History of SARVAM
Sarvam was started in 2005 to carry out the research-oriented outreach programs of Sri Aurobindo Society concerning rural development. It started its action, adopting two villages, Poothurai and Perambai, along with their constituent hamlets, in the Villupuram district of Tamil Nadu, India.
Villupuram district is situated in the north-eastern part of the south Indian state Tamil Nadu, covering a total area of 7,222 sq. km, with a population of 0.36 million people. It is one of the most backward and poorest districts of Tamil Nadu. The footsteps of Sarvam can be traced in the timeline year-wise below
Timeline
The Integral Rural Development Programme began with major milestones in the areas of education and employment generation.
YEAR – 2005
1. Education
This program was initiated as a multidimensional approach to address the issues of unemployment and under-employment in the community; expansion of potential for agriculture and allied activities; promotion of micro enterprises; skill development and upgrade in skills, adapted for local industries; promotion of linkage between neighbouring manufacturing industry by facilitating outsourcing of ancillary processes to the villages.
2. Livelihood
This program was initiated as a multidimensional approach to address the issues of unemployment and under-employment in the community; expansion of potential for agriculture and allied activities; promotion of micro enterprises; skill development and upgrade in skills, adapted for local industries; promotion of linkage between neighbouring manufacturing industry by facilitating outsourcing of ancillary processes to the villages.
3. Women Empowerment
The de-silting of a water tank undertaken in August 2005 was unique in the region considering it was led, implemented, supervised and monitored by an all women team. From book-keeping to reporting on progress in accordance to government procedures was done by the women from local community.
YEAR – 2006
The Biggest Highlight of the Year
The biggest highlight of the year was that Cadbury Schweppes joined Sarvam in partnership to give crucial impetus to the rural development process.
1. Education
Two new school buildings were constructed, increasing the seating capacity to almost double. There 7 preschools, targeting 5–7-year olds, were not functioning and had fallen to disrepair. These schools were revived, repaired and a new centre was set up, taking the total to 8 preschool centres. New teachers, physical education trainer, and staff were also recruited to further the education of the students.
2. Livelihood
In the middle of 2006, Poothurai and Perambai panchayats were affected by drought. The drought worsened the situation for the villagers who could barely support their families with the agri-products under normal circumstances. Sarvam started many schemes that included training the people for alternate employment, providing monetary loans and foodstuff for the worst-affected, and generated awareness regarding the government schemes that were available.
The villages, which for years had suffered the apathy of government’s schemes, also saw new hope in the form of the programme Food for Work. Sarvam facilitated the visit of District Collector who conducted an orientation session for the community on the benefits of the government programmes. This lead to the first community-based implementation of government schemes at Poothurai.
Sarvam has encouraged a self-help group in Poothurai called ‘Samathana Pura’ to take some agricultural land on lease to demonstrate and promote appropriate agricultural technologies among the village farmers.
3. Housing
The construction of 23 houses was completed by October 2006 and the remaining 14 houses were near completion. The materials required for the work were sourced locally out of Sarvam’s funds and the labour component was contributed by the beneficiaries. An average amount of Rs.12,000 was spent on each house.
4. Health & Sanitation
The individual household toilets construction programme has received excellent community acceptance. The construction of 60 toilets was taken up during the first phase. The ‘Sulabh’ model which is approved by WHO, UNICEF and many governments was adopted for the programme.
YEAR – 2007
The Biggest Highlight of the Year
In 2007 Sarvam received recognition and acknowledgement by government authorities, both at district and block level, as well as from locally elected panchayat representatives for its work in village welfare and development schemes. Not resting on its laurels, there was continued momentum, with increased participation by the community and progressive growth in all areas of development undertaken, and new plans and programmes being added constantly.
A project that was carried out with the help of the government and local governing bodies was the construction of the link road between Poothurai and Pondicherry. Till 2007, there was a lack of direct access road between Poothurai village and Pondicherry and that meant a lot of employment, economic and development opportunities were lost. The villagers had been petitioning for 40 years about the same but the land was illegally occupied. The Sarvam worked with the District Collector and Village Administrative Office and impressed up on them that the 60 feet of land meant for road development was illegally occupied. Sarvam brought together the whole village and worked with the DC to obtain a sanction of ₹50lakhs for the road development project. This also resulted in direct employment opportunities for the people in the village from planning to execution.
1. Education
Apart from improving the education levels and facilities in preschools, primary and secondary schools, in 2007 Sarvam launched Children’s Corner, centres with a special focus on informal, non-conventional and integral methods of learning. Right from the beginning, nearly 250 children, between the ages 5 and 15 started attending the 7 centres set up. More girls than boys attend these centres, apart from remedial sessions for higher classes and they also participate in games and cultural activities. The centres are being run by coordinators specially trained by our resource personnel.
Monetary Help for Needy:Sarvam identified marginalized and needy children and provides them with academic, social and material inputs to ensure that they do not discontinue schooling due to economic constraints and other adverse family circumstances. Sarvam has advanced study loans which were repayable in monthly installments of Rs.100 each. The repaid amounts are being utilized as a revolving fund to continue supporting such needy students. Some female students of 8th standard and above walked 5 km to the nearest high school, and were facing problems due to eve-teasing and harassment and wastage of time. Concerned about their safety, the parents of these children usually forced them to drop out of school. To mitigate this problem, Sarvam has provided loans for the purchase of bicycles to these female students.
2. Media & Communication
A monthly village journal,Grama Pudiya Udayam, was launched in February 2007. It was organized and managed by village youth with support from Sarvam. The response from the community for the journal was overwhelming. It is even subscribed by several local government offices. The people’s participation in it is heartening, in addition, it is motivating youth not only to write about but also to emulate constructive, positive activities being taken up in other hamlets, villages and districts. The journal has also become a medium for Sarvam to spread word about its programmes and seek opinion of the local populace on the new activities planned.
3. Livelihood
To generate employment in the village, a tie up with leather product manufacturing units around Pondicherry was established to outsource components to women in the village. They were provided with the necessary training and equipment. Currently, this tie up is benefitting 40 women in the village. The skills imparted have also helped many women secure employment in leather product units in the nearby areas.
4. Satyam – Community Center
In this year, Sarvam built a multipurpose community centre Satyam in Poothurai village. The various functions that this centre fulfils are as follows:
– A meeting and activity centre for all kinds of groups: women, children, youth, farmers, community workers, etc.
– A library, reading room and television room.
– An auditorium where cultural and fine arts programs, educational films and multimedia shows are held.
– A village information centre with Internet access to provide information useful to the villagers.
– A silent contemplation room, a space for spiritual communion.
5. Sharanam – CSRT (Center for Sustainable Rural Transformation)
The work on Sharanam commenced on 1 July 2007.
YEAR – 2008 – 2010
1. Education
The years 2008–2010 were landmark years for the education movement carried out by Sarvam in the villages.
A 100% enrolment was achieved in 2009 at the primary and preschool stages. It was a matter of great satisfaction to reach this figure from 25% enrolment in a time span of three years.
From 2009 the students of Family and Human Services Department from University of Oregon, USA, have been visiting Pondicherry and participating in the village programs. The students were very appreciative of the accomplishments that had been achieved in the short time and with the limited resources.
Three new school buildings, toilets and a computer centre were constructed at the school, generating a lot of enthusiasm and belief among the locals.
In 2010, grants of educational scholarship of amounts up to `10,000 per student had been started. Educational loans worth `100,000 were sanctioned to 25 students. These loans were taken by parents to send their children to towns or other villages for higher or better education. With the creation of a high school in the village number of people applying for these loans has reduced drastically.
The graduating classes of 10th and 12th grades performed extremely well, increasing the average passing percentages and number of students passing by more than 40% from the previous years.
A creative initiative called Grassroots Comics, represented by Manas Baruah from Delhi, came forward to conduct sessions with the children and the adults. In these sessions, various topics such as hygiene, education, story writing and activities of Sarvam were depicted through comics. Similar creative outlets have become a part of the education endeavours.
In 2009, the first month-long Summer Camp was organized by Sarvam. These camps were organized with the aim of providing the children an opportunity to enjoy and learn. About 200 children between the ages of 6 and16 actively participated in this camp. The entire community got together to ensure that the camp was a complete success. From painting on stones, to crafting beautiful terracotta figurines and jewellery to learning yoga and karate, this camp was a kaleidoscope of activities. Along with the activities, the children learnt about the importance of developing self-confidence. The success of this camp gave Sarvam the confidence to make this camp an annual event.
2. Health
A government sub-health centre in Poothurai, which had gone defunct and dilapidated, was renovated and made functional to cater to the basic health needs. A nurse and some paramedics were appointed for the clinic. A tie-up was carried out with Sree Lakshmi Narayana Institute of Medical Sciences & Hospital (SLIMS) so that patients with more serious ailments could be taken there and treated on a regular basis. After a health survey, Sarvam along with the Lakshmi Narayana Hospital, issued health cards with all the necessary health details for every family in the village. People were made aware of the government program which provides health insurance to the people
JIPMER (a premier central government hospital) and SLIMS have been conducting regular health camps.
Sarvam contributed 30% and the government remaining 70% towards constructing a water tank to ensure safe drinking water to all in the villages.
3. Livelihood
The principal focus during these years was the promotion of alternate sources of income, as too many people are dependent on agriculture. Some of the important measures were as follows:
Setting up of dairying group in the project area: The idea and the proposal originated from the village women themselves and Sarvam laboured with them to transform it into a reality; 75 needy and deserving women from the villages, who were already familiar with tending cows, were selected for the programme. They were given adequate training in cattle-rearing, fodder and azolla cultivation by resource personnel from M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation and Krishi Vigyan Kendra. To initiate the programme, 75 cows were procured at a cost of `12,000 each, which Sarvam advanced as a loan to each of these women. A veterinarian and a volunteer from PONLAIT (the dairying cooperative of the Pondicherry government) assisted in ensuring the proper selection of the cows. Many of these women cultivated fodder and azolla themselves and supplied it to the other women also. Sarvam arranged a marketing tie up with Ponlait to sell 8 to 10 litres of milk per day. The collection of milk and its transportation to the PONLAIT procurement centres was arranged by the women themselves. From the first month onwards, each woman was able to take home an amount of `1,000 to 1,500 per month. Additional income was derived from the sale of cow dung as manure. One supplementary benefit was the good quality, nutritious milk consumed by the family members, especially children, of these women. This project proved to be highly successful and inspirational.
Alternate businesses: The application of the dairying model to other economic activities such as goat rearing, poultry, bee-keeping, fish culture, etc, proved to be equally successful, establishing many flourishing and enterprising entrepreneurs in the community. Sarvam provided expertise (by inviting government and private individuals and organizations working in each of these areas) and financial help for all these businesses.
Old women and widows abandoned by their family members, who could not be employed for physical labour, were assisted by Sarvam in procuring goats for rearing.
Micro enterprises such as equipment hiring, photo studio, construction equipment hiring, photocopying, etc., were promoted.
The community revolving fund of INR 200,000 was set up which served the community very effectively. People in dire need and distress were now not falling prey to usurious and unscrupulous money lenders.
2010 – Ongoing
The Biggest Highlight of the Year
Since 2010, we have been building on our earlier projects and programmes. All the foundations laid in the earlier years have led to a strong building of trust, development and happiness. We have had a few setbacks such as large-scale violence during elections at the local and state levels, which led to rivalries between groups in the community. This hampered the progress; lack of government support whenever a new administrative set-up came into existence; a dearth of funds; the Thane Cyclone which hit Pondicherry in late 2012 were a few set-backs. Despite all the roadblocks, there are big and small success stories too. Some of the highlights of this period are as follows:
1. Education
A watershed point of our education programme came in 2011–2012 when at the Poothurai village, the results of the board examinations for the 10th standard were announced and the students passed the exams creditably. Each one of the 37 students who took the exam had passed, 7 had scored above 90% and overall 19 students got scores above 75%. This was especially significant considering that almost all the parents in the village are illiterate and that till 2 years ago only about 15% of the students passed. Poothurai was especially proud of one student, Vijaya Priyadarshini, who earned the highest marks of all the 22 schools in the block. Interestingly, all the top three positions went to girls this year. Of special note is that two students received 100% marks in Science, two scored 99% in Social Studies and one earned 96% in Tamil.
‘Project Ringtones’—a HP-supported initiative by Sarvam seeks to accelerate village students’ mastery of computers so that they themselves can shape and define the uses of information technology in their own setting and context.
2. Media & Communication
Sarvam has been granted a license by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for setting up a Community Radio Station (CRS). The ministry has decided to grant license to ‘Pudiya Udayam’ to broadcast at 91.2MHz. The procedural activities are in progress and very soon the proposed CRS would be receiving the license. SARVAM has also signed up agreements with BECIL for technical assistance in setting up the radio station. Meanwhile, SARVAM is engaging the team in various training and workshops with multiple media groups and existing CRSs to gear them up to run their own CRS. Our resource people attended a training workshop on CRS in partnership with the Community Radio Forum (CRF), conducted in Velankanni, Nagapattinam. It was organized by the CRF in partnership with the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
3. Sharanam – CSRT
The Sharanam – CSRT building has been recognized by United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) as one of the most sustainable and green buildings in India and the details about the building is placed on their website. The centre is near completion. The village community which has been involved at all stages of construction are collective owners of a world-class building.
Many national and international agencies, research organizations, hospitals and medical institutes, corporates and students of various national and international colleges have observed the giant leaps that these villages have taken with the help of Sarvam to provide opportunities and their expertise for the overall development. These organizations and individuals add value in the core areas of work of Sarvam.