Economic Growth India Project #1900

Empowering Villages in Rural India

by Seva Mandir

Project Report | Apr 6, 2018
Holistic Development of a Village

By Atul Lekhra | Manager- Resource Mobilization

Dear Friend

I hope that you and your loved ones are keeping well.

Whilst much of Europe and North America are still shivering through one of the longest cold Winters on record, Spring has most definitely come to this part of Rajasthan.

2018 sees the 50th anniversary of Seva Mandir and while we have many achievements to reflect upon there are constant and changing challenges. Key to the core of Seva Mandir’s ideals has always been self-governance of communities and how to instil this in the far-flung villages of tribal southern Rajasthan.

The origins of Madla village settlement in Jhadol, 64 km from Udaipur, can be traced back to seven families who migrated there from Atrosaba in Gujarat some seven generations ago. As the population increased, the village expanded to become eight hamlets of around 400 tribal households today.

The residents of Madla earn their living as subsistence farmers and daily labourers and many rear livestock as a secondary source of income. The total land area covered by Madla is 883 hectares of which only 231 hectares (26%) is cultivated, the remaining land is forest with some wasteland.

Seva Mandir has been working with the community of Madla since the launch of our adult education programme in 1981. Since the beginning, Madla’s village institution leaders have striven to bring and effectively manage the various development programmes initiated by Seva Mandir.

As early as 1986, plantation work on individual lands was started and the construction of a community centre completed and in the early 1990s the village committee took a pro-active approach to preserving existing forests and guarding them from illicit felling and encroachments. Encroachers were evicted and fines levied on those found cutting down trees or allowing grazing in the protected forest areas.

After sustained pressure from the community, forest department officials demarcated a forest boundary in 2002 and later they were successful in developing 56 hectares with Seva Mandir under a joint forest management programme which benefits the entire village.

The village group also undertook the planning and execution of a soil and moisture conservation project which resulted in grass production on what had formerly been wasteland. This has not only meant that the villagers can grow an additional crop, improving the village’s food security, but it saved them from starvation during the famine in 2000.

The village group also set up and manages a village fund which is used to pay paraworkers or to fund and repair common assets, such as the three community water tanks for clean drinking water, which were constructed in 2013, benefiting 60 families in the village.

The committee has sought out Seva Mandir’s help with a multitude of development projects which they supervise and monitor and pay the grass-root level workers out of the fund. They have embraced Seva Mandir’s programmes for sanitation, health, nutrition and day care.

As a result, the livelihoods of the villagers have been strengthened, their health is better and most children go to school. They have also helped recruit and pay for additional teachers for the understaffed local government school. Soon after the appointment of these teachers the students successfully passing exams rose from 15% to 60% and has been improving ever since.

The village group meets regularly and the impact of their transparent and democratic functioning can be seen in their influence on many aspects of the villagers’ lives. Village leaders, trained by Seva Mandir, have also been elected in the village-level government elections and the committee and village stand as a role model for for neighbouring villages in the area.

With your support we can continue our work to bring democracy and self-governance to the tribal and rural peoples of southern Rajasthan.

Thank you so much.

Regards

Atul Lekhra and the Seva Mandir Team

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Jan 8, 2018
Transforming Communities through Self-Reliance

By Atul Lekhra | Manager- Resource Mobilization

Let me start out by wishing you and your loved ones a very Happy New Year.

Village Development Committee or Gram Vikas Committee (GVC) is a concept that was started by Seva Mandir to encourage villages to become autonomous by building a village institution around a common village fund.

Shyampura, a small village in Kherwada Tehsil 79 km south of Udaipur consists of 115 households, most of whom are farmers and depend on subsistence farming and livestock as well as migrant labour for their livelihoods.

In the early ’80s they turned to Seva Mandir for an action plan for land development, which would increase fodder production and conserve water, following a period of drought.

Working with the GVC, a successful trial of planting trees that had been grown by 20 households in their beeds (private land used for growing fodder), was followed by pastureland development. The intention was to provide the whole community with sufficient quality grass for their livestock.

After several years of good production, the heavy monsoon rains caused trees to fall and boundary walls to collapse allowing other animals access to graze freely in the pastureland site.

During recent elections of the GVC conducted by Seva Mandir, the committee took on the responsibility of motivating the villagers to work on the pastureland revitalisation. People from each household worked on a voluntary basis for two days to repair the boundary walls and revive the site. The pasture was made secure and a guard appointed, who visits twice a day. Penalties were put in place for anyone breaking the rules.

This year, the pasture grass has flourished again and will provide fodder for the animals of more than 100 households.

The GVC has also been able to recover a loan of Rs 20,000 ($315) that dated back five years. It was granted to a Self-Help Group who gave it to a family in need. However, the family had since refused to repay the loan to the ‘Village Development Fund’ when it fell due. So a recovery committee was formed and after many discussions and counselling the family eventually paid back Rs 35,600 ($560), including interest.

The village committees and Seva Mandir have succeeded in taking the concept of Village Development Committee further. The idea of creating self-reliant and autonomous village institutions has become a reality with the Shyampura village committee showing a great sense of ownership for the ongoing sustainability of the assets of the community as a whole.

We would like to thank you for letting us meet our commitments at the field. All this has been possible due to your consistent support and trust in us.

Remember, together we can make a difference for these villages. We look forward for your continuous support. If your travel brings you to this part of the world, please do visit us.

Thank you

Atul Lekhra and Seva Mandir Team

Follow us on www.facebook.com/sevamandir

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Oct 9, 2017
Enabling People to Participate

By Atul Lekhra | Manager- Online Donor Communication

Dear Friend,

Strong village institutions are the nucleus for all of Seva Mandir’s work. For over 50 years, Seva Mandir has slowly built its alternative village governments into spaces where people are able to participate actively and ethically in the decisions which affect their lives. Our Village Development Forums and Village Development Funds manage local development projects, co-fund projects and act as pressure groups on the state. At a deeper level, they build community ownership of the development process, unite communities and ensure the long-term sustainability of Seva Mandir’s work.

Nayakheda is a small village, which is located under Kelwara zone of Kumbhalgarh block in southern Rajasthan. There is only one Government primary school in the village, which provides basic education for the local children hailing from class 1 to class 5. Seva Mandir has been associated with this village for nearly 8 years. Village committee formed by Seva Mandir is very much proactive in raising local issues as well as addressing it. Recently a re-election was held in the village where the newly elected committee representatives complained about the irregularity found in the proper functioning of school. Nearly 60 students are enrolled in the school, but very few students appear for attending the classes. This was negatively impacting their education. The village children usually complained to our newly re-elected committee, about the absence of teacher in their school. The committee approached Seva Mandir with this issue. We have helped them to draft and send an application letter to the Block Education Officer (BEO) mentioning current irregularity found in their Government school. The BEO has responded the application letter with taking strict action against the concerned principal and class teacher. Now the school is running smoothly and children are attending the classes regularly. The villagers and children have appreciated the effort of village committee and Seva Mandir and are more confident about their education facilities.

We would like to thank you for letting us meet our commitments at the field. All this has been possible due to your consistent support and trust in us.

Remember, together we can make a difference for these villages.

Best Wishes,

Atul Lekhra and Seva Mandir Team
Follow us on www.facebook.com/sevamandir

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