Life was a struggle for Chinta Devi (80+) who suffered from some form of mental illness. As if the strains of having to make ends meet through farming activities were not enough, she had been going out to defecate in the open for as long as she could remember. It was a practice followed for generations – representing immense challenges for the elderly, particularly during monsoons and winters. She lived with her widowed daughter-in-law Rajavanti Devi (wife of late Biswamohan Singh) and four grandsons in Bandichapra Village (Baligaw panchayat, Parsa Block) in Saran district of Bihar. About 40 households lived in that village, all of who did not own toilets.

Even after an early marriage, Rekha Devi continued her study, helped her husband in agriculture and did wage labour to contribute to her family. She took two doses of loan from her SHG and purchased two buffaloes. She became a Krishi Sakhi, got training on new practices of agro-ecology, applied the learning in her field, thus increasing her income to Rs 1.25 lakh per annum. She formed and ran FFS, provided support to 30 SHG members in the adoption of various practices that reduced their cost of cultivation by Rs 1,575 per bigha and increased the production of Bajra by 30 kg per bigha.

Introduction Eachangadu village in Mathur Panchayat Union is situated in Krishnagiri District of Tamil Nadu. In this village, the demand for water was greater than its availability. This made groundwater recharge a crucial aspect of overall water resource management through the revival of aquifers in this area. Water conservation and harvesting structures needed to be constructed to augment and improve the level of groundwater. Besides, the renovation of traditional water bodies also helped in drought mitigation. So, the construction of recharge wells and renovation of minor irrigation tank were undertaken under MGNREGS.

It’s been an uphill battle for the seaside town of Pondicherry in the Union Territory of Puducherry over the past few months as district officials made every effort to rejuvenate, renovate and restore water bodies in the district, many of which were almost lost or encroached upon. The initiative is a part of Puducherry’s Neerum Oorum (Water and Village) Scheme to adopt water bodies, renovate them and protect them. According to District Collector, Dr. T. Arun, many of the water bodies and ponds were almost lost, overrun as they were with foliage, waste or encroachments. Some of them were almost flat and dry. “Given the high levels of groundwater exploitation, water shortage is common here during many months. So we decided to set things right.” he said.

Ruhi Begum is an exception in her community, she formed the SHG in her village, kept books of accounts, then selected as a Krishi Sakhi, and then as a master CRP. She took a loan from SHG for the purchase of seeds, then took a second instalment and installed an irrigation system and converted her entire land into irrigated one. She received training on agro-ecology and applied those in her field, producde chemical-free vegetables, and increased her income to Rs 2.9 lakh from just Rs 60,000 per annum before joining in SHG. She supports 510 SHG members in the adoption of new practices, also provides on-field supports to farmers of UP, Haryana, and Punjab, she is now pursuing her MSW

Introduction Cherpu BP, which consists of Cherpu, Avinissery, Paralam and Valachira GPs, is located in Thrissur District. The farmers in these GPs undertake paddy cultivation. With groundwater being the main source of irrigation, the water becomes scarce during the summer season. Chovoorthazham, an area formed by portions of Avinissery, Cherpu and Paralam, is a boundary of the Chanam paddy field. Earlier, paddy cultivation was done with the support of temporary bunds.

With a view to addressing enormous amounts of waste being generated and dumped on road sides and open spaces, the president, project development officer, elected representatives and staff of Bashettihalli gram panchayat (GP) in Bangalore Rural district of Karnataka are making concerted efforts to manage solid and liquid waste. The move is in keeping with the ODF plus parameters outlined by the nationwide campaign – Swachh Bharat Mission Gramin (SBM-G). The parameters include regular availability and usage of toilets, management of solid and liquid waste, cleanliness of water resources, maintenance of public and household toilets, menstrual hygiene management and awareness on personal hygiene.

Champa Singh, the eldest daughter, lost her father in her early age, left school at 8th to help her mother in agriculture, lost her husband just 2 months after marriage, lost her sister due to lack of treatment had only 2 acres of land with an annual income of Rs 69,000. She joined in SHG and later selected as Krishi Sakhi, got training on agro-ecology, applied the same in her land, crop yield increased, 300 SHG members got inspired to see the result started following her. She is running an NPM shop in her village, her annual income increased to Rs 2,97,000.)

Introduction Karippechal stream flows through Cherthala South, Kadakkarappally and Kanjikuzhi Gram Panchayats of Kanjikuzhi Block Panchayat of Alappuzha District. Over the years, the deposits from the shoreline and river pollution silted the flow of the stream, causing flood and other related disasters during the rainy season. This affected the lives of the people, especially those who were living on the shoreline. The floods also led to unhealthy living conditions such as contamination of drinking water, improper sanitation facilities, waterborne diseases, etc., during the monsoon season. Three local self-government bodies of the district, namely, Kanjikuzhi Block Panchayat (BP), Kadakkarappally GP and Cherthala South GP worked in synergy for revival of the stream by desilting it.

The rainwater harvesting (RWH) system installed atop Rachana Park in Kopargaon township of Ahmednagar in Maharashtra benefits a total of 90 families living in the premises. Rain collected from 1850 sqm of the rooftop effectively charges 7 borewells, providing for all the water needs of the community.This was reported by a Jal Shakti Abhiyan (JSA) team comprising Smt. Richa Bagla, Nodal Officer, Ahmednagar District and Shri. Jitendra Wagh, Deputy Collector, EGS, Ahmednagar who visited the area situated close to Nagar-Manmad highway on 11th July, 2019 to inspect the RWH system.