WOMENS ACTION FOR DEVELOPMENT

ACTIVITIES AT RANICHAURI, 2011

A summary of programmes, training and activities in an around Ranichauri from April 2011 - March 2012

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FOREWORD

Ranichauri is a 2 year pilot project and based on the outcomes and peoples needs the project would see if expanding the work would be needed and useful. We are encouraged as people from the more remote villages are already coming to us wanting to be a part of the project. First we would need to have a participatory evaluation with the women village and the partners at the end of 2012 to see what more is needed and what changes and improvements have been brought about by the interventions of the project. - Zareen Myles, Executive Director, Womens Action For Development

All images and text Copyright 2012 Womens Action For Development // wafdindia.org No part of this publication, or any part of the contents therein may be reproduced in any form without the written permission of the Executive Director, Womens Action For Development. REGD. OFFICE: WZ-34/5, Asalatpur, A-2 Janak Puri, New Delhi - 110058 // (91) 11.2561.0344 wafd@wafdindia.org PARTNERS: Project Holder // WAFD // wafdindia.org Local Partner // HIFEED // hifeed.org Funding Partner // ASDA Ry // asdary.net Technical Partner // INSEDA // inseda.org Research Partner // LiveMoveWork // livemovework.com

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Whats insiDE

THE bACkgRouND // 1 AbouT WAFD // 3 WAFD AT DELHi // 5 WAFD AT bHARATPuR // 8 RANiCHAuRi // 11 THE RANiCHAuRi ECosysTEM // 12 bHARATPuR vs RANiCHAuRi // 16 PRogRAMMEs // 17 AN ovERviEW // 18 oRgANiC FARMiNg // 20 kiTCHEN gARDENs // 21 RooFWATER HARvEsTiNg // 22 CoMPosTiNg // 24 bEE-kEEPiNg // 26 PouLTRy // 27 biogAs // 28 TREE PLANTATioNs // 29 THE sToRiEs so FAR // 31 sMT. PuRNi DEvi, guRiyALi // 32 sMT. TARA DEvi/sMT. siTA DEvi, MAuN // 34 sH. gANgA PRAsAD, sAvLi // 36 sMT. sAviTA NEgi/sMT. guDDi DEvi, DARgi // 38 iMPACT AND visioN // 40 ENDNoTE // 44 abOut WaFD WaFD at DElhi WaFD at bhaRatpuR

THE bACkgRoUNd

THE bACkgRouND // abOut WaFD

Womens Action For Development (WAFD) was registered under the societies Registration Act XXi of 1860 (Registration No. 9670 dated september 18,1978) as an endeavor of committed socially responsible people. WAFDs vision, mission and philosophy are based on the belief that women are central to any sustainable development efforts. Women have to be recognised as the primary stakeholders in their own development and growth. The role of WAFD becomes that of a facilitator to equip the women for creative action through participatory implementation, management and maintenance, so that ultimately they can take over these projects. VisiOn WAFD visualises a society in which women are equal partners with men, have control and management of their lives, and are able to realise their full potential to improve their self reliance and self confidence. MissiOn WAFD with partners and the women of Ranichauri, April 2011 WAFDs mission is the empowerment of women through recognition of their basic rights of equal access to education, health care, economic independence, and self determination.

philOsOphy Women are the critical partners in the development process. ObjEctiVEs To take up programs which help women to expand their knowledge base and skills, so as to improve their status within the family and the community. To promote education for preserving and improving the environment. To create awareness and promote implementation of simple renewable energy technologies with a focus on women. To promote health awareness with special emphasis on mother and child health and Hiv/AiDs. To promote credit and saving habits among the women and provide access to small credit. To promote education through establishing preschool education centres, and non-formal education centres for children out of school so they can be prepared to enter the formal school system.

THE bACkgRouND // WaFD at DElhi

WaFDs pOlicy OF Ethics WAFD will work with all communities irrespective of cast, creed or religion, if they fall within the socioeconomic criteria of the poor. WAFD will always strive towards communal harmony in all its programs and activities. WAFD will accept funds from partners, both indian and Foreign, who share similar values. WAFD will use funds for the programs and purpose for which the funds are raised. WAFD will not encourage corrupt practices. WAFD will seek or accept grants and funds for only those programs, which help fulfill the goals and objectives for which the organisation was established. WAFD will keep correct statements of accounts and be accountable and transparent in all dealings at all times. All donations no matter how small will be given a receipt signed by the Executive Director WAFD.

in Delhi, WAFD is working with a group of 1400 women to provide access to small credit to them for starting some livelihood activities that help them improve their living condition. starting in the year 2000 with small loans only for livelihood purposes, today WAFD has expanded to include loans for health, education of children and home repairs. The objectives of the program are womens empowerment, and, poverty elevation. some of the stories from Delhi: When Swaraj first joined WAFD in 1989 as an adult literacy teacher, she was a timid and docile homebody. Her husband lost his life in an accident in 1983 and she was left widowed with two young boys, the older of which was ten and the younger boy was just seven. swaraj never wandered out of home alone as the thought of travelling on her own was absolutely terrifying to her. The only asset swaraj had was a home built over a hundred square yards of land. swaraj, with her children, lived on a family pension of ` 800 which was supplemented with the money she got from stitching clothes for people and ever so often from selling hand knitted sweaters. We struggled to make ends meet but i insisted that my children get good quality education so i enrolled one of my sons in a central school and the other in the Air Force school remembers swaraj. it was

in 1989 that she was introduced to WAFD by a friend, who used to teach young girls how to sew clothes and other basics of tailoring. Through her, swaraj landed a job as a teacher in a pre-school run by WAFD and started earning ` 500 a month to teach children, take a few adult literacy classes and give extra classes to children who required it. Coming to work at WAFD felt like coming home and the people i worked with felt like a natural extension of my family. My sons were all grown up and had worked hard with the older one enrolling in a b.Tech undergraduate programme while my younger son got admitted to a course in Human biotechnology from AiiMs. This is when i became a member of WAFDs Palam village self Help group and took a loan of ` 5,000 to help pay for my childrens education. This was back in 1993 when ` 5,000 went a long way and felt equivalent to ` 5,00,000 in todays time. says swaraj of her earliest experiences with WAFD. swaraj later took a micro-credit loan of ` 10,000 from WAFD in 2000 after her younger son cleared the gRE and had to go to the usA for studies. The family has come a long way since Swaraj first joined WAFD, and in spite of these changes, she continues being emotionally attached and grateful to WAFD, for it played an instrumental role in helping her become a self reliant, independent and courageous woman.

Women members of the microcredit programme in Delhi

her by her younger daughter-in-laws mother. Devparis nephews operation was a success and he is now getting stronger and healthier and he owes it all to the community of women who chose to trust Devpari. Maya Sharmas success story is an embodiment of how the easy terms of micro-finance encourages people to take multiple loans that help permanently transform their lives for the better. When Maya joined WAFDs micro-credit programme in 2000, she was supplementing her husbands modest army salary by selling milk from the buffalo she owned. Keen to ensure that her children get a good education, Maya took her first loan for ` 2,500 in 2000. She decided to buy another buffalo to add to her livestock and took her second loan of ` 5,000 in 2003 to help pay for her new acquisition. She soon started to make a small profit by selling buffalo milk. Encouraged at the ease with which the loans could be paid back, she took her third loan of ` 20,000 in 2005 to build a room in her house with the

intention of earning rent on it. Maya took a fourth loan for ` 30,000 in 2007 to buy a third buffalo. In 2009, Maya decided to build three more floors in her house and took ` 30,000 to do so. Her life has now changed dramatically and she makes enough money through rent and selling milk to ensure she and her family lived comfortably. Mayas story has inspired more than a hundred women to join WAFDs micro credit programme. Pushpa Sharma became a member of the micro-credit programme in 2006. She took her first loan of ` 5,000 to install an electricity connection in her house. After repaying that loan she took the next one worth ` 10,000 to pay for her granddaughters Chartered Accountancy coaching. Pushpa decided to get her house repaired and build a little kitchen in it so that she could supplement her income by renting it out. She took her third loan of ` 20,000 to achieve this. The most recent loan she took was for Devparis nephews kidney operation.

Devpari became a member of one of WAFDs Self Help Groups (SHGs, later converted to micro-credit groups in 2000) and became a member of WAFDs micro-credit programme in September 2007. She took her first loan of ` 5,000 from the SHGs to build a water connection in her house. She took her next loan of ` 20,000 in 2009 to construct a new room and kitchen in her home, which she rented out for ` 2,000 a month. Her life had begun to improve and things seemed to be running smoothly when her nephew got the devastating diagnosis of complete

kidney failure. At ` 5,00,000, the cost of a kidney transplant is prohibitive and neither she, nor her family could arrange that kind of money easily. After selling a farm land of hers, she was still short of ` 1,20,000. Since she couldnt take a loan of the entire amount she asked a few of her SHG group members for help and they generously obliged. Pushpa Sharma, Meenakshi Sharma and Archana Singh, Devparis older daughter-in-law, took micro-credit loans of ` 30,000 each for Devpari. Devpari herself took a loan of ` 20,000 and the remaining ` 10,000 was offered to

Closing ceremony of the Womens Day celebration in Delhi with the women singing We Shall Overcome

THE bACkgRouND // WaFD at bhaRatpuR

The women who have been trained to lead the Mahila Mandals, with musical instruments for the celebration The success of an organisation is measured in terms of sustainability of the activities by the people without any more support from the organisation. After more than ten years of implementation of programs in eco village development WAFD is not active there anymore, but some of the women leaders trained in the different villages are now slowly taking over of motivating people to take up organic farming, make their own organic compost, or get biogas plants constructed - thus testifying to the success of WAFD in the villages in and around bharatpur. WAFD has trained 4 women to take up this work and they are independently taking meetings, guiding other leaders who are not so confident, and motivating people. WAFD is currently providing only background support in the form of arranging meetings, arranging conveyance etc. This work is being carried out with small grants from the students unions of university of Jyvaskyla and Helsinki Finland. some of the leaders and stories from WAFDs bharatpur chapter: Ram Dulari from village saidpura is 54 years old and very enthusiastic in learning new things, practicing them and spreading this knowledge in her village. she never went to formal school but learnt some reading and writing in an adult literacy program. Her village had no toilets and sanitation and slushy roads were a real problem in the village. After being a part of WAFD programme, she developed confidence to travel by herself, and talk to people. Her respect among the village people has grown and they come her for advice at all times. she has attended almost all trainings organised by WAFD. she has motivated her village people, because of which, there are now 55 toilets there, and almost all houses have made a small soak pit near their homes so that the roads are dry and not slushy any more. Ram Dulari has also motivated seven people to take up organic farming in her village, and about 73 women to set up small kitchen gardens in their homes and fields. Seema from village Darapur khurd is a young widow in her late thirties, who lives in a mud hut with her 4 children - 2 daughters and 2 sons. she herself never had a chance to go to school, but is making sure all her children go to school. she had a NADEP compost unit built with some help from WAFD. she used the organic compost on her small piece of land and grew mustard. Her crop was the best in the entire village and she earned ` 20,000 from the sale of this. since she gets a lot of organic manure and now also sells it, so far she has earned ` 4,000 from sale of the compost. seeing her other people in her village have also got motivated to build NADEP compost units and take up organic farming. Laxmi from village Chack Chaube has studied up to the eight class, and is 52 years old. she has taken up all the activities which WAFD taught during the project duration. Laxmi has a biogas plant which gives her organic manure for her organic farming on 17 beeghas of land. she uses the methane from the biogas plant for cooking energy, which saves her 3 hours every day. she utilises this free time doing stitching work as well as teaching girls how to sew and stitch and is proud to tell all she earns ` 300 per month from this free time. From being a shy and scared village woman who could not talk to anyone, especially men, today Laxmi is a confident person who can travel anywhere, talk to anyone and hold her own. in her own village, she has motivated 27 people to take up organic farming and helped almost all the families to set up small kitchen gardens for better nutrition for the family and sale of extra produce.

Womens Day celebration at Bharatpur

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RANICHAURI

thE RanichauRi EcOsystEM bhaRatpuR Vs RanichauRi

A view of Mt. Chaukhamba and Trishul in the Bandarpunch ranges

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Ranichauri

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Jagdhar Chamba Savli Dargi Guriyali Salamkhet Maun

RANiCHAuRi // thE RanichauRi EcOsystEM

Education others

situated at an altitude of 6500 ft. above sea level, Ranichauri is a small village in the Tehri region of the Tehrigarhwal district of uttarakhand. The Ranichauri ecosystem comprises of around 20 villages, and is situated 6 km from Chamba. Ranichauri acts as a mini-marketplace and a transit hub for Chamba. Ranichauri enjoys a certain pull from Chamba as villagers make 3-4 trips a month on an average, for their festive or recreational purchase needs. Chamba, being a major marketplace, also acts as a major transit junction for Hrishikesh, New Tehri and the Himalayas. between the villages, there is immense social connect. There is a high degree of familiarity between the villagers and social gatherings, celebrations etc. are attended by families from different villages. Walking is the primary mode of travel and the mountainous terrain is frequented rather always on foot, with heavy luggage at times. WAFD is currently active in 7 villages in all, including and around Ranichauri, and including the guriyali and salamkhet divisions of Maun.

sector-wise breakdown of the Ranichauri workforce Agriculture based on a population of approximately 1200 for the 7 villages

53% female population 80% female participation in activities 75% literacy rate 62% female literacy rate

WAFDs activity coverage in the Ranichauri ecosystem

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Clockwise from top-left // Chamba, a view through the hills, kids returning from school, Mintu the dog, a typical terrain and a days walk, and, a view of the ecosystem

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RANiCHAuRi // bhaRatpuR Vs RanichauRi

While both the ecosystems have their own characteristics, bharatpur enjoyed certain geographical advantages over Ranichauri. The differences pose certain challenges on the programmes at Ranichauri, that have affected the output and the way these programmes are carried out. On a positive note, though, these differences have taught WAFD to adapt to the lack of resources and facilities and strengthen the planning processes behind these programmes. tERRain While Bharatpur poses a flat and motorable terrain, Ranichauri is mountainous, and the remote villages are not motorable. This puts an immense constraint as far as reach and management are concerned. labOuR Possibly the biggest challenge at Ranichauri is the unavailability of labour. For tasks such as masonry, carpentry etc., there is no labour available locally, and WAFD has had to rely on external sources, whose demands have been increasing over the year. litERacy Ranichauri enjoys a high literacy rate. This generally makes it easier for WAFD to educate them on climate change, the environment and sustainability something that eventually opened the villagers to WAFDs initiatives. WatER bharatpur has some water while Ranichauri is faced with scarcity. The lack of water affects the way the programmes are conducted and, in turn, the output.

aniMals For programmes such as biogas production, a feed of around 25kg of dung and 25 liters of water is needed daily for which, animals are needed. given the climate and nonpastoral terrain at Ranichauri, this has led to the failure of biogas production.

PRogRAMMES

an OVERViEW ORganic FaRMing KitchEn gaRDEns ROOFWatER haRVEsting cOMpOsting bEE-KEEping pOultRy biOgas tREE plantatiOns

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Ranichauri Jagdhar Chamba Dargi Guriyali Salamkhet Maun

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PRogRAMMEs // an OVERViEW

Savli

WAFD, with their partners, has, in 2011, carried out various programmes with the women of Ranichauri and nearby villages. The aim has been to educate them about climate change and achieve a sustainable livelihood. WAFDs activities call for heavy participation from the village women. This, according to WAFDs vision, gives the villagers a sense of ownership and responsibility towards the natural resources. For the setup and training, WAFD follows a model wherein the installment costs of various programmes are shared between WAFD and the families, with WAFD ensuring that the women build the products themselves. once complete, the produce is used for consumption and to supply the raw material for the next cycle(s) of produce. since April 2011, WAFD has conducted various training programmes for the women from these villages. Trainings have been conducted in: Food preservation, pickle making and fruit juice preparation Making and using hay box for energy reduction in cooking rice using the solar cooker for daily cooking use of solar dryer for drying fruits and vegetables Assembly of solar lanterns training for youth

Weaving of bamboo Making compost in the composting baskets Construction of biogas plant and roof water harvesting structure. bee keeping Carrying out base line and household surveys social mappings of villages Pit digging for tree plantation organic farming Hiv/AiDs-awareness for women understanding concept, project objectives, methodology and implementation strategies Making posters for creating awareness and teaching people about climate change and how it is affecting the womens lives

Tree Plantations

Biogas

Roofwater Harvesting

Poultry

Organic Farming

Bee-keeping

Training Centre

Kitchen Garden

Composting

WAFDs programmes in the Ranichauri ecosystem

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PRogRAMMEs // ORganic FaRMing

PRogRAMMEs // KitchEn gaRDEns

WAFD encourages organic farming as a practice and has provided various seeds for the purpose. The soil research department has also been approached and a soil testing plan is in place, with the aim to attain 100% organic status in 3 years. With 8 demonstration units having been planned, WAFD was able to train and set up 78 organic farming units in 4 villages. in the current phase (2011-2012), the crops set up were rajma and wheat. The irregular rains and wild animal menace remains a threat to the organic farming activities. However, a 20kg produce is estimated per unit on an average at the end of the crop cycle.

WAFD also encourages and has helped the women adopt kitchen gardens as a practice for household produce. The aim is to reduce dependencies for sourcing the most commonly used food material. As with organic farming, the water scarcity and animal menace acts as a threat to regular produce, but that hasnt stopped WAFD and the women, who were successful in setting up 72 kitchen gardens in 4 villages in 2011-2012. on an average, a unit can produce up to 5kg per crop cycle. These backyard plantations have consisted of palak (spinach), gajar (carrots), muli (radish), dhaniya (coriander) and rai (mustard). The first batch of produce is expected by the end of spring 2012.

78 units in 4 villages 20kg estimated produce per unit

72 gardens in 4 villages 5kg estimated produce per garden

Wheat plantation on 1 nali unit

From top // Kitchen garden at Guriyali, a muli crop, and, kitchen garden at Maun

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PRogRAMMEs // ROOFWatER haRVEsting

8 tanks in 3 villages 3000 lt capacity of each tank

Sourcing of bamboo - bamboo needs to be imported from Hrishikesh, thus increasing the production cost of one unit. For this, alternatives are being explored in the form of ringaal, a local cousin of bamboo. Ringaal is extected to bring the costs down by almost 30%. Lack of masons - masonry and related labour has to be sourced externally and due to erratic demands from the labour units concerned, WAFD is planning initiatives to train the local women in masonry and carpentry. Despite the additional costs, a tank costs ` 15,000 on an average, which is shared by WAFD and the women. As a comparison, the government-installed tanks of the same capacity cost about ` 35,000. Privately installed tanks cost around ` 100 per litre capacity.

Targeted primarily at remote villages where water is scarce and frequent trips for water are difficult, WAFD motivated and trained the women to adopt roofwater harvesting as a practice. For this purpose, the women were trained to make water tanks on their own, using bamboo as the base structural material. The programme started with one demonstration unit being set up at the HiFEED campus at Ranichauri, but soon developed into a full-fledged activity with 8 tanks completed in 3 villages. The collected water can be used for all/any household activity, except for drinking. This programme has faced two big challenges, leading to increased costs and production times:

Below // Women in Guriyali with a finished woven structure for the tank

Clockwise from top-left // Women preparing bamboo for weaving, the woven tank structure, fine weave details, and, finished tank

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PRogRAMMEs // cOMpOsting

WAFD has trained the women in making their own compost units using a bamboo structure as the base. The aim is to encourage the women to produce compost at a household level, which in turn, will also improve the quality of soil and ensure a 100% organic status in the planned time. The units are capable of producing an average of 100kg compost on a 90-day cycle. WAFD has taken the initiative to motivate the women adopt composting in conjunction with organic farming to achieve a 100% organic status for the soil and the produced crop. since the unit is made of bamboo, this programme has also faced the same challenge as the roofwater harvesting tanks regarding sourcing bamboo, thus resulting in increased production time and costs. Despite the additional costs, a single compost unit costs ` 2,500 on an average, which is shared by WAFD and the women. The conventional compost units made of brick incur a cost per-brick and a unit of similar capacity could cost up to ` 7,500 (avg. dimensions 8ft x 5ft x 3ft).

16 units in 3 villages 100 kg compost per cycle

From top // Marking the ground for preparation, and, women in Guriyali in action weaving the basket From top // Coarser weaves for the compost unit, and, a finished unit in Guriyali in action producing compost

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PRogRAMMEs // bEE-KEEping

PRogRAMMEs // pOultRy

WAFD has provided training in the installation and maintenance of wooden apiaries for domestic honey production. These boxes are extremely easy to manufacture, with wood being the only material required. The boxes (with the bees inside) have a capacity to produce an average of 2kg honey over a 1.5 month production cycle of the bees. WAFD has trained and helped set up 7 such apiaries in 3 villages. in addition, as of March 2012, WAFD has also provided training in raising bee colonies so as to eliminate the need to source the bees externally. As a result, 14 more apiaries have been set up, taking the total to 21.

As a pilot project, WAFD is helping the building of a twostoried poultry with natural climate control. A complete survey was carried out to identify potential beneficiaries of this training and the construction is in progress. being a labour-intensive programme, WAFD has faced challenges in the form of unavailability of labour. Training the local men and women is being explored mainly for masonry and carpentry. The pilot project is underway in Jagdhar at Chamans poultry farm. Chaman has been doing poultry farming for many years now and his poultry has been producing 6-7 eggs a day. Due to the severe winters in Ranichauri, Chaman has had to give his hen away every year. A poultry with natural climate control will ensure his hen enjoy comfort round the year. Chaman plans to have around 40 egg-producing hen in the poultry, taking the egg production to around 40 per day during production seasons.

21 apiaries in 3 villages 2 kg honey per 1.5 month cycle

1 unit in 1 village 40 eggs estimated per day

From top // An apiary in action in Jagdhar, bees with the honey, and, more bees with the honey

From top // Site for construction of the poultry unit, and, Chaman holding an egg from his farm

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The plant at HIFEED campus, Ranichauri

From top // Sapling at Dargi, Smt. Savita Negi with her sapling and kids, and, ringal

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PRogRAMMEs // biOgas

PRogRAMMEs // tREE plantatiOns

As a demonstration unit, WAFD installed a biogas plant at the HiFEED campus, using bamboo as the base structural material. The biogas production programme faced various challenges due to which the production costs could not be validated and had to shut down. unlike bharatpur, Ranichauri does not have the number of animals needed to produce the required amount of dung. A pilot run was carried out with 12kg of rabbit dung, which produced around 5kg of biogas. However, even the rabbit dung had to be imported. Additionally, biogas production needs an equal volume of water, which made the water scarcity at bharatpur another huge challenge that could not be overcome. As the base structure is made of bamboo and the top surface of cement, sourcing of bamboo and masons proved extremely consuming, forcing the programme to shut down. in bharatpur, the plant has been functional and produces up to 10kg biogas for around 25kg of dung and a similar volume of water.

To add to the green cover of the ecosystem, WAFD has encouraged the village women to plant trees and provided them with seeds. An approval to cover the naked hill in front of Ranichauri is pending from government authorities. of the planned 4000 tree plantations during the year, 2400 saplings were planted till December and another 1500 fruit trees have been planted since. Most of these trees have been planted by the women in their own houses. Additionally, the WAFD project staff will be meeting the forest department officials to work out covering the entire naked hill in front of Ranichauri with ringal.

2400 saplings planted 1500 fruit trees

1 plant at HiFEED campus 10 kg production capacity

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THE SToRIES So fAR

sMt. puRni DEVi, guRiyali sMt. taRa DEVi/sMt. sita DEVi, Maun sh. ganga pRasaD, saVli sMt. saVita nEgi/sMt. guDDi DEVi, DaRgi

Womens Day celebration at Ranichauri, March 2012

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From top // With the first roofwater tank, and, at her kitchen garden

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THE sToRiEs so FAR // sMt. puRni DEVi, guRiyali

54 years old, Smt. Purni Devi was the first to install a 3500 ltr roofwater harvesting tank as part of WAFDs pilot programme at Ranichauri. smt. Purni Devi has a family of 4, including her son and daughter-in-law. As the chair-person of the Mahila Mandal at Guriyali, she took upon her as an initiative to participate actively with WAFD, considering the toll climate change and water scarcity were taking on her village. We used to go down all the way to Ranichauri or all the way up to Pant Nagar to fetch water, recounts Purni Devi. With the tank in place and 3500 ltr of rain-water secured for her, most of her domestic needs (except drinking water) are fulfilled these include water for cleaning, washing, farming and for her animals 1 buffalo and 1 dog named Mintu. Purni Devi also got installed a compost unit. Again one of the first in the area to get a compost unit, Purni Devi looks forward with great interest to get her first batch of manure from household waste. As a flag-bearer, Purni Devi has also participated in WAFDs organic farming program and already has organic plantations of Rajma (kidney-bean), peas and wheat. The plantations, though facing threat of destruction from monkeys, boars etc., are yet to yield their first produce. Her kitchen garden, however, has shown promising signs of production of radish, spinach, carrots and Rai (mustard) . WAFD and smt. Purni Devi have already agreed on the next plan, a smoke-free kitchen. All my household needs are on their way to getting fulfilled at home I wish the other women see my story and get motivated to employ these practices, concludes Purni Devi with a smile.

From top // A view from above, palak in her kitchen garden

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From top // Sita Devis organic plantation, and, her compost unit in action

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THE sToRiEs so FAR // sMt. taRa DEVi/sita DEVi, Maun

getting ready to attend a wedding in the nearby savli village, smt. Tara Devi and smt. sita Devi are eager to share their stories with a cup of tea and two plates of snacks. The two women run the Self Help Group (SHG) at Maun. Were 31 women in all, and each of us deposits ` 100 every month in our fund, say the two almost in unison. The sHg, though a WAFD initiative, is entirely autonomous to each village. The primary aim of a sHg is to have a common pool of resources that can be used to carry out their activities, and also to reach out to their own villagers in times of need. The sHg Maun loans out money to their villagers and charge an interest of ` 1 every month. Tara Devi and sita Devi both have compost units installed. The two also run their kitchen gardens of spinach, radish, carrots, coriander, rai, and their own organic plantations of rajma & wheat. Having taken the initiative to participate with WAFD, the women are aware of the phenomenon of climate change. Rains have

been bothering us for the past 5 years sometimes it rains a lot, sometimes it doesnt rain at all, says Tara Devi, recounting the irregular crop cycles in the past. We know WAFD cant make it rain, but were happy theyre helping us in using our own soil and resources for our needs, says sita Devi and this feeling of pride and happiness is evident in the way they talk and present themselves. When asked about the contribution from men in their activities, both reply with a smile, they help us with tea and food while we do our work.

Tara Devis kitchen garden

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THE sToRiEs so FAR // sh. ganga pRasaD, saVli

Having been involved with WAFD since the beginning of their Ranichauri activities (late 1990s), sh. ganga Prasad was a social worker having worked on the ideals of Mahatma gandhi, vinoba bhave etc. ganga Prasad was one of the founders of the Chamba gram swarajya sangh in 1964, wherein they called people from 10 villages to Ranichauri with an aim to serve the public. As a result, the organisation opened a junior high school with 5 students which stands today as an inter-college with over 500 students. ganga Prasad fondly recalls the activities the villagers, especially women, undertook during the Chipko Movement. The Mahila Mandal women, by themselves, prevented cutting of trees at Pant Nagar, he says, recollecting how strong the women and youth groups had become back then. For ganga Prasad, it is truly remarkable of WAFD to be promoting technology and cultural exchanges at the grassroots level. He makes it a point to specifically mention two events in WAFDs presence at Ranichauri in the past year the exchange programme between the women at Ranichauri and bharatpur, and the solar energy trainings conducted by WAFD/iNsEDA. Which other organisation would encourage their participants to go out, explore and understand culture? None, in my experience, are the words passed on with a smile. The apiary on Ganga Prasads terrace

ganga Prasads also installed the a bee box together with seven other women from the program area with the help of WAFD and harvested the first batch of 2kg honey from his box which the family consumed. At over 82 years of age, he talks of fitness and good health with a restlessness seen only in 20-something year old youth produce your own crop, eat your own crop and exercise good health is guaranteed. Ganga Prasad with his wife and son, in the background

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Guddi Devi with her tree plantation

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THE sToRiEs so FAR // sMt. saVita nEgi/sMt. guDDi DEVi, DaRgi

Monkeys destroy everything here, is the opening complaint for crop failure. Water scarcity and the need to import cattle from other villages only add to the problems for the women of Dargi. The Dargi women havent been active participants in all of WAFDs programmes, but are already running their kitchen gardens and organic plantations, with the first crop expected by the end of spring 2012. As a newly-formed sHg, the women have become united in taking decisions and almost never do they take decisions without consultation from the other members, and eventually from their respective families. With 10 women since January 2012, the sHg members are currently depositing ` 20 per month towards their common fund. The women had participated in training programmes on juice preparation and solar technology. Though the juice preparation programme garnered a lot of interest from the women, the solar cooker faced reluctance out of monkey fears.

From top // Savita Negi at her tree plantation with kids, Guddi Devi on her organic wheat farm, and, members of SHG Dargi

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41

iMpact anD VisiOn

so where does this lead to? The women (and some men) of the Ranichauri ecosystem have certainly had a taste of how local produce and local consumption boost their livelihoods. With the programmes just a year old, the success is visible in the form of intangibles - the women have opened up and the men are realizing the opportunities within the ecosystem. Though the success enjoyed in bharatpur is still a distance afar, WAFD has moulded their vision and adapted their methods so as to fit the constraints and characteristics the Ranichauri ecosystem poses.

IMPACT ANd VISIoN

WAFDs vision follows a simple 5-step process towards creating an economy. The first step, being the knowledge-transfer and the training programmes, the villages are in the second phase currently, that being implementation and production. At each step, there is a clear transfer of value that will help achieve an economy sustaining on local resources and marketing local produce.
Produce Produce

Use the guide below to read the graphic on the next page

Consumption

Consumption

Local sourcing

Consumption

Participation

Labour

Labour

value carry-forward
Revenue

Produce

Local sourcing

Produce

Finances

Labour

surplus

Labour

surplus

stake/involvement of villagers
ECONOMY

VISION

KNOWLEDGE

SETUP
WAFD and the households (mostly women) invest resources in various training programmes.

PRACTICE

IMPLEMENTATION
The women participate in the production of various units with WAFD giving technical assistance.

Returns

PRODUCTION
The respective units produce and slowly move towards a surplus.

OPPORTUNITY

BUSINESS
Repeated cycles of production create opportunities via locally produced food items.

BUSINESS

MODEL
The economy serves as an implementation model for other ecosystems.

stake/involvement of WAFD stage of implementation

mplementation support

Technical Assistance

Training

Finances

Marketing support

Material

Monitoring

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Produce

43

Produce

Produce

Consumption

Local sourcing

Consumption

Participation

Consumption

Labour

Labour

surplus Revenue

Local sourcing

Produce

Finances

Labour

surplus

VISION

KNOWLEDGE

SETUP
WAFD and the households (mostly women) invest resources in various training programmes.

PRACTICE

IMPLEMENTATION
The women participate in the production of various units with WAFD giving technical assistance.

Returns

PRODUCTION
The respective units produce and slowly move towards a surplus.

OPPORTUNITY

BUSINESS
Repeated cycles of production create opportunities via locally produced food items.

BUSINESS

MODEL
The economy serves as an implementation model for other ecosystems.

Labour

ECONOMY

implementation support

Technical Assistance

Training

Finances

Marketing support

Material

Monitoring

WAFDs vision and methodology towards a sustainable rural system

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45

EnDnOtE

This document highlights the activities WAFD conducted in 2011, along with their various partners. WAFDs partners have played key roles in various aspects and WAFD acknowledges their contribution wholly. The following organisations have partnered with WAFD in the past one year: Technical partner - integrated sustainable Energy & Ecological Development Association (iNsEDA), inseda. org Funding partner - AAR social Development Association Ry (AsDA Ry), Finland, asdary.net

This document has been jointly prepared by WAFD and LiveMoveWork Research Collaborative. The various activities and the overall ecosystem was studied by LiveMoveWork over three days of field visits to all the villages where WAFD is currently running programmes. The data used in this report was collected in the field visits and as a secondary source, various reports and surveys conducted by WAFD were referred to. For data and statistical information not covered by WAFD/LiveMoveWork, the Census 2011 data has been used as a source (censusindia.gov.in)

ENdNoTE

Local partner - Himalayan institute for Environment, Ecology and Development (HiFEED), hifeed.org Research partner - LiveMoveWork Research Collaborative, livemovework.com

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THANk yoU

All images and text Copyright 2012 Womens Action For Development // wafdindia.org REGD. OFFICE: WZ-34/5, Asalatpur, A-2 Janak Puri, New Delhi - 110058 // (91) 11.2561.0344 wafd@wafdindia.org No part of this publication, or any part of the contents therein may be reproduced in any form without the written permission of the Executive Director, Womens Action For Development.