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    NREGS

    ASTUDY OF SUSTAINABLE LIVELIHOOD MODELS

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    The National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme

    (NREGS) West Bengal

    A Study of Sustainable Livelihood Models

    Lead ResearchersKarthik Raghavan Niki Singh Saswata Das Shardul Bist Subhamoy Das

    Unnati Gajjar Veena Singh Vibha Singh

    Special Contributors

    Development of Research and Communication Service Centre (DRCSC)

    MICARVAAN: A Rural Immersion Program

    Mudra Institute of Communications, Entrepreneurship Development Cell (MICA EDC)

    Ahmedabad

    September 2008

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    Acknowledgement

    The research on which this paper restscould not have been carried out without

    the kind collaboration of Development

    of Research and Communications Ser-

    vice Centre (DRCSC). Many people

    have contributed to this report, and at

    the risk of leaving some people out, we

    would like to thanks a few special ones.

    Thanks Sujeeth Da, our key contacts in

    West Bengal with whom we had severaldiscussions. The NREGS overview in

    West Bengal provided by Raju Da was

    quite beneficial. Thanks to Milan Da for

    providing us constant encouragement,

    motivation and full support.

    We are grateful to Anshuman Da who

    gave us this opportunity to take this un-

    traditional project.

    Thanks also to Nupur Da, Gulam Da

    and Ram Da with whom we interacted

    during our visit to different villages.

    Last but not the least, thanks to repre-

    sentatives of Gram Panchayat and all

    the villagers who gave their full cooper-

    ation while group discussions and per-

    sonal interviews.

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    TABLEOFCONTENTS

    TableOfContents 4

    __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    ExecutiveSummary

    5

    __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    Chapter1

    UnderstandingNREGA 8What is NREGA? 8Salient Features of NREGA 9What do Critics Say? 11NREGA in West Bengal 12

    __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    Chapter2

    NGOsinCollaboration:ABriefProfile 13Development Research Communication Service Centre (DRCSC) 13Swanirvar 14Suhriday 15

    __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    Chapter3

    StudyofDRCSCModel 17

    __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    Chapter4

    CaseStudies 22

    __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    Chapter5

    FindingsandAnalysis 32Need for right Communication pathway 32

    Right Human Resources required 34Redirection of Fund Flow 34Political Nuances 35Improper Planning 36Improper Execution 37Comparative Analysis 39

    __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    Chapter6

    Recommendations:APathAhead 41Community Model 41Proper Planning 42DalFormation 43

    Generate Sustainable Assets 44Involvement of Other Agencies 45

    __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    Exhibit 47

    __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    Annexure 53

    __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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    ExecutiveSummary

    As per the Indian governments Census 2001, rural India constitutes 72.2% of Indian populationof which around 33% population is under the poverty line. If India has to realize its promised

    growth and development, it is imperative that this multitude of people be able to earn their live-

    lihood in a sustainable way. This is the very objective with which the National Rural Employ-

    ment Guarantee Act was passed in the year 2005 with an objective of providing 100 days of

    employment in way of manual labor which uses unskilled labor and with the help of that, create

    sustainable community assets. But like many of the other acts before it, this one also raises many

    questions over the execution of the scheme and loopholes in the act itself. The central govern-

    ment defines Unskilled labor under this act as:

    1. Water conversation & water harvesting (digging new ponds, percolation tanks, dams etc)2. Drought proofing (afforestation/ tree plantation)3. Micro irrigation works (minor irrigation canals etc)4. Provision of irrigation facility to land owned by SC/ST5. Renovation of traditional water bodies (de-silting of tanks/ponds, canals, wells etc)6. Land development (plantation, land leveling etc )7. Flood control & protection (Drainage in water logged areas, construction & repair of em-

    bankment)

    8. Rural connectivity (Specific work to be indicated separately)9. Any other activity approved by MoRDThis report focuses on the implementation of NREGS scheme in the state of West Bengal and at

    the same time tries to find some other successful models which are being implemented by non

    governmental organizations over the years. The aim of the report is to try to find alternate mod-

    els that can be implemented through NREGS. A total geographical area of 24 villages across

    three districts Purulia, Birbhum and North 24 Parganas were covered for the research.

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    ResearchObjective

    1. To study the existing problems among the functioning of the stakeholder groups ofNREGA active at village level so that new models of creating community assets can be

    developed.

    2. To analyze the effectiveness of the sustainable water harvesting models suggested andimplemented by DRCSC so that it can be proposed to Ministry of Rural Development

    (MRD) to get befitted into the NREG scheme.

    Keeping in mind the exploratory nature of the research and also the limitations of time and geo-

    graphical area covered, it was decided that qualitative research would be the best approach in this

    case. Case study approach and direct interaction with the stakeholder groups like the villagers,

    officials, NGOs etc through group discussions and interviews were followed. The focus of theseinterviews was mainly on the issues of employment generation for the eligible job seekers and

    sustainable asset development for community.

    StakeholdersIdentified

    Gram Panchayat & Gram Sabha

    Community utilizing the community assets

    Wage Seekers

    Other NGOs and Implementing Agencies

    GeographicalAreaCovered

    Birbhum, Purulia and North 24 Parganas are 3 districts which were identified as the arena of re-

    search. The reason to choose these 3 districts is their varied climatic conditions.

    Birbhum: A District divided into sub-parts prone to either drought or flood

    Purulia: A drought prone region.

    North 24 Parganas: A region prone to floods.

    All 3 districts present 3 different types of climate and vegetation which gave the scope of under-

    standing the functioning of NREGS in different conditions.

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    AreasCoveredintheResearch

    The following were some areas which were addressed while conducting interviews and group

    discussions. The roles and importance of each factor were researched at different levels with dif-

    ferent stakeholders.

    Role of Gram Panchayat

    Role of other stakeholders operating at block, district, state and central level

    Minimum wages paid

    Right of Information Act

    Budget/Funds

    Unemployment allowance

    Employment days

    TheDeliverables

    The research has been conducted with close support from DRCSC, an NGO which has been

    working at the grass root level in the districts mentioned above & has successfully developed

    eco-friendly, economically profitable and sustainable livelihood models as pilot projects in thesevillages. These projects took unskilled labors or more aptly put the poorer section of the hamlets

    as their primary target audience. The whole plan was to develop the team spirit amongst small

    groups of 10 odd families so that they own & execute projects in the vicinity of their villages &

    thus develop the feeling ownership amongst these villagers. From DRCSCs end, these villagers

    were provided with the primary monetary assistance, technical expertise & training required for

    the execution of the projects.

    This report focuses on these very models implemented by DRCSC and gives a detailed analysis

    on how these models can be integrated with NREGS. It gives a comparative study of these mod-

    els vis--vis the models implemented through NREGS. This report covers a lot of ground interms of uncovering the ground realities of the implementation of the NREGS and various intri-

    cacies involved in it and gives recommendations which can be implemented in a centralized way

    as well as measures that can be implemented at Panchayat level which address the problems un-

    covered.

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    Chapter 1

    UNDERSTANDINGNREGAWhatisNREGA?

    NREGA stands for National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (2005) enacted on September

    2005 & brought into force with effect from February 2006 in 200 most backward districts; cover-

    ing all districts of the country within next five years. The objective of the act is enhancement of

    livelihood security of rural household by providing at least one hundred days of guaranteed wage

    employment in every financial year to every household whose adult members volunteer to do

    unskilled manual work. Simply put, the primary objective of the act is enhancement of livelih-

    ood security in rural areas by providing 100 days of un-

    skilled manual work with the auxiliary objective being:

    Generating productive assets

    Protecting the environment

    Empowering rural women

    Reducing rural-urban migration

    Fostering social equity

    The NREGA marks a paradigm shift & stands out amongst

    other rural employment programmes as it empowers the

    rural population with a legal right & employment guaran-

    tee through an act of parliament, unlike other wage employment programmes. The act targets

    unskilled laborers in the rural sections of this country which includes landless labors, SCs/STs

    & women. At this juncture, defining unskilled work is necessitated:

    1. Water conversation & water harvesting (digging new ponds, percolation tanks, dams etc)2. Drought proofing (forestation/ tree plantation)3. Micro irrigation works (minor irrigation canals etc)4. Provision of irrigation facility to land owned by SC/ST5. Renovation of traditional water bodies (de-silting of tanks/ponds, canals, wells etc)6. Land development (plantation, land leveling etc )7. Flood control & protection (Drainage in water logged areas, construction & repair of em-

    bankment)

    8. Rural connectivity (Specific work to be indicated separately)9. Any other activity approved by MRD

    The objective of the act is en-

    hancement of livelihood security of

    rural household by providing at

    least one hundred days of guaran-

    teed wage employment in every

    financial year to every household

    whose adult members volunteer to

    do unskilled manual work.

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    alientFeaturesofNREGA

    Adult member of a rural household, willing to do unskilled labor, mayapply for registration in writing or orally to the local gram Panchayat,

    for free

    The gram Panchayat after due verification issues job cards, within 15

    days of applicationA job card holder may submit a written application for employment to

    the gram Panchayat stating the time & duration for which the work is

    sought. Application of work should be for at least 14 days of conti-nuous work with not more than 6 days per week

    Employment will be provided within 15 days of application, if it is not

    then the applicant is liable to receive unemployment allowance as per

    the actWages are to be paid in accordance to the Minimum Wages Act 1948

    for agricultural work in the state, unless the central government notifiesa wage rate which wont be less than Rs. 60/- per day; wages being

    equal for both men & women

    Not more than 40% of the fund is allocated for the costs of material

    components of the project (inclusive of the wages for the semi-skilled& skilled labor)

    60% or more of the fund allotted is to be expensed towards wages of

    the unskilled laborTotal finances is shared by the central & state government in 90-10 ra-

    tio; the material cost divided in 75-25 ratioThe scheme shall not permit engaging any contractor for implementa-tion of the projects under it

    As far as practicable, a task funded under this scheme shall be per-

    formed using manual labor & not machines

    As for as possible, employment shall be provided within a radius of 5km of the village where the applicant resides at the time of applying. In

    case its beyond 5 km, it has to be within the block & the applicant has

    to be paid 10% of the wage rate as additional allowancesA new work under the scheme shall be commenced only if:

    o At least 50 laborers become available for such work; ando The laborers cannot be absorbed in the ongoing work

    Work site facilities include crche, drinking water among others

    Social audit to be done by the gram Sabha

    Grievance redressal mechanisms have to be put in place for ensuring aresponsive implementation process

    NREGA ranks amongst the

    most powerful initiatives everundertaken for rural employ-

    ment in India, so much so that,

    the monetary valuation of theentire project was around 2%

    of the national GDP in 2005. A

    project of such magnitude de-

    mands lots of nitty-grittys toensure smooth operations &benefits for the intended au-

    dience, to put all of that in a

    nutshell, here are a few impor-

    tant features of the act.

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    The above fig. explains the entire procedure of execution & implementation of the projects under NREGAthrough its bureaucratic journey. It originates at the office of Ministry of Rural Development & culminates

    at the Gram Panchayat level further percolating down to the unskilled labors in terms of employment. The

    numerous interventions slow down the entire procedure at the cost of multiple filtering which was in

    tended to keep the system corruption free.

    EXECUTION CYCLE

    MoRD (Ministry of

    Rural Develo ment

    State Government

    District Planning

    Committee

    SEGC (State Em

    ployment Guarantee

    Council)

    District Panchayat

    PO Intermediate Pan

    chayat

    Gram Panchayat Gram Sabha

    NEGC (National Em

    ployment Guarantee

    Council)

    Advisory, Monitoring

    & Evaluation

    Implementation

    Planning, Supervis

    ing & Monitoring

    Policy Maker

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    WhatdoCriticsSay?

    The act in its entirety is beneficial to the rural poor who form a major chunk of the Indian popu-

    lation & this cannot be denied. To quote Mr. Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, Rural Development Mi-

    nister at National Consultation on NREGA held on 16th May, 2008 Wages for NREGA works

    now go directly into 1.4 crores bank accounts, belonging to workers, to ensure transparency.

    Also, implementation of NREGA has forced the government & private employers to provide

    minimum wages to the poorest of poor employees, as the act

    has increased the bargaining power of the poor at every stage

    from demanding a job card to ensuring legitimate wages for

    work. NREGA has immensely helped in controlling migra-

    tion from villages to metros & other villages which is an

    achievement in its own right. To put facts & figures straight,

    NREGS created more than 90 crores man-days of employ-ment in 200 districts as against 83 crores man-days per year

    together by SGRY & NFFWP in 586 districts during 2001-

    061.

    Having said all this, its important to understand that a similar

    exercise in Maharashtra at a much smaller scale under the name Maharashtra Employment

    Guarantee Scheme has become synonymous with leakage of public funds to the local bureau-

    cracy & politicians over the period of 30 years of its existence. Such instances raise the appre-

    hensions amongst the stake holders involved. Also, the fact that the cost involved is huge &

    might not be affordable for the country in future, owing to sharp rise in interest rates & nationsfiscal deficit. At the execution level as well, the mechanism seems to be a bit skewed as its uni-

    form throughout the nation, ignoring the regional diversity in terms of topography, culture etc.

    Also, disinterest on state governments part adds to the ineffective execution of the project in the

    first phase.

    1 Data from Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability

    NREGASuccessStory

    Residents of Panihari village are a happy lot. They are celebrating freedom from floods for the

    first time in living memory. Agricultural wages have increased across the district in the past one

    year. They say their lives have improved because of the National Rural Employment Guarantee

    Act (NREGA). Utilizing the employment opportunity that came their way through NREGA,

    residents of Panihari in Sirsa finished constructing a 2-km embankment on the Ghaggar River in

    February this year. (Source: http://nrega.nic.in/Reportfromfield/NREGA_harayana_success.pdf)

    Also, the fact that the cost involved

    is huge & might not be affordable

    for the country in future, owing to

    sharp rise in interest rates & na-

    tions fiscal deficit.

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    NREGAinWestBengal

    The table gives the state report submitted byNREGA for West Bengal. The report reduces

    the entire exercise into a mathematical jargon,

    however on a closer look the picture seems to bein a withered state. The primary objective of the

    act is creation of sustainable assets for the

    community by creating 100 man-days of un-skilled work for the poor. However, the first part

    seems to get amiss, as PRIs concentrate on the

    employment generation, which essentiallydoesnt differentiate the act from its counter-

    parts. Also, decisions taken at the Central Gov-

    ernment doesnt seem to hold good at the grass

    root level owing to diverse changes like topo-graphy, climate, people etc. hence execution at

    the PRI level is important.

    Many such issues are called for when it comes

    to this state & we happen to look into this win-

    dow with our limitations in the report that fol-lows.

    SomeNumberCrunching

    Employment provided to

    households:

    18.95136 Lakhs

    Person days [in Lakh]:

    Total: 365.82

    SCs: 111.89 [30.59%]

    STs: 120.61 [32.97%]

    Women: 50.18 [13.72%]

    Others: 133.31 [36.44%]

    Total fund: 789.57 Crore.

    Expenditure: 307.14 Crore.

    Total works taken

    up:51333

    Works completed: 19593

    Works in progress: 31740

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    Chapter 2

    NGOS

    IN

    COLLABORATION:

    A

    BRIEF

    PROFILE

    Development Research Communication Service Centre

    (DRCSC)

    DRCSC is a non-government development organization which operates in 12

    districts of West Bengal and other states. They primarily work in the purview of food and live-

    lihood security of the rural poor through sustainable management of natural resources on the ba-

    sis of principles and actions, that are environment friendly, economically appropriate, socially

    just and developed by mutual cooperation.

    Background

    Development Research Communication and Services Centre (DRCSC) was formed in 1982 as a

    resource centre for collection, collation and dissemination of information on various socio-

    economic issues and to highlight the struggles of various NGOs, CBOs and individuals to ensure

    social justice; especially for informal sector workers, indigenous communities and small and

    marginal farmers/landless labourers as well as self employed artisans. Along with that, since

    1992, the centre focused on Sustainable Agriculture and Natural Resource Management for im-

    proving food and livelihood security of the rural poor. The resource centre started to expand its

    services through a Network of local NGOs and Development Cooperation Groups.

    AreasofInvolvement

    Enhancing production of food, fodder, fuel etc. through training, demonstrations and col-

    laborative field trials on sustainable utilization of natural resources.

    Establishing market linkages through consumer awareness for the organic growers.

    Assisting rural communities to conserve and regenerate common properly resources like

    grazing lands, ponds and wetlands, roadside and canal bank/riverbank areas, permanent

    fallows etc. through group based management

    Enabling school teachers and educational workers to promote environmental awarenessand activity based participatory learning among children and adolescents and to take

    up agro based enterprises.

    Arranging and supporting documentation of overall developmental issues, indigenous

    technologies and knowledge especially in the areas of food production and processing,

    seed selection and storage, nutrition and health care, water harvesting and storage etc

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    Assisting and capacitating small organizations to develop and maintain libraries, docu-

    mentation centres, seed centres and nurseries, revolving funds, grain banks, bio-labs, pub-

    lication design and production units etc. and also to develop food security and environ-

    mental protection related projects

    Methodsofoperation

    Enhancing production of food, fodder, fuel etc. through training, demonstrations and col-

    laborative field trials on sustainable utilization of natural resources.

    To form a network or establish a strong linkages between formal and non-formal organi-

    sations and also with organisations beyond the immediate purview of our activities so

    that the effect of their development work, programmes and initiatives may be far-

    reaching and sustainable.

    To influence people in the corridors of power for formulation of policies in favour of the

    people especially the poor and the marginalised with special emphasis on women and

    children.

    To work for the awareness about the effect of macro issues at the grassroot level.

    Swanirvar

    Swanirvarstarted work in 5 villages in the North 24 Parganas district near Calcutta in December

    1989. Dr Sujit Sinha started Swanirvarwith the idea of developing the rural area holistically with

    the help of local people. Their primary focus is on improving the quality of education and health,developing appropriate rural technologies, implementing income generation and savings activi-

    ties and pursuing sustainable agriculture methods. It has always been guided by the philosophy

    that while development is primarily concerned with people, it must involve the indigenous

    people of that region. Towards that goal, it started with developing the following broad areas:

    Education and Health

    Organization, Leadership, and Planning

    Appropriate Rural Technology

    Savings and Income Generation

    Agriculture

    Over the years, its work has spread to 58 villages in 4 blocks (Baduria, Deganga, Swarupnagar,

    and Basirhat 1) of North 24 Parganas district, and in additional districts of West Bengal. It was

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    recently nominated to be the District Technical Agency (DTA) to help the government deliver its

    large scale poverty alleviation program.

    Areasofactivity

    Pre-primary Education 14 centres with 900 children

    Primary Education 4 schools with 520 students

    Youth and Culture in 8 villages, with 600 children between 10 and 18 years of age.

    Collaborations with Government Education System: In 150 primary and SSK schools, 17

    secondary schools, 20 ICDS centres, Basirhat College.

    Arsenic mitigation in drinking water in 90 villages.

    Sustainable agriculture 115 villages in 7 Blocks with around 10,000 farmers.

    Micro-finance in 69 villages, through 7000 women in 620 self-help groups.

    Health (Till 2000) -- mother and child care in 11 villages; regular blood donation camps,

    some cataract operation camps.

    Gram Panchayat creating participatory structures and planning systems in four GPs; in-

    tensive experiment in one GP in 2002.

    Flood Relief in 2000-2001. Community-based Disaster Preparedness in one gram Pan-

    chayat in 2001

    Shikshamitra: An experimental secondary school and an Education Resource Centrestarted in 2005 in Kolkata.

    Suhriday

    Mr. Abdul Rahim Mullick one of the chief founders of the NGO runs the organization with a

    handful of young enthusiasts who do honorary work.The NGO does a lot of work at the grass

    root levels imparting knowledge and training to the local farmers and working towards develop-

    ing sustainable livelihood models.

    That this NGOs efforts are bearing fruits was evident to us when we met a farmer namedAzizur

    Rehman Gazi whom we found to be very enlightened. We were so impressed after speaking to

    him that we almost named him the enlightened farmer. He had attended the Krishi Pathshala, a

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    unique initiative of Suhriday. At these Krishi Pathshalas the farmers receive training on various

    methods and techniques to improve their agricultural productivity in spite of the adverse weather

    and topographical conditions. Several farmers attend the same and many have really benefitedfrom this training camp.

    What really impressed us over and above the functional train-

    ing that these farmers have received is the noticeable change

    in the mindset of these people. When we spoke to our enligh-

    tened farmer we could see a vision in his eyes. The fact that

    he had been benefited from the efforts of the NGO was very

    clear. But the enthusiasm in him in spreading the knowledge

    to his fellow farmers so that everyone could reap the same

    benefits was commendable. The very change in his mindset-coming out of the traditional forms of farming to accepting

    new techniques, taking the risk and experimenting was in-

    spiring. We believe if we can create at least one such enligh-

    tened farmer in each and every village in India, who in turn

    will themselves spread the knowledge, it will change the face

    of our villages.

    Now that is something which will go a long way in improving the state of affairs. Full credit to

    Suhriday for has been able to do that. Its a big achievement we might admit. Hats off to them!

    We would sincerely request the donor community to look at NGOs like Suhriday, who may not

    be well known, due to lack of funds to adequately promote them, but are actually working hard

    at the grass root levels.

    At these Krishi Pathshalas

    the farmers receive train-

    ing on various methods

    and techniques to im-

    prove their agriculturalproductivity in spite of

    the adverse weather and

    topographical conditions.

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    Chapter 3

    STUDYOFDRCSCMODEL

    Village:Khoskadam

    Pur

    District:Birbhum

    State:WestBengal

    FOODFOREST

    A group of 18 villagers together leased an existing pond

    owned by a private party and the surrounding lands owned by

    the village Panchayat for a period of twenty years. This was

    done with an agreement that the profit would be shared be-

    tween the group members and the Panchayat in a ratio of

    75:25.

    The pond is used as the main source of irrigation for the land

    thus leased and this land is used to grow several fruits, vege-tables and crops like pomegranate, blackberries, brinjal, la-

    dys finger etc. The pond is used further for fisheries and

    growing ducks. The fish and duck excreta present in the pond

    also work as a source of organic manure (Refer to Exhibit 4,

    Fig. 1). The group members do not invest any thing in the be-

    ginning, all the financial help comes through DRSC. Howev-

    er, the members will pay back half the amount of the loan

    from the profits earned from the whole project. The funds

    from DRCSC are arranged from various government and non

    governmental organizations. This food forest serves as a

    community asset serving all the villagers who have worked in

    the food forest development.

    Food forest consisting of a variety plants growing together

    adds to soil fertility. The pond around which this food forest

    is developed aids the irrigation of these plants and trees.

    DRCSC keeps constant check on the maintenance of the food

    forest.

    COST

    Man days

    Generated

    Labor

    Rate

    Labor

    Cost

    Material

    Cost

    Total

    Cost

    2856 70 1,99,20 35,000 2,34,500

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    Village:Salya

    District: Purulia

    State: West Bengal

    vz

    STEPPOND

    Ponds in villages are used as primary source of water. How-

    ever, apart from water utilization for day to day householdand sanitation purposes these ponds also serve as home for

    ducks and fishes. DRCSC has helped dig many ponds in these

    West Bengal villages however simple ponds fail to remain

    sustainable in various villages where the climatic conditions

    are not conducive. Keeping in mind the climatic conditions

    and the topographic characteristics of the various villages a

    step pond model has been designed. This model is designed

    primarily for the dry areas and where the land is stony owing

    to heat. The step pond model suggests that a simple pond hav-

    ing a single surface should rather be formed in the form of a

    step wise walls and the pond will have many subsequent sur-

    faces cut one after another (Refer to Exhibit 4, Fig. 2).

    The idea behind developing such a model is that the water in

    the pond in dry and scorching areas is very prone to evapora-

    tion due to immense heat. If the wall of the pond would be in

    a stepwise form the water will evaporate at the upper most

    level which is on the ground level and subsequently the lower

    level water would get affected. Thus, even if water gets dried

    on the surface at the lower level water will be available for

    consumption.

    COST

    Man

    Days

    Labor

    Rate

    Labor

    Cost

    Material

    Cost

    Total

    Cost

    1950 68 132600 NIL 132600

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    Village:Sonathali

    District:Purulia

    State:WestBengal

    SOCIALFORESTRY

    Social forestry is a model in the villages where the fundamen-

    tal idea is to plant a variety of trees to foster soil conservation

    and increase soil fertility. The plantation done by NREGA is

    primarily based on the plantation of Eucalyptus and Acacia

    trees. A large number of families from the village are in-

    volved in this model and these trees are used only for fuel and

    are used only for their wood once they grow. The officials

    who are in charge of this tree plantation tend to allow them to

    grow and then cut them before their tenure in the particular

    area gets over. The reason behind this is that they want to

    make the most of it before they are transferred. The woodfrom these trees are sold and utilized primarily as fuel. At the

    same time these trees also have medicinal value which is un-

    tapped.

    DRCSCs model as a corresponding model to the NREGA

    suggests plantation of a variety of plants and trees in between

    the acacia and eucalyptus plants so that the fertility of the soil

    remains intact. A new form of dam structure is built in the

    fields amongst the trees with the reason of soil conservation.

    Semi-circular dams are built with a view to conserve soil (Re-fer to Exhibit 4, Fig. 3).

    Rearing of silkworms on mulberry trees is another aspect of

    the social forestry model. These silkworms when grow in the

    mulberry fruits, are used to derive silk. Silk is derived in very

    select month of the year and is a major revenue source for the

    villagers who are involved.

    COST

    Man DaysGenerated

    LaborRate

    LaborCost

    MaterialCost

    TotalCost

    Well Dig-

    ging, Ma-

    chinery,

    1073 68 72964 289001 365715

    Well Pav-

    ing

    50 75 3750 NIL 3750

    Mixed

    Cropping

    750 75 56250 1800 74250

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    Village:Bolpur

    District: Birbhum

    State: West Bengal

    NURSERY

    This model works on the idea that lot of land is not used pro-

    ductively, especially the land which lies next to the roads in

    the villages. On both roadsides a number of plants and trees

    are grown for various purposes. These plants are guarded

    from the top by a roof like structure and also are given a cer-

    tain boundary. Thus, the land which was lying waste though

    near by to the village was made useful by the villagers. This

    creates employment as well as the returns in terms of fruits

    and vegetables.

    COST

    Man Days

    Generated

    Labor

    Rate

    Labor

    Cost

    Material

    Cost

    Total

    Cost

    Nursery 40 60 2400 1200 3600

    Plantation 80 60 4800 NIL 4800

    2year

    Protection

    730 60 43800 NIL 43800

    Total 850 51000 1200 53200

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    Village:Chatanigora

    District:Purulia

    State:West

    Bengal

    District: Birbhum

    State: West Bengal

    SERI CULTURE

    Seri-culture is a new approach of social forestry. Till now theonly model welcomed in the social forestry was Acacia and

    Eucalyptus plantation due to easy returns and low mainten-

    ance of it. However, Seri-culture has received higher accep-

    tance when it comes to maintaining soil fertility and long term

    benefits.

    Seri-culture is practiced in the regions where the Sudhoarjun

    trees (Desi trees) are planted. Silk worm rearing is done on

    these trees to develop a typical ecological system. The silk

    worms reside on these trees and feed on the leaves of thetrees. The silk excreta make the land around the tree fertile,

    which always other grass to grow around these trees unlike

    the case in Eucalyptus plantation. This grass is used as fuel

    for cooking purposes. The silk worms produce silk twice a

    year, which is later sold for commercial purposes. The wood

    of these trees is also used for fuel purposes and furniture. The

    tree branches are cut once in a year for fuel requirements of

    the community. Mulberry trees are also grown for silkwormrearing. In fact, the silk from Mulberry trees are of better

    quality, which is more profitable in terms of commercial val-

    ue of silk. There is no live example of this kind of plantation

    in the villages yet. DRCSC is planning a mixed plantation of

    few mulberry trees surrounded by the Sudhoarjun trees in the

    village Chatanigora, in the district of Purulia.

    The normal practice of Seri-culture is observed as the land

    rejuvenation after the eucalyptus plantation; as such farming

    restores the fertility of the land. However, the acceptance of

    Seri-culture has increased and villagers are adopting this

    model in various innovative forms. As compared to social fo-

    restry, it not just provides earnings from wood but also from

    silk. Moreover, the land fertility is also maintained by thegrass growing beside thetrees. Also, the insect excreta act asorganic manure to the land. However this kind of plantation is

    that it demands lots of patience and maintenance.

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    Chapter 4

    CASESTUDIES

    Madhab Da, a landless labourer lives with his family in

    Khaskadam Pur in Birbhum district. Like most of the people in

    his village, life was not easy for him. As Ghulam Mustafa,

    project leader with DRCSC, stated philosophically, a poor

    mans income depends on a number of activities he does as

    they do not have a single reliable source. Being landless was

    no less than a curse to these families. NREGA projects got

    them some money occasionally. Madhab Da usually went to

    Sitapur or Gopta for work and worked as a labourer, building

    roads, digging ponds and planting trees, a highly unpredictable

    source of income. One fine day Ghulam Mustafa, who shared

    good relations with the villagers called a meeting. He said he

    would help them develop a social forest. Madhab Da, like the

    others was unclear about the benefits of it and Ghulam Da ex-

    plained to them in detail. Madhab Da along with 39 other

    members formed a Dal. It is called the Pallimangal Dal. A certain area of waste land around a

    pond was identified and was given to them by the Panchayat. Madhab Da and his friends started

    by building a temporary bamboo shed near the pond. The Foodforest was developed by planting trees of various types along

    with climbers and root plants.

    However, the Dal was facing some internal problems of its

    own. By now one of the members had quit the Dal. Further

    talks with the Panchayat led to the Dal getting the permission

    of utilizing the pond too. Work on the pond Kamarpukurwas

    begun in 2004. DRCSC contributed Rs. 10,000 for the pond

    and Rs.22, 000 for the food forest. The fishes in the first year

    were just enough for their consumption. Gradually the Dalstarted selling fish in the local market and even though it added

    very little to their income, it was a welcome addition neverthe-

    less. At present theDal consists of only 18 members after one

    member dropped out of theDal 2 years back.

    Being landless was no less

    than a curse to these fami-

    lies. NREGA projects got

    them some money occa-

    sionally. Madhab Da

    usually went to Sitapur or

    Gopta for work and

    worked as a laborer, build-

    ing roads, digging pondsand planting trees, a high-

    ly unpredictable source of

    income.

    MADHABDA

    FOOD

    FOREST

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    Today, life for Madhab Da and many others has changed phe-

    nomenally. The food forest provides them not only food but also

    fodder for their cattle and fuel wood. The Dal has also startedbreeding ducks which became a further source of income. The

    eggs laid by these ducks are sent to the market to be sold after

    the personal consumption needs of these 18 families, which are

    dependent on the lake, are met. The Dal guards the pond on a

    shift- wise basis, generally 2 members during the day and 4 at

    night.

    The income generated is also used for philanthropic causes,

    which is at times contributed to the needy during someones

    marriage, death of a landless labour, accident, house buildingetc. Madhab Da believes that in this way they do whatever little

    they can to help the other which was otherwise not possible ear-

    lier.

    Madhab Da says only a handful of the villagers are getting

    deriving some considerable benefit from this project. He

    lives in a village of 450 families, most of them landless.

    More of such innovative ideas and self- help groups

    (SHGs) are required to motivate the landless labourers to

    build a sustainable livelihood for themselves and theircommunity as a whole. He adds that earlier he was a labor-

    er working for others but today he has a permanent source

    of income. He is no more dependent on others for his live-

    lihood. It has been only four years since he became a part

    of the Food Forest but he says he can see the days ahead in

    the future when all the trees will cover the area with green-

    ery and their hard work and dedication will reap benefits.

    Apart from the monetary benefits he also believes that the

    community feeling has only become stronger by the day.

    He also occasionally takes out time to indulge in Baul

    Sangeet, an interest which had almost died. He sang a few

    folk songs for us which described how culturally rich the

    district is.

    He is no more dependent

    on others for his livelih-

    ood. It has been only four

    years since he became a

    part of the Food Forest

    but he says he can see the

    days ahead in the future

    when all the trees will

    cover the area with

    greenery and their hardwork and dedication will

    reap benefits.

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    In Chatra Panchayat of North 24 Parganas lies the villageGhoshpur which looks almost the same like any other village in

    this area. However, it is not entirely the same anymore. The lives

    of people here have changed. Until a few years back the villagers

    faced the same problem as that of the others. This was water log-

    ging, aggravated by the fact that there is very small area of land

    per family. Adding to their plight, this area of North 24 Parganas

    is known for its ability to grow only one crop a year. Farming

    was not at all a dependable source of income. Women in this vil-

    lage sew football jerseys to add to the family income. There was

    no sustainable livelihood system in place in the village.

    Ram Da, a DRCSC leader talked to the women of

    the village and told them about the importance of a

    Samiti, urging them to form a Mahila Samiti for

    their convenience. This was in the year 2004 when

    only 10 to 12 women came forward and took the

    initiative. Soon the Jamuna Mahila Samiti was

    formed with 16 members. Land was located and

    training was given to theMahila Samiti members on

    how to utilize the entire land and also how to shift

    from fertilizers to natural compost. The initial mon-

    etary support was provided to them by DRCSC.

    Ram Da supplied seeds to the Samiti for the purpose

    of planting, and the bed concept of farming was ap-

    plied here where the water flow is directed in a cer-

    tain manner which does not flood the farm. Along

    with this, land shaping was also done on the land.

    The Samiti members were encouraged to plant cree-

    pers which would be high above the water level in

    the rainy seasons.

    EMPOWEREDWOMEN

    This area of North 24

    Parganas is known for its

    ability to grow only one

    crop a year. Farming was

    not at all a dependable

    source of income. Wom-

    en in this village sew

    football jerseys to add to

    the family income.

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    The Samiti members say that after the formation of the group,

    hardly any land goes waste. It is used for various kinds of

    plantation depending on the favourable conditions prevailing

    in the area under cultivation. The slow shift to organic farm-

    ing has also brought them a lot of benefits. Organically grown

    vegetables fetch them a higher price as compared to other

    vegetables, even in the local market. This proves that there is

    a huge market which can be tapped into, for organic vegeta-

    bles.

    The Service centre organizes various camps and training ses-

    sions such as the Awareness Camp, Introductory Training,

    Food Processing Training, Duck and Fish keeping Training.

    These are held in the village and the ARTC.

    Apart from farming, the Samiti was also aided by the Service Centre in the form of a loan for the

    spices business. Initially the function was limited only to packaging. A camp on Adulterated

    Food brought about a sea change. The Samiti called for a meeting right after the camp and rea-

    lized that the masalas available in the market consisted of harmful chemicals. They decided to

    expand their spices' business. From merely packing, they moved on to buying raw materials,

    processing it and then selling it in the market. They used the spices first for personal consump-

    tion in the group, followed by distributing among friends and then, on approval, selling it in the

    market. The Samiti has already started supplying it to hotels.

    Life for them has definitely become better in terms of more income coming in the family as a

    result of implementation of certain measures. Organically grown vegetables not only fetch them

    higher prices but have also resulted in lowering the incidence of disease. The feeling of commu-

    nity building is high among the members, with Sanchay andDhan Gola being formed in order to

    provide loan for plantation, weddings, education and other purposes. This has rescued the vul-

    nerable villagers from the clutches of money lenders who charged unrealistic rates of interest on

    the money lent.

    The village has seen quiet a few changes, with kutcha house being plastered and an increase inthe number of kids going to school. This is a result of the community work and sustainable live-

    lihood measures taken. The whole village, and not only the Mahila Samiti Members, now serves

    as a role model to its neighboring villages.

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    Watery woes: Radhika Murmu lives in Salia village in Puruliadistrict. Her husband, being a carpenter, used to go as far as the

    villages of Kashipur and Adra in search of work, both of which

    are about 2 hours away from their village. There was no perma-

    nent and reliable source of income for Radhikas family. She

    depends on farming for her livelihood, which, in turn, requires

    water for sustenance. Since water is scarce in this village, so the

    only crop that used to grow here was dhaan and she, along with

    the other farmers in her village, was dependent on the rainy

    son for irrigation. The cattle had to be grazed over large

    tances in search of water and grass. Though there are a number

    of ponds in the village, however, they are not favourable for

    fishing due to two main reasons:

    - The water in these ponds decreases by March; and

    - Since the land is quite stony, it does not provide feed (leaves,

    shrubs) for the fishes.

    A fruitful suggestion: To bring relief to the distraught

    people, the Service Centre advised them to form aDal. As

    many as 26 people came forward to form the Sudya Sidu-

    kanu Muluchandu Chasi Dal in 2002, which now con-

    sists of 24 members. TheDal took up the work of renovat-

    ing the existing village ponds. Currently, there are four

    ponds in the village, irrigating an aggregate area of about

    50 bighas. One of these four ponds was selected in 2005

    and was renovated to build a 5-step pond, which helped to

    attain maximum capacity utilization of the water body.

    This pond covers an area of 8 bighas. A total of 50 to 60

    types of plants grow around the pond and they are plantedtwice a year, a feat which was unimaginable until a few

    years ago.Radhika says that now she is able to sell vege-

    tables in the nearby markets after providing for her per-

    sonal consumption.

    5STEPPONDPURULIA

    She depends on farming for

    her livelihood, which, in turn,

    requires water for sustenance.

    Since water is scarce in this vil-

    lage, so the only crop that used

    to grow here was dhaan and

    she, along with the other far-

    mers in her village, was de-

    pendent on the rainy seasonfor irrigation. The cattle had to

    be grazed over large distances

    in search of water and grass.

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    Benefits of the 5-step pond: The 5-step pond is beneficial

    in many ways. As the water of the pond dries up in the drier

    months, the higher steps can be used for vegetable planta-

    tion. Also, watering these plants becomes easier as the water

    can be easily drawn from the pond itself, which is just a step

    below the field. This plantation has also made the pond bed

    favourable for developing fisheries, since it provides fodder

    for the fishes. The step pond is owned by 8 people who can

    breed fish in the pond. The remaining 16 people can use the

    water from the pond for irrigation. They do plant vegetables

    around the pond; however, they do not have a share in the

    fish-breeding. Apart from the income from the fishery, all

    the profit is equally shared by theDal members.

    No looking back: Radhika is really grateful for the efforts

    that the Service Centre has made in helping her and the other

    villagers. She speaks about the difference that water has

    brought in their lives. The women of this village stitch dis-

    posable plates (pattal) out ofSal tree leaves and sell them in

    the nearby market. Radhika has bought a new sewing

    chine by borrowing money from the community bank,

    chay. This has speeded up the process of stitching plates which earlier used to be done by hand.

    This has resulted in an addition to the family income.

    A bit of microfinance:Sanchay, a community bank initiated with the help of DRCSC, has been

    created wherein each of the members contribute Rs. 10 per month. The money is lent at an inter-

    est of 2% per month. Loans are given for various purposes, among them buying seeds, payment

    of wages to workers and tuition fees of children being the usual reasons. This has helped the vil-

    lagers break free from the clutches of the tyrannicalMahajans (moneylenders) exorbitantly high

    rates of interest. A cashier appointed from among the Dal maintains all the records ofSanchays

    activities. The community feeling has only grown over the years, with the setting up of beej

    bhandarand grain gola, apart from Sanchay.

    Radhika says she is no longer dependent merely on the rains for her livelihood. AsDalnetri, she

    has the responsibility of holding theDal together, sorting out minor differences if any, and work-

    ing for the overall benefit of theDal. She wakes up each morning, full of optimism about her fu-

    ture and a zest to work for the benefit of other poverty- stricken laborers around her.

    Radhika is really grateful for

    the efforts that the Service

    Centre has made in helping

    her and the other villagers.She speaks about the differ-

    ence that water has brought

    in their lives.

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    Nitya Goswami lives in the village of Bhalukgajar in Pu-rulia district. The fields here are full of pebbles, making

    the lives of farmers very tough here. Making the situation

    worse is the fact that they are faced with a perennial water

    scarcity problem. Nitya was among the numerous farmers

    who grow a single crop a year, dhaan, which is West

    Bengals staple crop and they do it with the help of rain-

    fed irrigation.

    The fields are located near the river Dwarkeshwar and

    Service Centre (DRCSC) had some plans in mind. Con-vinced with DRCSCs scheme, the farmers formed a Dal

    and named it Dwarkeshwar Bhalukgajar Chasi dal .

    Nitya was appointed the cashier of the Dal and he took

    the responsibility upon himself enthusiastically. The Dal

    started the project by digging a well close to the river. It

    turned out to be quite a difficult task. The project budget,

    estimated to be Rs. 2.6 lakh initially, exceeded that

    amount by far and the actual cost turned out to be Rs. 3.38

    lakh when the digging was completed. The inaccuracy in estimating the cost arose primarily be-

    cause of the stones which covered the land, and made accurate planning a difficult task for the

    project leaders.

    Now, the well has been dug and the water stored in the well is supplied to the land under cultiva-

    tion with the help of pumps. Nitya and the other farmers are following the mixed farming system

    as suggested by the Service Centre, and now they grow two crops simultaneously, and not just

    dhaan(paddy)astheyused to earlier. This is followed to ensure that in case one crop fails, they

    still have the second crop to rely on.

    The members of the Dal pay for the maintenance of the motor pumps and the well. In case a

    farmer who is not a Dal member requires water, (s)he, too can use the water from the well bypaying a nominal amount. This money goes to the Dal and is kept aside for use in the future.

    This work was started in 2007, and at present it irrigates 70 -80 bighas of land. The dal members

    believe that in the future it would irrigate about 400 bighas of land.

    RIVERLIFTIRRIGATION

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    Life for Nitya has changed considerably. Apart from expe-

    riencing an improvement in his standard of living, he feels a

    sense of pride in being the cashier of the Dal. He stronglybelieves in helping the poor and landless laborers by provid-

    ing them water for irrigating their lands. He can empathize

    with them since it was not more than a year ago that his land

    was also water- starved, while now it is lush with greenery,

    just like the thousands of other farmers that DRCSC has

    helped become self-sufficient.

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    Kaalu, a villager who lives in a small village named Ka-shiara, under the jurisdiction of the Gram Panchayat of

    Kankalitala in Birbhum district. Many times, the most

    times he and his family used to worry about was whether

    they would have enough to eat for the next day. This

    went on for a long time till one fine day in 1998, his at-

    tention was attracted by a person shouting through a mi-

    crophone about a new livelihood scheme that was being

    implemented by an NGO, DRCSC, which came to be po-

    pularly known as service centre. Kaalu decided to listen

    to them and, as it turned out later, this decision changed

    his life forever. There was a 50-year old canal running

    through the fields which used to provide irrigation to the

    paddy fields earlier but was not running at the capacity it

    was capable of. The DRCSC people chose this canal and

    proposed a scheme to develop a social forest on the fal-

    low land on both sides of the canal. This land belonged to

    the grampanchayatand it took some convincing on the

    part of the DRCSC before the panchayat agreed to pro-

    vide the particular stretch of land for this project on lease

    for a period of 25 years. Initially, 100 families came for-

    ward to carry out the implementation of the canal forestry project and the forestry project was

    launched.Arhar daal (legumes) plants were sown on both sides for the purpose of personal con-

    sumption as well as for providing fuel wood for cooking, since the arhar stem displays good

    combustion properties.

    Kaalu is one of the countless landless labourers who have found employment and a source of li-

    velihood under the DRCSCs social forestry scheme. Since then, only 15 families remain as be-

    neficiaries of the forestry scheme.

    Land search and negotiation: The dal planted trees and saplings along the canal over a 30-km

    long stretch, known as the Common Property Resource, the work on which was started in 1998.

    This stretch of land was identified after a survey done by the DRCSC and the land around the

    canal was identified.

    KAALUTHECARETAKER

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    This land was owned by the Gram Panchayatwhich agreed to

    lease this land to the dal for a period of 25 years, under the

    condition that the profits were to be shared by the Dal and the

    Panchayatin the ratio of 1:3, i.e. 75% of the profits from the

    entire project would be given to the Panchayat, the dal distri-

    buting the rest of the money amongst themselves.

    Setback and self-belief: However, the initial enthusiasm and

    happy feelings all around, however, were not meant to last

    long. No sooner had the saplings begun to yield returns than

    disaster struck. The saplings were either stolen or eaten by

    cattle from nearby villages. All efforts went in vain. It was a

    huge loss to them. Many families decided to pull out of the

    dal started by DRCSC, not entirely convinced by its profita-

    bility.

    However, 15 families stood firm by their decision. They did not lose heart and decided to stick

    on with the project. The Dal planted saplings once again and formed groups and guarded the

    plants on a rotational basis. Their wise decision and loyalty is paying off now.

    The Dal members believe that the work done by govern-

    ment does not yield results as there is no constant monitor-

    ing, however the work done by DRCSC or any other self

    help group is effective.

    Apart from this source of income, the Dal members breed

    hens and goats for their livelihood. This region is famous

    for its katha stitch work and the women do Katha to add to

    the family income.

    About NREGS: There is a low level of awareness about

    NREGS among the people in the village and they call it ek

    sau din kaaj. The Panchayat spread most of the informa-

    tion about the NREGS. The people here think that it is the

    responsibility of the government to make the job cards

    ready for them.

    However, 15 families stood

    firm by their decision. Theydid not lose heart and decided

    to stick on with the project.

    The Dal planted saplings once

    again and formed groups and

    guarded the plants on a rota-

    tional basis. Their wise deci-

    sion and loyalty is paying off

    now.

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    Chapter 5

    FINDINGSANDANALYSISIn this chapter we have tried to portray a real picture of NREGS as it exists on ground across the

    villages in the 3 districts (Birbhum, Purulia and North 24 Parganas) of West Bengal.

    Recognition of a number of requirements:

    NeedforrightCommunicationpathway

    One problem which was rampant across all the villages was the lack of adequate communication

    which led to lack of awareness among various stakeholders. There was a lack of communication

    from the District level to the Panchayat level and from the Panchayat to the villagers. Panchayat

    workers, who are the implementer of this scheme, were

    not aware of the scheme in its true spirit. They mightbe thorough with the wording of the Act per say but the

    interpretation, which was in most cases erroneous, was

    different in different villages. Hence there were very

    few Panchayats which understood the fact that the ob-

    jective was not merely to create man-hours or tempo-

    rary employment generation, but to create certain es-

    sential and most importantly sustainable assets which

    in turn will be giving them livelihood security in the

    future.

    The villagers were far behind them in their knowledge

    of NREGS. There is no denying the fact that every sin-

    gle person had heard ofEksho Diner Kaaj (100 days

    work) as they call it locally. However when it comes to

    the procedures to ask for that 100 days work and their rights under the scheme, they seemed to

    be utterly ignorant in some cases. The level of knowledge was so poor that in a few villages of

    Purulia, villagers didnt even know that they should apply for the work by filling up an applica-

    tion form. Even those who had worked under the NREGS in the past were unaware of the proce-

    dures. The news that there is some NREGS activity in the village normally spreads through word

    of mouth and the villagers reach the site of activity directly.

    According to the Panchayat workers the publicity is mostly done through pamphlets, wall-

    writings and miking. Another major channel of communication is the Gram Sansad meetings in

    the months of May and November when the planning of the projects is done. However in general

    the attendance in both of these meetings is very low, in-fact negligible. If the quorum for the

    meeting is not met the meeting is scheduled for a suitable date, a few weeks later. But even in the

    Even those who had worked

    under the NREGS in the past

    were unaware of the proce-

    dures. The news that there is

    some NREGS activity in the vil-

    lage normally spreads through

    word of mouth and the villag-

    ers reach the site of activity di-

    rectly.

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    second meting the turnout is generally low. With no other option left the members present take

    the decision on behalf of the entire Sansad. Actually the fact remains that there is no major moti-

    vation to attend these meetings. The farmers work daily hand to mouth to earn a living. To sus-

    pend the work even for half a day and attend meetings does not seem to be fruitful to them. They

    consider their presence of meager or no importance however the truth is that without the pres-

    ence of each and every voter such Sansad meetings are incomplete. Also another reason for low

    attendance is the timings of these meetings. The first one is scheduled in the month of May,

    which is peak summer, when the temperatures are soaring. The next one is in November, when

    its harvest season and the farmers are generally busy.

    With most of the job card holders, unemployment allowance is something unheard of. Even if

    some have heard about it from some sources, they find it very

    hard to believe in. Most scorned even at the mention of such

    a concept. They said that they were content even if they re-

    ceived their daily wages under NREGS in time.

    The Panchayats on the other hand manipulate things so that

    the claim for an unemployment allowance does not arise at

    all. Most cases they dont communicate this provision to the

    job card holders. Also since the job card holders are largely

    illiterate and unaware of the paper work involved, they are

    made to fill applications without the date mentioned, remov-

    ing any scope for tracking the 15days deadline for allotting

    work.

    An interesting point to note here that while the daily wages

    comes from the central government, the unemployment al-

    lowance falls in the State governments kitty. Naturally the

    State government is reluctant to release fund to pay job card holders who have not been allotted

    work, which is due to inefficiency on the part of the Panchayats or the District level authorities.

    The Panchayats hence, keep this chapter closed lest it may arouse more clashes between the gov-

    ernments.

    The problem becomes severe in some places of North 24 Parganas, where one has to travel

    around 20 kms and has to cross 2 rivers to get the unemployment allowance to collect his unem-ployment allowance from the BDO office. Then they prefer not to have it. The reason to include

    unemployment allowance in the act is to ensure the employment and that is why it is called guar-

    antee, however in the real scenario the picture is entirely different. Just applying the concept in

    the act is not solving the problem.

    With most of the job card

    holders, unemployment al-

    lowance is something un-

    heard of. Even if some have

    heard about it from some

    sources, they find it very

    hard to believe in. Most

    scorned even at the mention

    of such a concept.

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    Theres another problem associated with incomplete knowledge about a provision like unem-

    ployment allowance. Some job card holders are tended to misuse this provision, when they are

    not working on any NREGS project, which actually might be due to their unwillingness to do

    manual work.

    RightHumanResourcesrequired

    One core reason of NREGS failure in many villages of these districts is the scarcity of Human

    Resources at the Panchayats. . At many Panchayats, it was observed thatNirman Sahayakhad to

    be shared between more than one Panchayat. At one Panchayat, Executive Officer told that they

    need at least 6 people for proper planning and measurement purpose; however there are only 3

    people, out of which the Nirman Sahayakworks 3 days at that Panchayat and rest 2 days at

    another Panchayat. The exam for the recruitment ofNirman Sahayakwas held last year (2007),

    but results were not out yet. So in real sense there were only 2.5 people at that Panchayat to look

    after NREGS activities. 3 persons even working all the days at breakneck speed would fail toeven come near the targets. At most places, the main reason for the huge delays in implementa-

    tion of the scheme (including planning, measurement, delivering wages etc.) is the lack of

    trained personnel at the Panchayat level. Many activities like training of the villagers, taking care

    of the assets developed under NREGS and measurement of the work done are either delayed or

    in some cases abandoned completely and all these stem out of this reason in one or other way.

    RedirectionofFundFlow

    With most of the Panchayats, the problem is not in the lack for

    funds but in the proper distribution of it. During a financial year,for the first phase budget should be passed in the month of April

    to start the work, but Panchayats get the money in the month of

    October or November. The reason as stated by the Panchayats

    karmis was excess paper work involved in NREGS and scarcity

    of Human Resources. The process of getting a project approved

    involves a number of steps and red tape at multiple levels which

    require a lot of time, skills and human resources. As a result,

    quite a few Panchayats receive money only around November

    and at the end of the financial year, the Panchayats are not left

    with much time to achieve the goals which were set and are left

    with the funds not spent, and lots of work unfinished. However,

    the unspent money is considered as a failure on the part of the

    Panchayat to implement NREGS though the real fault lies with the delayed release of money.

    The money at block level is distributed among different Panchayats under that block. So if one

    Panchayat is more efficient and finishes its work before other Panchayats, it still has to wait till

    The process of getting aproject approved involves

    a number of steps and red

    tape at multiple levels

    which require a lot of time,

    skills and human resources.

    As a result, quite a few

    Panchayats receive money

    only around Novem-

    ber.

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    other Panchayats exhaust the funds allotted to them before getting the second round of funds to

    be cleared. The reason as stated by a Panchayat Karmi is that a Block cant apply for next phase

    fund, unless all the Panchayats under it have exhausted their funds. This system of fund distribu-

    tion which has the slowest worker as a parameter does not encourage the Panchayats to be com-

    petitive.

    PoliticalNuancesOppositionPolitics

    At many Panchayats, it was observed that NREGS has continuously been used for scoring politi-

    cal points. It was stated by many Panchayat Karmis that opposition instigates villagers to go for

    making a job-card even if they dont need one, so that it increases the pressure on the village

    Panchayat. Since these people are not in need of this scheme and there fore do not apply for

    work, this gives the opposition a way to show the inefficiency of the Panchayat using these num-

    bers.

    There are also some rare cases where the opposition party at the state or district level heads the

    Panchayat and so doesnt receive proper fund. While these political obstacles can not be genera-

    lized to all villages, they do show the politicization of NREGS.

    Corruptionatmanylevels

    It is mandatory for each Panchayat to increase forest area

    and invest NREGS money in social forestry project,

    however it was observed that only two species acacia

    and eucalyptus, which are neither Indian nor meant forIndian soil are grown wherever NREGS work is done.

    The land where these plants are grown becomes totally

    infertile and uncultivable with in a few years. What is

    alarming is that the villagers well know the hazards of

    planting these trees but continue planting them in spite

    of Panchayats request not to do so only because of the

    financial returns. Another reason to plant only these two

    types of trees is that the forest department prefers to

    supply only these two types of trees due to the quick re-

    turns it gives and the rewards can be reaped with in the

    officials tenure in that area.

    To make matters worse, a few villagers in the district of Birbhum admitted that they manipulate

    the number of days they worked for financial gains. They used to mention more number of days

    To make matters worse, a few vil-

    lagers in the district of Birbhumadmitted that they manipulate the

    number of days they worked for

    financial gains. They used to men-

    tion more number of days than

    they have worked for. They vehe-

    mently defend their work by saying

    Agar sab khate hain to hum kyoon

    na khaaye

    .

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    than they have worked for. They vehemently defend their work by saying Agar sab khate hain

    to hum kyoon na khaaye

    In another village in Birbhum, Villagers started a movement against the corruption of Panchayat

    where villagers were paid 50/- instead of 60/-. Also the number of days used to be manipulatedwhile entering into the records. The movement started by 75 people against this corruption final-

    ly resulted in their voice being heard and they were given the wages which were due to them.

    Bureaucracy rules - NGOs uncalled for

    In many villages, most NGOs are not viewed favorably by the Panchayat in spite of the work

    they do as they consider it as a threat to their existence and consider it a parallel authoritative

    body. In this state run by the communist government, they are also considered popularizing

    propaganda of anti-communism.

    ImproperPlanning

    Lowattendance

    This factor is also an effect of lack of resources. In Gram Unnayan Samiti meetings, there is re-

    presentation of different stakeholders. However all the representatives do not come to attend

    these meetings for a simple reason that they dont find any incentive to come to the meeting. In

    most of the cases these people survive on daily wages and for them going out to earn their live-

    lihood are more important than attending Gram Unnayan Samiti meetings. Each person is paid

    only 250/- per year for being the member ofGram Unnayan Samiti which is not much of an in-

    centive for these people to turn up in these meetings and concentrating on the planning of the

    projects needed for their respective communities.

    Another place where projects are decided and proposals are discussed, are the Gram Sansad

    meetings which generally happen in the months of May and November. Once again, the atten-

    dance very low and the decisions which are to be taken unanimously are taken by a handful of

    people.

    Unscientificmethodsofplanning

    There is a real need of resource mapping and knowledge mapping to decide which part of the

    village needs what resources and to make sure the projects benefits reach the neediest people.

    The important part of sustenance of these projects as an asset for the community is not planned.

    Needofseasonalwork

    Almost at all places, villagers mentioned that they want work only in selective months. As per

    Hindi Calendar they need work in the months of Bhadro/Asin (15th Aug-15th Oct) and

    Magh/Falgun (15th

    Jan-15th

    March). Rest of the time they have some other work, however in

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    these months they are free and dont have anything else to do. This aspect is not factored in

    while drawing up plans for the projects.

    ImproperExecution

    SocialAudit

    Social audit is a very important aspect of NREGS, however the ground reality gives a different

    picture altogether. There is no proper execution of social audit in most places. This leads to a sit-

    uation where the villagers and the Panchayat Karmis know all the problems involved but they

    cannot do anything about it. Wherever social auditing takes place, it is done in a very haphazard

    manner.

    Irregularattendanceofworkers

    One problem that stems from the attitude of the villagers is

    that there is no sense of responsibility towards governmentprojects. Many times it happens that villagers register

    themselves for the work but dont turn up on the site regu-

    larly. There are not enough people as well who can moni-

    tor the projects on a daily basis. Finally it leads to devia-

    tion from the planning and creates problem in execution.

    On the other hand, members in a Dal formed by DRCSC

    feel more attached with the assets developed under

    DRCSC projects rather that NREGS. The reason they have stated that when they work for a gov-

    ernment project, objective is to get the wages of that par-ticular day and leave the site, while in a DRCSC project

    they are involved from the very conception of the project.

    Apart from that, the profit generated though the projects is

    shared with them developing a sense of belonging in them.

    They feel it be comes their responsibility to take care of

    the asset and it leads to a sustainable employment genera-

    tion source.

    Lackofknowledge

    There is a lack of awareness in the villagers about the con-

    cept of Sustainable Asset. The focus instead is on the

    short term gains. As mentioned earlier in this report in the

    case of acacia and eucalyptus plantations, despite of the Panchayats efforts, as their objective is

    to get financial returns as soon as possible even though it might mean grave problems in the long

    term. Even in many projects of DRCSC, it does happen that a few members leave the Dal from

    Many times it happens that

    villagers register themselves

    for the work but dont turn up

    on the site regularly. There

    are not enough people as

    well who can monitor the

    projects on a daily basis.

    The difference however is

    that while DRCSC under-stands the importance of mo-

    tivation and trains their

    workers to handle that also,

    NREGA does not have a me-

    chanism to deal with it.

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    time to time as they are not able to see long term benefits out of these projects. The difference

    however is that while DRCSC understands the importance of motivation and trains their workers

    to handle that also, NREGA does not have a mechanism to deal with it. Panchayat, while aware

    of this, are helpless because neither there is cooperation from the villagers nor they have enough

    resources to maintain these assets. In fact Panchayat tried to plant different type of plants in the

    starting in the Social Forestry projects, but they couldnt survive since they were not taken care

    of by the villagers. The villagers finally opted for Acacia and Eucalyptus plants for a reason that

    they dont need any maintenance or care.

    ComplexityoftheAct

    As mentioned by most of the Panchayat Karmis, the act is too complex to understand. Also it

    gets changed from time to time. That makes it more difficult to understand and apply.

    YourRightsUndertheEmploymentGuaranteeAct

    WORKAPPLICATIONS

    WiththisJobCard,youareentitledtoapplyforworkatanytime.YoucansubmityourapplicationtotheGramPanchayat,ortotheBlockoffice.

    RealPicture:Almostatallvillages,noonewasawarethattheycanapplyatanytime.Theycometoknowabouttheprojectsthroughwordofmouthandthentheygivetheirapplicationforwork.Infactatsomeplacestheyevendontapplyforworkanddirectlyreachtothesiteoftheproject.

    Whenyouapplyforwork,makesurethatyougetadatedandsignedreceipt. RealPicture:AtsomevillagesPanchayataccepttheapplicationwithoutdate. Ifyoudonotgetemploymentwithin15days,youareentitledtotheunemploymentallowance. RealPicture: Inmostof thecasesvillagersarenotawareofunemploymentallowance;

    even if theyareaware theycanteven thinkofgetting it.Theysaid Kaamkepaisemiljayevohihamareliyebadibaathain.

    WORKERSENTITLEMENTS

    Wagesshouldbepaidwithinaweek,orfifteendaysatmost. RealPicture:Forpayingthewagesfirstmeasurementneedstobedoneandforthatthere

    isaneedofskilledhumanresourcesatPanchayatlevelwhicharenotavailable.Italways

    leadstolatepaymentofwages.

    UNEMPLOYMENTALLOWANCE

    Youcanapply for theunemploymentallowance to theGramPanchayatorBlockOffice(youwillneedthereceiptshowingwhenyouappliedforwork).

    RealPicture:Applyingforunemploymentallowanceisnotaeasytask,inafewvillagesofNorth24Parganas,onehas to travelmanykms.Andhas to cross2 rivers to reach to

    BlockOfficeforapplyingforunemploymentallowance.

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    ComparativeAnalysis

    The main objective of NREGS is to generate sustainable community assets and while doing thatgenerate man-days and thus income for the villagers. However, NREGS is only partially success-

    ful in its endeavor. To get a better understanding of how the projects taken under NREGS fare

    against the models which are being implemented by the NGO, DRCSC, a comparative analysis

    of the models is done in this chapter. The different projects considered which are done under

    NREGS are pond digging, social forestry etc. DRCSC, on the other hand has brought in new,

    scientifically superior models into the villages either by adding small variations to the existing

    models or by bringing completely new models.

    The comparative study between NREGS and DRCSCs models is done based on four

    parameters.Technical parameters

    Economical parameters

    Environmental parameters

    Social parameters

    TechnicalParameters

    The models implemented under NREGA are

    not done keeping the technical aspects in

    mind. For example, pond digging is one of the

    most popular projects under NREGS. Howev-er, many of the ponds do not function beyond

    the first year or two. This is due to the bad

    technicalities involved in it. Tweaking themodel a little, DRCSC has been implementing

    the step pond model. A small variation to a

    normal pond making the surface in forms ofsteps has increased the options for income

    generation as well as the sustainability of the

    pond also. In many cases, these step ponds are

    integrated with the other models and haveproven to be more productive than the normal

    ponds.

    EconomicalParameters

    The models which are implemented by NREGS focus

    mainly on the generation of man-days. The projects like

    digging of ponds or laying of roads, while provide cer-

    tain benefits to the community if planned well, with

    exceptions are not economically sustainable. They do

    not generate any revenue and need to be renovated in a

    few years time which would again need financial and

    human resources to be spent on it. On the other hand,

    the models DRCSC has proposed and has been imple-

    menting successfully run on the guiding principle that

    these projects would be economically sustainable with-

    in a few years of beginning. Food Forest is a prime

    example of an economically viable model. This model

    has become sustainable with in two years and ge-nerates income for the stakeholders.

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    .

    EnvironmentalParameters

    One of the minimum criteria for a project to betaken under NREGS should be that there should

    not be any negative repercussions of the projects.

    One of the worst casualties in these projects al-

    ways tends to be the environment. A case in ex-

    ample here would be the social forestry plan im-

    plemented in Purulia district. In a clear case of en-

    vironmental balance being disrupted, Eucalyptus

    plants were planted on a huge stretch of land be-

    longing to the forest department. While the reve-

    nue from these plantations would be with in the

    next 5 years, the Eucalyptus trees deplete the land

    on which they grow of all the minerals making

    them virtually unusable for cultivation of any sort.

    DRCSC models, on the other hand, take the envi-

    ronmental sustainability as a key factor while de-

    signing the projects. The projects like DRCSCs

    food forestry thrive on planting a variety of plants

    are planted. It has been scientifically proved that

    planting of a mixture of trees is much better for the

    soil as the minerals would be used optimally.

    SocialParameters

    The social parameters to be considered would bethe benefit the community as a whole is getting

    from the projects. While the objective of NREGS

    is to create such assets, the models used currently

    so not serve the lofty objectives. The models

    which are implemented by DRCSC and a few oth-

    er NGOs have been designed in such a way that

    the output is maximized with out compromising

    on the ideals of the NREGA.

    DRCSCs Nursery Model (Refer to the sectionStudy of DRCSC models) in the village of Bol-pur in Birbhum district has proved to be a blessing

    for the Dal members of the villagers who were

    facing the scarcity of wood to be used as fuel. Ear-lier, the kids of theDal members used to spend the

    majority of the day collecting wood to be used as

    fuel and as a reason never attended school. What

    the success of the Nursery Model has done is thatit has ensured that an increased number of these

    kids go to the school. A similar case of social de-

    velopment can be observed in the Salya village ofPurulia district where DRCSCs 5steps pond mod-

    el has led to a lesser dependency on monsoon forirrigation, increased number of crops, empower-

    ment of women and an overall development of the

    villagers. (Refer to the section Case Studies:5Step Pond Purulia)

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    Chapter 6

    RECOMMENDATIONS:

    A

    PATH

    AHEAD

    The hindrance in the successful implementation of NREGS is more at the execution level rather

    than the planning level. The problem is not with the unavailability of fund, the problem is with

    the planning and usage of those funds. All problems at the execution level are linked with each

    other in one way or other, and hence there is a need of a holistic solution.

    In this chapter we have proposed a new model to handle the problems at execution level.

    Through this model we have tried to address issues like half-hearted involvement of villagers in

    NREGS projects, lack of resources at Panchayat level, improper planning and less focus on live-

    lihood-generation.

    CommunityModel

    CommunityModel

    DalFormation(Identify the most needed

    people)

    Generatesustaina

    bleasset(Define criteria for the

    same)

    Involvementofother

    implementingagen

    cies(Fund from GP and people

    ProperPlanning(Resource mapping and

    knowledge mapping)

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    ProperPlanning

    Before planning, it is very necessary to track which resources in which part of the village can bedeveloped under NREGS? Which project will lead to a sustainable asset? Which is the neediest

    community in the village? For answering