“The farmer is the only man in our economy who buys everything at retail, sells everything at wholesale, and pays the freight both ways.”
~John F Kennedy
Dear Supporters,
Backed by decent monsoon rainfall last year, India produced a record 284.83 million tons of food grains in the 2017-2018 crop year (July 2017 – June 2018), which was 9.72 million tons more than the previous year. However, with the average Indian farm being half as large as it used to be 50 years ago and yields among the lowest in developing economies, farmers continue to grapple with hardships, and continuing cycles of debt. Small and marginal farmers, without proper help, cannot afford to adopt to modern irrigation techniques and use the latest machinery for their plots of land. This is precisely why it is extremely critical to continue ramping up the efforts to educate and support farmers through projects and initiatives that are focused on self-sustenance, innovative trends in agriculture, water conservation, women empowerment and overall education that will aid in uplifting the quality of their lives.
SIF recognizes the stellar work and efforts of our partners on the ground, donors and volunteers who are helping us realize this vision.
Here is recap of our progress during the year 2018
Major Achievements in 2018
- Supported 55+ farmers for Sustainable farming through Drumstick Farming.
- Distributed 100+ tablets across schools and farmers to support farmers education.
- Supported 4 widows in Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh helping them with sustainable livelihood through our adopt-a-widow project.
- Partnered with Aamir Khan’s Paani Foundation for Water Cup 2018.
Sustainable farming (Bundelkhand and Rajasthan) and water conservation initiatives (Project Jal) continued to remain our focus areas in 2018.
Bundelkhand Region update
Partner: Parmarth Samaj Sevi Sansthan
SIF continued to support Self Help Groups (SHGs) and kitchen gardens in the Bundhelkhand region. 583 women farmers reaped the benefits of this initiative by participating in the SHGs; they saved more than one lakh rupees in the bank and the kitchen gardens saved them an average of 50 rupees per week. A few of the kitchen gardens produced surplus vegetables which were sold for extra income.
SIF supported by providing initial funding for the kitchen gardens, and Parmarth helped in executing the project in the area. A few of these gardens are now self-sustainable. Women farmers created a seed bank from the first season’s crop which will be used for next season. Fertilizers and pesticides are created organically. Training of organic farming was given by using the videos on SIF donated tablets. 30 tablets were distributed in the region which were used in SHGs and schools. Many farming and hygiene related videos were shown to the villagers dubbed in their own languages.
Rajasthan Region update
Partner: Haritika
SIF joined hands with Haritika, a Non-Government Organization in India, for the sustainable development of a tribal village , Shubhdhara. Implementation of Project Utthan will start from this village.
The village struggles with issues of illiteracy, water scarcity (drinking, domestic and agriculture), un-cultivatable land and poverty due to crop failure leading to unemployment, malnutrition and seasonal migration out of the village. The long-term outcome of these proposed projects are to develop Shubhdhara as a model/sustainable smart village with help of villagers’ participation with their indigenous knowledge & natural resources.
For this smart village development project, convergence of NABARD, State and Central Government departments will be achieved for different schemes. Haritika and SIF will work for the comprehensive development of the village in the years to come. A smart village includes weather smart, water smart, carbon smart, nitrogen smart, energy smart and knowledge smart.
The major interventions being planned for overcoming the challenges being faced by Shubhdhara are:
- Water Conservation (field bunding, dug wells, farm ponds)
- Solar Pump installation for overcoming issue of electricity unavailability (completed)
- Greenhouse installation to enable protective cultivation of vegetables (in progress)
- Wadi project for cultivation of fruits like mango, berries, guava and amla in the village
Project Jal update
Sponsors: Asia Initiatives, India Development Services
Implementation Partners: Sankalpa, Jnana Prabodhini, REDS, Manavlok
Other Partner: Paani Foundation
Through our Project Jal this year, we successfully implemented 160+ Borewells across 4 states. We also supported reservoir in Yavatmal District by removing 25 thousand cubic meters of silt and spread it across neighboring farms resulting in twice the yields and income for farmers. About 5 lakh residents now also have access to drinking water as a result of this project.
| State | Borewell Recharges Complete | Partner |
|---|---|---|
| Andhra Pradesh | 90 | Sankalpa |
| Karnataka | 31 | Sankalpa |
| Maharashtra | 9 | Manavlok |
| Tamil Nadu | 30 | Sankalpa |
| Total | 160 |
Through Jnana Prabodhini, SIF adopted 13 villages from severely drought-affected districts of Maharashtra for the 2018 Paani Foundation Water Cup contest. Over 48 volunteers participated in the water conservation efforts and covered an area of over 120,000 sq.m. This will save an estimated 13 crore liters of water after just a single bout of rain.
SIF and Farmers Success Stories 2018
Water Conservation Activities in Beed District
SIF supported water conservations activities in six villages that were selected to participate in the Water Cup competition organized by Paani Foundation: Kumbefal, Hatola, Warkatwadi, Ujani, Jaybhaywadi, Pimpalgaon (Dola). SIF helped by providing the machines, diesel required for the creating the water conservation ponds. We also worked with Grampanchayats to facilitate and motivate the people to contribute by Shramdaan (manual work) and Lokwata (donations from villagers).
Together, these villages collected Rs 189,0000 by Lokwata and contributed for 41,741 cubic meters of manual work. This tremendous hard work resulted in creation of 52 reservoirs, 836 soaking pits and plantation of 21,823 samplings for water conservation. Nadi Kholikharan, Nala band, deep Continuous Contour Trenches, Loose Boulder Structure creation and soil testing was also performed by the help of villagers.
Women Empowerment – Sonepura, Bundhelkhand
Self Help Groups (SHGs) are supported by Parmarth Samaj Sevi Sansthan, Asia Initiatives (AI) and Save Indian Farmers (SIF). Women empowerment is truly taking place due to the enthusiastic and active participation of the village women in these SHGs. The primary developmental initiatives that are being achieved through the SHGs are:
Digital Learning through Tablet: SHG members use tablets to obtain education and awareness about personal hygiene, need for toilets and general cleanliness, health issues, kitchen garden and organic farming. This continued learning has boosted the confidence of women, enhanced their knowledge and limited spread of diseases due to increased awareness about personal hygiene.
Health Camps: Women and children participated in health camps conducted by expert team of doctors The doctors educated the participating women about health issues; the feedback from the SHG members was very positive and helpful for them and their families. Medicines were also provided to women and kids by visiting doctors.
Seed Bank:Traditional vegetable seeds are kept in seed bank. Villagers get easy access to a variety of seeds. Farmers get a 10% price discount in price and can also purchase seeds on credit at the seed bank.
Community Nutri (Kitchen) Garden: Nutri (Kitchen) Garden is prepared by SHG members for growing purely organic household vegetables which include chili, coriander, spinach, brinjal, bitter gourd, cucumber, bottle gourd, small gourd among others. Cultivation and regular consumption of leafy vegetables provide a nutritional diet to the family members, thus helping the issue of malnutrition amongst kids. SHG members can also sell the excess vegetables and get extra income.
Usha Silai (Tailoring) School: A non-farm initiative taken by the SHG members, where women learn and practice silai (tailoring). This is one of the livelihood sources for women.
Poultry and Livestock: Poultry is the one of the major livelihood source for the family. Eggs and meat give nutritional security to the family members. Also, they are able to generate income from poultry business. Murrah Buffalo is the major domestic animal helping villagers to meet their household need of milk and also able to generate the income by selling milk. Through goats and buffaloes, villagers are able to improve their livelihood.
Fundraising events
We conducted multiple fundraisers this year in various regions within the Unites States to raise funds that were used for all our projects and initiatives for Indian Farmers.
- RD Burman Show, celebrating the musical legend RD Burman. April 2018, Morissville, North Carolina
- Safar 2 – Bollywood Fusion, a musical fundraiser. May 2018, Little Rock, Arkansas
- Awareness Camp, spreading awareness about issues faced by Indian farmers. May 2018, New Jersey
- Panel discussion with Asia Initiatives. June 2018, New Jersey
- Jeena Isi Ka Naam Hai, celebrating the Kapoor family. June 2018, New Jersey
- VatVat, a Marathi play based on the scripts of the legendary P.L. Deshpande. August 2018, Danville, California
- Tribute to Sridevi, featuring legends Kavita Krishnamurthy and her husband Dr. L. Subramaniam to celebrate India’s 71st Independence Day. August 2018, New Jersey
- A musical fundraising event for SIF in collaboration with Art and Beat and World Vegan Vision. November, 2018, New Jersey
Farming in the News
- Gel based pest control could become order of the day
- Punjab Village uses Rice husk to purify water
- Sikkim Wins UN Award For Becoming World’s First Organic State
We would like to sincerely thank all our donors and well-wishers for your support throughout 2018 and wish you all a very healthy and prosperous 2019 !!
We look forward to your continuous support during the coming year to support the hands that feed us!
You may reach out to us anytime at info@saveindianfarmers.org with your ideas and suggestions.
Warm regards,
Jitendra Karkera
President, Save Indian Farmers
