India: Rural development and challenges.

[Krishnamoorthy K]

Stanley Pinto , TNN | Jul 10, 2012, 07.31PM IST

MANGALORE: Thanks to the water conservation project initiated by the Art of Living, the villagers of Lakshmipura, about seven kms from Chikmagalur town in Chikmagalur District, will not face water scarcity and drought during summers.

Their problem came to the fore when Art of Living volunteers organized its Rural Part I programme in December 2011, for the villagers to bring about social transformation and inculcate a harmonious bonding within the community. While interacting with the villagers, the problem of drinking water cropped up frequently.

Nagraj Gangolli, Art of Living Teacher and Project Coordinator said: A thick white layer of fluoride was often seen in the water, making it unfit for drinking. Despite being a rain-fed area, the groundwater table had declined from 160 feet to an incredibly low 400 feet.

Art of Living then in collaboration with Lifeline Feeds India Pvt. Ltd responded to the severity of the problem and a long-term, sustainable solution for the crisis began.

Twenty wells were dug in the vicinity of the households where waste water was filtered through soak pits and collected. This in turn began to raise the water table in the region.

Two artificial lakes were also built in the surroundings. One collects run-off rain water from the hillsides and the other harvests rain water after filtration. Tree plantation has also been mobilized in the area.

Gangolli further shares that the village will have access to water for more than two years once the lakes are full. We have attended to the crisis with a simple and effective water solution which can be a model for other villages facing similar situations,'' he observes.

This unique 'Water Conservation Programme' at Lakshmipura village will be inaugurated on Friday in the presence of CT Ravi, MLA,Chikmagalur, Suchita Narayana, Zilla Panchayat President among others.

TOI

[Krishnamoorthy K]

Green technology and social innovation is proving to be a lucrative market in India, as clean energy investments are now worth $10.3bn, a growth of 52% in 2011, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. This means that India had the highest rate of growth in green technologies than any of the other major world economies, where most of the investment is in wind and solar. The REN21's Renewable 2012 Global Status Report, launched on 11 June along with its sister publication, the United Nations Environment Programme's Global Trends in Renewable Energy Investment, both cited India as the star performer and says the country's National Solar Mission has helped to spur an impressive 62% increase in renewable energy investment to $12 billion, the fastest investment expansion of any of the renewable markets in the world.

India suffers from using energy inefficiently. Many green tech entrepreneurs see social innovation as a way of connecting the dots to make money. Neha Juneja, with her business partner saw 'a green business opportunity' and invented the 'Greenway Grameen Infra', an eco-friendly stove. Millions of people in India still cook their food on dated mud stoves where the smoke emitted is harmful greenhouse gases. The Greenway stove is said to save 1,600kgs of wood, and lessens over two tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions per stove per year. More than 6,000 of the stoves have been sold since they went on sale at the start of this year.

India is a rare market for alternative energy; it is a country that suffers from a large power deficit, high electricity costs along with challenges in traditional thermal power. Therefore the opportunity to create clean, green energy in India is big news. Yet, the social innovation driving the market is not about creating new technologies, it is instead about applying proven technologies in smaller, decentralised ways that can give a higher output and excess return.

This view is shared by long-time green technology social innovation investor, Sanjeev Krishnan. He believes that while the technologies are not groundbreaking, the ways they are being used in India are what is making a difference and changing the market. Mr. Krishnan cites the example of solar power schemes, which are providing off-grid electricity to power telecoms towers, and although they are established clean technologies, the way they are now being used is different. He says, "Waste is being turned into a commodity, instead of purely land-filled or renewable based micro-grids, and this has the potential to address many of India's energy issues at a time of economic slowdown."

So, while the world originally thought out-sourcing would be one of the ways that would help India's economy grow, it seems the real money is in social innovation and clean technology investment. Global and Indian private equity funds all want to have a significant presence in this region and will be looking at sustainable solutions aimed at creating a low-carbon economy. Ironically, in power-deficit India, energy is becoming the moneymaking commodity.

justmeans

[Krishnamoorthy K]

56 pc of MGNREGS wages in Bengal delayed, no delays in TN, northeastern states

BS Reporter / New Delhi Jul 15, 2012, 00:12 IST

With a quarter of the wages paid last year under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) falling under the category of delayed wages, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday sought concurrent audit of rural development programmes to address such issues.

The database of the ministry of rural development shows of the Rs 24,872 crore paid in wages in 2011-12 under the scheme, nearly 23.98 per cent reached workers much after the work was done. In fact, the delays have become chronic, with delayed payments reported by some states ranging from 15 per cent of the total wages paid to 56 per cent, as in the case of West Bengal.

Terming MGNREGS as a "story worth telling" and the most popular and successful flagship scheme of the government, the prime minister said the sooner the problem was tackled the better. While addressing a programme here to mark the release of 'MGNREGA Sameeksha', an anthology of research studies on the United Progressive Alliance government’s flagship scheme, Prime Minister Singh called for a replication of the Andhra Pradesh model of wage payment.



He said it was encouraging to know that in Andhra Pradesh, data entry was in realtime and pay orders for wage payments were generated online. "This (practice) directly addresses the issue of delayed payments and should be replicated elsewhere."

However, many states have performed better than Andhra Pradesh in the matter of timely payment of wages last year, including Tamil Nadu and the Northeastern states. The worst delays have been reported in West Bengal, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.

The prime minister expressed surprise that concurrent evaluation processes were not in good shape and said he would request (Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia “to apply his mind to making good this deficiency as well". Both rural development minister Jairam Ramesh and Ahluwalia were present at the programme.

Singh said the Panchayati Raj institutions had to gear themselves to play a central role assigned to them under the scheme and stressed the need to provide the resources to help panchayats to perform the function effectively. "If these local bodies can rise to the challenge, MGNREGA can very well become a silver bullet for India's rural renewal."

BS

MGNREGS could become "silver bullet" for India's rural renewal: PM

[Krishnamoorthy K]

A capital subsidy of Rs 28,000 crore was approved during the 11th Plan period for the scheme

Press Trust of India / New Delhi Jul 17, 2012, 14:56 IST

ower Minister Sushilkumar Shinde today asked Planning Commission to provide additional sum of Rs 50,000 crore for the government's flagship rural electrification scheme.

"We need to have Rs 50,000 crore additional for the Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana (RGGVY) in the next five years...It can be split into five years," Shinde said at a meeting with the state power ministers.

A capital subsidy of Rs 28,000 crore was approved during the 11th Plan period (2007-12) for the scheme.

RGGVY aims to provide power to all villages and habitations, giving access to electricity to all rural households and providing connections to Below Poverty Line (BPL) families free of charge.

"There are about 7,000 such villages mostly in the states of Jharkhand, Odisha, Bihar, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Chhattisgarh and Meghalaya that require immediate action by the state governments," Shinde said.

He said to meet the target of about 88,000 MW, which includes 5,300 MW from nuclear power proposed during the current plan period (2012-17), "...We will have to address the issue of fuel availability and equally important is the issue of finding adequate land for setting up new power stations".

He said, "More projects would move faster if the state governments play a proactive role in identifying and facilitating the procurement of land."

Besides, the focus in the 12th Plan period (2012-17) has to be on increasing domestic coal production, Shinde added.

The problem of land is no less in the setting up of the transmission infrastructure, given the fact that in the current plan period we have a target of erecting some 37,800 MW of inter-regional transmission capacity, he said.

He demanded a greater and effective role from the state government in dealing with issues connected with the development of hydro energy.

Shinde said the financial health of distribution companies is a matter of grave concern.

"The single biggest challenge to the viability and sustainability of the power sector is the deteriorating financial health of the distribution utilities in most states," he added.

BS

[Krishnamoorthy K]

Realized prices for the farm sector continue to soften even though the government has raised the minimum support prices by over 20%

Krishna Merchant

Like every year the government has hiked minimum support prices to help the farmers realize good returns in early June, but India’s rural growth story is expected to run out of steam because of falling realizations of farmers and limited policy support, according to a recent report by Emkay Global Financial Services Ltd.

Realized prices for the farm sector continue to soften even though the government has raised the minimum support prices (MSP) by over 20% because of rising cost of cultivation and excess supply. The government has raised MSPs for oil seeds, pulses and wheat, but average prices of major crops such as Jowar, Paddy, Tur and Bajra have remained stagnant since December 2009.

According to Emkay Research, the average cost of cultivation rose over 15% while the net cash realizations dipped 10% which led to 35% drop in cash flows in FY12. Emkay estimates cash flows to decline further, by 39% in FY13. Although the government has boasted about the record food grain production of 252 million tonnes in the crop year ending June, around 82 million tonnes of food grain was left to rot in the silos, according to news reports.

The policy response is limited because the storage capacity in India is only around 50 million tonnes which means that 32 million tonnes of food grain was exposed to damage during the crop year 2012. Because of the high mountain of food grain, the government will be forced to sell 8 million tonne of grains at prices below procurement costs. The will increase their procurement price and will further widen the food subsidy bill. Emkay expects food subsidy bill to be 20% higher in FY13, at Rs. 90,000 crore compared to Rs. 75,000 crore budgeted amount.

There are already early signs of moderation in rural demand. Domestic tractor sales declined 5.1% year-on-year in April and motorcycle sales have dropped 6.5% y-o-y in May. Additionally decontrolled fertilizer sales plunged 14% y-o-y between April to May. State Bank of India’s agriculture non- performing assets jumped 72% in FY12, of which 6.7% were agri-loans.

What are the sectors which are expected to feel the pinch? Emkay said poor cash flows in agri-sector will affect key inputs like complex fertilizers, from auto space - two wheeler, tractor and truck makers will see sluggish growth. Moderating rural demand will also weigh on cement makers, banks that have high exposure to agri-lending and FMCG companies like Colgate and Hindustan Unilever which have a deep rural penetration.

Livemint

ADB gives $800 m to build 9,000 km of rural roads
Rural BPOs improving efficiency, productivity
Companies stick to inexpensive ad campaigns for rural India

[Krishnamoorthy K]

Himansshu Bhatt, TNN Jul 24, 2012, 05.18AM IST

SURAT: Marked by swanky roads, total literacy, high internet connectivity and ever increasing annual revenue, Baben has surely come a long way to redefine what villages in the country can be. Besides having achieved development on the economic parameters, it has also done so socially - even the progress has been socially inclusive. The facilities that are being enjoyed extend across all sections of the society that inhibit this village.

Located just 7 km off Bardoli town, more than 50 per cent of the 2,500 homes of the village have internet connections. The panchayat, too, is reflective of the progressive population and of the 19 members nine are graduates including the sarpanch. The rest are also well educated. Having a young profile, all the members of the panchayat are below 40 years of age.

As a developed destination, it has drawn immigrants from a dozen states of the country and today out of a total population of 15,600, Baben has just 900 natives and the rate of unemployment is zero.

This is a village that has witnessed more than 10-fold increase in its income over the last six years, something unheard of anywhere else in rural India.

"Big developers started eyeing this village for huge residential development from 2006-07 onwards. At the same time, the panchayat started getting the professional and property tax dues from a sugar factory located here. These two factors helped change the entire landscape," said Bhavesh Patel, sarpanch for the last two terms who has been elected unopposed.

The talati deputed in the village, R Vishambharam said, "About half of the village revenue comes from professional tax, property tax and development tax."

Residents of the village claim that there is no distinction made in the infrastructure facilities. Be it a Patel society or a Harijan vas, good roads, water and sanitation are there for all.

Baben has the distinction of having Gujarat's first self-financed polytechnic that was established in 1996. The Vidya Bharti Education Trust formed by locals under the leadership of Jagdish Patel has been extending professional qualification to students.

"It has served as a catalyst of growth for our village. The moment it was established, the growth engine got the necessary boost," said Jayesh Shah, principal of the polytechnic.

The panchayat developed a lake at the cost of Rs 1.25 crore from its own fund and went on to beautify it over the last two years.

It has also made a mark in environmental conservation as people plant more than 5,000 trees every monsoon.

TOI

Rural market is $1.8-trillion opportunity: HUL's Manwani‎
'A silent revolution is sweeping rural women along'

[Krishnamoorthy K]

Vijay Pinjarkar, TNN Aug 26, 2012, 01.09AM IST

Sameer Kurvey, secretary and executive director of Centre of Science for Villages (CSV), Dattapur, Wardha, was conferred with the 'Rajiv Gandhi Rashtriya Ekta Samman 2012' on August 20, the birth anniversary of late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, in Delhi. The award, instituted by All India National Unity Conference (AINUC), was given to Kurvey for his contribution and exclusive work on innovative technologies for rural development. CSV, based on Gandhian principles, was established in 1976 to act as a centre for transfer of appropriate technologies. Previous recipients of this prestigious award include Mother Teresa, Pt Vishwamohan Bhatt, Birju Maharaj, Nandita Das, Hari Prasad Chourasia, Navjot Singh Siddhu and Sonal Mansingh, to name a few. Kurvey has been associated with CSV for the past 35 years and has invented the first 'eco-friendly' village and eco-huts. TOI talked to Kurvey on his and CSV's achievements. Excerpts:

Q. As a civil engineer, you could have earned a lot. How did you ended up with CSV?

A. For two years, 1974 and 1975, I was working with the Pench dam project in Totladoh but I was pained to see the ecological destruction there. When I learned about requirement in CSV for a project in 1977, I appeared for an interview and got selected. Since then, I'm with CSV.

Q. Tell us about CSV and your dreams?

A. CSV's work relates to research for cost-effective energy saving technology, comfortable and durable housing, innovative technology in sanitation, useful management of waste water, rain water harvesting, simple systems for water purification, animal waste management, solar application, plantations etc. We also make handmade paper from waste paper, jute, cloth, banana and agro-waste. The CSV is also promotes non-violent extraction of honey, food processing, herbal pesticides and organic farming and land cover management. We work on eco-friendly, sustainable and socially just technological solutions for uplift of rural poor.

Q. It is observed that most of villages are not progressing because they don't appreciate modern technology and sanitary methods. They don't want to exert themselves beyond their farms. How does CSV achieve its primary goals?

A. We feel that our approach for rural development is different. It is necessary to give villagers simple, cost-effective and efficient options through which people will be able to solve their problems by themselves. CSV has such village-friendly technologies. We have been successful in achieving our primary goals as villagers are accepting rural technology. Their mindset is changing.

Q. The CSV's low-cost eco-huts are being received well. Even forest department has started using them for tourists. What is the feedback?

A. All CSV technologies are eco-friendly and based on local material and skill. Not just the forest department, our technologies are being adopted by government departments and institutions, NGOs and rural and urban individuals. With the help of all these agencies and well wishers, CSV has demonstrated all these technologies on the national and international level. Since 1986, when we came up with first eco-hut, 2,000 such houses have been built. Such houses have also been constructed in earthquake-affected Gujarat. There is demand for such houses in Vidarbha, Marathwada and other states.

Q. How successful has been the CSV in accomplishing the dream of Gandhi, which was based on village economy? Has CSV instrumental in improving rural India?

A. CSV is working basically for the uplift of rural masses on the Gandhian vision of gramodyog. A large number of people in the rural areas have adopted CSV technologies and are happy with their improved lifestyle. We have implemented all our innovative technologies at Boldawadi in Hingoli district. It is known as the eco-tech village. The work has been has been appreciated by all technologists, scientists and individuals. Now, the government has decided to replicate this model in four sites each in Amravati and Kolhapur districts, three villages in Yavatmal and two in Nashik district. All technologies are open to all as CSV does not copyright its technology. Therefore, by conducting various training programmes and seminars, the technologies are disseminated at national and international level. Besides, we have trained thousands of potters and masons who are using these technologies in various states. This is in agreement with the Gandhian philosophy whose target is that villages should be self-sufficient. The use of these appropriate technologies brings independence to villagers and helps them live with dignity. The eco-tech model can also help provide jobs to rural folks and can be promoted as a tourism hub.

Q. Most villages in Vidarbha are dependent on forests, putting tremendous biotic pressure on them. Does CSV have any strong solutions?

A. CSV has a number of technologies which are optimized for those depending on forests. These technologies will certainly help in strengthening the tribals not only here but across the country.

Q. When Vidarbha is under the shadow of thermal power plants and hazardous industries, how can CSV help?

A. It is a startling fact. But we feel that for long-term survival, planning eco-friendly rural industries, which are sustainable and socially just, is the only solution. I strongly feel that renewable energy sources are the way out in future. It's best that we start thinking now.

TOI

[Krishnamoorthy K]

All the Gram Panchayats in the country will be covered under the National Optical Fibre Network (NOFN) scheme. The project is to be completed in two years’ time.

The Government had approved the scheme for creation of NOFN on 25th October 2011, for providing Broadband connectivity to all Gram Panchayats through Optical Fibre Cable. The connectivity to Gram panchayats will be provided through this network for establishing e-governance.

NOFN project will be executed by a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) i.e. Bharat Broadband Network Limited (BBNL), a company incorporated under Indian Companies Act 1956, fully owned by Central Government, with equity participation from Government, BSNL, Railtel and Powergrid. The Company has been incorporated on 25.2.2012 for this purpose. Presently, the pilots are being conducted in Paravada block of Vishakhapatnam district in Andhra Pradesh. Arian block of Ajmer district in Rajasthan and Panisagar block of North Tripura district in Tripura.

The Minister of State for Communications and Information Technology Sh Milind Deora gave this information in the Rajya Sabha recently.

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BK/AT
(Release ID :87271)

PIB

[Krishnamoorthy K]

Diksha Dutta : Mon Sep 03 2012, 03:05 hrs

If you think e-governance is all about electronic transactions in different ministries, it is time to reboot your thinking. New-age technologies like cloud are now being deployed in the rural hinterland of India too. German enterprise software maker SAP lays a lot of emphasis on the public sector globally and wants to do the same in India. A couple of months ago, it launched a unique project in a small desert village called Soda in Tonk district, Rajasthan. The project seeks to link residents with the best that technology has to offer: faster access to records and services, a stronger system of governance, and a virtual classroom in the centre of town. The German software major has now deployed a cloud based governance solution for a village panchayat in Shillong, Meghalaya.

Without computerised records, leaders of India’s rural villages must rely on a bureaucracy that can be slow, onerous and lacking in transparency. In addition, with little access to education and training, many residents—including the young people who are needed to fuel a healthy local economy—are unemployed or unable to read and write.

In this backdrop, the German software vendor’s efforts to take e-governance to Indian villages and its various initiatives to improve efficiencies in the country’s government agencies are praise worthy.

Peter Gartenberg, managing director, SAP India says, “Cloud is still starting to develop in the public sector and is a relatively new thing for the government to adopt. We are trying to solve extreme cases in the rural areas of India by providing them cloud solutions. One such example is the work that we do for panchayats in handling land records. I agree that it is easier to reach a village in Punjab probably, but we want to reach the rural areas which are difficult to approach and want to help the panchayats administrate better.” Going forward, he stresses that SAP will be going to even smaller and backward villages and will be helping them to govern better.

First, a look at the work so far. SAP has partnered with Soda village in Rajasthan to help it marshal technology to support its 10,000 residents. Specifically, SAP has worked with the sarpanch, or leader, of the village to create an intranet and internet portal, as well as a technology education lab. Company executives reckon the portals make answers to critical questions accessible with only a few clicks—leaders can now see how much funding is allocated to the village for such services as a community center or eye care. Land records are posted online, and birth and death certificates have become computerized. What’s more, the village portal is linked to state government websites, connecting residents to vital information.

Beyond this access, the e-lab—located in the centre of the village where people can easily walk—offers basic computer training and eventually will expand to offer courses in a range of subjects. The goal: a virtual education system that is accessible to all.

The impact: Soda village has become a model for a blending of the old and the new. The village’s sarpanch, Chhavi Rajawat, aims to make government more accountable and seeks to tackle her region’s unemployment and illiteracy rates. Computerisation, she says, is really about creating opportunity and equity. For SAP, such opportunities translate to a more educated workforce, as well as healthier local economies that may drive demand for the company’s software services.

Moot point is that SAP is striving to make village administration more effective, transparent and accountable in delivering citizen services. In the near future, SAP intends to effectively use its expertise in the North East region and create a scalable model to go to 600,000 similar villages across India. As a part of the project, SAP will automate several operational areas in the village administration including tracking and control of funds, budget and expense management, accounting, management of local assets, project and scheme implementation and citizen services. SAP will also facilitate trained resources to operate the solution, and provide its expertise during the course of the project. As a partner, Rajiv Gandhi Indian Institute of Management-Shillong (RGIIM-S) will provide SAP with the necessary advisory support to gain understanding of the local environment, help identify project sites and liaison with local administration bodies where required.

Mawlai is a census town in East Khasi Hills district in the state of Meghalaya and this destination is the initial step of SAP to penetrate into the North East region. “SAP’s project for the Mawlai area will provide the local headman and citizens reliable access to records and services, better insight into budgeting and spending, and support quicker decision making, without a complex and cumbersome IT infrastructure”, says Keya Sengupta, director, RGIIM-S.

Explains Mathew Thomas,vice president—strategic industries, SAP India, “We need to develop citizen facing technology in rural India and mobiles will help us do so.” SAP India MD agrees that there is a necessity for every citizen in the rural areas to have a back account and the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) of India will help in doing this.

NeGP takes a holistic view of e-governance initiatives across the country, integrating them into a collective vision, a shared cause. Around this idea, a massive countrywide infrastructure reaching down to the remotest of villages is evolving and large-scale digitisation of records is taking place to enable easy, reliable access over the internet. The ultimate objective is to bring public services closer home to citizens, as articulated in the vision statement of NeGP. The government approved the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP), comprising of 27 mission mode projects (MMPs) and 8 components, on May 18, 2006.

The opportunity Mathew claims that SAP is one of the very few global companies that is doing work specifically for India with localised solutions. “In India, there is huge interest by the government to adopt technology. Our solutions in Hindi are an invention particularly for this market because 49% of the population in India is Hindi speaking. There is a need in the market for localised solutions.”

SAP recently announced the availability of its flagship ERP product in Hindi. SAP ERP in Hindi will address areas such as logistics including India taxation, accounting, employee data, provident fund; payroll including pay-slip, loans, claims and employee self services. The localised solution will help unlock the huge domain knowledge and expertise that exists at different employee and management levels in government organisations.

SAP India executives believe that the file management in the Indian government too needs to automated for better functioning. For the same, the company has come with a solution in Hindi for file procurement system. “We will be reaching out to different ministries with this solution and will be helping them in automation. This is a part of the bigger e-governance plan,” informs Peter.

In the larger picture too, public sector is an important segment for SAP—globally and in India. Talking of PSUs in India, Peter says that oil and power companies are established and large clients of SAP. Then comes mining and utilities sectors.

Probed on what SAP will be betting on in the coming future, Peter says, “The dairy industry is a potential market and we want to help companies with a better supply chain management so that less food is wasted. Though we are very strong in healthcare globally, we have not done that much work in India for healthcare. We realise that there are key issues like vaccination which need attention in this country.”

Going forward, SAP is keen to replicate the Soda and North East model in other villages. With the cloud hovering, the German tech giant is geared up to transform Indian villages.

IE

Internet Use Jumps in Rural India
Cisco India views technology can address challenge of medical expertise in rural areas
Jharkhand: Pragya Kendras to be linked with private website
Broadband Connectivity for Villages
IT techniques help expedite execution of Govt schemes
Tata Consultancy Services bags Rs 103 crore contract for MGNREGS in West Bengal

[Krishnamoorthy K]

The latest numbers may lead to a significant decline in the poverty level
Asit Ranjan Mishra

New Delhi: India’s rural income grew at a much faster clip between 2010 and 2012 than in the previous years, according to the provisional results of the 68th round of the consumption expenditure survey carried out by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO).

The latest numbers may lead to a significant decline in the poverty level once the Planning Commission calculates the poverty numbers based on the detailed data expected to be released next year. This may further have an impact on the entitlements provided by the government to the poor.

While the average annual growth in monthly per capita consumption expenditure (MPCE) between 2005 and 2010 in real terms stood at 1.4% as per the 66th round of the survey, it grew by around 9% between 2010 and 2012.

For urban India, MPCE growth picked up from 2.8% in the 66th round of the survey to 6.6% in the latest round. The MPCE in real terms is calculated after subtracting the impact of inflation on consumption expenditure.

In value terms, while rural MPCE picked up from Rs927.7 in the 66th round to Rs1,281.45 in the 68th round, urban MPCE increased from Rs1,781.81 to Rs2,401.68 during the same time period.

In the absence of any official income survey, India relies on consumption surveys by its statistics department to gauge household income levels. Based on MPCE data, the Planning Commission calculates the poverty level in the country.


The income gap between rural and urban India is also seen declining. While the 66th round survey carried out in 2009-10 showed MPCE in urban India was double (100.3%) that in rural areas, it came down to 92.3% in the 68th round survey.

NSSO said in a statement it expects to publish detailed results on consumer expenditure from the 68th round of the survey next year.

The provisional results of the latest survey are based on a sample comprising 7,391 villages (59,070 households) and 5,223 urban blocks (41,602 households) in almost all the states and union territories.

Livemint

Consumption in rural India growing faster than urban areas: CRISIL

[Krishnamoorthy K]

Madhavi Rajadhyaksha, TNN Sep 8, 2012, 07.24PM IST

MUMBAI: If India is to better its carbon footprint, it is high-time policymakers and government agencies recognised and explored the eco-friendly potential of its villages. The suggestion came up at two separate environment events held in Mumbai, this week and merits due attention.

Pointing out that India lives in its villages, Professor S. J. Arceivala, former chief of the National Environmental Engineering Institute, Mumbai cited how rural India was abuzz with eco-friendly strategies and that it was up to the government to boost this potential. Anna Hazare's village Ralegan Siddhi like many other villages in Thane and Raigad districts of Maharashtra have successfully implemented rainwater harvesting and soil conservation measures. "Today over 60% of agriculture in India is rain-fed or depends on the monsoons," said Arceivala, explaining that expanding measures such as rainwater harvesting or groundwater recharge in villages would ensure that wells supplied water all year through. Similar pro-active action was needed for tapping solar energy as well.

Devoid ofvehicles and exploitative lifestyles, much of village life is eco-friendly in its true essence, and needs nurture. Best practices in biodegradable waste management for instance, should be identified and scaled up.

It is involvement of local communities that would truly make a difference, believes Madhav Gadgil, chairman of the Western Ghats Ecology Panel who pointed out that a legislation, the Biodiversity Act, passed way back in 2002 had mandated that every village panchayat and local body have a biodiversity management committee to preserve it ecological heritage. "Even 10 years later, it is hardly being implemented," he rued. It is time the government promoted a people-oriented decision making process, he suggested.

Sporadic efforts in this direction are already underway. Twenty-five village panchayats of Sindhudurg district in the Western Ghats for instance, have drawn up eco-friendly local development plans, that await implementation. Experts believe it is essential to resurrect schemes such as the Paryavaran Vahini scheme dating back to 1992 which encouraged locals participation in maintaining the environment. The scheme that is largely defunct in most states, empowered district collectors to have designated citizens to keep an eye on environmental protection, by way of reporting illegal activities in forests, wildlife poaching or monitoring pollution. Such small measures could go a long way.

TOI

Gutters and water, plastic and garbage rile villagers

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Six-month rural stint may soon be mandatory for MBBS degree‎

[Krishnamoorthy K]

BS Reporter / Mumbai/ Ahmedabad Sep 17, 2012, 00:54 IST

PM’s adviser Sam Pitroda says Union govt investing over Rs 100K crore on ICT

To usher in the second revolution in information and communication technology (ICT) government of India plans to connect 250,000 village panchayats through an optical fiber network in next two years time.

Outlining various initiatives to increase access and transparency in development programmes, adviser to Prime Minister on public information, information and innovation, Sam Pitroda said that the Union government was investing more than Rs 100,000 crore to put in place ICT systems for the next generation reforms.

Pitroda who was here to attend a private function said, "In the 1980s the seeds for the first phase of ICT revolution was sown. At that time India had some two million telephone connections. But today we are a connected billion with 900 million mobile phone connections."

"Now, we are sowing the seeds for the second phase of the revolution. The first phase was more about voice communication, the second phase is aimed at using the communication technology of telecommunication and internet to improve e-governance, health services, education and every other thing," Pitroda said.

He was of the opinion that creation of public information infrastructure using the technology would have a big impact on the next generation. According to Pitroda the systems in place at present have become obsolete and required to be changed.

"As part of creating a public information infrastructure, the second phase of revolution would include connecting 250,000 village panchayats through optic fiber network with an investment of Rs 30,000 crore. Trial in 50 panchayats was on in Goa, Rajasthan and North East. The results of this pilot projects is expected in October," Pitroda said being optimistic of Union government's initiatives.

He also talked about the broadband network under the National Knowledge Network, the Unique Identity project headed by Nandan Nilekani, the National Geographical Information System (GIS) project under the leader ship of former ISRO chariman, K Kasturirangan, cloud computing, cyber security initiatives, and standardising software used by all states.

"Union government has already initiated number of projects to usher in second phase of ICT revolution. It is investing over Rs 100,000 crore in putting in place the required systems. No other government in the world, that I know of, are doing this kind of thing," Pitroda said.

Bullish on the next generation reforms, Pitroda said that it would increase people's access to development programmes, improve transparency, health services, education and other services.

He also said that there were some misunderstanding with the UID project which has 20 crore people registered under it. "By next December 65 crore people would be registered under UID," Pitroda claimed.

"The government is also implementing a National GIS program. This will help various departments have a same maps, which is not the case at present where each department was using different maps of the same village, town or city," he said.

Pitroda further claimed that the task in hand was enormous one looking at the volume of the country's population. He also lamented that there was dearth of trained persons who could make efficient use of the new system.

BS

Setting up of Digital Panchayat Centres
Kerala hitches ride on digital super highway
TCS bags Rs 103-cr contract for MGNREGS solution in Bengal

[Krishnamoorthy K]

In an interview with ET Now, Shankar Sharma, Chief Global Trading Strategist, First Global, gives his views on the Friday's price action and the market. Excerpts:

ET Now: What do you make of Friday's price action? US Fed has ensured global liquidity is here to stay in the near term. Do you think the gains registered by global and Indian markets on Friday are here to stay?

Shankar Sharma: The liquidity in global markets has always been plentiful in the last odd 4 years since this crisis started, actually from 2007 onwards. Therefore, I do not think anything new has happened. All they have said is that they will continue to maintain liquidity, inject a little bit more, and keep rates low for another 2 years, which is to be expected. Therefore, I do not think anything dramatically different from what we have seen in the past 4-5 years has been announced.

ET Now: Are you saying last week's price action may not sustain?

Shankar Sharma: That always happens that when there are coordinated rallies of the kind that we have seen -- everything runs up, but I do not think that sustains. Eventually the asset class that has to go up will be markets like India rather than the entire world being pulled up because of this. Therefore, while on day 1 of any such rally, you will find almost everything participating, however that participation starts to cool off in the next 4 to 5 to 10 trading sessions. Therefore, you will see that happen here as well.

ET Now: The good news here is that Indian markets are up 20% this year and we have got record inflows irrespective of the fundamental turf. The bad news here is that despite record inflows, the markets are getting extremely polarised. 80% of the market is not going anywhere, 10% of the market is going down and only 5% of the market is moving up, which is large cap FMCGs, select pharmaceutical and to a large extent large cap IT.

Shankar Sharma: In markets, we cannot dictate which spot does well. From our perspective what is important is we have to be in those right places. We cannot say why Hindustan Lever is so much higher. I have always said that in today's India for a quarter or two quarters, you might end up underperforming when you buy in ITC or Lever. In today's India when these stocks underperform, it cannot be a long-term underperformance because they have realigned their strategies to suit the new India which is a consumption-driven India.

Therefore, we might not like them at 40 times earnings, but that is not the market's problem; that is our problem if we are wrong on that trade. Therefore, we have to essentially read the mind of the market. The mind of the market has been very clearly biased towards them; it has been biased towards select pharmaceutical and select auto stocks, and has been biased against telecom stocks and metal stocks. Therefore, you can keep arguing against the market, but we get paid to be riding with the market rather than be arguing against it permanently. At crucial points, we need to argue against it, but not all the time.

Shankar Sharma: I totally disagree that the UPA II has disappointed us. It has disappointed a handful of economic commentators, foreign houses strategists and economists, but go down to the grassroots levels and you will find rural India has never had it so good as it has had in the last 8 years.

Frankly all of us are sitting in and projecting out here from the big cities. India has moved. The gain is no longer in big cities. It is small town India that is driving growth. It is rather small village India that is driving growth; the consumption story there is very strong. It has never happened in the last 65 years.

Why has it happened in just the last 8 years? It is not because of magic. It has happened because of conscious decisions taken to stimulate rural growth even if it means urban dweller wonders what the government doing for him. Urban people have seen their salaries go up maybe 10 times in the last 8 years. What more do they want? It is the poor who are always the disadvantaged. It is the poor the UPA came to power on. The UPA had delivered 100%, if not more on that front. It is because of that this market refused to fall. It is because of that that Hindustan Lever, Bajaj Auto, etc., refused to fall.

Therefore, I do not know why people, that is the English speaking and reading media, and English readers, end up being so bearish. My relatives still stay in villages, and they have been having a party. Farmer margins are really, really strong. They make something like 60-70% margin on producing a kilo of dal. Where do you get margins of that kind?

ET

Is rural India really ‘shining’?

The “rural India shining” story has emerged a ray of hope in India’s otherwise gloomy economic landscape. The “story” revolves around the fact that consumption in rural areas has galloped ahead of that in urban areas between 2009-10 and 2011-12. This is largely based on the preliminary data released by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) from its 68th round (2011-12) consumption survey. Optimists are already saying that rural India is not only shining, but also is the new driver of growth for the Indian economy.

These happy tidings need to be tinged with some caveats, mostly related to the nature and the manner of collection of the underlying data. While the figures released by NSSO are surprising on many counts, that, however, is not a reason to doubt the credibility of their consumption data. Merely because this data is not based on the actual consumption survey data is no reason to doubt it. At the same time, one has to wait for detailed and final results before jumping to any conclusion. This is not methodological nit-picking, but is an important issue as some of the details needed for a fuller analysis are not available.

It is worth mentioning that NSSO has been trying some experimentation in the way it collects consumption data. The fact that it had included expenditure on mid-day-meal scheme as part of private expenditure—thereby inflating consumption expenditure in 2009-10—has already been pointed out. All these issues matter as NSSO has been concerned with the growing difference between estimates of private final consumption expenditure (PFCE) from the national account systems (NAS) and the estimates from NSSO consumption surveys. These differences are the source of endless commentary and academic quibbling on an array of subjects ranging from trends in inequality to the incidence of poverty.

For a change, NSSO has scored a point: Its 68th round consumption survey shows for the first time that the gap between NAS and NSSO data is narrowing instead of going up. In simpler terms as against the general trend of NSSO consumption surveys showing lower growth in consumption, the 68th round data suggests a faster growth in consumption expenditure than what is reported in NAS.

NSSO figures show that growth rate in consumption—in real terms—during 2009-10 to 2011-12 has been 9.1% in rural areas and 8.3% in urban areas, which is not only higher than in the period 2004-05 to 2009-10, when it was 1.4% and 2.7% in rural and urban areas, respectively, but also higher than the PFCE growth at 6.8% from the national accounts for the same period. This is in spite of the fact that the gross domestic product growth in the last two years was lower than in 2004-2010.

While a part of this may be due to the fact that 2009-10 was a drought year with incomes in rural areas depressed as a result of drought. The reality is that the drought did not lead to a decline in agricultural output. Nonetheless, since 62% of rural population still earns its livelihood in agriculture, agricultural performance is surely an instrumental factor in such high rates of growth in rural areas.

Unfortunately, another report from the cost of cultivation surveys does not point to such an optimistic picture. The report of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) clearly points to deceleration in agricultural profits during the same period. The CACP report points out that during the same period farmers came under severe stress due to increasing input costs. Labour cost rose by 74%, fertilizer cost by 30%, diesel cost by 44% and fodder cost by 60% between 2008 and 2011. Input cost for the paddy—the biggest crop by sown area—increased by 53% overall. As against this, crop prices increased by only 20%. The net result has been that at 2011-12 prices, the profitability of paddy will be negative against the total costs. This was already the case in many rice growing states where net profitability was negative. The stress in agriculture was visible with the spectre of farmer suicides raising its head again not only in the traditional areas of Vidarbha and dry land regions of central India, but also in areas such as West Bengal. The situation was no better for other crops.

Clearly, despite the negligible base effect in agriculture, declining profitability in agriculture could not have contributed to the increase in consumption. Nor are there any signs emanating from the decelerating manufacturing and construction sector. The story emerging from sale of durables is also not encouraging. The so-called safety net of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme has already seen its performance going down with the average number of days of employment provided declining between 2009-10 and 2011-12. With the slowing in infrastructure spending, the limited non-farm avenues are simply not available to boost rural growth. But far from the past, it is a challenge that has the potential to make the “rural India shining” story unsustainable. And if this is not enough, persistent inflation, increases in the prices of costs such as diesel and fertilizers are around the corner.

Clearly, there are many loose ends that need to be tied up before we can answer the puzzle of what led to the boom in rural consumption? Until detailed data is available, there is ample reason to believe that it is too early to celebrate the story of a shining rural India.

Himanshu is assistant professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University and visiting fellow at Centre de Sciences Humaines, New Delhi. Comments are welcome at theirview@livemint.com

[Krishnamoorthy K]

It’s time for smaller Canadian companies serving farming communities to try to harness the rural Indian market. Rising rural wages and a shift in rural employment indicates a trend toward increased demand for automation and other productivity-enhancing services. India has been hit by a surge in global crude prices. Sooner than later, a rise in state-administered diesel prices seems inevitable.

If there are Canadian firms that make cost-effective agricultural machinery that also saves on fuel, they know where to look to find a big market. Canada's large Sikh community, which has its roots in the farm belt of Punjab, could be a vital cultural link in tapping an emerging economic landscape in rural India.

The Globe and Mail

Patna: Govt plans 6-hour power supply in rural areas daily
Ranchi: Mamta Vahan a hit among rural women
Indian Outsourcing Companies Go Rural
Rural telecom subs grow at faster rate than urban users: CAG
Lucknow: 7,000 km rural roads to be upgraded
Punjab to spend Rs 10,000 crore to develop rural areas
Time to revisit strategy for rural areas: Ramesh

[murlee]

From farms to ATM cards

In the decades following Independence, even as the country became self-sufficient in food, the lot of the farmer has only deteriorated. And after the initial triumph of the Green Revolution, the spectre of food shortage stared us in the face, even as millions of tonnes of grain rotted in godowns. Be it rising input costs or the introduction of National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA), which has made farm labour more expensive and much more difficult to find, Indian farmers, particularly those with small landholdings, only have tales of woe to relate most of the time.

In Bharatpur to visit a cluster of villages to see the change wrought by Lupin Human Welfare and Research Foundation, I met with scores of farmers who said they can no longer depend on traditional farming methods to eke out a decent living. Sita Ram Gupta, Executive Director of the Foundation, said that today the farmer was in a helpless position because he could not decide the price of what he produced. The helplessness of farmers was eloquently expressed by Chakradhar Singh Jadon, whose family owns 20 hectares in a village about 20 km from Bharatpur. “Kisan ne maal paida kar diya aur mandi mei ja key patak diya; uska bhav doosra aadmi lagata hei (the farmer grows something and dumps it in the mandi, its price is decided by somebody else).”

Gupta says at the time of Independence, if a farmer produced one rupee worth of goods, he would get 89 paise, only 11 paise went to the middleman. “Today, he gets 36 paise and 64 paise go to the middlemen.” What Dr Verghese Kurien did for dairy farmers through the co-operative movement is the only possible model for the farmer to succeed, he says. In 1988, the Lupin Foundation, a brainchild of company chairman Dr Desh Bandhu Gupta, came to Bharatpur. “We found an acute shortage of drinking water, and the soil had too much salt content to give the farmers any profitable crops.”

Beyond mustard

As mustard is a cash crop, and can to some extent survive the soil salinity, much of the area in Bharatpur district is under mustard. “So, we had to think beyond mustard. We adopted 25 villages and said we would improve rural livelihoods in these villages by adopting suitable strategies.”

Finding water sources and conserving water were identified as the first priorities. The Foundation gave a grant of Rs 11 lakh, which was matched by the district administration, and another Rs 11 lakh was offered by the villagers in the form of labour, material, and even cash. “We identified and constructed open wells, laid pipelines, built boundary walls around catchment areas, carried out de-silting work — and once the Rs 33 lakh was spent, a transformation came about in the area.”

This taught Gupta his first lesson — best results are attained in rural development only when the villagers identify their priorities and take ownership of the programmes. Once the work was completed, the “project planners in the Rajasthan Government were happy, the Collector was happy, and, above all, villagers were happy.”

The main objective was to enhance the income of the rural poor, improve their education, sanitation, and health care; equally, infrastructure was given priority. And what better way to create a convergence point for the entire village than to build a school? “In such an activity, the entire village participates.”

Now, of course, with the Foundation introducing additional income-generating activities for farmers such as beekeeping, poultry, dairy farming, tulasi mala making (the entire consignment is bought by the nearby temple town of Mathura) and the like, “many of the farmers’ children are going to private schools in and around Bharatpur,” says Gupta.

More importantly, with the schools getting proper toilets, more girls are now joining up — and not dropping out. “It is such a pity that we took more than 50 years to solve small problems such as that of decent roads and toilets in schools. Safety is the most important aspect for the girl child; if there are proper roads and good toilets, parents send their daughters to schools.”

He adds that when they came here, many villages in this belt already had electricity, roads and banks, but incomes remained low because of the high degree of soil salinity. The Foundation approached the Central Soil Salinity Research Institute in Karnal — the director himself visited the spot, and chose a 12-acre plot where gypsum was added to make the soil more fertile.

With help from the government — “we asked for 1,000 hectares; they sanctioned 350 hectares” — 150 truck-loads of gypsum was added to the soil. “Now on the same soil, two or three crops, such as wheat, mustard and bajra are being grown. Technology was already available in the lab; all we had to do was transfer it to the farms,” he smiles.

Poultry profits

The Foundation has now put up a modern dairy in Boari village about 20 km from Bharatur, and initiating poultry enterprises has been another huge success. Apart from Sunita’s story (see below), the most inspiring story from Bharatpur was of 30-year-old Shyam Kishore, a scheduled caste farmer from Kanchanpura, 22 km from Bharatpur. The entire population of around 1,500 belongs to the SC category. Kishore is a graduate but “could not get a job and the family farm of one acre was too small to fetch substantial income.”

In 2009, the Foundation contacted him and he began in a small shed with 300 chicks (each chick costs Rs 15-30 depending on the weight and season). Today, he has involved all his brothers in this enterprise — and just built his fifth shed, which is much bigger — and they are now raising over 6,000 chicks. “I supply chicken to both Agra and Bharatpur,” he says with pride.

His wife, Rajwati, heads a self-help group, and Kishore and Rajwati manage to earn about Rs 35,000 a month. The result is better and more nutritional food, a status in the village, and both his children going to an English medium private school.

Bhim Singh, Principal Project Coordinator of the Foundation, adds that they have helped promote 250 poultry farms in the district, and the chicken raised here go to the Agra, and even Delhi, market. “There is a huge potential for further growth. Delhi alone requires 15 lakh chicken and 2.5-3 crore eggs every day. Also, the poultry enterprises here have triggered other income-generating activities related to feed, feed equipment, and transport of chicken. This village was once inhabited by the poorest of the poor, but recently one family gifted the son-in-law a four-wheeler during marriage!”

An interesting fallout from these ventures is the involvement of the banking system. While the self-help groups deposit their money in banks at regular intervals, Kishore’s transactions in buying chicks, feed, cages, and so on, are now done through text messages! “I send the traders an SMS and the vehicle comes here to collect the chicken, and the money comes into my bank account. Once that SMS comes, I go to the bank to withdraw it.” He banks with the Punjab National Bank; the next step will be to get an ATM card so he doesn’t have to go to his bank in Bharatpur to withdraw cash.

Sita Ram Gupta, who has seen the villagers’ incomes improve, their lifestyle change, and a new confidence come into their body language, is amazed at the transformation in the 2000-odd villages the Foundation works in. “Tractors have now come into their farms, and they use them or rent them out even for marriages.”

Driving from the Bharatpur villages to Agra, I see several such tractors — a couple of them have baraatis, while others are carrying devotees to Mathura for a temple festival!

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/...cle3969424.ece

[murlee]

Jai ho women!

The 20-odd women are part of a larger group that includes men — all of them are farmers, and have come to meet this journalist keen to know their views on FDI in retail, and whether it will help or hurt Indian farmers.

As the men wax eloquent on “ek East India Company ne sarey desh ko ghulam bana diya” (there was one East India Company that enslaved the whole country) and how the foreign companies will first give them good prices and then ditch them, there is not a beep from the women.

At my behest, Rajdhani, the supervisor from the Lupin Human Welfare and Research Foundation, asks them to lift their ghunghats, to enable conversation. They comply, but only partially. Bhim Singh, the Project Coordinator, orders the men out of the room. The women relax and reveal their faces.

Sunita is the leader of one of the self-help groups assisted by the Foundation, and stands out from the group for the confident manner in which she answers questions. She is not only bright and articulate, but beautiful too with a glowing complexion. Dressed in a bright orange sari, she has turned out in all her finery — and is wearing both lipstick and nail polish!

“I may be 30, 35 or 38, what does it matter,” she smiles. She has five children, three of them daughters. From their 2.5 hectare farm where Sunita and husband Bunty Ram manage to get a good income, the couple sends all five children to a private school in Bharatpur. Proudly, Sunita reveals that she spends Rs 5,000 a year on the education of each child. All five children — including her 18-year-old daughter now in Class IX — cycle to the school, which is 8 km away.

Is she not worried about allowing her eldest daughter to cycle to school and back?

“Dar kahe ka Madam; sab bachchey sath mei jawe aur sath mei aawe, (Why should I worry, all the children go together and come back)”, she says boldly. More hearteningly, she is in no hurry to get her daughter married. “Abhi na karoo Madam; abhi toh padhaoongi… (not now; I will educate her first). I got married early, but I won’t allow my girls to get married so young. I send my children to school in the hope they’ll do much better than us… get good jobs. If they don’t, then anyway farming will be their last resort.”

‘No’ to mobile for children

She is proud that all the five can speak in English, but is firm about not giving them a mobile phone — particularly the girls. “Aisi choot nahi di hei; aaj kal ko jamano kharab hei, mobile-vobile gram mei nahi chaley. (I haven’t given them this kind of license as there are dangers. Anyway, there is no need for mobiles in villages!)”.

When she clarifies that she doesn’t allow her daughters to help with housework as she wants them to study hard — and she also heads a self-help group — that brings us to her working day. This amazing woman gets up at 4 a.m. and her day ends at 10 or 11 p.m. The family owns five buffaloes, and her duties involve milking them. “I get 5–7 litres of milk a day from each; on a good day, a buffalo can even give 10 litres…so every day, I get about 60 to 70 litres of milk, which we sell to the dairy for Rs 24 a litre.”

Rajdhani adds that despite doing so much work, Sunita keeps her house sparkling clean, and has taken the Foundation’s advice to grow vegetables like pumpkins, bitter gourd, tomatoes, maize, chilli, cucumber and greens in her farm. And, along with her husband, she also wades through chest-deep waters of the Chiksana canal every day to fetch fodder for her animals. Sunita grins and adds, “We have to carry the fodder on our heads; yes, it is tough but I’ve got used to it.”

She has her own bank account, which now has a balance of Rs 27,000. She is not enamoured of gold jewellery, “particularly because it may fall in the water; and then if you have jewels you have to guard them.” But she admits that when her daughters get married she will have to buy some for their dowry.

But won’t she defy such a custom as her daughters are educated?

“No Madam; who am I to defy such firmly established social traditions? I will have to give dahej (dowry) or else my daughters will not get married.” When I ask her if it would be around Rs 1 lakh, she laughs. “What is one lakh today? Aaj toh padho-likho samaj hei, (everyone is educated today); the more educated they are the more money they want.”

Well, there are some evils which education makes worse!

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/...cle3969426.ece

[murlee]

Land of milk and honey

At a village near the Ludhawi toll plaza, about 10 km from Bharatpur and on NH 11 that goes from Agra to Bikaner , I meet Jagan Singh — a farmer, a vaid (practitioner of traditional medicine), and now a beekeeper. His father was a farmer and vaid too, but finding it difficult to make ends meet, he opted for a novel income generating campaign in 1998 in his district targeted at low-income villagers like him. It offered training in beekeeping and promised assured returns. He was then earning barely Rs 3,000.

Today his turnover is Rs 50,000 from 400 boxes. Each bee box costs Rs 3,500, and gives 50 kg of honey every year. Singh sells the raw honey produced for Rs 80-100 a kg to exporters like Kashmir Aviery (in Punjab) or Kejiwals (Delhi).

But if he can process, pack, brand and export his produce, his income — which is around Rs 25,000 a month — can go up substantially. “I am now thinking of putting up a processing plant,” he says. Depending on the size, he says, honey processing plants cost between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 2 crore. He would, of course, begin small.

So, does he have the money? “No, but I can easily get a bank loan,” Singh says confidently.

A tough beginning

At this point, Bhim Singh, Principal Project Coordinator of the Lupin Human Welfare and Research Foundation, Bharatpur, which is running a successful programme to increase and improve rural livelihoods, intervenes. “Today he says he will go in for a Rs 10 lakh bank loan with so much confidence. But very few of these beekeepers remember how hard we had to fight for the first loan from the Central Bank of India in 1998. I even had to threaten the bank manager that ‘we will file a case against you’.”

Singh adds that for the first year he was the only one to produce honey in his village, but now seven other farmers have joined him. As mustard is the main crop in this district — about 2 lakh hectares are under mustard cultivation in Bharatpur — the bees get their nectar mostly from mustard flowers. But the boxes are migrated seasonally to get different flavours — during the leechi season they go to Uttar Pradesh (to Aligharh, Mathura and Dehra Dun). Neem honey, with medicinal properties, is also made here.

Creamy honey

Bhim Singh says mustard honey, which is very creamy and thick is also known as “creamy honey”, and as it sets well, it is ideal for bakery products. “There is a big demand for mustard honey in Germany where it is also used in chocolate mix. Germans are big consumers of honey, which is very healthy compared to sugar, jo haddiyo ko galata hei (melts the bones).” German per capita consumption of honey is 4–5 kg, compared to a pathetic 8–10 gm in India.”

Bhim Singh says that in this belt, about 1,250 tonnes of honey is produced every year, and “directly and indirectly our honey-producing ventures — in which not only farmers but also uneducated, illiterate youth have been trained and involed — contribute about Rs 20-25 crore to the economy. Half of this comes from the raw honey (Rs 100 a kg), and the rest from the wooden boxes, iron tools and labour required to make and maintain them, extract honey, packaging, transporting the boxes as well honey to the exporting companies and related work.”

A big success story has been that of Brij Health Care, which produces and processes honey acquired from other beekeepers, and packages and exports 150-200 kg of honey to the US, Europe and the UAE.

The Foundation trains youth and helps them get bank loans of about Rs 40,000. Once that is returned, they get newer and larger loans. “One box can give around 50 kg of honey, and one who keeps 50 boxes can easily get a monthly income of Rs 25,000,” he adds.

Sita Ram Gupta, Executive Director of the Lupin Foundation, says apart from asking for a State Bee Board to be put up here, along the lines of the national body, “We are also asking the Government to include honey in the daily diet of the local children through the mid-day meal scheme. Honey is a very healthy and nutritional product, and we want our children to benefit from the hard work put in by the farmers in these villages.” Some of the honey is processed, packaged and sold under the ‘Madhvi’ brand.

Bhim Singh recalls that in 1997-98, when they launched the beekeeping programme, there was scepticism that it would flop. An earlier effort was recalled and “they said that had flopped and all the bees flew away. But I stood guarantee for the first Rs 40,000 which was invested and said, ‘If this money doesn’t get returns you can cut it from my salary’.” He even loaned Rs 10,000 to a farmer. “Later when he came home to return the money, my mother, thinking it was some kind of bribe refused to accept it! Abhi bhi merey paanch dabbey yaha chalet hei… (my five boxes are producing honey). I refuse to take the profits!”

The Foundation has also helped many farmers set up small dairy units by training and getting them loans — and the farmers are getting Rs 24-25 for a litre of milk.

Sohan Singh (60) grows wheat and millets on the 1.5 hectares he owns; “I was barely able to get two square meals for my family. Today, there is nothing for the kisan in agriculture; we don’t even recover our input costs.” But six years ago, he was encouraged to go in for milch animals. After getting help with both training and loans, today he owns 15 cows and buffaloes which give him 60 litres of milk. This he sells to the Rajasthan State co-operative dairy. His monthly income now fluctuates between Rs 30,000 and Rs 50,000. He uses the biogas produced from gobar for both cooking and lighting, and the slurry from biogas as organic manure for his farm.

“There are several such stories in these villages; we are proud to have made some of these villages a land of milk and honey,” beams Bhim Singh.

An IAS sting!

But his best story is related to the first major beekeeping programme that was launched in 1998. Several hundred people had gathered , and while the shor-sharaba was on, a worried government flunkey told that the chief guest, the Director of Agriculture, an IAS officer (a very senior bureaucrat in the Rajasthan government now) had been stung in the ear by a bee and he was livid.

Thinking on his feet, Singh ran up to the bureaucrat and said, “Sir, don’t worry, now that you’ve been stung by a bee, you’ll never get joint pain, particularly knee pain.” The man was so happy to hear this that he was ready to proffer the other ear too to for a bee sting! After a while, when the pain abated, with typical IAS hubris, the man said: “That must have been a hell of an intelligent bee… among several hundred people, it could identify the most important man!”

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/...cle3969430.ece

[Krishnamoorthy K]

Thiruvananthapuram, Oct. 2:

Answer to rural development lies in urban planning, according to Atanu Dey, economist and a visiting faculty at the University of California, Berkeley.

The Indian economy should move away from agriculture, he said while delivering a leadership lecture on ‘India: Past, present and possible futures,’ at Asian School of Business (ASB) here.
ABSORBING LABOUR

The manufacturing sector should be enhanced to absorb the labour released from the agricultural sector, he said.

Urbanisation is the way for the country, and it has to be matched by development of rural people and investment in education, transportation and energy sectors.

Explaining his rationale, De said: “Cities are engines of growth because they manufacture wealth. Urbanisation and economic growth are bi-directionally bound.”

Education should be liberalised and made free from government control to facilitate greater investment in the sector.

He also called for a sound energy policy with focus on research and development in solar power. “We should emerge as a solar power superpower.”

OF OWN PAST

Dey said that reasons for India’s ‘impoverishment’ can be found from its own past.

The systems designed by the British for their benefit were transferred lock, stock and barrel to those who took control after 1947.

All extractive and exploitative rules and regulations were left untouched, he said and cited the examples of Indian Police Act that dates back to 1861 and the Indian Telegraph Act.

The real tragedy is that the country did not become really free even after Independence.

Dwelling in detail on economic freedom, he said Google, Facebook, Amazon and Hewlett Packard were born in the US because the country offered economic freedom.
RE-DEVELOPING NATION

S. Rajeev, director, ASB, pointed out that until around 1750, India was consistently ranked among the richest countries of the world.

The country declined during the years of colonialism and is now re-emerging. India is not a developing nation, but rather a redeveloping one,” he said.

Development does not happen by itself nor does prosperity occur automatically. It requires proper policies, vision and leadership, he added.

Malini Nair, economics faculty, ASB, proposed a vote of thanks.

vinson.kurian@thehindu.co.in

TH

New ‘census’ towns showcase new India
New paths to urbanization, from farms to factories
Rurban India: The new consumer frontier
Zero amenities, yet census towns hit the property jackpot
Led by census towns, migration mixes up urbanization
India’s census towns face a governance deficit

[Krishnamoorthy K]

P. V. INDIRESAN

With the provision of urban amenities in rural areas, mega cities, with all the attendant risks arising out of high population density, will cease to be necessary.

November 2, 2012:
The recent cyclone near Chennai and the more horrendous one near New York should give our town planners cause to think. If these storms had moved a little away and hit the cities directly, the damage would have been unimaginable. Yet, recent thinking is to have more and more high-rise apartments and crowd more people into our cities.

As I have written in several of my columns, ours is not an overcrowded country. Countries such as Mauritius and the Netherlands, which have higher population densities than in India, are not building mega-mega cities. Virtually, all our political scandals have been centred on land, but only near cities. Our planners have forgotten that we have vast tracts of uncultivable land where urban development can take place.

MITIGATING MIGRATION

PURA, or Providing Urban amenities in Rural Areas, is a scheme that aims to make rural areas attractive places to reside for all, particularly the middle-class, by offering access to virtually all the services that cities provide. However, PURA confines itself to providing secondary-level services only — the kind large towns and small cities offer. PURA has no ambition to provide tertiary-level services such as universities, speciality hospitals, wholesale markets, railway junctions, airports and the like. With such services as the base, PURA is expected to attract industry too and generate a virtual cycle that will produce and sustain jobs of the type that rural youth seek. That way, rural-urban migration is expected to be mitigated. Specifically, PURA is designed to offer the following secondary-level services that are normally expected in cities, but rarely, if ever, found in villages.

Municipal Services: Water, energy, sanitation

Social Services: Education and training for employment, health services

Transport Services: Roads and public transport

Other services: Housing plus communications, commercial services, governance services

TRANSPORT CONNECTIVITY

Cities have large markets; they are also compact enough for any citizen to access services either by walk or public transport. Villages are too small for that. Hence, the first step that PURA has to take to simulate a city, is to link sufficient number of villagers in such a way that they have about the same population size as a small city or at least a large town. In other words, linking roads and (affordable) public transport is priority for any PURA.

In addition, the quality of the roads and of the public transport should be upgraded to urban standards — that is, minimum two-lane roads and transport every ten minutes or so during working time. Transport connectivity is truly the primary task of rural development, which leads to the ultimate consequence of job creation. It is not an accident that most cities of the world are along rivers, railways and road corridors.

In the US, universities such as Stanford and Michigan run public bus services absolutely free for all, but only on routes of interest to their employees and students. Should not PURA also do the same? Then, it appears best for the state to remove all taxes on public transport, including those on the vehicles that offer free services.

That will encourage the PURA authority to pay for the other costs — the same way Michigan or Stanford Universities do — on the specific routes that their commercial and social services need. If all those services are concentrated in a single circle, linking major villages/services, the bus service need not be more than 30-40 km long.

PURA has not been as successful as it was hoped to be. The problem is that PURA has been taken up as an exclusive project of the Rural Development Ministry.

Unfortunately, the Ministry has authority only over rural roads, housing, water and sanitation. Even on these, the funding cannot be up to urban standards, nor can it be subsidised for the non-poor. It is understood that even sanitation has been taken away from that Ministry.

Therefore, the support the Ministry can give is very limited; it certainly cannot offer any help in the crucial bus services. Hence, for any PURA to become successful:

PURA authority or private enterprise should treat running bus services (preferably free, the way American universities do) over a basic 30-40 km length, as part of its operational expense.

The state should offer all possible tax rebates for the bus service.

Above all, the state should be prepared to build at least one road that meets urban standards.

QUALITY SCHOOLS, HOSPITALS

Although not as essential as a free bus service, PURA should also organise quality schools and hospitals. With bus services in place, children and patients can travel.

However, the quality of the schools and hospitals should be good and be able to offer secondary care of high quality. It is estimated that schools and hospitals of this quality will cost Rs 5-Rs 10 crore each.

Once these steps are taken, industries should find PURA a cheaper place to locate themselves, and in such numbers to create a virtuous cycle in employment generation.

Industries are necessary because agriculture cannot sustain the existing population with modern services; and only industries can offer the exports needed to match the imports modern services require.

Free bus service is the crucial issue. That is likely to cost a few crores of rupees each year. The PURA authority may be able to run it, with some help from the Government.

However, a good road some 30-40 km long will cost ten times more. Build the road, run bus services free and then PURA can make high-rise apartments and mega cities unnecessary.

Can anyone persuade the State governments to do so?

(This is 341st in the Vision 2020 series. The previous article appeared on October 20)

(The author is a former Director, IIT, Madras. Responses to indiresan@gmail.com and blfeedback@thehindu.co.in)

TH

[Krishnamoorthy K]

Last Updated: Friday, January 04, 2013, 16:11

New Delhi: Realising their "immense potential", Government is planning to use rural development schemes like MGNREGA as a vehicle to promote green agenda.

According to strategies suggested in a report released today by the Rural Development Ministry for inclusive rural development, the Ministry should have a dedicated green cell to enable it to guide environmental friendly objectives through various schemes in villages and allow institutions to adopt "creative and innovative approaches" to meet them.

The report "Greening Rural Development in India", prepared with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), assumes significance in the light of the 12th Five Year Plan, which has as its objective, "faster, more inclusive and sustainable growth".

It was released jointly by Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Ahluwalia, Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh and Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan at a press conference here.

Ramesh said with an annual budget of around Rs 75,000 crore, the Rural Development Ministry's Schemes have an immense potential to contribute to the goal of sustainable poverty reduction and efficient use of natural resources.

The report recommends that the Ministry identify a set of green outcomes and prepare green guidelines that include a set of non-negotiation principles.

The findings also call for "greater flexibility" so that people and institutions adopt "creative and innovative approaches" to achieving green outcomes.

A support organisation formed through designated civil society can facilitate implementation of green guidelines.

"A dedicated Green Cell would enable the Ministry to guide the greening agenda and implementation of guidelines," the report said also recommending "an annual Green Report by the Ministry to summarise major green achievements and outcomes during the year."

Ramesh said that each of the Ministry's schemes needs to incorporate a set of green objectives in its implementation and make delivery of green results a part of policy and guidelines.

Lise Grande, United Nations Resident Coordinator for India, also emphasised the importance of greening in the context of building the capacity of rural populations.

PTI

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