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Bundelkhand Update, June-July 2011 |
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Recently in Bundelkhand, 18 farmers have had their farms field bunded, and training sessions have been held for community groups. Additionally, 400 tree saplings have been planted on Chandla Hill. See below for a full report.
Field BundingGrammonati organized field-bunding for eighteen farmers in a total area of 15.45 ha. 124 individuals from local communities received employment worth 1248 person-days for their labour on field sites. Before starting this field-bunding, the Jalnidhi watershed committee members held meetings with the appointed laborers in order to fix the wages, the number of working days required, and the schedule of payments. Since June, the committee has been working on identifying more farmers whose properties need field-bunding work.TrainingAdditionally, various training sessions were held for community members. Women’s groups received water testing training. They are specifically interested in the following measurements.
- upstream/downstream sources of the check dam
- quality, quantity of water inside the check dams, naala, farm ponds
- GPS coding of all water sources must be done
- monitor any new sources that might surface in the watershed area
- monitor the sources in terms of availability of water – which months is it dry, and which months is it at full capacity?
Farmers were also taught about local kharif crops (sown in the rainy season) and how to fight common crop-related diseases.
Forest DepartmentIn collaboration with the local Forest Department, the Jalnidhi watershed committee made trenches and safety barricades on a patch of land on Chandla Hill, which falls under the designated watershed area. 4000 saplings, including babool, chilla, and ber trees, were also planted at this time. The Forest Department contributed Rs. 98,000 for these projects. |
