The programme aims to create awareness among the public about how higher knowledge affects and influences their standard of living as well as various aspects of human existence. The scheme postulates that, in a democratic society, everyone has the right be abreast of the advantages and repercussions of the new discoveries and inventions. The scheme also intends to develop and circulate a multimedia package, capable of explicating for the benefit of the common people the possibilities and implications of research and studies in the field of higher education which include Structural and Functional Genomics, Agro-biotechnology, Synthetic Bio-engineering, Bioinformatics, Bio Pharmacology, Nano-tech sensors, Nano-transmitters, Brain-Computer interface Devices, Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, etc.

KSHEC will take up the responsibility of holding campaigning activities in connection with “Prabudhatha” throughout the state in collaboration with higher education institutions. Higher Education Institutions will be directed to observe ‘Open Day’ in order to facilitate common people to interact with researchers and understand research activities as well as to enable them to visit laboratories, workshops and museums. The Council will take the initiative to encourage experts in science and technology to participate in the campaigns for the Prabudhatha scheme.

Prabudhata : A Path Breaking Initiative to Democratize Higher Knowledge

• Prabudhata is a revolutionary concept formulated by the Kerala State Higher Education Council and the project is now being piloted in a unique and daring manner in Karakulam Grama Panchayath of Thiruvananthapuram district.

The Concept

• All the public sector institutions and organizations producing/ transacting/handling higher knowledge, including our universities and colleges, are drawing financial resources from the public exchequer. In other words, such institutions and organizations subsist and thrive on tax payers’ toil. What does our higher knowledge institutions give to the common man in return?  Does he have any right or claim over the fruits of higher knowledge? Are the studies and researches happening in our institutions good enough to address the needs, aspirations and apprehensions of the society?
   
• Prabudhata is a concept evolved from such reverberating questions. As a model project Prabudhata aims to make use of the might of local self governments and the potential of Kudumbashree CBOs (Community Based Organizations) to deliver the benefits of higher knowledge to the community and to garner, in return, inputs, themes, thoughts and ideas for meaningful research and studies from the society. The project is to be comprehended as a harbinger of a new democratic knowledge culture, which will permeate throughout the country in due course. Or it is to be seen as an eye opener for centres of higher knowledge and our society alike.

Partners of Prabudhata:

• As hinted earlier, State Higher Education Council is piloting Prabudhata Project in Karakulam panchayat with the active support of the Local Self Government of the area, Kudumbashree Mission and Karakulam Grameena Patana Kendram, a vibrant NGO functioning in the panchayat.  The aim is to evolve a replicable model for disseminating higher knowledge, its implications and benefits to common man and community at large.

• Though the strategy and process are still in evolving phase, the central theme of Prabudhata has already been finalized. The Kerala State Higher Education Council will empower the people of Karakulam to frame and raise questions (knowledge questions- questions based on higher knowledge, each of the higher knowledge centres is producing/transacting/handling) to the higher knowledge centres in and around Thiruvananthapuram city, with the active support and involvement of Kdumbashree Mission, Panchayat Samithi, CDS and NGOs of the area.
   
• A volunteer team would be formed to disseminate project objects and ideals in the community. Besides the Facilitator engaged by the Council, representatives of the grama panchayat, Kudumbashree CBOs, representatives of NGOs & PTA would be there in the volunteer team. Council and Kudumbashree Mission would jointly impart training to the volunteer team. The volunteer team will raise pertinent questions in the community and arouse interest among common people regarding the implication of higher knowledge in their day to day life. Eventually, the community itself would identify and enlist questions which it wants to place before each centre of higher knowledge.

Implementation:

Though the strategy and process are still in evolving phase, the central theme of Prabudhata has already been finalized. The Kerala State Higher Education Council will empower the people of Karakulam to frame and raise questions (knowledge questions- questions based on higher knowledge, each of the higher knowledge centres is producing/transacting/handling) to the higher knowledge centres in and around Thiruvananthapuram city, with the active support and involvement of Kdumbashree Mission, Panchayat Samithi, CDS and NGOs of the area.

A volunteer team would be formed to disseminate project objects and ideals in the community. Besides the Facilitator engaged by the Council, representatives of the grama panchayat, Kudumbashree CBOs, representatives of NGOs and PTA would be there in the volunteer team. Council and Kudumbashree Mission would jointly impart training to the volunteer team. The volunteer team will raise pertinent questions in the community and arouse interest among common people regarding the implication of higher knowledge in their day to day life. Eventually, the community itself would identify and enlist questions which it wants to place before each centre of higher knowledge.

Communication Strategy:

Following are some of the components incorporated in the communication strategy frame work.

• Prabudhata installations (thinking man)at Karakulam and Palayam campus of the University of Kerala
• Prabudhata Question Boxes (Prabudhata Chodya Petti) at vantage points to collect knowledge questions from the public
• Street Play (Theruvu Natakom) to enact at selected centres of Karakulam
• Prabudhata Kala Jadha
• Artifacts at prominent places in the panchayat
• Prabudhata Ayalsabhas and Gramasabhas in Karakulam
• Flash mobs in at least 100 centres, involving NSS volunteers
• Opinion leaders first approach to popularize the ideals of the concept
• Direct mailers to MPs, MLAs, Political Leadership, Local Body Chairpersons, University Authorities, Syndicate Members, College Principals, Student Unions , Academics, top officials
• Effective use of social media
• Judicious use of conventional media
   

Expected Outcomes:

Even though Prabudhata is now being piloted only in Karakualm Panchayat, its impact and reverberations would be perceptible throughout the state, thank to the cogent communication strategy. Following would be some of the major outcomes of the project.

• New awakening in the community with respect to its right over the fruits of higher knowledge 
• Attitudinal change that would occur in academic/scientific community
• Betterment of the life and vocation of common men through knowledge dissemination
• Genesis of a new democratized knowledge culture
• Social audit of the centres of higher knowledge
• New impetus for community oriented knowledge production
• Preparation of kits and means for knowledge dissemination
• Books, pamphlets, brochures etc. produced by centres of higher knowledge to introduce themselves to the society
• New extension activities likely to be launched as aftermaths of Prabudhata
• Adoption of villages by centres of higher knowledge
• Evolvement of a simplified language to introduce higher knowledge to common people
• Social Angle in Research and Knowledge Production (SARK) : a new parameter to assess the efficacy, relevance, worth and usefulness of researches and studies
• Knowledge Dissemination Responsibility (KDR) : a new criterion to gauge the social commitment and extension drive of colleges and other higher education institutions
   

Progress of Prabudhata:

2017-18 was more of a formative year of Prabudhata. The vague idea germinated during the first quarter of the year evolved into a brilliant concept and a concrete project by the end of the year. Particulars of the step by step progress of Prabudhata during 2017-18 are given below in bullet points.

• Initial brainstorming meeting held on 3/8/2017 at the board room of the Council (Dr. Rajan Gurukkal, One Member Commission for KSHEC chaired the meeting)
• Briefing of the project to Hon’ble Ministers for Education and Local Self Government.
• Briefing of the project to Principal Secretaries of Higher education and LSGD
• Two rounds of discussions with Executive Director and other officials of Kudumbashree Mission.
• Brainstorming meeting held on 25/8/2017 at the conference hall of KSSTM (the meeting was again chaired by Dr. Rajan Gurukkal. Representatives of various higher education/ knowledge institutions, including University of Kerala, SCTIMST, VSSC, CTCRI, NATPAC etc. participated in the meeting. Dr.B.Ekbal, Member, State Planning Board also participated in the meeting.
• Meeting with Karakulam Grama Panchayat authorities, Kudumbashree authorities and other well wishers held on10/1/2018.
• Meeting held on 31/1/2018 at Karakulam grama panchayat to present the concept to the members & officials of the panchayat and CDS office bearers.
• Prabudhata team building seminar held on 21/02/2018 at Gramina Patana Kendram, Karakulam.
• Joint meeting of the opinion leaders Academic/Higher Knowledge bodies and Prabudhata functionaries held on 28/2/2018 at Municipal Guest House, Vazhuthacaud.
• All the meetings of Prabudhata have been videographed as it is a pilot project meant to be replicated elsewhere in future