“Harit Prayas is bringing change in the target village: The Karondia Example”

Introduction: The village Karondia, situated adjacent to hills, having no frequent conveyance and thus lays cut-off from rest of the world. The socio-economic condition of the community members is bad and having trait of feudal economy. The cycle of poverty has distorted the life style of the poor and marginalized people. Alcoholism has added to the plight of villagers. Rate of migration is quite high and people do not opt farming, as a means of livelihood. One can say the economy of the village is basically ‘money order’ economy. Problems of the village Karondia can be listed as:

·         High illiteracy rate

·         Alcoholism

·         No agricultural activities perform by the villagers in their own agricultural land

·         Mobilization problem – they do not gather for any program of our project

·         Migration

 Regular Intervention of the Project Team:

Ensuring livelihood in village like Karondia has not been a cake walk, even for the government. Though several schemes/entitlement based schemes are there but due to lack of awareness among the community members is the basic hurdle. A village, where people do not gather together, a village where people are addicted of alcohol, initially it was tough for the staff of Harit Prayas project to bring ‘change’.

Strategic intervention through the Harit Prayas project has brought following output in Karondia. Our team continuously went to this village, different programs have been organized.  In quarter we have seen the tremendous change in this village due to our project intervention.n Following changes has taken place in this village these are:

·         Farmers club has been formed- 12 members are in this farmer club

·         People started participating in all the programs of our Project

·         Now They are aware of Harit Prayas Project ( in last year they thought that Harit Prayas is a name of any person)

·         They have formed their cultural team in this month

·         One Farmer has started organic farming

Observing Change:

      The cultural team formed in the village is helping the target community members to come out of the clutch of alcohol. People participate in cultural activities and it is helping them out in quitting/minimizing alcohol addiction.

      The village where it was tough to mobilize farmers and community members, where a farmer club has taken a shape. Farmers gather, they discuss agricultural issue and village problems. Slowly the CBO is organizing rest of the villagers and with help of monthly meeting they are able to learn new things e.g organic farming.

      Organic farming has been started by one farmer. The multiplier effect of this is important. The impact of the organic farming is such that all members of farmers’ club are saying that they will adopt organic farming in the coming kharif season.

Impact of HARIT PRAYAS at Satna: Change factor!

Situation before the project	Situation after 15 months of the project A CHANGE FACTOR!
Twenty one percent of the villagers migrate seasonally to urban areas looking for jobs they are able to remit money back to the families around Rs 5000.	There is decrease in %age of migration as now people are demanding for work under MGNREGA. Adopted Organic agricultural practices result in more production with minimum input.
The people of the villages were not using any modern techniques for improving the agricultural production for improvement.	150 people have adopted organic practices.
Thirty percent of people are part of SHGs formed by some NGOs and Bank.	32% people are part of CBOs. (80% of the set result achieved)
Though the people have awareness about the various government schemes, few are availing benefits such as from MGNREGA 25% and 14% are benefitting from SSA and GBY.	500 families are availing benefit from MGNREGA & 291 from other government schemes

Courtsey: HARIT PRAYAS SSSS-Satna team

Impact of HARIT PRAYAS in last 3 months ( Jan-March 2012) at Jhansi: The change factor!

                         

Baseline says	Change in Quarter (Jan-March,2012)
Zero farmers club in the concerned villages	7 Farmers’ Club in the corresponding villages
Mahila Mandals of BPL Women	2 Mahila Mandals
Awareness about the provisions & procedures of MNREGA, Zero Village level training on the issue	155 community members received training at village level
No exposure visit by any group in the project villages named, Bamer, Rajapur and Chamraua	26 Farmers from Gwalior Diocese, exposure visit
No Voting Right Campaign took place in the project area	Voting Right Campaign took place and almost 200 people participated in the rally
-------------	Organic method of seed conservation workshop @ JCSS, in project HP
No Organic Farming in the project area villages	10 Demo Plot on Organic Farming and increased income (based on Demo plot tool)

Courtsey: HARIT PRAYAS JCSS-Jhansi team

Livestock Management Training (16/04/2012)@HARIT PRAYAS Jhansi

Venue: District Level Training, Seva Sadan, JCSS, Jhansi

Organizer: Jhansi Catholic Seva Samaj

Introduction: The Eleventh Five year Plan envisages overall growth of 6-7 per cent per annum for the livestock sector. In 2010-2011, this sector contributed 121.84 million tones of milk, 63.02 billion eggs, 42.99 million kg wool and 4.83 million tones of meat (source: Economic Survey of India, 2012)

Harit Prayas Project: keeping importance of Livestock in ensuring livelihood of the poor and marginalized community in the target villages of Harit Prayas project has given due importance to the issue of ‘Livestock Management’.

Abstract/summary: Training on livestock management has been conducted on 16^th of April, 2012 at Seva Sadan. Total 25 people participated in the training. For this training, there were two resource persons (Experts from Animal Husbandry Department, Government of Uttar Pradesh) extended their support to JCSS.

The lightening of the lamp was done by Rev. Fr. Sebastian, The Director, JCSS at 12.oo o’clock. Dr. K.P. Varshney (deputy Vetenary Officer) gave an interactive lecture on livestock management in a comprehensive way. He also presented two power point presentations on the issue. Later on another resource person Dr. Ashwini Kumar interacted with community members on Poultry Farm.

The training stretched for around there hours. During this training the community members kept asking questions and getting their queries answered by the experts (details can be found in the ppt, sent along with this micro report).

At the end of the programme Mrs. Malti Devi (cluster coordinator, Harit Prayas) gave vote of thanks to all the participants.

Modus Operandi:

·         Fixing the date of training in the Monthly Action Plan by the team Harit Prayas.

·         Informing the community members of all the 20 villages by the cluster coordinators and field coordinator for the event.

·         Only those community members were requested to participate in the training who is involved in animal husbandry or those who are willing to have live stocks in the coming days.

·         Contacting the resource persons. Networking and liasioning, by briefing them about the Organization, Harit Prayas Project and giving them news letter of Harit Prayas.

·         Event management: Making a gallery with help of Posters/IEC Materials, provided by Animal Husbandry Department.

·         Concluding the training with vote of thanks, followed by lunch.

·         Issue of PRESS Release by the evening.

Output:

·         All the participants learnt about scientific method of live stock management.

·         Now all of the participants have the contact numbers of the officials of Animal Husbandry Department. The community members will contact them for further suggestions.

·         This training programme has worked as a bridge between the Animal Husbandry Department and the target community members (this has been acknowledged by the Official also).

·         Each participant got minimum of 10 copies of IEC material related with all aspect of live stock management. It will certainly have multiplier impact in the corresponding villages.

·         JCSS received 1000 copies of IEC materials (pamphlets) and 15 posters related with livestock management from the Animal Husbandry Department.

Observation and Learning by the team Harit Prayas:

·         All the team members of Harit Prayas project learnt a lot about scientific method of livestock management.

Expected outcome:

·         Improved livestock management will result in increased livelihood of the target households/community members.

·         A good networking with Animal Husbandry Department may fetch extraordinary support in future for welfare of the people and in converting Harit Prayas from a project to a PROGRAMME.

The way forward:

·         In coming quarter we will chalk out a plan with Animal Husbandry Department (Babina Block) to facilitate vaccination programme for livestock, to link the SHGs/Individual with the department (as shared by the officials during the training programme).

Japan international cooperation agency claims bungling in forest projects, seeks probe

LUCKNOW: The Japan International Cooperation Agency has expressed concerns over the implementation of its Rs 500-crore UP Participatory Forest Management and Poverty Alleviation Project (ID-P 194), following alleged irregularities in Bundelkhand. The agency also requested the UP government to conduct a high-level probe into the matter.

"We have taken note of the matter with serious concern and would thus like to request you to kindly have a high-level inquiry conducted in the matter, so as to take the matter to a logical conclusion at the earliest without affecting the pace of project works," wrote chief representative of JICA, Shinichi Yamanaka, in a letter to UP chief secretary.

While asking for an action taken report on the matter, Shinichi further cautioned the state government that it should ensure that the funds provided by the JICA should be utilised for the project works assigned under it in a transparent and efficient manner.

"We are sure that the government of UP would take all the required steps to ensure the same to uphold the very spirit of bilateral cooperation between India and Japan," Shinichi pointed out in her letter.

"We are highly disturbed by the reports of great irregularities, particularly in Lalitpur district, where chief conservator and conservator of forests of the Bundelkhand zone had been accused of indulging in unfair financial practices," the letter added.  

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/Japan-international-cooperation-agency-claims-bungling-in-forest-projects-seeks-probe/articleshow/12669823.cms

HARIT PRAYAS@Jhansi colloborated with animal husbandry deptt-Jhansi

Now HARIT PRAYAS at Jhansi has moved a step ahead in establishing linkages with government line departments by establishing collaboration with Animal husbandry department-Jhansi for organizing various livestock training programmes and other livestock health related support in the HARIT PRAYAS project villages.

Animal and husbandry department (Jhansi) has written a letter to JCSS-Jhansi for providing support in HARIT PRAYAS project villages.

In HARIT PRAYAS project and for JCSS-Jhansi this first ever direct involvement of Animal husbandry department in any project. This collaboration would address the livestock concern of the project and would also support for the entire concept of sustainable agriculture.

HARIT PRAYAS STAFF organising workshop at staff level and community level@JCSS Jhansi

HARIT PRAYAS progess in Jhansi in March 2012

 

Name of activity	No. of units planned/no. of units achieved	Total participation (of community)	Remarks (if any)
CBOs meeting	All CBOs monthly meeting	All members of mahila Mandals and Farmers’ club	In khandi and Bamer Farmers’ club meeting could not take place as scheduled and individual meeting was done with farmers.
Formation of Farmers club	4/4	Math, Koti, Imilia, Sekhar, Baruapura (reorganisation)	It was really very tough to find farmers due to harvesting season.
Formation of SHG/Mahila Mandal	4/2	Sekhar and Pathari	unavailability of women for SHG formation.
Golden Jubilee Celebration of Caritas India at Diocese Level	1/1	---------------------------
V.I.C chart paper preparation	50 chart papers	For VIC decoration
V.I.C Enrichment	5/4	Chamraua,Bamer,khandi, Baghaura	In village Sekhar, V.I.C is in a small room of a ST community member. A separate and suitable room is not available for V.I.C.
Training on MNREGA	1/1	155	Micro report has already been shared with Caritas India.
Workshop on organic method of Seed conservation	1/1	1/1
Seed conservation workshop at village level	-----	Discussion with community members individually in all target villages
Bank Linkages of CBOs	2 units	Purabadera FC, sainyer SHG
Monitoring and supervision visit	1	Dagaria village women	SHG/MM reorganization.

# List of beneficiaries:

·        Though some community members have filled up the MNREGA Job card form and also filled up the application for Jobs under MNREGA. But due to harvesting season, they have ample amount of work available in the villages. So they have not submitted their forms to the authority for the job under MNREGA. The list may be complete in the next month.

·        The list of beneficiaries of MNREGA Training (155 community members) is available in the ‘Training Register’.

·        Organic method of seed conservation is also being shared with the farmers. But the farmers will adopt this only after harvesting. So the list of beneficiaries is being prepared for the same and it will be complete in terms of result by next month.

·         Linkages & Liasioning: This month the networking has been done at the village level.

·         Mr. Dasrath Yadav, Pradhan of Dagariya Village, by Mr. Jerome and Kumar Ratan.

·         Mr. Chandan Singh, kisan Mitra, Imilia Village, by Mrs. Malti and Sr. Anna

·         Mrs. Sumita Devi, Pradhan of village Bedora, by Sr. Anna

·         Mr. Naval Singh, Pradhan of Village Rasjapur, by Mrs. Malti devi and Kumar Ratan. 

# The networking with Village Pradhan is being done with objective to get their assistance in implementing those activities which are related with Entitlements. But at the same time it has been observed that, in general, pradhans give verbal assurance only. In some villages the village pradhans are very co-operative.

·         Communication materials developed:

·         A write up on “Organic Method of Seed Conservation” has been developed in Hindi.

·         A write up on “Matka Khaad” has been developed (compiled, Chart paper) in Hindi.

·         Challenges faced during the implementation of the project (during particular month):

·         In few villages like- Khandi, Bamer and Sekhar farmers meeting could not take place as scheduled. Then they were approached either early in the morning or at night. In the villages like, Koti, Khandi, Sekhar the farmes club meeting held at night. Due to harvesting season this problem arose. This may continue for the next month also.

·         Suitable rooms, at suitable place, as per parameters set by Caritas India, for V.I.C are still very challenging. This challenge was also mentioned in the previous months report. This month team Harit Prayas had to shift the V.I.C of Chamraua village. A detailed “status cum follow up” report has been shared with Caritas India on the same.

·         Learning  from the project during particular month:

·         “Organic Method of Seed Conservation” has been a very important learning for all members of Harit Prayas project. A workshop on this has also been conducted as per Monthly Action Plan (MAP). The knowledge sharing report has already been sent to Caritas India.