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Rain water harvesting-the need of
the hour Rain water harvesting- the need of the hour- a case study In the year 1998-99, Maharaja Hanwant Singhji Charitable Trust(MHSCT), as project implementing agency submitted detailed plans to District Rural Development Agency(DRDA), Jodhpur for development of Rajgarh cluster which included construction of an anicut at Rajgarh. DRDA vide its letter no F-1/DDP/HHS/7589-90 dated 7/10/98 sanctioned the project under centrally sponsored desert development program, but due to closure of this scheme by Central Govt in the year 1999-2000, the project could not be undertaken. To ensure people’s participation, Gram Vikas Samiti of Rajgarh village was formed and election of office bearers was held on 10th Sept 2002. Sh Bhanwar Singh was elected as President and Sohan Singh as Secretary. Gram Vikas Samiti passed a resolution for construction of Rajgarh anicut and formed a user group of 20 members who undertook responsibility of community’s contribution and taking care of maintenance after construction of anicut.
• The tributary on joining Gotabar river increases water pressure on its western bank and erodes agriculture fields of Rajgarh village. Already much of agriculture land of village Rajgarh has come under the bed of Gotabar river. This anicut, will check soil erosion. • The anicut would recharge ground water of 17 surrounding wells. • Rajgarh village had only one nadi which stored water for hardly 11/2 months because of seepage problem. This anicut will also serve the purpose of a nadi. The matter was discussed at the Gram Sabha meeting and the affected farmers voluntarily agreed to this submergence. This agreement was made formal by recording it on a non judicial stamp paper. The design of the anicut is of a centrally located waste weir type. The samiti, under the guidance of Mr R.N Batra the technical advisor commenced work on 7th Oct 2002 and completed it on 9th June 2003,well before the onset of monsoons. 1.27 mcft capacity anicut was completed at a total cost of 6,65482 where in Trusts share of contribution was Rs. 4,49111.50 and community’s participation was 1,66370.50. The total cost per mcft was worked out to be Rs. 5.24 lacs which is quite economical looking at the location of the site and additional safety factor taken due to poor borrow material.
After the monsoons, a survey of improvement in ground water level was carried out. The data collected for various open wells and tube wells directly affected by anicut shows an average rise of 13.53ft in water level of open wells and 110 feet in case of tube wells. Looking at the persistent drought conditions over last three years, this rise in water level is encouraging. On 12th June, 2003 Gram Sabha meeting of Rajgarh and Jiabera was held where in all the villagers gathered and appreciated the quality of water harvesting structures and open wells constructed in their villages by the Trust. On this occasion, as a token of their gratitute a momento was presented to Brig Shakti Singhji, the General Manager of MHSCT. It will be worthwhile to mention here that in the beginning the community was not organised and some residents expressed their apprehensions about success of the project. But under the guidance of the Trust , Gram Vikas Samiti started conducting monthly meetings where in accounts were placed before the people and views were exchanged ensuring total involvement and participation of the community. Thus basic aim of the project of institution building by creating awareness through motivation was achieved. No Govt funds were involved in construction of the anicut. The community mobilised its resources by way of labour, tools, tractors and material and cash contribution to some extent. The trust gave them the financial support and technical expertise to demonstrate them how they can become the master of their own destiny. The ownership rights of this anicut lie with Rajgarh Gram Vikas Samiti which is taking care if its maintenance also. The silt deposit will be in form of Bajri(sand), a construction material used for preparing cement, mortar. People collect bajri for construction purpose. Removal of bajri will generate some funds for Gram Vikas Samiti in the form of levy which may be fixed.. Due to retention of moisture there is visible improvement in environment. There is more greenery visible. Thus the construction of anicut has improved the availability of water for irrigation, resulting in better rabi output, thus improving the economic status of people. Availability of fodder will result in better yield of milk. Increased agricultural activity will generate employment opportunities for the local people. The major benefit to the farmers will be that even when due to erratic or scarcity of rainfall, they are not able to obtain any benefit from kharif crops, the anicut would have recharged ground water ,and they will be able to take rabi crops; thus obtaining the Trust’s objective of drought proofing. Almost similar is the success story of 7 other anicuts and 2 nadies constructed under project “SAHYOG” from 1st sept 2002 to 31st Aug 2003. The data of these water harvesting structures pertaining to expenditure incurred, catchment area, yield, capacity, quantity of water stored etc. is attached in appendix ‘A’. In all the storage capacity of 6.59 mcft has been created. Case study of Women co-operative dairy Society at Gopalsar In the Thar desert rural population is mostly illiterate and ignorant. Due to lack of basic infrastructure people are unaware of modern technology applicable to rural areas. They continue to live in mid 20th century.
A Gram Sabha was organised in Dec 2002 at Gopalsar to discuss drought proofing activities and finding alternative sources of income. Dr G.K Bohra technical advisor for animal husbandry was also part of this meeting. As Gopalsar has a number of milching cattle, hence Dr Bohra suggested that they should start a co-operative dairy milk society. After conducting a baseline survey they found that the number of cattle in the village were:-
Because of prevailing drought conditions only 34 cows out of 361 and 25 buffaloes out of 73 were in milking condition. To start a co-operative dairy society a meeting was conducted which was attended by the project team, chairman of Gram Vikas Samiti Mr Lal Singh, secretary Mr Narpat Singh, as also Mr. Mutha and Dr (Mrs) Tulsa Bhati from Saras Dairy. Dr (Mrs) Tulsa Bhati suggested to start a women co-operative dairy society. To initiate the process Mr. Narpat Singh motivated and enrolled 21 ladies for the society. In the first week of Jan 2003 elections were held and Shrimati Sagun Kanwar was elected as president of the society and Shrimati Anita Kanwar as the secretary. All members of the society contributed Rs 125 and deposited it in “Thar Anchal Gramin Bank” A two day training program was imparted by Mr. Mutha the field officer, Saras Dairy, Jodhpur. Thereafter on 27 Jan 2003 the women co-operative society started functioning. During the period Jan 2003 to Sept 2003, the society supplied 8160 litres of milk to Saras dairy and received an amount of Rs. 71043.To promote the co-operative society MHSCT advanced an interest free loan of Rs.2500/-to the society and gave soft loans to individuals to purchase milching buffaloes totalling Rs.34500/- Saras dairy supported the promotion by sanctioning Rs.2500/- for purchase of dairy requirement and imparted training to the members. They also distributed medicines costing Rs. 500/- free of charge and met the expenditure for a travis costing Rs. 5000/-. As an incentive to women dairy co-operative society they distributed five sewing machines among members to supplement their income. As a result of this activity each member of the society is now earning approx Rs 17 to 20 per day based on the fat content in the milk in addition to meeting their domestic requirement. This has become regular source of income for them. Gopalsar village is coming out of the “parda system” and women want to become self employed. The all women co-operative dairy society has become a model for the villages in the cluster and two villages viz. Belwa and Jhinjhinwala have followed in their footsteps. Development of Pastures in Desert- a case Study The main economic stay of the desert people is the cattle wealth which gets severely effected due to droughts which occurs very frequently. Due to increase in the population, and use of tractor for agricultural activities, all private land has been put under the plough; leaving only community land for grazing. This warrents rethinking and the need to develop community land as modern/improved pasture land with proper control system. Sakat Nagar form part of the cluster of 16 villages selected by Maharaja Hanwant Singhji Charitable Trust for drought proofing project SAHYOG with financial support from Sir Ratan Tata Trust, in Jodhpur district. The Gram Vikas Samiti of Sakat Nagar conducted a meeting on 21st May 2003 to discuss pasture development on community land with a view to improve the availability of fodder. People were apprehensive and they could not arrive at unanimity. Mr. K.L. Mathur, the technical advisor for agriculture of SAHYOG and a member of MHSCT also participated in the meeting. He proposed to fence an area of 5 hectares and plant fast growing desert variety of trees and grasses to prove to the farmers that community land, segment by segment, can be converted into developed and maintained pasture land. As a result of this meeting a Samiti was formed which was responsible for preparing and executing the planned aforestation project. The plan evolved included fencing of 5 hectare plot of community land at a cost of Rs. 45,000/-,planting of 2000 saplings of varied variety each costing Rs. 10/-, grass sowing and periodic watering estimated at 30000/- .Thus, total outlay of the model project was Rs. 1 lac. Shri Madho Singh, was elected as the President of the Samiti. 25% of the total project cost was to be contributed by the community. The samiti executed the plan and as a result of which plants of different varieties like Desi Babool (Acacia Nilotika), Isaraili Babool (Acacia Tortelis), Kumta (Acacia Nilotica), Neem (Azadirachta Indica), Sheesham (Delbergia Sissoo), Khejari (Prosopic Ceneraria), Rohida (Tecomella Undulata), and Ber (Zizyphus Mauritiana) were sown. The fencing was done as planned using barbed wire, stone slabs and jaali. Plants were watered. Gap filling was done after one month. After few months when it rained natural grass also grew in the area. Today the entire area looks like a lush green patch. People have appreciated the efforts of the village and the Trust. It is hoped that this model project will motivate other villages in the cluster to adopt similar practice and take up aforestation project on a segment of their community land. It is expected that after 3 to 5 years, this 5 hectares of plot will be fully mature, affording much improved fodder availability for the community; as also retaining the soil moisture, thus improving the general environment of the area. The objective of the trust to make fodder available to the cattle breeders in there own village will be met to a great extent. At site Veterinary cover is essential - a case study In the desert region, the wealth of villagers is measured in the numbers and quality of livestock owned by them as livestock is the main economic stay of the people. The drought affects the livelihood of the people due to increased mortality.
In village Gudhiala of Balesar a gram sabha meeting was held on 7th Sept 2002. The gram sabha members elected Shri Aman Singh as President and Shri Lakh Singh as Secretary and 14 other members to the Vikas Samiti to look after the development activities of their village. The base line survey indicated that the animal holding of the village was:-
Vikas Samiti in 1st week of Oct found that due to outbreak of PHIDKIA i.e. contagious disease in sheep, the mortality rate was 10% to 12% which was increasing day by day. Dr G.K.Bohra, the technical advisor organised a veterinary camp on 22 Nov 2002 for the treatment of cattle. He treated diseased cattle and vaccinated 300 sheep against ‘PHIDKIA’, a contagious pleuro pneumonia in sheep. He also treated milching buffaloes against “CHITKI”(hind leg laming condition). “CHITKI” results in the animal losing its value and usefulness. A survey was conducted again, before monsoons which indicated that after immunisation, there was no mortality in sheep(all 300 sheep survived) and that animals operated for”CHITKI” were healthy and good. The sheep breeders also reported improved yield of wool.
Organisation of veterinary camps in villages, ensured maximum benefits to the breeders. Their economic base in the form of the cattle wealth was not allowed to be eroded in one of the worst droughts. Success of these camps will motivate the breeders to invest in improving the quality of their holdings through breed improvement. The breeders can be explained and motivated to reduce their holdings with improved quality, thereby obtaining better economic output with decreased expenditure, ensuring financial gain. Mushroom Cultivation- a potential source of alternative income for the desert people- a case study
The trainees were told to experiment growing mushrooms with the seeds and hay given to them free of cost. The most successful experiment was by Shri Narpat Singh of Gopalsar who grew 8 kgs of mushrooms. He distributed the mushrooms to his friends for tasting and consumption. This resulted in generation of interest in people. HHMHSCT conducted the second training programme for villagers in Goplasar. Twelve villagers attended the training program on 28th Jan 2003 which was also conducted by Assistant Director Horticulture Mr. Hari Singh Champawat and Mr.K.L Mathur. At the end of the training the Trust gave 5 kg of seeds to the farmers. Two out of 12 were able to produce15 kgs of mushrooms. This was consumed for domestic use and ½ kg was sold in the market to find out market price. The market value was determined @ Rs. 90/- per kg. The villagers were happy to know that mushroom can provides nutritious diet rich in protein, minerals and carbohydrates and can be grown in the desert. It can also become good source of income with low investment. People have shown interest in mushroom cultivation and hence during the winter of 2003-2004, the Trust has made plans for increased allotment of resources for mushroom cultivation. Success will meet the Trust’s objective of providing alternative source of livelihood to combat drought situation. |
On a tributary of Gotabar river near village
Rajgarh, a natural site existed for construction of an anicut. On
northern side of the site is Grahi ki Dhani and on southern side is
village Rajgarh. Construction of an anicut on this site had three
advantages: 
A total of 400 mm rainfall was recorded in
catchment area of Rajgarh anicut during monsoon season 2003. It rained
on 18 and 19 June,6,10,11,16,23,24,25,29 July and 8,25,27 Aug. 2003.
Total catchment yield was 2.87 mcft out of which 1.27 mcft of rain water
was stored and 1.60 mcft overflowed. The anicut successfully withstood
the thrust of water at full capacity. Minor cracks and soil slides were
quickly repaired by the community. Despite more than average rainfall of
400 mm in the region during monsoon season 2003, no soil erosion took
place on about one km length along the western bank of Gotabar river
near Rajgarh village.Due to ground water recharging the water level in
wells and tube wells has risen and Rabi crop this year is expected to be
sown in 550 acres of Rajgarh village as against 250 acres last year. 
Maharaja Hanwant Singhji Charitable Trust is
working continuously in rural area since 1980 with a commitment to raise
the living standard of the people. With this vision MHSCT and Sir Ratan
Tata Trust collaborated in project SAHYOG for drought proofing
activities. They selected a cluster of villages which included Gopalsar.
His Highness Maharaja Hanwant Singhji
Charitable Trust (HHMHSCT) with support from Sir Ratan Tata Trust had
launched the initiative “ Drought Proofing in Western Rajasthan” under
the banner name of SAHYOG in year 2002, to create lasting solutions by
evolving technological and organisational innovations for integrated
development of drought prone areas with a view to minimise the impact of
drought. 
HHMHSCT organised veterinary camps from 15th
Nov 2002 to 25th Nov 2002 in all the 16 villages of Project Sahyog
immunising 17111 animals. These camps were again organised from 15th
June to 25th June 2003 at which 5120 animals were immunised. 
The desert region is prone to recurring
droughts. The basic infrastructure is lacking and any type of industry
is non-existent, There are no employment opportunities. Hence, there is
a dire need to introduce alternative sources of livelihood. To motivate
people to adopt some of the proven methods, HHMHSCT, with support from
SRTT, has launched a drought proofing project under the banner name of
SAHYOG in a selected cluster of 16 villages in the Balesar Panchayat
samiti of Jodhpur district. One of the activities considered by HHMHSCT
was mushroom cultivation. To promote this activity the Trust liaised
with CAZRI, Jodhpur. During the training the nutritive value of mushroom
was explained. They were taught the technique of growing mushroom with
live demonstration. All trainees were given ½ kg of mushroom seeds with
prepared hay bags. The training session was conducted by Shri Hari Singh
Champawat, the Assistant Director of Horticulture with Mr K.L Mathur
technical advisor in attendance. 