Sustainable Integrated Farming Systems (SIFS)

Through this initiative we have adopted a group of 6 farmers with one acre of land each near to our Farmers’ Training Centre. Considering such small landholding as a curse, these farmers including a woman farmer left the land idle and became dependent on uncertain and occasional employment in nearby villages.

On interacting with these farmers we came to know their difficulties such as lack of electricity, availability of water, boundary wall and knowhow to increase productivity of land. While assuring them handholding till making them confident, our staff formed an association of these 6 farmers known as ‘farmers’ club’ and collated information about all existing schemes and support systems of Government for farmers’ with less land holding.

As of now Govindalaya has helped them submitting application under Deep Borewell Secha Karyakrama, and raised funds to the tune of INR 1,20,000/- for them to deposit beneficiary contribution. This scheme aims at irrigating uncultivated but cultivable land through cluster development approach. Four or more applicants with a minimum of one acre land each on making payment 10% beneficiary contribution of the project cost would get one Deep Borewell and electricity upto bore well point under the scheme.

Presently borewell digging is ongoing on lands of these club members. Shortly all of them will have water, electricity and irrigation on their land. Separately we are exploring possibilities for them to get solar fencing for their lands.

In the mean time all the six members of this club are regularly attending our farmers’ trainings and are participating in our planning of six different model Sustainable Integrated Farming Systems (SIFS) for them to grow horticulture and diary products 365 days a year. Through SIFS approach a farmer with about 1 Acre of plane land can make profit of about hundred forty thousand rupees a year. Our targeted timeline to set up these six SIFS is one year from the date of commencement of work.

Kindly consider donating Rs. 15,000/- to help us guiding one farmer to set up Sustainable Integrated Farming System and earn livelihood with dignity. Please go to sponsor a needy section.

Common Services Centers Scheme

This initiative also known as Jan Seva Kendra Yojna is a part of the ambitious National e-Governance Plan (NeGP). The Scheme envisages the setting up of 100,000+ IT-enabled access points to be implemented in a Public-Private Partnership (PPP). The Common Service Centers (CSCs) have been positioned as front end delivery outlets for delivery of Government as well as Private Sector services to enable delivery of G2C (Government to Citizen) and B2C (Business to Client) services at Grampanchayat level.

Village Level Entrepreneurs (VLE) were identified through private companies in Odisha to manage CSCs. Due to corporate interests in commercial exploitation of the scheme designated VLEs were not getting appropriate training and handholding; as a result CSC scheme itself was becoming unpopular.

In such circumstances Govindalaya became VLE in about 13 panchayats of 5 adjacent CD Blocks i.e. Nandahandi, Umerkote, Papdahandi, Nabarangpur and Borigumma. Appointed and trained village youth to manage CSCs at Grampanchayat headquarters. Out of the little business linked voluntary contribution made by these 13 VLEs, we are now training another batch of VLEs. Through this approach we aim at setting up and effectively manage CSCs throughout 80 Blocks of KBK region thereby creating employment avenues for about 400 village youth before end of 2016.

Under Govindalaya’s management of CSCs each designated VLE is making profit of around hundred twenty thousand rupees a year on mere investment of around forty thousand rupees. In deserving cases we are supplying free hardware to our VLEs.

Kindly consider donating Rs. 6,000/- to help us handholding one college dropout in becoming VLE and earn livelihood with dignity. Please go to sponsor a needy section.