| |
Seed Bank:
Seed banks are organized to meet the requirement of quality seeds by the farmers. Main emphasis is given on cereals, pulses and vegetables. Farm families avail seeds during sowing time. Selected farmers will be trained on seed testing, seed processing, storage methods and packing. It is proposed to set up a central level bank. Farmers will be extended credit seed from the initial capital of the seed bank. They will refund the seed as agreed by the seed bank members after harvest. Farmers will be encouraged to save seeds in the bank. Seed Festivals will be organized before the sowing season.
Exchange of Quality Seeds: To promote organic farming and traditional seeds, we need to provide and exchange quality seeds and planting materials which are not available at present either from private firms or state seeds corporation. The OUAT (Orissa University of Agriculture & Technology) is producing these materials in very small quantity, which can be accessed.
Slope Agriculture Land Technology (SALT);
Our tribal areas are characterized by shifting cultivation (podu chasa), sloppy land (slopes varying from 10 to 90 degrees), lack of irrigation in the slope lands, alienation of plain lands to non-tribal communities, lack of conservation initiatives resulting in massive soil erosion and land degradation. This has necessitated introducing scientific technology practices to make the cultivation sustainable. The primary focus is on sustainable livelihood and empowerment of the tribal communities.
Sloping Agriculture Land Technology (SALT) was first developed by MBRLC in Philippines in mid 70s. This technology is considered to be most appropriate for sloppy and hilly areas. The technology package is modified to suit the local conditions in our area.
In tribal areas, forest plays an important role to meet the livelihood of tribals. People mainly depend on sloping land cultivation in the forest. They produce cereals, pulses, cash crops and introduce short, medium and long term crops for better income. As the forest is degrading, NTFP production is also declining and people are facing to get seasonal income by distress selling. To check soil erosion, people adopt stone bonding technology. For sustainable production, SALT is the best technology for sustainable agriculture, which is locally accepted by tribals. SALT is result-oriented models, which is called participatory models. The replicate models are as follows: (i) shifting cultivation, (ii) panga model, (iii) strategic utilization of degraded padqr land, (iv) fertile padar land, (v) homestead land, and (vi) low land model.
SALT is envisaged as a tool to counter indiscriminate forest clearing and shifting cultivation, which has been affecting the livelihood as well as the ecology of the region. SALT is a simple, replicable, low-cost method of farming in hilly slope lands, which requires few tools, little capital, and little training in agriculture. It utilizes farmers’ culture, resources and abilities.
SALT as promoted by us is a package technology of food production, integrating soil and water conservation measures, growing seasonal as well as permanent crops in strips of 4-6 meters wide between contours (hedgerows) with nitrogen-fixing tree species (NFTS). The NFTS are planted in double rows to form hedgerows. The hedgerows serve as organic fertilizer. Permanent crops such as citrus, banana, pineapple, mango, etc. are grown on the high eluviations of farm plot. The strips not occupied by permanent crops are used for combination of cereals (corn, upland rice, kandul, castor, sorghum, etc.), legumes (blackgram, bean, soyabean, peanut) or other crops (sweet potato, yam, water melon, pineapple, peanut), etc. This rotation of crops is expected to yield several harvests throughout the year. SALT is adapted incorporating new or traditional farming techniques.
FOOD AND LIVELIHOOD SECURITY:
Food Security
‘….a situation that exists when all people at all times have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life’ (State of food insecurity 2001)
Food Sovereignty
‘Food Sovereignty is the right of Peoples to define their own policies and strategies for the sustainable production, distribution and consumption of food with respect for their own cultures and their own system of managing natural resources and rural areas, and is considered to be a pre-condition for Food Security’. ( Atitlan Declaration)
In a recent study conducted by World Food Programme, among the tribal population, barely 3.9 to 7.2 percent of population gets enough food throughout the year. Only 5% of the tribals are food secure in some of the KBK districts and it is even worse in other districts such as Kondhmal and Gajapati etc. The WFP report states that the high food insecurity has led to high levels of child mortality and malnutrition. About 40% are in the moderately and 20% in the severely malnourished category in these districts.
Our projects use a whole range of livelihoods interventions, such as ‘awareness raising’ ‘community mobilization’ ‘promotion of SHGs’ ‘improved traditional farming systems’; ‘organic farming’; ‘ small livestock’ ; vocational training’ and ‘seed banks’ ‘grain banks’ ‘land right advocacy’ and accessing some of the government programmes constitute the most important interventions to bring improved food and livelihoods security.
There are new threats and challenges to food security and food sovereignty of the poor arising out of globalisation and trade liberalisation, application of GMO seeds, patents and market monopolies. Climate change and its growing adverse impact make development work more challenging and development of new capacities for adaptation. Fair pricing and Corporate Social Responsibility will assume significance in addressing food security in our work.
Producer Organisation: SHGs and Self-Help Cooperatives:
CPSW has promoted more than 1000 women SHGs in different parts of Orissa. Mainly, 10-15 producers are organised into one SHG. The SHGs do multiple functions which include economic activities such as savings, lending, income generation; marketing; women’s empowerment activities such as access to resources, skills, participation in decisions; and welfare measures like health, education, drinking water, energy plantations and so on. SHGs are federated at gram panchayat level and Self-Help Cooperatives are promoted at block/area level consisting of SHGs and members to facilitate all the functions. These community institutions ensures project sustainability after exit of the FNGO.
Social Change & Empowerment Process
CPSW believes in a holistic approach to development. Development is a self-help process and it plays an enabling role. It is complex, not simple. No charitable approach would be helpful. The situation is changing everyday, which is making things more complicated for any development worker to succeed. For the socially, politically and economically marginalized communities, the tasks are more challenging specially when the mainstream development is moving at a much faster rate in competition with the western world. Trade and Economic reforms and globalization, revolution in IT and communications, huge global investments, privatization of services, acquisition of nuclear power and so on, while the majority of our people are struggling to arrange two meals a day. How will they cope with this world, while struggling to meet their basic needs? What alternatives are desired to bring necessary improvements in their lives?? Will the people resort to violence, ethnic conflicts and become victims of drugs, trafficking and other social evils?
Hence, the development process needs to be a comprehensive one, covering economic, social, cultural, political, health and educational aspects. There is a need for strong community institutions and leaders to address the issues. CPSW initiated the tribal development programme with a focus on tribal empowerment and Sustainable Livelihood for the poor. Sustainable management of natural resources, watershed development, reduction in shifting cultivation and diversification of land and forest use for promotion of livelihoods has been the major thrust of the programme. Conflicts over land and natural resources, religious and political participation of the people and grassroots governance system are the basic issues addressed by the projects, besides education and basic health services.
In the initial phases, community organization, leadership development, women participation, initiating savings and preventing indebtedness as well as land alienation were the key issues. The recent activities include providing livelihood security for the tribal and dalit people, demonstration of sustainable models on slope agriculture land technology, providing market access to some of the tribal products, settlement of tribal rights (land and forest related) and advocacy on issues related to land and forest rights, environment and rural livelihoods.
Strategy:
a. Rights Based Approach
b. Training and Capacity Building
c. Promotion of Community Based Institutions
a) rights based approach
CPSW believes that all human beings have the right to survive with dignity, live in peace with freedom of speech and have the right to political space for making necessary choices. All Nations agree in principle to provide these rights and have signed the UN Conventions on Human Rights. However, political, socio-cultural and economic factors create hindrances and certain sections of people gets deprived of these rights. Such is the case when we look at the communities like the tribals and Dalits of our country. The situation of women and children of these communities are worse. In terms of identity, language, social, cultural, political and economic development is concerned; they are far behind other communities. On the other hand, these people are getting further impoverished and marginalized in the process of growth and development. The resources of these communities are getting alienated from in spite of International treaties to protect them.
Awareness is generated on a broad range of subjects including health, education, conservation of natural resources, income generation, appropriate technologies and so on.
In order to protect their interests, they are made aware about the inequity and injustices occurring to them. They need to be organized. They need more information and knowledge their leadership and confidence needs to be developed. We play a hand holding and supportive role in this process.
We work with a human right’s perspective and a holistic approach to address the issues. Since, the problems are complex, it needs a broad range of actions to help people realize their rights in the process. Awareness Raising, community organisation, leadership development, literacy development and initiatives on community savings are undertaken in all the villages. The children are mobilized to schools. Government health services are mobilized to address immediate problems of diseases, extensive malaria attacks and high mortality rates.
Movement for land patta is undertaken in regular intervals. People are filling applications and revenue offices are pressurized to work on this. During last year, one thousand land applications were filed in our area.
Tribal culture was very rich and is getting degenerated day by day. Earlier, polygamy practices were common in each and every tribal family. More wife means more money in the tribal concept. Apathy towards education is also a major problem in this area. School going children are engaged in childcare and cattle care activities. 90% rural people take alcohol and Salpa juice as their need and food habit. So awareness meetings and camps have been organized through people’s organization for change their attitude and habits.
Peace committees are formed at the area level and in all the sensitive villages to prevent as well as resolve land conflicts between tribals and Dalits in the region.
Awareness to stop the traditional shifting cultivation and reduce its adverse ecological impact is pursued in the area. Community protection of forests. preventing theft, fire and over-grazing are done in all the villages to protect, conserve as well utilize them for their benefit.
· About 60 percent of people have received some land patta, 1 to 2/3 acres each, except those living in forest areas. But, the battle is half won.
· In the policy front, the Government of India is now preparing to bring a bill to grant land rights to indigenous people living on forest land prior to 1993. It needs enormous pressure from people and civil society organizations to make this happen. Even if the law is passed, framing of rules and implementation of the law is another challenge in India to realize the rights.
· Because of mobilization, every village is protecting about 50 to 100 hectares of forests and community protection of forests has encouraged people to demand forest rights. After a movement, Government has come out with a new plantation policy. Also, ownership of forest produce is given to Gram Panchayats. But, some of the main products are left out of this policy. The key is the rights over forest land and forest resources. This needs a re-orientation of outlook and perspectives.
b) training and Capacity Building :
Training and capacity building of development workers and NGOs has been one of the CPSW’s area of work from the beginning. We organized training programmes in the past on various development aspects such as planning, project management, project formulation, natural resource management, women’s empowerment, community development, etc. Gender sensitization and gender training to development organizations was one of the priority area. During last 5 years, our focus has been capacity building of community leaders, both men and women. We are working with 100 leaders in this process. The initial processes include Exposure, Skill training, Leadership Development, Village/group level processes, Community organization, Institution building. Besides the above generic community based process, the specialized trainings include on the following aspects.
(i) Watershed management, (ii) Slope Agriculture technology, (iii) Organic farming and sustainable agriculture, (iv) Community forest management, (v) Cooperative management (v) gender mainstreaming, (vii) Self-governance and panchayati raj, (viii) Micro-finance management, (ix) Market access, and (x) Enterprise development.
CPSW has a resource team and basic infrastructure at Bhubaneswar as well as in its field units to impact such training courses. Besides conducting training courses for its projects, it also helps other organizations. From time to time, it collaborates with other reputed organizations in this process as well as invite external persons to the courses.
Training Programme Conducted:
CPSW organized the following training courses during the reporting year:
SN Thematic Areas
1 Leadership & Institution Building courses:
b) Training on Panchayati Raj/Governance
c) Community Institution Building
d) Self-Help Management
e) Gender Sensitization Training
f) Para legal workers training
2. Technological Courses
a) Watershed Management
b) Community Forest Management
c) Food processing
d) Organic Farming
e) Barefoot Veterinarians
Training to Farm Women:
Farmwomen of small and marginal families play a greater role in agriculture. Enhancing food production and improving farming skills of the groups is most vital. Through training, extension and field visits of farmwomen the extension activities will emphasize on: Awareness building of women to the messages of increasing agricultural production. Adaptability of messages like organic farming, crop diversification, seed testing, seed treatment, planting of paddy seedlings, maintenance of plant population, plant protection measures, rising of backyard kitchen gardens etc.
Adaptability of new technologies like use of bacteria culture in pulses and oil seeds, rodent control for storage of grains, soil health management practices, rain fed farming technologies, water management, integrated nutrient management, integrated pest management, post harvest technology etc.
Preparation and use of bio fertilizer and its benefits for soil and agricultural practices in terms of production and productivity. Preparation of enriched farmyard manure, Application of rhizobium culture, Production of Azolla and its application, Urea blended with neem cake, Micro-nutrient application, Plant protection , Preparation of Bordeaux mixture, Root dip, Agronomical Practices
Spread of crop diversification practices like tuber crops, oil seeds, off season vegetable, fruit cultivation, dairying, poultry, fishery, etc.
Farming skills imparted: Seed selection, Selection of quality seed by salt water treatment, Germination testing, Seed Treatment, Manure/bio-fertilizers
Erect and shallow transplanting of paddy , Line showing, Row transplanting, Fumigation of grains, Storage practices
Use of simple tools such as Weedier, Sprayer, Winnower, Thresher etc.
Procurement, Quality and grading, moisture level study; Cleaning of foreign materials;
Pricing, negotiating with traders. Managerial Skill, Credit Management, Review and monitoring; Conflict Resolution;
Training programmes were organized to build capacity on the above aspects. The duration of the training was 12 days for each participant in 6 phages of 2 days each for about 100 women.
Training on improved agricultural practices: 3 nos. of trainings on the subject were organized at three different places like Saramuli, Bamunigaon, and Ulipadar in which 120 nos. of farmers participated.
Trainings and skill development helps for taking leadership on development issues and bringing social transformation. It also helps to generate employment for the young people. In selecting participants, women are given preference. It is being planned to organize more training programmes to capacitate more people from the areas. New subjects are also being designed to address emerging issues.
c) PROMOTION OF Community Based INSTITUTIONS:
Strengthening social organizations at the village level and promoting area level organizations is one of the most important process in all the projects. CPSW tries to strengthen the traditional form of social organizations existed earlier building new leadership and ensures participation of women to strengthen the traditional form of social organizations. These organizations perform all kinds of activities relating to socio-political, cultural – religious as well as economic development. However, formation of specific committees have helped to perform, specialized functions / tasks of the project. The followings are some of the organizations and committees promoted by the projects:
Women Self-Help Groups (WSHGs) and Cooperatives :
WSHGs formed consisting of 15-20 members. These WSHGs are taking up women’s issues and working towards women’s empowerment, besides promoting regular savings, micro-credit and income generation activities. In every village, depending on the number of families, number of WSHGs are promoted. The WSHGs are linked to banks and proving credit worthiness. Women SHGs are federated at the area level to build solidarity as well as scale up their activities in terms of credit, value addition and marketing operations. CPSw has promoted about 590 SHGs till March 2006.
Vana Surakhya Samiti (VSS):
In all the villages, forest protection activities are initiated all families form a VSS, a separate management committee to undertake forest protection and management activities. There are about 102 forest protection committees actively working in our area.
Village and Area Development Committees (VDCs):
Village Development Committee is another important organization at the village level, which consists of representatives of PRI (i.e. Ward Member), SHG, VSS, Farmers committee as well as important traditional leaders. It is ensured that adequate women representation exists in these committees. VDC looks after over all village planning and development. It plays important role in governance, conflict resolutions and policy advocacy.
CPSW promotes area level people’s organisation / area level farmer’s organisation which supports village level processes and plays an important role in broader policy and governance processes. Presently, there are three such organizations working actively.
|
