Chirag Kasbekar

The degeneration of their natural environment has caused the people of the western Himalayas great hardship. The Himmothan Pariyojana, a partnership between the Sir Ratan Tata Trust and a number of committed grassroots organisations, is an important attempt to revitalise these communities through a multidisciplinary effort

The 20th century has not been kind to the green dales of Himachal Pradesh and Uttaranchal. The forests that have provided essential goods to the predominantly agricultural economy of this picturesque region face a seriously diminished future due to continued pressure from a swelling population and deforestation.

This has made life difficult for local communities still dependent on natural resources. The men migrate to other parts of the country in search of a better livelihood and the women they leave behind face the brunt of the daily grind for survival. Though the region doesn't face abject poverty, life is tough.

Drawn by the need to assuage this pain, the Sir Ratan Tata Trust is working closely with a committed group of grassroots organisations to turn things around. By looking at the situation from multiple dimensions —- social, economic, political and ecological — the Trust's Himmothan Pariyojana is bringing fresh hope to the people of the region.

Launched in 2001, the Himmothan Pariyojana is an ongoing effort to improve the way of life in the Himalayan regions of Himachal Pradesh and Uttaranchal. Its three-pronged plan involves support to dedicated non-profit organisations working in the areas of natural resource management, drinking water and sanitation, and livelihood improvement.

Among these organisations is the Nainital-based Central Himalayan Rural Action Group or CHIRAG, an ambitious and innovative group of about 100 people who want to see the villages of this area become self-reliant communities founded on equity, justice and solidarity, and offering sustainable livelihoods and informed choices to all.

But regenerating communities and bringing them closer to this ideal is a tough task with many facets to it. A major area of focus, given the precarious condition of the forests of the area, is natural resource management — an area in which it gets vital support from the Trust. Its extensive forays into this area include innumerable interventions in social forestry, joint forest management, water supply and sanitation, agricultural and horticultural development, animal husbandry and energy conservation.

Many of these are tied together in CHIRAG's ambitious integrated watershed management programme. With the degraded forests being unable to satisfactorily perform critical soil and water conservation services — such as reducing soil erosion — that the people depend on them for, the sustainability of agriculture in this region is gravely threatened.

To ameliorate this situation, CHIRAG felt the need for a holistic approach that emphasised the deep connections between forest, water, land, livestock and people. Its integrated watershed development programme, established more than 10 years ago but fully realised in the last few years, is just such a programme.

"In mountainous regions, where the contours of the land determine not just the type of forest that grows and the flow of water but also influence social linkages, watersheds are particularly appropriate development tools," says V. K. Madhavan, executive director, CHIRAG.

The programme involves the use of a central basin into which rainwater from the entire watershed region is drained to ensure water conservation. Since this approach requires close attention to all geographical areas of the watershed region, it needs a comprehensive effort. This includes such diverse efforts as forest plantations, soil and water conservation activities and a variety of community mobilisation and income generation activities.

Integrated watershed development is as much an ecological and conservational effort as it is an organisational challenge. Its success depends on strong self-governing institutions enabling local
communities most affected by the watersheds to collectively manage the watersheds themselves.

Since watersheds typically affect a number of villages, the village development committees of every village of the basin region get together to form watershed committees that are accountable to all communities. They are expected to put in place a plan for the management of the watershed and oversee its implementation. To facilitate the smooth functioning of these institutions, CHIRAG conducts important mobilisation and capacity building programmes.

CHIRAG has also implemented a number of initiatives in areas that have a more direct impact on people's lives. To affect an immediate enhancement of incomes, it has formed Kumaon Grameen Udyog, a registered company that helps self-help groups and CHIRAG-affiliated women's groups produce and market woollen products and culinary herbs, oils and scrubs from apricots grown in the area. CHIRAG's range of initiatives in education and health are already promising these communities a more wholesome future.

Though it has operations in 150 villages, to spread its message over a larger area than the organisation itself can reach, CHIRAG is training other non-profit organisations, development professionals and village institutions in its areas of expertise, including integrated watershed development. For this purpose it has set up a training centre in Dhokane village that can seat about 30 people.

As a grassroots people-centric organisation it knows and believes that any movement towards the ideal community has to be self-impelled. No progress is possible without the whole-hearted involvement and ownership of the people of these communities.

"No watershed intervention can succeed if communities do not participate in the process and eventually own the process. Receptiveness to these initiatives is directly proportional to the potential impact of the initiatives on their lives," says Mr Madhavan.

Ultimately it is a battle not just for material improvements in their lives, but also a battle for their hearts and minds.

The Trust is happy with what has been achieved and has definite ideas on what more can be done. Says Arun Pandhi, programmes manager, Sir Ratan Tata Trust, "The Trust has developed strong linkages with both the voluntary sector and the state government and this has resulted in the establishment of several pilot projects for integrated natural resource management. The good work being done in the area of drinking water and sanitation can now be combined with the watershed management programmes to form integrated projects."

If such a plan comes to fruition, CHIRAG would need to explore synergies with groups such as Pithoragarh-based Himalayan Gram Vikas Samiti (HGVS) and the Himalayan Institute Hospital Trust (HIHT), spearhead of the Himmothan Pariyojana's thrust in the area of water and sanitation. Like CHIRAG, HGVS has strengths in a wide range of areas, including community and women's empowerment, the promotion of education and culture, community health management through water and sanitation, the panchayati raj system and natural resource management. Its implementation of water and sanitation projects, as part of the Himmothan Pariyojana, in 11 villages in Pithoragarh, has been extremely well received.

The Centre for Organic Farming (COF), another organisation supported by the Trust but embedded in the state-affiliated Uttaranchal Organic Commodity Board, faces another sort of battle for hearts and minds. Convinced that hill agriculture in the mountainous areas of Uttaranchal can be best revitalised and livelihood enhanced by resource-conserving, ecologically sustainable organic farming that eschews the use of toxic, inorganic inputs such as chemical fertilisers, it confronts the task of establishing this form of agriculture not only among farmers and consumers, but all along the supply chain.

The farmers don't need much convincing — most of them have resisted chemical fertilisers for years. In an area that receives erratic rainfall, organic farming is just what they require. Binita Shah, programme manager, COF, and secretary, UOCB, explains: "The farmers of the hill areas are very receptive to organic agriculture and the main reason for this is that inorganic chemical inputs require much more water usage, and water is something not easily available in the hill districts."

It also offers cost-savings over conventional agriculture and, in the long run, greater productivity. In addition, agricultural communities appreciate the healthy, non-polluted living environment that organic farming gives them — their water, air and food supply are now protected from contamination from poisonous chemicals.

Increasingly, consumers of agricultural produce the world over, including in India, are waking up to these advantages. Says Mr Shah, "The domestic market is growing very fast and providing attractive incentives to farmers. The UOCB learns about a new organic retail outlet almost every day. In the international market, India is strategically placed to offer organic produce."

This is encouraging because India has the highest levels of food contamination in the world. "Studies have shown that Indian food products have 300 times more pesticide contamination than is permitted," says Mr Shah.

To take advantage of this growing awareness and to spread it further, the COF is trying to develop market linkages on both sides — with suppliers of inputs and with market intermediaries and consumers. For greater visibility, it is developing a brand for its products and creating consumer awareness through fairs and exhibitions. An important element in this effort is the exhaustive process, facilitated by the UOCB, of certifying the organic produce to assure consumers that the produce is indeed chemical-free.

The COF also provides technical support to the movement with scientific validation of technologies through field demonstrations and constant monitoring to look for possible improvements. Its publications help communicate the results of these technical studies throughout the community.

To create skilled manpower in organic farming it offers training — at its two training centres and through its mobile training team — and offers its services to other NGOs such as CHIRAG. The results have been encouraging. Through its involvement with the COF, says Mr Pandhi, "the Trust has realised the tremendous potential of organic cultivation. The work carried out by the Centre for Organic Farming is of excellent quality".

Today, if the Himmothan Pariyojana is bearing fruit, the Trust too deserves credit. Says Mr Madhavan, "We are delighted to have such a professional and passionate Indian institution as a partner. The professionalism of the Trust has had its own impact on CHIRAG and what we have learned from our relationship is certain to last longer than the partnership. Without the Trust's support and encouragement we might have become a great organisation, but with limited geographical impact."

With the Trust having signed a memorandum of understanding with the Uttaranchal government in 2004 committing itself to 10 further years of rural development initiatives under the Himmothan Pariyojana, the good work will go on. The people of the region have good reason to expect better prospects and a better quality of life.

Uploaded on November 4, 2005