Integrated Rural Development Program (IRDP)
The Need for such a program:
Today, 88% of farming in India, is dependent on rain. Failing monsoons, land famine, damage to crops, starvation, small landholding of marginalized farmers which yield only one crop a year, force farmers to take huge debts.
While there has been rapid growth and development in urban areas, the rural India (“Bharat”) continues to face many problems like poverty, poor living standards, inadequate infrastructure facilities, distress in agriculture, unemployment, over-exploitation of natural resources etc.
Some of these problems are detailed below:
Poverty
Rural India comprises of one-third of the poverty-stricken individuals of which scheduled caste, scheduled tribes, landless laborers, and casual workers form a large part. The conditions of poverty among rural communities are characterized by a lack of financial resources and assets such as land, housing, sanitation, toilets, electricity, and other basic infrastructure.
Agriculture, an ailing sector that needs revival.
Agriculture is the backbone of the Indian economy, but the growth rate of agricultural output is gradually decreasing. And the relative contribution of agriculture to the GDP has declined from 30% in 1990-91 to around 15% in 2011-12. Agriculture produces 17.4% of economic output but over 51% of the workforce is employed in agriculture. The main reasons for uneconomical and inefficient agriculture are small farm holdings (67% of India’s farmland), singular/over-dependence on rainfall and climate, lack of irrigation facilities, low agriculture production (sufficient for household consumption only), high input costs and low prices.
Unemployment:
In rural communities, the problem of unemployment is severe. Being an agrarian society, individuals in rural areas are dependent on agricultural activities or small and marginal works in nearby urban areas. Agriculture in the Indian context is mainly dependent on rainfall. So only at the time of sowing, harvesting, and spraying fertilizer there is a requirement of workers and in the remaining season the farmers are unemployed. On the other hand, lack of basic literacy skills, lack of skill training and a dearth of alternate employment opportunities are some other factors contributing to high levels of unemployment.
Poor nutrition & health:
Half the population of rural areas live below the poverty line. Their health is gradually deteriorating due to the poor living conditions, unsafe and unhygienic delivery practices, no proper sanitation, non-availability of potable water, poor nutrition etc. If these problems are not addressed properly, they will perpetuate further, completely affecting the rural eco-system and the country’s social and economic development.
Five pillars of Integrated Rural Development Program
- Agriculture including afforestation.
- Animal Husbandry
- Water Resource Management including sanitation.
- Women’s Empowerment including women and farmers self-help groups.
- Farm and Non-Farm based Skills Training
Approach
YP takes a community driven and need based approach by establishing connect and participation of the community in its program. YP gets the commitment and ownership of the locals, by involving them in decision making. While the programs are designed in participation with the community members, the execution of the program is done by using local community resources and supervised by the village supervision committee. This provide livelihood to the local people as well as help develop an ownership of the community assets that are created.
Since YP provides the critical inputs- standardized design, bill of materials, quality specifications, effort estimation, and timelines and provides overall supervision, the execution on ground is much easier and robust. YP’s community assets have also been structurally audited by third party auditors, thus confirming the design and build quality.
YP has a program driven approach for managing its IRDP team of more than 50 associates- with a combination of engineers, agriculturists, and social workers. We can set up a new program team in less than 30-45 days depending on the size and complexity of the program.
YP’s IRDP programs have been funded by marquee sponsors like HSBC, Tata Trusts, Mukul Madhav Foundation, Volkart Foundation, R.G Manudhane Foundation, Time and Talent. The value of IRDP sponsored programs over the last 5 years is more than 12 crores.
YP also collaborates with Govt. agencies and other NGOs and foundations to implement large scale programs.
A Demo farm, Gaushala and Training centre has been set up in Wada, Palghar, as a knowledge and display center for showcasing innovative ideas and practices on a 3.5 acres land. Innovative and technology-based interventions for each of the five IRDP pillars are experimented, and show cased on this farm. All these practices help to reduce costs and increase income levels.
Experiments are conducted on the following sectors.
- Water and sanitation systems
- Renewable energy systems
- Agri-based practices for vegetables and crops cultivation, orchards, spices, medicinal plants, fodder, 1 gunta & 5 gunta projects for landless farmers.
- Livestock related practices for backyard poultry, goatry, piggery, edible and ornamental fish and rabbit rearing.
Another Demo farm is being set up in Ashti, Gadchiroli, to cater to the local geography, soil conditions and climate.
IRDP Programs: Palghar and Gadchiroli, Maharashtra.
Through active participation of local community, especially women, YP has implemented programs:
- To Improve drinking water availability through rain harvesting methods.
- Installing diesel and solar based lift irrigation system.
- Construction of household toilets to facilitate the declaration of Open Defecation Free (ODF) in municipalities and gram panchayats.
- Construction of safe houses cum skilling centers for menstruating Gond tribal women.
- Skilling SHGs to become entrepreneurs by starting micro enterprises in meal distribution, nurseries, producing urea briquettes, apparel production- like mask, bag making and sanitary napkins.
- Skilling programs to train farmers in best practices related to high value crops and vegetable cultivation covering from land preparation, selection of seeds to harvesting.
- Skilling programs for rearing livestock- backyard poultry, goat farming and piggery.
- Providing multiple sources of income to landless laborer through effective utilization of all the area surrounding his house by rearing backyard poultry and cultivating vegetables–underground, on ground, on roof, roof hangings and on fence.
- Linkages to accidental Insurance through recognition of Prior Learning (RPL).
YP’s community owned infrastructure initiatives.
- Constructed more than 6500 toilets in more than 30 villages and municipalities.
- Provided drinking water access through rain harvesting in 10 villages.
- Provided lift irrigation systems in more than 30 villages.
- Constructed safe houses cum skilling centres for menstruating Gond tribal women in 18 villages.
- Trained and skilled more than 20,000 farmers in SRI techniques.
- Trained more than 10,000 landless laborers in vocational multi skilling courses like plumbing, masonry, painting and basic electric work.
Collaborations: Govt. of Maharashtra
Government of Maharashtra requested YP to implement the Swachh Bharat Mission, in 12 of the toughest municipalities in Gadchiroli. As a Program Manager for the program, YP coordinated with the municipalities and government agencies, to create an ecosystem to build more than 5,500 toilets in less than 18 months and made these municipalities Open Defecation Free. (ODF).
