Theme Paper

1 | K I I T S C H O O L O F R U R A L M A N A G E M E N T

A REPORT ON LIVELIHOOD PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

AND CASH FLOW ANALYSIS OF GHANSHYAMPUR

VILLAGE

KIIT SCHOOL OF RURAL MANAGEMENT

BHUBANESWAR, ORISSA

Host organisation::Aga Khan Rural Support Program(India)

Submitted to::Mr. Mukesh Chandra, Development Specialist

Faculty Guide:: Prof. Nandini Sen

Submission Date::9th March, 2011

Submitted by: RAKESH KUMAR, B.Com-10201039

SOUMYAJIT AUDDY, B.Com-10201053


A REPORT ON LIVELIHOOD PORTFOLIO

ANALYSIS AND CASH FLOW ANALYSIS OF

GHANSHYAMPUR VILLAGE


Acknowledgement

First and foremost, we would like to thank our host organization AKRSP(I) for giving us an

opportunity to work on the topic of Livelihood Portfolio Analysis and Cash Flow Analysis of the

villagers of Ghanshyampur. We would also like to thank our faculty guide of this project, Prof.

Nandini Sen for giving us valuable inputs and suggestions regarding the topic of the project. This

topic helped us a lot in understanding the livelihood of the villagers of Bihar and the decisions

that conduce in selecting the livelihoods. Prof. Nandini Sen inspired us greatly to work in this

project. Her willingness to motivate us contributed tremendously to our project. We also would

like to thank her for referring to us some example that related to the topic of our project.

Besides, we would like to thank Mr. Atul Kumar, the administrator of the Aurai Spear-Head-

Team of AKRSP(I) and Mr. Mukesh Kumar, the knowledgeable security guard of AKRSP(I)

whose valuable inputs contributed immensely towards successful completion of this report.

Finally, an honorable mention goes to our parents, Mr. Swapan Kumar Auddy, Mrs. Mallika

Auddy and Mr. Jhabu Lal Sharma and brother, Mr. Subhash Kumar for their understanding and

support to us in completing this report. Without the help and continued support of the above-

mentioned people this report would not have seen the light of the day.

-Soumyajit Auddy

-Rakesh Kumar


TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY------------------------------------5

II. ORGANISATION PROFILE--------------------------------7

III. BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY-------------------------8

IV. VILLAGE PROFILE-----------------------------------------9

V. PARTICIPATORY RURAL APPRAISAL----------------15

VI. INTRODUCTION--------------------------------------------28

VII. CASTE SYSTEM---------------------------------------------30

VIII. PRIMARY OCCUPATION---------------------------------31

IX. LANDHOLDING PATTERN----------------------------- 33

X. MIGRATION AND ITS ROLE IN

IMPACTING LIVELIHOOD------------------------------36

XI. REASONS FOR MIGRATION IN

SEARCH OF LIVELIHOOD------------------------------40

XII. IMPACT OF MIGRATION FOR

LIVELIHOOD: THE PROS AND CONS---------------43

XIII. THE ROLE OF PANCHAYAT IN INDUCING

MIGRATION FOR LIVELIHOOD----------------------47

XIV. ALTERNATIVE LIVELIHOOD OPTIONS-----------50

XV. CONCLUSION----------------------------------------------55

XVI. REFERENCES---------------------------------------------55


EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

As part of of the Theme Paper we need to do the Livelihood Portfolio Analysis and Cash Flow

Analysis of the villagers of Ghanshyampur:

The methodology we used for gathering the data and analyzing the same to achieve the desired

results are are Participatory Rural Appraisal(PRA), Focused Group Discussion with villagers in

Ghanshyampur and Informal Group Discussions with villagers in Ghanshyampur and Vaishali.

We also conducted one-to-one interviews with villagers and also used inputs we got from visits

to places like Sudha Dairy in Muzaffarpur. We also used data gathered from 32 households

during household surveys for our analysis. The data we gathered from FGD are as follows:

Ghanshyampur village is on the banks of the Bagmati river.

The village is more than 100yrs old.

Every year during the monsoon the village used to be flooded by Bagmati river.

Soil in the Ghanshyampur region is very fertile and sustains a variety of crops.

Yield is 2.5-4 mounds per Katha.

Caste system prevails in the village.

The different castes in the village are Kayasthas,Bhumihar, Hajams,

Brahmins,Yadavs,Machhwaras,mallas,Chamar,Dom,Teli,Halwai,Rajputs and Musahars.

At the beginning of this village most households were of Kayasthas and Yadav

caste.Kayasthas used to be landlords.

Kayasthas used to be the learned caste in the village.

Agriculture used to be the primary occupation in this village as this land is very fertile.

Ghanshyampur panchayat existed from the formation of panchayats.

The village school is very old.

Revenue village is Ghanshyampur

The mukhiya has been holding post for 3 generations.

The first mukhiya was Shri Bhagyanarayan Thakur.

The village road was constructed by him

The second Mukhiya was KrishnaKumar Thakur.

Benipur village is just across the ring dam. It is home of famous poets like Rambriksh

Benipuri and JankiBallav Shastri.

Kayasthas come to this village during festivals.

Chhat and Holi are the largest festivals in this village.

Wheat, maize and paddy are the primary crops in this village.

Ramdayal Sharma was the 1st MLA of this village in 1949.

Rambabau Singh was 2nd

MLA.


Arjun Rai was 3rd

MLA.

Ramsurat Rai is the present MLA.

Late Dr. Suryadev Prasad Verma, notable freedom fighter hailed from this village.

Swami Ayodhya lal,(Manishanand Saraswati), founder of Gurukul in Sitamarhi hailed

from this village.

Electricity in the village came during the period of 87-88.

No fertilizer is provided from Panchayat.

Rs. 10000 is taken as bribe from the villagers on account of Indira Awas Yojana by the

Mukhiya.

Maximum people have migrated to Jaipur and Mumbai.

During floods people used to migrate to higher grounds.

Skin disease along with diarrhea and malaria are prevalent in the area.

Potato and tobacco are also grown here.

Tobacco is a major cash crop and is mostly grown by people with less landholding to

generate more income.

Wheat, maize and oilseeds are mainly grown in the rabi season.

Income of the people is lowest during the period of October-November since most

migrated people return home from work and expenses are also high due to festivals.


We will begin the report with a brief profile of our host organization.

ORGANISATION PROFILE

About the Aga Khan Development Network

The Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) focuses on health, education, culture, rural

development, institution-building and the promotion of economic development. It is dedicated to

improving living conditions and opportunities for the poor, without regard to their faith, origin or

gender.

AKRSPI

About the Organization

The Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (India) is a non-denominational, non-government

development organisation. AKRSP (India) works as a catalyst for the betterment of rural

communities by providing direct support to local communities to promote activities and develop

models for sustainable natural resource use and development of human resources.

AKRSP (India) began field operations in 1985 and has since become one of the larger grassroots

NGOs in India with more than 250 staff in 27 locations and an annual budget of $6 million. It

http://www.akdn.org/health.asp

http://www.akdn.org/education.asp

http://www.akdn.org/aktc.asp?type=p

http://www.akdn.org/akf_rd.asp?type=p

http://www.akdn.org/akf_rd.asp?type=p


has innovated and pioneered several efforts in areas such as participatory irrigation management,

joint forest management, rain water harvesting, watershed development, preventing salinity

ingress and alternative energy to empower rural women and marginalised communities.

AKRSP (India) is active in over 1000 villages in four environmentally challenged and

economically vulnerable regions of Gujarat: the tribal block of Bharuch – Narmada – Surat-Tapi,

coastal salinity-affected Junagadh and the drought-prone Surendranagar.

Since 2005, AKRSP (India) has been working in the remote and poor districts of Khandwa,

Khargone and Burhanpur in Madhya Pradesh.

In the Khandwa programme area, AKRSP (India) has been working with the tribal communities

of Bhil, Korku, Bhilala and Barela. The key focus areas have been watershed development,

participatory irrigation management, micro enterprise development and implementing the

Community-based Technology Learning Centres.

AKRSP (India) initiated its activities in Bihar in 2007 in the districts of Samastipur and

Muzaffarpur. Bihar is the most backward state of India with more than 45 million people living

on less than a dollar a day and the highest infant mortality and lowest literacy rates in the

country. As Bihar was new to AKRSP (India), an entirely new approach and strategy was

needed. Hence, a Multi Input Area Development (MIAD) approach was taken up in collaboration

with AKF India. The MIAD approach is quite different from the ones that are followed in

Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh where interventions are taken up in a sequential manner with

economic development leading to investments in social development. MIAD aims at working

simultaneously on economic and social development through community-based approaches.

Since mid-2008, a range of interventions in the domain of economic development, community

institutions, education and health have been piloted in Bihar

Through field implementation over the last two decades, there has been much learning for

AKRSP (India). To ensure that these lessons are shared with others, AKRSP (India) has set up

two training centres in the rural areas of Gujarat. The training centres train more than 3500

villagers and government staff annually. AKRSP (India) also partners with other NGOs and

research agencies to influence policies and programmes of the Government and market players to

improve the quality of life of the rural poor. It is a member of many state and national

committees on natural resource management.

Background of the Study

Ghanshyampur is one of the largest villages in Aurai block. The village comes under the Gjanshyampur

panchayat. The village has a population of almost 2000 people as per the 2001 census data. As we spent

our days in the village and kept on doing household surveys we noticed some interesting facts about the

village. These are:

Casteeism prevails supreme in the village. Every aspect of the village lifestyle is dictated by the

caste system.


Landholding pattern in the village is highly uneven. Most of the land is controlled by villagers of

the upper caste.

Daily wage labor is the primary occupation of the villagers. In most cases there is no secondary

occupation.

Migration in search of livelihood is very high in the village. At least one member from every

household has migrated in search of livelihood.

There is hardly any middle aged man or youth left in the village. The entire current population of

the village consists of women, children and senior citizens.

Soil in the village is very fertile.

The infrastructure in the village is completely dilapidated. There is no road, electricity or good

school. This has directly impacted the pattern of livelihood in the village.

The Mukhiya of the village is a corrupt person.

The topics of our study are livelihood portfolio analysis and cash flow analysis of the villagers of

Ghanshyampur. In our study we will find out the current livelihood pattern of the villagers, the reasons

for taking up the existing patterns of livelihood and the alternative livelihood options the villagers have

at the present circumstances. We will also do a detailed analysis of the incomes and expenditures of the

villagers, bring out the heads where incomes and expenditures are maximum and also try to analyze

how savings can be increased so as to have a better standard of living. Before going into the details of

the study, we would firstly like to illustrate a complete village profile.

Village Profile

A short history of Muzaffarpur

Muzaffarpur is a town in Muzaffarpur district in the Indian state of Bihar. It is the capital of the

district. Muzaffarpur, famous for Shahi lychees is the largest city of northern Bihar. It is situated

on the banks of the perennial Burhi Gandak River, which flows from the Himalayan foothills.

Muzaffarpur is one of the many gateways to Nepal. Clothes and food-grains are traded between

Nepal and Muzaffarpur.

Geography

Muzaffarpur is located at 26°07′N 85°24′E / 26.12°N 85.4°E. The town lies in a highly

active seismic zone of India. In the disastrous earthquake on 15 January 1934, much of the town

suffered severe damage and many lives were lost.[3]

It has an average elevation of 47 meters

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muzaffarpur_district

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/States_and_territories_of_India

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bihar

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lychee

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burhi_Gandak_River

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himalayas

http://toolserver.org/~geohack/geohack.php?pagename=Muzaffarpur&params=26.12_N_85.4_E_

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seismic

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muzaffarpur#cite_note-2


(154 feet). This saucer shaped, low-centered town lies on the great Indo-Gangetic plains of

Bihar, over Himalayan silt and sand brought by the glaciers and rain-fed meandering rivers of the

Himalayas. The soil of the town is highly fertile, well drained and sandy, white colored and very

soft. The landscape is green all year round. The town is surrounded by the flood plain dotted

with ponds and oxbow lakes, with sparkling sandy river banks and clean air and water.

Numerous private fruit orchards and idyllic rivers are also nearby. The city has a water-table just

20 ft. below ground level. The city has a non-operational civil Aerodrome, Patahi, belonging to

the Airport Authority of Indiawhich is now somewhat damaged. Muzaffarpur now is a rapidly

growing city. The growth in the last decade has been phenomenal, but a lot is yet to be done.

Thousands of villagers migrated to this town from nearby villages in the rapid urbanization of

post-independence India, but this has created serious law and order problems. The drainage

system and garbage disposal system is disorderly and practically non-existent. The downtown

areas of Muzaffarpur are Tilak Maidan Road, Kalyani and Saraiyagunj. These areas are densely

populated with small shops selling a plethora of goods and services. Motijheel is the main

shopping area. Chakkar Maidan has a small encampment of members of the Territorial Army

non-departmental unit 151 Inf Bn (TA) JAT. Muzaffarpur Town has ancient temples like Baba

Garib Nath (Shiva Temple), Chaturbhuj-sthan, Raj Rajeswar Devi Kali (Durga)build by

darbhanga maharaj, Temple of Raj Darbhanga and Kalibari, the Kali temple. There are also

several large and small places of worship of other religious communities like the Sikhs

(Gurudwara at Ramna), Rama Krishna Ashram (in Bela – Mithan Pura), Muslims (Badi Masjid

at Company Bagh, Data Kambal Shah Mazaar near Purani Bazaar, Bada Imambara near Banaras

Bank Chowk & Badi Karbala at Sariyagunj), Buddhists, Jains, Christians, and others.

History

Muzaffarpur district, ‘The Land of Lychee,’ was created in 1875 for the sake of administrative

convenience by splitting up the earlier district of Tirhut. The district is named after Muzaffar

Khan, an Amil (Revenue Officer) under the Raj. It is bounded by the Purbi Champaran and

Sitamarhi districts to the north, the Vaishali and Saran districts to the south, the Darbhanga and

Samastipur districts to the east and the Saran and Gopalganj districts on the West. It has won

international encomiums for its delicious Shahi Lychee and Chinese Lychee fruits.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxbow_lake

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airport_Authority_of_India

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Territorial_Army_%28India%29

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiva

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durga

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kali

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sikhs

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jainism

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christians

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raj


The recorded history of the district dates back to the rise of the Vrijjan Republic, when the center

of political power shifted from Mithila to Vaishali. The Vrijjan Republic was a confederation of

eight clans of which the Licchavis were the most powerful and influential. Even the powerful

kingdom of Magadh had to conclude matrimonial alliances in 519 B.C. with the neighboring

estates of the Licchavis. Ajatshatru invaded Vaishali and extended his sway over Tirhut. It was at

this time that Patliputra (the modern Patna) was founded at the village Patali on the banks of the

sacred Ganges river, and Ajatshatru built an invincible fortress to keep vigil over the Licchavis

on the other side of the river. Ambarati, 40 km from Muzaffarpur is believed to be the village

home of Amrapali, the famous Royal court dancer of Vaishali.

From the visit of the Hieuen Tsang until the rise of the Pala dynasty, Muzaffarpur was under the

control of Maharaja Harsha Vardhan, a powerful sovereign of North India. After 647 A.D. the

district passed to the local chiefs. In the 8th century A.D. the Pala kings gained control over

Tirhut and kept it until 1019 A.D. Chedi kings of Central India also exercised their influence

over Tirhut until they were replaced by the rulers of the Sena dynasty towards the close of the

11th century.

Sometime between 1211 and 1226, Ghais-u-ddin Iwaz, the ruler of Bengal, became the first

Muslim invader of Tirhut. However, he could not succeed in conquering the kingdom, merely

extorting tributes. It was in 1323 that Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq established his control over the

district.

The history of Muzaffarpur would be incomplete without a reference to the Simraon dynasty (in

the north-east part of Champaran) and its founder, Nanyupa Deva, who extended his power over

the whole of Mithila and Nepal. During the regime of Harasimha Deva, the last king of the

dynasty, Tughlaq Shah invaded Tirhut in 1323 and gained control over the territory. Tughlaq

Shah handed over the management of Tirhut to Kameshwar Thakur. Thus, the sovereign power

of Tirhut passed from the Hindu chiefs to the Muslims.

Towards the close of the 14th century the whole of North Bihar, including Tirhut, passed to the

kings of Jaunpur and remained under their control for nearly a century, until Sikandar Lodi of

Delhi defeated the king of Jaunpur. Meanwhile, Hussain Shah, the Nawab of Bengal, had

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ganges


become so powerful that he exercised his control over large tracts including Tirhut. The emperor

of Delhi advanced against Hussain Shah in 1499 and got control over Tirhut after defeating its

Raja. The power of the Nawabs of Bengal began to wane and, with the decline and fall of

Mahood Shah, north Bihar formed a part of the mighty Mughal Empire. Though Muzaffarpur

with the entire north Bihar had been annexed, the petty chieftains continued to exercise effective

control over this area until the days of Daud Khan, the Nawab of Bengal. Daud Khan had his

stronghold at Patna and Hajipur, and after his fall, a separate Subah of Bihar was constituted

under the Mughal dynasty, with Tirhut forming a part of it.

The victory of East India Company in 1764 at the battle of Buxar gave them control over the

whole of Bihar and they succeeded in subduing the entire district. The success of the insurgency

in Delhi in 1857 caused grave concern to the English inhabitants in this district and revolutionary

fervor began to permeate the entire district. Muzaffarpur played its role and was the site of the

famous bombing case of 1908. The young Bengali revolutionary, Khudi Ram Bose, a boy of

barely 18 years, was hanged for throwing the bomb at the carriage of Pringle Kennedy, who was

mistaken for Kingsford, the District Judge of Muzaffarpur. After independence, a memorial to

this young revolutionary patriot was constructed at Muzaffarpur, which still stands. The political

awakening in the country after the First World War stimulated nationalist movement in

Muzaffarpur district as well. The visit of Mahatma Gandhi to Muzaffarpur district in December

1920 and again in January 1927 had tremendous political effect in arousing the latent feelings of

the people and the district continued to play a prominent role in the country's struggle for

freedom.

Muzaffarpur played a very significant role in the history of North-Eastern India. The peculiarity

of Muzaffarpur in Indian civilization arises out of its position on the frontier line between two

most vibrant spiritual influences. To this day, it is a meeting place of Hindu and Islamic culture

and thoughts. All sorts of modified institutions, representing mutual assimilation, rise along this

border line. It has undoubtedly been this highly diversified element within her boundaries that

has so often made Muzaffarpur the birthplace of towering geniuses.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Buxar


In August 1934, a colossal 8.1 magnitude earthquake struck the area, completely demolishing the

city. Damage was extensive not only in the region but also in Kolkata and Kathmandu. The

region was shaken strongly again in the 1988 Bihar earthquake.

Climate

The summer, between April and June, is extremely hot and humid (28/40 deg C,90% Max.) and

winter is pleasantly cool, around 06/20 deg C. The air pollution is lower than in other areas, so

the air is comparatively clean. The best months to visit are October through March. It is best to

avoid visits in the summer and the monsoon season (Mid June to September) due to prolonged

power cuts, the heat, and flooding in the town.

Economy

Muzaffarpur is famous for exporting Lichi. Long ago, the area was famous for hand-woven

textiles, sugar cane, indigo, opium and other products. The district has a few sugar mills, which

are now old and dilapidated. It is the commercial hub of North Bihar and the wholesale market

for Mumbai, Surat and Ahmedabad. Textile mills in the famous Marwari community dominate

Suta Patti. The commercial hub of the town is Motijheel.

The area around Muzaffarpur is largely agricultural. The principal crops are rice, wheat, pulses,

jute, maize and oil seeds. Cauliflower, cabbage, tomato, radish, carrot, beetroot, among others,

are also grown. Rice and wheat account for most of the area under cultivation. Maize is the next

important crop for the district. Sugar cane, potato and barley are some of the non-cereal crops

grown. The district is famous for its delicious mangoes, and its lychee, which are exported to

other parts of the country and even abroad.

The main livestock of the town are cattle, buffalo, sheep, goats, pigs and poultry. Muzaffarpur

Town has several industries, big and small. The railcar industry is one of the town's most

important industry. Muzaffarpur is a important centre for the wholesale cloth trade.

Muzaffarpur is the largest producer of litchee-based wine in Eastern India.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1934_Bihar_earthquake

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kolkata

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kathmandu

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1988_Bihar_earthquake

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugar_cane

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mumbai

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surat

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmedabad

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Textile

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marwaris

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lychee


Aurai Block

Location

The Aurai block is in North – Eastern part of the Muzaffarpur District. The Block is situated on

the embankment of the River Baghmati. The block is surrounded from three sides by the one

district border i.e. Sitamarhi in the Northern , N.W & N.E. and three Blocks of Muzaffarpur

district namely Katra Block in South-East , Bochahan Block in the Southern part of the Block,

Minapur Block in the South - Western part of the Aurai Block.

Introduction

The Block consists of 27 Panchyats comprising of total 115 Villages. The total population of the

Block is 232729 in 46033 Households. The total 15 % of population is of Minority community &

12% is of scheduled castes in the block. 6% of total population is Mahadalit in the block. The

Literacy rate of the block is 38.1 %. The block is situated in the North – Eastern part of the

District. The Block is situated at 35km from the District headquarter.

LAND CLASSIFICATION AURAI

GEOGRAPHICAL 19677

CULTIVABLE LAND 16519

UPLAND 1686

MEDIUM LAND 1564

LOW LAND 9082

DEEP WATER LAND 4187


FLOOD AFFECTED AREA 16551

OFTEN 512

EVERY YEAR 16039

UNIT OF LAND CLASSIFICATION IS :- HECTARE

AGRICULTURAL INFORMATION

K H A R I F

AVERAGE COVERAGE , PRODUCTIVITY AND PRODUCTION

abbreviation used : cov-coverage , prd-productivity and pro-production

[ UNIT FOR COV-Ha. AND FOR PRD & PRO MT ]

CROPS NAME COV PRD PRO

HIGH YIELDING PADDY 8000 2 16000

IMPROVED VARIETY OF PADDY 3000 16 4800

PADDY TOTAL 11000 18 19800

HIGH YIELDING MAIZE 1100 2 2200

IMPROVED VARIETY MAIZE 300 1 300

MAIZE TOTAL 1400 1.5 2100

PIGEON PEA(ARHAR) 350 1 350

KIDNEY BEAN(URAD) 210 .5 105

OTHER PULSES 70 .5 35

TOTAL PULSES 630 1 630

TEEL 7 .75 5.25

CASTOR(ANDI) 7 .6 4.2


SUNFLOWER 7 .6 4.2

Total 21 .65 13.65

AVERAGE CONSUMPTION OF FERTILIZER IN THE DISTRICT

[ UNIT MT ]

Fertilizer Aurai

UREA 1500

D.A.P. 425

M.O.P. 140

S.S.P. 425

C.A.N. 14

AMMONIUM SULPHATE 140

MIXED FERTILISER(12:32:16) 35



RABI

AVERAGE COVERAGE , PRODUCTIVITY AND PRODUCTION

abbreviation used : cov-coverage , prd-productivity and pro-production

[UNIT FOR COV-Ha. AND FOR PRD & PRO MT ]

CROPS NAME COV PRD PRO

WHEAT 6000 2.151 12906

MAIZE 2000 2 4000

BARLEY 100 .875 87.5


GRAM 75 1 75

LENTIL(MASOOR) 150 .85 127.5

GARDEN PEA(MATAR) 50 .8 40

OTHER PULSES 200 .75 150

TOTAL 475 .822 390

MUSTARD(RYE,SARSO AND TORI) 340 .9 306

LINSEED(TISI) 80 .625 50

SUNFLOWER 7 .8 5.6

TOTAL 427 .846 361

SUMMER MAIZE 650 2 1300

SUMMER GREEN GRAM 200 .826 165

SUMMER TEEL 8 .666 5.3

SUMMER SUNFLOWER 7 .8 5.6

SUMMER PADDY 200 2 400

AVERAGE CONSUMPTION OF FERTILIZER IN THE DISTRICT

[ UNIT MT ]

Fertilizer Aurai

UREA 1500

D.A.P. 650

M.O.P. 250

S.S.P. 320

IFFCO 65

AMMONIUM SULPHATE 250





GHANSHYAMPUR VILLAGE

Ghanshyampur village comes under Ghanshyampur panchayat and it is located 8kms. North of

the Aurai block office. It is bound on the south by the Ring Dam of Bagmati river built by the

Government of Bihar in 2008, on the north by National Highway 77 and on the east by chaur or

low lying agricultural land filled up by flood water and on the west by the irrigation canal, a

tributary of Lakhandeyi river. The statistical data of Ghanshyampur village as per the 2001

census is presented below:

Number of Households 957

Total Population 5363 Population below 06 yrs 1110

Male Population 2864 Population below 06 Male 614

Female Population 2499 Population below 06

Female

496

Total Agricultural Labor 189

Marginal Agriculture Labour -

Male

78 Marginal Agriculture

Labour - Female

111

Literate Polulation 1702 Illiterate Population 3661

Male Literate 1171 Male illiterate population 1693

Female Literate 531 Female illiterate

population

1968

No of Households 957 Working Population 1784

Main working population 335

Main Working Population Male 119 Main Working Population

Female

216

Main Casual Working Population 117 Total Casual labour

Main Casual Working Population

Male

22 Main Casual Working

Population-Female

95


Number of SC 676

Male SC Population 345 Female SC Population 331

Number of ST 0

Male ST Population 0 Female ST Population 0

Livelihood

Daily wage labor is the main source of livelihood for the people of this block. The land is very

fertile as it is Flood affected area. The livelihood mainly depends upon the community of the

population from which they belongs to. It means that in which occupation they are engaged for

their Livelihood totally dependent of their community. The cropping pattern also depends on

the Community from which they belong to irrespective of land holding size. It means that

what they grow will be dependent of their community like Kushwaha will grow mainly maize &

vegetables; Rajputs & Bhumihars will grow Rice & Wheat. Due to flood the Distress Migration

is also seen in the block. Before the Major Dam which was constructed 3 years back namely

Yojana Dam this area used to be totally flooded for minimum 3-4 months. No farm practices

were done before 3 years during season of rice due to severe flood.

Agricultural Productivity

The main crops grown in the block is mainly Rice, Wheat, Maize, oil seeds, tobacco andPulses

Rice is main crop grown here after 3 years. The low lands are facing the problem of water

logging for more than 3 months. The up lands of the areas are used for the rice cultivation.

Wheat is also grown here. Rice & Wheat is the major crops grown mainly by Minority

community and also by backward castes (Yadavs, Paswans, Kurmi, Chamars and also some of

the Harijans) on taking the land on the contract basis. Vegetables are mainly grown by the

Kushwaha (Koeri) both by land owner and also by landless (on contract land).

Crops Productivity per Kattha

1. Maize:150-200 Kg

2. Wheat:60-80 Kg

3. Rice:50 -60 Kg

4. Oilseeds: 20-30 Kg


5. Pulses:30-40 Kg

6. Potato:600-800 Kg

7. Tobacco:

Source: Field Visit

Education

There is only one school in the village. It is a secondary government school. The name of the

school is Utkramit Rajya Madhya Vidyalaya. The school is till class VIII. There are 320 students

and only three teachers. No mid-day meal is provided at the school. Attendance in the school is

very low. The name of the principal of the school is Smt. Krishna Thakur.

Health

The Health condition of the village is satisfactory. Only at the time of flood and post flood the

epidemic conditions prevails. There is no PHC or subcenter in the village. The Government

Hospital is available at Aurai Block office. Some of the Private clinic is also present at the

Block & Runni saidpur but the facilities are very bad there. Most of the people prefer to go to

Muzaffarpur for their treatment. Tuberculosis & some of the water borne diseases like typhoid

are commonly seen in this block. Malaria is prevalent in the rainy seasons.

Power Supply

There is no electrification in the village.

Local Market

The local market for the village is only at Block office for only day to day practices. The main

market is at Sitamarhi & Muzaffarpur which is about 20-25 km from the villages. Some of the

Villages like Shailla Balli, Pitaujhia prefer the Runni Saidpur for the market as it is nearer

than Aurai market. The Aurai market is local market and seems like rural market only. There

is lack Supply in the market. The people used to prefer Runni saidpur & Muzaffarpur for

the Marketing purpose. Small Haats for the essential items on 3 days a week occur (Tuesday


& Friday, Sunday). Even for the agricultural inputs people used to prefer Muzaffarpur as there

variety of products with reasonable price is available. The people also not prefer the Aurai

market as they have to pay the Poverty Premium there. People prefer to do daily uses

marketing from Runni saidpur as it is at a distance of 5-10 km from some of the villages.

Banks and Financial Institutions

There are no banks or financial institutions within the village. There are two nationalized banks

namely The State Bank of India and Central Bank of India at the Aurai Block Office which is

12kms from the village and four nationalized banks namely The State Bank of India, Bank of

India, Bank of Baroda and Allahabad Bank at Runni Saidpur which is 9kms from the village.

Land Ownership Pattern

The land ownership pattern in the village is slightly different than other places. The Minority

community has the land ownership up to some extent. Yadavs and Bhumihars are the major land

owner but in the small sizes & also fragmented. The Bhumihars & Yadavs are in better position

than others. Some of the Muslims are in better position but most of the them are in the trap of

poverty due to landlessness & high unemployment. Other Backward castes practices

contract share cropping by taking the land on the lease for 3 years @ 200-300 per kattha per

year. The up lands fetches little bit higher prices for the lease up to Rs 600 per kattha. The poor

person in Bhumihars and Rajputs also practices the share cropping by taking the land on the

lease. Some of the Yadavs also found to practices this. Landlessness is high in the Mushers

community. The migration is very high in the village. They migrate to New Delhi, Mumbai and

Jaipur. The Mushers & other backwards castes used to practices Farm & Non-Farm labor even at

the source and at Destination place.


Festivals and Social Customs

.The villagers have different social customs. They celebrate different festivals. Main festivals of

Hindu celebrated in Ghanshyampur are Makarsankranti, Saraswati Puja i.e. Basantpanchmi,

Holi, Durga Puja, Deepawali and Chhatt. Festivals of Muslim are Eid, Bakr-e-eid, Muharram,

Chehallum and Shab-e-baraat.

Makarsankranti :

The day on which sun enters in the Capricorn i.e. Makar Rashi, Hindu people celebrate it

as Makarsankrati. People take bath in early morning on this day, some go to take a dip in

holy rivers and worship lord Sun. After taking bath they eat beaten rice and curd (Dahi-

Chuda) along with till candy (teel- kutt). Generally it is celebrated on 14th January.

Saraswati Puja:

Saraswati Puja is celebrated with the incidence of spring season. People worship the idol

of goddess Saraswati. Beautiful idols of goddess Saraswati are kept in each schools,

because goddess Saraswati is called as the goddess of knowledge. On the next day the

idols are drowned in the rivers or ponds.

Mahashivratri:

This is come in March. On this day people especially young girls, fast for whole day and

worshiping of Shiva God.

Holi:

Holi is the festival of colors; it is celebrated in the month of Falgun. People apply colours

on the face of each other even on the face of enemies and also hug each other. Delicious

dishes are cooked on the eve of Holi. Dahi Bada and Maalpua are the main dishes of

Holi. They wear new dresses in the evening. People in the village also drink local Liqour

and eat goat meat.

Guru Purnima:

This is come in April. On this day villagers take sweet and sattu, and enjoy that day.

Ramnavami:

This also comes in April on that day they worship Ram God.


Dusshera:

All villagers enjoy this festival. This festival is celebrated because on this day lord Ram

got victory on King Ravana. They burn Ravana, Meghnath and Kumbkaran’s statues.

Durga Puja:

Durga Puja is celebrated in the month of Ashwin . People worship goddess Durga for ten

days. Goddess Durga had killed the demon Mahishasur after ten days of battle. So this

festival is celebrated for the defeat of evil. Beautiful pandals are made where idol of

goddess Durga is kept. After ten days the idols are drowned in the rivers.

Deepawali:

After 20 days of Dashahara Deepawali is celebrated. It is the festival of light. It is said

that lord Ram had returned back to Ayodhya after killing Ravana on this day. People light

candles and earthen lamps at the night and worship lord Ganesha and goddess Laxmi.

Children light crackers.

Chhat:

Chhat is very special festival of Bihar. People stand in rivers or ponds and worship

setting and rising Sun. It is celebrated in the month of Kartik , the day of Chhat comes 6

days after Deepawali.

Eid:

Eid is the most important festival of Muslims. It is celebrated in the month of Ramzan.

People use to keep fast which is called Roza for 30 days, after that the moon of Eid rises

which brings Eid on the very next day. People wear new clothes and go to mosques for

their namaz. They hug each other and distribute sewai.

Bakr-e-eid:

The other name of Bakr-e-eid is Qurbaani. On this day people give sacrifice of goat or

other animals and distribute meat to their friends.

Muharram:

Muharram is celebrated in the memory of the war of Ali- Husain in the battle field of

Karbala. People do procession with Tajia ( towers made up of paper and bamboo). They

play with swords.

Chehallum:

It is celebrated 40 days after Muharram. It is also called as Chalisma.


Shab-e-baraat:

Muslim people celebrate Shab-e-barat to remember their ancestors. They read Quraan

Shareef the whole night and light candles in the night.

Participatory Rural Appraisal(PRA)

We used PRA to understand the village, its resources, the lifestyle the villagers follow and to

have interaction with the villagers. The tools we used as part of PRA are:

Social Map

Resource Map

Chapati Diagram

Seasonal Map to understand the cropping pattern in the village

Time Line

Problem Tree

The photographs of the PRA tools we used and their diagrammatic representation are shown in

the following pages.


The Social Map of Ghanshyampur

The Resource Map of Ghanshyampur


Chapati Diagram of Ghanshyampur

Seasonal Map showing Cropping Pattern in Ghanshyampur


Problem Tree Analysis of Ghanshyampur Village


Timeline of a Normal Day of a Villager in Ghanshyampur

Introduction

Bihar is the poorest state in India with the lowest per capita income amongst the major states. In

2004/05, the real per capita GSDP was Rs. 4435 while the nominal per capita GSDP was Rs.

7080 which were less than half that of the neighboring state of Jharkhand. More than 40% of the

population lives below the poverty line. It is also the third most populated state with a total

population of 83 million. The state’s performance lags seriously behind others. Although

moderate progress was made during the 1990s (1993-94 to 1999-00) in reducing poverty by

nearly 7 percentage points, the rate of poverty reduction was well below the national average.

Current projections are that Bihar is likely to fall well behind on most of the MDG targets for

2015. Bihar’s rank for HDI among the Indian states has remained unchanged at 15 since 1981

while its score has increased marginally from 0.237 in 1981 to 0.308 in 1991 to 0.267 in 2001. It

fares very badly on a number of indicators. In the 1990s Bihar had the lowest Gender Equality

Index in India, and had witnessed a decline in absolute terms over the earlier period. According

to the 2001 census Bihar has the lowest literacy rate in the country - 48% against a national


average of 65%. It is the only state where primary enrolment fell between 1993 and 1999, and

80% of the bottom quintile heads of household have no education. 35 Bihar is a predominantly

agrarian economy with a small manufacturing base. The share of services has increased from

41% to nearly 50% of GSDP, which is roughly the same as the Indian overall average. While the

share of agriculture has declined, it is still very large. According to the NSS, nearly 40% of the

workforce is engaged in agricultural labour (1999-2000) down from 42% in the previous round.

Cultivation and farm labour together account for 80% of employment. Poverty is predominantly

rural in Bihar and is associated with limited access to land and livestock, poor education and

health care, as well as low-paid occupations and social status. NSS data show that 75% of the

poor were landless or near landless in 1999-2000. Although land reforms were introduced in

1950 they have been slow and ineffective. The rural poor tend to depend on agricultural wages or

casual non-farm jobs for a living. Over time the proportion of non-farm laborers in the poorest

quintile has increased and the proportion of farm workers decreased.

Ghanshyampur is one of the largest villages in the Aurai block of Muzaffarpur district and

probably one of the poorest villages of North Bihar. Ghanshyampur village is a new area of

operation for our host organization and as part of our theme paper we are required to do the

livelihood portfolio analysis and the cash flow analysis of the population of this region. We have

done systematic sampling in choosing the 32 households for our study. We chose the samples on

the basis of the percentage of the caste category, we got from the census data, 2001 so as to

represent the different castes of the village adequately. As part of our study we have collected

data on different aspects of a villager’s life like number of adult male and female members,

primary and secondary occupation of the villagers, land ownership pattern, irrigation assets,

migration status, other assets, livestock, health status, income and expenditures heads, wage rate

etc for our livelihood portfolio analysis and cash flow analysis we will be taking into account

each of these data. Our analysis will strictly adhere to the 32 households which we believe will

adequately represent the entire population of the village. The specific sets of data we will be

doing a deep research on to find out the livelihood portfolio analysis are:

Caste

Caste Category

Number of members in the family

Livestock

Landholding Pattern

Income expenditure and savings

Migration Status

Daily Wage Rate

The specific sets of data we will do a deep research on to find out the cash flow analysis are:

Income expenditure and savings

Daily wage rate as a result of migration


In course of our analysis we will also be suggesting alternative livelihood options given the

current sets of resources.

Caste System

Caste system prevails in Bihar and has maximum impact in the rural areas. The seven different

castes we have taken for our analysis are halwai, malla, dhanuk and yadav belonging to the OBC

category, kayasth and Brahmin belonging to the General category and chamars belonging to the

SC category. Out of the 32 households we surveyed, there are 6 halwais, 5 mallas, 3 dhanuks and

7 yadavs belonging to the OBC category, 4 kayasths and 5 brahmins belonging to the General

category and 2 chamars belonging to the SC category. A graphic representation of the caste

system prevailing in the village is being presented below.

General25%

OBC69%

SC6%

Caste Category


Each household has an average of 8 members.

Primary Occupation

The primary occupation of the villagers of Ghanshyampur is daily wage labor. As very few

villagers have landholding and the distribution of landholding is highly uneven, so not much

people are engaged in faming or agricultural activities. Most of the villagers have migrated inter-

state or intra-state and work as daily wage laborers. A graphic representation of the 32 villagers

of Ghanshyampur whom we surveyed as part of our research is shown in the following page.

Halwai19%

Malla16%

Dhanuk9%

Kayasth12%

Yadav22%

Chamar6%

Brahmin16%

Caste Name


From the above representation we can see that 72% of the villagers are engaged in non-agri

labor, 19% of the villagers are engaged in farming and agricultural activities, 6% is involved in

business and only 3% is involved in salaried jobs.

We have calculated the savings of the 32 respondents and graphically plotted them on a trend

line as shown in the following page.

19%

72%

3% 6%

Primary Occupation

Farmer Non-agri laborer Salaried Job Business


From the above analysis, we can see that the peak points on the line are dominated by the upper

castes like Brahmins and Kayasths of General category or the Yadavs of OBC category while the

baseline or the bottom points consist of Scheduled Castes like Chamars or the recessive OBC

castes like Halwais and Dhanuks.

Landholding Pattern

The landholding pattern in the village is highly uneven. Most of the land is controlled by the

upper caste Bhumihar Brahmins. An interesting fact to note here is that out of the 32 households

we surveyed, only 14 had landholdings which means less than 50% of the sample size has

landholdings. In our household survey the total landholding size by the 32 households is 12.1

bighas. Out of that the Generals have 6.8 bighas of land, the OBCs have 5.3 bighas of land and

the SCs have no landholding at all. The land distribution pattern has been graphically represented

in the following chart.

halwai

malla

halwaihalwai

halwai

halwai

halwai

kayasth

yadav

yadav

dhanuk

dhanukdhanuk

brahmin

brahmin

brahminbrahmin

brahmin

yadav

yadavyadav

yadavkayasthyadav

malla

malla

malla

malla

kayasth

kayasthchamar

chamar

-50000

0

50000

100000

150000

200000

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35

Savings of Villagers on Caste Basis

HOUSEHOLDS

ANNUAL

SAVINGS

IN

RUPEES


Agricultural land is abundant in the village. Most of the agricultural land in the village has been

taken over by the Mukhiya of the Panchayat who himself resides in a different village and are

controlled by him and his supporters. Out of the 32 households we surveyed, 8 belong to the

General category, 22 belong to the OBC category and 2 belong to the SC category. Out of the 8

General category households, 4 have landholdings, out of the 22 OBC category households, 10

have landholdings and the 2 SC households have no landholdings at all. A graphic representation

of the percentage of landholdings with respect to sample population is shown in the following

page.

General56%

OBC44%

SC0%

Land Distribution Pattern


We have also calculated the savings of the migrated villagers who have landholding and plotted

them on a trend line on the basis of caste category.

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Total Population Percentage of People Having LandholdingsSC 2 0

OBC 22 45.455

General 8 50

Per

cen

tage

Percentage of Landholdings with respect to Sample Population

BC

BC BC

General

General

GeneralBC BC

BC

BC

BC

BC

General

-20000

0

20000

40000

60000

80000

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14

Savings of Migrated Villagers with Landholdings

Savings of Migrated Villagers with Landholdings

Linear (Savings of Migrated Villagers with Landholdings)

ANNUAL

SAVINGS

IN

RUPEES

HOUSEHOLDS


We have also calculated the savings of the migrated villagers who have no landholding and

plotted them on a trend line on the basis of caste category.

From the above two analytical trend lines we can come to the conclusion that the savings of

villagers from General category are the highest irrespective of landholdings. However the trend

line moves upward for the villagers without landholdings than with landholdings. This is due to

the fact that for villagers with landholdings, savings is usually low since a large portion of the

savings is invested in agricultural activities in the village.

Migration and its Role in Impacting Livelihood

A unique yet alarming fact about the Ghanshyampur village is the pattern of migration the

villagers follow. When we used to go for household surveys in the village, we used to notice that

there were hardly any middle aged men or youth left in the village. Almost the entire current

village population consists of women, children and senior citizens. Out of the 32 households we

surveyed, members from 28 households have migrated inter or intra state on account of

livelihood. Migration from the village in search of livelihood used to be a necessary mean of

staying alive pre 2009 when devastating floods of the Bagmati river used to ravage the entire

BC

BC

BC

BC

BC

BC

BCBC

GeneralBC General

BC

General

scsc

-50000

0

50000

100000

150000

200000

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16

Savings of Migrated Villagers without Landholdings

Savings of Migrated Villagers without Landholdings

Linear (Savings of Migrated Villagers without Landholdings)

ANNUAL

SAVINGS

IN

RUPEES


village. But since two years the situation has changed with the construction of the ring dam

around the Bagmati river. Floods have become a thing of the past and agricultural activities

occur abundantly on the fertile alluvial soil left behind by the Bagmati river. However migration,

as a mean of achieving livelihood has not receded and has increased over the years. Villagers

from all castes-higher or lower alike have migrated in search of livelihood. Migration occurs

both on seasonal and on perennial pattern. In case of seasonal migration, migration occurs during

the non-cropping seasonand generally takes place for 9-10 months in a year. In case of perennial

migration, migrants generally stay out of the village for entire year except a few days of the

festival months. Perennial migration is generally seen among the upper General castes like

Bhumihars and Kayasths who have control over resources in the village and among the absolute

bottom level castes like Chamars, Doms and Musahars who have no resources at all. In between

these two categories, generally seasonal migration pattern is seen among the other castes.

The two principal destinations where the maximum villagers of Ghanshyampur have migrated in

search of livelihood are Jaipur and Mumbai. Some have migrated intra state to te districts and

towns of Bihar like Patna, Chhapra and Muzaffarpur. The villagers who have migrated intra-state

generally belong to the Chamars, Doms and Musahars of SC category. The choice of destination

of migration is strongly determined by social networks-villagers from a particular caste tend to

go to the same destination and into similar occupations. Distance and transport facilities or living

conditions are not as important in determining the choice of destination.

In Jaipur, the migrant laborers from the Ghanshyampur village generally engage in stone quarries

as daily wage laborers with an average wage rate of Rs120-140 per day. Accommodation and

two square meals are provided by the quarry owners. In some cases medical facilities are also

provided by the privately held stone quarry owners. This means the daily wage laborers in Jaipur

has a monthly income of Rs3600-4200. The average daily expenditure in Jaipur is Rs70-80. This

means the average daily savings of each worker is Rs.50-60 which means average monthly

savings id Rs.1500-1800. The savings is a little more if medical expenses are provided by the

quarry owners. The laborers are able to send the savings back to their families in the village.

The laborers from the Ghanshyampur village who have migrated to Mumbai generally engage in

masonry and daily wage labor in ironworks. The average daily wage rate in Mumbai is Rs.150.


Accommodation and two square meals or at least one square meals are provided by the masonry

contractors or ironworks owners. Mumbai being an expensive city, expenditures are very high

for the migrant laborers. But at the same time Mumbai presents multiple income opportunities.

Most of the migrant laborers here work as apprentice laborers in food joints or tea stalls or drive

taxi on contract or hire basis. This increases the income opportunities of the migrant laborers.

The average daily wage rate can go up to as high as Rs.350. This means the average monthly

income reaches up to Rs10500. The average daily expenditure for a migrant daily wage laborer

in Mumbai is Rs200. So the average daily savings of the migrant daily wage laborer is about

Rs150 which tallies up to Rs1800 per month. The laborer is able to send the savings back to their

families in the village.

The choices of livelihood in case of migrant laborers dosen’t depend on skill sets or education. It

generally takes place on the basis of family or caste lineage. For example if a senior villager of

Kurmi caste is engaged in masonry it is generally seen that other villagers of the same caste will

engage in similar occupation irrespective of possessing certain distinct or other sets of skills.

Work in these cases is learnt in “chela-guru” (master-apprentice) setup. A villager will work

under the tutelage of his senior caste member for some years before breaking off and working on

his own. As long as he works in the master-apprentice setup he needs to share his income with

his master.

In the course of Focused Group Discussion and numerous Informal Group Discussions with the

villagers, we found that the marginalized Scheduled Castes are the utmost sufferers in the

village. They generally work in derogatory and errand jobs in and around Bihar. The condition of

the Chamars, Doms and Musahars are the worst. By caste they belong to the lowest layer of the

social pyramid. Since caste system prevails supreme in the village, they are not allowed to have

access to any resources in the village since they are regarded as untouchables by the upper

castes. They could not migrate interstate as well since caste system prevails in migrated form of

livelihood as well. They are not allowed access to the jobs being held by other villagers of higher

castes than them. Consequently they work as sweepers in government buildings or roads, waiters

at cheap hotels or garbage cleaners in and around Bihar particularly in towns like Muzaffarpur,

Patna and Chhapra at a meager wage rate of Rs50 per day. They are generally provided

accommodation and three meals a day. Their average daily expenditure is Rs 30 per day which


tallies up to an average daily savings of Rs20 or average monthly savings of Rs600. This is the

main reason why the condition of the marginalized Scheduled Castes is the worst among the

villagers in Ghanshyampur. Child labor is mostly found among the poor and marginalized

Scheduled Castes.

A very interesting fact about the villagers in Ghanshyampur is that even people from higher

castes namely Bhumihars and Kayasths have migrated in search of livelihood. This happens

despite the fact that these castes command considerable resources including land and many of

them are highly educated. Permanent migration is also seen among these castes. It happens due

to multiple reasons. The Kayasths are known to be learned caste. Most people from Kayasth

caste including women are well educated and since there are no employment opportunities in the

village, they have migrated permanently to the metropolitan cities and have taken up government

or private service. They permanently stay out of the village and return for only a few days during

the festival season. The story with the Bhumihar Brahmins are however different. The

Bhumihars have maximum landholdings in the village. In spite of this, they migrate interstate

and work as daily wage laborers in stone quarries, as masons or as contract laborers in other’s

agricultural fields. The educated Bhumihars migrate permanently to metropolitan cities and take

up government or private services. A couple of years back, before the ring dam was constructed,

Bhumihars used to migrate in search of livelihood since most of their agricultural lands used to

get flooded. Despite the recession in flooding, practice of migration still continues. Though the

Bhumihars have agricultural lands, farming is hardly done on the lands by the villagers or their

families. Bhumihars belong to upper caste. It is a taboo for them in Bihar to work in their own

fields. In other villages the Bhumihars employ laborers of lower caste to work in their own

fields. In Ghanshyampur, since there is hardly any middle aged man or youth of lower caste left

in the village, there is no one to work in the fields. Another reason why farming is not practiced

by the villagers is that before the ring dam was built two years ago there wasn’t any advent of

agriculture for decades due to disastrous floods of the Bagmati river. So most of the villagers do

not even know the farming techniques or utilization of land. Consequently the land remains

unutilized or the Bhumihars give it on lease to Bhumihars or Rajputs of other villages and

themselves migrate interstate in search of livelihood.


Reasons for Migration in search of Livelihood

The primary occupation of the villagers of Ghanshyampur is daily wage labor due to which most

of them have migrated interstate or intra state. We have averaged the income heads of the 32

households we surveyed and presented a graphical representation below.

From the above pie-chart we see that daily wage labor is the primary source of income with 56%

contribution followed by salaried jobs and agriculture which is mostly practiced by upper castes

of the General and OBC category. There is no other significant source of income of the villagers

of Ghanshyampur.

We have averaged the expenditure heads of the 32 households we surveyed and presented a

graphic representation below.

9%

56%

14%

6%

10%5%

Average Income Heads

Agricultural

Wages Labour

Salaried job

Livestock

Business

Others


From the above pie-chart we can clearly see that food consumption is the single-most

expenditure head which consumes about 71% of the total expenditure of the family followed by

health care and interest payments which contribute 7% each. This happens due to the fact that

each family has an average of 8 members including men, women and children.

Having more number of members in a family is a significant reason for migration to earn

livelihood. The middle aged men and youth consumes maximum food in a family since they are

the working people and need more calories for sustenance of work throughout the day.

Healthcare expenses is also more for them since they are most likely to fall sick being exposed to

different working conditions. We have also graphically represented the average income,

expenditures and savings pattern of the 32 households we surveyed.

71%

3%2%

7%

4%3%

1%7%

1% 1%

Average Expenditure Heads

Food Consum

Clothing

Toiletries

Health Care

Education

Festivals

Social Functions

Int Payments

Fertilizers

Pesticides


From the above pie-chart we see that expenditure for each family is very high at almost 40% and

only 10% is the savings. For the Scheduled Castes the savings is much less than 10% in most

cases. In this situation if the middle-aged men and youth migrate in search of livelihood, it

significantly brings down the food consumption and healthcare expenses of the family, thereby

reducing the total expenditure. Out of the 28 of the 32 households we surveyed, who have

migrated on account of livelihood, each one reported that they are provided accommodation and

at least three meals on an average per day at their destination workplace. In some cases they are

provided healthcare expenses as well.

Another reason for the mass migration from the village in search of livelihood is the availability

of easy employment opportunities at places like Jaipur, Mumbai and Delhi. The migrant villagers

agree to work at cheap wage rates than the locals. They also do not complain about the living

conditions or the quality of food provided to them. At the same wage rate of Rs150, laborers of

the same level from Maharashtra will never work. But at this wage rate the migrant laborers from

Bihar are ready to work. The migrant laborers from Bihar are considered to be physically vey fit

and can work for long hours with minimum food and rest at hazardous working conditions.

Another reason why the migrant laborers from Bihar are favorite choice of the contractors or

stone quarry or ironworks owner of Maharashtra, Jaipur and Delhi is that they do not engage

themselves in activities like labor or trade unionists which may hamper production and is

generally a problem with Maharashtrian laborers.

Attraction of city life is another important reason for migration in search of livelihood by the

villagers. This trend is particularly common among t he upper castes especially the Kayasth

caste. Due to lack of education infrastructure in the village, they migrate to big cities for

education. There they get attracted to city life and permanently stay back in the cities by getting

50%

40%

10%

Average Income, Expenditure and Savings Pattern

Income

Expenditure

Savings


into government or private service. Mass migration to large metropolitan cities occur since these

cities also provide abundant resources and multiple employment opportunities. As we discussed

the earlier, the migrant laborers of Ghanshyampur also engage in other forms of livelihoods like

working at tea-stalls or restaurants and driving taxis on hire or contract on part-time basis. The

Bhumihars are zamindars by ascribed status and are forbidden from doing petty jobs like daily

wage labor in ironworks, as masons or in other’s agricultural fields. Once found doing these

types of jobs, they will be socially secluded. In big cities however, due to the cosmopolitan

culture, they do not face this kind of situation and therefore prefer migration to earn livelihoods.

Impact of Migration for Livelihood: The Pros and The

Cons

As we have seen from our earlier discussions, 28 out of 32 households we sampled for our

household surveys have migrated in search of livelihood. Till now we have discussed about the

reasons for such migration. In this section we are going to talk about the impact of such

migration due to livelihoods. We will also highlight the pros and the cons of engaging in these

types of livelihoods.

The good thing about migration is that it has increased the per capita income of the villagers. In

the case of the poorest unskilled laborers it has helped to smooth income and improve food

security. The migrants can send enough money back home which meets two square meals of the

family. For the upper caste Bhumihars, migration has resulted in rejuvenation of agricultural

activities. The money they earn in the other states are sent back home which finances the

agricultural activities back in the village. The seasonal migrants come back to the village during

the cropping season when they get employment in the village itself as sharecroppers or as

laborers in agricultural fields though at very low wage rates. All migrant laborers return to the

village twice in a year during the Holi and Diwali or Chhat. Income is lowest during the Diwali-

Chhat period and expenditures are very high. Income however is not very low during the Holi

period because the migrants find employment and livelihood in the village, March being a

harvesting month. From the numerous Informal Group Discussions, the personal interviews and

the Focused Group Discussion we conducted with the villagers, nearly all migrant laborers or

their families said that accommodation is provided at the destination workplace and meals are

provided regularly. There is no racial discrimination or oppression at the workplace and

sometimes healthcare is also provided.

Due to migration, the marginalized Scheduled Casts have been able to attain sustainable

livelihood. Castes like the Doms, Chamars and Musahars are socially secluded and most


oppressed in the village. There is no employment opportunities for them in the village. Finding

employment interstate is also difficult for them. Now due to interstate migration, they are able to

find sustainable livelihood. Although the wage rate is very low, they get accommodation and

meals and are able to sustain the food consumption and healthcare expenses for their families.

Migration on account of livelihood has also reduced the dependency on sahukars and mahajans

or moneylenders. Two years back during the time of flood, the villagers used to take loan from

the local moneylenders who used to charge exorbitant rates of interest since the villagers used to

have food availability for 7-9 months on an average. The villagers thus used to fall in a perpetual

debt trap as they could never repay the loans and every year the amount used to increase. They

were thus forced to work in the money-lenders’ agricultural fields without any payments.

Children of the villagers were often forced into this kind of labor. The condition was much more

severe for the marginalized Scheduled Caste people. They were not given loans by the mahajans

since the former were regarded as untouchables. Even if loan was given to them the interest

charged from them was much higher than the other castes. For most part of the year the

Scheduled Castes were not even able to provide two square meals to their families. But due to

migration on account of livelihood, they now have sustainable income which has considerably

improved their food security.

Everything however is not so good for the migrant laborers. The migrant laborers often work in

hazardous conditions at the workplace. In the Focused Group Discussion and personal

interviews, nearly all of the migrant laborers complained that conditions at the workplace are

extremely dangerous. There is no proper equipment for disposal of the stone dust in the stone

quarries or the toxins and smoke in the ironworks. The workers are not even provided basic

equipments like dust or gas masks. In this context we will cite a report which appeared in The

Times of India newspaper on the 6th of September 2008.

“Labourers dying a slow death [Jaipur]

Times of India, The, Sep 6, 2008

JAIPUR: The flip side of stone with universal appeal is also occupational health hazards among

thousands of stone quarry workers in the state. A large number of quarry workers die a slow

death without any compensation from their employers, having no proof to link their illness to

their work.

"We get a lot of patients from all over the country with tuberculosis that actually is silico

tuberculosis. At an advanced stage silicosis is an incurable disease that develops over a period

of time, mostly among workers in silica-related industries. Many of its symptoms are similar to

those of tuberculosis. In fact, TB is often a direct result of silicosis and the mining industry is a

great cause of occupational diseases," said Dr Narendra Khippal at TB sanatorium in Jaipur.


The sandstone quarrying has been established as the largest industry of Jodhpur where more

than hundred thousand workers are employed for quarrying and related activities.

Stones are primarily quarried by manual methods but now heavy machines are also used. In the

process of stone quarrying, particulate matter is generated and the workers involved in the

different activities are exposed to the polluted environment during working hours (8hrs/day) and

this creates health problems for the workers.

"Silicosis is one of the oldest occupational diseases. The working capacity of workers starts

decreasing with the increase of working duration in quarries. This decrease in working capacity

is because of the damages in the respiratory tract due to deposition of RSPM," said Dr Khippal.

Rajasthan is the treasure-trove of sandstone with more than 90% share of Indian sandstone

deposits found here. In the last decade, sandstone quarrying, processing and marketing in

Rajasthan have achieved a remarkable growth and it is also a source of livelihood for thousands

of workers. For centuries sandstone is being used, not only in India but all over the world for

different purposes.

The wide scale architectural application of sandstone can be seen in different monuments,

temples and buildings in India, like the Red Forts of Delhi and Agra; palaces and buildings of

Fatehpur Sikri, Deeg, Kota, Bikaner, Jodhpur and Jaisalmer; Parliament House, Rashtrapati

Bhavan, Supreme Court building and Akshardham temple in Delhi, Mehrangarh fort and Umaid

Bhawan palace at Jodhpur and Rajasthan Assembly House in Jaipur. Yet it continues to pose a

very real threat to quarry workers on a daily basis and kills thousands around the world every

year.

Copyright Bennett, Coleman & Company Limited Sep 6, 2008

Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved”

There are no health or life insurance policies for the migrant laborers. Compensation in case of

accidental death or disability of a migrant laborer is meager and that too is not compulsory. The

migrant laborers generally do not have any bargaining power or voice their grievances in case of

wages. They are paid very low wages for the amount and the type of work they generally engage

in. the migrant laborers are provided accommodation but it is seldom hygienic. Sometimes even

basic hygienic facilities are not provided and the migrant laborers are put up in dingy slums.

Most of the migrant respondents told us that they suffer from severe breathing problems and

respiratory diseases at the workplace. Diarrhea, malaria, tuberculosis are also common. Due to

long periods of separation from the family, the migrant laborers suffer from low self-esteem, low

self confidence and low morale. This induces them to engage in activities like smoking,

alcoholism, gambling, doing drugs and dangerous sexual behavior. These sorts of activities take

a serious toll on the migrant laborers’ health and expose them to a multitude of diseases

including cancer and HIV/AIDS. The effect of migration due to livelihood on the families of the

migrant laborers back at the village is not good either. There are hardly any middle aged men or

youth found in the entire village. The entire population of the middle aged men or youth has


migrated leaving behind the vulnerable womenfolk, the children and the senior citizens. There is

no one to take care of the family in case of an emergency situation like death or disease of a

family member. Crimes are common in the village especially theft and dacoity. Women are left

without socio-emotional support and we heard accounts of women indulging in illicit

relationships with men of other villages which bring drastic impacts to her own family. The

migrant laborers get so low on self morale that they themselves engage in heinous crimes. In

order to depict how critical the situation is we present the following incident which we came to

know while interacting with a villager.

“Still waiting for justice……..

Today on 16th

feb 2010 as we are continuing our HSS we reached to a house which is on the

bank of the canal which passes by the west of the village. The canal is the main water resource of

the village. The family head was not at home so we talked to his wife named Sita devi the family

belongs to Hajjam (Barbers)community. The family lives in a small house of 2 or three rooms

made of phush (a commonly found weed grass used to make house). The house was also not in

very good condition as like the economic condition of the household. The family head along with

his two boys of age 17 and 13 yrs works as Agri-labourer in tobacco field with a daily house

hold earning of Rs 150 per day to feed his family of 8 members. While talking about the family‟s

economic condition she told us that sustainable livelihood is a tough question here because of

the power dynamics of the village where the people of particular castes have dominancy over the

resources and as they belong to the lower caste every time they were kept deprived of their needs

as well as rights. When asked the question related to family crisis that may the family may have

faced during last 5 yrs, we were expecting the answer to be related to flood which is the common

reason of crisis for the village but she told us some thing different. She described the whole

incident which led them to major crisis for the family. She told us that she had a girl child also


but last she lost her not because of her death due to some disease or some other reasons but

because she have been murdered brutally. While making these statements she started crying she

told about the day when this incident happened. That was a night of the summery day when they

usually use to sleep in their courtyard. Her daughter also slept in the courtyard along with her

family members but the was on other cot. In morning when the family members got up they found

her missing they searched for her every where the whole day but they didn‟t find her. Their

search continued for three days even the some of the villagers started searching for her. They

look in each and every corner of the village they even approached to the nearby villages but they

didn‟t got her. After three days they got information that the body of her daughter has been

found near the bank of the canal. The dead body was in bad condition the body was smelling and

the part of the decayed body was eaten up by the foxes that is usually found in the village. The

body was in such a bad condition that it was really hard to identify it. The both the hands and

legs of the body were not there , the throat was cut and it was very clear that the child was

murdered. The some of the prima-facie observations of the body also made it very clear that the

child was first Raped and then murdered. The girl‟s body was buried as after the murder to hide

any evidences. The most disappointing part of the whole story is that the family in spite of

having such a crisis in the family they didn‟t approached to the police for help. When asked the

reason of not approaching to the police the lady told us that if she would have called the police

that time the police would have asked for money and in spite of helping them it would have

tortured them as this behavior of the police was very clear by the several interventions that

police made in different cases in the village in the past. The biggest dilemma is that the lady even

says that she knowns who could be the person who had that done this but as because the person

belongs to the dominating Yadav community of the village so she can‟t even question him

without any specific proof.”

According to the respondent, the murderers were villagers from Ghanshyampur who returned

home during Diwali. The above incident depicts the low morale and self esteem from which the

migrant villagers suffer which induces them to take such atrocious steps.

The Role of Panchayat in Inducing Migration for

Livelihood

It is long been known that if the head man of a house is strong and honest, the household is sure

to flourish else it will disintegrate. Panchayat plays the role of head man or father figure of a

village. The misfortune of Ghanshyampur village is that the Panchayat virtually doesn’t exist and

the Mukhiya of the Panchayat is a corrupt person. The apathy of the Panchayat and the Mukhiya

is being discussed in the following report we have prepared on the Panchayat of Ghanshyampur.


“Report on Panchayat of Ghanshyampur

The panchayat building of ghanshyampur is located in the ghanshyampur village just beside the

Utkramit Rajya Madhya Vidyalaya. Mrs.Bina Thakur ,a Bhumihar Brahmin is the Mukhiya or

the head of the Panchayat. Being a conservative Bhumihar widow, she never steps out of her

palatial house in Gangli village. She is the third Mukhiya from the same family. Her father-in-

law, Late Shri BhagyaNarayan Thakur was the first panchayat mukhiya of Ghanshyampur

village. He was a very honest and respected man during the 80s. the village road was

constructed by him he was known in the village for his honesty, compassion, hard-working

nature and love for his fellow villagers. Mrs Bina Thakur„s husband, Late Shri KrishnaKumar

Thakur was the second Mukhiya of the village. He was an equally respectable man.during his

regime electrification of the Ghanshyampur village took place. Presently the panchayat is run by

Amol Thakur, son of Late Shri KrishnaKumar Thakur on Mrs. Bina Thakur„s behalf.

Under the leadership of Mr. Amol Thakur the condition of the Ghanshyampur village has

become pathetic. The sheer apathy and lack of initiative of Mr. Amol Thakur has worsened the

already dwindling living condition of the Ghanshyampur villagers. According to the villagers,

the acting Mukhiya is a corrupt person. Only people loyal to him and already commands

enormous resources got the benefit of the government schemes. Mr . Thakur is a young man of

25-26 years of age, lives in a concrete house in Gangli village.which is the size of a football field

and drives a Bolero luxury series car. He has his personal secretary and four bodyguards.

A couple of years back the floods of Bagmati river used to drown the entire Ghanshyampur

village. After construction of the dam, the floods have stopped but a major part of the lowlands

connecting Ghanshyampur and Madhopur, the arterial village on NH77, the lifeline of Urai

block connecting Aurai with Sitamarhi, Saidpur and Muzaffarpur has been inundated from

where flood water never receded.the water at this time is knee-deep but during the monsoon it

can be chest-high. There is no footbridge over this lowland or chaur for villagers to cross safely.

Fifteen children have already drowned and died in this chaur over the years during the

monsoon. Repeated applications to Mr.Thakur to construct a bridge have fallen to deaf ears. A

small footbridge of 20 feet has been constructed over the irrigation canal between Takia and

Ghaghri Tola which Mr. Thakur said cost 24lakhs but it serves no purpose. According to

villagers, the bridge was concretised using mortar mixture in the ratio of 22:1 and is so weak

and unstable that it will fall like a deck of cards under the pressure of a small car or tractor. No

roads in the village have been metalled. Walking on these roads during the day time is life

threatening. Medical emergencies during the night time especially labor of pregnant women is

sure to turn fatal if tried to reach hospital over these roads.


The village does not have a basic PHC. For treatment villagers have to travel more than 10Kms

to Runni Saidpur. No health camps have ever been conducted in the village during the tenure of

Mr Amol Thakur. The village school has 320 students with only three teachers and no mid day

meal has been allocated for the past six months. Electricity in the village has long been lost and

the wooden electric poles and wires stand as remnants of the days of the father of Mr. Thakur.

Ghanshyampur village still lives in the dark ages. Mr. Thakur charges Rs.10000 as bribe for the

allocation of Indira Awas Yogana(Rs. 35000) to each villager. The poor have been allocated

APL cards while those with resources have got BPL cards. Most people have not been provided

NREGA card. People who have got the card have not been provided any work since any

development or construction work in the village is done by hiring contract laborers at cheap

rates by Mr. Thakur .Few villagers who got work have not been given payment. No sanitation

facility is provided in the village. The entire village is an open defecation ground.

When we met Mr. Amol Thakur, he was so non-cooperating that he didn‟t even provide us a map

of the village or its census data. On Republic day he didn‟t even come to the Panchayat office of

the village to hoist the National Flag. He has not facilitated a single Gram Sabha during his

tenurity. After monsoon when agricultural land reallocation is done he colludes with local

toughs and provides maximum land to his loyalists.

One look at Ghanshyampur village and it seems like the administration has forgotten the

existence of this village on the face of developing and shining India.”

The above case study depicts the apathy of the Panchayat which has induced migration at such

large scale in search of livelihood. The upper castes like the Kayasths and Bhumihars have

migrated because there is no scope for employment in the village. The Kayasths especially have

migrated due to lack of educational infrastructure. Forcible takeover of lands by the Mukhiya has

further complicated the situation. The uneven and unethical distribution of facilities like BPL,

PDS and NREGA card has added to the woes of the villager especially the already marginalized

Scheduled Castes for whom no employment could be possible in the village. Furthermore the

lack of awareness and the oppression of the Mukhiya over the years have created a strong belief

within the villagers that nothing good or productive is possible within the village and livelihood

can only be found when they migrate to other states. This is the principal reason why inspite of

gaining work skills the migrant laborers are reluctant to apply the same in their own village and

thereby increase the employment opportunities in the village itself.


Alternative Livelihood Option

Till now we have discussed about the livelihood of the villagers of Ghanshyampur, their

migration pattern, the reasons for migration in search of livelihood and the role of Panchayat in

inducing migration. In this section we are going to discuss about the alternative livelihood

options that can be generated for the villagers given the current resources. From our study we

have found that 21 out of the 32 respondents we surveyed had livestock and most of them have

cows, buffaloes and goats. As part of talternative livelihood option we can set up a dairy

cooperative. The distribution pattern of livestock has been graphically represented below.

From the above graph we see that the distribution of livestock is more or less even among the

different castes. The method of implementation of the idea of dairy cooperative is discussed in

the following points.

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hal

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Gen Gen Gen Gen sc sc BC BC BC BC BC BC BC BC BC BC BC BC BC BC BC

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FORMATION OF DAIRY COOPERATIVE

The baseline surveys of the 32 households have shown certain very interesting data about

Ghanshyampur village like migration of villagers from every household in search of livelihood

and presence of certain distinct skillsets among specific castes as we have discussed earlier in

our report. One of our principal aims of Rural Action Component is to generate means of

livelihood for the villagers in order to curb the migration and improve the standard of living of

the villagers. From the data we gathered from the baseline surveys we found that 16 out of the 32

households have livestocks in the form of cow, buffalo, goat and bullocks. The Yadav caste is

traditionally good livestock keepers. We conceived the idea of formation of dairy cooperative

while we were doing Informal Group Discussion with villagers in Vaishali district. From the

different informal discussions and one-to-one interviews we had with the villagers in

Ghanshyampur district, we came to know that local contractors used to buy milk from villagers

at just Rs10-12 per litre. There is no guarantee that the contractors will buy milk everyday and

the days they don’t buy milk, it gets wasted. The cost of maintaining each livestock is Rs50-70

per day. Each livestock produces an average of 4-5 litres of milk per day. This means average

income per livestock per day is Rs40-60 which means villagers are forced to sell milk at a loss or

at break-even ie. No profit no loss situation for most of the days. In this way the income

generation potential of the livestock gets wasted. Moreover there is no veterinary or Animal

Healthcare Center in the village. Our idea is to increase the income of every household in the

village and ensure that livestock is optimally utilized and taken care of.

Objectives of Formation of Dairy Cooperative

The principle objectives of formation of dairy cooperative are:

Increase the income of the villagers.

Optimal utilization of livestock.

Generate source of livelihood for marginalized and landless villagers.

Create self-help-groups and develop Ghanshyampur village into a dairy cooperative hub

based on the Anand model of Gujarat.

Method of Implementation

The idea of dairy cooperative will be implemented in a number of phases. In the first phase a

group of 10 people having livestock will be formed. Our host organization will employ a

veterinary doctor who will ensure proper vaccination and treatment of the livestocks and provide

awareness to these 10 villagers on proper maintainance of livestock. In this phase the milk

yielding capacity of each livestock will be measured and the purity of the milk will be tested and

the livestock will be grouped accordingly. Steps will be taken to increase the productivity of each

livestock. The second phase will be implemented after two months. In the second phase, our host

organization will contact Sudha Dairy. The Bihar State Cooperative Milk Producers’ Federation


Limited(COMPFED) or what we know as Sudha dairy was established in 1983 as the

implementing agency of Operation Flood Programme of dairy development on ‘Amul’ pattern in

Bihar. There are five district level Milk Producers’ Cooperative Unions affiliated to the Milk

Federation. These milk unions are covering twenty-two districts and in addition four districts are

covered by the Federation itself. The milk union which services the Muzaffarpur district is the

Tirhut Milk Union. It covers Muzaffarpur, Sitamarhi, Sheohar, East Champaran, West

Champaran, Siwan and Gopalganj districts. Sitamarhi district is 4Kms north of Ghanshyampur

village. Our host organization will negotiate with Sudha Dairy to open a milk collection centre in

Ghanshyampur village. The Sudha Dairy pays each farmer Rs.15 for per litre of milk. From the

farmers in Vaishali district we came to know that Sudha Dairy provides quality fodder for cattle

at their milk collection centres. If that is the case, then farmers of Ghanshyampur village can

access fodder directly from collection centres at the time of delivering milk. Thereby the

transportation cost of procurement of fodder will decrease and the overall cost of maintainance

of livestock will reduce. The income per day from sale of milk to Sudha Dairy will be Rs.60-75.

With improvement in milk yielding capacity of the livestock, this income is sure to increase. The

Sudha Dairy also employs trained veterinary doctors at their milk collection centres and runs

awareness programs from time to time for proper maintenance of livestock. From the farmers of

Vaishali district we came to know that Sudha Dairy also runs contests among farmers and

rewards the farmer whose livestock yields maximum milk. The principal advantage of having

contract with Sudha Dairy is that they buy milk from farmers everyday throughout the year and

the milk of farmers never get wasted unlike local contractors and middlemen. Sudha Dairy also

pays incentive to farmers who supplies more milk during the festival and ‘lagan’ or wedding

season when demand fror milk is maximum. The third or the final phase of our idea will be the

expansion of the dairy cooperative. 50% of the profits generated by the group of 10 farmers from

the sale of milk will be deposited with the leader of the group who will be elected by the group

members. When the group will have savings of Rs.10000 in their reserves, a second group of

another 10 farmers will be formed in exactly the same way as the first group. The first group of

farmers can provide loan upto a maximum of Rs.8000 to the second group as and when

necessary on nominal interest rates. When the second group has a savings of Rs .10000 in their

reserves, a third group will be formed. The first two groups can loan out a maximum of rs.16000

collectively to the third group on nominal interest rates. In this way, gradually the villagers who

do not have any livestock will also come under the purview of these self-help-groups. When

there will be several groups, the collective loan amounts will be enough to purchase livestock.

Each group can train the other groups on optimum utilization of livestock and techniques such as

artificial insemination of livestock to produce better breeds of cattle. Each group should always

maintain a minimum balance of Rs.2000 in their reserve balance so as to meet the group

members’ contingency expenditures. The formation of dairy cooperative we believe will not only

increase the income of the people and ensure optimum utilization of livestock, but also improve

the living conditions of the marginalized, landless villagers, improve cohesiveness and harmony


among the different castes in the village and with proper execution can write a success story like

the anand village of Gujarat.

Factors Determining Success

Our research has presented the following factors which we believe will be conducive to the

success of our idea:

Presence of livestock in most households in the village.

Presence of large Yadav caste in the village.

Presence of a large marginalized and landless population in the village.

Urge among the villagers to increase their income and improve their own standard of

living.

Operations of Sudha Dairy in less than 4Kms. in the Sitamarhi district of North Bihar.

Presence of good breeds of livestock with the villagers.

The photographs of some of the livestock the villagers own which prompted us the idea of

having a Dairy Coopeative are shown in the next page:


Conclusion

In doing the livelihood portfolio analysis and the cash flow analysis of the villagers of

Ghanshyampur we researched the topics from different aspects and found migration to be the

single most important factor in shaping a villager’s livelihood decision. Migration on account of

livelihood has its sets of positive and negative impacts on the life of the villagers. During the

course of the analysis, we tried to touch the different aspects of the villagers’ livelihood and the

factors affecting them and we believe that the alternative livelihood we generated in addition to

proper socio-economic support by local and government authorities will curtail the time of

migration by the villagers and increase the per capita income thereby improving the standard of

living of the villagers which will be a conducive factor to the overall development of the village.

References

http://findarticles.com/p/news-articles/times-of-india-

the/mi_8012/is_20080906/labourers-dying-slow-death-jaipur/ai_n39501245/

www.wikipedia.org

http://nrega.nic.in/

The Role of Migration and Remittances in Promoting Livelihoods in Bihar by Priya

Deshingkar, Sushil Kumar, Harendra Kumar Chobey and Dhananjay Kumar

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