India's First 'Learning Constituency': SHRADHA Launch To Transform Pattambi
Palakkad, Kerala: An ambitious initiative, conceived by Muhammed Muhassin, Member of Legislative Assembly of Pattambi in Kerala’s Palakkad district, the goal of making his assembly seat into a “learning constituency”, has entered a key phase as Kerala’s Higher Education Minister Dr. R. Bindu recently inaugurated SHRADHA (Supportive Holistic Reinforcement and Development for Human Advancement) in the city.
Making his dream of converting Pattambi into a knowledge-based constituency aiming to empower young people by providing a platform to educate and express themselves, the MLA’s flagship initiative aims to covert local libraries into peoples universities. Notably, the launch of the SHRADHA App is a crucial step towards his audacious initiative as it will serve as a real-time citizen engagement and educational platform, connecting residents directly with their MLA.
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With the help of the newly launched application, the MLA aims to realise his goal of turning the public libraries in the villages of the constituency into people-friendly universities, by combining learning, governance, and participatory development.
With SHRADHA, according to the MLA, the constituency would offer essential skills programmes and courses to the youths, facilitating the concept of learning a life-long process.
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The project, a first-of-its-kind endeavor by a legislator in India, would utilise Shraddha software to cater the skill programs and lessons to all the attendees, the MLA said, speaking to Timeline. He added that customised software will be developed later. The application would integrate 53 libraries into “People’s Universities” for vocational and skill development as part of the democratic learning movement in partnership with the Library Council, Pattambi Unit.
SHRADHA, as a platform for progressive change, will be accessible at www.shradhaonline.org. In addition to people’s universities platform, the app would also serve several other initiatives, including ManasaMitra, a structured mental health programme developed with SCOLE Kerala, training interns and school counselors to support students, parents, and teachers. It would be used for free entrance coaching by giving high -quality, cost-free coaching for Medical, Engineering, Civil Services aspirants CUET and other major competitive examinations in the country.
Additionally, through SHRADHA, a talent identification and mentoring programme for exceptionally gifted youths in various disciplines could also be conducted. Moreover, SHRADHA is directly aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), advancing key objectives such as good health and well-being, quality education, decent work and economic growth and reduced inequalities. The initiative, however, sets an ideal precedent for similar models across Kerala and India.
While speaking at the inauguration of SHRADHA, MLA Muhammed Muhassin said that the initiative shows how grassroots innovation can deliver quality education, mental well-being, and inclusive growth while staying deeply connected to the people. He also expressed hope that the model would inspire constituencies nationwide to adopt similar learning-driven development frameworks.
