Nature’s custodians

ANSHU MESHACK



Notwithstanding the ravage left by the 2004 tsunami, the nature-loving Nicobarese continue nursing the islands’ greens even as they piece together their traditional way of life

“I would bunk school to be in the bagicha (garden) with my grandfather,” says Ambar, a wide grin spreading across his weather-beaten high cheek-boned face and mischief dancing in his narrow eyes. A stocky Nicobarese who grew up in a thickly forested village in the Nancowry group of islands in the Bay of Bengal, Ambar knows every species of every tree in the wilds he calls home. He can also master the tallest waves in the open sea on a little dinghy boat that he shaped with his own hands from a wide tree trunk. He may be unschooled, but uneducated he sure isn’t.

Ambar and his people probably haven’t heard of the buzz around environmental conservation and climate change, but they do more to protect the environment than many organised events do for the special days earmarked for saving the earth. For these island people grew up learning to respect, and live in harmony with, the natural heritage they see themselves as custodians of.

Those with the university degrees have come a long way since their research findings created new ideas for saving the environment; but have we, in the process, forgotten the wisdom of the seemingly-rudimentary traditional practices? Even as annual celebrations of special environment events are seen as ways of expressing good intent, there are communities who have, over the centuries, continued to sustain themselves without disturbing the fragile ecological balance. Which is the wiser way?

The six “primitive” tribal groups living in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are a case in point. The islands are an archipelago of pristine, emerald green islands of volcanic origin, formed by a submarine mountain range. Only 37 of the 572 islands are inhabited. Though clubbed together and commonly referred to as a part of the Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the tribal communities residing across different islands are remarkably distinct from their non-tribal neighbours. The indigenous tribes in the two groups of islands are broadly classified into two groups: the Onge, Sentinelese, Jarawa and Great Andamanese of Negroid descent living on the Andaman Islands; and the Shompen and Nicobarese of Mongoloid descent in the Nicobar Islands. Except for the Nicobarese communities, the population of all the other tribes have decreased dramatically, to a total of 500 in the last 150 years as a result of the outbreak of measles and other diseases brought by the infrequent interaction with non-tribals.

The Nicobarese offer a unique and valuable contribution to India’s tapestry of natural and cultural heritage. Theirs is a complex whole of traditional knowledge, beliefs, laws, values and customs that has, over the centuries, integrated the knowledge acquired from other cultures through trade and contacts with visitors to the Islands. The resultant blend of cultures has enabled the survival of the Nicobarese, unlike their other tribal counterparts.

Enriched by traditional mores reflected in their activities of everyday life, the Nicobarese community offers glimpses of a truly just society based on cooperation and cohesion. The traditional norms extend to all spheres of life, including the use of natural resources and norms regarding conservation of the ecological balance amid human activity. The Nicobarese are horticulturalists and pig-herders who, till before the tsunami of 2004, inhabited large permanent villages mostly adjacent to the coast. The rich marine life in the vicinity of the traditional coastal villages was strictly a source of subsistence, not for livelihood or trade.

For livelihood, coconut plantations are a renewable resource and are traded in exchange for what are now “essential” commodities such as rice, sugar, cloth and fossil fuels. Although the Nicobarese economy is sufficiently monetised and trade-dependent, such monetisation has not changed the subsistence basis and nature of the economy. Harvesting of coconut is a perennial activity that is in tune with the natural cycle of regeneration.

“Planting is done in ‘sections’, or small plots of trees, so that harvesting (and therefore income) is distributed throughout the year,” explains Martin, the young heir to a vast plantation belonging to atuhet or joint family in Kamorta Island. “Harvesting in one section is completed before moving on to the next. When old trees die/become unproductive, new saplings are inter planted to keep the numbers constant.” He is quick to point out, “Plantations are common property of the family. All members work together and the harvest belongs to all.”

The tsunami of 2004 brought in its wake not just devastation of villages and ecological wealth but also changes in the cultural mosaic of the Islands, an inevitable outcome of the disaster recovery process. A decade later, it is the pragmatic outlook to life and a strong sense of self-dependence that enabled a handful of survivors to pick up the pieces and start afresh, long before the State intervened with alien and non-indigenous goods and services like housing structures made of sheets and iron, blankets and cash compensations. The ingenuity of the local communities immediately after the tsunami is a brilliant display of the survival skills that have sustained them in the face of many adversities.

Just a few months after the calamity, many survivors had moved to houses in safer locations, built using pieces of wooden planks salvaged from the sea coast — in the traditional stilted design, with thatched sloping roofs that are sturdy and leak proof — all without a single nail in the entire structure.

The struggle to find a balance between the traditional ways of life and the new-worldly aspirations of increasing material wealth has, sadly but predictably, impacted the sustainable living practices of the tribal communities. This transition, if not adequately managed, can irrevocably impact the natural heritage of this global biodiversity hotspot while also placing at risk the wealth of cultural heritage that has been adapted and protected by the local tribals over the centuries. Ambar and his ilk, caught between the traditional and modern after the tsunami wiped out their sustainable means of living off the land a decade ago, know this only too well.

(Charkha Features)

SHATTERED LIE THEIR DREAMS AND HOPES

Tazeem Akhter

Girls in a village near Poonch in J&K rarely get to study beyond the ninth standard, while the boys have all the opportunities for higher studies, writes Tazeem Akhter



On the dusky village roads in Batal Kote, in Loran region of Mandi tehsil, a two-hour drive from the border district Poonch, 250km from Jammu,when one starts observing the milieu, the feeling of having reached a bygone era is inevitable. A kuccha raasta leads to a double storey wooden house, a typical structure for this kind of geography and climate — wooden floorings, wooden staircases and wooden pillars. Before one comes to terms with the beauty of this wooden house, questions regarding its residents start popping up in the mind.

As if in answer, a lady in her mid fifties, Zaibun Noor, steps out from the house and offers a warm welcome. While opening the door of the baithak (drawing room), she informs us that a total of 19 members live in this house and they own much of the agricultural land around. Of her three sons, one works in the police department and has two wives. The second son, a matriculate who is in the money-lending business, has an 18 year-old wife who is already a mother of two. As she gets involved in the animated conversation, it is difficult to figure whether she was happy or sad, for a discussion on education leaves everyone in shock — none of the women members of the family was ever enrolled in school. Until the recent generation of the grandchildren, that is.

But there's a rider here too: The male grandchildren are enrolled in Kerala School (a reference to Christian Missionary schools that provide quality education) in Loran while the female grandchildren had to settle with the Government middle school in Batal Kote. “Kudiyan dusre ghar jana” (girls will be married off), said the grandmother of the little children, explaining why they are not interested in educating the girls of the family. The trend is similar across the village.

A few metres away from this wooden house are a group of four to five girls hidden by a water-tank. Seeing them unburdening a huge bundle of wood each, cut and carried on their heads through the nearby forests, it is evident that they are exhausted. Striking up a conversation with girls in such remote areas always requires a certain amount of impudence, but as the conversation starts off, their brutally frank talk and disarmingly gentle smiles quivering across their shy faces leave one spellbound. A sense of satisfaction and pride is palpable when the girls share that they do attend school — two of them are Class 10 students and three are in Class 9.

These young girls work really hard, literally, for their education. After helping in household chores every morning, they attend school, and after school, they head to the forests to gather firewood, carrying the huge bundles home on their heads. Done with that back-breaking work, they begin helping with the cooking for dinner. They study once the household is asleep — all this, despite knowing only too well that they will not be given a chance to study after Class 10.

This is not unusual. The recently released Annual Status of Education Report shows that the proportion of girls (age 11 to 14) not in school in Jammu & Kashmir has dropped encouragingly from 8.3 per cent in 2006 to 3.7 per cent in 2011, but rose again to 5 per cent in 2012. The proportion of girls in the higher age group (age 15 to 16) not attending school was a substantially higher 13.9 per cent in 2012; a telling comment on parents who hold back their daughters from school, intending to marry them off instead. “It is impossible to study after Class 10. Our parents marry us off as soon as we have our exam results in hands”, said Ishrat, one of the five girls, breaking into a shy giggle.

The current statistics, however, do not take away the zeal these girls have for studying further. Even though the idea of girls studying in college sounds incredibly bizarre to them initially, they are ready to put in every possible effort to study harder and, with good grades, try and convince their parents to allow them to study further. This is a distant dream they wish to fulfill. But that will require a change in the mindset of their parents in particular and society in general.

Charkha Features
charkha@bol.net.in

Follow @CharkhaFeatures

Custodian of culture

DEVLAL NARETI

In the ongoing protracted battle between the state and the Naxals in the central part of India, the dominant tribal population of this region has become the most prominent victim. Against this background, 240 km away from Raipur — in Damkasa village near Durgkondal block in Kanker district — 70-year-old retired teacher Shiv Singh Anchla has dedicated his post-retirement life to the conservation and promotion of the Gondi language and culture.








The Gond community, to which Mr. Anchla belongs to, is one of the largest tribes in Chhattisgarh. In the forested hills of the Bastar region in south Chhattisgarh, the Gonds have been significantly known for their rich culture. In recent years though, the vibrant colours of this rich civilisation have been fading away.

The Gond community, like other adivasi communities, is woven into a symbiotic relationship with the environment. They worship nature that, in turn, helps these indigenous communities sustain their socio-economic and cultural lives. Their care and concern for their natural heritage is well reflected in their customs wherein every single community is entrusted with protecting one of the rare trees and animals and no one is allowed to harm them at any cost. This way, the balance between man and his environment is maintained. The advent of external factors, however, has weakened the sanctity of such practices.




“Adivasis have always been environment-friendly because they believe that trees, stones and forests are their God. Alarmingly, in the last few years, trees are being cut ruthlessly, indicating that adivasis are forgetting the importance of their life-giving forests,” says Mr. Anchla worriedly. To restore respect for Mother Nature, he has established Jango Raitaar Vidya Ketul after the name of a local deity Jango Raitaar, revered as the goddess of language of the Gond tribe. Set in five acres of land donated by Mr. Anchla himself, this nature park is home to rare herbs, plants and trees which otherwise are likely to become extinct with few even recognising the loss.

Mr. Anchla is also planning to establish an International Divya Gyan Research Institute and Gyan Mani Shiksha Dweep Vilakshan Vidyalaya. This institute will train people who share the common interest of exploring the history of local adivasi culture, their deities and their unique relationship with forests.

This visibly-determined old man sensed the looming threat during his teaching days and began to share with his students the intricacies of their natural as well as cultural heritage to ensure that the next generation takes responsibility for the cultural wealth they have inherited from their forefathers. Not an opposer of contemporary education system, he believes that every form of education that develops or increases the knowledge of mankind should be promoted. He maintains that this should not, however, be at the cost of sacrificing their traditional culture.

To save the traditional Ghotul practices, the Gondi language and the tribe’s festivals, he organised a Rath Yatra in November last year to make people aware of their culture and join hands for its preservation.

Leading a humble life, Mr. Anchla is also the religious head of the Gond tribe in Chhattisgarh. Besides, he is a skilled medical practitioner (vaid) and successfully treats many ailments using natural herbs.

(Charkha Features)

Follow Charkha on twitter

Charkha's Urdu Feature service highlights plight of children living in the Indian borderland - twitter.com/CharkhaFeature…

— Charkha Features (@CharkhaFeatures) May 16, 2013

Results - "Sanjoy Ghose Media Fellowship 2013 - Ladakh"

Charkha announces Results for the “Sanjoy Ghose Media Fellowship 2013” for highlighting development issues of women in Ladakh:

Azra Khatoon - Women as Flag-bearers of Change in Ladakh– individual women or groups of women, who fought structural, social norms in this tough geographical area to bring development and positive changes, be it in the field of education, economy, or saving their natural or cultural heritage.
and
Gizala Shabnam - “Contemporary Challenges of Women in Ladakh” – a view of the evolving nature of the socio-economic, geographic and cultural challenges faced by women in Ladakh. This can include how age old challenges reflect themselves differently in today's world.

Congratulations!

Story from Borderland

The Road to nowwhere


Ashutosh Sharma



The slight figure of a young woman, clutching an ailing child to her, moves steadily through the twisted paths and treacherous footholds carved in the sheer rock faces of the towering snow-covered mountains. She knows that the slightest mistake can cost a life, but Zahida Bi has embarked on this foot-journey from her village Murrah, located in the Peer Panjal range in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir, to reach a government hospital at Bufliaz in Surankote Tehsil, about 16 km away, to get her child treated. It will be dusk by the time she reaches the base, so she will take refuge at a relative’s place for the night. After the visit to the hospital in the morning, she will have to undertake this arduous journey again.








“In the absence of a primary health center in our far-off village, we are completely dependent on the basic health care services available in Surankote or Poonch. Even to board a passenger vehicle, we have to walk continuously for over six hours as there are no roads, virtually disconnecting us from the rest of the world,” rues Zahida Bi.

The border district of Poonch in the Jammu region has only 120 health facilities catering to 189 panchayats. The numbers may seem adequate for the scanty population they cover collectively, but the poor quality of service at these centers is further marred by their distance from the people who reside in villages in the remote interiors.

According to the 2011 Census, Poonch has a population of about 476,820, over 90 per cent of which resides in villages. Villages like Murrah are tucked away in the higher reaches and remain cut off during the winters due to the absence of roads. On the other hand, there are at least 16 road projects, conceived under Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), on which work has been abandoned half way for various reasons. In 2006, the Ministry of Panchayati Raj categorised Poonch as one of the country's 250 most backward districts. It is one of the three districts in Jammu and Kashmir currently receiving funds from the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme.

The intense geographical challenges, coupled with the conspicuous absence of basic amenities, public infrastructure and administrative inertia, throw up tales of extreme hardship faced by villagers every day. Poverty is the primary issue in such villages where militants once ruled the roost and did not allow any development work. Though militancy has decreased considerably, the villagers are yet to taste the fruits of economic development.

Children are the worst-affected. Besides arranging for firewood and fodder from the nearby forests, they have to ferry eatables and dry rations to their homes as the area does not have an outlet of the Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution (CAPD) Department. Their problems are further compounded during the rains and flash floods.

Haji Mohammad Aslam, Sarpanch of Murrah, says, “We paid heavy human costs during the years of militancy. Though peace has been restored, the promises of development in this backward village are yet to be fulfilled. A large majority of village youth are doing menial jobs in big cities simply because there are no employment opportunities in Poonch. The government has even failed to provide us basic amenities like safe drinking water.”

“Without a road, the government cannot begin or accelerate developmental work here,” opines Ghulam Din, a local resident, adding that between Kalaali and Murrah, two concrete pillars meant for a bridge stand tall at Laadian. The construction work was reportedly suspended halfway due to unknown reasons. “In the absence of the bridge, many people, especially children, have lost their lives in flash floods,” he says and regrets, “We have made many representations to the Roads and Buildings Department but to no avail. The bridge needs to be spanned immediately. It will ensure supply of all essentials to our villages through mules round the year.”

According to villagers, agriculture and livestock are their mainstay but the concerned departments are doing precious little to help them in these sectors.

When these issues were brought to the notice of the then District Deputy Commissioner, Ajeet Kumar Sahu, he said, “The area remained out of development focus due to militancy and geographical challenges. I have recently sent a proposal to the government listing the issues of this particular village among the top ten development issues being faced by the district.”

Charkha Features

Going Backwards


Harvesting food security

BABA MAYARAM






Practising traditional utera methods has helped Dhadaw farmers keep away the harmful aspects of chemical farming

At the foothills of Datla mountain of Satpuda Valley in the Hoshangabad district of Madhya Pradesh is located the picturesque village of Dhadaw. Located on the banks of Dudhi River that also defines the boundary of the district, Dhadaw falls in the district’s forest belt. Within the periphery of this village lies a world that has efficiently maintained the essence of traditional agricultural practices — a remarkable feat at a time when farmers are increasingly quitting this occupation across the country.

Known as utera cropping, six to seven types of crops are sown simultaneously in this type of cultivation. For example, seeds of urad, jawar, paddy, tilli, tuar, sama and kodo are mixed and then sown collectively. Sown in June, the crop is harvested at different times; urad is harvested first, followed by paddy, jawar and tuar.

Sixty-year-old Ganpat, busy harvesting the crop with his hansiya (reaping hook), shares: “Almost nothing or very less money is required for utera farming. With the combination of our hard work, labour of the bullocks and some help from the monsoon, our crops get ready for harvesting. Every year, we save some seeds for the following season, saving the cost of buying seeds. The bullocks also give us fertilisers which, in turn, nourish our soil.”

As he scales the scaffold to keep parrots and other birds away from the chickpea crop, he explains the significance of utera cropping in their lives. “Utera gives us the complete meal — dal, rice, wheat and oil. It fulfils our yearly requirements of pulses, oil seeds, and cereals. It gives cereals for human beings, stem, straw and fodder for animals, bio-fertilisers for soil and bio pesticide for crops.”

According to the District Gazetteer, people of this region earlier followed Milwan (mixed) farming, in which legumes are sown to maintain the fertility of the soil. Mixed crops are sown in various ratios. Birra was sown by mixing wheat and chana; tiwda and chana were also mixed; cotton, sesame, kodo and jawar were sown together.

Another benefit of sowing legumes along with other crops is that it lowers the need for additional nitrogen-based inputs. Farmers believe that if one crop fails in utera, other crops compensate for it — a sharp contrast to cash crops, where farmers suffer intensely if the crop is destroyed by insects or pests, or even by natural forces. In 2011, soybean crops were completely destroyed and three farmers committed suicide in Hoshangabad.

Ramkhyali Thakur, a farmer from Dhadaw, considers this cropping method to be better than chemical farming because of its low dependence on money and chemical fertilisers. Since every crop gets ready at different interval, family members usually suffice to carry out the harvest. This saves their limited financial resources that would otherwise go into hiring expensive farm labourers and harvester machines. In all, this traditional form of agricultural practice makes a multi-faceted contribution to food security, preservation of soil, live stock breeding, bio-diversity and environmental concerns.

A few years ago, every household had a kitchen garden in which utera crops were sown. Many green vegetables, seasonal fruits and cereals would be planted in the backyard of every house. Bhata, tomatoes, green chilli, ginger, ladies finger, semi (ballar), corn, jawar, among others, were planted. Munga, lemon, berries and guava from these kitchen gardens were a good source of nutrition for the children. Water from household chores would be recycled to feed these crops. Pity, this practice is limited to merely a handful of families.

The livelihood of the people of Dhadaw strongly depends on the traditional utera method and on the forest. The farm and forest duo gifts them everything they require for their daily lives. It also preserves biodiversity by preserving soil, water and the environment.

Utera and mixed cropping are not the only methods of traditional farming that have the potential to liberate us from the shackles of chemical farming. There are several other methods of traditional farming, depending on the climatic and environment conditions of a particular region; satgajra (seven grains), navdanya (nine pulses), and barah anaja (twelve cereals) are various forms of agricultural practices. Each has its own benefits: they resist pest invasion, help increase natural fertilisation of the soil and provides food security.

According to Chandrabhan, an ardent advocate of utera farming, “Chemical farming is burning the soil. It is killing the micro-organisms which help make the soil more fertile. Our fellow farmers need to get rid of their dependency on chemicals. It is up to us to turn the tide.”

(Charkha Features)

Cultivating Self Reliance

Sushila Murmu, a tribal woman in a nondescript hamlet called Paharpur located in the Kathikund block — 27 km from Dumka in Jharkhand, was struggling hard, till three years ago, to change the mindset of the villagers who had dashed her hopes of a better tomorrow. Today, when she looks back, she notes with satisfaction the entire village’s support for her. The journey, however, has been no cakewalk.






The only woman in the entire village to have completed her school education, Sushila was upset at seeing people of her community quit farming due to heavy losses and forced to migrate to other States in search of livelihood. She wanted to put a halt to the trend. With her husband Mahadev Tuddu, she started cultivating the infertile land to transform it into a lush green field and tried her best to inspire her fellow villagers, at first with no success.

She, however, did not give up. She restarted from the scratch; this time targeting the womenfolk. Day-long chats of motivation and encouragement helped her gain their confidence. Soon, she was associated with non-profit organisation Lahanti and started her own self help group ( SHG). She called the SHG Beli Lahanti.

In the last few years, Sushila has successfully shown the way to self-dependence through farming. The transformation received a boost with the assistance of the Poorest Areas Civil Society (PACS) programme, an initiative of the U.K. government’s Department for International Development (DFID) aimed at the welfare of socially excluded groups.

Under the PACS programme, Sushila brought together a group of women and gave them lessons in community farming. Her sustained endeavours not only empowered women but also encouraged the adivasi community to break the cycle of poverty through concerted and coordinated efforts. Sharing her experiences, Sushila says, “Tribal women are believed to be backbone of their community. It was because of such an ethos that we could infuse a sense of confidence and community among Santhals who were struggling to survive. The results are before everybody: how we turned rocky and dry land into cultivable land through our collective efforts.”

While there is a considerable decrease in the seasonal mass migration from the village now, its residents also enjoy a proportionate increase in their collective prosperity. Today, the village is food and financially secure like never before. Now, self-reliance in farming has earned them a livelihood, collectively farming the vast tracts of land which were earlier left barren. The children are now being able to study without interruptions through the year.

Sushila’s SHG spread awareness about MGNREGA and procured job cards for all those looking to enrol themselves. Soon the group of women launched a movement against the middlemen who had monopolised job cards and pass-books issued in the name of villagers under this scheme. Thereafter, the group started targeting exploitative private money lenders whose land- grabbing had devastated the lives of poor villagers.

“We motivated the villagers to reclaim their lands in Paharpur, Kodarchela, Lakhanpur, Kadma, Pakardeeh and Manjhdeeha. The moneylenders have been chased out of the agrarian business today,” says Sushila proudly.

It was only after a series of such achievements that Sushila could win the confidence of the men folk of the village to come together and find socially sustainable solutions to some of the most pressing problems facing their people. “Soon after the first evaluation of the SHG, we took a loan of Rs. 25,000 from the bank. We used it to cultivate potato and had a good harvest of 20 quintals. After selling the surplus produce, we repaid the borrowed money. Today, we are self-reliant in farming and are growing almost every crop. Consequently, every woman in the village is earning a monthly income of Rs. 1500 through agriculture and allied activities. Some families were able to start their own small businesses,” says Sushila.

The group’s crusade has led to a drastic decline in the sale and purchase of liquor in the area, besides closure of illicit liquor manufacturing distilleries. The women also diligently attend meetings at the Panchayat Bhawan where, every Thursday, they curiously gather information related to government welfare schemes. In these meetings, they also table social development issues. “Our group members are now more aware of the Forest Rights Act, for instance. They not only participated in the panchayat elections but also stood for and won the seats for Panchayat Committee and Ward Member. Recognising the efforts of the group, the district administration has handed over the implementation of the Public Distribution System to them, thus bringing transparency to this beleaguered scheme,” says Sushila.

Charkha Announces

Sanjoy Ghose Media Fellowship 2013
For highlighting development issues of women in Ladakh

The Sanjoy Ghose Media Fellowship aims at providing a platform to writers who have the zeal to go beyond the usual and highlight invisible development issues of the women living in the rural borderlands.
The Fellowship shall provide an opportunity for writers to delve into the challenges faced by the women of rural disadvantaged communities and reflect the status of development as perceived by these women. The Fellowship will support in-depth research, travel and writing. The writings are expected to highlight little-known strengths and travails of the women of this remote but significant part of India with a view to bringing them into the mainstream development fold.







Theme
One Fellowship on Women as Flag-bearers of Change in Ladakh– individual women or groups of women, who fought structural, social norms in this tough geographical area to bring development and positive changes, be it in the field of education, economy, or saving their natural or cultural heritage.
One Fellowship on the “Contemporary Challenges of Women in Ladakh” – a view of the evolving nature of the socio-economic, geographic and cultural challenges faced by women in Ladakh. This can include how age old challenges reflect themselves differently in today's world.

Duration

Six months

Eligibility
The two Fellowships are open to writers with at least one year of professional experience in any field. Students pursuing graduation (final year) and post graduation can also apply.
Preference will be given to women writers from Ladakh region
Freelance writers and aspiring writers, as well as those interested in social issues of Ladakh, are encouraged to apply. Journalists associated with a publication or media house are eligible to apply. Previous Charkha Fellows and writers currently availing benefits of any other fellowship or a similar scheme of financial assistance are not eligible to apply

Application Guidelines

All potential applicants must submit the following as a part of their application; incomplete applications will not be submitted to the jury for consideration:

1. A detailed CV with information pertaining to educational qualifications, work experience and volunteer experiences
2. A Proposal of 800 words explaining the broad outline of the particular theme chosen by the applicant. This should include details like the relevance of theme in the context of Ladakh region today; key issue to be raised through writings, explaining how the writings can create any positive impact; and any experience of living or working in the area which has contributed to the choice of theme
3. Two articles published/unpublished over the past two years
4. Two letters of recommendation from persons in a related field who are known to the applicant professionally and not in any personal capacity
Applications may be sent by email to vermaachetna@gmail.com or chetna@charkha.org with the Subject: ‘Application for Sanjoy Ghose Media Fellowship (Ladakh) 2013’; or by post to:
Charkha Development Communication Network,
D – 1947, Palam Vihar, Gurgaon 122017, Haryana
All completed applications received shall be acknowledged by email

General

The selected Fellows will receive a fellowship of Rs 35,000/- each (subject to TDS
deductions) to support research, travel and writing in the given period.
The stipend will be released in two installments - the first as a travel grant at the start of the Fellowship Programme and the second after its successful completion
All Fellows will be required to attend sessions of a specially-designed ‘Mentoring Program’ as per schedule during the six months of the Fellowship that entails attending sessions in Delhi and elsewhere, with all expenses being covered by Charkha
The selected Fellows will be required to submit at least five well-researched articles in English, Hindi or Urdu with ten - fifteen high-resolution photographs on the chosen subject during the period of six months. At least two of these articles must be positive stories
Articles arising out of the Fellowship Programme must be submitted only to Charkha for publication through Charkha Features. Charkha has the right to get the articles published with due credit given to the writers without any additional payment
Copyright of all work will rest with the writers
Last date for receiving completed applications is 31 March 2013
For further queries contact –
Chetna Verma
09416202082

Information regarding fellowship in regional media

Charkha announces "Sanjoy Ghose Media Fellowship 2013"

Charkha Announces

Sanjoy Ghose Media Fellowship 2013

The Sanjoy Ghose Media Fellowship aims at providing a platform to writers who have the zeal to go beyond the usual and highlight invisible development issues of the communities living in the rural borderlands.
The Fellowship shall provide an opportunity for writers to experience the social, economic and cultural life of rural disadvantaged communities and reflect the status of development as perceived by the people. The Fellowship will support in-depth research, travel and writing. The writings are expected to create impact by bring desired change in the issues being highlighted through the Fellowship writings.









Theme

Two Fellowships on rural development issues in the Jammu region including education, health, livelihood, Panchayati Raj, environment, disability and culture; and how these impact communities residing in rural areas of the Jammu region
One Fellowship on the issue of Congruence and Harmony in the backdrop of diverse socio-cultural communities that live in the Jammu region
One Fellowship on Gender issues in the Jammu region
One Fellowship on the Participation of Youth in improving the quality of life of rural communities in the Jammu region

Duration

Eight months

Eligibility

The Fellowships are open to writers with at least three years of professional experience
Preference will be given to women writers from the Jammu region
Accredited journalists are not eligible to apply
Previous Charkha Fellows and writers currently availing benefits of any other fellowship or a similar scheme of financial assistance are not eligible to apply
Application Guidelines
All potential applicants must submit the following as a part of their application; incomplete applications will not be submitted to the jury for consideration:
A detailed CV with information pertaining to educational qualifications, work experience and volunteer experiences
A Proposal of 1000 words explaining the broad outline of the particular theme chosen by the applicant. This should include details like the relevance of theme in the context of Jammu region today; key issue to be raised through writings, explaining how this can create positive impact; and any experience of living or working in the area which has contributed to the choice of theme
Three articles published over the past three years
Two letters of recommendation from persons in a related field who are known to the applicant professionally and not in any personal capacity
Applications may be sent by email to charkha@bol.net.in or chetna@charkha.org with the Subject: ‘Application for Sanjoy Ghose Media Fellowship 2013’; or by post to:

Charkha Development Communication Network,
D – 1947, Palam Vihar, Gurgaon 122017, Haryana
All completed applications received shall be acknowledged by email

General
The selected Fellows will receive a fellowship of Rs 50,000/- each (subject to TDS
deductions) to support research, travel and writing in the given period.
The stipend will be released in two installments - the first as a travel
grant at the start of the Fellowship Programme and the second after its
successful completion

All Fellows will be required to attend sessions of a specially-designed ‘Mentoring Program’ as per schedule during the eight months of the Fellowship that entails attending sessions in Delhi and elsewhere, with all expenses being covered by Charkha

The selected Fellows will be required to submit at least six well-researched articles in English, Hindi or Urdu with ten - fifteen high-resolution photographs on the chosen subject during the period of eight months. At least two of these articles must be positive stories

Articles arising out of the Fellowship Programme must be submitted only to Charkha for publication through Charkha Features. Charkha has the right to get the articles published with due credit given to the writers without any additional payment
Copyright of all work will rest with the writers
Last date for receiving completed applications is 04th March 2013

For further queries contact –
Chetna Verma

08860844210
0124 407 9082

Behind a herd of goats and clucking chickens scurrying around a dusty courtyard, three dilapidated doors open and shyly invite you into three dank cramped sheds. Each 10 by 10 feet structure resembles a defaced pigeon hole. It has a damaged roof. Inside, an internally displaced family of as many as 35 members live. This is not the story of one migrant family crammed into one tiny room. At the overcrowded Talwara camp in Reasi district, merely 72 km from Jammu, over 900 families severely affected by conflict live in similar or worse conditions. The camp resembles an unsightly slum. It was allotted to these families by the government 15 years ago. Most of the families living here escaped from remote villages nestled in the mountains following a reign of terror unleashed by armed insurgents during the 1990s. Naajo Devi’s is one such family, struggling to keep home and hearth together. She was forced to flee from her village Naosi with her husband, Rikhi Ram, seven sons and three daughters. Over time, Naajo’s family of 12 has expanded to 31, out of which 21 are Naajo’s grandchildren. “With a growing family, it has become difficult to survive in three small rooms. We sleep, cook, eat, and store household articles in the same home. It gets worse during the rainy season when water keeps dripping from the roof. We fear that the house could collapse any time.” says Naajo, rubbing her weathered hands in despair over her face. Naajo’s family, like several other migrants, miss their happy life back home where they had adequate agricultural land, livestock and natural resources. At the camp, lack of sustainable sources of income and the absence of government aid have made life miserable. Most of the camp dwellers do manual labour or menial jobs to earn a livelihood. Even their children have to toil along with the family for sheer survival. According to the government’s present relief policy, each displaced family is entitled to nine kg of flour and two kg of rice, besides a monthly cash compensation of Rs 400 for four members of a family. Also, each family unit is entitled to 10 litres of kerosene every month. Inhabitants of the camp rue that even this meagre entitlement reaches them slowly and sporadically. Of the 994 households at the camp, only 655 are presently entitled to relief and rations. Sadly, the remaining 339 households have no assistance from any quarter. These families include those who have survived bullets and blasts. A resident of Channa village, Daleep Singh, does not get any monthly relief. His four-year- old daughter and pregnant wife were shot dead by militants. He was also hit by several bullets before militants left him for dead. At the camp, Singh remarried and is now living with his second wife and two children. For the family’s sustenance, he works as a labourer on construction sites. “Due to lack of money, I could not get proper treatment for my gunshot wounds. The government has not registered my family therefore I am not entitled to any compensation amount. The government has provided us with a one-room tenement. That is it.” Those migrant families who have a net monthly income of Rs 5,000 or more have been debarred from the relief and cash compensation. An ex-service man, Punjab Singh of Thanol village, decries thispolicy, “I have been laid low by many ailments. Most of my pension is spent on medicines. I am not entitled to any compensation or relief as I am a retired employee. I ask this government: did I do anything wrong by serving the country?” Recalling memories of those dreadful days, Chawkidar of village Narkot, who also lives in the camp, said, “It was the cruellest day in our lives. On 17 April, 1998, 27 people were brutally killed by militants in our village. The next day, we fled the village en masse as there was no security of life.” “During those days, gun-toting militants would roam freely in groups and they would kill and torture people,” interjects the Namberdar of the village, Chain Singh, who also lives at the camp with his family. Owing to abysmal poverty, loss of dignity and pride is an everyday reality for these displaced people. A team from an Ahmedabad-based NGO, Justice on Trial, comprising former Governor of Himachal Pradesh, VS Kokje, and a former Additional Advocate General of the Rajasthan Government, GS Gill, highlighted their plight to the media in 2010. They claimed that starving migrant women were taking to the flesh trade – a reality that the world remains impervious to so far. In their report, “Ordeal Of Jammu Migrants - From Frying Pan To Fire,” the team mentioned the miserable and inhuman conditions of displaced villagers from areas as far as Surankote, Kote Ranka, Kalakote, Banihal, Ramban, Kishtwar, Kwad, Bhaderwah, Pul Doda and Udhampur. The report, however, has failed to bring about any change. The emotionally shaken villagers rue the fact that no one from the government has ever visited them. Their blood-stained memories still haunt them. Feelings of homelessness, post traumatic stress, depression, anxiety worsen their capacity to deal with the uncertainties life throws at them. Words of assurance by successive governments and politicians have proved inadequate. These internally displaced people believe they are a discriminated lot. The Apex Court and the High Court have also chided the state government for not treating them at par with Kashmiri migrants. According to Balwan Singh, Chairman, Migrant Action Committee, Reasi, “Migrants of Jammu and migrants of Kashmir are victims of the same circumstances. The government has failed to secure our lives and property - why then are we not being treated at par with the Kashmiri Pandit migrants?” While the security forces and the government claim a considerable decline in militancy, the migrants refuse to return to their homes. The reasons go beyond security concerns. As they have been away from their villages for many years, they feel if they go back they will have to start from scratch. They do not have money to rebuild their houses destroyed by militants and the weather, or for purchasing livestock and making their long abandoned land cultivable. “Restore our dignity. We are suffering in silence, unseen and unacknowledged. This is all we want to tell our government,” says every person surviving in these grimy migrant camps. bulawaa@gmail.com Charkha Features

Lacking in even the most basic facilities like drinking water, toilet and electricity, most of the government-aided schools in Patna cut a sorry picture Outside the Government Middle School in the Salimpora Ahra colony in Patna, one can catch sight of little children playing together amid loitering animals in the little space they call their playground. A cow and her calf tied to the school wall and stray dogs sniffing around the mounds of garbage in every nook presents a sordid picture of the lack of hygiene. Inside the school, one finds small class rooms overflowing with children — contrary to the guidelines of the Right to Education (RTE) Act regarding the basic infrastructure of schools across the country. The grim situation here is a replica of schools located elsewhere in the slum colonies of Patna. The Government Middle School located at the Dargah Road in Sulatanganj, for instance, is another example of unavailability of basic infrastructural facilities. From electricity to safe drinking water, sanitation to a quiet environment, teachers to administration — nothing seems to be in place here. The unavailability of safe drinking water results in diseases like diarrhoea and cholera; poor hygiene conditions make it a breeding ground for mosquitoes, thus causing malaria and dengue cases among the students, forcing them to miss classes for long periods. There are only urinals available and for defecation students have to rush home. Once they leave school, they come back only after a long nap or playing with their friends back home. Inefficient teachers, non-functional libraries and no extracurricular activities leave the children devoid of an overall development. The mid-day meal is available only for students in the primary section, contrary to the requirements of the national Mid Day Meal Program. There are only six teachers for 355 students — violating the prescribed teacher-pupil ratio of 1:30 as per the RTE Act. The appointed teachers are again not properly trained. According to Sabra Khatoon, mother of two students at the school, “the quality of teachers and education is quite poor. Teachers do not come to school and if they come at all, the purpose is not the nurturing of the students but the formality of marking their attendance in the register.” According to the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2012 recently released by Pratham, a non-government organisation, a large number of schools are yet to put in place the basic infrastructure prescribed under the RTE Act even as the March 31 deadline set for them is fast approaching. The report indicated that the trend of lack of teachers in schools continues in almost all the States. The prescribed teacher-pupil ratio has still not been implemented in more than half the schools (57.2 per cent) in 567 rural districts. The situation is worse in Bihar where the percentage of schools fulfilling the ratio was a dismal 8.5 in 2012. The school administrations, however, deny any lack of facility. “The school is providing the best studying environment to the students. The facilities like Mid Day Meals and money for uniform is available for them. There is no compromise on education,” said Nandu Rai, an assistant teacher of the Middle school in Salimpora Ahra. Mostly families which fall under the Below Poverty Line (BPL) send their children to these government-aided schools. The non-implementation of the schemes for the students defeats the parents’ hopes and gives rise to another set of problems like poor results, lack of interest, high dropout rates and child labour. (Charkha Features)

Poor health and road infrastructure in distant villages in border district of Poonch, Jammu

Forgotten Fight of People of Poonch Spending money thoughtlessly in the name of development will only fetch the state the awards while doing little for the rural and disadvantaged people of the state

KAJAL KAZMI/MEHNAZ AKHTER It is said, “To know the value of nine months, ask a mother who has given birth to a still born”. In the undulating terrain of Noona Bandi Village, tucked away in the hilly region of the Pir Panjal Range, fourteen kilometers from Poonch town in the Jammu region, there lives a young mother who has a different take. For her, it was not the nine months but the last few hours that were valuable. In the last hour of her labour pain, her dream of holding a new life in her arms was crushed. Her only fault: she lives in one of the most geographically difficult and remote regions of our country, where, to reach the motorable road - an incomplete one at that - it takes nearly half an hour of tossing about in the winding hills. Six months ago, twenty eight year old Fatima Bi, in her ninth month of pregnancy, suddenly felt the labor pains coming on and informed her husband Mohammad Aslam. Aslam immediately walked out of the house to look out for help. The houses in the village are scattered over the hillside with no dispensary or primary health care center for emergencies. As he did not own a vehicle, he asked the local driver from the village to meet him at the motorable road, about half an hour’s trek from his house, so she could be taken to the District Hospital in Poonch Town. He was in for a nasty surprise. The driver refused to show up, demanding two thousand rupees at that critical moment – and extra for petrol. According to the “Maa Tujhe Salaam” scheme that was launched by the Jammu and Kashmir Government on 26th January 2011, free hospital services are to be provided to all pregnant women and children up to the age of 5 years which includes free transport from home to health institutions. In blatant violation of the scheme, the driver refused to help the destitute couple as they had nothing to offer him. A helpless Fatima, writhing in pain, held on to Aslam’s hand and the couple started the trek down the road towards the hospital. Before they could reach, the unborn child was no more. Fatima is not the only one in the village who has suffered due to lack of basic infrastructural facilities in the state. Entire communities living in the tough topography have at some point lived such harrowing moments. Zulaikha, a resident of the adjoining Bandichichain Village, shared the suffering of her sister-in-law, Razia Kausar. “This year on 16th October, Razia complained of severe pain in her abdomen at two in the morning. Our family members called the ambulance but, with no hope of it turning up, they looked for a local driver or any source of transport but failed. As there is no dispensary in the village, she had to suffer the entire night and could be taken to the hospital only the next day.” The pain has been the villagers’ fate for several years now. Availability of two major facilities will play a major role in bringing change in the lives of this forgotten lot - one is of course the immediate help required in terms of a dispensary or a Primary Health Center; and the second, road connectivity. “There are nine hundred and fifty homes in our village with a total population of over six thousand in ten wards. We have such stories to share from every house. We all need solutions. We need connectivity and of course the Dispensary,” said Aamina Bi of Bandichichain Village. The Government invests several crores of rupees for improving the lives of the rural and the marginalized communities. In this case, for example, a road exists officially upto Bandichichain Village under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana. To support the claim, there is a sign board flaunting the date of completion as 29th April 2008, just a step away from the Kuccha Raasta that leads to the village. Any one visiting the village can figure where the problem lies. It is time the administrators had a look to check whether the money is being spent in the right direction. During his visit to J&K in November 2004, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had announced a Reconstruction Plan for J&K involving an outlay of Rs.24000 crore. A part of this project was devoted to the overall development in Poonch District under the project title “Development of Poonch” which was to be implemented by the Poonch Development Authority. For the infrastructural development of the region Rs. 243.52 Lakhs was sanctioned and released by the Central Government in 2006-07. The status of the project on record is complete while the life of the people in these remote villages continues to be miserable without the basic requirement of health care facilities and road connectivity. Developing a half road or a basic dispensary would only cover up for the problem, not solve the issue. An understanding of the geography and the need of the people surviving in this forgotten region is required to get to the root of the matter and then design an action plan. Spending money thoughtlessly in the name of development will only fetch the state the awards (like the one it received in November 2012 for Best Health Care Service award from India Today conclave) while doing little for the rural and disadvantaged people of the state. Charkha Features

Charkha's Urdu Feature Service

Charkha's Hindi Feature Service

Prayers from Border!

Fervent prayers for peace ASHUTOSH SHARMA “It is very easy to shout war cries from the interiors of metropolitan cities, but it is the villagers in border areas who bear the brunt every time,” say residents who live close to the Line of Control “Is it possible?” asks 85-year-old Begum Jaan with the astonished innocence of a naïve child, about the possibility of her daughter Fatima Begum, settled on the other side of the Line of Control (LoC), returning home to her village Nakka Manjhari, a few km from the LoC in Mendhar tehsil of Kashmir’s Poonch district on the Indian side. This obscure corner of India is currently in the news for the brutal killing of two soldiers on the Indian side and one dead on the Pakistani side, suspending hopes, faint as they were, of the likes of Begum Jaan being reunited with family on the other side of the border. The incident that led to the suspension of cross-LoC trade and bus service has left several divided families and pacifists on both sides deeply disturbed. Begum Jaan is among the thousands whose lives have been torn apart by the conflict and has been sending up fervent prayers of peace. Fatima Begum was stranded on the other side of the border during the turbulence of the 1965 war. At that time, Begum Jaan had assumed that they would be reunited shortly after the war ceased. But it was not to be. The wait simply kept getting longer as days turned into months and months into years. The years have been piling up for nearly five decades now. It was only in July last year that she could meet her long separated daughter for the first time. The joyous and tearful reunion, however, remained incomplete in spite of warm hugs and celebrations as Begum Jaan, by this time, had lost her sight. “Of what use was our meeting...now I cannot see anything. But I still wish for her to keep visiting me. I wish she settles here along with her family. Like my son, she, too, will inherit a share of my land and property,” says a visibly worried Begum Jaan, who regrets that her husband died before the reunion last year. “I wish to meet my daughter again and again…She lives in Jammu Gali at Gujranwalla in Pakistan. The only bus that connected us has now been suspended following the disturbances at the border. I request both the governments to resolve their issues separately and restore the bus service immediately. I pray that good sense prevails on both sides so that people like us can live and die in peace.” Sufferings of this humanitarian crisis are common on both sides of the LoC. According to Shahbaz Choudhary, a researcher in Political Science and a poet at heart hailing from the same village, “the wounds inflicted by Partition are still raw. We have grown up listening to heart-wrenching stories of separation scripted by Partition and subsequent wars. We have seen people crying their hearts out on meeting long-separated close relatives. Their sobs and cries, the warmth of their hugs and kisses, the final, desperate handshakes from the windows of moving buses, exchange of farewell notes at the site where cross-border travellers board or alight from the buses reflect the silent cries of the people who want only peace.” Boundaries created by the State have failed to alter the relationships migrants share with their land. “Can you imagine what elderly people who migrated to the other side ask visitors to bring along while returning from this part of Poonch? They ask for unusual things like leaves of the old trees they had once planted here, photographs of their homes, fields, village lanes, mountains, streams and voice recordings of relatives living here. They ask for soil of their birthplace so that when they die and are buried, a fistful of their homeland is filled in their graves,” says Shahbaz, adding, “these sensibilities and sentiments ought not to be muzzled by the insanity of war and hatred.” Every person living at the border is now hoping for the return of normalcy immediately so that the bus service, Paigam-e-Aman, can resume because prosperity without peace is virtually impossible to imagine in these border villages. Lal Hussain, another villager who has seen the boundaries insidiously weave divisions into their lives, says that innocent people on either side of the LoC must not be forgotten or taken for granted by either government. “It is very easy to shout war cries from the interiors of metropolitan cities but it is the villagers in border areas who bear the brunt every time,” says Lal who also wishes the bus Paigam-e-Aman’ resume its services soon as he walks away, humming lines of the famous poet Sahir Ludhyanvi: Jung to khud aik masla hai, jung kya maslon ka hal degi….Jung taltee rahay to behtar hai…… (War in itself is an issue, how can war resolve other issues? It is better if a war is kept in abeyance) (Charkha Features)