Livelihood

Strengthen local self governance through community mobilization, formation of village level institutions, preparing village development plans in a participatory manner, implementation of the proposed activities in the selected Panchayats, development of talent of local resource persons, and enabling use of information technology for panning, real time reporting and monitoring.
Preparation of Gram Panchayat development plans in accordance with 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act through micro level planning.
Increase the productivity of natural, human and social capital in Bundelkhand Break the vicious cycle of debt, deprivation and poverty.
Build coping mechanisms for scarcity periods.
Created models of self reliant Gram Panchayats in the region.
Amendment Act through micro level planning.
Gramin Vikas Samiti team facilitated the micro planning process in order to prepare village development plans which ratified by the Gram Sabhas in all villages of two selected Panchayats of Damoh district. During the initial phase, GVS hold meetings with PRIs including Gram Sabhas and villages with special emphasis on the vulnerable and marginalized groups to ensure participation of all the villagers in the panning and decision making process. During this phase, efforts will be made to generate awareness about the projects, its vision and the rationale. Strategies such as separate meetings of vulnerable groups, discussions in separate hamlets will be employed to ensure active participation of all the villages, particularly the minorities and vulnerable groups.
Prepared village development plans for each village in the selected Panchayats duly ratified by the aam sabhas of the villahes and Panchayat plans duly ratified by the Gram Sabhas. Nominated 2 Sahayaks (Social Activists), Lok Sevaks (one in each village for minimum 100 huseholds) and village level engineers (one per each Panchayat). The selection was based on educational qualification, articulation skills, reputation in the village, and approval by the villagers and willingness to live in the village.
Training of the facilitation team was the key component of the project. The responsibility of planning and facilitating 15 days trainings (including class room and practical trainings) for the Lok Sevaks undertaken by PSI. In addition to this, PSI designed on extensive course for the village level engineer conducted in three phases of 7 days each. The trainings was jointly planned, facilitated and coordinated by the representatives of organization.
The facilitation team along with a few representatives of each Panchayat undergoes an Exposure visit in West Orissa for understanding the concept and practices of the Gram Swaraj Abhiyaan.
PSI developed a web- GIS based village information system for Bundelkhand. The system allows planners, administrators and policy makers at the district, state and national level to analyse social indicators, Status of infrastructure and natural resources in geographical aspect. Thus the identified areas of concern and helped in designing targeted development interventions. The collected data was such as cadastral maps, revenue records and plot-wise data in prescribed format.
Organization supported activities within the areas of its operation namely water conservation, formation and capacity building of village level institutions.

Farmer’s club was formed in which 65 farmers group had been formed. We adopt and use the farm mechanized and organic techniques of farming. Use SRI (System of Rice Intensification) Techniques to grow rice in their fields, by which the local farmers got more than double production then that of traditional method Now we are working on SWI (System of Wheat Intensification) method for wheat cultivation. About 2000 farmers got benefitted from it. It is desired that the adoption rate of SRI and SWI for experienced farmers be 100 percent for those attending the orientation workshop whereas for the newly trained farmers it should be at least 80 percent.

All this was done in various phases such as following:

The strategy of up scaling SRI in the programme area necessitates that experienced farmers (900) practiced SRI in 0.16 hectares of land whereas 80 percent newly trained farmers (300) adopted SRI in 0.08 hectares of land. Thus the total expected coverage under SWI by organization was 168 hectares.

The strategy of up scaling SWI in the programme area necessitates that experienced farmers (100) practiced SWI in 0.05 hectares of land whereas 80 percent newly trained farmers (250 adopted SWI in 0.02 hectares of land. Thus the total expected coverage under SWI by organization was 10 hectares.

The strategy of up scaling SWI in the programme area necessitates that experienced farmers (203) practiced SRI in 32.48 hectares of land whereas 80 percent newly trained farmers (797 adopted SWI in 63.76 hectares of land. Thus the total expected coverage under SRI by organization was 96.24 hectares.

Work is being done since last years to improve the standard of living of the marginal and small farmers. In the last year 2012, the results of Wheat Intensification Method (SWI) were received in April 2012, and then this work was done with 600 farmers in 25 villages, for 300 farmers in 12 villages, NABARD provided support. The production of 50 to 65 quintals per hectare was recorded in the last Ravi season, 71 quintals per hectare was obtained from organic fertilizers in the field of Shri Deepchand Kewat, a small holding farmer of village Beldhana.

In the Ravi season financial year 2012-13, work has been done with these 300 farmers, 380 farmers were given training for wheat condensation method, 19 groups of farmers were given Tiffen and 32 weeders and Agitovector and PSB. Culture, and materials for making Panchagavya, Amritghol and Matka fertilizers were provided by the organization with the support of NABARD, along with the follow-up from time to time by the workers and source person of the organization so that along with the preparation of completely organic manure, the right It can be sprayed in the crop on time and farmers can be intimately aware of every aspect of this technique of condensation.

On 24th and 25th January 2013, a training program was organized at Krishi Vigyan Kendra Damoh on the technical nuances of wheat condensation method. 40 farmers participated in this program. In this training, District Collector of Damoh Shri Swatantra Kumar Singh, Deputy Director Agriculture Shri Namdev, D.D.M. Mr. Ayush Shivpuri, Senior Agricultural Scientist Dr. Sanjay Vaishampayan guided the farmers and listened to their experiences, District Collector Mr. Swatantra Kumar Singh in his statement said that listening to the experiences of you farmers has given me positive energy. Only an advanced farmer like you can lift the country out of poverty and malnutrition. I will come to your village to see the improved farming being done by you people, walk on your farm and see the crop. I will also do night stay in your village itself. Shri Singh honored the farmers by wearing flower garlands and encouraged the farmers.

Farmers told that, through these manures, they have got an alternative to expensive chemical fertilizers. Ever since the farmers have started putting this manure in their fields due to the effect of these fertilizers, the farmers told that the soil of our fields has become soft, despite the scarcity of water, the elasticity of the plants has remained for a long time, the crop has improved many times better in the fields with organic fertilizers than in the fields with chemical fertilizers. In the fields of Mr. Mulusing and other farmers of village Khangoria, up to 85 branches have been prepared in one plant i.e. from one seed; the length of wheat earrings in these fields has been measured to be about 11 inches. People had never heard and seen such a long and thick ear of wheat. So far, a production of up to 76 quintals per hectare has been recorded in harvesting, as well as the production of straw has increased two to three times.

50 tribal farmers of village Pati, Khagoria and Panji were provided moong seeds and fertilizers for 50 acres of land according to one acre of land, these farmers have taken good production by preparing the third crop of better moong in the summer season. By them, the good moong seeds were kept safe to be given to other farmers in the house, apart from the use of the house; Baddusing of Pati village got additional profit by selling moong worth Rs 21000. Similarly, these 50 farmers have got additional benefit of Rs 20000 to 22000.

The work of this technology in paddy was started in the year 2010 in eight villages of Tendukheda block with 200 farmers in 12 hectares of land, in the present year this technology has been spread to 55 villages among small and marginal tribal and Dalit farmers of Tendukheda block. Along with this, work has also been done to reach 13 villages of Jabera block. Farmers of Patera and Patharia of district Sagar and Damoh block are taking advantage of this technique by learning from the institution. In village Deori and Kuluva village of Powai block of Panna district, the organization has increased the production of farmers by two to three times by providing training and technical guidance. In this way the organization has tried to bring a smile on the face of the farmers by spreading this method in an area of twenty five hundred hectares with 1800 farmers.

Data of 1228 farmers has been collected in 33 villages of Tendukheda block, about 900 acres of this area was cultivated by SRI method. With this method, the cost of cultivation has been reduced by fifty percent and production has increased by up to 70 percent.

In villages like Beldhana, out of 600 acres of paddy acreage, 400 acres have been adopted by the Taitap method; many farmers like Mr. Dhirsing of Hardua village have earned profits up to Rs.90 thousand by adopting the Taitap method.

Due to the efforts made by the organization, positive changes are being seen in the living standards of the people of this area, there is sufficient quantity of rice and wheat for the food of the poor farmers, all the farmers have produced more crops in the market by producing more than the requirement of their homes. It has been successful in reducing the level of poverty by buying things needed by children and women.

Intensification method was adopted on maize crop with 110 farmers of 13 villages, which has shown encouraging results. Seed was planted at a distance of two feet to maize, weeders were provided by the organization for weed control. Due to this, the work of removing weeds has become possible easily.

The work of hand weeding by women has ended, now this weeding is done by weeder, this method has reduced the cost of the crop, for the first time in this area, more production has been possible in less cost. In crop cutting, it was found that the production of traditional maize crop has been 600 grams per square meter and the production of maize planted by densification method has reached up to 1550 grams. Maize grass also increased more and production has increased up to three times. Also, due to the test being done in the grass, the animals have eaten with fervor.

As a part of livelihood we have been promoting the concept of kitchen garden and family farming to reduce anemia among adolescent girls and women and also to reduce malnutrition. We motivated people and promoted the concept of Kitchen Garden and established in the backyard or ‘Sapanna’ (the place used to bath utensils and to take bath) of their houses by providing seeds of seasonal vegetables. Furthermore, also discussed how these Sak bhajis and seasonal vegetables grown in the surrounding forests are collected and cooked and how delicious their taste is. We demonstrated cooking and testing demos and these kitchen gardens were shown to more than 750 families in and around the village by taking a tour so that they could also understand its benefits. These Sak Bhajis are being used in a better way by the people. bhathua, mustard seeds and gourd, beans, turai, barvati were planted in these kitchen gardens.

The concept of family farming “Family Farming (which includes all family-based agricultural activities) is a means of organizing agricultural, forestry, fisheries, pastoral and aquaculture production which is managed and operated by a family and predominantly reliant on family labor, including both women's and men's. Family farmers depend predominantly on their own household labour. In India, traditionally farming has been family based and majority of the farmers are smallholders. Family farms maintain bio-diversity and hold the key to ending rural poverty cycles. Wherein more than one farmer do crop intensification seasonally and share profits. We have been promoting the concept of Family farming among the families those are belongs to tribal and who has adolescent girls, malnourished children, and anemic women and also has financial problems as well as social issues. This is all to improve the quality of life of women and the livelihood of families.