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Padayatra 15th Jan- 21st Jan

The Padayatra begins on the 1st day of the new year, 2006. We are attempting to log the progress of the Padayatra everyday. There are, however,some difficulties in connecting due to some remote locations, as well as the 12 hr powercuts in the rural areas. We will be documenting various experiences and stories as we go along, in an attempt to create awareness amongst ourselves. If you would like to reach us, please write to grnearth@vsnl.com or if you want to reach Ranjit in the field, write to ranjitster@gmail.com

15Jan'06 - No toilets please, we are Indians

Yes, being an urban reader, this title must be shocking. But for the majority of Indians, living in rural India, this title is apt. Having traveled quite a bit in India, and from my experiences of village life on the Padayatra, it's evident that majority of the Indians don't use toilets. They "do it" in the open.
In most of the villages that we have visited, we were welcomed by the smell and sight of human waste on the roadside. It's a shame that this is the case in 21st century India.
Human waste is the worst sanitation issue. Its effect multiplies in the monsoons when it is washed everywhere. Disease spreads, with flies and mosquitoes having a blast.
The government had subsidies to build toilets in the past, but those toilets were used for storing stuff. Part of the reason is that the toilets were not designed well. They would often choke up. In some cases, there is not enough water-supply to operate the toilets.
Why aren't the toilets designed according to the requirements and local conditions? Composting toilets could be a viable solution. But to introduce this, the initiative has to come from the villagers. They have to feel the need to use toilets. Today, they have to walk past their own waste everyday. The women have to go out in the open, a shame for their dignity. Yet, why don't they feel the urge to build and use toilets?
The government has introduced a scheme - "Jala Swarajya" where they would provide water connections close to each house, if the village is free of "Hagandari (Human waste in the open)", is clean and has women self help groups for women empowerment. This was introduced last year. Again, the use of toilets cannot be enforced on the people. The scheme is good, but the urge to use the toilets needs to come from the villagers. Let's hope they come together to create a safe, healthy environment to live in.

16Jan'06 - Malumbra, Putting the earthquake behind

30th September, 1993. An earthquake of magnitude 6.4 on the Richter Scale rocked the districts of Latur and Osmanabad. Malumbra was one of the villages affected by the devastating quake. Luckily for the village, most of the people were out of their houses celebrating the Ganesh festival. There were only two deaths. All the buildings were flattened. Today, after twelve years, the remnants of the old village are still visible (in the picture).

A local villager painted a vivid picture of the earthquake before us.
Some communities built their homes right next to the old village, while the majority moved a kilometer away. Bapu Kulkarni, our Padayatri, runs an organization - "Sahayog Nirmiti" in Malumbra. This organization facilitated the rehabilitation of the village. Today, they work in several surrounding villages, in the areas of education and women self help groups. More than a thousand women belonging to several groups run by Sahayog Nirmiti and its partner organizations, turned up to walk in the Padayatra for 5 miles (in the picture). It was a sight to be seen.

17Jan'06 - Is the Padayatra having any effect on anyone?

There will be four days that the Padayatris will get during the 2 month walk to do whatever they wish, think and rejuvenate themselves. Today, the Padayatra had its first break. The big question that everyone had was whether the Padayatra has been having any effect on the villages. I say villages, because the yatra is definitely having a positive effect on the Padayatris. It's been a tremendous transformational experience so far.

There was news from our first two villages. In Dhangar Javalka, the women had filed a petition in the police station to make their village alcohol-free. This issue was brought up strongly by the women during the Padayatra sabha, and the women have followed through. Kudos to them! In the next village, Naygaon, the Mayur Mitra Mandal, a local youth organization has been meeting regularly since the Padayatra passed through their village. They want to better their village and protect the peacocks in the forest area surrounding their village. These news flashes have bolstered our faith. There is much more to come as our team will start following up from this week.

18Jan'06 - Population

Population. Need I say more? India's population is a billion plus, and growing. Why is it still growing, when we know that the more we are, the more resources we consume, the bigger ecological footprint we leave behind and, and, and....
We experienced this first hand in the villages. Most of the people, especially from the lower income or caste brackets had atleast 4-6 children. Asha (in the picture), a sugarcane cutter from Choramba, was pregnant with her eleventh baby! Two of them died early. There is a general belief that the more number of kids means mre number of hands in the field, and the more income for the house. But that also means more resources to grow the kids, more kids to look after, resulting in negligence. In Shikarwadi, Nagurao and his wife have twenty grandchildren. Twenty from two. That's an alarming rate. And they expect more to come!
One big factor is healthcare. Decent and timely healthcare is not available in rural areas. Most of the PHCs (Public Health Centers) were not operating on a daily basis. Their staff was inadequate. The mortality rate of children in rural areas is high. The children are not named till they are 2-3 months old. There is a belief that if the kids die before they are named, then the grief is less! People are just not confident that their kids will survive.
But this leads to a population explosion. People are migrating for work, because there are no employment opportunities in the villages. How will there be enough employment for this increasing number of people? Farm lands have been divided in families over the years, leading to lesser yields. Enough income cannot be generated in agriculture. So people turn to hybrid varieties. Some migrate to the cities as laborers. The list continues.
Yet, we have not seen any local organization working with women on family planning. The issue is there, but it is not being dealt with strongly. No doubt it is a sensitive issue. But that does not mean it can't be dealt with. The government needs to put in more resources and start new campaigns for family planning. "Hum Do, Humare Do" has to be in the forefront. Family planning is important for women and their families, and our nation. It's high time that we come to terms with it.

19Jan'06 - Vasangaon, Another village close to a city

Some days back, I had written about a village called Palvan, and its problems due to its proximity to the city of Beed. Here's Vasangaon, a village on the outskirts of the city of Latur. Similar problems exist here as well.
The village has an official population of 2000, but it seems there are about 3500 people. 75% of the workforce goes to Latur to work, many as laborers as well as in shops and the jaggery market. The remaining few work in the fields. Since the city economic center is close by, working there is much more attractive than working in the fields. Unfortunately, it is so attractive that the children can't wait to start work. Most of the children got to school till 10th grade or less, and start going to work. Because of the easy money, gambling is rampant. Alcoholism is common in some communities. There have been two deaths due to AIDS. Being close to Latur, politics plays a big role in people's lives and village matters. People in the village would not come together for a common cause. Quite different than in villages away from cities. They just don't feel the need to, and also think that it is not possible.
Again, a classic case of a village being sucked into a city.

20Jan'06 - Padayatra reaches Latur

The Padayatra passed through the city of Latur today. The response of the people was huge. Several local organizations joined the yatra through Latur, raising slogans - "Dushkaal Hatavu, Manus Jagavu".
It's been 20 days and over 350 miles!

21Jan'06- Harwadi, A water contamination disaster

Harwadi is located on the banks of the river Manjara. Being next to a river seems to be a beautiful location. Unfortunately, this village is located downstream from the city of Latur. So instead of a good source of water, it gets the waste of Latur that is dumped in the river.
The untreated waste water and sewage is a major health hazard. The villagers had got sick from drinking the water. Many had got rash from being in contact with it. The water has been tested and there are reports of water contamination. There are five bores in the village and all of them have salty water. So the entire village has to depend on two bores, the nearer one being a mile away. Each day, the villagers, mostly women folk walk a mile to get to the hand pump, and lug their water back a mile (in the picture). Imagine the number of man-hours, or in this case, woman-hours that are wasted in this effort. But the village has not come together to find a solution. There are ideas but no common initiative. The government does not help either. One of the pipelines that supplies water to Latur passes close to the village, but no connection has been provided to Harwadi.
The village collects more than a lakh rupees as contribution for the annual "Saptah" (weeklong ceremony), but does not come together to invest in the water issue. To make matters worse, the collector of Latur has declared the district as "tanker-free", because of the good rains this year. So Harwadi does not get any water tankers either.
Isn't drinking water a basic right? Why isn't this issue at the top of Harwadi's agenda?
The issue of river water contamination is common downstream from any city. Pune's Mula-Mutha river has the same issue. One can see plastic bags hanging from the trees on the river banks, since the water receded after the monsoon floods. Sewage waste is seen floating in the water. Why is untreated waste let into our rivers? Why don't our cities have adequate facilities to treat waste? Our state and country has one of the most beautiful rivers. It is our responsibility to take care of these lifelines. I encourage each and every one of you to find out more about the rivers in your cities and get involved in protecting our environment. Think about how we can lead our lives so we preserve our land, water and air. Civil action can alter our course and create a safe environment for our generations to come.