Steps 1–5
Know your ward
- 01Walk every street of your ward
- 02Map who lives, works and decides there
- 03Learn your ward’s biggest public issues
- 04Know your councillor, officials and offices
- 05Understand how local budgets are spent
The Abdul Kalam Fellow journey
You have already started leading. This is where it becomes a path.
Three programmes, one continuous line — and the fifty steps that follow it. Scroll to walk it — and open any programme along the way.
Before day one
You have already proven you can lead.
Nobody arrives here empty-handed. The people we look for have already shown up for their community — the programme builds on work you have done, not on a title.
- Conducted events in your community
- Taken part in social initiatives
- Helped others onboard and get started
- Joined the waiting list and completed the assessment
2 days
Foundation Course
Four Schools: Head · Heart · Hand · CompassDiscover the public problem you care about, build a shared language for leadership with your cohort and set a clear leadership intent.Before you move on
To move on to the Academy
- Attend both classroom days
- Write your personal leadership intent
- Understand what the four-week Academy will require
4 weeks · 64 hours
Leadership Academy
Practice · Evidence · FeedbackLearn through cases, simulations and discussion, apply every module in realistic practice and build an evidence portfolio of your growth.Before you move on
To move on to the Lab
- Complete the four-week programme
- Build your Academy evidence portfolio
- Commit to a real public challenge for 100 days
100 days
Public Problem-Solving Lab
Diagnose · Organise · Act · ReviewTake responsibility for a real public problem, organise people around it, act, review honestly and produce verified evidence of public impact.Before you move on
To complete the Lab
- Document decisions and evidence honestly
- Take part in mentoring, review and final evaluation
- Leave ready for your next responsibility
After the Lab
Then the long road. Fifty more steps.
Becoming an elected representative — in a ward, a local body or beyond — is not one course. It is years of steady work. These are the fifty things leaders keep practising after the Lab. None comes with a promise; each is earned by showing up, week after week.
Steps 6–12
Understand the institutions
- 06Explain how your local body works
- 07Know what each level of government controls
- 08Read a ward or panchayat budget
- 09Follow a council or gram sabha meeting
- 10Understand election timelines and rules
- 11Know the model code of conduct
- 12Follow one election from notice to result
Steps 13–17
Listen and act on issues
- 13Hold structured conversations with residents
- 14Turn complaints into diagnosed issues
- 15Document one issue from start to outcome
- 16Follow up until something changes
- 17Keep an honest record of the work you do
Steps 18–23
Build a team
- 18Recruit your first volunteers
- 19Give every volunteer a clear role
- 20Run a steady weekly team rhythm
- 21Delegate without losing quality
- 22Train someone to take over from you
- 23Keep people involved when energy dips
Steps 24–29
Communicate with the public
- 24Speak clearly in Tamil and English
- 25Tell your story in one minute
- 26Write a short, honest message
- 27Handle a hostile question calmly
- 28Brief a journalist
- 29Respond to a crisis
Steps 30–33
Use data responsibly
- 30Use voter and issue data responsibly
- 31Protect people’s privacy and consent
- 32Run a simple digital channel
- 33Spot and correct misinformation
Steps 34–38
Stay compliant
- 34Understand spending limits and rules
- 35Keep clean records of every rupee
- 36Know eligibility and disqualification rules
- 37Prepare nomination papers correctly
- 38Meet every legal deadline
Steps 39–43
Build character
- 39Keep your word, even when it costs you
- 40Stay calm under pressure
- 41Reflect on what went wrong, and fix it
- 42Take criticism without giving up
- 43Look after your health, family and time
Steps 44–47
Build relationships
- 44Build trust across communities
- 45Negotiate and build coalitions
- 46De-escalate conflict
- 47Find a mentor, then mentor someone else
Steps 48–50
Work the field — and keep showing up
- 48Plan a week of field work
- 49Train polling-day agents
- 50Keep showing up, week after week
The horizon
Ready to serve as an elected representative.
Ward. Local body. And beyond. There is no single route and no promised seat — only the work, done consistently.
Portrait traced from a pencil drawing by Murali.
The road is long, and it begins with you.
மாறுவோம் மாற்றுவோம்
Let us change. Let us bring change.