NGOs and Villages

In the North of India, at the footsteps of Himalaya, but also to the South of Delhi in Jaipur (the capital city of the state Rajasthan) we visited villages and towns which main source of income is agriculture. Surroundings of Jaipur have serious problems with the lack of water what affects crops, but also creates many social issues and accelerates poverty. People who live there are poor, yet they do not give up, and thanks to the aid of humanitarian NGOs (non-governmental organization) which is supported by farmers’ hard work - they try to improve their own fate. Especially extraordinary are women from those villages who want to break the old and patriarchal cycle of oppression, and thanks to the micro-loans they open their small workshops where they manufacture clothes and process food. This is a very good message about the Indian countryside that was till now known  only from its decay caused by the mass suicides of farmers, the displacement of farmers, and the land seizure in favor of industry or dams construction. Thanks to the work of such NGOs as CECOEDECON and Navdanya the future of Indian farmers can be different.

  CECOEDECON (Center for Community Economics and Development Consultants Society) was established as a response to the flood that in 1981 tremendously affected Jaipur’s surroundings and destroyed many villages and towns in Rajasthan. Later, CECOEDECON moved to its mission of educating farmers about the self-organizing and started to provide them with micro-loans, as well as systems of water-harvesting that became a great solution to the daily lack of water in the region (which is half-deserted). Today, they also help street children and promote campaigns against the global warming; each year CECOEDECON participates in the United Nations Climate Change Conferences.

  During our stay there, the volunteers of CECOEDECON who are not afraid of challenges and have great contact with the locals proved that the motto of their organization: “Where actions speak louder than words,” is not taken for granted. We could see those actions in every place we were visiting where each social group, each age, each gender is positively affected and transformed. It is sometimes very hard to believe that this change originate from a micro-loan that for us is an equivalent to a cinema ticket; yet for them means equality, development, and sustainability. It was the first time since long time, where I have seen an organization and people who “believe in the beauty of their dreams,” and who can change their local world, and by this little bit also change the global world.

  In the opposite to CECOEDECON, Navdanya which has its head-quarter at the footsteps of Himalaya takes care of only one – yet very important issue – the preservation of seeds. Navdanya established so called “seed banks” that preserve seeds use in agriculture, and those that for decades have been forgotten and now thanks to Navdanya are restituted to the common use. In 16 chapters of Navdanya that operate all over India, farmers can borrow seeds, grow them, and return back to the bank their surplus after the growing season. Why is this so important? In the last years, all over the world we observe a decrease in biodiversity in agriculture due to our activity - especially due to industrial farming, use of genetically modified food, and food monocultures. If this process will continue, soon we may face a global famine; like one in Ireland in the 19^th century.

   Navdanya was started by one of the most known Indian and global activists – Dr. Vandana Shiva, and is fulfilling its mission by saving seeds, promoting biodiversity, and global activism. They teach farmers how to cultivate their farms ecologically without the need of using non-natural fertilizers, pesticides, and other chemicals. Education of local farmers, and also people from all over the world that you can meet at Navdanya’s birth place close to Dehradun plays very important role in this organization. Dr. Shiva and Navdanya try to influence also world’s policy makers in order to protect farmers from big corporations and consumers from buying genetically modified food. What is the most important Navdanya gives freedom to farmers, freedom from corporations that try to take out of farmers’ pockets more and more money every year.

  Meeting such organizations as CECOEDECON and Navdanya gave me hope that such literally ‘organic’ work and volunteerism can lead many people to the permanent improvement of their lives; people who used to be marginalized and impoverished. Therefore, I encourage everyone coming to India to escape little bit the tourists’ paths and try to volunteer for a while at one of many India’s NGOs.

Lukasz W. Niparko