ENVIRONMENT

Sahara has been implementing environment protection programmes on yearly basis sponsored by ministry of environment and forests, govt. of India, New Delhi.

Sahara has been working for change management with farmers for sustainable agriculture and food security by providing management consultancy in using  local varieties of seeds, organic manurel like vermi compost, compost manure etc. to enrich the soils and reduce the quantum of irrigated water which has become very precious in drought affected areas. Sahara has also conducted bio-diversity exhibitions in rural areas for promoting and protecting usage of old local varieties of seeds, farming practices and food security.

Presently Sahara is also the District Observer Agency for DDS(RRA)/ Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate change  for the districts of Adilabad, Nizamabad, karimnagar, Medak and Hyderabad. It  has  a network of NGOs and schools who implements National Environment Awareness Campaigns every year. The Secretary/CF of Sahara (as Monitor of CAPART) monitored number of NGOs  in AP who have implemented Sanitary latrines Project and has good experience in implementation and execution of the sanitation work.

Present Activities:

• Water conservation measures- construction of rain water recharge and rain water recycling units
  
  
• Training on vermicompost, organic manure
  
  
• Tree plantation programs in urban and rural areas
  
  
• Conducting awareness camps on biodiversity, plastic usage and climate change
  
  
• Sustainable agriculture- awareness and training in promotion of traditional crops.
  
  

Achievements:

• Under village greenery programs, 6000 saplings were planted and maintained in Varadavelli. Boinpalli, Boorugupalli and Kodurpaka  villages of Karimnagar District and another 1,00,000 trees were in different areas.
  
  
• Provided 41 drinking Water hand pumps in remote and problematic villages of Karimnagar District. 
  
  
• Constructed 40  Roof  top rain water  harvesting units  and 60 recharge pits.
  
  
• Organized Bio-diversity Exhibitions and prepared Bio-diversity registers in Karimnagar and  Nizamabad districts to focus sustainable agriculture.
  
  
• Organized more than 100 Environment Awareness camps on different subjects like climate change, vermin compost, solid waste management from last one decade in different villages of Karimnagar, Nizamabad and Adilabad Districts of Telangana Region.
  
  
• Agriculture Extension and Training was provided to more than 1000 small and marginal farmers belonging to weaker sections at different intervals.  Emphasized for the usage of natural manure and pesticides. Agricultural loans and linkage programs with local banks through SHGs were provided. 
  
  

Success Stories:

Seed bank  by Kavitha

All the farmers in the villages are facing problems with fake seeds sold by different branded companies. Some times seeds do not germinate or do not with stand  to the pests attack during the crop or with the  seasons. They have to spend lot of money on fertilizers and pesticides and the returns are not in their hands. To address this issue Sahara has taken up awareness and training camps  and as a result many people got benefitted from them. Here are few cases-

Mrs Kavitha of Santhaipet village is a beedi worker and also  a member in  Village sangam and SHG.  Along with other women, she attended the  training of sustainable agriculture and maintenance of seed bank organised by Sahara with the support of IGSSS.  During the training, she learned the importance of local variety of seeds, procuring, dressing and preserving of  seeds. She took the advantage of this training and started collecting seeds from her own field and from other farmers.  She procured 16 varieties of local seeds.  After due process, started maintaining a  seed bank  and sold them during the this of  season May – June 2005.  She gained a profit of Rs. 3500. The farmers who bought the seeds   from Kavitha are  happy and she  is also used  the same seeds and got good crop.   Kavitha would like to continue the seed bank   because it gives an alternative income source as beedi-rolling work is getting reduced and harmful to the health.

Seed bank by Aare Buchavva of Endrial village

Aare Buchavva  has 2 acres of  agriculture land.  Her family members invest lot of money on growing commercial crops like chilly, cotton etc. But,  some times they don’t get the investment due to loss of crops. Buchavva also works on beedi rolling that gives a regular and assured income to the family. As the beedi rolling work is coming down and also it has affected her health very much,  she does not want to  continue the beedi rolling work. Though she is helpless, but continuing her beedi rolling work to supplement the income of  the family.

After attending to the training programme on sustainable agriculture and seed banks, she  started collecting the best varieties of local seeds and storing them as per the guidelines given in the training programme. She has collected 12 varieties of local seeds such as maize, wheat, chena, thill, sajja, pea, jowar, etc. and applied the natural methods of cleaning and storing. She has procured nearly 10 quintals of seeds and sold to other farmers in the village and earned about Rs 5000 during the season. This work has involved the period of 4 months and investment of Rs 15000 for which she got support from Sahara and SHG savings.

She is confident that she can run the Seed  Bank in future and supply qualitative seeds to the farmers.  She finds  this is encouraging as an alternative  income source.  She says  that  while attending to this,  she can also do her beedi rolling and other agricultural work.

She thanked Sahara and IGSSS  for providing training and support to take such an activity.

ROOF TOP RAIN WATER HARVESTING SYSTEM

Drinking water is a problem in every village of Tadwai mandal. The efforts made by Sahara had become fruitful in supplying pure drinking water at least for few months in a year to the student, teachers, and the parents of this area. Not only the supply of water, but, an awareness among the students was generated on how to catch the water at their door step.

A Roop top Rain Water harvesting system was constructed at Zilla Parishad High School premises, Yerrapahad where nearly 300 students avail the benefit apart from teachers, parents and other visitors. The tank has the capacity of 2000 liters storage. 

In Yarrapahad village, the harvested rainwater was examined and tested by the schoolteachers, students as well as by the general public. It was an exciting experience for them to drink such pure and sweet water. They told that it is something interesting and can be experimented by many people. Mr Bal Reddy, the village Sarpanch expressed his desire to construct such harvesting system  at village Secretariat and appealed villagers to construct the systems in their respective houses.