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Investing in Communities
The
drought prone and climate sensitive Bundelkhand region of Central India,
known for its high rate of migration, fragile ecosystem, degraded
natural resources; now requires thoughtful investment through well
designed and impact oriented inclusive development programmes wherein
communities take ownership and charge. The investment should be on
people and they should drive the development processes to ensure
sustainable impacts.
It is a known fact that literacy can bring positive changes in the lives of women. Development Alternative Group’s TARA Akshar+ programme designed to empower women through education, knowledge and skills has brought changes in the life of thousands of women in Bundelkhand. One of the articles in this issue talks about this journey of change in rural women’s lives through TARA Akshar+. Right and correct communication is always helpful in empowering people. Radio Bundelkhand has been reaching out to people in their local dialect and sharing knowledge with them on a regular basis over the past 12 years thereby performing the role of a change agent in Bundelkhand. Simple and clear communication helps people to understand new knowledge and technologies and motivates them to adopt them and bring changes in their lives. Water security is a basic felt need in the Bundelkhand region. Farmers need water to secure their crops and their future. A systematic approach to conserve water is needed in Bundelkhand. It is important to work with farmers on use efficiency and crop selection as per the availability of water. Therefore, other than creating water harvesting and recharge structures, proper crop planning is also important for judicial and sustainable use of water. Development Alternative’s story of watershed development and management gives an understanding of how small structures constructed adopting the watershed approach can bring positive changes in the dry and arid region of Bundelkhand ensuring economic viability, social equity and ecological sustainability. Long term sustainability is only possible when community institutions are taking charge and leading the development processes. Farmer Producer Organisations have been nurtured by Development Alternatives to develop local leadership and rural champions. The need of the hour is to treat these organisations as a collective entrepreneur and invest in their growth. Handholding support to these organisations could bring transformative change. For better growth of the region, there is a need to bring some changes in the policies at the state and national level. There is a need to undertake economic valuation of natural resources especially land resources and understand how we can conserve and maintain the health of our land with enhanced regeneration ability. ■
Sandeep Khanwalkar
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