|
Not a drop of rainwater in Ralegan Siddhi goes unharnessed. Anna Hazare's holistic and locally-relevant development strategies have transformed this village.
In 1975, Ralegan Siddhi, in the Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra, had a reputation for goondaism, vandalism and illicit liquor. Today, it is a model for many villages across the country. The villagers have imposed on themselves the five conditions essential for regeneration of the environment and development -- contribution of voluntary labour (shramdaan), ban on free grazing of animals on private or public lands (charaibandhi), ban on cutting of trees (kurhadbandhi), ban on alcohol consumption (nashabandhi) and adoption of family planning measures (nasbandhi). On returning to his village after serving in the army, Anna Ha! zare took on the challenge of turning its fortunes around. He followed the philosophical path of Gandhi and Vivekananda and used religion and culture to bring about change among the people. With the help of the villagers and the support of government and non-government agencies, the environment was regenerated and the livelihoods of the people re-established. A series of small dams were built out of earth or cement. Water flowing down the mountains after the rains collects in the first check dam. Once this is full, water flows into the second dam, then the third, and so on. Every drop of rainwater is thus stored in the village. The village combines this water with water provided by large-scale irrigation systems. About 40 per cent of the village's needs are supplied by the Kukadi canal from one of the dams built on a tributary of the Krishna. This is thus not just a model for watershed development, but also drought-proofing, as it combines lo! cally-oriented and traditionally developed forms of watershed development with modern irrigation systems. Anna also worked at reforming the village community by encouraging the principles of working together, respecting each other's rights and respect for the environment. The change in the village is obvious. In 1975, this was a poor desolate village with a per capita income of Rs 271. Today, the per capita income has risen to Rs 2,257, a ten-fold jump, with one-fourth of the households having an annual income of more than Rs 400,000. Hazare is spreading the message to other villages in Maharashtra and other states like Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. The village's watershed development and its anti-alcoholism programmes and all-women panchayats have become a model for other government programmes. Contact: Anna Hazare
! Ralegan Siddhi, Parner Taluka
Ahmednagar district
Maharashtra
|
