Livelihoods Impact of Farm Pond Renovation Project in Pudurnadu 22

Community in ActionSignature campaign to prohibit real estate in tank ayacut lands

20

LivelihoodsDemonstration of NREGA in

selected village Panchayats

18

MattersDevelopment December 2008

Housing the Urban Poor

Feature

MattersDevelopment Vol. II Issue 12 December 2008

Centre for Development CommunicationDHAN Foundation18, Pillaiyar Koil Street, S.S. Colony

Madurai - 625 016. Tamil Nadu, INDIA

Tel.: +91-452-4353983, 2610794, 2610805

Email: dhanfoundation_tn@airtelmail.in

Website: http://www.dhan.org

From the Editors’ Desk

Contents

Slum dwellers lives are subject to threats because of insecurity of tenure and have become the victim of undesirable elements. Their vulnerability gets aggravated when disaster likes floods or epidemic diseases arise. The need for them is a place for legitimate stay without hassles for their livelihood.

Dear Readers!

Thanks for your consistent support for the Development Matters by

providing articles from various programmes. The December issue

speaks about how JnNURM project could solve the housing problem

of urban slums in Madurai. Our senior colleagues A. Gurunathan and

N.Venkatesan have discussed about Multiple Water Conflicts and

their Magnitude in Management of Irrigation Tanks in India.

Janakiraman writes about DHAN model of demonstration of NREGA

in selected village Panchayats. Jaganathan. K.P. gives a note on the

signature campaign took place in Thiruvangau to prohibit real estate

in tank ayacut lands. Satyanand shares the impact of farm pond in

Pudurnadu, a tribal rainfed location of Vellore. N. Venkatesan shares

about the Case of Pirandodi cascade and Vellinipatti village at

Kottampatti block.

We look forward to your continued support to make Development

Matters a successful magazine in terms of content, reach and impact,

for which your comments, critiques and contributions are very

important for us.

Happy reading!

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2. 10

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4. 20

5. 22

6.

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8. 29

Housing the Urban Poor

Water Conflicts and their Management

Demonstration of NREGA in selected village Panchayats:

DHAN’s model

Signature campaign to prohibit real estate in tank ayacut lands

Impact of Farm Pond Renovation Project in Pudurnadu

Pirandodi cascade and Vellinipatti village at

Kottampatti block

Can we make a change? - Trying to build a

Knowledge Society

Suham hospital

1

Feature

* Madurai Urban Region, Kalanjiam Foundation, Madurai, Tamil Nadu.

Housing the Urban Poor

Madurai Urban Region

1. Background: Increasingurbanization in India has putimmense pressure on existing civicamenities, leading to the creation ofinformal settlements and slums.Slum dwellers live in inadequateconditions that are inimical to health,hygiene and education. India’shousing shortage is estimated to beas high as 40 million units anddemand from the urban poorsegment constitutes a largeproportion of this shortage. Otherstudies indicate that more than 200million people are living in acutelypoor housing conditions or on thestreets. The housing and urbanpoverty alleviation ministry’s datashows that by 2012, the urbanhousing requirement will be morethan 25 million units, 97per cent forthe poor.

Many rural households takerefuge in the existing slums oroccupy low lying areas for theirlivelihoods in their pursuit oflivelihoods in urban areas. Today, theessential services provided by thedwellers of urban slums havebecome the necessity for urbanities.Slum dwellers lives are subject tothreats because of insecurity oftenure and have become the victimof undesirable elements. Theirvulnerability gets aggravated whendisaster likes floods or epidemicdiseases arise. The need for them isa place for legitimate stay withouthassles for their livelihood.

DHAN Foundation with itsthematic intervention has reached

more than 6.0 lakh members acrossIndia. It has promoted peopleinstitutions through its thematicprogrammes namely KalanjiamFoundation, Vayalagam Foundation,Information technology, RainfedFarming and PanchayatProgramme. It has influencednational, state and regional policiesof the country with its grassrootsexperiences and has created a nichein the field of development sectorthrough its best practices. It hasprovided models to the sectorbecause of work in rural, urban andtribal contexts. In the urban contexts,it is spearheading the microfinanceprogramme, civic initiatives in thefield of housing, health and educationthrough its collaboration withmainstream institutions. DHANFoundation with its experience in theurban context is the advisor in theJawaharlal Nehru National UrbanRenewal Mission for 63 missioncities across India.

2. Status of BSUP in Madurai Mission

City

The Jawaharlal Nehru NationalUrban Renewal Mission (JnNURM)supports 63 cities (7 mega cities, 28metro cities and 28 capital cities andtowns of historical religiousimportance) across the country interms of perspective plans called CityDevelopment Plans (CDPs) forspecifying infrastructure gapsrelating to water, sanitation,sewerage, drainage and roads on theone hand and deficiencies in housing

and basic services on the other hand.The Basic Services for the UrbanPoor (BSUP) seeks to provide agarland of 7 entitlements/services –security of tenure, affordablehousing, water, sanitation, health,education and social security – in lowincome settlements in the 63 missioncities.

The temple town of Madurai,situated on the bank of river Vaigaiand 500 km southwest of Chennai,is the third largest city in Tamil Naduand the district headquarters ofMadurai District. The CityDevelopment Plan (CDP) forMadurai Corporation has beenapproved by Govt of India, underJawaharlal Nehru National UrbanRenewal Mission (JnNURM). Anamount of Rs.4276 lakh has beensanctioned for slum up gradationand Rs.48,205 lakh for slum housingimprovement (under resettlementprogramme) by the Ministry.

At present works are going onat the slums listed in the phases Iand II. Phase I has covered totallytwo zones, namely south and east.Phase II has covered totally fourzones namely north, east, west andsouth. The following inferenceswere drawn from the above tablenamely:

a. Only 15 per cent of theproposed houses are givenwork order.

b. Of the working orders given9per cent houses werecompleted.

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c. Against the work order issued47per cent of the householdshave not started the work.

d. About 43 per cent of thehouseholds proposed are in

objectionable areas, due to lackof proper document, rentedhouseholds and lack ofresources for own contribution.

e. 10 per cent is spent or shownas expenditure.

f. 42 per cent of the householdswho have started constructionwere granted loan at differentialinterest rates.

The above analysis highlights theneed for coming out with innovativestrategies to accelerate the pace ofimplementation. The progress underBSUP warrants to accelerate theimmediate action pace ofimplementation to achieve the midterm targets set by the state andcentral government.

3. Status of Urban Poor in Madurai:

There are 208 slums in theMadurai. These slums are classifiedinto patta, pormabkku andobjectionable areas by thecorporation administration. Many ofthe slums are in low lying area.Efforts by Tamilnadu SlumClearance Board and Corporationadministration through theirprogramme have not addressed theurban poor problems of not havinglegitimate tenure of stay. During theflood period in 2005 and 2006,dilapidated houses were worstaffected and their daily sustenancehas become questionable. Urbanpoor livelihoods and their lives havebecome vulnerable due toexploitative credit rates and poorquality of life had made their lifemore miserable. The socio economicsurvey carried out in 52 slumsreveals the following status:

High proportion of slum dwellers68 per cent are in rented house.29per cent of slum dwellers are intheir own houses. While merely 3per cent are having lease ownership.

S.No. Particulars No. of

Households

1 Total number of new houses proposed 22,766

2 Number of work order issued cases 3,522

3 Stages of cases of which work is issued

a) Earth work 275

b) Foundation 407

c) Lintel level 267

d) roof laid 546

e) Completed 342

f) Work not yet to started 1,685

4 Number of cases to which work order can not beissued (%)

9,717(43%)

a) Land of land record 2,436

b) Odai Porambokku 117

c) No valid document 5,576

d) Financial reasons 1,639

e ) Others 49

5 Amount received so far (Rupees in lakhs) 5,959

6 Expenditure (Rupees in lakhs) 603

7 Number of cases loan tie up arranged through bank

a) Total number of applications submitted 1,378

b) Total number of cases loans sanctioned but not disbursed 783

c) Total number of cases loan disbursed 581

d) Total number of cases rejected 14

Fig 1 : Status of ownership in III phase of BSUP

Source: Madurai Corporation as on 30.06.08

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Table 3: Status of Potential

Households in III phase of BSUP

• 59 per cent slum dwellers (boththe house owners and tenants)are not showing interest in newconstruction as well asresettlement. Because thehouse owner resides out of theslum in a comfortable houseand doesn’t want to invest inthe slum house.

• The house owner can not gethigher rent from the tenant forthe newly constructed house.

• A person is having more thanone house in more than oneslum.

• The households residing inrented or leased houses havenew confusion that whether thehouse owner will extend therental time or leasing time even

after the construction of newhouse.

• The tenant is afraid of the rentincrement after reconstruction.

• Houses which are RCC has acomponent of tiled / thatch infront of the house and theydemand to be treated as thatchor tiled and strive to qualify asa beneficiary of the project.

• Since there is no ceiling on thearea to be constructed, there isa possibility of beneficiariesincurring more expenditureresulting in huge debts and attimes land them in trouble fordisposing their assets to settletheir debts in a long run.

• The households residing inPorambokku areas,objectionable areas either therented or leased houses feelinsecure about whether theywill be allotted with a new

Source: Socio Economic Survey

ParticularsNon

ObjectionableSlums

ObjectionableSlums Total

OWN HOUSE

PATTA

TILE 1,185 408 1,593

THATCH 127 14 141

TOTAL 1312 422 1734

PORAMBOKKUTILE 492 472 964

THATCH 48 53 101

TOTAL 540 525 1065

NO IDENTITYTILE 431 216 647

THATCH 58 20 78

TOTAL 489 236 725

RENT/ LEASE HOUSE

PATTATILE 2768 842 3610

THATCH 134 32 167

TOTAL 2902 874 3777

PORAMBOKKUTILE 593 475 873

THATCH 61 117 166

TOTAL 654 592 1039

NO IDENTITYTILE 2106 1582 3690

THATCH 144 120 265

TOTAL 2250 1702 3955

GRAND TOTAL 8,147 4,351 12,498

Table 2: Status of houses in Phase III

Sl. No. Types of Houses No. of Households Percentage

1 RCC House 5,453 26

2 Tiled House 9,736 47

3 Thatched House 4,188 20

4 Flat System 1,533 7

TOTAL 20,910 100

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house in the same area or theywill be settled in new areashaving accessibility to theirlivelihoods.

• The people with ‘No identity’also be verified with the recordsthat whether they are eligible toissue Patta or qualify forresettlement.

• Out of 68.5 per cent tenantsonly 29 per cent are willing tochange the residence.

4. Way forward

4.1. Land Tenure:People in slums reside in non

objectionable areas and objectionableareas. People who reside in nonobjectionable areas have patta ( titleof ownership)qualifying for thebeneficiary under the project andpeople who live in porambokku innon objectionable area / notifiedslums have tax receipts which givethem also privilege to negotiate withthe state administration to get pattas.Whereas people who are living inobjectionable areas have no pattasbut have tax receipts for theiroccupation of land which qualifiesthem for resettlement. There areslums which are adopted byTamilnadu Slum Clearance Boardand the beneficiaries are given Leasecum Sale agreement. The followingfeatures emerge on studying thecharacterization of land tenure in theslum areas namely the• Number of houses in the slum

is decided by number of familiesresiding in the slum and not bylandholding / patta available withthe individuals

• On mutual understanding, landis shared by the legal heirswithout any registration and itbecomes difficult to claim thebenefit under the programme.

• Household plinth area rangesfrom 100 sq.ft to2000 sq.ftresulting in huge costs forconstruction of large sizedhouses and put the householderin debt under higher interestrate.

• 50per cent of the dwellers in theslum who are living in rentdon’t know their destination.

• On the light of above issues, thefollowing recommendations aremade to hasten the process ofBSUP implementation.

• Eligibility norms for thepotential households and ceilingfor the plinth area to be decidedby the corporation for ensuringthe benefits go to the urbanpoor.

• Booklet namely “FrequentlyAsked Questions” in responseto the questions raised by theclients can be brought out inlocal language to give clarity tothe members living in slums.

• Grievance cell under each zonecan be opened to give theguideline value and the processof land transfer to nextgeneration through proper legaldocuments can be facilitated.

• Purchase of land / site accessto livelihood can be madeavailable for the rentedhouseholds by the corporationat the nominal price.

• Land pooling and sharingarrangements can beencouraged in order to facilitateland development andimprovement of basic amenitiesin slums.

• Release of TransferableDevelopment Rights can becarefully considered foraccelerating private investment

ingiving provision of shelter tothe poor similar to Dharavimodel of improvement.Community BasedOrganizations (CBOs), Non-Governmental Organizations(NGOs) and Self-Help Groups(SHGs) can also be involved inpartnership with the PrivateSector.

• Beneficiary-led housingdevelopment should beencouraged. Suitablepercentage of land developed bythe Public Sector can beprovided at institutional rates toorganizations like CooperativeGroup Housing Societies,which provide housing to theirmembers on a no-profit no-lossbasis.

• Zoning and land use planningthat encourages low-incomehousing, and mixed-incomeneighborhoods need to bedesigned with integrateddelivery of services—watersupply and sanitation, healthcare, education and access tolivelihood—and not just housingin isolation

4.2. Technical Support

Potential dwellers in the slum goby their own wisdom forconstruction and get cheated by thecontractor. The contractors on thename of quality go for needlessmaterials like steel rods forconstruction resulting houses needonly roofing but the norms of thecorporation do not permit them tohave only roof. Members need todemolish their own building to qualifyunder the scheme. Every household/ contractor individually purchasesthe material resulting in huge costs.To address the issues listed above

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the following recommendations aremade.

• There is a need for policychange for considering the up-gradation which will acceleratethe pace of implementation.

• Design freeze should be doneby the qualified engineers toreduce the costs.

• Use of low cost technologyrecommended by Laurie Bakerused in Kattada maiyam need tobe explored for reduction incosts. Model houses using costeffective materials and alternatetechnologies can beconstructed at district, state andat central level.

• Showing video films onconstruction of houses withalternate technologies can bearranged for the prospectivebeneficiaries and on importantaspects of the scheme includingDo’s and Don’ts can also bearranged. This would go a longway in helping the potentialbeneficiaries to the scheme.

• Households who reside incontiguous surrounding cancome together for purchase ofmaterials to reduce the costs.

• Encourage beneficiaries to formcooperative housing societiesfor pooling of resources.

• Ensuring the kitchen and latrineconstructed were with properventilation. This needs to beensured by the technical team.

• Corporations can preparedetailed city maps on the basisof the GIS mapping throughsatellite data, aerial survey andground verification.

4.3. Financial Support

The inability to assess credit risk:uncertain cash flows lower profitmargins due to smaller transactionsizes, fixed costs and lack of clarityon recoveries, especially in thecontext of uncertainty over landownership. As per the programme,the support for the construction inMadurai is Rs. 64,400 and the bankloan is Rs. 20,000 (why ceiling onland loan?) at 4 per cent per annumis given to the potential beneficiary.It is assumed that 70per cent is givenby the corporation under theprogramme and the remaining 30percent is to be contributed by thebeneficiary through the bank loan.In reality, the cost of constructing270 sq. ft ranges from 2.0 to 2.5lakhs which enhances the burdenon the urban poor in the name ofhousing. Moreover, constructionwork is stopped due to thereluctance of bankers in not openingthe bank account / delay in gettingthe payment from the corporationdue to unavoidable reasons.Potential beneficiaries are not clearabout the budget / cost to be incurredfor the construction. They considerthe investment on housing as onetime affair and resort to loans athigher interest rates from moneylenders. On the light of the aboveissues the followingrecommendations are suggested forconsideration,

• Similar to design freeze,budget is also to be freezedthrough proper financialcounselling to avoid themembers getting in to the trapof money lenders.

• Bridge fund should befacilitated by the corporation inanticipation of the support by

the bankers to hasten theconstruction considering theinflation of costs of buildingmaterials. Amount earned asinterest on BSUP funds in thebanks can be used for thispurpose by the corporation atleast to the tune of assured bankloan.

• The draft National Housing andHabitat Policy, 2006 laysemphasis on social harmony andincreasing institutional financefor housing for the poor and itsaccessibility at affordable rates.A new Centrally SponsoredScheme to provide an interestsubsidy of 5% per annum for aperiod of five years tocommercial lenders for lendingto Economic Weaker Sectionand Low Income Groupsegment of the urban areas haveaccordingly being proposed tobe launched beginning 2007-08.Interest Subsidy is expected toleverage market funds to flowinto housing for poor.

• The National Housing Board(NHB) and Housing & UrbanDevelopment Corporation Ltd.(HUDCO) would be nodalagencies for disbursement ofsubsidies.

• Facilitate NGO’s / Peopleorganizations who are runningself help groups to provide loanagainst housing based on creditworthiness of the household.Promote Slum DevelopmentAssociation for leveraging theresources from the mainstreaminstitutions.

• Percentage of land should beearmarked in every public /private housing project;appropriate special incentivescan be developed by UrbanLocal Bodies for urban poor.

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• Similar to Nabard, NationalHousing Bank (NHB) can act asa refinance institution andsetting up of National ShelterFund at the ministry level toprovide subsidy support interms of interest concession.

4.4. Exclusive products ataffordable rates:

Every year the demand for urbanhousing is on increasing trend andthe need for evolving productssuiting the poor communities is thechallenge of the federations. Thekey features of housing micro loansis the size ( 2-4 times larger thanworking capital loans), term (morethan 3 years), market interest rate,liability (individual), collateral(unsecured), urban poor and otherservices ( land acquisition, landregistration and construction.Despite organizing the unorganizedcommunities, the leverage ofresources with the mainstreaminstitution at market rates of creditbecomes more costly to members.This demands to look forward forthe institutions which values thesweat of poor communities and givescredit to them at cheaper rates. Theproducts are namely:

a. Up gradation of houses: Poorhouseholds tend to buildgradually and incrementally,often building only one room ata time. This process of‘progressive housing’ or‘incremental housing’, as it isreferred to in literature, isthought to be compatible withmicrofinance which comprisessmall loans of a short tenure.Upgradation of houses includesthe cement flooring, fencing,

roofing, construction of toiletswhich enhances the quality oflife. The range of portfoliorequired to address the needsis from Rs.15000 to 20000 at12 per cent rate of interest tothe group. It comes to member@ 15 per cent rate of interest.Considering the need it wouldbe desirable to have a productcovering fully the need or partlyat concessional rates of interestwhich would reduce theirburden significantly. The loancan be released in stages whichwill enable them to get thewhole credit at concessionalrates.

b. Construction of Houses:House construction isundertaken for those who arehaving legitimate space usingappropriate technology. Twoproducts are made availableunder this product. Financingthe member to construct housesor construct houses using theinstitutional resources and givethe house to the end user at costprices similar to housingpolicies pursued by Habitat forHumanity. The range ofportfolio ranges for theconstruction is Rs. 50,000 toRs. 75,000. With the saving ofmembers, resources can beleveraged from the corporationunder the Basic Services toUrban Poor. Credit at affordablerates would reduce the burdenof interest.

c. Rental product: Consideringthe migration and seasonality ofurban households, land can besought from corporation and

build adequate stock of housingand create a market in rentedhousing for the poor. Thischecks the fraudulent practicessuch as sales and sub leases.As an incentive, the house canbe transferred after a period ofresponsible habitation withcertain conditions. Thearrangement will legalize thereality of sales and rentaltransaction of the housesallotted to the urban poor. Therent will seldom be an additionalburden on the poor, as theyalready pay monthly rent andgive the benefit of security oftenure. The range of portfoliorequired is Rs. 1,00,000 to Rs.1, 50,000 per house for 250 to300 sq. ft. Memorandum ofunderstanding can be signedamong the implementingagency, corporation and theRabo Foundation to experimentthe new model which canabsorb considerable portfolioand give security of tenure ataffordable rates to the world atlarge. This is similar to partnerfamilies product executed underRabo Foundation.

d. Leasing Product: House leaseproduct is where leasingagreement is between the tenantand house owner for specifiedperiod. After the lease periodover the house owner will givethe amount to concern partywith out interest. The range ofportfolio required is Rs. 20,000to Rs. 30,000. The memberdoes not have the experience ofprincipal and interest burden asthey see it as saving in their ownperspective as they get back at

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the end of lease period i.e.ranging from 3 to 5 years. Anyconcession given to the productwill enhance their saving in thegroup and increase stake andleverage better resources frommainstream institution as theirinstitutional contribution.

4.5. Programme management

Effective management of aprogramme is a prerequisite forsound implementation. There areconsiderable delays in opening thebank accounts, lack of orientationfor the potential members, delay inrelease of money and to work outalternative propositions for speedyimplementation. Bankers need to beoriented by the corporation forspeedy opening of bank accountsfor the potential members and toincrease the loan component forconstruction.

• Considering the total costincurred by the beneficiaries,banks need to come forward forthe funding the totalcontribution of the beneficiaryat 4 per cent p.a

• Steering Committee to beorganized at every zone alongwith the corporation officials,

bankers and slum developmentassociation (potential members)fortnightly to hasten the processof implementation.

• Awareness camps need to beorganized by the respectivezones for motivating thebeneficiaries and to clarify thedoubts.

• Review of the programme canbe done along with the districtadministration to break theoperational constraints in landtenure.

• Special purpose vehicleinvolving all the stakeholders forBSUP can be considered foraccelerating the pace ofimplementation.

• Municipal corporation couldenter into a joint venture withdevelopment organizations topromote housing for the poor.With the project value beingsmall in such projects ultimatelythe quality of the product couldsuffer in pursuit of highermargins if entrusted to privatecontractors. Constructionactivity has to carried out onbusiness lines to ensure thatprogramme is sustainable whilekeeping the profit to theminimum to ensure the product

is affordable.• Every state along with

corporation commissioners/stakeholders have to examinepolicy constraints in extendinghousing facilities to all urbanpoor in particular who aretenants residing in slums.Evolve appropriate strategies tobuild in to the existing policyframe work and assureaffordable housing for tenantsin slums under Basic Servicesfor Urban Poor Programme.

To conclude, it is felt that thedetailed project report should list theonly potential households afterconsidering the constraint involvedin the implementation of theprogramme and it is time to do midcourse corrections for theprogramme to ensure the real poorget entitlements. In this context,there is an immense need to framethe enabling policy for ensuring theentitlements to tenants at state levelinvolving all the stakeholders to breakthe barriers in the implementationprocess. At the ministry level, ceilingof land/plinth area, acceptance ofhouse up gradation and eligibilitynorms for BSUP programme are tobe redefined on the light of aboverealities at grassroots.

Case Study of Thiruvalluvar Nagar

URBAN POOR MATTERS?

Thiruvalluvar Nagar has 85 houses constructed under Slum Clearance Board in Madurai. Of the 85, twosites are meant for temple and Mandram which are referred as common properties. There is a Cement roadstretching the whole Thiruvalluvar Nagar. 71 septic tanks and individual taps connection for 32 numbers exist.Slum clearance Board demands the allottee should not sell the title deed. But in practice, the deed is sold to othersfor which sale deed is given on the original allottee name by the slum clearance board to the present ownerviolating the norms.

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Table 1. Status of Ownership of House sites

Of the 85 sites allotted, 67 households are eligible for giving sale deed,and the rest 16 are not eligible but of which ten are given sale deeds in theoriginal allottee name. Nature of ownership gives details of the people whoare living in slums and outside of slums. This shows the people who areresiding as per allotment, new allottees on purchase from original allotteeand leaving a part of portion as rent. These dwellers are referred as “inslums” and another category is out slums where the original allottee hasgiven the place at rent, new allottee giving in rent / lease.

Table 2: Status of Inhabitants site wise.

BSUP demands allocation of houses as per the nature of roofing forwhich the sale deeds are given. The below given data shows the sites, saledeed given and households.

Table 3. Status of roofing site wise, sale deed wise and Household wise

S. No. Particulars Numbers Sale deedissued

1 Legal Ownership 53 4

2 Rented 14 1

3 Illegal 16 10

4 Common Properties 2 0

Total 85 15

S.No. Nature ofInhabitants Particulars Numbers

1 In slums Own / Own - rent/ sales -own 62

2 Out slums Rent / sales -rent/ sales - lease 21

3 Common Common properties 2

Total 83

Sl. No. Particulars Sites Sale deed Households

1 RCC 19 5 20

2 Tiled 56 10 92

3 Thatched 3 0 3

4 Open space 5 0 5

5 Common Properties 2 0 0

Total 85 15 120

The above table gives us theinference that the 59 houses are tobe made into concrete. Anotherdistinguishing feature is out of 83households, 120 households arestaying, which means in one sitemore than one household are staying.Slum clearance board has allotted 80sites as per map but in record about85 sites is listed. Criteria forallocation are not clear as differentallotments are given, ranging from287 sq.ft to 2184.40 sq.ft.Moreover, the allotment for morethan two sites (3 numbers) is givento the same persons.

Table 4 : Number of sites area wise

This table shows that theallotment of more than 800 sq.ft.are given to the better lot than thepoor who occupy considerable lessnumber of sites. The allotment ismade based on the occupation at thetime of raising the proposal withoutconsidering the equity or theireconomic position.

Points for Reflection:

1. Dispensing the penal interestimposed on the slum dwellers

S. No. Area (sq.ft) No.

1 200 - 400 5

2 400- 600 15

3 600 - 800 12

4 800- 1000 15

5 1000-1200 7

6 1200-1400 9

7 1400-1600 7

8 >1600 9

9 Area yet to beidentified 6

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by the Slum DevelopmentBoard. E.g .in the case ofThiruvalluvar nagar, for thebeneficiary Sri Raman thefollowing dues are listed.Against the loan of Rs.4,150(Rs.1,000 grant) given forchanging the roof, thehousehold has paid Rs.7,828including the interest and penalinterest and is still has anoverdue of Rs.5,802 and for thesame beneficiary towards theplot where the rate fixed wasonly Rs. 6,826 for his holding90 sq.mt and now he has beenpaid Rs.11,278. He has paidRs.5,749 and still has anoverdue of Rs.17,695. Thepenal interest component andthe anticipation of getting freepattas are the two major reasonsfor delay in getting the saledeed.

2. Procedure for ratifying the salesmade by the original allottee.

3. Ensuring equity by not allottingmore than one house for thedwellers as more than two sitesare issued to three persons andalso on area.

4. Justice need to be done forthose who are living in rent asthey occupy / live in thatchedhouse with less floor space.

5. Getting the details of overdueamount for the individual housesites and facilitate mechanismsfor mobilizing the resources.

6. Policy of the corporation ofgiving more than one householdif there is sufficient space in thesite as the present area rangesfrom 287 sq.ft to 2184.40 sq.ft.and the households are more innumber. Whether we will go byhousehold wise/site wiseallocation made by the slumclearance board.

7. Clarification of the sale deedissued by the slum clearanceboard not as per allotmentscheduled.

8. TNSCB which is responsiblefor allotment and issue of saledeed will not issue sale deedunless all the dues are settledby the allottees.

9. What is the stand of theMunicipal Corporation withregards to allottees who havedues to be paid to TNSCB?

10. The status of those who boughtthe land from the original allotteeis to be decided.

11. What is the action to be takenby Municipal Corporation toprovide housing to those whoare tenants?

12. Is it possible to decide a cut ofdate for tenants to regularize thestay or provide accommodationin the slum settlement or in arelocation area?

13. Whether a fresh survey isrequired for assessing the BPLfamilies and to ensure that onlythe subsidy is targeted only thereal poor and the needy?

Karaikudi and the neighboringtowns hold excellent examples ofChettinadu architecture. The peopleof Chettinadu were traders andfinanciers who valued high living andmaintained old traditions. They builtall-embracing houses, which todaystand testimony to their taste andlove for beautiful things. Theybrought back Burmese teak andEuropean tiles for their mansions, aswell as the inspiration fromceremonial and palace architecture.They incorporated the wealth ofwood sculpting and craftsmanshipfrom local craftsmen in their homes,which now stands with pride, evenwhen it has not been properly cared.The minute carvings on the doors;carvings of idols on a wooden

blocks, placed above the doors, namedas SURYA PALLAKAI, is the firstgreeting to any visitor, who enters into any Chettinad house. The artisticvalue of these products has nomeasure, for it is a treasure.

The Endogenous tourism modelwould revive those art forms; wherethe master craftsmen are very few andthe migration of the younger artisansis high. Wood carving activity hasbecome one such art form, whichdemands the revival. The art form ispracticed only by a hundred of artisanand the artisans, whose talents rangingto those of the yester years are verylittle.

DHAN Foundation along with thesupport of UNDP and GOI in theEndogenous Tourism Project at

Karaikudi is in the field for thepromotion of art forms. DHANFoundation would work at the grassroots level in the promotion of thewood carving activity, throughappropriate capacity buildingprogramme, assisting in the qualitycontrol and in the provision of marketlinkages. DHAN Foundation wouldconduct the workshops for craftcommunities with the focus of craftrevival, design and marketing of theproducts in mind. Our rural tourismwould be a community managedmodel, strengthening the sustainablelivelihood of the local communitiesas well as developing the localheritage and culture of Chettinad;converting the slogan of Endogenoustourism project –Revival of arts;survival of artisans, in to action

Wood carvings

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Introduction

Irrigation tank is a common poolresource, a multiple collective assetand supporting village economy.Tanks provide protective irrigationin low rainfall areas. Tank irrigationis one of the important and oldestsources of irrigation in India. Thereare 500 000 tanks in India. Southernpart of India is noted for the intensityof tanks. There are about 127, 000tanks in Southern region consistingof Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka andTamil Nadu These water harvestingstructures were indigenouslydesigned and constructed by nativerulers and chieftains and managedby local communities over the pastseveral centuries before British rule.Many tanks in India wereconstructed for altruistic purposesof charity. Mostly they have evolvedinto valuable systems that supportpeople’s livelihoods in multiple ways.In addition to storing water forirrigation, tanks provide servicessuch as recharge of groundwaterused by adjacent communities,fertile silt that provide nutrients forhigher crop production in dry lands,water and space for aquaculture andlivestock and sand and soil for useby small industries.

As one of the oldest man-madeecosystems, the tank systemconsists of water bodies andassociated tank structures, feederchannels, wells, wetlands, semi dry

Water matters

* A. Gurunathan, Chief Executive, Vayalagam (Tank) Foundation, Madurai N. Venkatesan, Programme Leader, Vayalagam (Tank) Foundation, Madurai

Water Conflicts and their Management

(Necessity to rebuild Social Capital for Water Resources with Empowerment Approach)

A.Gurunathan and N.Venkatesan*

tank command lands, soils andplants, animals and birds, aquaticplants and fishes. As an agriculturesystem it is distinct, which providesequitable water distribution to smalland marginal farmers to cultivate atleast one successful crop inmonsoon season. As an engineeringsystem, tank is a simple earthernbunded reservoir with simplehydrologic principles and design. Asa management system it is capableof becoming administratively andfinancially self reliant structure. Asa social system, the tank serves andbenefits various section of the villagecommunity such as farmers,artisans, animal rearers and villagewomen. As a spiritual system, it hascultural integration. In the moderndevelopment era, the policy makersvisualises the tanks as ‘insignificant’or ’minor’ establishments, except bythe disadvantaged villagers in ruralareas. For them tanks is the lifesupporting system available at theirdoorsteps providing range of uses.

Water Conflicts in Tank Complex -

Characteristics and Consequences:

Water conflicts in tank complexesare having few commoncharacteristics from the fieldexperiences of DHAN Foundation’sVayalagam Tankfed Agricultureprogramme. They were categorisedas:• Conflicts arising out of

emotional issues

• Conflicts arising over theownership, control and use oftank resources.

• Conflicts remain latent for longperiod of time in case if the‘differently vested interest’parties have no chance to haveconfrontation. (For e.g. nogramasabha meetings or villagemeeting convened)

• Conflicts become intense andvery frequent during waterscarce period in the tankcomplex.

The attitude of the communityand the cohesiveness as well asbondage between communityrelations lead to the above mentionedwater conflicts. But, there are otherset of water conflicts which occurmainly due to careless handling ofissues and/or intruding in the tankmanagement aspects in‘unauthorised’ manner by the mainstakeholders namely the Stategovernment; i.e. withoutconsultation or ignoring the plea ofthe users.

The consequences of conflictshave a bearing on water relatedinstitutions and have potential totrigger contention and dispute, thusbecoming an instrument ofpolarisation and exclusion.

• Unresolved conflicts lead togreater misunderstanding,differences of opinion and

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arguments, which may at timeslead to manhandling amongpeople. Effects are damage totank structures, wastage ofmoney in civil suits etc. At theend it leads to obliteration ofsocio economic livelihoodsources of the peopledepending on tank systems.

• Conflicts around commonresources like tanks and pondsseverely affect the poor becauseof its nature among theirlivelihood survival as drinkingwater sources in the waterscarce or unpotable groundwater regions viz. coastal zones.

• Conflicts at times could becomean instrument of equitable andsocial harmony among thosewho involved either directly orindirectly on the water formeeting their livelihoods.

Irrigation Tanks and types of

Conflicts:

There exist different stages ofconflicts among various categoriesof people. Tank being a commonproperty the impact of otherconflicts on tank performance issignificant. Individual problems,groupism within the caste, differenceof opinion between castes, disputesbetween villages directly affect theperformance of the tanks. Regardingwater bodies there exists followingtype of conflicts.

Between Command areafarmers: The groundwater accesshelped the farmers to plant paddy asearlier than other farmers. Duringthe end of the season, the otherfarmers require tank water for theircrop whereas the farmers who haveplanted earlier than the others do not

allow the water through their fieldin order to protect the crop which isat the harvest stage. This createsconflicts between command areafarmers. The conflicts arise mainlyfor want of water or for want ofspace to dispose water.

Between the tank commandarea farmers and the well owners:Personal interest and relationshipdecides the well water supply toother field. Any personal dispute ordifference of opinion createsconflicts between these two.

Between the tank commandarea farmers and the villagers:Usually the village common fund isutilised for tank development works.All the villagers including landlesspeople and dry land farmers haveequal rights over the village fund.While allocating village fund to thetank works, always there existdisputes between the two. Thedispute is triggered mainly by otherconflicts.

Between the tank commandarea farmers and the encroachers:Encroachment being a commonphenomenon, in this village no onecan question the encroachers.Encroachers claim equal right overthe tank water for their land. Theproblem is very high during thescarce period.

Between the encroachers andnearby land owners: Encroachmentin odai poramboke affects the otherfarmers who own land in theopposite side of the channel. Anydevelopmental work in theencroached land proportionatelyaffects the other farmers.

The conflicts/ disputes betweentanks and among the tanks in the

Thirumangalam cascade are verycommon. The damage to waterbodies is irreversible or otherwise theopportunity cost for revival is veryhigh. The damage to water bodies isprogressive but very slow. Theeffect of damage is hidden for verylong period. A village which acts asa power centre through its unity caninfluence nearby villages and canestablish rights over the resourcese.g. Urappanur.

Wherever the village havesignificant common fund traditionalinstitutions functions areundertaken. The villagers ensure theinstitutional performance by alteringthe hierarchical structure alreadyexisted in the villages. They modifythe system according to the changestaking place in and around the villagee.g. Sathangudi.

Encroachment and groundwaterexploitation will create a seriousproblem in near future. This two willaffect the tank performance and alsothe village unity. Those who haveability to influence others can getwater. This is true in all cases i.e.within tank, between tanks, amongtanks etc. The influencing factors aremoney and muscle power. Themuscle power includes village unity,caste support and political support.

The Hydrology of the Vallakulam tank

Cascade and the Conflict

The importance of working in ahydrological linked cascade of tankswill be realised more when weanalyse the available secondary dataregarding the standards, location,ayacuts and the supply channels ofthe tanks. The simple analysis of thesecondary data on the hydrology of

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the tanks supported by the additionalinformation on sociologicalparameters gives us sufficient inputsfor our action. The preliminaryanalysis of the hydrology of theVallakulam cascade of tanks inRamanathapuram district of TamilNadu suggests us the followinginferences.

Waterspread Area and the capacity

All the tanks in the cascade havesubmergence area, in the privatefields apart from the governmentporombokes. This submergence isalmost 100% or more than that ofthe government poromboke. Thefarmers in the submerged areamostly adjoining to the foreshoresof the downstream tanks areanxious during above normal years.The anxiety to send off the waterbecomes more when the number ofsurpassing days become more than10 days, when the crop is more thanthirty days old.

Conflicts in Tanks: Cases owing to

Customary Rights:

Customary Rights to tank waterand other associated usufructs havebeen exercised from timeimmemorial by farming as well asnon-farming villagers, according tothe norms evolved with theirconsensus. It was felt necessary tounderstand the customary rights andpractices indigenously developedand traditionally practiced by thecommunity, however over a periodof time other interventions havechanged them and the implicationsof such changes on the communityas well as on the resourcesthemselves. Following few casesenumerate the conflicting issuesaround tanks and pond systems.

Case 1: Custom that prevailed in

Water Scarce Area in Tank and

Drinking Water Pond

Ramanathapuram district inSouth Tamil Nadu is renowned forcustoms in the management oftanks and ponds. Being a waterscarce district in a drought proneregion, coupled with saline groundwater, the surface water bodiesremained lifelines and as it is wellunderstood by the people, the

customs are strictly adhered to andany change in this led to conflictsand communal disharmony.

Mudukulathur big Tank islocated in Mudukulathur taluk ofRamanathapuram district. The tankirrigates an ayacut area of morethan 40 ha and the farmers who livein the surrounding villages of Thoori,Ettiseri, Kadambankulam andSelvavinayagapuram own the land.Traditionally, Thoori villagers were

Name of the tank

Area ofWaterspreadat FTL in ha(Ideal water)

Area ofWatershedPoromboke

in ha.

Private landunder

submergencein ha

Max. width(fetch) of

waterspreadin meters

Bundlength inmeters

1. Theriruveli small 95.61 38.06 57.55 744 3,140

2. Puseri 124.10 64.50 59.60 1,129 4,530

3. Kadambodai 45.32 19.50 25.82 450 2,230

4. Chinnakannankudi big 38.55 11.76 26.79 650 960

5. Chinnakannankudi small - 1.41 - - -

6. Maravaikudi 103.00 33.41 69.59 1,010 3,5

7. Vallakulam 101.40 85.94 15.46 930 3,780

8. Annuni 40.76 10.18 30.58 400 1,950

Total 548.74 264.76 283.99

Table 1: Vallakulam cascade of Tanks (Waterspread area and capacity)

Name of the Tank FTL. inmeters

MWL inmeters

TBL inmeters

Deepestsill level in

meters

Differencebetween deepestsill of the UpperTank & FTL ofLower Tank in

meters

1. Theriruveli small 16.80 17.47 18.47 15.36 -

2. Puseri 15.01 15.61 16.61 13.31 0.35

3. Kadambodai 14.33 14.89 15.89 12.83 -1.03

4. Chinnakannankudi big 13.97 14.57 15.57 12.62 -1.14

5. Chinnakannankudi small - - - - -

6. Maravaikudi 13.89 14.22 15.22 12.39 -0.59

7. Vallakulam 11.90 12.50 13.50 10.23 0.49

8. Annuni 11.85 12.48 13.48 10.01 -1.5

Total 548.74 264.76 283.99

Table 2. Vallakulam Cascade of Tanks (standard levels and submergence)

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maintaining and managing theMudukulathur big tank. Till mid1980’s, the villagers from Thooriused to invite ayacutdhars from theother remaining three villages formobilising voluntary labour to cleanup the feeder channel from itsoriginal source Ragunatha Cauverywhich is a tributary of Gundar river.

After 1980s, the practice hasbeen converted into mobilisingmoney rather than mobilising labourfrom the same villages for the costequal to their labour. This hashappened because of the behaviourof one or two villagers who did notsend adequate number of labourers.This practice had also collapsed inthe mid 1990s. During 1999, Thoorivillagers had spent Rs.25000 toclean the supply channels and filledthe Mudukulathur big Tank. Theyvehemently refused to release anywater even after the Public Worksdepartment engineers tried to openthe sluices. Thoori farmers put forththe argument, “No payment for theclearing of channel and hence Nowater”. After lot of tension andarguments, two villagers paidRs.10,000 and Rs.6000 respectivelyand got their share of water. Thesetypes of custom enforced tankmanagement issues are common insuch drought prone arid plains ofSouth Tamil Nadu.

The alluvial formations in a fewpockets and in proximity of the Gulfof Mannar coast are attributed tosalinity in ground water inRamanathapuram district. It isalways a custom that the villagersin many parts of the district used tofill their Ooranis (drinking waterponds) from the tanks. Thishappens at the beginning of therainy season (September), and

again at the end of the season(December) and once again duringsummer (June). This has been theway of life and the source of theirdrinking water which they could notseparate from irrigation tanks forages. It is also enforcedand practiced that nobodyshould pump or bail thewater below the sill level ofthe sluice outlets of theirrigation tanks.

Case 2: Conflict in sharing

Usufructory Rights from

Tanks in Dindigul district

Athoor is a traditionalzamin village bound by itsheritage and culturalpractices of a multi- caste village inSouthern Tamil Nadu. It is situatedtwenty km south west of the districthead quarter, Dindigul. AthoorVillage Committee was establishedeven before 1900 with a view to helpthe village to gain certain benefitsfrom the then government. LateSavarimuthu Pillai was active in thewelfare of Athoor and Sempattivillages and he was claimed to be acharismatic leader. He is reportedto have laid the foundations for theAthoor Pattadhars’ Committee(APC). It was registered in the year1993. The Executive Committeeconsisted of four office bearersnamely President, Vice President,Secretary and the Treasurer andthirteen Executive Committeemembers who constituted the apexbody in the decision makingprocess.

Athoor village comprises aseries of tanks, namelyKarunkulam, Pagadaikulam andPulvettikulam. These tanks are allsituated in a single line from east

to west of the village. They receivewater supply from the rainfed non-perennial river named Kundaar. Theayacut area commanded by thesetanks is given in Table 3.

These lands belong to 703farmers. Of them about 73 per centbelong to marginal farmers’ categoryand only 1.5 per cent belongs to bigfarmers while the remaining aresmall farmers.

Water had to be distributed bythe agreed (customary) rules formedby the Athoor Pattadhar Committee(APC) .They include,• Maniams have to distribute the

water in an orderly mannersequentially (Head to Tail end)

• If any one needs water beyondthe requirement they have torequest the APC only, which inturn will suitably instruct themaniams.

• During the periods of scarcity,water delivery time will be fixedon the basis of availability andcertain prefixed norms on thebasis of equity.

Fishing rights from these tanksare as per custom under which thevillagers auction the fishing rights.

Tank

WaterSpreadArea(ha)

AyacutArea(ha)

CultivatedArea (ha)

Pulvettikulam 68.750 165.5-05 156.005

Karunkulam 20.030 34.075 31.520

Pagadaikulam 33.085 88.480 81.580

Total 121.865 288.06 269.105

Table 3: Tanks in Athoor Village

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The returns from the auction areused for temple and tank relatedpurposes only. All the religions gettheir share of revenue for theirrespective religious festivals and itis made known to all the villagers.They have been adhering to thisnorm for more than forty years.

The customary rights followed ina consensus based decisionmaking process of APC were

• Irrigation rights as per the(customary) rules formed

• Appointment of Maniams forirrigation

• Fishing rights• Segment (Kandam) based

Watch and Ward systemthrough appointment of guardsmen.

• Cattle rearing and otherRecreational Activities

• Auctioning right over the useof Threshing floor (KALAM) atthe time of harvesting.

Case 3- Dispute on Fishery

Usufructs: Loss of Rights

The tank fishery efforts by thevillagers were taken away by thegovernment agencies by way ofcollecting a tax Meen Pasy (Fishtax) to recognise the rights of thevillagers to have fishery under theircontrol. Way back in 1946, thegovernment tried to cancel thefishery rights of the APC. But thethen president, Thiru I.SavarimuthuPillai fought against it in courts andfinally a stay was awarded by theMadras High Court stopping thetake over of the tank fishery rightsfrom the villagers.

Again in mid 1980s, the thenTamil Nadu Government brought thetanks under the Fish Farmer

Development Agency Act anddeclared the tank as part of thepilot tanks where fishery wasproposed to be promoted. TheAssistant Director of the FisheriesDepartment, Dindigul requested theTahsildar to cancel the APC’scustomary rights to fishery. TheAPC put up more than ten years oflegal battle in the court of law. Butin the year 1998 the High Courtvacated the stay and announcedthat the right to fishing from thetank has been vested with theAssistant Director, FisheriesDepartment, Dindigul. So, the APClost its enjoyment of fishing rightsfrom 1998 onwards.

Like Athoor, SithayankottaiTown Panchayat situated twenty KMsouthwest direction of Dindigul lostits Customary fishing rights enjoyedby Village Farmers ProtectionSangham over five decades tofishery department which issued aletter during 1998. In this villageeven now the mainstay of peoplenamely agriculture is practicedunder two rainfed tanks namelyThamaraikulam and Puliyankulamand also in the direct ayacut areaof Thamaraikulam Rajvaikkal. Thedirect ayacut of Rajavaikkal andtwo tanks command 471.065 ha.

In this village, Mr.N.AbdulKhadar (who was later elected asRajyasabha MP) organized thefarmers and started a formalassociation namely SithayankottaiGramma Vivasaigal Pathukappusangam. This sangam undertookfollowing tank related activities.

• Efforts to clean theRajavaikkal every year.

• Regulate water distribution.• Purahcase a land for

Puliyankulam Tank Farmers

Association buildingconstruction

• Fish rearing activities in thetank.

Such well performing sangamwhich has been traditionally enjoyingall the usufructory rights includingfishery in the tanks witnessed theproblem with fishery department.The association approached theMadras High Court to reserve orderin favour of the sangam due to theircustomary practices since ages.While the case against the fisherydepartment was pending with theHigh Court, they continuouslyenjoyed their rights using theinjunction until 1998. During 1998,the fishery department invitedcontractors for fishing in the tank,but no one came forward to applyfor the contract fearing the Sangamand villagers may not allow doing anyfishing which is much against thecustomary practice. Now the casehas been dismissed without pressingfor a decision and the merit of thecase has never been contested.

Case 4-Encroachments and the

Rights of Cultivators: A case of

Rasingapuram village in Theni

District

Rasingapuram is one of thevillage panchayats in Bodinaickanurblock of Theni district. It is amulticaste village wherein more thantwelve castes are residing withtraditional and cultural bondage. Thisvillage is situated 23 km away fromTheni in the south west direction.Total geographical area of the villagepanchayat is 2618.28 ha with around1640 households. The totalpopulation of the village is 6426 (Male3272 and Female 3154). The mainvillage Rasingapuram is surroundedby four hamlets within thePanchayat jurisdiction. Kurumba

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goundar is the dominant caste in thevillage.

It is said that the village wasprosperous in early 50’s and 60’s dueto the irrigated cotton cultivationwhen the people used to move alarge number of cotton bales fromthe village to Theni Cotton market.Goundankulam, a tank fed bySuthagangai Odai, a non-perennialwild stream emerging from theWestern Ghats. In addition thevillage used to have several ponds.

This village was one of thefrontliners in getting electricity inlate 50’s. This combined with freeelectricity and agricultural credit tosink wells in early 70’s led thevillagers to sink more than 250wells. Ruthless mining of groundwater from the wells made thefarmers to dig 100 feet deep borewells inside the open wells of 80-100 feet depth. The overdependence on wells coupled withstate ownership of tanks, thefarmers neglected the tank. Usingthis opportunity, a few power centricas well as greedy farmers encroachthe feeder channel and alsoploughed the tank bed, sunk twowells and got electricity supply byunfair means and cultivated cropsas well as raised hundreds ofcoconut trees. They enjoyed thebenefits over twenty long years. Thevillagers’ continued efforts failed toyield any positive result in theirfavour. By the year 1997 the totalwater spread area of 5.17 ha hasbeen reduced to around 1.20 hawith complete dismantling of thetank bund. The villagers who ownedlands in the ayacut as well as theothers who tried to protect the waterspread since 1985, failed in theireffort. Totally ten farmers hadencroached the land as given inTable 4.

During the year 1996, thefarmers had approached DHANFoundation for help to removeencroachments and revive the tank.The farmers were interested inrestoration and reclaiming the tankthrough the eviction. They felt thattheir efforts so far had not beensuccessful and so the organizationlike DHAN could guide themproperly resolve the problem. Theyformed a formal Tank Farmers’Association and arrived at aconsensus for making contributionto the rehabilitation works.

The villagers approached theDistrict Collector for funding theproject and they have got theapproval. The work to the estimatedvalue of Rs.88,000 was allotted tothe Tank Farmers’ Association(TFA) under Namakku Namae (SelfHelp) Scheme. After a great deal ofstruggle a land survey wasorganized by the Tahsildar and theboundary was established for the

tank at least on paper by thevillagers. The villagers took up theconstruction of the bund work afterevicting the total area of 0.485 haunder the SF No 346/3A1, 346/3B1and 346/1. However, theencroachers were continuouslymaking threats as well as takinglegal steps to stop the tankrestoration work through anymeans. Since a part of the tankwas revived, many wells in thevicinity got rejuvenated by next year(during 1998) and many villagersstarted pressing for the completeeviction.

The villagers again tried to getfunds from the Panchayat Union forreviving the rest of the tank. Thistime they evicted around 1.00 haof land using force and coercionand spent Rs.1.80 lakhs. Then theencroachers joined together andconsulted lawyers and filed a caseagainst the Collector for illegaleviction of their lands. The village

Sl.No.

Name of theencroacher SF. No. Patta No. Extent of

encroachment (ha)

1 Krishnasamy.S 346/1 45 0.445

2 Ramuthai.K 346/2 1553 0.515

3 Kariappan.C 346/3A1 139 0.230

4 Srinivasan.S 346/3A2 2148 0.040

5 Keppammal.S 346/3B1346/3B2

2149348

0.0350.220

6 Malarkodi.S 346/4346/5

--

0.2300.295

7 Ondiveeran 346/6 - 0.300

8 Thangamani 346/6 - 0.300

9 Perumal.O 346/6 - 0.300

10 Subramani.P 346/6 - 0.800

Total 3.700

Table – 4: The encroachments declared as legitimate patta

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farmers were agitated a lot andjointly decided to evict all theencroachments at any cost andcollected Rs.25,500 from the village.Using this as their contribution theygot a sanction order for waterharvesting work for an amount ofRs.1.02 lakhs under village Selfsufficiency scheme. This time thevillagers formed a stable and bigbund around the revived waterspread area. Also they completelyevicted the encroachers from thesupply channel using coercivemeans. By this exercise, they haveencircled the entire area of the tankbed. The encroacher sitting in themiddle of the tank bed went on anall out offensive against thevillagers. He was successful ingetting an interim injunction to theworks sanctioned by theGovernment. As of now (March2008) the case is still pendingdecision in the High Court, Chennai.

Presently the villagers areconfronted with a question ofwhether their retrieved land willsurvive in the court battle. In case,the court upholds the Patta givento the encroacher in the eightieswhat would be the fate of the tank?Their efforts to get impleaded in thecourt case also did not meet withsuccess because of theGovernment Pleader’s assertionthat it was not necessary for themto get impleaded in the case.

Conflict and Castes –Case of

Nediamanickam village

Nediamanickam is a small hamletin Ramanathapuram district having140 households in Tamil Nadu andthe major castes in the hamlet areYadavas and Dalits. Tanks anddrinking water ponds (Ooranis) arethe major source of water in thehamlet while agriculture and goatrearing remain livelihood

occupations. During a village festivalin 1988, problem arose by usingabusive language among the castes,manhandling each other and filing ofcases in police stations. This socialtension caused heavy loss of materialand life. Both caste people had tospend more than Rs.50000 forredressing their grievances. Duringthe year 2001-02, DHAN Foundationfield team approached the villagersto renovate the drinking water pondunder the project sponsored byCAPART. As a empowermentapproach, by building social capitalof forming village level tankassociation, the team initially metwith unsuccessful set backs. Theteam assessed the village dynamicsand came to the concluding fact thatif the prevailing conflict betweenthese caste if resolved, therenovation work on the villagedrinking water pond by theassociation could materialise. Theapproach followed by the field teamwas to conduct the village festivalby involving the people from thevillage after a period of nearly twodecades and enabled them to live inharmony. Each party withdrew thelegal cases implicated on theopponents. Then, each householdrepresentative enrolled themselves asmembers in the village tankassociations by paying themembership fees and in theparticipatory planning exercise theboth caste people were implied theirneeds and a consensus was reached.The joint account operated by theassociation had representatives ofboth caste and the villagers took partin the renovation work of thedrinking water pond with highenthusiasm and motivation, becausethe drinking water pond is the lifeline and the inadequate capacitymade them to suffer over twodecades to walk many kilometres tofetch drinking water during conflictperiod.

Role of Government in Tank

Maintenance and Conflicting

Interests

The government mechanismsinclude the interventions by differentline departments in managementissues for the tank cascades. Thedepartments having variousfunctions are enumerated in atable 5.

An analysis of foresaidgovernance issues revealed thefollowing dimensions to beaddressed.i. The problem of lateral spread

of authority across manyformal and informal institutions

ii. Lack of alignment betweenroles performed ,responsibilities assigned andauthorities exercised

iii. Complete absence of operationalsynergy and partnership

iv. No direct mechanisms to ensureaccountability of thegovernance structures tosystem users.

The need for a context specificprocess mechanism to resolveconflicts in tank complex systemslocated in cascades at varioushydrological boundaries level namelysub watershed, watershed, sub-basinand basin with an authority withredressal functions should bepronounced. Otherwise, theconflicts taken to court of law aremostly falling under civil suits andat the present judicial systemic‘overload’, the conflicts will not beresolved at all.

Revival of Tanks as measure ofTank Conservation to over comeConflicts:

A tank comprises the catchmentarea, feeder channels; water spreadarea, outlet structures (sluices),

17

flood disposal structures (surplusweir) and command area. It isreported that more than 70 – 80 %of the minor irrigation tanks needrenovation to restore them fornormal functioning. In addition,eestablishing a new code of conductor reviving the traditional rights tosuit the present context is necessaryto conserve traditional water bodieslike tanks. Without a well-definedprogramme to ensure rehabilitationof tanks with people participation andcontribution, the huge amount spent

on physical rehabilitation willbecome futile after some years.Ensuring hydrology adequacy andestablishing institutional pre-conditions are utmost necessaryparameters in undertaking tankrenovation in India with sustainablemeasures.

However, looking at theavailability and adequacy of fundsand other resources one may needto optimize the allocation ofresources. DHAN Foundation from

its experience since 1992 in workingwith small and medium size tanksin Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradeshsuggest the following:

Prioritizing the Conservation works

Since the demand for tank worksare enormous running into severalthousand crores for the entirecountry, a consistent programmeacross the state shall be taken up onan urgent basis. The followingactivities will form the priorities ofthe programme.

Priority1: Developing the supplyChannels: The supply channels andfeeder channels of the tanks shouldbe made free from encroachmentsand excavated to its full capacity.

Priority2: Tank Rehabilitation:Dysfunctional tanks should be madefunctional by way of attending tostrengthening its structures. It isexpected that the tank would startfunctioning at the end of tankrehabilitation at a normal level.

Priority 3: Modernization of theexisting functioning sluices, weirsand channels shall be consideredsecond priority. This is to avoid thenormal tendency of “building new”by the Govt. Departments.

Priority 4: Lining of Channelsshould be the last priority whereinselective lining such as the mouthof the feeder channels & curves,bends and long winding channelscan be lined.

In order to make the tanks andperformance in the modern contextwithout conflicting situation,rebuilding Social Capital fortraditional Water irrigation tanks andponds with empowerment approachis a viable as well as sustainableproposition.

Department Role Responsibilities

Water ResourcesOrganiation/IrrigationDepartment

Owners of tankshaving ayacut over40 ha and owners ofex-zamin tanks

* Safe guarding and maintenance of tank systems to perform* Water distribution to ayacut equitably at times of need

Block DevelopmentOffice/Zilla ParishadOffice

Owners of Tankhaving ayacut lessthan 40 ha

* Tank maintenance and management* Permission to auction tank usufructs

Fisheries/Fish FarmersDevelopmentAuthority (FFDA)

Leasing ofMeenpassy (auction) * Supply of fingerlings

* Collection of Auction fee

Agriculture

Crop Productionenhancement in TankCommand Area

* Subsidies and input supply* Technology demonstration for farmers adoption* Crop Insurance

Minerals and MinesWatch and Ward ofSand Mining fromTank beds

* Penalising the offenders* Check the sand mining and preserving mineral deposits (???)

Revenue(Tashildhar/RevenueInspector/VillageAdmin.Officer)

Registry of LandrecordsAssessing Land andWater Tax andCollectionIssue of LandPattas/Penalty Patta(2 C)Control on illegalfelling of trees

* Fixing and collecting taxes from the peasants* Property sale/transfer and maintenance of records and maps

Social Forestry

Planting of Trees(Acacia spp.) inwaterspread area infeasible tanks

* Protection of social forests and sale of woods for revenue

Table 5: Tank Governance – An unresolved riddle

18

Introduction

National Rural EmploymentGuarantee scheme(NREGS) is oneof the flagship program of uniongovernment, which is considered tobe an initiative towards “Right towork” for all citizens. Presently thisproject is implemented in all ruraldistricts of India. Some of the stateslike Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthanare doing great works using thisopportunity. In Tamilnadu, theproject has some good features andsome limitations. To trigger up thepurpose of NREGA, Panchayattheme of DHAN Foundation isexperimenting and closely workingwith local Panchayat institutions. Tostrengthen the initiative, DHANFoundation was asked todemonstrate NRGEA program inselected village Panchayats byministry of rural development ofGovernment of Tamil Nadu. DHANFoundation is one of the membersin state NREGS committee. Wereceived an approval letter fromdirectorate of rural developmentdepartment for working in ideal wayof execution of NREGS in selectedPanchayats in all the five districts.We are committing ourselves towork for the demonstration ofNREGS.

Purpose

Employment Guarantee Act(NREGA) provides a universal and

Livelihoods

* Mr. N. Janakiraman, Senior Project Executive, Panchayat theme, DHAN Foundation, Madurai.

Demonstration of NREGA in selected village

Panchayats: DHAN’s model

N. Janakiraman*

enforceable legal right to the mostbasic form of employment. It isconsidered to be a step towards legalenforcement of the right to work,as an aspect of the fundamental rightto live with dignity. The idea ofgiving legal guarantee ofemployment to anyone who is willingto do casual manual labour at thestatutory minimum wage is boon toaddress rural poverty and stabilizinglivelihood. Now the scheme isgetting larger visibility for its scaleup decision to all rural districts ofIndia. In Tamilnadu, the scheme hascelebrated for its significance interms of work achievement andwomen employment.

Event then, in most cases thisscheme is seen as just a wageprogram and not as opportunity forsustainable asset creation. In longrun, such attitude may not impact

rural livelihood as expected. Moreover in several places, the NREGAis driven by officials and Panchayatrepresentatives. The communityinvolvement with this scheme ismeagre. Proper understanding onthis scheme is not reached to thelarger community. The very criticalaspects like social audit processesare still in neonatal stage.

Objective Of Demonstration

• NREGA literacy to communityand Panchayat council: Toorient local Panchayat council,community on importance ofNREGS and buildingresponsible work execution

• Supporting in planning, workexecution and othercomponents of NREGA to thePanchayats

• Demonstrating some criticalcomponents such as social

19

auditing, worksite facilities,ensuring quality of work

• Documentation of experienceand dissemination of bestpractices for benefiting otherPanchayats

Proposed Activities

• Selection of works underNREGS: As per the NREGAguidelines, DHAN will besupporting to identify worksunder NREGS in a participatoryapproach with community. Alsoit will help the Panchayatadministration to maintain shelfof works as per the man powerrequirements.

• To ensure quality of work: Inmost cases, this NREGS is seenas just wage generationprogram. The quality of assetcreated through NREGS is notpromising for development. So,more than wages employment,DHAN will be working foreducating community onimportance of the work. Thescheme needs to be seen asecological project rather just aswage project.

• To ensure work site facility:The village Panchayats havelittle exposure on creatingworksite facilities. As per theact, DHAN will be supportingfor creating worksite facilitiesin NREGS worksites.

• Supporting ProjectManagement: Some of theproject managementcomponents need qualitysupport for ensuring betterreach and impact. Such as,records keeping, job cardsdistribution, bank accountregulations, salarydisbursement committee etc.

• Ensuring transparency: Asper the act provisions, work sitedetails need to be moretransparent. Proper recordskeeping and notice boarddisplay both in Panchayatoffice and at work site need tobe concentrated much forbuilding awareness to thecommunity.

• Encouraging Social audit:Social audit is one of theimportant componentssuggested in NREGA. But dueto lack of close handholdingsupport, the social audit is seenas threatening factor toPanchayat administration.DHAN will be interested to setup a regular, community basedand conducting social auditprocess to facilitate betterachievements in project reach.

• Focus on poor people inNREGA: Even though NREGact is common to all eligiblecitizens, special focus need to

be given for inclusion of BPLand disadvantaged group. Thebenefits of this innovativeprogram need to reach theneedy people. For this purpose,DHAN team will be involvingin ensuring enrolment of poorunder this scheme.

• Documentation: Also, DHANFoundation will undertake bestpractices, field impacts andstudy on reach of NREGAactivities on quality of asset,family level benefits, etc on aregular interval for knowledgedissemination.

Project support team

Each district has field team ofDHAN Foundation for supportingand monitoring these activities. Theywill be in touch with villageadministration, block office anddistrict administration. The field teamwill be taking up one villagePanchayat for this demonstrationpurpose and work intensively withthem. Also, it will report on theoutcomes to district administrationand to directorate once in quarter.

DHAN strongly believes thatsuch demonstration will have spiraleffect in refining the outcomes ofNREGS program towards benefittinglives of poor. Our demonstration onthe subject will provide betterlearning to sector and to us.

20

Signature campaign to prohibit real estate in

tank ayacut lands

Jaganathan. K.P.*

Community in action

* Jaganathan. K.P. Project Executive, DHAN Foundation, Tiruvalangadu, Tamil Nadu.

Tiruvalangadu Vattara VayalagaKoottamaippu (TVVK) is thefederation of Vayalagams promotedby DHAN Foundation, Madurai.TVVK is working in Tiruvalangadublock of Tiruvallore district from lastten years with the objective of reducepoverty through tank rehabilitationand promoting tankfed agriculture.Presently we are working with2,500 families in Tiruvalangadublock.

We initiated a signature campaignon 28th of August2008 regarding the“Prohibition of real estate in tankayacut lands”. It was based onsimple calculation behind ourinitiation of campaign. Thecalculation says the importance oftankfed agriculture in ensuring foodsecurity of the village at micro leveland definitely has the impact tocreate the macro level impact atnational level. One acre of tankayacut land gives average yield of35 bags (one bag is equal to 75 kg)so the total yield is 2,625 kg (35bag*75 kg) of paddy. We took anaverage of 60 per cent as ricerecovery percentage from paddy atrice mill. So the 60 per cent of 2,625kg of paddy gives 1,575 kg of rice.In tank ayacut lands normallyfarmer use to grow two crops peryear so the total rice produced from

one acre of land is 3,150 kg. At themaximum five kg of rice is requiredfor the family having five members.So the rice of one acre ayacut landwill feed for the average family sizeof five members about 630 days (21months). The conclusion wasarrived when we use one acre oftank ayacut land other thanagriculture use; we questioned theentire government system why topermit the real estates which hindersthe food availability of five memberfamily for 21 months and challengingthe food security of the nation as awhole.

Since we are working for tankrehabilitation in Tiruvalangadu block

we wanted to place our opinion andbring it to people’s attention regardingthis issue through signaturecampaign. We successfullycompleted the campaign with thetotal signature of 1158 farmers ofTiruvalangadu block. On behalf ofour federation we placed our opinionto bring attention to policy makers,government official and other NGO’swho are working for the cause ofwater and tank system improvementto ensure the food security of thenation by preserving tank ayacutlands.

It has various names like Kanmaiin southern Tamil Nadu, tank in

21

northern Tamil Nadu, Cheruvu inAndhra Pradesh, Kere in Karnataka.But in near future, the entire worldmay forget these words as we maynot use none of the words to identifythese water harvesting structures.Since it is getting affected by variousissues like poor management,absence of kudimaramathu (atraditional system of watermanagement), encroachment andthe new component of issue addedis real estate business. We don’tunderstand why the water harvestingstructures attracted real estate peopleto convert tank ayacut landswhereas there are much more wastelands available elsewhere. When afarmer invests all his resources inagriculture and end in crop failurehe falls in the debt trap. They seesell their fertile land to repay thedebts. The real estate people mintmoney out by exploiting the farmerswho are in embarrassing situation.They purchase the fertile land at lowcost and make the demarcation intoplots and sell them at prohibitivelyhigh cost. Previously every villagehad temples and sign boards to show

them but now there are boards inevery hundred feet indicating nameof the residential area like Nagars,Complex, avenue etc. In many of thetank ayacut lands there is no crop,instead there is colored stones toindicate the name of flat and plots.Already tanks have lost theirimportance due to encroachmentand now it is getting badly damagedin the name of real estate.

The base for food is agriculture;the base for agriculture is land; ifthere is no land there is noagriculture. Through rainfed andorganic farming we are recoveringthe agriculture from the ill effect ofgreen revolution which were highlypolluted the land due to exhaustiveuse of chemicals like fertilizers andpesticides. This we are able to dobecause we have base, land. But dueto real estate business we are goingto loose the base, land. In ancientyears, there was shifting cultivation,a practice of destroying forestcultivate and move to other land afterfew years. In near future we maycultivate agriculture by destroying

houses built in the tank ayacut lands.So it is need of the hour to think andtake some concrete decision in thisregard.

We came to the followingsolution to prevent this issue. Wehave forestry act as per this thecountry to maintain 33 per cent ofgeographical area in forest cover.Similarly government should comeout with ‘agriculture act’ sayingcertain percentage area in totalgeographical area must be foragriculture use and non-agricultureactivities should not be entertained.Utilizing water harvesting structuresand tank ayacut lands must not beused for non-agriculture use. Theseviews were penned down withsignatures of many willing souls wassubmitted to Mr. G.Sundaramoorthy, District Collector,Tiruvallore, Mr. Santhana GopalaKrishnan, Joint Director ofAgriculture, Tiruvallore, Mr. J.Ragavan, Block DevelopmentOfficer, Tiruvalangadu block in thepresence of our EC member and Mr.P. A. Viswanathan from DHANCentre for Policy Planning.

22

Background

Pudurnadu location is a tribalrainfed pocket in Vellore district ofTamil nadu, located in the south-west part of Javadhu hills range ofEastern Ghats. It is a preservedmountainous area within an elevationof more than 1,000 m above meansea level. This pocket benefits fromrelatively low temperature ascompared to the remaining part ofthe district: temperature duringsummer (April) reaches 30oC andthe minimum temperature goes downin winter (December - January) to11oC. The mean annual rainfall isaround 1026.16 mm and it isbimodal in nature.

DHAN Foundation has beenworking in the pocket for the pastone year under one of its program,Rainfed farming developmentprogramme (RFDP). A project fundof Rs.25,000 was granted toPudurnadu location for farm pondrenovation activity. This fund wasgiven to three farmers in this locationfor farm pond work. This article shallbriefly present the nature of workand the impact that it had on thefarmer.

Rationale of the project

Most of the families inPudurnadu rely upon rainfedagriculture as the main source ofincome, making the entire tribal

Impact of Farm Pond Renovation Project in

Pudurnadu

S. Sathyanand*

Impact

* S. Sathyanand, Project Executive, Centre for Development Communication, DHAN Foundation, Madurai. He was previously block integrator of Rainfed programme of Pudurnadu, Vellore, Tamil Nadu.

economy solely dependent on rain.This presents the inhabitants ofPudurnadu with two problemsnamely one, uncertainty and limit intheir income from rainfed farming,and two, lack of employment aroundfour to six months during the leanseason and underemployment in therest of the period.

Due to deficit rainfall, there hasbeen reasonable crop failureespecially (saamai) little millet,which is the most predominantrainfed crop. Because of this, thereis considerable decrease in the yield,resulting in lower income. Similarlypaddy cultivation, especially secondseason crop, is also affected due tolack of enough rainfall. Due to this,there is lack of assurance in gettingpaddy yield and the half-grownpaddy is left to grazing.

To cope up with the above riskand vulnerability, there has been aconsiderable increase in the totalirrigated area. Only recently, in thepast 10 years, few of the affluentfarmers are tapping the sub-surfacewater seepage (in specific spots) inthis area by investing in small pond-like shallow wells that capture thiswater and is being used to irrigatesmall plots of land. This has giventhese farmers an assured source ofwater thereby ensuring an assuredcrop yield and regular income. Theassured supply of the water has alsolead farmers to diversify to water-intensive cash crops - vegetables likebeans, field Lablab, tomato, flowercrops like kakkaratan etc.Importantly, few of these farmersare also cultivating paddy using thepond, thereby ensuring food security

23

which is otherwise dependent on therainfall. Further, farmers spent mostof the time in their land, which arefar away from their village and fromwater source; given this, these farmponds also serve domestic purposesfor drinking, cooking, washing andbathing.

On the other hand, poor farmersthough with suitable spots are unableto invest in the same, due to non-availability of fund source. Given thissituation, the project fund ofRs.25,000 was given to threefarmers to help them renovateexisting shallow farm ponds intomulti-functional water source.

Farmers and the fund given

The following table.1 gives thename of the farmers and the fundgiven under this project.

Implications of the Project

Three farmers were given anamount of Rs.25,000 for their farmpond renovation work. Let us seethe implication, and thereby theprojected impact of this project foreach of these farmers.

1. Mr. S. R. Jeyaraman of Kilur

village

Mr. S.R. Jeyaraman is an aspiringyoung marginal farmer with less than3 acres of land. He has beencultivating mostly rainfed crops like

saamai and rainfed banana.He built himself a smallpond of 10 feet wide and10 feet deep and cultivatedfew irrigated crops liketomato for house andKakkaratan flower with anoil engine. But over theyears, almost 3 feet of siltdeposited in the pond and itno longer became anassured source of water asit dried out soon.

With a fund amount ofRs.10,000, the pond wasdesilted, and deepened andwidened to its presentdimension of 16 feet wideand 15 feet deep; and at thefifth feet from the mouth ofthe well, one feet wide platform was

excavated toprevent surface soilto get deposited inthe platformavoiding siltdeposition in thepond and easyremoval of silt fromthe platform itself.Also, the defunct oilengine was repaired,

which remained ideal till then.

Previously, the pond irrigated 10cents of Kakkaratan flowers andtomato. Now, after the renovationof farmpond, he has planted banana.The pond very well irrigates aroundhalf-an-acre of banana, beans,tomato, Kakkaratan flower. This hasensured irrigation for alreadyirrigated land of 10 cents and anadditional 40 cents of banana crop,beans and tomato are being irrigated.The crop is yet to be harvested, andbenefit to be realized. Apart from this,

it is being used for domesticpurposes for his family and theneighbors as well.

2. Mr.Krishna Vedi of Mozhalai

village:

Mr.Krishna Vedi is a rainfedfarmer with four acres of land inMozhalai village. He mainly cultivatesrainfed crops like saamai and rainfedbanana. Initially, his pond was asmall dug out of 5 feet wide and 5feet deep, which was used only fordomestic purpose.

He was given an amount ofRs.10,000 from the project. Alongwith this, he invested an additionalamount of Rs.20,000 to widen anddeepen his pond to 15 feet deep and24 feet wide. Also, he constructedretaining stone wall structure for hispond.

Previously, the pond was usedonly for domestic purposes. At

S.No.

Name of thefarmer Village

Fund givenUnder this

project

1 Mr.S.R.Jeyaraman Kilur Rs.10,000

2 Mr.K.Vedi Mozhalai Rs.10,000

3 Mr.Ranganathan Nellivasal Rs.5,000

Table 1. Farmers’ name and fund

given under this project

24

present, he is cultivating paddy in his25 cents of land, which wasotherwise rainfed. The crop is yetto be harvested, which will meet hisfamily food needs. He is also planningto connect pipes to irrigate anotherhalf-an-acre of his rainfed land.

3. Mr.Ranganathan of Nellivasal

village:

Mr.Ranganathan of Nellivasal isa rainfed farmer with less than 3acres of land. He cultivates mostlyrainfed paddy, banana, saamai andragi. His pond was initially 5 feet wideand 5 feet deep, which was usedonly for domestic purpose.

He was given an amount ofRs.10,000, with which he deepenedhis pond to 10 feet deep and 16 feetwide. He is yet to make necessaryarrangements to pump water, andhas not yet used the pond for

S. No. Before After

1 Mr.Jeyaraman: Pond was 10 feet wide and 10feet deep with 3 feet of silt; was dysfunctionalsince water dries out soon.

Now, it is 16 feet wideand 15 feet deep;

2 Mr.K.Vedi: Pond was 5 feet wide and 5 feetdeep; was used only for domestic purpose.

It irrigates around half-an-acre of banana,beans, tomato,kakkaratan flower.

3 Mr.Ranganathan: Pond was 5 feet wide and 5feet deep; was used only for domestic purpose

Now, it is 24 feet wideand 15 feet deep;

irrigation purposes. He is planningto buy an oil engine soon, with whichhe hopes to cultivate paddy, bananaand tomato in his land.

The following table.2 gives thepicture of the status of the pond andthe farming situation of the farmerbefore and after the work.

Conclusion:

As it can be seen, the pond workhas brought about the possibility of

irrigating land, which was otherwiserainfed. This has ensured incomesecurity by banana, beans,kakkaratan flower cultivation for thefirst farmer, and will meet familyfood needs for the other two farmersby assuring paddy crop. Thus, it canbe noted that the farm pond work

has brought about a considerablechange in the life and livelihoods ofthe intended farmers.

Traditional wisdom

* Er. N. Venkatesan, Programme Leader, DHAN Vayalagam (Tank) Foundation, Madurai.

Pirandodi cascade and Vellinipatti village at

Kottampatti block

Er. N. Venkatesan*

The Vellinipatti village is locatedat Manappacheri revenue village ofKottampatti block in Madurai districtis the classical example of the earlywarning and flood mitigation in anadvance manner existed in thecommunity in those days forprotecting the tanks in theThirumanimuthar sub basin in aproactive and sustainable manner.While interacting with the villagersthrough the focus group discussion

our field team observed that theVellinipatti village creation in thosedays itself for the protection of theanicut constructed across theThirumanimuthar river (rain fedstream drains in to PalarKottakaraiyar river basin) and thenfeeding the tanks in the Pirandodisupply channel cascade.

The ancient people of theVellinipatti had migrated from

Singampunari block of Sivagangaidistrict in those days to search forthe livelihood and roamed around theKottampatti area in Madurai districtand finally settled at the village calledKunnarampatti in Kottampatti block.They were given labor works in theagriculture fields by theKunnarampatti villagers. But theycould not cope up with the villagers.Then they shifted their venue to one

25

more place called Pallamettan in thesame area. But the occupied place isaffected severely during the rainyseason as entire area is surroundedby the water. By observing thesituation, the nearby village calledManappachery interacted with theseaffected people and suggested themto protect their agriculture landssituated near the anaicut constructedacross the Thirumanimuthar riverand those lands were fed by thePirandodi channel which took offfrom the anaicut through the tanksfed by the system. Then the affectedpeople decided to accept the requestfrom the Manappacheri village anddecided to stay near the anaicut andthe habitation was allocated by theManappacheri villagers from theirown land. The assignment was thatthe anaicut needs to be monitoredby the people who accepted the taskduring the rainy season and closingthe shutter in the anaicut if theabnormal flow of water is noticedin the Thirumanimuthar River.

The Manappacheri people felthappy over the years as the task waswell performed by the settled peoplenear the anaicut. Then this was

continued year over year and thevillage Vellinipatti had been createdby the group of people who migratedfrom the Singampunari block. Themajor reason for the monitoringanaicut was to protect the villagessituated below the anaicut namelyManappacherry, Vellalapatti,Kariendalpatti, Mangalampatti,Ayyapatti, Poomangalpatti andPandangudi as all these villages andtheir valuable assets were frequentlyaffected by the floods because of thenon closure of the shutter providedin the anaicut. The villagers realizedthe difficulties in visiting the anaicutand closing the shutter at criticalperiod as the anaicut is situated 3KMs away from the first village calledManappachery and because of thisreason only they decided to put themeasure on permanent basis andcreated the village called Vellinipattiwith the migrated people from theother block who needed theoccupational problem with livelihoodand finally made them to settle atclosure vicinity for protecting theanaicut. The naming of the villageitself integrated with the task ofprotecting the anaicut.

The Vellinipatti name came fromthe task of protecting the anaicut asVellam means flood, Anai means theanaicut across the river and thenvillage is called as Vella Anai Patti inthose days and latter it has beenchanging as Vellinipatti during therecent past. Our DHAN Vayalagam(Tank) Foundation is working in thiscascade and villages since 1994through our tank programme andour intervention took care of revivingthe entire cascade through thepromotion of Pirandodi cascade andrehabilitation of the tanks and linksbetween them and cascadeVayalagam and water bodies basedVayalagams are in place as to ensurecommunity managed watch andward of tanks and their communitiesas local solution. In those days forhaving this kind of monitoring, theyused locally available materials andresources rather depending onoutsiders and expertise as they usedexperienced and special skill orientedpeople for the job. In this case theyused rope for closing the shutter bytying it in the steps of the anaicutand then capable and experiencedperson would get in to the placeinside the water and closing theshutter.

26

Knowledge Building & building a Knowledge Society

is one of the major focus areas ofThagavalagam Theme. Since,Information and CommunicationTechnology (ICT) is an effectiveagent for knowledge building; webelieve that “Knowledge Building” isone of the key factors to reach ourobjective “Poverty reduction throughICT”.

The Thagavalagam theme offersvarious knowledge building servicesthrough its Village InformationCenters. Computer Education tobuild the technical knowledge of theyouths, e-School to build the subjectknowledge of the school goingstudents, etc. are some of theknowledge building services offeredat the Village Information Centers.

While we initiating the theme, wehave more numbers of only studentusage at the Village Information

Technology

* B. Muthukumarasamy, Senior Project Executive, ICT Theme, DHAN Foundation, Madurai.

Centers for the computer courses(Its benefits was explained in the lastnews letter) there is very less usageof farmers and women at our VillageInformation Centers due to lack oflocal language content in theirspecific areas. Hence, we includeda goal of developing communitybased content and content show atthe Village Information Centers forall rural communities.

A content development team wasset up at Melur ThagavalagamCommunity College among theoperators team. The team involvesin assessing the demand and needof the rural community anddeveloping locally relevant contentin the local knowledge. The team isalso organising content fromdifferent external sources andestablished a digital library at theVillage Information Centers together

Can we make a change? - Trying to build a

Knowledge Society

B. Muthukumarasamy*

with our own content. The contentsare developed as Power point shows,Flash Movies, Video Movies and alsoin audio format.

The Village Information Centeroperators are given a content showtime table which includes contentshow for farmers, women, youth,school going children, house wives,etc. The content are shown at theVillage Information Centers at freeof cost. The Content shows arebeing organized in two differentways.

1. Content Shows at the VillageInformation Centers. Anaverage 5 villagers areassembled at the VillageInformation Centers based onthe time table defined andcontents are shown withmultimedia support.

Feedback from Murugesan, Auto Driver, Samuthirapatti regarding “Flood Management” Content

I am Murugesan, I am from Samuthirapatti, I have two sons. Since, my son willing to join the computercourse, I allowed him to join in this center. While coming to this center, I saw the Cds related to flood,drought and HIV/AIDS, the information are very useful. I saw a CD “Flood Management”. It is very useful.Last year, we had heavy flood in our village. Some villagers lost their huts, since the roads were completelydamaged 3 days there were no bus transport facilities. Our day –day activities got disturbed. I could notoperate my auto and earn money. We accomodated villagers in a common school building and with thesupport of ration shop rice; we arranged food for the villagers. Some acres of land got damaged, the communitywell was also damaged, 2 cows were carried in the flood.

Before I saw the CD, I thought that only my village is getting affected by flood most of the times. But, afterseeing the CD, I came to know that, the flood is often affects some part of Tamil Nadu. I came to know that,the flood is also one of the reasons for spread of few diseases in the village. I could get information like theimportance of using boiled water after the flood, keeping the food close and safety, etc. from this CD.

27

2. Based on the need raised by thecommunity on specific topics,the contents are also beingshown at the common placesof the villages with the supportof LCD projectors andMultimedia support.

More than 100 contents weredeveloped by the Village InformationCenter operators with the support ofthe content team at Melur and thecontent are being deployed throughthe Village Information Centers. Thecontents are available in all sectorslike

• Agriculture

• Livestock Management

• Educational Content

• Literature

• Women Specific

• Fisheries

• Legal aspects, etc

The charts shows the differentno of topics, number of contentshows in different sectors,distribution of beneficiaries areshown.

Here a question may raise how will

these contents build the knowledge

of the community and contribute for

poverty reduction?

Poverty in the rural areas is nota birth curse or misfortune in a manlife. It is on because of lack ofknowledge, Lack of earnings, Lackof needed relevant information,Lack of value adding information

During 10 months in Kottampatti & Melur ICT Locations (From 20Villages Only)

During 10 months in Kottampatti & Melur ICT Locations (From 20Villages Only)

From initiation till December 2008 in Kottampatti & Melur ICTLocations (From 20 Villages Only)

28

for their occupation, lack ofhealth information & leakages ofincome to medical expenses, Lackof quality education & not ableto compete in the employmentopportunities, Lack ofinformation on new technologyand practices, Cost ofcommunication, etc. There are somany cases demonstrate how thiscontent builds the knowledge ofthe community and creating somechanges in their life style.

Case 1: Name of the Farmer : Mr.S.Selvam, Mangalampatti: Here is a case from Mangalampatti Villagewhere the agriculture contents change in the life of a rural farmer. Content on “Importance of Soil Testing”change the farming pattern of a traditional farmer. He has 4 acres of land and he used to put whatever theamount of fertilizers and pesticides he wants without knowing his land’s soil health. He gets normal yieldevery year. But he never tested his soil and practiced the soil health enriched pattern of cultivation. He wasshown a content on “Importance of soil Health & Testing”, after seeing the content CD and continuousinsisting by the VIC operator, he come forward to test his land soil and tested the soil through the VillageInformation Centers. Now he is applying the needed level of fertilizer and pesticides and feels the differencein yield. He has given a written feedback about the changes happened in his practice of farming. Increasedyield will increase his revenue and reduce his poverty. Hence we could say that the content build theknowledge of a farmer.Here in the above case, our content alone would not change the life style of Mr.Selvam,the follow ups of the Village Information Center operators and who insisted him so many times have changedhis life style.

Case 2: Feedback from S.Raja, Farmer, Sekkipatti, regarding “Drought Management” content: Iam S.Raja, I am from Sekkipatti, Kottampatti Block, Madurai District. I have one son and one daughter, Iam doing agriculture work in my village. I own a petty shop in the same village. This Village Informationcenter acts as a resource center for all sort of information. I got birth certificate for my son through thisVillage Information Center. I used to come to this center for all sort of information. One day, the operatorsaid “I have some new content CDs on Drought and Flood Management. Which one do you prefer?” I askedher to display the Drought Management CD. From that CD, I could learn how to mitigate drought, suitableagriculture practice for drought, etc. I have also clarified that the crops like Amanuku, Thattapayiru, Sorgam,etc are suitable for drought situation. I could understand that Paddy, Sugar Cane cultivation during thedrought will give more loss for the farmers. The contents were interesting as these information were in adialogue form between two farmers discussing about drought management. I am suggesting to produceproduce similar CDs on various topics with more number of artists / participants.

Like this there are so many cases, where these contents are trying to bring some changes in the life style of thecommunity and contribute something towards poverty reduction in direct and indirect way.

29

SUHAM updates

* G. Palaneeswari, Senior Project Executive, Suham hospital, Theni, Tamil Nadu.

SUHAM hospital has gone foranother phase of growth by gettingconfidence from its people partners.It is reaching its second year in itsgrowth path. It is also managing itsfour primary care centers. Theseprimary care centers act as afeeding center for the SUHAMhospital. It screens the patient forthe secondary care treatment atSUHAM hospital. It also facilitatesthe follow-up of cases for SUHAMhospital. With the backup of healthinsurance, lots of people werebenefited. In SUHAM, they enjoy thebenefit of cashless service. SUHAMhospital also has started its own lab.For scan and X-ray, it has anagreement with Vikram lab. SUHAMdoes the all types of surgeries andfor the further follow-ups it referringto the Theni and Madurai Medicalcolleges. Medical services are

SUHAM Hospital

G. Palaneeswari*

provided to patients in two ways,In Patients (IP) and Out Patients(OP). The details of peoplebenefitted in given below. Thehospital serves Kalanjiam and

Vayalagam members with thesupport of medical insurancebenefits, where as the public gethealth services at nominal costwhich affordable to the poor people.

Details of benefitted people through Suham Hospital

Sl. No.

Month Kalanjiam Members

Vayalagam members

General Public

Total

OP IP OP IP OP IP OP IP Surgeries

1 Apr-08 206 23 42 1 146 7 394 31 5

2 May-08 194 33 34 1 119 4 347 38 7

3 Jun-08 212 27 29 0 102 5 343 32 9

4 Jul-08 172 20 16 1 169 4 357 25 6

5 Aug-08 233 25 67 0 104 7 404 32 8

6 Sep-08 318 20 42 2 114 2 474 24 8

7 Oct-08 294 24 49 0 119 2 462 26 2

8 Nov-08 403 30 67 1 130 2 600 33 6

9 Dec-08 414 18 70 2 107 4 591 24 8

10 Jan-09 375 18 77 1 103 4 555 23 10

Centre for Development CommunicationDHAN Foundation

18, Pillaiyar Koil Street, S.S. Colony, Madurai - 625 016. Tamil Nadu, INDIA

Tel.: +91 - 452 - 4353983, 2610794, 2610805 Fax: +91 - 452 - 2602247

Email: dhanfoundation_tn@airtelmail.in Website: http://www.dhan.org

Heritage Marine conservation Building on

of

The craft and gears such as catamarans, small canoes, big

canoes deployed by the traditional fishing communities were the

most appropriate to suit the environment. Fish workers

themselves developed these over centuries of experience and

skill, keeping in mind the dynamics of tropical waters, multi-

species, fish behavior and seasonal changes.

any traditional societies view physical Mas well as biological components of

the environment and the human population as

being linked together in a web of relationships.

For thousands of years, these communities

around the world have used knowledge of their

local environment to sustain themselves and to

maintain their cultural identity.

Building on their better system,

DHAN Foundation, after the Tsunami

devastation, organized such communities

along the Southern coastal villages to build

lasting disaster cooping mechanisms with high

emphasis on conserving marine resources.

The fishing

community in India, with their traditional

knowledge of the sea and its environment

harvested the resources in a moderate scale

and recognize the sea as their common

property.

Conserving for future generations