Advertisment No. TISS/PROJECT/SP.CELL/DEC 2018 Date: 1.12.2018

The State Departments of Home, Women & Child Development, and Police, Government of Maharashtra, have since 2005 -undertaken collaborative work with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (Mumbai) for the implementation and expansion of Police Station Chya Awarat Mahila Samupdeshan Kendra as a schematic programme of the Government, based on Special Cell for Women and Children approach, i.e. an initiative of providing social services to women survivors of violence, by placing trained social workers located in the Police system with a clear understanding that violence against women is a crime and it is the responsibility of the State to prevent and counter the same. This programme is based on the Special Cells for Women & Children approach as initiated by TISS (Mumbai) in 1984; it creates space in the Police system for violated women to receive support through quality psycho-social-legal services provided by professional full-time social workers, within the criminal justice system, such that the violence survivor's needs and concerns are addressed within a facilitative environment. Today, there are 144 Special Cells for Women & Children sanctioned across all districts of Maharastra (at district H.Q. And taluka-levels), and 123 are operational on-ground. The Institute at present is implementing largest number of Cells (14) and is overall technical resource & coordinating agency of the programme.

1. The State Government through Department of WCD provides grant-in-aid as per series of Government Regulations (2004-2011) to NGOs and the Institute for implementation of the said Cells & training of social workers therein, and to the Institute also for employment & activites of 4 Regional Coordinators. As per GR sankirna 2009/Pra.ka 306/ka2 dtd. 18.01.2011, a Coordinator is to be appointed for every 10 Cells functional under the programme across the State, and as per GR no. Samup 2013/Pr. Ka 218/Ka -10 dtd. 24.02.2014, specifying that all Coordinators for the programme are to be appointed by the Institute vide grant received from the State Department of WCD.
   
   
1. At present, a total of 7 women social-development sector professionals (preferably having prior direct intervention with women/survivors of violence, as work experience), are required for full-time work as Coordinators (Regional) for the Institute's work with all units of the programme across the State of Maharashtra. TISS hereby issues this advertisement for 7 positions of Coordinators (Regional), as authorised by the Commissioner Women and Child Development Department, Government of Maharashtra, for selection of suitable candidates for the same. The interested candidates may send their Curriculum vitae/resumes -containing phone and e-mail contact to maha.specialcell@tiss.edu , OR send by post to Dr. Trupti Jhaveri Panchal (Asst. Professor), School of Social Work, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, V.N. Purav Marg, Deonar, Mumbai-400088 so as to reach on or before December 31, 2018.
   
   
2. 4. Minimum eligibility criteria (educational and work experience) that candidate must:
2. Possess a post-graduate qualification (M.A. in Social Work/MSW or Masters/Post-graduate degree in any subject of the Social Sciences, Helping professions or the Humanities).
   
   

4.2 Possess at least 5 years experience working full-time in the social-development sector, in/with (a) urban/rural women at the grassroots on their empowerment, or (b) rights-based intervention on issues of violence, or (c) programmes/services/interventions related to issues of women's rights/gender/sexuality/gender-in-governance in NGO/Governmental/quasi-academic/multi-or bilateral agency settings.

4.3 Posess some experience in/exposure to one/more of the following: Work with/on crisis-intervention/violence against women and/or work with State systems in particular, project management, intervention/actionresearch, networking & advocacy at a district/regional-level;

4.4 Demonstrate willingness to travel (across allotted districts/ranges/region, and occasionally within Maharashtra and to other States as per programme requirements) & multi-task extensively, anchor specific units' & personnel's work, work in woman-centered workplace/team environment, beyond '9-to-5 office' setting with varied groups of individuals.

4.5 Must possess verbal & written fluency in Marathi & local languages/dialects, working knowledge of English and comfort with the use of computers & Internet.

5. Selection Preferences:

5.1. Maharashtra-based women/female candidates, possessing Masters/M.A. In Social Work, and having prior experience in direct work with Police systems and/or in interventions with women survivors of violence, will be given first preference.

5.2. Those posessing any one of the above preferred criteria will be given next preference to those posessing all of the above criteria in descending order, as follows: Second preference Those having prior experience in direct work with criminal justice system (Police/Prison/DLSA/Court etc.) and/or in interventions with women survivors of violence, but not posessing MSW/BSW degrees or not women/female, Third preference Women candidates having MSW/BSW degree & experience of full-time work on women's rights/empowerment & work with State systems, but not having VAW response interventions'/criminal justice system-related work experience.

6. Location and terms of service:

These positions are full-time and based in the district headquarters/major cities of Maharashtra. The selected Coordinators will be contractually employed and will be paid a consolidated honorarium of INR 25,000/-per month. Once appointed, the Coordinator will be expected to reside in the headquarter/major city of the region allocated to them for the duration of their appointment and deputation for full-time work in the said programme. Appointed persons will need to arrange for own accomodation accordingly. No accommodation or house rent allowance will be provided by the Institute nor the State Government. Please note that appointments are made upto 31st March in consonance with financial year, as per Institute procedures, but are extended thereafter based on the availability of funds and appraisal of performance.

7. Job description:

7.1. Supervison of various roles, responsibilities & tasks of the social workers in the Police-based units (Special Cells for Women & Children/Mahila-va-Mulankarita Sahaya Kaksh/Police Station Chya Awarat Mahila Samupdeshan Kendra) in the region (allotted districts/Police ranges), and facilitation of overall programme development at the regional level, incl. planning, monitoring and training/capacity-building, in all areas of programmatic, strategic & financial management, as also legal and administrative matters of compliance for the said units' personnel, from the point of view of woman-centred praxis in violence intervention;

7.2. Networking & advocacy on issues of violence against women & girls, and intervention in situations of violence as experienced and reported by women, with other NGOs & GOs/Departments.

7.3. Implementing core services for violated women as and when required, so as to role model/demonstrate intervention skills, and respond to cases that require special skills, so as to enhance the interventions; this also includes crisis-management & programmatic handholding.

7.4. Informing research, monitoring, evaluation & reporting from the gender, violence, empowerment & crisis intervention perspective/s.

7.5. Writing, editing, compiling data extensively for purposes of programme documentation, official record etc.

7.6. Extensive travel across the allotted districts, fluency in English & Marathi, and comfort with the use of computers & Internet.

7.7. Overall responsibility for management of the programme and financial accountability. All other work

w.r.t. Violence against women issues/intervention as assigned by the TISS and the State Government.

8. Advertisement for the position is available on the website: www.tiss.edu. The TISS and DWCD (Govt. of Maharashtra) reserve the right to accept or reject in part or in full any or all the responses to this advertisement without assigning any reasons whatsoever. Only those candidates who are shortlisted on the basis of both eligibility and preference criteria, in combination, will be contacted by an e-mail or phone for interview.

Dr. Trupti Jhaveri Panchal Faculty in-charge, Special Cells for Women & Children Maharashtra, TISS (Mumbai)