In the last century, the western Himalayan region, comprising the states of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, has suffered severe environmental degradation. Consequently, the residents of these states have found it increasingly difficult to gather the basic resources for daily subsistence – foodgrain, fuel, fodder, water & employment. This has led to heavy out-migration, particularly of able bodied males. The reduced availability of labor in the family has increased the daily workload of women in these Himalayan states. The central problem of the region is the loss of forest cover, leading to soil erosion and consequently less productive agricultural lands. Though almost two-thirds of the geographical area of Himachal Pradesh (HP) and Uttarakhand is designated as forest area, in reality, the forest cover is limited to just 31% in HP and about 42% in Uttarakhand. In addition, barely 15% of the geographical area in the mountain districts is cultivated. In both the hill states, landholdings on an average are less than one hectare.
In 2001, the Trust launched the Himmothan Pariyojana, along with its partner organisations, to address the key rural development issues that are affecting the Himalayan region, in a selective, but comprehensive manner.
The initiative has three components:
- Enhancing rural livelihoods through participatory watershed management
- Improving community health through drinking water and sanitation
- Livelihood Enhancement through farm and non-farm activities
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In May 2004, the Trust signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Uttarakhand (GoUA), for carrying out rural development projects in the state, under the Himmothan Pariyojana. The MoU will remain valid for a period of ten years and sets out the commitment of the Trust and GoUA to ensure the timely realization of goals under Himmothan Pariyojana. As an outcome of the MoU, a joint team was constituted to develop a framework of interventions over the next five years. The strategic plan would ensure that assistance is given to critical areas where funds are insufficient or not possible through conventional government funding channels.
Based on responses gathered through comprehensive interviews with stakeholders in the local communities, NPO leaders and government officials, the first phase of interventions has been a success and the initiative had a high degree of credibility in the state. Based on identified development needs of the region, especially Uttarakhand, and fitting with the objectives of the Trust, a strategy has been developed for future interventions, which stresses on the importance of these fitting in with the next phase of the World Bank supported projects, besides the significance of building up village level institutions, so that their capacities were sufficiently developed to be able to handle large funds brought in through these World Bank supported projects. Integrating NRM related interventions through, for example, combining of watershed and water supply projects, an emphasis on animal husbandry and fodder, and appropriate technologies have also been explored as options for future interventions. The importance of livelihood development strategies and setting up of centres of expertise has also been covered. A focused approach that complements, rather than duplicates the Governments efforts would be adopted.
Himmothan Cell
A five year strategic plan for Himmothan Pariyojana was developed in 2004-05, which suggested the setting up of the ‘Himmothan Pariyojana Cell’ to coordinate the activities of the initiative. Consequently, the Cell was set up in 2006, currently housed in Dehradun. The thrust areas of the Himmothan Cell involve: (a) developing a database on the status and management needs of natural resources and rural development issues in Uttarakhand and identifying areas of livelihood potential, besides facilitating knowledge management; (b) playing the role of an ‘idea incubator’ by exploring new innovations, particularly in the area of Natural Resource Management (NRM) and livelihood strategies; (c) facilitating linkages between the state Government, partner non-profit organisations and technical institutions to develop sustainable and scaleable strategies to help implement and better monitor Government led initiatives; (d) creating a unique identity for this initiative through brand building efforts; (e) assisting in monitoring of the Trust’s on-going projects under Himmothan Pariyojana and providing technical inputs to organizations participating in this program; (f) acting as a network and coordinating unit between all Himmothan Pariyojana partners in particular, but at a broader level, helping create linkages between various civil society institutions, Government agencies and donors; and (g) collaborating with the state government and partner agencies in activities that help increase awareness and build capacity of various village level institutions to directly undertake and implement projects, thus circumventing intermediary agencies.
Click here to download the report on a 'Study on Agrochemicals Usage in the Vegetable belts of Uttaranchal'
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Sir Ratan Tata Trust and the Government of Uttaranchal
Click here to download informative pamphlets on sanitation and environmental awareness developed for Himmothan Pariyojana