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Discipleship Centre |
NEWS FROM THE FIELD
Water For Parched Field District Kutch in Gujarat is a rainless salt desert, a sandy plain plagued by dust storms during the dry seasons. This is in sharp contrast to the wet fertile, plains of Gujarat’s southern coastal fringe. Like the rest of Kutch, village Momaymora of Rapar block was in the clutches of severe drought for the last 4 years. 1500 families live in this village and like all North Indian villages, the community is a heterogeneous mix of people belonging to the higher and lower caste categories. For the higher castes, by virtue of their birth, life is much easier as they own large tracts of land that can be irrigated even during drought conditions. They have bore wells with generators to run the pumps. The vast majority of people, belonging to the marginalized lower caste depend on the vagaries of nature to cultivate their fields. Families starve or migrate during times of drought when fields become unproductive. During the earthquake relief phase in village Momaaymora Discipleship Centre came across a large low lying catchment area where years back the government had started work for water harvesting to irrigate the fields but with the help of the community, DC gave shape to the idea of developing potential water storage area to generate adequate water to irrigate the parched fields belonging to the lower caste people. The area was further dug up to increase its water storage capacity and side walls were reinforced with locally available stones and mud. All this was done with community participation. A check dam was constructed across the area to enable maximum collection of water during the rainy season. The water collected from the occasional showers was now diverted to the fields and as the plants soaked up the much needed moisture it looked as though mother nature was indeed smiling! The fields now yield cotton and jeera (cumin seeds), two cash crops for which the soil is ideal. Last September the area became a natural habitat for many migratory birds. Impact There has been a tenfold increase in productivity and a drop in the cost of farming due to availability of water. "Before we were hardly earning Rs. 2000/- a year but now our earnings touched 30 to 40000/- ". This is what Sodha Bai the community leader told the Tear Fund evaluation team when they visited the village. The community is now empowered to take up more village-based issues and strengthen the village economy. Strategy Plan Workshops Planning is vital to
development and is the
key to success. A long
history of 28 years nudges and propels one to move forward with more
zeal and focus.
The strategy plan process of ours, lays equal
emphasis on two planes – on an internal retrospect and external
evaluation, which we foresee would help us evolve a strategy that
would provide us insights into our unique potential and also enable
us to become better facilitators of wholistic transformation and
empowerment.
The underlying aim of the process is to create
a frame-work of guidelines/principles/directions for the next five
years, and also to build together as a team, the Vision and Mission
statements that would mirror one work, capture our exclusive
Christian identity and also would be a challenging and inspiring
tool. The exercise
rested upon participatory approach where every individual member of
DC’s team would contribute in shaping and forging our future
direction. The vital “Yellow Card” During the monsoon of 2002, the state of Bihar was lashed by heavy rains causing severe floods. There was a loss of 324 lives while 13.2 million people became homeless. The poor living in interior villages suffered the most. For the raging waters the mud plastered huts with makeshift thatched roofs was mear putty and along with the huts were washed away all hard earned assets that families may have taken years to accumulate. Two of the relief items distributed during the flood relief were a hygiene kit and a 100-liter water container. AAnita Devi of Chotta
Baluwai village tried to pave her way through the crowd. She was carrying a
whimpering child in one of her arms, while trying to walk with a
heavy load in the other.
The precariously held “yellow card”, making her eligible for
the kit was snatched away by someone who managed to get away. “ I have lost my card” met
with no response from the populace.
However she thought
that since her name was in the distribution register she may yet get
the kit sans the card. But she was in for a shock when her name
alone did not prove her eligibility since the precious card she lost
was everything she needed to receive the kit. Her reaction was very
volatile. She walked
over to a wall leaned against it and her wails like the cries of a
wounded animal rented the air. Was this a gizmo up her sleeves to
attract attention and gain pity? But it sounded more like an
overflow of pent up feelings,
probably a release of all the hounding, misuse and abuse
suffered over the years as part of gender discrimination meted out
to women generally. We
will never know the truth. However Mr. Alex Joseph from DC, part of
the disaster relief team talked to her immediately. The reply was “Suppose I go back to the village without the kit and the water container, my family members would have made life miserable for me for years to come”. She continued “It is for the first time we are getting a 100 liter container to store water”. The 100-liter container for potable drinking water was a needy item since
water borne diseases due to contaminated drinking water
was on the increase. Is the yellow card that important as not to take into consideration human emotions?
Has God abandoned
me
Hasu Ben Mahadeva
belongs to the marginalised Kohli community, a resident of village
Namadha Dhar in district Kutch of Gujarat.
The devastating earth quake of 2000 left her a widow with the
additional burden of caring for four children the eldest just a mere
7 year old at the time of the calamity.
Life for Hasu
Ben was a long struggle, shaking her faith in provider who
was who, she has always been told provides or helpless people.
Compensation from the government for her husband’s demise was
a mere Rs.700/- hardly amounting to anything.
Hasu Ben
struggled hard for survival since no permanent employment was
available she used to go to the nearby forests to cuts wood which
was later sold to the roadside hotels as fuel.
She used to also work in coal mines on a daily wage
basis.
Bringing home barely Rs. 15 to 25 a day was just enough to
ward off starvation but not enough to meet the medical needs of
growing children or to set aside as saving for emergencies.
Her house was damaged
but
there was not enough money for repairs.
The house too lack a proper roof, a polethena sheet just
about gave some coverage but vulnerable to the frequent desert sand
storms, and
extrendies of nature.
Children and livestock shared this scanty
dwelling.
When DC started its food for work project Hasu Ben could find meaning ful employment. Then came the realization that God has not entirely forsaken her, she is still in the circle of His care and concern. With the change in attitude came a brighter future. By associating with the labour work, Hasu Ben has picked up
the technicalities of construction work.
Now even after the completion of DC’s project, she is fully
confident of going into the construction work.
With increased confidence she talks of the mechanical details
that go units houses like chicken were, hooks to make a building
earthquake proof.
No more cutting wood in forest, her life and employment has
taken a professional
turn!!
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