterprises. In an attempt to counterbalance this trend, NGOs have developed to emphasize humanitarian issues, developmental aid and sustainable development. A prominent example of this is

the World Social Forum, which is a rival convention to the World Economic Forum held annually in January in Davos, Switzerland. The fifth World Social Forum in Porto Alegre, Brazil, in January 2005 was attended by representatives from more than 1,000 NGOs.[citation needed] Some have argued that in forums like these, NGOs take the place of what should belong to popular movements of the poor. Others argue that NGOs are often imperialist[19] in nature, that they sometimes operate in a racialized manner in third world countries, and that they fulfill a similar function to that of the clergy during the high colonial era. The philosopherPeter Hallward argues that they are an aristocratic form of politics.[20] Whatever the case, NGO transnational networking is now extensive.[21]

TYPES OF NGOS IN INDIA

2010 0As the need for India NGO movements soar high with increasing level of poverty and illiteracy rates,

many NGOs evolve to help the situation. Each NGO in India tries to take upon a specific problem area and try to change the situation through their diligent effort and hard work. Not all NGOs can operate with the same goal and if that should happen the resources and the efforts will not be spread in a balanced way. Therefore, India NGO movements try to reach out to people in a variety of ways.Some of the NGOs try to help people in times of catastrophes such as fire accidents, flood, tsunami etc. These NGOs become active as and when unfortunate situations like these should happen. They help people in moving to a different place, helping them with food and shelter in temporary residence or welfare houses, provide them with medical assistance etc. Other India NGO movements will have ongoing missions such as creating social awareness ssregarding a social problem or health issue such as AIDS. They try to help people by giving them the required knowledge in the problem area. They even take the trouble to visit people door to door in their efforts to conscientize them.There are yet other groups of NGOs in India that try to improve the literacy rate of people by providing free education to the poor children. Tarang as an educational NGO provides free education to the slum children of Mumbai. They help the poor children by giving them the required protection they require save them from child labor problems. When given the right opportunities and chances, even slum children can shine and this has been proved repeatedly by the good work done by Tarang.Educational NGO in India look at society and its problems and identifies the poor literacy rate as the cause of the problem. So they try to do everything within their limits to help people out of poverty by improving the literacy rate of the

given society. Tarang concentrates on giving quality education to the slum children of Mumbai. Whether an NGO helps people in times of catastrophes or has ongoing welfare programs, all of them require support and financial assistance from people. They gladly welcome every little help that they could get. Without enough assistance and help, it is not possible for NGOs such as Tarang to run their educational programs or their other welfare programs. It is everyones personal responsibility to help the society at large and this can be done effectively by joining hands with the NGOs that are already doing a good job. This will help the NGOs operate better and at the same time, our funds will also be effectively used in helping the needy. NGO type can be understood by orientation and level of co-operation. NGO type by orientation

Charitable orientation; Service orientation; Participatory orientation; Empowering orientation;

NGO type by level of co-operation

Community- Based Organization; City Wide Organization; National NGOs; International NGOs;

Apart from "NGO", often alternative terms are used as for example: independent sector, volunteer sector, civil society, grassroots organizations, transnational social movement organizations, private voluntary organizations, self-help organizations and non-state actors (NSA's). Non-governmental organizations are a heterogeneous group. A long list of acronyms has developed around the term "NGO".These include:

BINGO, short for Business-friendly International NGO or Big International NGO; National NGO: A non-governmental organization that exists only in one country. This term is usually rare due to the globalization of Non-governmental organizations, which causes an NGO to exist in more than one country.[6]

CSO, short for civil society organization; DONGO: Donor Organized NGO; ENGO: short for environmental NGO, such as Greenpeace and WWF NNGO, short for northern non governmental organization. IDCIs, short for international development cooperation institutions. SNGOs, short for support nongovernmental organizations SCOS, also known as social change organizations GONGOs are government-operated NGOs, which may have been set up by governments to look like NGOs in order to qualify for outside aid or promote the interests of the government in question; INGO stands for international NGO; Oxfam, INSPAD INSTITUTE OF PEACE AND

DEVELOPMENT "A European Think Tank For Peace Initiatives" ;

QUANGOs are quasi-autonomous non-governmental organizations, such as the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). (The ISO is actually not purely an NGO, since its membership is by nation, and each nation is represented by what the ISO Council determines to be the 'most broadly representative' standardization body of a nation. That body might itself be a nongovernmental organization; for example, the United States is represented in ISO by theAmerican National Standards Institute, which is independent of the federal government. However, other countries can be represented by national governmental agencies; this is the trend in Europe.)

TANGO: short for technical assistance NGO; TNGO: short for transnational NGO; The term emerged during the 1970s due to the increase of environmental and economic issues in the global community. TNGO includes non-governmental organizations that are not confined to only one country, but exist in two or more countries.

GSO: Grassroots Support Organization MANGO: short for market advocacy NGO NGDO: non-governmental development organization USAID refers to NGOs as private voluntary organisations. However many scholars have argued that this definition is highly problematic as many NGOs are in fact state and corporate funded and managed projects with professional staff.[citation needed]NGOs exist for a variety of reasons, usually to further the political or social goals of their members or funders. Examples include improving the state of the natural environment, encouraging the observance of human rights, improving the welfare of the disadvantaged, or representing a corporate agenda. However, there are a huge number of such organizations and their goals cover a broad range of political and philosophical positions. This can also easily be applied to private schools and athletic organizations.

Functioning of indias ngo:-

It is beneficial to have NGOs in India. Having said this, I shall give you reasons for their advantageous influence on our economy. However, every good thing is open to criticism, and Indian NGOs are not above such treatment. The first criticism is levelled against the money the NGOs waste. Nothing could be more further from the truth. Indian NGOs actually suffer from shortage of funds. They struggle to raise the appropriate amount of funds. Even if the funds are raised, shortage does remain. How? For example, the number of orphans in India alone is eleven million. The number of orphanages that the country has at present is not sufficient to contain these eleven million children. So where does the question of wastage of funds go? It is true that certain orphanages have been, accused of mislaying the funds. But the greater number, has continued to use the funds for the required needs. So orphanages cannot be written of on the grounds of misuse or wastage of funds. We need NGOs in India because our population is huge and it is not economically viable for the government to take on the task of caring for the entire populace. Hence the term non-Governmental Organizations. The function of Indian NGOs, are not narrowed down to the care of orphans but it runs the gamut from new housing to natural disaster relief and rehabilitation. One of its functions can be raising the standard of living of the people. It is no secret, the economic status of our country. We are ranked among the low-income fast growing countries (according to the UNIDO resort 2009). Low income amounts to low standard of living. Therefore, we see that Indian NGOs take it upon themselves to bring about changes in peoples lifestyles. A great contributor to standard of living is the diet, sanitation and health facilities people enjoy. In our country, dismal sanitation is a scab on the face of our civil authorities. NGOs help people improve their sanitation condition by raising money to help them, help the poor people build new toilets. NGOs in India should be and are assisted in these endeavors. Indian NGOs do provide education. In our quality education deprived country, NGOs in India are a ray of light. The Human Development Index (HDI) done by the UNDP ranks our country a dismal 134 out of

170 odd countries. Two of the variables taken into consideration are Longevity and Education. India has a large number of primary school drop-outs. This would contribute to the dismal rank. So an NGO has its job cut out i.e. the Indian NGOs working at this problem have their job cut out. A couple of NGOs in India have taken it upon themselves to run a program wherein the children covered under their scheme avail of free education. These Indian NGOs find it the hardest to raise the required funds So it would seem unfair to say that India does not need any NGOs. The government has also been very cooperative to its NGOs. India provides its statistics for any survey, though of late the government has been most unwilling to do so in particular fields. However, our country does not rank among Iraq, Iran, Zimbabwe, Somalia, Taiwan, which are countries that indulge in Statistical Invisibility. So in conclusion I would recommend the functioning of NGOs in India as it would only enhance the status of our economy.

The internet has proven to be an excellent learning tool for children and has also proven to increase a childs hand-eye co-ordination and problem solving skills, among many other valuable skills. Many websites publish educational articles on kids websites, both for children as well as for parents. It is important to a childs education to encourage them to visit educational websites, play educational games, read stories, and listen to children songs on kids websites. A good method for learning is for children to learn is through playing, and by doing. Playing games on kids websites which force them to think or problem solve will help them become more knowledgeable and start them on the path to learning valuable life skills. In addition, games on kids websites can also help them to develop their competition spirit, possibly helping them in athletics at a later age. Educational websites for children usually place high emphasis on games. Learning should be fun, not boring, and what is more fun on a website for kids than playing games? Websites such as Crayola.com are catered to children, and encourage fun while learning. In addition, they have separate areas for educators and parents, to help educate, give free resources, and increase the childs

support network. Another example of what to look for in educational websites can be found on the Family Education website. The categories on the website cater to children from ages 0 to 18 and it also has excellent resources for mothers. It is quite rare to find kids websites with advice on nutrition, movie reviews for children, and educational tutorials, however this website is rich in resources. Children with special needs can also obtain excellent learning devices from educational websites. For example, Do To Learn.com has information for parents about special needs and offers free resources. Parents and guardians of special needs children may discover excellent educational websites which may help make parenting easier. A simple Google search will bring up millions of educational websites and kids websites which offer a plethora of information. Try to include the word child or kid within the Google search. Terms such as educational resources for children, educational games for kids, and make learning for kids fun will offer more precise information. Education and learning tools have expanded with the boost in technology. In an effort to keep up with modern times kids need to learn more about different subjects than they did ten years ago. Keep in mind that the internet is one of many excellent educational and learning resources. Ask other parents for advice about kids websites, and other pertinent resources. Build a network online of parents who are dedicated to their childs education. Forums, blogs, social networks and message boards are great ways to build networks and discuss pressing issues. A common mistake parents make is not teaching the child how to learn. It is important to teach kids how to search for information, and how to obtain information online in addition to playing on kids websites. When looking for educational websites, take a look at NedRobs Place, The Website For Kids. This is one of the best kids websites you are likely to find and is an excellent educational resource and fun website.

Fields in which ngo helps:-

Human Rights & Inclusion

Whatever NGO field we work in, we need to understand two underlying concepts: Human Rights and Inclusion. They are important because they shape the way development agencies think and plan projects as well as the way national and international aid is given. They shape the way fields and problems are discussed, and, as development workers, we need to understand the thinking and language of other people in our field.

The concept of Human Rights has come out of the UN organisations and puts into writing what every individual should be getting in this world: from food, to education, to equal rights under the law, to privacy.

Individual countries decide, or not, to sign up to an agreement on The Rights of the Child or The Rights of the Disabled. These rights may then be the criteria by which the countrys development progress is measured for example, the country may agree to targets linked to the percentage of children in primary school. Reaching these targets may become a condition for getting the next sum of money destined for education. Inclusion is recognizing our universal "oneness" and interdependence. Inclusion is recognizing that we are "one" even though we are not the "same". The act of inclusion means fighting against exclusion and all of the social diseases that exclusion gives birth to racism, sexism etc.

Fighting for inclusion also involves assuring that all support systems are available to those who need such support as a civic responsibility, not a favour. We were all born "in". Inclusion does not mean that everybody must love everybody else and that we must all be one big, happy family. The question at the root of Inclusion is not Can't we be friends? but - "Can we all just learn to get along and live with one another?" The concepts of Human Rights and Inclusion both drive towards the same kinds of outcome and they overlap a great deal. For example, the right of children to inclusive education is recognised in a number of international human rights documents. Both concepts have led to changes and successes.

In the Health field, thirty years ago, workers felt that they were successful when fewer babies died in their first year. Then, with Human Rights, they were faced with a different measure of failure or success every baby has a Right to Life. Inclusion is a more abstract concept and may go beyond Human Rights. For some people it is a principle that they find very inspiring.

This category is mainly about Health Services and the delivery of Health Care. However, it must be acknowledged that in much of the world, good health is only partly to do with health services: one-fifth of the worlds people have hardly any access to the health sector. Rather, poor health is strongly related to poverty. One-fifth of the world is living in the absolute poverty defined as having less than one dollar per person per day. One quarter have no access to clean drinking water. 190 million children suffer from chronic malnutrition, which affects their physical and mental development and the potential contribution they can make for their country. So improving the health of a country does not lie only with the health sector. It lies with better water and sanitation, better food on plates and jobs and crops to put the food there. It also lies with better education of future mothers. Nevertheless the health sector plays an important role, which can grow in effectiveness at the level of the community.

Poverty & Income Generation

Poverty & Income Generation

One-fifth of the world is living in absolute poverty, defined as having less than one dollar per person per day. Onequarter have no access to health care or to clean drinking water. 190 million children suffer from chronic malnutrition. There are many ways of attacking poverty and those with most impact often operate at national or international level. An example is the growth of the Information Technology sector in India. But one powerful smaller tool is the Small Loan or Micro-finance type of project. The best known is the Grameen Bank of Bangladesh, which by the end of December 2007 had 7.41 million borrowers, 97 percent of whom are women. Borrowers do not need collateral, so the bank reaches the poorest of the poor, covering 96 percent of all villages in Bangladesh.

NGO helps bar girls get a new lease of life in Mumbai

Gyrating to boisterous music was the order of the day for them, but not anymore; not after a ban was enforced on dance bars. While a section of these bar girls may now have turned sex workers, some of them left this city in search of livelihood. But some others have found better ways to live here, thanks to the Sanmitra Trust initiative. From a dabba business to working at retail stores, these women are now exploring new employment avenues, which was a distant reality till about a few years ago.

According to Prabha Desai, a professor at Patkar College who runs the NGO, the initiative was started in 2002, primarily to create awareness on HIV among commercial sex workers. In 2004, she started a clinic in Malwani to help HIV-infected commercial sex workers. With more than 3,500 sex workers in Malwani alone, Desai said it was a challenging task counseling them. From June 1 to July 15 in 2004, there were 21 suicides and a murder, and the reason was HIV infection. The people who committed suicide had all tested HIV positive, she said. A sex worker was killed by her beau after he found out that she had passed on the infection to him. With the slapping of ban on dance bars in 2004, Desai started getting the bar girls coming to her for counseling on various issues, including job options. There were around 300 women in Malwani who were employed as bar dancers in the past, she said. The first break came when four former bar dancers, who were initially drawn into prostitution, started making dabbas and delivered it to a movie unit. They soon became famous and now get orders from a number of other clients from the entertainment industry, said Desai. Naseem Bano had always dreamt of living a decent life. I was compelled to work at a dance bar because of financial reasons. With the help of Sanmitra, I decided to start a small cosmetics shop. Kiran from West Bengal had worked at dance bars for a few years. She was encouraged by Sanmitra counsellors to do a computer course. She lends a helping hand to other former bar girls and sex workers in carrying out bank work. Another former bar girl, Kusum, said: I was 18 when I got into this profession. I always wanted to quit, but had no option to earn money. It was only after I came in touch with Sanmitra, I got my chance. Kusum works as an office assistant. Five sex workers have been hired and are paid a monthly stipend of Rs5,000 each to help the NGO in holding seminars and meetings with commercial sex workers in Malwani

NGO wants access for disabled men on WRs Ladies Spl

Says they should be allowed in coaches meant for the handicapped; WR says existing rules do not permit it

Should male handicapped commuters have access to coaches meant for disabled on Ladies Special trains? This question has kicked off a debate with NGO Disability Advocacy Group (DAG) on one side and the railways on the other. The NGO wants Western Railway (WR) to allow male disabled commuters in all trains while WR says it is a rule which cannot be changed. It all started with the detention of four male handicapped passengers, caught travelling in the handicapped coach of a Bhayandar-Churchgate Ladies Special train on April 13, and their subsequent release.

Disability Advocacy Group says it will approach Rly Ministry seeking changes in rules

The passengers from Dahanu had boarded the 9 am ladies special at Bhayandar. They were detained by a squad of Andheri Railway Protection Force (RPF) and marched to the post on the east side of Andheri station.

The four tried to reason with the RPF team saying they didnt know that the handicapped and cancer patients coach of such specials were reserved only for women. They also told the cops that since the Ladies Special trains were not very crowded and their handicapped coaches were almost empty, not allowing handicapped male passengers to enter the coach was low on logic. When the quartet's arguments didn't cut much ice with the RPF, one of them called the NGO Disability Advocacy Group (DAG) for help. Senior DAG members in turn called newly-appointed RPF InspectorGeneral Mahim Swamy, who took a sympathetic view that the four be allowed to leave with a warning. The matter is, however, now all set to make WR think because the NGO is planning to approach the Railway Ministry to ensure that male handicapped passengers can board coaches meant for them even on Ladies Special trains. Speaking to Mirror, DAG's Mumbai chapter president Jitendra Karelia said, "The railway must change the rules to allow male handicapped passengers to travel in coaches meant for them in Ladies Special trains. We have noticed that even women travelling in the Ladies Special have never had a problem on this issue. We will meet senior WR officials and give them letters to ensure that no disabled person is troubled again by RPF." For now, WR does not seem to be in a mood to relent. Girish Pillai, divisional railway manager said, "Out of our daily 1,210 local train services, just 6 are Ladies Specials. The rule is clear that on these 6 trains, men are not allowed to travel and that includes male disabled passengers as well."

ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF NGOS

Advantages 1. They have the ability to experiment freely with innovative approaches and, if necessary, to take risks. 2. They are flexible in adapting to local situations and responding to local needs and therefore able to develop integrated projects, as well as sectoral projects. 3. They enjoy good rapport with people and can render microassistance to very poor people as they can identify those who are most in need and tailor assistance to their needs. 4. They have the ability to communicate at all levels, from the neighbourhood to the top levels of government. 5. They are able to recruit both experts and highly motivated staff with fewer restrictions than the government. Disadvantages 1. Paternalistic attitudes restrict the degree of participation in program/project design. 2. Restricted/constrained ways of approach to a problem or area. 3. Reduced/less replicability of an idea, due to nonrepresentativeness of the project or selected area, relatively small project coverage, dependence on outside financial resources, etc. 4. "Territorial possessiveness" of an area or project reduces cooperation between agencies, seen as threatening or competitive. 5. Top-down models of development minimize the role of local knowledge and ownership to submit or conform to international norms and expectations. 6. Dependency on external assistance decreases the pressure for local and national governments to provide for their citizens.

Areas where NGOs Can Help:

Help people shift to temporary shelters Offer clothes and food packets Deploy private ambulance / trust vehicles with private medical teams for health checkup in slum areas Health education, distribution of Chlorine tabs & O.R.S packets. Propagating Instructions regarding food and water consumption to avoid epidemics like Jaundice and Gastro. May prescribe for minor ailments like fever, D & V etc and help in disinfection water Offer various other voluntary services like rebuilding of homes, baby sitting, caring for the old or disabled.

INTERVIEW OF NGOS