Objectives

The objective of this document is to provide an overview of the problems and opportunities of the peri-urban interface (PUI) with regard to the broader concerns of environmental sustainability and poverty.

Understanding there social and cultural growth along with the economic growth. Problems of the village

o Race & ethnicity o Culture and religiono Gender and Sexualityo Migration Statuso Socioeconomic status o Family structure and relationshipo Social Media and youth cultureo Knowledge and accessibility of sexual health services

To explore these social determinants of sexual health using an ethnographic research methodology

To understand these factors which can combine together to lead to marginalization or multiple marginalization of young people resulting in risky sexual behaviours, lifestyle and relationships

Abstract

Punsari is a village located in Sabarkantha district in the state of Gujarat, India. The village is located at about 80 km from the state capital, Gandhinagar. The village follows the Panchayati raj system and the Punsari Gram Panchayat is the second one which is going to launch its own Website in the Whole State. The village has undergone a transformation under the panchayat. There has been use of new and advanced technology in education. This village has Wi-Fi connection for all people. Efforts have been made for the empowerment of women and increasing security in the village. Some of the facilities provided by the panchayat include local mineral water supply, sewer & drainage project, a healthcare centre, banking facilities and toll-free complaint reception service. Consequently, Punsari received the award of being the best Gram Panchayat in Gujarat. The village's model has been appreciated by delegates from Nairobi and they are keen to replicate this in Kenyan villages.

Taluka Name: BayadDistrict: SabarKantha State: Gujarat Language: Gujarati and Hindi Time zone: IST (UTC+5:30) Elevation / Altitude: 106 meters. Above Sea level Telephone Code / STD Code: 02779 Pin Code: 383335 Post Office Name: Gabat Main Village Name: Gabat

Demographics

The population of Punsari was 5500 as per 2011 census of India which has increased to 5500 in 2011. As of June 2012, the population is 6000.

Urbanisation

There is a 66 KV sub-station that supplies power to the village. The Sarpanch aims at getting Wi-Fi connectivity in the entire village so that the villagers can use unlimited internet once they purchase the modem from the panchayat office.

The panchayat in this village has made efforts to provide the best possible facilities to students. Air-conditioners and CCTV cameras are installed in the primary schools. Apart from schools, 25 CCTVs are installed at prime junctions of the village so that the litterbugs can be spotted and punished.

Mini-buses are used for transport purpose within the village. The panchayat has started a bus facility called the Atal Express for women which is used for the import of milk.

For communication purposes, 120 waterproof speakers have been installed, which are used by the Sarpanch to inform the people of new schemes and to make important announcements. The speakers are also used to play bhajans, shlokas, and slogans of Mahatma Gandhi.

The total estimate for this development work was ₹140 million (US$2.1 million) and the state and central governments provided support for the same. For his efforts, the Sarpanch Himanshu Narendrabhai Patel was awarded with the best Gram Sabha award at the third National Panchayati Raj Day held at New Delhi. In November 2011, he received the best Gram Panchayat award in Gujarat from Chief Minister Narendra Modi. Other awards include the Academy of Grassroots Studies and Research of India award.

Education system

There are five primary schools in Punsari. All the five schools have CCTV cameras placed to enable parents check their wards' performance without interrupting the lectures and also to keep a watch on the teachers. The school drop-out rate is zero in Punsari. The village was rated B+ during Ganotsav 2011 which is an annual education campaign run by the state government.

Water system

The panchayat had installed a reverse osmosis plant in 2010 to ensure the supply of clean drinking water to the villagers. During weddings and other ceremonies, water tankers are arranged. Drinking water taps are available for all. The village also has a proper sanitation and drainage system, which is completely underground.

There is no railway station near to Punsari in less than 10 km. However Ahmadabad Rail Way Station is major railway station 89 KM near to Punsari.

Colleges near Punsari

1) Gitanjali Pharmacy CollegeAddress: Talod; At. & Po. Talod;talod -- 383215.sabarkantha

2) Sheth H P Arts & T S M Commerce College, TalodAddress: Talod

Schools near Punsari

1) Kesav VidhyalayAddress: gabat, bayad, sabar kantha, Gujarat. PIN- 383335, Post - Gabat

2) Punsri SchAddress: gabat, bayad, sabar kantha, Gujarat . PIN- 383335, Post - Gabat

1) M C M Shah Kishor SchAddress: gabat, bayad, sabar kantha, Gujarat. PIN- 383335, Post - Gabat

2) Gabat - 2 SchoolAddress: gabat, bayad, sabar kantha, Gujarat. PIN- 383335, Post - Gabat

3) Gabat - 1 SchoolAddress: gabat, bayad, sabar kantha, Gujarat. PIN- 383335, Post - Gabat

The Problems

Urban-rural interactions are affected by and impact upon urban and rural patterns of production, consumption and mobility, and the livelihoods of an increasing number of inhabitants in developing countries. The peri-urban interface is subject to a wide range of transformations and flows that originate within and outside its domain. Most of the changes occurring in the PUI are driven by the proximity of urban areas (land conversion and new developments, market opportunities, flows of people, waste, labour, goods, capital, etc.); nevertheless the sustainability of the natural resource base and quality of life within the PUI are also affected by the linkages these areas maintain with their rural hinterland and in general with the use and appropriation of natural resources and environmental services. From an environmental perspective, peri-urban interfaces face two main challenges and the relationship between the two seems to be a key point for the design of strategic environmental planning and management (EPM) that benefits the poor and enhances the sustainable development of the peri-urban interface:

Environmental problems and opportunities and quality of life of the poor within the PUI: The first set of challenges are related to the environmental conditions of the PUI as the living and working environment of a large number of people in developing countries. Although heterogeneous in its social composition, the PUI constitutes the habitat of lower income communities, which are particularly vulnerable to the impacts and negative externalities of nearby rural and urban systems. This includes risks to health and life and physical hazards related to the occupation of unsuitable sites, lack of access to basic water and sanitation and poor housing conditions. At the same time, environmental changes impact upon the livelihood strategies of these communities by decreasing or increasing their access to different types of capital assets (including access to natural resources such as land, water, energy and so forth);

Problems and opportunities for the sustainability of the natural resource base of the PUI: reconciling urban and rural development pressures. These challenges are linked to the sustainability of the regional extraction patterns of renewable and non-renewable resources of peri-urban ecosystems, and to the minimisation of the transfer of environmental costs from rural and urban systems to the PUI. The peri-urban interface is subject to many competing interests without an adequate institutional framework to strike balances which might contribute to relieve poverty, protect the environment, maximise the productivity of human and natural resources, or draw synergy from urban and rural relationships. Therefore, the sustainability of both urban and rural areas can be dramatically affected by the dynamic and changing flows of commodities, capital, natural resources, people and pollution taking place in the peri-urban interface.

The ‘rurban’ – rural area with urban facilities – lifestyle that Punsari has come into prominence for.

Present scenario in Punsari yields interesting facts about the trajectory of development that the local self-government has adopted. With revolutionary ideas such as placing CCTV cameras in all primary schools in his village to make parents see how their wards fare at any moment of the day, sarpanch Himanshu Narendrabhai Patel has been credited to have done development work worth Rs 14 crore in his panchayat with the help of state and central governments. A young, dynamic and tech savvy ‘Facebooker’, Patel has made best possible use of technology to make his village a role model. Patel has received the best Gram Sabha award at the recently held third National Panchayati Raj Day in New Delhi. He received the best Gram Panchayat award in Gujarat from Chief Minister Narendra Modi in November 2011.

Punsari falls in the picturesque and agrarian district of Sabarkantha. The proud village head, Himanshu Patel, narrates the incident, as how to settle the present drinking water problem by the villagers, the panchayat has installed an RO plant at a cost of Rs 5.5 lakh in the village in 2010 to provide clean drinking water. It further employed local youth to ferry 20 litres plastic containers of water to those in need. The cost a container is Rs 4 and for chilled water is Rs 6. Apart from this, there are water coolers that the panchayat has installed inside pucca cement booths at the bus stop. The village body has also arranged for a water tanker available for Rs 100 during weddings etc. in the village as an affordable solution to the perpetual water crisis rising at such events.

Holding a view aimed at inclusive and associative development, 29-year-old Patel reinstates how the hard work of the panchayat has seeped in deep into the fabric of the village’s attitude towards development. Besides strenuous efforts towards education of children, empowerment of women, sanitation and security in the village, the panchayat has set up a public address system from the sarpanch’s own desk.

A unique communication system is in place in Punsari. Nearly 120 water-proof speakers have been installed in the entire village connected with a sound system in sarpanch’s desk as well as his mobile. In the morning and evening, bhajans, shlokas and Bapu’s slogans are played. Whenever the sarpanch has to inform the public of any important development or scheme from the state or central government, his message follows an alert tone on the speakers. If he is not in village or outside Gujarat, he can give the message to his co-villagers through his handset.

The village has completely underground drainage system. The panchayat also runs a bus facility known as ‘Atal Express’, named after the former prime minister of India, which ferries women from three villages in the panchayat to bring in milk to the dairy in Punsari every morning. They are charged mere Rs 3 per head. Under the Kanya Kelavani scheme of government of Gujarat, girl students get free ride in the bus which makes 6-7 rounds per day in the panchayat.

The working women’s groups (Sakhi Mandal) have deposited Rs 32 lakh as savings, and are about to open new convenience stores and shopping centre with the money. There are over 1,000 women in about 100 Sakhi Mandals in Punsari alone, showcasing the emphasis on women’s development in the village. Furthermore, the fact that Punsari managed 100 per cent institutional delivery of newborn children is nothing short of exemplary.

There is a 65 KV sub-station that supplies power to the village. Punsari gram panchayat has adopted

a method of incentivising the filing of taxes with Sintex tanks to tackle the problem of tax collection.

Patel was the first sarpanch in Gujarat state to launch the gram panchayat website in 2009. He was first elected as village head in 2006 and re-elected in 2012. A graduate from Sabarkantha district, he hails from a family of sarpanches with his father and grandfather being ones. However, he has enthused young blood in running the panchayat efficiently and taking on new heights.

In all the five primary schools in Punsari, CCTV cameras are placed to enable parents check their wards’ performance in classroom without disturbing the teachers. There are LEDs in headmaster’s cabin too.

The village was given a B+ rating during the Gunotsav 2011, an annual education campaign run by the state government. The school dropout rate is zero in Punsari. Very soon, all the government schools in the village will be centrally air conditioned. Work is in full swing on this project.

The sarpanch aims to get the entire village Wi-Fi connected by June 2012 with the villagers enjoying unlimited internet once they purchase a modem from the panchayat office. The Punsari panchayat has also ensured an accident insurance policy cover for three years by paying a premium of Rs 6.5 lakh and the scheme entails to give Rs 1 lakh to the kin of dead in accidents and Rs 25,000 to those injured.

There is 100 per cent sanitation, drainage lines, and drinking water taps in the village, addition to 100 poles of solar street lights. A proper waste collection management is in place with a tanker collecting waste every morning and evening. The gram panchayat gives free dustbins to those who come to pay their tax.