By virtue of our focus on the poorest of the poor, many of
IFAD assisted projects are implemented in the most
remote and difficult areas and with some of the most
marginalized communities. The difficulties that projects face
are multi layered—ranging from geographical, sociological,
developmental, economic to historical—and manifest
themselves in myriad ways to challenge implementation at
various stages, and in some instances every day. Successfully
overcoming these odds is one of the most significant
achievements of projects, and one which is often
inadequately reflected in the numbers and data that are
presented in reports.
In recognition of the tremendous courage,
dedication and hard work that is put in by
project teams, especially the last mile worker
who faces hostility of terrains and mindsets
alike, we decided to dedicate this edition of the
newsletter to the theme of Overcoming
challenging situations to bring development to
the poor.
This edition covers human interest stories that
attempt to capture the diverse forms of hardship
that projects have faced, and continue to face
and how they have dealt with them in the course
of implementation. We recognise that these may
be too complex to present in a short and
simplistic story format. But at least they give a
flavour of the context and the odds against
which the results are achieved. If some projects
are not covered in this edition it may simply
mean that capturing and putting their challenges
into words was not possible for one reason or
another.
On behalf of the IFAD India Team I thank you
for sharing your experiences with us and hope
you find it as inspiring and useful as we do.
Meera Mishra
India Country Coordinator
Ms. Mary Hmar, ([email protected])
Project Technical Officer, NCHCRMS, Haflong,
Assam
Dima Hasao district (formerly N.C Hills
District), is one of the hill districts of Assam
known for its diverse cultures and many
rhythms representing a fascinating ethnic,
cultural and tribal mix. A major portion of the
area is covered by hilly terrain and 80% of the
land is categorised as non-agricultural barren
land. The district is sparsely populated with a
density of only 38 people per square kilometre.
Most of the project villages are not easily
approachable by road, which makes it difficult to
provide immediate relief during any emergency
situation.
The district once had a vast area of forest
coverage with valuable forest resources such as
bamboo. But due to population increases,
unemployment and a decline in crop
productivity, the people’s dependency on the
forest as a source for livelihood has led to its
rapid degradation, and is now a major
environmental challenge. The main source of
livelihood of local communities is through
shifting cultivation (Jhuming) which the
communities consider as a traditional and
ritualistic system. Jhum produce is sufficient for
only for 5-6 months of the year (per family) and
the source of livelihood for the remaining
months are daily wage labour and collection of
NTFPs from the forest and selling them in the
local market in return for a handful of grains.
The regeneration of vegetation and formation of
secondary forest has become constrained due to
the shortening of jhum cycles, which does not
allow sufficient time for regeneration. These
communities, dependent on the increasingly
denuded land become increasingly marginalized,
leading a subsistence life style. This in turn adds
to their ecological and economic
impoverishment. The district has been plagued
with under development for a long time, which
is further exacerbated by a huge unemployment
problem.
The struggle against such growing odds and the
demand for identity and development by the
local communities gradually gave birth to
militancy and insurgency. Economically too the
Dima Hasao (NC Hills) is slow to progress. In
this backdrop, insurgency became dangerously
authoritative over the recent past. One of the
factors fuelling insurgency in the district is the
cornering of most political and economic
benefits by the dominant ethnic group. This
creates insecurity and tension among the other
ethnic communities afflicted by scarcity of
opportunities and resources.
Lack of development is, no doubt, a serious
problem, but the root cause of insurgency and
the growing strength of secessionist sentiments
lie in these deeply-rooted grievances. Ethnic
militias have also become part of civil society.
In the process of ethnic conflicts, social
institutions are affected the most, developmental
activities suffer and effectiveness of governance is
eroded. The unending conflicts are reflected in
the breakdown of public order and the
deterioration of inter-community relationship.
History, tribe wise location of villages,
communal feeling and biased allocation of
developmental schemes among the tribes in the
district council have combined to make the
people feel isolated and alienated from each
other and also from the rest of the district and
state.
The on-going ‘Ethnic Cleansing’ launched by
various outfits against the innocent civilians can
be traced back to the late 80’s onwards. But only
few people know the genesis of these ethnic
conflicts. While the neighbouring districts are
experiencing changes economically, politically
and socially by going through a process of
transition from shifting cultivation to settled
agriculture, from village control of land to
private ownership, Dima Hasao district
remained the same until the intervention of
NERCORMP.
Through the facilitation of district support teams
and partner NGOs, communities were mobilized
and organized to form Self Help Groups (SHGs)
and Natural Resource Management Groups
(NaRM-Gs). The main functions of the
Community Based Organizations (CBOs) was as
follows:
a. The NaRM-G groups looked into over all
community development and economic
assets that largely contribute towards the well
being of the community members, thereby
enriching their livelihood
b. The self help groups provided micro credit – a
form of economic security (for income
generating activities and for consumption
purposes) and to develop self esteem among
the members.
Many assets were created for the communities
through the project such as community forests,
inter-village roads and multi purpose
community building.
In 2003, a major ethnic conflict took place
between the Dimasa and Hmar tribes that lead
to the displacement of thousands of both these
communities and also affected most of the
project villages. Many assets created by the
project were burned down.
In 2009 again, ethnic conflict took place between
the Naga Zeme and Dimasa and once again,
most of the project villages were affected and
there was displacement of thousands of
Zeme Naga and Dimasa communities. A total of
61 project villages were affected out of the 131
Dimasa project villages, Hmar and Zeme Naga
communities and more than a thousand people
belonging to these three communities had to
take shelter in nearby Cachar district and in the
refugee camps.
During the period of clashes both the
communities had to abandon their agricultural/
jhum land for fear of being attacked by the
opposite parties leading to scarcity of food crops.
A few religious organizations had extended their
help by providing food grains and reconstruction
of their houses. State Government had also
pumped in some financial assistance, but this
could not calm down the
anger of the villagers.
Since some of the project staff also came from
the same community there were times when fear
of being attacked by the militants’ outfits gripped
the staff also.
During the initial period of project start-up and
after major ethnic clashes as mentioned above,
there were many occasions when the project staff
had to encounter various militants groups asking
them for their identity or been interrogated by
Army personals on the way back from field visits.
Sometimes, the project staff were warned by the
village Headman, not to make a night halt for
security and safety reasons as many of the project
villages happen to be the hide out for
underground militants. To overcome this
constraint, the project had organized several
District and Block level meetings with various
stakeholders (Line Dept, NGOs, Policy Makers,
Army personals and communities) on how to
implement developmental activities and to work
hand in hand with various line departments.
Besides this, district level training/capacity
building were organized so as to ease the
tension between the affected communities by
making them sit together and by organizing
inter cluster Farmer to Farmer Exchange
programmes for learning and sharing. Most
importantly it was to bring them under one
umbrella to promote peace among the different
communities. The project also organized district
level workshop on Conflict Resolution; the
outcome was that a Peace Rally organized by
Cluster Association and SHG Federations at
their respective clusters particularly in affected
areas like Mahur and Harangajour areas.
In spite of all these constraints, the project staff
continued their regular field visits particularly in
the affected villages to provide moral support as
well as financial assistance to take up on farm
and off farm activities such as kitchen garden,
piggery, weaving, handloom, tailoring etc. By
engaging in such activities the affected villagers
did not need to go far off to the jhum field.
Vegetables from the kitchen garden were sold to
security personals/army camps near the villages
and handloom products (traditional shawl) were
also purchased by the army personals through
the facilitation of project staff. Availability of
green vegetables in the kitchen gardens also
contributed towards improving the nutrition of
the family members besides providing a source
of income during the crises.
Promotion of Non-Farm Enterprises resulted in
increased income, formation of marketing
committee within the NaRM-Gs and availability
of new services in the affected villages.
Intervention made by the project in income
generating activities, particularly during the
crises has uplifted the most affected villages and
individual households that have created a
stronger bond between the project staffs and the
communities.
With the project intervention, women have
started taking active role in decision making by
participating in NaRM-G meetings and in Village
Development Committees’ These served as
platforms to express their views and ideas in
conflict resolution besides allowing them to take
part in the overall development of the village,
which in turn resulted in improved unity and
cohesion among the villages.
With a little moral support and financial
assistance from the project, the Dimasa
community marched ahead in improving their
economic status and regaining the confidence to
face the world again, which they expressed could
have never happen without the support and fa-
cilitation of NERCORMP staff.
Since then, changes have been observed in the
mind set of the people and cultural
transformation has taken place as a result of the
many capacity building /training programmes
organised by the project. The project has also
been able to witness community harmony
among the various tribes within the project
operational areas. In spite of various issues and
constraints, the uprising of many insurgencies
and separatist movement flourishing in the
district pose the biggest challenge for the
project staff and also for other government
officials. In fact, the project staff has to a great
extent been able to overcome the constraints
with militants group as most of the militants are
now familiar with the project staff (NGOs) and
even caution the project staff to work properly
and seek their help during the implementation
of any developmental activities, as and when
required.
Developmental activities can be used as an
important instrument for sustainable human
development. Although NERCORMP’s
intervention is highly people oriented with the
communities implementing the activities, the
extent to which this organization could provide
is like a spoon of sugar dropped in the ocean. A
key lesson has been that the community’s needs
could be addressed only by giving the right
platform to the Hills people so as to hear their
voices which had hitherto remained unheard.
Located in one of the most remote areas of West
Singhbhum districts of the state of Jharkhand,
covering five hamlets, this tribal village of
Godaduba had seen great destruction of its
natural resources over the years rendering the
communities helpless in the face of climate
change with little or no recourse to help.
The village was heavily involved in clearing
forest lands for agricultural purposes.
Environmental degradation increased in the area
due to deforestation resulting in adverse climatic
Mr. Rajeev Kumar Ranjan,
Agriculture Engineer, Chaibasa DPIU
conditions manifested through water scarcity,
rain deficiency, drought, famine etc. One of the
major challenges of the area was severe water
scarcity affecting their livelihoods, primarily
agriculture. High runoff velocity of rainwater
from the mountainous slopes occurring as a
result of deforestation caused soil erosion and
depleted soil fertility and ground water tables.
Water run-off harmed the paddy cultivation
practiced in the low land areas. Irregular rain
patterns posed threats to cultivation in the
middle and upland areas. There was an increase
in the forest fires occurring in dry summer
months in the area.
Consequently, food insecurity forced many to
migrate as wage labourers to adjacent states of
Bihar, Odisha, and West Bengal.
Initiation of programme in the area, in terms of
community mobilization, through community
participation, gender equality, afforestation etc.
was very challenging, as all the major decisions
were taken primarily by male dominated ‘Gram
Panchayats’ (village governing body).
Social conflicts were prevalent among the five
hamlets, as a result of which JTDS (Jharkhand
Tribal Development Society) faced tremendous
challenges in implementing its programmes
initially. When the project started to work in the
village and the neighbouring hamlets, the staff
faced stiff opposition. A few hamlets completely
rejected the project and did not allow the staff to
enter their area. Jamjori hamlet was especially
distrustful of the project as they had faced land
encroachments by external agencies in the name
of development projects. This proved to have an
adverse effect on the resource planning for the
watershed.
The project initiated the empowerment of the
communities by establishing and
institutionalising village meetings or ‘Gram
Sabha’. Though this was a prerequisite across the
country through the Panchayati Raj Institutions
(Local Self Governance) Jharkhand did not
have elections from the time the state was
formed in 2000 till recently.
In the year 2005, in its first phase, around 150
hectares was covered by JTDS for addressing the
socio- economic and environmental issues that
the villages were facing. Specifically designed
capacity building programmes were organised
to bring women and men together to think and
deliberate on the development of their villages.
Implementation of various land husbandry
practices resulted in generation of employment
opportunities for all households. The
community was also mobilized to
institutionalise adaptive measures to check
forest fires, especially during the months of
March to May. Improved seeds of paddy,
vegetables (cabbage, tomato, potato, brinjal
etc.), pulses and legumes (pigeon pea, ground
nut etc.) were distributed among the
beneficiaries. Fishery, duck, goat and pig
rearing were promoted as backyard livestock
management for added income and nutrition.
The community was provided with several
trainings to build their capacity to sustain the
new interventions.
Social problems manifested in the form of
conflicts for the project sponsored wage labour
opportunities due to high demand for work
during the initial implementation of land
management activities. Later these issues were
resolved by the community itself with the help
of trained CLSPs (Community Level Service
Providers), also members of the Gram Sabhas
through meetings and development of job
charts which ensured all households got work.
The project conducted several rounds of legal
awareness trainings for the community with a
special awareness on women’s rights.
Significant environmental effects could be seen
towards the end of 2005 due to the soil and
water management initiatives undertaken.
Water run-off dropped dramatically thus
checking soil erosion. New and repaired
catchments stored rain water, at the same time
absorbing large volumes of water. This in turn
increased moisture content of the soil. Ground
water tables were recharged and risks to
cultivation on middle and uplands were
minimised. Paddy cultivation (Kharif crop) of
Doensora village increased in particular, through
addition of rabi crop. From 2006 to 2007, the
villagers of this hamlet took up three crops
namely, kharif (winter) paddy being main crop,
Rabi (autumn) where legumes were the main
crop and summer paddy. Within two years,
water tables were recharged resulting in
increased agro-forestry produces, consequently
resulting in surplus food availability and
reduction in distress migration though the
project does not have this data.
Practical demonstrations of the other hamlets
inspired the community of Jamjori, who later on
decided to actively participate in the project.
Land and water management/conservation
programmes were laid out in the existing Gram
Sabha of Godaduba and were implemented in
Jamjori.
JTDS’ consistent efforts resulted in changes in
people’s approach from exploitation of natural
resources to its management, which
consequently had positive impact on the
environment and led to higher yields in
agriculture and other livelihoods. The
programme has helped create community
ownership of natural resources among the
residents.
Dimple S Das ([email protected])
Communication Officer, NERCORMP
Due to the absence of effective developmental
models for the upland areas and want of
adequate delivery system of the existing
“When we told them about IFAD and that it is
based in Rome, Italy, the villagers thought that we
had come to convert the community to
Christianity. Though we tried hard to convince
them about the main objectives of the project,
they refused and finally the village had to be
dropped from the list of potential project
villages”.
Project staff, Mr Abraham Teron from the Dima
Hasao district in Assam
government schemes and other service agencies
in the region, , the North Eastern Region
Community Resource Management Project
(NERCORMP) was a development paradigm to
work for the up-liftment and sustainable
development in the remote areas of the North
East of India. Bringing people and their
traditional practices and beliefs and trying to
blend them with the modern day approach to
development was a task well confronted.
The journey in the initial days of the project
intervention was not easy or smooth. The
reasons may be varied but the major issue was
the lack of trust that the villagers had on the
developmental schemes undertaken by the
government and other agencies. In some areas
communities had little or no knowledge of the
developmental initiatives of the government.
These factors along with the presence of local self
government institutions, i.e. the traditional
institutions which are unique and have inherent
strength, and customary laws that govern and
preside over every aspect of village life, was a big
challenge that the project had to deal with.
Taking these matters into consideration,
NERCORMP, as a community development
project initiated by the Government of India and
IFAD adopted a participatory and bottoms up
approach in its implementation process. In
North East India particularly among the
indigenous communities, cohesiveness and
strong bonding exists, which was platform on
which NERCORMP built . The tribal
communities have well structured traditional
institutions namely the Village Councils or
Dorbars, comprising of a hereditary village chief
and composed of elders and clan representatives.
These institutions overlook the customary law
and also the elected chief, who is the overall in
charge of the village development activities.
These include both secular and church based
groups. Therefore, identifying the existing
traditional strengths of the communities and
slowly building on these strengths to find
synergies was a challenge for the entire project
team.
In order to win the confidence of these
traditional institutions, right from beginning of
the project, clear cut guidelines which also
included the role and responsibilities,
limitations and expectations for each
stakeholder were laid down. For this,
NERCORMP established a social agreement
with the communities. For all activities, the
project took the Traditional Institutions (TIs)
into confidence and adequately sensitized in a
transparent manner so as to leave no room for
ambiguity. The Project adopted a deliberate and
conscious approach to trust communities and
entrust them with corresponding
responsibilities, so that they start owning the
project and work towards their own
sustainability.
The project staff had to visit each village a
number of times to convince the headman of
the project villages. Since the project staff also
comprised the waring tribes, it made it difficult
for the conflicting tribe staff to go to the village
where the other tribes reside. This delayed the
activities in the initial stage of the project and
was dealt with steadily with constant village
visits and meetings.
The project was mandated to mobilize the
communities to form self reliant Community
Based Organizations (CBOs) like the Natural
Resource Management groups (NaRMGs) and
Self Help Groups (SHGs). NaRMGs were
mobilized for the purpose of implementation of
the project activities and also as a village
planning body for managing their natural
resources while the SHGs are predominantly
women groups formed especially for thrift and
credit.
A flexible approach was adopted in order to
cater to the different socio-cultural
character-istics of the various indigenous
communities. As most traditional community
institutions exhibit deficiencies which impair
their management for sustainability
development under the project, communities
were encouraged to form NaRMGS and SHGs
with greater focus on vulnerable groups and a
broader representation including women, youth
and the marginalized.
Greater accountability and transparency in the
operations of the project, including increasing
involvement of women in community affairs,
were ensured by these CBOs. These groups work
along side the traditional institutions with local
customs and all activities are implemented
based on consensus of the entire community.
This strategy brought about a strong sense of
ownership of the project interventions by the
communities.
Being a multi state Project with a vast
geographical spread on the ground, reaching out
to the indigenous people, set against very
challenging and difficult working environment,
NERCORMP continues to bring forth many
contended smiles to the indigenous
communities of the region.
Mr Om Prakash Rath, ([email protected] )
Communications Officer, OTELP
Not only does Orissa have one of the highest
poverty ratios (47%) in India, but it has also
emerged as one of the states worst affected by
Left-Wing Extremism (LWE). Livelihood and
poverty are widely seen as one of the core
issues responsible for the growth of LWE in
Orissa. There are fifteen Naxal infested districts
as identified by the state government. In order
to address the challenge of the livelihood of
poor tribal and to enable them to access markets
and credit, the Government of Odisha launched
the flagship programme Odisha Tribal
Empowerment and Livelihoods Programme
(OTELP) in seven (of the fifteen LWE) tribal
districts Koraput, Malkangiri, Nabarangapur,
Rayagada, Gajapati, Kandhamal, and Kalahandi
in the year 2005 with joint support of IFAD,
WFP, DFID and Government of Odisha. The
programme mainly focuses on empowering the
tribals and enabling them to enhance their food
security, to increase their income and improve
overall quality of their livelihood.
The communities where OTELP is being
implemented are scattered across undulating
terrain and very far from mainstream access.
Some areas are totally cut off from the mainland
and it takes two to three hours walking to reach
the village. Most of the agricultural lands are
uplands and people depend on the monsoon for
cultivation. Low production, due to traditional
cultivation methods, has resulted in migration
which has become a regular phenomenon in
these areas.
Low level of literacy and health is affected
adversely where children and women are the
most affected. Services of the government do not
reach due to strikes called by naxalites and
overall the pace of development is very low.
Government institutions which are meant to
safeguard the entitlement of the marginalized
have achieved very limited results due to the
continued disturbances of the naxalites
“We participate in the developmental work of our
area. We are involved in planning and executing
our own work. Government schemes have
reached our doorsteps. People have varied
livelihood options due to the diverse
programmes implemented by OTELP. We do not
migrate to cities and towns any longer in search of
employment.”
VDC members of ‘Niyamagiri’, Rayagada
movement. This situation remains a present
challenge to implement any development
programmes.
OTELP is a community managed programme
directly implemented by the Community Based
Organizations (CBOs) with facilitation and
handholding support from the local NGOs. The
government run Integrated Tribal Development
Agency (ITDA) at the district/ sub division level
provides technical assistance to both NGOs and
CBOs in implementation and facilitation of the
programme.
OTELP started the implementation of
programme covering 1034 villages distributed in
358 micro watersheds and includes 56180
households. The programme adopted an
integrated micro watershed management
approach covering a cluster of 10 to 12 micro
watersheds situated contagiously with an
approximate area of 500 ha per micro water-
shed. Care was also taken during the selection of
the micro watersheds to ensure that the
boundary of one watershed covering 10-12 mi-
cro watersheds was to be co-terminus with the
Gram Panchayat administrative boundaries.
OTELP has adopted a seven year project cycle
management which is further divided into three
distinct phases. The initial two years are called
the probation phase dedicated for the institution
and capacity building ensuring people’s
participation in the different CBOs; the next
three years are the main implementation phase
and the last two years of the programme the
consolidation phase/ withdrawal phase. Looking
at the sensitive issue of naxalism, OTELP in its
implementation strategy ensures strong and
active participation of community. So in the first
two years, OTELP strategically emphasised on
building institutions like Village Development
Committee (VDC), Women Self Help Group
(SHG), User Group (UG) etc. at the village level.
The NGOs play the role of the facilitator at the
community level in capacitating them for
planning, implementation, monitoring their
activities and governance.
Community being the primary stakeholder of
the programme plays the role of the
implementer by directly executing the
programme activities through the VDC, SHGs
and UGs. The lowest level of the Panchayat i.e.
Palli Sabha representatives are nominated to be
the members of the VDC of micro watershed
area which is a registered body and the apex
organisation for project management. The VDC
manages the work that is carried out in the
respective watershed areas while OTELP
transfers the money to the VDCs to make the
wage payment for the different activities.
This process of payment has ensured more
participation and has stopped pilferage as it
appears in other government programmes.
Participation of women is also realised through
the SHGs and are provided with various capacity
building activities to increase their leadership
skills and income. Now the women groups have
been able to take up their own business ventures
independently and increase household’s
incomes. Other livelihood avenues like poultry
and goat rearing, fishery etc. have given the
women additional income. The project has also
made it compulsory for women to be members
of the VDC. One of the most particularly
vulnerable tribe i.e. Bonda women have been
provided trainings in different livelihoods and
enterprises which previously was unavailable .
Unemployed young men, who were finding
solace with the naxal movement, are now
prepared to stand on their own legs through the
various vocational trainings offered by the
project. The project has also strategized the
involvement of the government officials who
were earlier alienated from these communities.
Their presence in these areas has built the
confidence among the tribal community to avail
the various schemes of the government.
The mode of operation by OTELP has been
accepted by the people in these disturbed
communities due to its transparent
decentralisation of work. The watershed
approach of development has taught the
community to use the land in a more scientific
and sustainable manner. The sustainable use of
these resources has been able to restore the
degradation that had occurred due to the over
exploitation of the natural resources.
OTELP’s work is not affected by the LWE
activities as the Extremists feel the work has truly
benefited the tribals and the poorest households.
The villagers are strengthening their institutions
to run the programme in a sustained manner.
The government periodically reviews the
programme implementation and has instructed
also other departments to follow the similar way
of intervention of OTELP for tribal projects. This
model has become a flagship programme for the
state government who has up scaled it to the
neighbouring three districts with the
government’s own funds.
Mr D.Nath ([email protected])
Finance/Accounts Officer and
Dimple S Das ([email protected])
Communication Officer, NERCORMP
Until the early 1950’s, business transactions of
the people of Ukhrul district of Manipur in the
North Eastern part of India, were almost non-
existent with the exception of the occasional
market days on festival days which was on a
barter system of trade and within the limits of
the village.
Some stray animals, salt, handloom materials,
pottery products, wood and bamboo craft works,
blacksmith etc. were traded then and are still
traded today. But back then, the people could
maintain to meet their requirements for their
day-to-day subsistence and livelihood. This way,
one can conclude that they were self-reliant and
self-sufficient. One major reason was also that
population was still smaller and there were
enough of resources available for everyone’s
consumption.
But with the advent of modernity, they were
suddenly exposed to capitalistic trends of fierce
market competitions and urbanization. Their
limited sources of income and resources could
not meet both ends and soon they were reduced
"The challenges of a poor widow were many but
NERCORMPs ‘UDWIM’ gave a new meaning to
my life. With credit facilities and with confidence,
I can trade chilly and potato from my village to
the capital city, Imphal and on return bring pigs
for sale in my villages. From the proceeds of this
brisk business I can meet the expenses of my
children's education." - Ms. Jasper of Sirarakhong
to living below the poverty line.
NERCORMP was launched as a development
model for the people residing in the upland area
of three states of North East India. The fund-
flow of the entire project starting from Regional
Society to District Societies and to the
community groups is based on approved AWPB,
which the communities make, and through bank
account transfers.
The Community Based Organisations (CBOs) in
the project namely the Natural Resource
Management Group (NaRM-G), Self Help
Groups (SHG) utilise the project fund as per the
approved AWPB. The fund is then withdrawn
from the bank as per the decisions taken during
the group meetings, and utilised for the group as
well as individual household activities. Majority
activities are for income generation supported by
minor investment in social sector activities,
infrastructure activities, natural resource
management and marketing support. In order to
receive the funds from the project, the CBOs
must have bank accounts. All financial
transactions are audited by a Chartered
Accountant at the end of every financial year.
The challenge for the project team as well as for
the communities are that there are very limited
bank branches, long distance from the village to
the bank, low cash availability in the bank, and
the cumbersome bank transaction/ formalities
for the illiterate communities.
Ukhrul is one of the project districts where the
banking facility is a big challenge not only for
the District Team but also for the communities.
With the presence of only one bank namely,
United Bank of India, until recently, banking
transaction was a difficult task with low cash
availability, irregular internet facility for
transaction and low human power.
The bank could hardly provide the much needed
credit facility to the people in the district, which
has also lead to an increase in number of money
lenders. They charged high rates of interest and
sometimes made the people mortgage their
homes and assets for small loans.
Adding to this situation was the unsafe security
situation in the state. The extremist movement
made it difficult for banks to keep large sums of
money, and many times forced people to part
with whatever they had with them. Many times
different factions within the state called strikes
that lasted for 100 days and more.
In such situations, many of the community
groups could not open any bank accounts thus
slowing down the implementation of the
activities. Most of the time the bank would not
allow the group to withdraw more than INR
10,000/- (USD 200), at a time or as per cash
availability which was frequently low as they had
cash shortages.
Frequent visits to the bank and high travelling
expenses have in turn increased the
administrative costs of the groups. Transfer of
funds by the District Society to the CBOs was
also an equally challenging task as the cheques
took a long time, sometimes months to be
cleared, which resulted in delays in
implementing of the project activities.
NERCORMP aims at women empowerment, and
the Ukhrul District Women Institute of Micro
Credit (UDWIM) is one such example of women
taking a lead for their own socio-economic and
sustainable livelihood development in a
patriarchal society accentuated by gender bias,
illiteracy and poor economy. The UDWIM is the
federation of SHGs promoted under the
NERCORMP Ukhrul district unit, set up in the
year 2007, to help the communities to manage
the much needed thrift and credit facility by
themselves. The project supported the federation
with the concept, management procedures and
also by giving a part of the corpus fund.
Ms. Ringyuichon Vashum, Credit Manager,
UDWIM says “We started with a financial status
of INR 98, 18,500/- (USD 204,552) and with a
membership of 473 SHGs across the district in
2007. Today we have 702 SHGs covering 151
village federations and 5 zonal federations in
UDWIM with a total outstanding amount of INR
1,94,55,200/- (USD 405,316) as on 31st
December 2011”.
The institute managed their operational
expenses out of the interest earned from credit
and also have provided the much needed timely
credit support to the members with one simple
loan application form. The spirits of the saving
habits and thrift has become far fetching in
bringing about the habit of thrift by the
communities.
Women in general have benefited from the
various capacity building workshops of UDWIM
like gender sensitization, livelihood skills (food
and fruit processing, bakery) livestock rearing,
handloom and handicraft unit, micro enterprise
development programmes etc. The
organisational and financial management
training has also helped the communities in
their day to day household and group financial
management.
However NERCORMP has to be implemented
within a fixed period, the project activities need
to be carried out against the set targets and in
challenging situations, such as inadequate
banking facilities, which stand in the way of
achieving the objectives of the project.
Dr. Nafisa Priti Sanga
([email protected]) Fisheries Officer
(SPMU), Mr. Debajyoti Kundu
([email protected]) Micro-finance Officer
(SPMU) and Mr. Atonu Sen
([email protected]) Fisheries Officer DPIU,
Ranchi
Omanburu is a small hamlet under Humta
panchayat of Bundu block in Ranchi District.
This village is about 41km away from the state
capital (Ranchi) of Jharkhand. The village
consists of two small hamlets namely Birhor and
Munda tola (hamlet), which in turn comprises
of 52 and 38 families, respectively. The villagers
are mostly peasant with an average land holding
area of 1-2 acres (0.4 - 0.8 hectares) per family.
Out of 52 households only 4 families are
landless belonging to the “Birhor” community,
one of the ‘Particularly Vulnerable Tribal
Groups’ (PTGs) of Jharkhand, who are the
surviving remnants of almost pure hunter-
gatherers facing threats of extinction due to
various socio-economic problems.
Among the two communities, mentioned the
situation of the Birhors was worse because they
are nomadic in nature and relied mainly on
hunting and rope making for their livelihoods.
They number less than 10,000 in the country.
The Birhor economy presents a mixture of forest
economy, agriculture and labour. For the Birhor,
the forest is the still main means of livelihoods.
They collect food available in the form of roots,
shoots, flowers, seeds, etc. in the forest.
Partly forced by circumstances, partly
encouraged by government officials, some of
them have settled into stable agriculture, but
others continue their nomadic life. However it is
seen that when they settle down in a village,
their tendency is to lead a nomadic life for their
livelihood.
Prior to the Jharkhand Tribal Development
Society (JTDS) commencement, the village
condition was very poor in terms of household
food security, nutrition, literacy, access to
government aided social/health facilities etc.,
though their proximity to the state capital
Ranchi. This was due to the poor extension
services of the government in the tribal area.
Agriculture was the main occupation which was
highly dependent on the monsoon. Paddy was
the only crop cultivated during the rainy season
which provided less than six months’ food
security. For the remaining months, peasants
took up wage labour for their living, which
forced them to migrate to neighbouring states of
Bihar, West Bengal, and Uttar Pradesh.
JTDS intervention started with identifying the
livelihood problems of the poor tribals. It was
recognized that settled agriculture for this
nomadic tribe would lessen their vulnerability
though it would require much handholding and
capacity building as it was a new activity for the
tribe who were used to fending from the forests.
As a result irrigation facilities (renovation/
construction of irrigation well, check dams,
ponds etc.) along with several agricultural
trainings with improved seeds (paddy, brinjal,
tomato, potato etc.) and agricultural equipments
were provided to the hamlets, in addition to the
ICRISAT grant supporting groundnut and pigeon
pea cultivation.
In order to preserve their traditional occupation
of rope making, JTDS provided raw materials
(plastic sacks), replacing the disappearing
climber barks used for the same. The programme
facilitated formation of two SHGs (female only)
namely Suryamukhi and Gulanchi Mahila Samiti
(15 members each) at the Birhor hamlet and
provided INR. 10000/- (US$ 200) seed capital
for various income generating activities.
The SHGs took up goat, duck rearing and fishery,
in addition to their primary (agriculture) and
traditional (rope making) occupations for
additional income.
Fishery was never practiced in the area prior to
the programme’s intervention and was
introduced through training and carp seed
stocking in 2 ponds.
An integrated Fish cum Duck farming system
was also promoted by the introduction of
improved duck breed (Khakhi campbell) for
added income and nutrition. For improvement
of their poultry, two cocks of ‘Red divyayan’
variety were also provided at the initial phasing,
which has now become a large activity for the
community.
All the activities were carried out with visits to
various organizations like Birsa Agriculture
University, local markets etc. Various in-field
capacity building trainings were also organized
by JTDS for the women on gender and
community empowerment.
Consistent efforts of JTDS is now showing a
good harvest which is manifested through
improved living conditions, health, nutrition,
food security, livestock and increase in incomes
of the households. Irrigation wells and ponds
constructed or renovated are providing irrigation
water throughout year for vegetable, legumes,
and two crops of paddy.
Construction of a small check dam in the area
has helped harvesting of rain water for
improvement of the ground water table in
addition to agricultural irrigation. Renovation of
“We were facing chronic food insecurity before
JTDS intervened our village. Our agricultural
practices followed traditional methods and we
had indigenous livestock varieties. JTDS trained us
on scientific agricultural, fishery and livestock
practices for breed improvement, production
enhancement, income generation and food
security. We now have food throughout the year,
clean drinking water, our children are receiving
education. JTDS has worked as catalyst for the
hard works and determination of birhors which is
now bringing prosperity for our society.” - Sangrai
and Durjon Birhor
a drinking water well near the village has
ensured access to pure and clean drinking water
at the same time decreasing drudgery for
women. The four landless families have been
included into the existing SHGs and other
village development income generating activities
promoted by the programme.
The Birhor community in the villages were
assisted by the project to access various
governmental development schemes that were
designed for their tribes. Access roads had been
built by JTDS as a result of which
communication channels have improved
between the village and the block offices.
Residents’ have access to medical/health
facilities from the government doctor, the
government nurses and community health
volunteers.
Through convergence with ‘Birsa Aawas Yojana’
the Birhors have availed social benefits such as
housing and toilets constructed from funds
received through the District Water and
Sanitation Department. The Jharkhand
Renewable Energy Development Agency
provided solar lanterns to 46 families, 22 pairs
of oxen by the Micro Enterprise Support
Organisation, and through MGNREGA
(Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment
Guarantee Act) they constructed 3 irrigation
wells in the area.
Out of 52 families, 9 have gained permanent
government jobs. There is 100% attendance of
Bihor children in the nearby primary and
middle as they are now becoming aware of the
benefits of literacy.
State Programme Management Team, MPOWER
([email protected]), Ms. Mary Hmar
([email protected]), Project Technical
officer, NCHCRMS, Haflong, Assam
Mitigating Poverty in Western Rajasthan
(MPOWER) is a poverty reduction initiative that
is supported by IFAD, Government of Rajasthan
and Sir Ratan Tata Trust. The project is regional
in scope with a special emphasis on the
relatively poor and backward six blocks, within
the drought-prone, food insecure districts of
Western Rajasthan, namely Jodhpur,
Jaisalmer ,Barmer, Pali, Sirohi and Jalore.
The project area is characterized by low
population density, high ratio of population
dependent upon agriculture and livestock
sectors, unreliable rainfall patterns, limited or no
potential for irrigation, fast depleting ground
water and frequent occurrence of drought. The
project area includes all 1045 villages of 245
village panchayats in these six blocks.
In western Rajasthan, agriculture is almost
completely dependent on rainfall. As rainfall is
low and scattered, people are able to have only
one crop during the monsoons. Animal rearing
had been an important source of living for
people in western Rajasthan. However over a
period of time, with the increase in population
and biotic pressure on natural resources, the
common lands which were very crucial to
support animals have gone under private control
and the livelihood profile of people has changed
completely. Now the poor in western Rajasthan
earn their livelihoods mainly from wage labour
their qualification and preferences were mapped
out. If there was a match with their
qualifications and the job offered, they were
selected for the job, otherwise career counselling
was done for them.
A Job Fair was organised in every Block where
companies, organisations and interested people
were invited. A total of 1897 young men turned
up for the job fairs. This event provided an op-
portunity to the young men to boost their confi-
dence. Leading companies like Reliance affiliates,
Bajaj, Nari Self employment Kendra, Dr. Reddy
Foundation, and CAIRNS India participated in
the job fairs.
Out of a total target of 5200 youth, 3700 youth
have been identified for job opportunities. A
total 651 have been trained on trades, security
guard, computer operator, tailoring, and
embroidery. A maximum number of youth has
been placed with security agencies as these jobs
are locally available in the nearby towns of
Phlodi, Baap, Jaisalmer, and Barmer where a lot
of Solar Energy and Wind Energy companies are
establishing units which have created lot of
demand for security personnel.
This has become one of the successful models
for youth development in the state.
and many of them migrate to town and cities in
search of work. The youth are affected the most in
this heavily patriarchal society where their
marriage worthiness is weighed against their
employment status. In turn, the youth have very
few and meagre choices of occupations left for
them.
Achieving full and productive employment and
decent work for the unemployed Below Poverty
Level young men has been one of the main
livelihood interventions of MPOWER project
through the provision of skill training. In the
beginning, the number of youth who showed
their interest in these trainings was less and had
little interest in it as there were no corresponding
job opportunities available. They became unsure
of whether they could secure employment in
reputed offices after the training as their low caste
status could create problems. There were high
rates of retention.
Apart from this reality, convincing the rural youth
was difficult as they were not interested to move
out of their villages for the residential trainings.
The project had to rethink how to go about the
intervention so that there could be more stability
for the youth in their jobs.
The project decided to move from only
mobilisation of youth to also placements of the
trained youth in different companies and
organisations. The SHGs were used as a platform
to disseminate the information to the young men
about the programme. FNGO staff members also
played an important role in dissemination of
information. A feasibility study was done to
identify the existing employment opportunities in
the local areas. Based on that, trades were
identified which could provide employment in
the local areas only.
After a strong mobilization process the young
men were called for a selection process which
would entail them to identify their preferred job
based on their skills set. In the selection process
4 May – 15 June 2012
Jharkhand Tribal Empowerment and Livelihood
Project—Appraisal Mission
2-16 July 2012
Post Tsunami Sustainable Livelihoods
Programme—Joint review mission
2 – 17 August 2012
Odisha Tribal Empowerment and Livelihood
Programme, Odisha—Joint Review Mission
17 – 30 August 2012
Jharkhand Tribal Development Programme—
Project Completion Mission
3-21 September 2012
Mitigating Poverty in Western Rajasthan— Mid
Term Review mission
5-17 September 2012
Tejaswini Rural Women’s Empowerment
Programme, Madhya Pradesh— Joint review
mission
Trail blazers: Lighting the way ahead (2011)
www.ifad.org/pub/gender/india.pdf
Inter-Agency Task Force on Rural Women (led by FAO,
IFAD & WFP) MDGs rural women factsheet (2011)
www.un.org/womenwatch/feature/ruralwomen/
documents/En-Rural-Women-MDGs-web.pdf
Investing in the future: Creating opportunities for
young rural people (2011)
www.ifad.org/events/gc/34/panels/invest_future.pdf
Strengthening women’s access to land into IFAD
projects: Experiences from the field
www.ifad.org/english/land/women_land/
WomenAndLand_SynthesisReport_Eng.pdf
Lightening the load: Labour saving technologies for
rural women
www.ifad.org/gender/pub/load.pdf
Agriculture-Pathways to Prosperity in Asia and the
Pacific (2011)
www.ifad.org/pub/apr/pathways.pdf
FAO-IFAD-ILO Making migration work for
women and men in rural labour markets
http://www.fao.org/docrep/013/i2008e/i2008e06.pdf