AKRSP prop gives nomads a new lease of life in state
Ahmedabad, September 1: Flashback: At least 10 years ago, the Kotwalia community in south Gujarat would kill a rodent or a bird for survival. For a few months in a year, the community would live on the outskirts of a village and then move on to the adjoining sugar mills.At present: The community is now settling down in villages across Surat, Bharuch and Narmada districts.
A decade ago, this change would have seemed impossible. But thanks to the efforts of Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (India) (AKRSP-I), the Kotwalia community is finally settling down with a life of dignity and a little stability. Narsing Kotwalia from Hathakundi village in Valia block of Bharuch district said, “We used to kill almost anything for food. Constant search for work used to drive us to sugar mills and the community was always on the move.”
The situation was so bad that even village merchants would not lend them money, as the entire community did not have any steady source of income.
Things, however, have changed and today, Narsing can walk up to any shopkeeper in his village and demand his supply of rations on credit and get it.
“Now even our children are going to schools,” Narsing said, adding that earlier, the community used to take their children along to work as extra hands. Narsing, who runs a bamboo furniture-making unit at Hathakundi, has three children, studying in Class III and IV.
While the first hurdle for AKRSP workers was to trace the community, which was frequently migrating in the sugar mills for work, the second hurdle was earning the trust of the community, said Aadal Arsi, Development Associate AKRSP(I).
Bharat Patel, Coordinator AKRSP(I), said that a series of intervention programmes were carried out by the organisation. Since the community owned no land, the first step was to initiate the idea of collective farming, by leasing out land from the village panchayat, Bharat added. Successively, measures like micro finance and cattle rearing, were introduced to the community.
“As the community members were traditional bamboo workers, to procure bamboo, they often used to go into the forest and thus step into the wrong side of the law,” Aadal said. “We organised them into groups and ensured that the Forest department provides them bamboo at a nominal price,” she added.
“We also arranged for some rigorous training on bamboo-craft last year at our Tribal Livelihood Training Centre at Netrang, apart from providing them a revolving fund of Rs 1 lakh to procure bamboo for their work,” Bharat further said. While the local rate for daily wage is about Rs 20 to 25 a day, the community members involved with bamboo furniture making are now comfortably making around Rs 50 to 60 a day.
Meanwhile, Narsing proudly said that while a number of people from his community are now engaged in bamboo furniture making, some are rearing cattle and few others are engaged in cutting sugar cane.
Ismailimail 