ANNUAL REPORT 2003

ANNUAL REPORT 2002-03
The year under review sees FERRY in the twentieth year of its activities for the uplift of the underprivileged youth of rural Bengal. During these two decades, FERRY has worked without a break, providing vocational training to hundreds of young women and men in four districts of rural Bengal. This has been made possible by a large number of volunteers, both young and old, who have worked for FERRY in varying capacities, and for varying periods of times, as well as by the invaluable support and encouragement of our overseas friends and partners. Almost none of the original team which founded FERRY is with us, but its work has been carried on by a new generation of workers who have tried to remain faithful and committed to the ideals of the organization. This annual report, therefore, apart from being a record of FERRY’s activities in the last financial year, also remembers those who made FERRY the organization it is today.
On the 25th of May, 2003, FERRY lost Sadhana Bhattacharya, an Honorary Member of the foundation, and a figure of inspiration for all FERRY members. Sadhana Bhattacharya, widow of the late Bijaykumar Bhattacharya, was one of the founding members of Siksha-Niketan, and had toiled ceaselessly in the fields of village upliftment and basic education for the rural poor at Kalanabagram, Barddhaman, for over half a century. Although she received many awards and honours for her work among the villagers of West Bengal, she will be remembered by all members of FERRY as a simple,
straightforward, and ever-smiling figure - ever ready to help, aid and advise FERRY in its
endeavours to serve the rural youth of this state. She was instrumental in the setting up of FERRY's project site at Kalanabagram and even after the foundation shifted its area of operations, she was always ready to help in its work. She had been keeping indifferent health for the last few years and her passing away is a great loss not just to FERRY and its members, with many of whom she had close personal relations stretching back over decades, but with the larger community of social workers and volunteers in West Bengal. She will be missed by all of us.

As always, FERRY’s efforts on behalf of the underprivileged youth of rural West Bengal would not have been possible without the active participation of FERRY’s project partner, the DEUTSCH-INDISCHE GESELLSCHAFT e.V., Germany, in particular Sri Barendra Kumar Mallick, President, DIG, Wuppertal, who made his annual visit to FERRY’s project sites in March 2003.


RAMPURHAT PROJECT

As reported in last year’s annual report, FERRY’s new project site at Sripahala, Rampurhat—the Sibabrata Ghosh Vocational Training Institute—had been formally inaugurated on 1 December 2001. However, some further additions and alterations still needed to be made to the structure at that stage. This was done during the year under review, from funds made available for this purpose by the DIG, e.V. The works carried out during the year included completion of the building’s staircase, construction of attic and toilet, finishing of walls and floors on the first floor, installation of doors and windows, painting of building, construction of shallow tank adjacent and a fenced area adjacent to the building (for ducks), installing electrical lines, electrical fittings and a meter.
In this connection, FERRY would like to record its gratitude to Sri Shayamal Bhattacharya and Smt. Shipra Bhattacharya and their family members, for their constant cooperation and assistance during the construction of the project site, and their unfailing hospitality to FERRY members visiting the project site.

1. Carpentry course
This nine-month course began on 1 April 2003, with 17 trainees. The chief trainer for this course is Sri Kartik Chaudhury who has been taking classes five days a week. He is being assisted by Sri Prashanta Das who has been taking classes twice a week, with both trainers being present together on one day every week. A notable feature of this course is that classes are being held in the evening, from 6:30-10:30 pm. This is the first time that a FERRY course is being held after hours. This has not only maximised the training capacity of the project site but has also enabled those in part-time employment to receive training.

2. Rearing of Khaki Campbell Geese
A second batch of 30 goslings arrived at the project site on 14 March 2003. It may be remembered that FERRY’s previous experience of buying goslings from a private dealer had not been very happy, with all the goslings dying within a very short time. This time the goslings were supplied by a hatchery run by the West Bengal state government at Kariddha, in Birbhum district. Unfortunately, all the goslings died within one month of their arrival, despite round-the-clock care and attention. As a result, it has not been possible to begin the course in the training of Khaki Campbell Geese, despite the interview and selection of trainees in March 2003. The mortalities of two successive batches of Khaki Campbell Geese have been a huge blow to FERRY’s efforts to rear them commercially. However, FERRY remains committed to this project and will be trying to rear a different breed of ducks during the year. At the time of the writing of this report, the member-in-charge of FERRY’s Rampurhat project site, Sri Madhusudan Banerjee, is attending a two-week course on the rearing of Khaki Campbell and other varieties of geese being conducted by the West Bengal state government. It may be pointed out here that this course had been advertised well over a year ago but had not taken place till now.


BAIDYAPUR PROJECT

1. Electrician Training Course
This six-month course began in March 2003 with 24 trainees. The trainers for the course were Sri Asadul Sheikh and Sri Ram Nandy. An external resource person, Sri Dipak Bera, was also appointed who has been visiting the course once every two weeks.

2. Advanced Tailoring and Machine Embroidery
This six-month course, which began in February 2002 with 20 trainees, came to an end in August 2002. Examinations for both courses were held in August but the examiners recommended a re-examination for the Advanced Tailoring component, as it was felt that the trainees had not displayed sufficient expertise. Accordingly, the Advanced Tailoring course was extended for two months and a second examination was held in November 2002, in which 14 trainees appeared. Of them, the performances of 11 were graded while three trainees were given attendance certificates. Since then, FERRY members have been holding regular meetings with the trainees in an attempt to band them into an informal co-operative. Many of the trainees have bought their own sewing machines, while one, Sri Gauranga Ghosh, has bought an embroidery machine.

3. Two-Wheeler Repair and Maintenance
This eight-month course, which began in February 2002 with 16 trainees, and Sri Ratah Ghosh a trainer, came to an end in October 2002. All but one of the trainees appeared at the examinations held in November 2002. It is a matter of some pride that most of the trainees have since found employment in garages, and at least one, Sri Bikash Khetrapal, has set up his own two-wheeler-repairing garage.


4. Quail Farming
As mentioned in last year’s report, the first batch of quail was reared in November 2001. Since then, four more batches have been raised with varying degrees of success. The high mortalities of the third and fifth batches have to a certain extent negated the success of the first two batches. FERRY has been in constant touch with the West Bengal State Poultry in Azadgarh, Kolkata, which supplies all the quail chicks which FERRY rears, and provides veterinary advice as and when required. FERRY has been trying to identify and solve the problems which caused the mortalities and is hopeful that future batches will be more successful.
The expenses for the above courses, as well as establishment charges for the Baidyapur project site, are borne by the DIG, e.V.



SIKHIRA PROJECT

Machine Embroidery Training Course
This six-month course began in March 2003 with 16 trainees, and Smt. Malati Dutta as trainer. Smt. Dutta had also been the instructor for a Tailoring and Sewing Course conducted previously by FERRY at Sikhira Though the course is yet to be completed, several trainees have already received job offers from local firms and have already begun to execute orders. FERRY would like to record its indebtedness to Smt. Shubashree Basu, whose generous contribution made this course possible.

2. Amin or Land Surveyors’ Training Course
This course in chain-surveying which began in March 2002 with 15 trainees and with Sri Vivekananda Kumar as trainer came to an end in August 2002, with 10 trainees completing the course successfully. Many of the trainees have already begun to receive employment locally.

PROJECTS FOR 2003-04

Though FERRY is still in the process of finalising its proposals for 2003-04, some of the possibilities are:
Baidyapur: (i) Pisciculture in tank
(ii) Quail farming (ongoing)
(iii) Consolidation of previous training programmes
Rampurhat: (i) Machine Knitting of Woollen Garments (2 courses)
(ii) Setting up of Machine Knitting Production Unit
(iii) Advanced Tailoring
(iv) Pumpset repairing
(v) Model duckery (ongoing; no funding to be sought)
Sikhira: (i) Two-Wheeler Repair and Maintenance
(ii) Advanced Tailoring

During the year under review, the Executive Committee of FERRY met on four occasions. A new Executive Committee for the term 2003-2005 will be elected at this year’s Annual General Meeting.
As on 31 March 2003 the total membership of FERRY stood at 73, inclusive of 2 Honorary Members, 4 Life Members, 20 General Members and 47 Associate Members.
FERRY would like to thank Messrs. GUPTA & MITRA, Chartered Accountants and Auditors, Windsor House, 29 R. N. Mukherjee Road, Kolkata 700 001 and all its partners, patrons, resource persons and well-wishers for their continuing faith in and enthusiastic support for FERRY and all it stands for.

For and on behalf of the Executive Committee


27 July 2003 (Sunanda Das)
16, Central Park President, FERRY
Kolkata 700 032
List of general donors

1. Anurag Bansal
2. Barendra K. Mallik
3. Deepak Bansal
4. Dipti Banerjee
5. Hare Krishna Atta
6. Iftequar Hussain
7. Kabir Zaidi
8. Kashinath Mukherjee
9. Partha Sarathi De
10. Prafulla Kumar Chakrabarty
11. S.K. Sengupta
12. Saswata Roy
13. Shubashree Basu
14. Sunanda Das
15. Sunil Kumar Das
16. U. Sengupta
17. Z. Hussain


Members of the Foundation

Honorary Members
1. Inge Boie
2. Sanat Kumar Mukherjee


Life Members
1. Chitra Ghosh
2. Prabir Kumar Basu
3. Subimal Ghosh
4. Sunil Guha


General Members
1. Abhijit Gupta
2. Achintya Kumar Pal
3. Agamani Gupta
4. Ambarnath Ghosh
5. Benukar Mitra
6. Hrishikesh Ghosh
7. Kashinath Mukherjee
8. Lakshmi Kanta Ghosh
9. Madhab Prasad Ganguly
10. Madhusudan Banerjee
11. Nikhilesh Bhattacharya
12. Prahlad Ghosh
13. Prafulla Kumar Chakravarti
14. Rimi B. Chatterjee
15. Rita Nandy
16. Samantak Das
17. Sandeep Banerjee
18. Saugata Ghosh
19. Sunanda Das
20. Suvo Ghosh

Associate Members
1. Anindita Ghosh
2. Anindya Halder
3. Ankita Mukherjee
4. Aritra Ganguly
5. Arpita Chatterjee
6. Arundhati Ghosh
7. Ashoke Kumar Mukherjee
8. Asok Chandra Misra
9. Chandra Sinha
10.Chandrima Bhattacharya
11.Cyril Arijit Ghosh
12.Deba Prasad Choudhury
13.Debanjan Chakrabarti
14.Debasree Mandal
15.Devika Bhowmik
16.Dipankar Baidya
17.Gita Banerjee
18.Gouriprasad Ghosh
19.Hari Shankar Chakraborty
20.Jayanti Mukherjee
21.Jayanti Dutta
22.Jhuma Basak
23.Kalikesab Banerjee
24.Kasturi Basu
25.Krishna Datta
26.Krishna Mukherjee
27.Madhumita Sengupta
28.Md. Harun-or-Rashid
29.Moushumi Bhattacharya
30.Mukul Das
31.Nandita Sanyal
32.Padmini Ray Chaudhury
33.Partha Pratim Gupta
34.Rosanne Dasgupta
35.Roshni Gupta
36.Rudraneil Sengupta
37.Saurav Mandal
38.Sayandeb Chowdhury
39.Shatarupa Sengupta
40.Shelley Datta
41.Sipra Ghosh
42.Somnath Banerjee
43.Sritama Halder
44.Sudarshana Basu
45.Sumita Goswami
46.Susmita Chakrabarti
47.Volker Boie


FERRY’s executive committee for 2003-2005



President Smt. Sunanda Das
Flat 7, Block 16, Regent Park Housing Estate
Kolkata 700 040
( 2471 6462

Vice President Sri Prafulla Kumar Chakrabarty
16-2A, Dover Terrace, Kolkata 700 019
+91 33 2475 2734

Executive Secretary Sri Kashinath Mukherjee
A-5/2, Siriti Housing Estate, 1, Raja Rammohun Roy Road
Kolkata 700 041
2406 6758

Treasurer Dr Abhijit Gupta
16 Central Park, Kolkata 700 032
2425 6926; offog@vsnl.com

Secretaries Sri Nikhilesh Bhattacharya
1-A West Row, Park Circus, Kolkata 700 017
2247 3186; myshkin@rediffmail.com

Sri Madhusudan Banerjee
Nischintapur, Siddeshwaritala Para
Rampurhat, Dist. Birbhum
03461-257943

Members Smt Agamani Gupta
16 Central Park, Kolkata 700 032
2425 4223

Sri Samantak Das
Department of English, Visva Bharati University
PO Santiniketan, Birbhum 731 235
03463-256236; kokopeli@sancharnet.in

Sri Lakshmi Kanta Ghosh
Bratachari Kendriya Nayak Mandali
Kalna-2 Branch, PO Baidyapur
Bardhaman 713 122
03454 245602


Sri Ambarnath Ghosh
80/5A Sarat Bose Road, Kolkata 700 025
2474 7654; ambarnath@hotmail.com

Sri Saugata Ghosh
18A, Kabir Road, Kolkata 700 017
2466 2521; saugata_ghosh2000@yahoo.com
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