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The nomadic life of the Jat tribe in Hazira, in the Rann of Kutch, has been transformed by the discovery and use of water in the desert
The car veers off the main road and winds its way through the semi-arid scrublands of the Rann of Kutch. The sand glistens in the afternoon sun. Far on the horizon are the shimmering waves of the sea. Until one realises it's just a mirage -- a continuous series of illusions that disappear as the car approaches, only to reappear soon after. The phantasmagoric interplay of illusion is broken by the sudden appearance of a row of neat mud houses and, even more astonishingly, by a series of solar-powered street lamps. This is Hazira in the Nakhatrana block of Kutch, inhabited by the Jats -- a tribe whose men and women claim they are originally from Hizab in Baluchistan. The nomadic life of this tribe has been transformed by the discovery and use of water in the desert. The fragile ecosystem of Kutch and recurrent cycles of drought have imposed multiple burdens on the various ethnic tribes here, particularly women. Mariumbai, Jeenabai and Yamabai of Hazira would walk four kilometres to fetch water; they spent at least three to four hours a day engaged in this chore. There was no water for the animals that had to be taken long distances to slake their thirst. The exercise of digging a pond or tank became redundant because even when it rained the water quickly percolated into the sand. With no sustainable means of livelihood, the people of the village were forced to work as migrant labourers in the groundnut wadis (farms) of the rich Patels. Then a few of the women approached Sultanbai, a leader in the Layari Sanghatan. They had heard of the watershed development schemes being undertaken in Layari village by Sahjeevan, an eco-technological support cell that works in partnership with mahila mandals (women's groups). Sahjeevan, a sister organisation of the Kutch Mahila Vikas Mandal, works for the regeneration of natural resources through decentralised and self-managed village institutions where men and women work in an atmosphere of equality. The emphasis is on imparting skills to be self-reliant in the three basic areas of food, fodder and water, and on building up confidence in women's ability to control the environment. After studying the geology of the village and identifying its salinity patterns, Sahjeevan offers advice on the adoption of an appropriate water-harvesting technology -- earthen dams, check-dams, silt traps, contour bunds or percolation dams. The successful recharging of a waterbody in the village of Hazira has meant that Jeenabai, Yamabai, Mariumbai and the other women of the village no longer have to trudge miles across sandy wastes to fetch water. The availability of water has transformed the villagers' livelihood prospects. Dry farming is now being carried out, and, for the past two years, wheat, isabgul and coriander have been grown. The subsequent increase in prosperity levels has checked migration and helped the community's transition towards sustainable agriculture and animal husbandry. In a further boost to animal husbandry the villagers have been encouraged to start up a fodder bank. Abhiyan (a network of civil society organisations that formed in Kutch after the earthquake) has contributed towards a revolving fund. Each family has been asked to volunteer a certain amount of grass or an equivalent sum of money. The fodder is stored using traditional preservation skills. In times of need, it is sold to contributing members at a concessional rate. Most importantly, alongside building up fodder banks, constructing dams and laying pipelines to irrigate fields, the villagers have been encouraged to develop multiple skills and to work together for the good of the community. In the process, they have set up new institutions in Hazira -- like the water samiti and watershed samiti formed through the gram sabha. The water samiti, for instance, has its own set of rules for drinking water. Usage is monitored and it is the women who have fixed the tariff for payment and who keep the accounts. If anyone's animals are found drinking from the source he/she is made to pay a stiff fine. Likewise, there's a samiti with guidelines for usage of water for dry farming. It was mutually decided that no household would cultivate more than 5 acres each. Sahjeevan helped set up a revolving fund towards the cost of buying pipelines, and work to lay the pipelines and build a dam was carried out on a voluntary basis (shramdan). Sahjeevan has also helped women by offering them aids that impact on their work, like smokeless chullahs and solar lanterns. The lanterns, that cost Rs 4,000 each, were given to various women who make payments on an instalment basis. The impetus behind all these moves springs from the Kutch Mahila Vikas Sanghatan's belief that ecological regeneration is central to women's empowerment. The initiatives are rooted in instilling local confidence in the use of natural resources along productive and sustainable lines. Constant emphasis is placed on strategising for women's participation in natural resource management, through new roles and opportunities and the creation of structures that enable women to control decision-making, and to provide skills that can bring about changes in their lives and status in the family and the wider community. Contact: Sahjeevan
104/A, Lotus Colony
Bhuj 370001
Gujarat
India
Tel: 02832-251814/02832-251914 - By Freny Manecksha (Freny Manecksha is a Mumbai-based freelance journalist) InfoChange News & Features, December 2005
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