Securing a Future

In rural India, many farmers live hand to mouth. Poor agricultural technology, difficult working conditions and natural disasters often leave families unable to produce enough food to survive.

Around 60% of India’s land is not irrigated and does not soak up water effectively leaving farmers at the mercy of the weather. A poor monsoon means a bad harvest which in turn leads to rising debts and the debt trap can be a death trap driving many farmers to contemplate suicide. An estimated 18,000 farmers have taken their own lives in four Indian states alone since 2001.

In Karnataka state, in Southern India, SCIAF is working alongside local partner Prakurthi to help small scale farmers fight drought and increase food production and household income. Prakurthi show farmers how to irrigate their land so that the soil is able to suck up more moisture. They also encourage families to grow a greater variety of crops which can be sold for profit at local markets.

In the village of Balasandra in the Kolar district of Karnataka live Venkateshapa, aged 52, and his wife Shanthamma, 47. They are a typical middle aged couple and their story is similar to many small scale farmers. Their daughter has married and moved away and their son works as a welder 110 km away in the city of Bangalore.

Venkateshapa and Shanthamma were unable to secure a loan to pay for improvements to their farmland. They could not afford to buy seeds, pay for labour or irrigate their three acres of arid land. They were forced to borrow grain from neighbours in order to feed themselves and only ate two meals a day if they were lucky. Both had to take on extra jobs as labourers to make ends meet but as they grew older, they struggled to keep up the back-breaking farm work.

A few years ago, Shanthamma became a member of the newly formed Sri Byreshwari Mahila Sangha (Women’s Society) – a self help group who’s

top priority was to irrigate the land, improving the quality of the soil. They decided to build a silt-trap – a small dam 20 metres long and five feet deep on a patch of barren land – built and paid for with the help of local farmers.

At one time water was only available during the three months of monsoon rains. Now, thanks to the dam, farmers have access to it for much of the year. The extra water is used to cultivate fruit, crops and food for livestock in three villages.

Venkateshappa and Shanthamma bought 100 sapota seedlings (a local fruit), subsidised by Sri Byreshwari Mahila Sangha, and with the profits they made from selling their crop were able to buy a cow. Now, thanks to better soil conditions, they can harvest 300 kilos of finger millet a year which keeps them well fed. They eat three meals a day and earn around 25,000 Rupees a year (£357) by selling milk and fruit. They have even been able to use their extra income to buy a bicycle and a television set.

Venkateshappa said: “I am no longer worried about what will happen in our old age now. Our future is secure.”

Thanks to the partnership between SCIAF and Prakurthi, 16 other families in Balasandra village share a similar story of hope.