RURAL LIVELIHOOD SYSTEMS

Group Report on Livelihood Portfolio

Mapping

Under Guidance Of:

Prof. S Peppin

Submitted to:
Dr. Prof. Shambhu Prasad

Submitted by:Kalpit Kaya Mohanty- UR14017

Soumya Swarupa Nayak- U313011
Swarup Ranjan Ghadei- UR14040
Vinitesh Garima-UR14085

VILLAGE PROFILE 1

INTRODUCTION: -( Badichamadiya)

GEOGRAPHY:
Village: Badichamadiya
Gram Panchayat: Naigarhi
District: Rewa
State: Madhya Pradesh
Language: Hindi,Rewadi
Badichamadiya is a Village in Bahuti Gram Panchayat Badichamadiya is a Village in
Naigarhi Tehsil in Rewa District of Madhya Pradesh State, India. It belongs to Rewa
Division. It is located 66 KM towards East from District head quarters Rewa. 555 KM from
State capital Bhopal ,Badichamadiya is surrounded by Mauganj Tehsil towards South ,
Teonthar Tehsil towards North , Hanumana Tehsil towards East , Jawa Tehsil towards west
Mauganj , Sidhi , Rewa , Allahabad are the nearby Cities to Badichamadiya.

DEMOGRAPHY:-

Social Categorization

Name Of The Community

Category

Mishra

General

Saket

Other Backward Caste

Bishkarma

Scheduled Caste

Kaul

General

Namdev

Scheduled Caste

Name Of The Community

Mishra
Saket
Bishkarma
Kaul
Namdev

Households
250
200
100
150
100

160
0
140
0
120
0
100
0
800
Households
600
Population
400

Household Distribution

Population
1500
1200
1300
600
400

Age Distribution

Age Group
0-18
18-30
30-45
45-60
>60

Population
675
1125
900
1125
675

1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0
0-18

18-30

30-45

Populatio
n

Age Distribution

45-60

>60

OBJECTIVES OF THE LIVELIHOOD MAPPING EXERCISE:-

This is an exercise which allows us to learn about the various livelihood practices taking
place in the particular area. It allows us to learn about changes in livelihoods over the year
and to show the seasonality of agricultural and non agricultural workload, food availability,
human diseases, gender specific income and expenditure, water, forage and credit.
Capturing this data will give information on an issue and help in the planning
Process where one needs to know what are the problems in present livelihoods and how
interventions can be made better.

Scope
It will help us in understanding the current scenario about livelihoods in these villages. This
study may help us understand the impact of interventions. It can help us in understanding the
changes that these villages are undergoing in reference to livelihoods options.

METHODOLOGY:
The method or process followed for the above study included the following:

The village of study was chosen along with a strategy to conduct the exercise.

A questionnaire was prepared to record all the responses related to the livelihood and
the financial conditions of the people of the village.

A format was prepared to record the demographic conditions of the village which
included the number of households, the number of family member, list of activities
and number of people engaged in different activities, number of people belonging to
different age groups.

Then three dedicated field visits were planned which didnt hamper the main project
study during the Rural Living and learning exercise (RLLE) in the organization.

The group did the survey with each person filling up the questionnaire for four
households while other members were also present to facilitate the discussion.

The questionnaire was copied to the original format when the group was back to the
place of stay.

The consolidated annexure was filed up taking all the questionnaires into
consideration.

Process
The study was divided in to three phases

Phase 1- Our first aim was to know about the behavior of the local people and the
different livelihood options they are into. We had detailed discussion with the
employees of CAMP (Community Action Motivation Programme) and our reporting
officer. Based on these discussions and understanding we formed questionnaire.

Phase 2- In this phase we visited the village and gathered primary data based on the
questionnaire that we prepared.

Phase 3- The last phase of the project consisted of compiling and analysis of the
collected samples and to prepare the report, on the basis of the collected data. Various
statistical tools were applied in analyzing the data that we collected.

Livelihood Portfolio of the Community

Livelihood activity 1:- Wheat Cultivation

Internal Context
From the data that we obtained and from our primary observation, each and every household
in the village is involved in wheat cultivation. Even though it involves on average around 180
days of involvement but it generates maximum revenue for the villager. The harvesting
season is February to March. The villagers have been cultivating Wheat since many years.

The revenue from Wheat varies from year to year, as rates of wheat keeps fluctuating. So,
maybe in a year an average farmer can fetch Rs. 1, 00,000.
The skills that the villagers have obtained in wheat cultivation and geographical location of
the village makes wheat cultivation as the sustainable livelihood option.
External Context
The village is situated near Naigarhi. Each farmer in the village owns about 2-3 Acres of land
and the soil of the area is suitable for wheat cultivation. The population of the village is
sizeable and wheat cultivation is the major source of income for the people of the village.
Further the practice of wheat cultivation has been followed for many years so the villagers
are quite skilful.
The village is situated in Madhya Pradesh-Uttar Pradesh border so the supply is being
supplied to Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Chattisgarh. The price of
Wheat in the market is also good.
Key gaps identified
The gaps that were identified are as follows:

The middlemen in the trade who get a lot of profit on just buying it from farmers and
selling it to the market.

The problem of transportation has emerged as a big threat. The district as a whole has
extremely bad roads and with no railway station nearby the transportation poses a
major problem for the people of the area.

The illiteracy of the farmers has led to their exploitation in terms of weight and
money that they get from selling of Wheat.

Lack of any scientific technique to produce Wheat has led in decrease in output.

Point of Interventions and Implementation ProcessPhase1: The point of intervention should be started with mobilising the community of Wheat
cultivators with an advocacy approach rather than facilitator approach. First of all awareness
should be created amongst the farmers regarding the ways in they are being cheated and

exploited. Then formation of producer groups in the village including self-help groups would
help in holding the stock of Amla without selling it to the dishonest middlemen and traders.
Further, scientific research should be done and people should be trained on those practices for
the enhancement in the production capabilities. The collaboration with a microfinance
organization or financial help from the organizations Resolving fund will help them in
purchasing good pesticides and modern equipments for the above said purpose.
Phase 2: Market linkage should be made directly available to them which would help in them
getting right price for their produce. When finalising the deal, the transportation cost, loading
and unloading cost should be calculated. Moreover, the intervention should spread to other
nearby villages with the same strategy.

Livelihood activity 2:- Amla Cultivation

Internal Context
During our transect walk we found that many house hold have planted Amla trees. Even
though Amla seedlings start bearing fruits in 7-8 years after planting, while the budded clones

will start bearing fruits from the 5th year onwards. Also the soil was quite apt and the
villagers had enough area in their household area. Best harvesting time of Amla fruits is
February when the fruits have maximum ascorbic acid content.

External Context
Due to high market demand of Amla fruits it can be good source of income for the villagers.
Further a matured tree of about 10 years will yield 50-70 kg of fruit. The average weight of
the fruits is 60-70 g. One kg contains about 15-20 number of fruits. A well maintained tree
will be yielding up to an age of 70 years. The yield increases year by year up to 50 years.
Talking about the revenue part a 8-year old plantation of one hectare will yield 20-25 tons of
fruits with a cost of production of Rs.34,000 per-ha. The rate for a kg of fruit Rs.15-30.Hence
Net income- per hectare: Rs.20, 000.

Key gaps identifed

The gaps that were identified are as follows:

Poor Market linkage is the biggest problem for this cultivation. Amla has been known
countrywide for its medicinal usages and there are companies like Dabur who require
Amla in their production process this was also told to us by the villagers who said that
they knew about it but due to poor market linkage they werent able to sell it to them.

The problem of transportation has emerged as a big threat. The district as a whole has
extremely bad roads and with no railway station nearby the transportation poses a
major problem for the people of the area.

As mentioned earlier Amla seedlings start bearing fruits in 7-8 years after planting,
while the budded clones will start bearing fruits from the 5th year onwards. Hence
budded clones type should be made available.

Point of Interventions and Implementation ProcessPhase1: The point of intervention should be started with mobilising the community of
Amla cultivators with a facilitator approach.Formation of certain groups in the village
including self-help groups would help in holding the stock of Amla. Further, scientific
research should be done and people should be trained on those practices for the

enhancement in the production capabilities. The collaboration with a microfinance

organization will help resolving finance related issue as the plant will start bearing
fruit only after 5 years.
Phase 2: Market linkage should be made directly available to them which would help
in them getting right price for their produce. When finalising the deal, the
transportation cost, loading and unloading cost should be calculated. Moreover, the
intervention should spread to other nearby villages with the same strategy.

KEY
LEARNINGS:

All the households in the village are engaged in one type major livelihood activity that
is agriculture. They grow very different variety of crops ranging from paddy to
vegetables.

The staple crops, which they produce, are wheat, moong, arhar are for their own
consumption.

A very few people in the village have a skill based livelihood such as masonry and
carpentry along with their prime activity.

Though whatever the family size may be every member are actively involved in the
farming. Livestock rearing is present in the village such as goat, cow,buffaloes.

Out of all the cultivation these cultivations are mainly done for income generation
and other are done for own consumption and meager earnings.

The area lacks abundant rainfall which is a major reason for non surplus of
agricultural produce .

Reflection
Conclusion:-

and

The major livelihood activities present in Badichamadiya is agriculture. Except small

business necessary for sustenance of the villagers, there is no remarkable livelihood activity
being practiced. So in a way there is a huge untapped potential in terms of other livelihood
activities that can be developed through various interventions.

Annexur
e 1:

RLS
HOUSEHOLD
SURVEY.docx

This contains the questionnaire flled by surveying the livelihood practices

followed by 8 households of Badichamadiya village.
Annexure 2:

Annexure-2SWARUP
.docx

This contains the consolidated result taking into consideration the 8

households surveyed in
Annexure 1.

VILLAGE PROFILE 2

INTRODUCTION:Village: Khukkham
Gram Panchayat:
Khukkham
Block/Tehsil: Kundam
District: Jabalpur
State: Madhya Pradesh
Geography:
Khukkham is a small village under Khukkham Gram Panchayat. The other two
villages under this GP include Ranipur and Padariya. Khukkham is around 35 km
from Jabalpur city and around 35 km from Kundam block. It is a small village
with a single pucca road (main road) through the side of the village. The
houses are scattered in a clustered format according to caste interspersed by
kuchha roads and beautiful rai felds. Each cluster is called a mohalla.
The major crops grown are paddy, wheat, chana dal, arhar dal, corn and
rai/mustartd. There is no irrigation facility. So method of crop cultivation is
rainfed.
Khukkham is administered by the Sarpanch Mr.Ram Chandra Marawi. The
villagers depend on the
Sarpanch for most of their problems and
problem solving.
Infrastructure available in
the village:
1.

Government Primary School

2.

Government Middle School

3.

Public Distribution Centre (PDS-Ration Centre)

4.

Aanganwadi Centre

5.

Panchayat Ofce

6.

Post ofice

7.

Mangalwaar bazaar

8.

Bus stand

9.

2 Water Tanks installed under Mukhyamantri Peyajal Yojana

10.

Total Hand pumps installed: 6

A number of Central & State Government schemes followed in this village:

1. Nirmal Gram / Swacch Bharat Abhiyan

2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

Mid Day Meal Scheme

Aanganwadi
Ladli Lakshmi Yojana
Public Distribution System
AADHAR Card
Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana(PMJDY)
Family Planning Schemes ASHA, A.N.M

Demography:
The village predominantly consists of Gond tribes (ST community). Other castes present
include SCs, OBCs (Yadav community) and one Pandit (Brahmin) family.
Total Population
Total Households
Female
Male

443
73
208
235

Khukkham has a satisfactory literacy rate. There is a functioning aanganwadi,

th
a government primary and middle school. Children read upto standard 8 in the
village. Then they travel to nearby village and towns such as Barella for further
studies.

Living conditions and Livelihood:

Most of the houses in the village are in kuchha and semi-pucca state. There are
very few pucca houses. One of the major problems in the village is the kuchha
roads which get water logged during the rainy seasons.
Econo
my:
The major occupation of the village is Agriculture. The agriculture includes Rabi
and Kharif crops. In Rabi crops-Wheat, gram and oilseeds like mustard and
sesame, and in Kharif crops-Paddy,Rai, maize, peas.Those who are landless
either go for working on others feld as laborer (only during sowing and
harvesting season) or migrate to nearby cities (mainly Jabalpur) for labour work.
The food grains grown mainly consist of paddy, wheat, maize, kodu, kutki and
also pulses like gram, urad and rahar. The family members assist them in
agricultural activities. When asked whether they sell their food grains they told
that they produce what is required for them and is not much interested in trading
food grains. The villagers used to exchange grains for day to day provisions.They
rear cattle for the dairy needs of the village but only on a small scale/ A small
poultry also exists which just supplies daily egg needs to the grocery store & the
snacks stall. Theres a Weekly haat every Monday in the village where the
produce are sold and villagers buy items of use from there.Some are engaged in
business. The business activities which we witnessed in the village are small
eateries, kirana stores, a tyre shop, a barber shop and a flour mill.
Livelihood
opportunities:

On interviewing the women community we observed that they were basically

homemakers. They said that if they get some training opportunities in activities such
as sewing etc. they can utilize their free time for extra earning.

The villagers own buffaloes and cows but the milk is used for their own consumption.
There is no co-operative society present. Additionally there is also the scope of
developing poultry business in a full-fledged form.
There is no formal SHG. The only community group present is a swa-sahayata samuh.
It is a group of ten women who are associated in preparing food under the mid-day
meal scheme.

Intervening Agency:
The intervening agency present in Khukkham is an NGO named PSAVK (Paryavaran
Suraksha evam Adivasi Vikas Kendra). PSAVK works for making the village Open
Defecation Free (ODF) under the MPWASH (Madhya Pradesh Water Sanitation and
Hygiene) project under the supervision of DFID, UK and Madhya Pradesh Government.
Under this PSAVK appoints Swachhata Doots (to sensitize the people on sanitation and
hygiene) and Raj Mistris (to build toilets) from the village. The village has one Swachhata
Doot and two raj Mistris. They are paid by the government according to the quality of their
work. Through such intervention around 70% of the houses have toilets now. The project
aims to convert the village into a Open Defecation Free Village by March 2015.
Objective of the Livelihood Mapping Exercise:
The basic objective of this activity is to get knowledge about the livelihood practices that
are being followed in the village. By knowing about this we can gauge how the standard of
living of the people is linked with the livelihood they are practicing. It gives an opportunity
to analyze where the gap is present, what can be done to minimize the gap and what other
livelihood practices can be introduced that will be suitable for the people.
Through this exercise, it will be helpful for us to understand the quality of work and effort
put in by the people of Khukkham towards earning their living.It will also help in
understanding the gaps which are present in the existing system and how these gaps can be
met to make them aware of the opportunities available to the people of Khukkam to better
their standard of living.
Methodology:
The following methods were used for the above study:
1. The first step was a Transect walk to get a general overview of the village geography
and demographics. This helped us in understanding & knowing about the village
institutions, demographics and activities employed by the villagers on a general day.
We did this activity along with the Agency official from PSAVK, who made us interact
with the local community members and we went around every household, Mohalla to
see the living conditions of the villagers.
2. Then we did a PRA exercise that included social and resource mapping, Venn diagram,
Pairwise ranking and Seasonal mapping. Through PRA we got a deeper understanding
of the demographics, human diseases, crop pattern, problems the villagers were facing
etc. The villagers themselves came up with their inputs which helped us in creating a
rapport with them so that they can help us better understand them.
3. Apart from this, Focus Group Discussions(FGD) were also conducted in the form of a
Ratri Chaupal (Night Meeting) where all the villagers were engaged in discussion
regarding their major source of livelihood , agriculture and how it benefits them. There

discussions on other sources of income also came up which further better our
understanding on the present conditions and where gaps & problems exist.
4. A household survey was done in which all the details of the family members, their work
details, their living conditions, farm activities, expenses and saving, insurance details
were all noted down.
5. Each person filled the Questionnaire for the households and the consolidated annexure
was prepared taking the result got from all the questionnaires into consideration. This
helped us in understanding the livelihood status of the village.

Livelihood Portfolio of the Community

Paddy cultivation

Internal Context-

From our view, most of the community was involved in paddy cultivation directly
or indirectly in the form of farm labourer. The paddy cultivation is entirely based
on the amount of rainfall it receives. Since in this area there is heavy rainfall
during rainy season and there is good supply of electricity for irrigation, the
cultivation of paddy could be a very proft yielding activity. When compared to
other food grains the yield/hectare is also high. The paddy cultivation is being
practiced since generations hence it holds a special place in agriculture. People
also have great afinity towards having rice in their daily meal and also in
Madhya Pradesh very good quality of rice is grown.

External
Context
Jabalpur Area of Madhya Pradesh, and specially Kundam block is the highest rice
producing area in the region. In this way, the quality of rice produced is also of
good quality owing to a good variety of soil silty loam & silty clay loam.
Generally, these soils have medium available water capacity about
14 cm/metre of soil profle
depth.
The traditional methods of cultivation is still prevalent in the area , where the
seed rate is about 100150 kg/ha. Here the major fertilizers used is
Urea & NPK.

Key
gaps
Identified
The method of cultivation that is being practiced is still the same that was being
practiced 50 years ago. No technological advancements are being implemented.
The agriculture is still being practiced using old techniques- using plough,
bullocks and manual labour by women of the village. There also problem of pest
infestation in the area like Leaf folder , Case worm , gundhi bug.
Also there is no transfer of information from the agricultural technicians/experts
from the nearby agricultural institutes regarding new techniques to be employed,
fertilizers, seed variety, soil testing. This causes a gap in the understanding of
the farmers regarding the new measures and hence there is old traditional
methods used.

Point
of
Interventions
Implementation Process

and

The organization is working on how to make it yearn them high yield which is
suficient enough to have food security and also make them earn something as
well. We have seen that in this area NGOs like Udyogini and PSAVK are working
and trying their best to fnd techniques of production that may yield good results.
They are helping the farmers in getting scientific assistance in terms of seeds,
sowing techniques, fertilizers and weedicides and also in Machinery. They have
enabled them to perform SRI method of cultivation. PSAVK, is mainly trying to
help the villagers understand the importance of organic farming techniques and
preservation of seeds.It is also working on market linkages through its Vigyan
Ashram channel of members. At these centers one can have a fair price for their
surplus production and also can weigh their products themselves. These channels
will help then sell these products in the nearby haat/wholesale market.
In Madhya Pradesh, as per the Food Security measure ,rice is available to the
poor villagers having BPL/APL cards through PDS at Rs.2 per kg. If the villagers
take that option for consumption and sell their produce at market rates to the
nearby haat/market/dealer , it will be a proftable option for them. This needs to
be put into their minds so that it will be benefcial to the community. This will
enable them to think in a market oriented manner rather than keep the rice for
personal consumption. They also need to setup a job wage rate in the local
Panchayat for the manual labour employed for the activities as this would enable
proper maintenance of accounts.
To increase the productivity in the region, among the limited option, hybrid rice
is one of the most feasible and practically adaptable approach, as hybrid give 1.0
to 1.5 t/ha additional yield with the same level of fertilizer application as given to
high yielding inbred varieties. Large scale adoption of hybrid rice will help to
meet the increasing demand of rice in future. At research level, more focused
eforts is needed towards a early-medium maturing hybrid ideally suited to the
kharif irrigated as well as rain fed areas.This will help the farmers to go for rice
crop in partially irrigated situation. Planning and organizing seed production vis-vis the projected area under hybrids, identifying reliable organization in the
seed industry, development of technical manpower and strengthening of
technology transfer strategy like front line demonstration at different rice
growing situations of the other parts of the state.
Annexur
e 1:

Annexure-1.docx

This contains the questionnaire flled by surveying the livelihood practices

followed by 12 households of Khukkham village.
Annexur
e 2:

Annexure2.docx

This contains the consolidated

households surveyed in
Annexure
1.

result

taking

into

consideration

the

12

Conclusi
o n :The major livelihood activities present in Khukkham is agriculture. Except small business
necessary for sustenance of the villagers, there is no remarkable livelihood activity being
practiced. So in a way there is a huge untapped potential in terms of other livelihood
activities that can be developed through various interventions. These include skill training to
women in sewing and other such activities, cattle rearing and milk co-operative, poultry
farming etc. Additionally Khukkhams proximity to both Jabalpur and Kundam block can be
used to build proper market linkages where the people can sell their produce or start business
according to consumer demands. Interventions in this regard will go a long way in overall
improvement in the standard of living of the people and in the prosperity of the village as a
whole.