Archive for the ‘Natural Resources’ Category

Ummedmal Lodha Environmental Award Ceremony

Tuesday, February 12th, 2013

On February 12, Seva Mandir hosted the Ummedmal Lodha Environmental Award Ceremony. The ceremony honored the efforts of individuals and groups in Southern Rajasthan who have made progress on forest and pasture land management. The first ceremony was held in 2000, which marks the latest event as the 14th consecutive year of awards and recognition.

  

This year, the keynote speaker was Dr. Eshwaran Somnathan, who is a professor at the Indian Statistics Department at New Delhi University. Dr. Somnathan, who received his PhD from Harvard University, has recently been researching forestland management mainly in Nepal. In his speech, Dr. Somnathan discussed how direct community involvement in forestland management explains Nepal’s success with the issue.Therefore Dr. Somnathan, along with Seva Mandir, supports the strengthening of local Forest Protection Committees (FPCs) so that they can better manage their own resources. In accordance with this mission, the staff at Seva Mandir called for a rally following the award ceremony to attract the attention of others on issues of community work for common good.

  

There were four categories of award recipients at the ceremony: Group, Forest Protection Committees (FPC), Individual, and Scholarship. In total, 8 groups and individuals received awards. The Group category award was given to members of the Bed village of Girwa block for implementing an effective pastureland management policy that was able to slow encroachment on their lands. In the second category, the villagers of the Peepal Was FPC were rewarded. The Peepal Was FPC was established in 1986, and they have been noted for their efforts in fighting encroachment and rehabilitating forestland in their area.

The Individual awards went to people who made major accomplishments in either forest or pasture lands. The first recipient was Mani Shankar of Kotra Block. Mr. Shankar was rewarded for his efforts against a Panchayat that was encroaching on pastureland. He then helped to lead the regeneration of the land surrounding the village of Chikhala. The second recipient was Shanta Devi of Jhabala village in Girwa Block. Shanta Devi has been involved in the management of watershed development  and two forest sites for over 10 years. In 2012, she also started a women’s federation to support the development of forestland and watersheds. The third Individual award recipient was Soni Ram from Amalata village of Jhadol Block. With the help of NREGA, Soni Ram lead the redevelopment of pastureland in his community. The fourth recipient was Mawa Ram also of Girwa Block, who led forestland management efforts and developed a community irrigation system in Helpiya village.

In the final category, Seva Mandir awarded two students with a Rs. 12,000 scholarship. The scholarship was established for impoverished girls in the tribal areas of Southern Rajasthan. This year’s awardees were Alka Kumari if Jamun village in Jhadol Block, and Indira Kumari of Palesar village in Kotra Block.

  

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Forest Protection Rally

Tuesday, February 12th, 2013

Following the Umed Lodha Environmental Award Ceremony on February 12, scores of tribal villagers and Seva Mandir staff led a rally to the Office ofthe Commissioner of Tribal Area Development in order to sensitize both the Udaipur community and local government to the issue of inadequate forestland management in India.

The 2006 Forest Rights Act enables individuals to gain entitlement on any forest land if they have encroached upon and been living there for a certain number of years. In villages where Seva Mandir is working, many communities have been  involved in protecting and managing forestlands. In doing so, many have given up their illegal encroachment on these lands for the community benefit. The rally was an attempt to recognize community efforts over individual gains and to motivate other stakeholders in the society to identify with these village communities’ efforts.

The participants marched to draw attention of the common people in the city for the 2006 Forest Rights Act, which has led to serious issues of encroachment in forests that are incredibly valuable to rural communities. As an alternative, the Forest Protection Committees (FPCs) have called for the leasing of forestland to entire communities instead of individuals. The hope was to create awareness and to draw attention of the government to address forestland issues so that an open dialogue can begin between the state and community-led FPCs.

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Volunteer Speak – Visit to Jhadol Block

Thursday, December 20th, 2012

In December, a visit was held for the current volunteers at Seva Mandir to see the work that the organisation carries out in other fields. Around 7 of the volunteers, who all work in different departments of Seva Mandir went to the Jhadol block (to the West of Udaipur) where they observed examples of various projects in operation.

Below is a brief account from British volunteer Oliver – who is working on a project which involves field testing new, improved cookstoves which will be distributed amongst villages in Rajasthan.


Our first stop was a pre-school (Balwadi) that Seva Mandir funds. We arrived and there were about 30 children who initially all looked absolutely terrified by us. We spoke to the teacher who had been working there for the past 13 years. She said that initially the children attended school in a very dirty state but that she spoke to the parents and explained that this was not good enough and that they should clean and care for their children better. She also explained that some of the children were malnourished in the beginning but the school supplies food for the children, which is fortified with extra vitamins that has helped to address the problem.

Thanks to Seva Mandir the children in this village now have the opportunity to start learning from an early age and all go on to formal education.

Afterwards we visited a school Seva Mandir is involved with which catered for children at levels A,B and C. As we arrived all the children were in lessons and it was fantastic to see all these children so enthusiastic and engrossed in what their teachers were teaching them. One teacher explained that they also use games for learning and demonstrated this for us. He set up some plastic bottles which all had numbers on them just like pins in a bowling ally and the children threw a tennis ball at the bottles. Whichever bottles were knocked over would then become a mathematical sum for the children to work out.

A fantastic way of learning yet so simple.  I thought that maybe some teachers back home could take some advice from these guys. 

 

After this we set off to look at some of the watershed work that Seva Mandir had been involved with.  We went to these huge hills which were covered in shrubbery and trees. This was common land in the villages, and Seva Mandir helped to organise the villagers to all be involved in looking after it. Normally the land would dry out and be bare, but the local villagers with the help of Seva Mandir built water harvesting structures to help slow the rainfall, as well as contour trenches that fills with water to help water soak into the ground and reach the roots of the plants.

We also had a look at a local dam or anicut that Seva Mandir had built in 1988. This was amazing to see. We arrived at this huge lake that was just incredible to look at. Before the building of the dam this would have been a big dry bit of land. Now, roughly 145 families can enjoy the benefits as this lake helps water infiltrate into the ground, supplying wells and providing water to all the local crops by irrigation. It was a scorching hot day yet here sat this huge lake. It truly was astonishing to see and showed me how important the watershed work Seva Mandir carries out actually is.

 

 

Our next stop was to visit a huge well in Dhala village. Seva Mandir supported the building of a boundary wall for the well, making it safer and reducing contamination, and a water tank was also built to pump water into from the well. They the villagers were taught how to chlorinate the water.

As we were discussing how the tank was built and the problems the villagers used to face before the clean water was supplied, I noticed a young child probably around 10 years old holding a water canister in the distance. He looked like he was on his way to fill the canister but was scared as all these people were standing around talking and looking all important. I smiled at him and waved him over. He then put his canister on the floor, turned the tap on and started to fill it up.  While the water was running he started to wash his hands over the canister, which meant that all the drinking water he was collecting wouldn’t be clean. Just as I was thinking of going over to tell the kid, one of the villagers went over, grabbed his pot and emptied it on the floor. Then he put it back under the tap and explained to the child that he shouldn’t wash his hands while filling up drinking water.  It was great to see that they understood about keeping the water clean and were taking responsibility of the projects Seva Mandir had carried out.

The last visit on the day’s itinerary was another pre-school, or Balwadi, that Seva Mandir fund all of the learning materials for and pay the salary for the teacher. We walked into the classroom and spoke to the teacher who cares for 20 children on average. Again we heard how normally the children would just be sitting at home doing nothing until they were old enough to help out on the farm. Apparently some of the children again were highly malnourished before attending the school but were fed as much as needed to be provided with all the vitamins required. Since attending the school all the health issues had dissapeared and the children were leaning the basics that many people take for granted. 

 

It was great to see these young children all with huge grins on their faces and so happy to be learning and playing.  It was a great day and I felt privileged to be apart of it.

Posted in Balwadi, Education, Jhadol Block, Natural Resources, Uncategorized, Volunteers | No Comments »

Grow Vegetables to make $ 1,590

Saturday, February 25th, 2012

Some farmers in village Peepad signed up for vegetable cultivation program of Seva Mandir. Others too showed interest in cultivating vegetables when they saw the progress made by former farmer’s group. Therefore they also decided to grow vegetables on their farms The 37 farmers out of 42 requested for good quality seeds of Cluster Beans. With Seva Mandir’s help 3 farmers who were representing the entire group (42 farmers) went to Udaipur City in order to explore various kinds of seeds available for the Cluster Beans. After close research the farmers selected the “Sarit Soumya 700” variety. It was bought and distributed to selected farmers (39 who showed interest in growing cluster beans).

The total farming area is 21.5 bighas that these farmers cultivated on. In the beginning, the farmers didn’t receive a fair price for their crops but later, as their total produce increased as a result of better rainfall. The farmers were able to make good income. A total of 13,300 of cluster beans were produced from the total 4.59 hectare of land. They sold their produce between Rs 10 – Rs 25 (below $1) stabilizing the price at an average of Rs 18 per kilos.

In total they all earned an income of more than Rs 236,800 (USD 5,262). Apart from cluster beans, the farmers also  grew other vegetables like Ridge Guard, chilies, coriander, pumpkin, lady finger (okra), tomatoes, moong (Green gram) and  earned Rs 711,00 (USD 1,590).

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Common good is better than individual gains

Sunday, February 12th, 2012

Every year Seva Mandir marks 12th February as Ummedmal Lodha Environment Day. This February the Ummedmal Lodha Trust and Seva Mandir distributed the 13th Ummedmal Lodha Environment Awards to communities and individuals who have done remarkable work in the field of Environment. Five individuals were given away a cash prize of Rs. 2,000 each and a certificate. Two forest protection committees won the award in the second category with a cash prize of Rs. 10,000 each and a certificate. Two village communities were awarded a cash prize of Rs 10,000 each and a certificate in the third category. This year a scholarship of Rs. 12,000 was also distributed to a girl from Kotra who wants to pursue higher education.

Ms. Neelima Khetan (Country Director AIF, India) was invited to give a memorial lecture this year. She considered these initiatives of communities and efforts of many individuals involved in similar development activities with ‘experiments of Swaraj’. She quoted a definition of Swaraj given by Gandhi ji and brought forth how communities in villages are using non-violent means in bringing the change. Especially, when today, individual and economic wealth is considered essentials of life, these communities (in areas where Seva Mandir and similar organizations are working) are protecting common lands and forests for common good. She considered ‘honest expectations’, ‘trust that everyone is capable of doing the right thing’, ‘asking everyone to follow the rules’ and ‘honesty and respect towards the work’, as some of the ingredients of doing this work that these communities have been able to do.

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Mohan is buying another buffalo

Thursday, December 8th, 2011

Mohan Lal lives in Antalia village of Kumbalgarh block. He owns a small farm, two bulls, one buffalo, twenty goats and three cows. Since he has a large number of animals, he is always concerned about the fodder. A few years back in Mohan’s village a piece of land (pastureland) was lying barren with no vegetation. In subsequent years, the land has been contested and many people had build barns for their livestock. The land was completely encroached upon by influential people. But it is not the end. Mohan says the story of our pastureland was turned around.

In 2008 under the MN REGA the pastureland was taken up for treatment. Some Jatropha plants were planted and a few check dams (to prevent soil erosion) were built. However, Mohan says, with inadequate funds the boundary wall was built only halfway through.

The villagers were concerned that if the boundary wall is not completed sooner, the land would be contested again. The issue remained a concern in their several subsequent village meetings. Eventually they decided to ask Seva Mandir to help them develop this pastureland. It was a good sign that everyone in the village was concerned about a piece of land which was mostly encroached upon. Mohan says, we had understood the significance of taking care of the land which will yield benefits to all of us in the village.

Therefore, the villagers made a proposal to Seva Mandir along with the full details of the land and the blue print of the work. Seva Mandir conducted a survey with the help of its engineers and estimated the resources required (cost was Rs. 2.85 lacs or USD 6,334). The work began including digging trenches and building check dams (to prevent the soil erosion and facilitate water percolation), building the rest of the boundary wall, digging pits, planting saplings and sprinkling grass seeds.

However there was another two hectares of land which was encroached upon. The villagers began a dialogue with the trespasser families. Eventually these families agreed to vacate their possessions. Therefore, villagers requested Seva Mandir to take up the remaining land for pastureland development. With Rs. 1.54 lacs (USD 3,422) the remaining two hectares of land was taken up for building the fence, digging trenches and pits, plantation of saplings. The pastureland was closely located to a road with a small bridge. This allowed the animals an entry into the pastureland. Therefore, a thorny (spiky) wire was installed to prevent animals entering into the pastureland.

The villagers decided to penalize (Rs. 501) those families whose cattle enters into the pasture. It helped. They also appointed one person to guard their pastureland. Every family pays 2kgs of wheat every year to the guard.

Mohan says, years ago the pastureland was a piece of stones and barrenness. Now when he looks at it, he sees greenery all over. It makes him feel serene. Earlier, he was concerned about fodder for his cattle and now he has plenty. Currently he is thinking of buying another buffalo.

According to Mohan if they haven’t developed this pastureland, in future his children would only see private encroachments and barns on the land. With their collective work on the pastureland they re-generated the land as well as produced enough labor work for everyone. Their cattle have an access to leaves and grasses now. Some fruit trees such as custard apple are of much delight to children. In future they can sell the surplus of the fruit and generate village revenue.

The villagers are also planning to grow more trees including Neem, Tamarind, Mango, and Bamboo. The pastureland is having a positive impact on the environment. In the region mining is growing and to Mohan pastureland like this will be the only greener areas around in future. The 145 families of his village will continue to reap benefits from this pastureland since the entire village has vowed to take care of their lands.

 

The story is written by: Kishanlal (Zonal worker, Seva Mandir Kumbhalgarh).

 

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Rajasthan to develop pastureland under MGNREGS now – The Hindu

Tuesday, October 18th, 2011

Seva Mandir with the Panchayati Raj will develop pasture lands in villages of Udaipur under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme. The first project has been launched in Chhali and Amleta villages of Udaipur District.

On Oct 15, 2011 the project was inaugurated in these villages by State Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Minister Bharat Singh. He said, This is the first instance when a voluntary institution together with the Panchayat under the MNREGS are working on a development project of this nature in this region . He said, “it will provide livelihoods to the people as well as help protect their land for reaping benefits of fodder and trees in the future”. Minister of State for Youth Affairs Mr. Mangilal Garasia, our Trustee Mr. Ajay Mehta and our Chief Executive Priyanka Singh were also present at the inauguration.

Mr. Ajay Mehta expressed his gratitude to Mr. Singh for allowing civil societies opportunities of these kinds. He also congratulated both of the villages for choosing an idea of mass development other than personal growth at this opportunity.

Ms. Priyanka Singh said “MNREGS is the world’s biggest employment generation program. By giving space to a Non Government Organization, Rajasthan’s State Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Government has started a new journey in the field of development under this scheme. Seva Mandir will execute 32 works spread in a pasture land area measuring 650 hectares at a cost of Rs. 2.25 crore under the MNREGS”.

Also see the news coverage by The Hindu : Rajasthan to Develop Pastureland under MGNREGS now.

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The Business plan

Wednesday, June 8th, 2011

Seva Mandir has been preparing Comprehensive Plans since 1990 as a way to systematically review and evolve its near-term strategic priorities across all programmatic areas.  The process of putting together the Comprehensive Plan also serves as an opportunity for Seva Mandir to reflect upon the work we have done, examine the environment we work in and evolve our strategies accordingly, within the context of past lessons learnt and the overall long-term vision of the organization.

The process for creating the 7th Comprehensive Plan began in late 2010 and includes all levels of Seva Mandir’s tiers viz. – from the villages where we work all the way up to the Chief Executive Officer.  The Comprehensive Plan process is consistent with Seva Mandir’s bottom-up approach, with the kick-off meetings taking place at the village level with the Chief Executive present.  After these initial meetings, the staff members at the zone and block offices had an opportunity to share their thoughts, observations and information.  Using the information gathered from the field, the Programs devised their strategies for the upcoming years.  These were presented to the organization as a whole, where debate, discussion, criticism and suggestions took place.

We are now headed into the final stages of this exciting process.  Programs are incorporating the comments and suggestions into their reports, and putting the final touches in to the operating frameworks. This is an exciting time at Seva Mandir and we are really looking forward to the next few years when we can put these strategies into effect and watch the change they make. The integrated approach allows all our partners, friends, donors and well wishers to contribute to the holistic development of our communities. Any project/program that you support for Seva Mandir is a part of this comprehensive plan.

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We won the “Top 10 Wins Challenge”

Wednesday, March 30th, 2011

We participated in a fund raising event on Global Giving UK. The challenge Top 10 wins challenge (1st to 14th March) required the participant projects to raise at least of £ 500 with minimum of 25 donors.

Seva Mandir participated with its project “Improving Food Security for Tribal Farmers in India”. This project helps 5000 poor, marginalized farmers in rural Udaipur to have better crops and thus earn more money/food. This is done through a variety of programs including – seed bank program, using organic manure prepared with the help of earth worms (vermin-composting), growing cash crops like vegetables (preparing nurseries) for self sustenance and income generation.

You would be very happy to note that this project raised £705 from 31 donors in the Top 10 Wins Challenge and therefore it won a bonus prize of £300. It is a perfect gift on this Holi for our farmers.

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Ummedmal Lodha Environment Awards 2011

Tuesday, February 1st, 2011

Every year on 12th February, Seva Mandir celebrates the day by giving away awards to village communities and leaders who have done remarkable work in the field of environment like – protecting village forests, pastureland, vacating encroachments on forest and pastureland.
This year Hon. Mr. Bharat Singh – Minister of Panchayati Raj and Village Development, Rajasthan State will be with us to give away the awards and encourage the communities of Udaipur District.

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