PDF“Do not stand on a high pedestal and take five cents in your hand and say, ‘Here, my poor man,’ but be grateful that the poor man is there, so that by making a gift to him you are able to help yourself.”
- Swami Vivekananda1
- Presented below in three little boxes is the abstract of the case on Ramaiah from Punganur – taken during three different points of time. Box item 1 taken in 2002 – a year after Ramaiah has constructed his farm pond, the second in 2003 and the third one in 2009.
- Read through the three featured box items and we will meet again.
Box Item No. 1 Farm pond: A means for poverty reduction
Ramaiah from Penchupalle village – Punganur Mandal, Chittoor district, Andhra Pradesh…. Since 1999 – DHAN Foundation implementing its Tank programme at Punganur……In 2001 – construction of farm pond in Ramaiah’s land….
Impact: Complete rainfed farming in 5.5 acres of land growing groundnut (2.5 acres), ragi (acre 1.0), rainfed paddy – Byrodlu (0.5 acre) and horse gram (1 acre) before…. After the excavation of the pond cultivates paddy variety in 0.5 acre. Yield – 900 kgs of paddy nearly double the usual yield of 500 kgs. Additionally – cultivation of second crop, which was previously unimaginable before – paddy (12.5 cents), coriander (10 cents), chilies (2.5 cents) and tomato (2.5 cents) and planted mango, guava, pongamia, drumstick, papaya and castor in addition to cucumber and ridge gourd on the bunds. Byrodlu is a colloquial word for tank.
Social changes: From a daily wager to a full-time farmer – increase in trust and respect among villagers – easily get credit in and around the village – increase in responsibility – reduced drinking of alcohol to a great extent.
Future plans: Ramaiah wants to bring more area under cultivation – to ensure food security for his family by growing paddy on his own land – to renovate his old colony house – to purchase PVC pipes for cultivating vegetables towards the upstream side of the pond.
Box Item No. 2 Impact of Farm pond
Impact during the second year: Ramaiah grew a variety of crops (paddy, tomato, coriander, other vegetable crops for household consumption) in small patches all over his land – got an income of nearly Rs. 24,000 in one year. From this income he made the following expenditure and investments: Rs. 4,100 for household expenses; repaid Rs. 7,500 towards his old debt and got back his pair of cows – then sold the cows and purchased a diesel engine – purchased a pair of milch animals and is earning . 80 per day from the sale of milk – earns . 10,000 by hiring out the diesel engine after his use – purchased a nearby house plot for Rs. 1,500.