On
February 14, 2004 Jeevika SEWA Mandal (JSM) members from
10 villages gathered in Thada village to share their experiences
with the Jeevika program, identify areas for mutual learning,
and continue planning for their villages’ development.
With over one hundred JSM members in attendance the meeting
space was full of energy. As has become the norm at collective
JSM meetings, the meeting began with songs composed by the
village members about Jeevika.
After
the conclusion of the songs and some introductory remarks
by the SEWA organizers open discussion amongst the organizers
and the JSM members began. As might be imagined, the meeting
lasted many hours and flowed back and forth from experience
sharing to problem solving to future considerations. Among
the many topics discussed were recent alternative employment
initiatives in the individual villages, water governance,
various types of insurance, and the challenges associated
with the focusing on the poorest in a community. In hopes
of capturing the Jeevika process as it unfolds, a number
of perspectives shared by the JSM members during the meeting
are presented below .
Jasuben,
a JSM member from Sedla village, started the dialogue by
saying, “Under the Jeevika program, in order to provide
work to the poorest of the poor in my village, we need to
create a number of income generating activities in our village
in collaboration with the poorest members of our community.
Most
of the families work in salt pans. [Whereas the pumps that
supply the water to the pans are run on] diesel and kerosene,
these fuels are very much needed in salt pans. Currently,
they have to go around 20 kms to fill up diesel. If one
or two families could get license to sell diesel and kerosene
in Selda, they will be able to offer a service to their
own village and also get employment. Additionally, there
are 50-60 tractors and many motor cycles in Sedla, that
could benefit from having local access to fuel. Also, in
our village, many families belong to Muslim community. If
one or two households could work on poultry farming then
they will be able to earn good income.”
Next
