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Crops may fail, cattle may die, and schemes may fall
through. But, as Vachan realised, what will stay with the people is the
ability to challenge a landlord and stand up to a corrupt bureaucrat
Vachan came to Nashik district in 1986 with activist Joe
Lobo, joined later by Dhruv Mankad and Sukhwinder Singh. First they
identified the problems in the area: housing, drinking water and credit.
Then they decided on an integrated development approach. Accordingly,
water wells were desilted and deepened, childcare centres were started,
credit programmes for seed and agriculture began. Dhruv, a doctor,
discovered that scabies was rampant and so health education classes were
begun. It was tough going, and vested
interests opposed them. Moneylenders who detest credit schemes and
landlords who like cheap labour -- not enlightened, literate labourers --
bega!
n a discrediting campaign. "They're Christian. Out to convert
innocent adivasis. They'll kidnap your children." Kids began
to run away when the Vachan jeep appeared. The
breakthrough occurred with a government-housing programme. Housing is
never a priority among NGOs. It was, however, a priority for the people.
So Vachan undertook the programme. There was not a single defaulter, which
proved a point. For once the people had got what they wanted. Dhruv recalled the frustration they felt when he was
asked to take a young girl to the neighbouring shaman. The villagers
insisted it was sorcery, not a disease. Later he heard that she had
died. As far as public health was concerned,
the tide turned when in an epidemic, all the immunised children remained
fit while others got ill and many non-immunised children died. Today if
there is no stock of vaccines in the local health !
centre, adivasis influenced by Vachan pay money for bus fares to take
their children for immunisation. Vachan
started women's groups that were at first not taken very seriously.
Then, one day, a women's sangam gheraoed a crooked
ration-shop owner and seized three bags of grain which he was taking to
the blackmarket. Word spread, and people were delighted. For years they
had passively watched Public Distribution System (PDS) owners cheat them.
Though they rushed to the ration-shops when stocks arrived, they would
always be told that the grain was all sold out. It was an issue that
affected every family, so the people cared passionately about it. The
women's victory spurred the people on to fight for their PDS quota
of grain. The Vachan activists, like others
who have worked for change, are quick to point out that it is the change
in attitude that is important. Once people have fought for their rig!
hts and learnt not to be passive about exploitation, they have taken a
step which is irreversible. A crop may fail, seeds may rot and schemes can
fall through. What will stay with the people even when the cattle die in a
drought or the Vachan wells dry up, is the ability to challenge a
landlord, gherao a crooked ration-shop owner, stand up to a corrupt
bureaucrat. Vachan is proud to have achieved this. For now the community
has come into its own. Contact: Dhruv Mankad
Vachan
Vasundhara, Shivanji
Nagar
Opp. Vijay Mamta Talkies
Nasik 422 006
Maharashtra, India
&nb!
sp; Tel: 91-253-562
378
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