World Social Service Day
“Service is religion, let’s serve with the mind, word, and deed”. The Social Welfare Council was established in the year 2034 BS and since then Social Service Day is also celebrated on this day i.e on. 6th Asoj. The Social Welfare Council conducts its work within the rules and regulations of the state with the intention of making various activities related to social welfare, social work, and social service, etc lawful for the overall development of Nepal, Nepali society, and Nepalis. The Social Welfare Council is a council formed to enable the weak and helpless individuals, working classes, and communities of the society to serve and develop a humane life by linking the development, construction, and social service activities with the concerned bodies. The Social Welfare Council, the successor body of the National Coordinating Council for Social Services, has been celebrating Social Service Day on Asoj 6 as an annual festival. National and international non-governmental organizations can only do social service by registering with the Social Welfare Council. In addition, these organizations are required to submit their annual reports as well as the financial and annual activities of the coming fiscal year to the Social Welfare Council in advance.
Since there is an agenda or topic every year regarding the celebration of Social Service Day, the 2020 agenda is “promoting the importance of human relations.” said International Federation of Social Workers Secretary-General, Rory Trell. In order to make this statement relevant, “Service is religion, let us serve with words and deeds.”, national and international non-governmental organizations in Nepal have come to serve and work in various fields. According to the latest statistics of the Social Welfare Council, the number of native organizations affiliated to the council in the field of social services is 35,837 while the number of international non-governmental organizations is more than 250 in numbers. According to SWC the amount committed by the organizations affiliated to it has an amount of about seven billion 778 million 75 thousand to spend in the field of social services annually.
Secretary-General Rory Trell comments that the integrated themes of the global agenda bring new challenges and events to the world each year. The themes of each year are different, and these themes allow the same world underlined by equality, where everyone will have the ability to live in their environment and contribute to the benefit of this planet as well. These theme shows the need to address the co-determination, social, economic, and ecological challenges of the relationship between individuals, communities, and nations. And it helps in bringing people together to balance the need for diversity and making a significant contribution to each society through social work, based on basic skills. The work and mission of the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW) today is to carry this message forward and shape a sustainable future in our communities, in our workplaces, and with our governments. Promoting the importance of human relations: This theme is established to build an international focus on the interdependence of people and the need for change in policy and social service delivery.
The Social Welfare Council motivates non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that have been providing various types of services, and the social workers affiliated to them, to increase their morale and engage in the different areas of service. And as a means to bring the activities done in the social sector to the general public. It has been celebrating Social Service Day since 2036 BS. The main objective of this day is to reward the social organizations and social workers who have done excellent and exemplary work in the field of social service and motivate them to engage in this field. The aim is to disseminate the details and achievements of the work done in the field of social service to the general community and to review the work done by the social organizations and prepare a strategy for the upcoming years. There is a custom for the present President to address the function organized by the Social Welfare Council on this day. Taking the opportunity of this day, the Tulsi Mehar Social Service Award established in the memory of various social workers is also distributed on this very day, i.e. Social Service Day.
During the celebration of Social Service Day in Nepal on 6 September, various activities related to social service are carried out in all the districts. In Kathmandu, peaceful demonstrations are held at various places like Bhrikuti Mandap Exhibition Hall on the occasion of Social Service Day along with public awareness programs such as Candle Light Rally and Social Service activities.
In Kathmandu, amidst the hordes of red, white, and black vehicle number plates, the blue vehicle number plates also can be seen a lot, meaning an increase of Non Governmental organizations in the last decade on the streets of Kathmandu. But, the question that arises in the minds of the people is whether they are really rushing to provide services or whether they are only restricting the work to do research, preparation of research papers and piling them up, and so on. Are these international NGOs doing their work with transparency? Social service is very pure service work, and it is the wish and desire of all of us Nepalis that this must never be mixed with any kind of politics, prejudice, and religion or sect etc. Since the Social Welfare Council should conduct regular and proper monitoring of the national and international non-governmental organizations opened in the name of service in an impartial and regular manner, no national or international non-governmental organization should deviate from the service related activities as mentioned in their constitution.