Empowering Villages in Rural India

Dear Friends,

As Seva Mandir has now helped establish over 700 village groups, this is an historical year for us. We thank you dearly for helping us get this far, and hope you will remain by our side as we continue to grow. Below is an update on our Village Institution Program, and the progress we have made in the past year (April 2012 - March 2013).

The Village Institution Program of Seva Mandir aims to create and nurture alternative and autonomous platforms through which the communities can take responsibility for their own development. The need for this program arose as a result of the limited capacity of panchayats (the most local level of the formal government) to effectively respond to community needs, fragmentation of communities over a wide variety of issues, and the lack of a developmental outlook at the village level. This program intends to create an atmosphere where the positive forces of cooperation, transparency, equity, justice, and responsible autonomy within the community can help in leading towards an overall development of their villages.

The Village Institutions Program has three components:

1. Samuh (the general body of villager-members of the village institution)
2. Gram Vikas Kosh (GVK or Village Development Fund, built up through community contributions and with support from Seva Mandir, and used to fund local development interventions)
3. Gram Vikas Committee (GVC or elected Village Development Committee, responsible for leading the local development process)

In brief, here are some of the main highlights from this year:

• 35 new village groups have been formed this year, bringing our total to 704. These groups are the prerequisites to the formation of the GVK/GKC.
• The total membership of villagers to this program has increased by 2,181. There are now nearly 58,000 people a part of our program!
• The total number of GVKs (village funds) stands at 618. Eight communities have withdrawn their funds this year.
• The total amount of money held by the GVKs has increased by Rs. 2,920,710 ($54,087), at a grand total of $780,644.
• 13 new GVCs have formed to effectively govern their community funds. The total number of GVCs is 532.
• 13 GVCs have received management and accounting training this year, bringing the total to 525.
• Female membership of GVCs has increased by 200.
• 63 GVCs are now operating with 100% autonomy, without any Seva Mandir support.

As you can see, this has been an incredibly successful year for the program. Every donation helps Seva Mandir provide training and workshops so that these communities can learn how to effectively manage their own development. With your help, these communities are not simply passive recipients of aid; they are taking matters into their own hands.

With regards,

Deepti

Links:

• Seva Mandir website