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The 80% seed subsidy promised under Madhya Pradesh Millet Mission has not taken off, pushing farmers into the vicious cycle of\nhigh seed cost, poor grain pricing and perennial debt

Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh: Last December, Badriprasad Meena (54) from Makhan Nagar in Narmadapuram sold a total of 112.50 quintals of sorghum at the government procurement centre in Seoni Malwa tehsil. He spent Rs 21,000 just to transport the coarse grains to the centre in Banapura, located 75 km from his village.

Although there is a rule to make full payment for the grains sold\nat government centres within three to seven days of procurement, he received\nonly partial payment citing poor quality of sorghum. Badriprasad, however,\nclaims that centre in-charge Rajendra Lovanshi had declared his sorghum to be\nof good quality, and had given him an invoice of Rs 3.57 lakh after accepting the\npurchase. He had to wait until March 15 to get the payment, but what he got was only Rs 1.78 lakh.

Woman sieving the grain in front of the house (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

Badriprasad’s son Sanjay Meena (28) describes the whole incident. “After\n15 days of making the purchase, Lovanshi started saying that sorghum was not of\ngood quality, so he cannot pay much. ‘Take it away,’ he used to tell me. Nevertheless,\nthe reality is that we had transported the produce only after the sample was\npassed by Lovanshi,” he says.

Badriprasad and Sanjay allege that the sorghum was spoilt after\nbeing kept in the open at the procurement centre for 15 days. “There was no\nproper maintenance. The produce was so damaged that it could not be sold even\nin the open market,” they say.

Due to non-payment of a private loan of Rs 1.50 lakh that they had\ntaken for farming, the family’s financial burden is increasing day by day. “We had no option but to approach the district Collector to get the money. We had taken the loan at 6% monthly interest,” they add.

Subsequently, Narmadapuram Collector Sonia Meena intervened in the\nmatter and issued a letter to Lovanshi instructing that the farmer be paid the\nfull amount. Despite this, Badriprasad did not get the full payment.

On seeking his response, Lovanshi tells 101Reporters that efforts are being made to pay the remaining\namount to the farmer soon.

Alleging that farmers producing coarse grains were being harassed,\nSurendra Rajput, zilla sangathan mantri, Bharatiya Kisan Union, says arrangements for marketing have not been made. “If\nfull payment is not made, we will protest,” he warns.

Sanjay Meena asking the committee in-charge for payment (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

Aimless mission

To boost\nmillet production, the state government launched the Madhya Pradesh State\nMillet Mission Scheme on April 11 last year. Being implemented in the 2023-24\nand 2024-25 fiscals, the scheme has an outlay of Rs 23.25 crore. All districts are\npart of the scheme, under which advanced certified seeds of coarse\ngrains will be provided to farmers at a subsidy of 80% from cooperative/government institutions.

Training for farmers, fairs, workshops, seminars, food\nfestivals and road shows will be organised at the district and state levels to\npromote production, processing and marketing of millets. However, the reality\nis that millet farmers in Madhya Pradesh are not even aware of the scheme.

In Mandla district, the tribal community consumes coarse grains mainly sorghum,\nkodo, kutki and bajra. Naval\nSingh Maravi (51) from Rampuri says that in the last kharif (June-July 2023)\nseason, he sowed kodo and kutki seeds that he had stored in his\nhome on one acre each to get 23 quintals of kodo millet\nand 12 quintals of kutki millet.

Maravi has no information about the millet scheme and its\nbenefits. Other villagers also do not have any information in this regard. If\nthey had got the benefits under the scheme, they could have done farming more\nvigorously to earn better profits. At present, kodo rice is sold at Rs 25 per kg and kutki rice at Rs 38 to 40 per kg in the open market.

Farmer Shankar Tadwal cleaning coarse grains and maize at home (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

Shankar Tadwal (51) of Barda village of Sondwa tehsil of Barwani district cultivates coarse grains, maize and sorghum, in three acres. He conserves the required amount of seeds for sowing at his home because the seeds are expensive when bought from the market. He says he has not received subsidised seeds from the government to date. He always keeps visiting agricultural offices in the area, but is not aware of any scheme related to coarse grains.

Tadwal says the problem is not in producing coarse grains, but in selling. The procurement centres are very far away. It costs more to transport grains there. Also, 90% of the farmers in his village do not own a tractor-trolley. “If the grains are not sold quickly due to reasons like faulty weigh scale, network issues that stall online purchase portal or absence of quality checkers at the procurement centre, the rented tractor-trolley will have to stay at the centre for more than a day. In such cases, the rent increases day by day, and eats into the profit,” Tadwal explains.

Man Singh Gurjar (52) from Narmadapuram preserves around 600 types of seeds — of wheat, soybean, paddy,\ngram, lentil, fruits and vegetables — and gives lectures to farmers\nand students of agricultural colleges on seed conservation. Even he is not aware of the millet mission,\nbecause the government has not made any effort to disseminate information among\nfarmers.

Ravi Dutt Singh, National Organization Secretary of Rashtriya Kisan Mazdoor Mahasangh, who came out to make the farmers aware, walking in the front (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

Farmers say they have been growing coarse grains for generations. Earlier, there was no cultivation of wheat, paddy, soybean and pulses. There used to be only coarse grains, but neither was it given any attention earlier nor is it being given any attention now. Many have stopped growing coarse grains.

Rashtriya Kisan Mazdoor Mahasangh general secretary Ravi Dutt Singh (58) says that the millet mission might be running on paper. “I have met the government officials on many occasions as a representative of farmers, yet I have no information regarding this scheme.”

Despite the emphasis on training programmes and study tours outside the state for farmers under the millet mission, such activities have not taken off.

However, Narmadapuram District Deputy Director (Agriculture) JR Hedau tells 101Reporters that they have been informing the farmers about the scheme by organising kisan melas. He claims such a fair was organised in the district on March 4, which saw the presence of a large number of farmers.

Edited by Rekha Pulinnoli

Cover Photo - Farmer Badriprasad Meena's millet farm (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

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The service neither had cold storage facility nor a fixed running schedule, but\nfarmers are ready to give it a second chance provided these issues are sorted\nout

Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh: When\nthe Kisan Rail service ran for the first and only time on Chhindwara-Howrah route on\nOctober 28, 2020, Om Raghuvanshi (48) did not take the potatoes from his three-acre farm in Chhindwara to the Nagpur market in Maharashtra, even for sheer curiosity.

“Nagpur mandi is just about three hours from\nChhindwara by road. If I send my potatoes by train, it will take another one\nhour. Also, the train will not come inside our fields. We have to load it onto the\ntrucks and bring to the station, from where it should be unloaded from trucks\nand loaded into the train. This cycle does not end here. Again, there is\nunloading at the destination station and boarding in another truck to take\nit to the market,” reasoned Raghuvanshi, hailing from Kurlai in Sankh village panchayat of Chhindwara in Madhya Pradesh.

Like him, most of the farmers along this route did not entertain the experimental run, which they thought would bring losses only as the produce has to be loaded and unloaded two times more compared to the hassle-free truck journey. Besides the extra labour and related costs, the chances of spoilage of fresh fruits and vegetables increased manifold due to the constant handling. No wonder, the train never ran on this route again.

To use Kisan trains, farmers were to pay a fixed fare decided according to the weight of the produce they transport and the distance covered. The trains had a minimum of 12 coaches and a maximum of 24 coaches. “It costs me around Rs 4,500 [Rs 111 per quintal] to take a potato-laden truck to Nagpur. If I had used Kisan Rail, train fare would have been Rs 3,200 [Rs 80 per quintal after Railways subsidy]. But it is the labour charges related to multiple loading and unloading that really make the difference.”

Eight labourers are needed to harvest 40 quintals of potato from the field in a day. “Labourers are not easily available when work availability\nis high. Moreover, they demand up to Rs 400 per day against the usual Rs 250. Wages will soar further if plucking and loading coincide with a local festival,” said Raghuvanshi.

As the problems were not specific to Chhindwara route, the demand-driven Kisan trains stopped services across the country by January last year.

Inauguration of the Kisan Rail (Photo sourced by Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

Blowing hot and cold

The first\nKisan Rail service was flagged off on August 7, 2020, from Devlali in\nMaharashtra to Danapur in Bihar. Up to January 31 last year, Railways operated 2,359 Kisan Rail\nservices, transporting 7.9 lakh tonnes of perishables. Maharashtra had the\nhighest number of outward services at 1,838, while Madhya Pradesh had 74.

In the 2020-21\nUnion Budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that to “build a seamless\nnational cold supply chain for perishables, inclusive of milk, meat and fish,\nthe Indian Railways will set up a Kisan Rail through PPP [public private\npartnership] arrangements”. This means the project was clearly envisaged with\nrefrigerated coaches.

However, like in all other states, the\nKisan service in Madhya Pradesh did not have a cold storage facility. On one\nend was the possibility of damage to fruits and vegetables due to repeated\nloading and unloading, and on the other was the risk of spoilage due to heat.\nIf the trains ran late, nothing could prevent rotting of perishables.

Local farmers do not pluck green vegetables and\nfruits until the evening before to ensure that they stay fresh. They are packed\nin the fields and loaded onto trucks there itself. \"Damaged fruits and vegetables do not fetch much money in the market, so heavy losses are bound to happen if the farmer is not careful...Forget cold storage, even the date and time of when the train would reach its final destination was not fixed. That was why the patronage was very low,” said Mithun\nBhalawi (24) from Pachgaon in Chhindwara.

“In my farm, we begin potato harvesting eight days in advance. I start around 3 am and reach Nagpur early in the morning, right in time for the bidding. This would not have been possible if Kisan Rail service was utilised,” Raghuvanshi said.

The Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) was the nodal ministry for implementing the Operation Greens (TOP to TOTAL) Scheme, under which Kisan Rail service operated. Up to March 31, 2022, MoFPI had allocated Rs 50 crore to cover the subsidy at the rate of 50% in freight to farmers. As it was not continued in 2022-23 fiscal, the Railways had been continuing the subsidy at a rate of 45%.

The Centre has claimed to have distributed Rs 4 crore as subsidy to farmers who transport their produce using Kisan Rail services till January 31 last year. It was Rs 27.79 crore in the 2020-21 and Rs 121.86 crore in 2021-22 fiscal. According to a newsreport, when the operational costs of Kisan Rail increased beyond the MoFPI-allocated Rs 50 crore, the Railways in August 2021 wrote to the MoFPI seeking an allocation of at least Rs 150 crore. However, the MoFPI did not approve the proposal. As a result, the Railways was forced to write off Rs 71.86 crore it spent as excess subsidy on Kisan Rail services in 2021-22.

Santosh\nPatware, provincial vice president, Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU)-Madhya Pradesh,\nsaid the intentions of the Central government were good, but the trains were\nnot planned and run as per farmers’ needs. “There is still a need for these\ntrains,” he asserted.

To run or not to run
\n

Farmers are of\nthe view that Kisan Rail service should be revived, but it should be run on time\nafter preparing a suitable timetable. It should not be run in such a manner that\na train reaches its destination after the market in that place is closed. This problem\ncan be solved once the time is fixed on the lines of passenger trains, so that\nin case of a halt on tracks, it is cleared before other goods trains. They also\nwant cold storage facilities to keep their produce fresh.

However, the\nRailways’ point of view is quite different. Railway Board Additional Director General (Public Relations) Yogesh\nBaweja told 101Reporters that Kisan\nRail service was run for the benefit of farmers, but was stopped due to lack of\ndemand. “If farmers demand for their operation again, they will be run again,” he assures. He, however, did not give a clear answer on whether the\nservice was properly planned or not.

When 101Reporters contacted Harshit\nSrivastava, Chief Public Relation Officer, West Central Railway Jabalpur Zone, he said Kisan Rail service was a special facility. “Running\npassenger trains is the first priority. Hence, the Railways can stop any\nspecial train if it wants. The decision to run these trains are taken by the\nRailway Board itself. The West Central Railway does not run any Kisan Rail at present.”

Patware said BKU-Madhya Pradesh unit will write a letter to the Railway Board about the demands raised by farmers. Arun Awasthi, vice president, Madhya Pradesh unit of the Railway Up Downers Progressive Welfare Association, said he had earlier demanded that the Kisan Rail service be run in a timely manner, and will repeat that demand again.

Meanwhile, local railway officials wishing anonymity said that since freight trains are not run as per a fixed timetable, it is not possible at present to run Kisan trains on time. As dedicated freight corridors have been announced in the recent interim Budget, they hope goods will be transported more swiftly when the corridors come into existence. The catch is it will take many years before these lines are built and opened.

Edited by Rekha Pulinnoli

Cover Photo - Young farmer Mithun Bhalawi working in the field (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

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There is no power or water supply in the forested area, but people have settled here as the compensation they got is not enough to buy new plots

Dhar, Madhya Pradesh: Surrounded by water on three sides is a nondescript hillock where 3,500\npeople live. There is no potable water, electricity,\nor even a proper footpath in this forested area in Dhar district of Madhya Pradesh. Yet, these people, mostly from tribes like Bhilala, have been\nputting up with the problems and living here since 2018.

They originally belonged to Utawali, Chauki, Kothida, Patelpura, Bhainsakho Khurd, Bhainsakho Buzurg, Jamanda Sarai, Devjhiri and Kundiya villages. Their lives changed drastically when the work on Karam dam, built on River Karam in Dharampuri tehsil, began in 2018.

All the nine villages fell in the area acquired by the government for construction and were at the risk of inundation once the dam was built on the Narmada's tributary. Hence, they had no option but to leave.

“Slowly, our villages began to submerge. Some shifted to\nnearby villages and to the relatives' houses, but those who\nhad no place to go chose this spot to settle down,” says Dharmendra Badukiya (42), who has\nmade this unnamed hillock his place of stay after the dam snatched away his\nhome in Utawali.

“If someone is sick, we have to carry him/her on our shoulders for three\nkm to reach the main road, from where a four-wheeler can be taken to reach the nearest hospital,” he says.

Kala Bai Dawar (65) also lived in her house in Utawali with her family\ncomprising her husband, son, daughter-in-law and grandson. They had 1.25 bighas of land, where they used to cultivate paddy and maize in the rainy season and grew wheat in the kharif season. The family received Rs 2.28 lakh as compensation for the land lost. “Now, to make ends meet, my husband works as a\nlabourer. When needed, I also contribute by working as a farmhand,” she says.

Detailing about the difficulties the women face, Bai says they have to\nwalk to Sarai, a village located 3 km, to get water in summers. There is some\nrelief during the monsoons as they can collect water from a natural\nspring in the forest area.

Luckily, they do not have to go that far for their ration supplies. When the villagers were displaced, the\nration shops were also relocated to places they moved. So, they can access their Public Distribution System (PDS) shop located within a km distance on foot or by bicycle.

People who are not able to climb hills, go to nearby villages 2 to 3 kilometers away to collect water on foot, bicycle or bike (Photo sourced by Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

Income snatched

These people have come a long way — from being farmers working in their own land to becoming agricultural labourers after displacement. On average, each family had two to five acres of land. Those who did not have any, lived on leased land.

After displacement, about 90% of the families now\nget their income through daily wage labour. People go to surrounding\nvillages or Pithampur industrial area for work. Some have goats and poultry. Some grow paddy and maize in\nleftover portions of their land in their original villages. The area remained submerged until August last year, when a leakage in the main wall of the dam resulted in the emptying of water through a bypass channel. People have taken up cultivation in these plots now.

Suresh Badukiya (41) of Bhainsakho Khurd had 14 goats and two cows before displacement. He and his wife did farm work in other people's land. Suresh also used to take up harvesting of crops in bulk. His annual income ranged between Rs 60,000 and Rs 85,000. When there was a need for money, he would sell a goat for Rs 5,000 to 6,000. Mostly, three to five goats are sold in a year to cover the expenses.

The Rs 5 lakh he received was not enough to buy land, so the family now live in a hut in Palasamal Tola, a part of the village which is in the forest and comes under Kothida panchayat. Currently, he has five goats and two cows. Sadly, in the last one-and-a-half years, four goats have been eaten by jackals, wild boars and tigers. He makes the same money as before, but attack from wild animals is an issue. His son and daughter study outside and stay in a hostel.

Gulab Singh (30) lived in Patelpura Mohalla of Kothida panchayat before displacement. He did not have ancestral property and hence received an incentive of Rs 5 lakh. He used to work at a thread company for a monthly pay of Rs 16,000 for 10 months in a year. However, after displacement, the family lives in a hut on the hillock.

\"I cannot leave them alone because of the looming threat from wild animals. There is no electricity or water facility, so I have to fetch water. I do farm work in nearby villages to earn Rs 250 a day for 20 to 25 days a month. So, my monthly earnings fluctuate between Rs 5,000 and Rs 6,250. My father has cleared half an acre of land on the hillock, after getting it on lease from the forest department. We grow rain-fed maize and paddy there. We do not cultivate wheat due to lack of water and electricity,\" Gulab says.

Meagre relief

Under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, a compensation of Rs 5 lakh per hectare was provided for irrigated land and Rs 4 lakh per hectare for non-irrigated land. An incentive of Rs 5 lakh was given to land owning farmers in lieu of rehabilitation, besides the compensation for their acquired land. For the heads of landless families, an incentive amount of Rs 5 lakh was given for rehabilitation.

According to Narmada Bachao Andolan member Mukesh Bhagoriya, 1,500 families in nine villages were resettled under the Act. “The 2013 Act has a provision for compensating leased land, which has not been fulfilled here. Of the displaced, 100 people did not get compensation for their own land. Also, landless sons of 120 farmers did not get the incentive,” he claimed.

According to Bhagoriya, 350 of the total 1,500 live on the hillock. “Those\nwho are well-off bought land in other villages and built houses there. Some\nfamilies migrated, while others occupied government land in nearby villages,” he says, while\ninforming that he has written to the State Revenue Department, Madhya\nPradesh Narmada Valley Development Authority and the Minister of Water Resources\nDepartment on the issue.

Kala’s husband, Mangilal Dawar (67) tells 101Reporters\nthat the government provided him a compensation of Rs 5 lakh , but it was not enough\nto purchase a new property elsewhere. “I sent my son and daughter-in-law to Indore, so that they can at least\nearn a living for themselves. They work as labourers,” he says.

Being landless, Amar Singh (42) of Utawali got only Rs 5 lakh for relocation. His father received\nRs 13 lakh for the land he owned, and he divided this compensation among his three sons and himself. “The land we were living on had a borewell\nand over 50 fruit trees. No money can ever compensate for that loss. Basically, the government left us to fend for ourselves. They\nhad promised a step by step rehabilitation, but we had been actually misled. The money I got was insufficient to relocate,” he says.

Repeated attempts by 101Reporters\nto contact Collector Priyank Mishra on the issue went in vain. Efforts to reach out to Dharampuri MLA Panchilal\nMeda also proved futile. However, BJP MP from Dhar,\nChhatar Singh Darbar, tells 101Reporters\nthat all the available government provisions and facilities have been duly\nimplemented for them. He further assured that any existing shortcomings would\nbe addressed.

Rahul Yadav, who had earlier fought for the people displaced in Madhya Pradesh due to the Sardar Sarovar Project\nbuilt across the Narmada in Gujarat, says the assessment of trees, borewells,\nwells and other constructions on the land was not done, due to which the displaced\npeople did not benefit fully. “The government should have built new settlements\nand provided them with facilities such as electricity, water supply, roads, shops,\nmarkets, schools and anganwadis,” he says.

Power supply, proper education\ndistant dreams

Dharmendra has to go to someone else’s house in a nearby village when the battery charge\nin his mobile phone is low. “Some people have an emergency lighting system, which\nthey charge in nearby villages so that they can have some source of lighting at\nnight,” he says.

In 2019, the inhabitants of the hillock collectively pooled their\nresources to draw an electricity line from Sarai.\nHowever, wild animals damaged them (the area has the presence of wild boar, jackal and tiger) and caused disruptions. So now, they do not\nget power supply at all.

Utawali panchayat sarpanch\nRadha Bhai Gawad says she submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister on\nthe issues faced by the displaced when she went to Bhopal in January last\nyear, but nothing happened. Panchayat secretary Chainsingh Bundela says he also raised the demand that electricity be provided, and roads and drains be\nbuilt.

Kothida sarpanch Sewanta\nVasunia says the panchayat faced budget constraints in establishing permanent\ninfrastructure for roads, water supply and electricity. “Yet, we supply\nwater to the families on the hillock by employing water tankers. We also consistently\ncommunicate the needs with the government officials,’ she informs.

Education system has collapsed in the affected\nvillages. Bhagoriya says the building in Utawali housing government primary middle school and an anganwadi centre has submerged. So was the case of Prempura primary school in Kotida. “The\ngovernment has not constructed new school buildings to date. Utawali school and\nanganwadi centre run from a house on Dhar Road. Similarly, Prempura school\nfunctions from a house in New Prempura,” Bhagoriya says.

A teacher tells 101Reporters\non condition of anonymity that the government was not even paying rent to the landowners. “When they get irritated about this, we are forced to explain\nthings to them,” the teacher says.

Meanwhile, villagers are trying to make things\nbetter for their children. “The lives of our children have\nbeen affected. I have sent my son to his maternal uncle’s house, located 30\nkm away in Kakadda of Khargone district, to ensure that he is educated well,” Amar concludes.

Edited by Tanya Shrivastava

Cover Photo - People from the displaced tribal community climb the hill while carrying water in pots on their heads (Photo sourced by Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

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The water has become so unsafe that people cannot touch it without the fear of skin diseases or use it for drinking purposes or irrigation

Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh: It does not take much for water to change its\ncourse — from a life-giver to a life taker. Residents in over 250 villages along\nthe banks of River Kshipra know this from experience. The rising pollution from\nindustrial effluents has made the river water unfit even for all tasks.

“There was a time when villagers depended on the river for\neverything. Now, we\ncannot touch the water,” said Rahul Anjana, the deputy sarpanch of Sikandari panchayat located on the banks of the\nKshipra near Ujjain.

Washing clothes here means more harm than good. Cattle do not\ndrink the water now, thanks to the strange smell. “The labourers who take water from the Kshipra for irrigating rabi crops suffer from skin diseases and are not available for work,” he adds.

However, wheat farmers have no option other than using this contaminated\nwater, as borewells cannot satisfy the water needs of wheat crop cultivated in large\nareas. They stay away from the Kshipra when it comes to onion and garlic. If not, the crops will simply rot. Only those with wells,\nborewells or stepwells cultivate onion and garlic now. Others, despite having\nland, buy them.

“On average, wheat output per acre using the Kshipra water is only\n10 to 11 quintals normally and 15 quintals in case of a good harvest, whereas\ngenerally one acre land can provide 20 to 25 quintals of wheat. Even farmers admit\nthat the land is losing its fertility due to the polluted water,” said Anjana.

Rameshwar Chauhan, the panchayat secretary of Dendiya that has a population of around 3,500, told 101Reporters\nthat farmers could not grow vegetables here. “Even the land gives out a different smell when the Kshipra water is used for irrigation. Animals become sick after contacting the water. For us, it is itching,” he detailed.

Study says it all

Dedicated to Lord Shiva, Mahakaleshwar\nJyotirlinga in Ujjain is one of the 12 Jyotirlinga shrines in the country. It\nis on the banks of the Kshipra, where Maha\nKumbh Mela is held every 12 years. But even its holy status has not helped improve\nthe Kshipra’s water quality.

Acting on a petition filed by environmentalist Sachin Dave in February, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) formed a\nnodal agency in April to look into the issue of pollution due to discharge of industrial\nwaste and other human activities in the Kshipra. A report presented by Dave at the NGT, Bhopal, claimed that the main reason for the murky Kshipra water\nwas its connection with River Khan.

Originating from Indore, the Khan receives polluted water from big\nindustries in the city. Later, it joins the Kshipra near Shani Temple in Ujjain.\nAccording to the study report, the colour of the water here has turned black. Although\nthe civic managements of the cities situated on the banks claim\nthat the polluted water is being released only after treatment, this is not\ncompletely true. Sewage treatment plants are installed\nfor the drains in these cities, but nothing can be said about how well they work.

Praveen Patel, whose village is located on the border\nof Indore-Dewas district, said the Kshipra flows half-a-km\nfrom his village and goes towards Ujjain. Here the water is clean, but it becomes polluted on reaching Ujjain.

The study conducted by Dave and 20 students from March to June and\nNovember to December last year observed that the polluted water from both the\nKhan and several industries based in Dewas entered the Kshipra. From its origin up to Arnia Kund, the river is more like a drain. Water is not available at\nmany places, and the water that goes into the Kshipra through Narmada link is not\nreleased properly into it.

The study found that sand and stone mining was happening in some spots in the river. Tree cover was minimal on its banks. Chemical fertilisers used for agriculture washed into the river and destroyed aquatic life during the rains. In some villages, polluted water was being used in some form or the other, due to which the people concerned were suffering from pain in hands and legs, burning sensation in eyes and skin rashes. There were complaints of frequent colds and coughs.

Dave told 101Reporters that his team conducted a 280-km study\ntour, interacted with 1,200 people and took water samples from the riverbanks.\nAfter testing, 90% of the water in the banks was assessed as not fit for\ndrinking.

Polluted water of Kshipra river (Photo - Representative image from Canva)

Projects fail to deliver

From 2004 to 2022, the Madhya Pradesh government spent Rs 648 crore on various works to enhance the flow and rid the Kshipra of pollution. In 2004, the big drains of Ujjain were connected to pipelines and pumping stations to take the polluted water to a sewage treatment plant. A total of Rs 6 crore was spent, but the pumps often malfunctioned and led to the entry of polluted water into the river. All this when Ujjain Municipal Corporation was spending Rs 1 crore on electricity bills annually!

Later, a separate pipeline was put to release the dirty water far away, at a cost of Rs 4 crore. However, the high inflow of polluted water from the Khan, especially during the rainy season, made it impossible to pump and take the entire volume of water to faraway places. A stop dam was built on the Khan at Raghau Piplia in 2016, but the dirty water continued to overflow and enter the Kshipra. The same year, an underground pipeline was also laid from Raghau Piplia to Kaliadeh for Rs 80 crore.

The work on the Narmada-Kshipra Link Project, which provides irrigation water to Ujjain and Shajapur districts, began on November 29, 2012. It was completed in 14 months, with the Narmada water reaching the Kshipra near Indore city for the first time on February 25, 2014. However, the project has not brought any substantial change to water flow in the Kshipra and its quality.

Notwithstanding, the government will spend Rs 625 crore on another\nset of constructions. A 16 km drain will be built parallel to the river from\nGothra near Triveni to Kaliyadeh Mahal. This duct will remain open for 100 m at\nits mouth and end. The rest will be underground. Around eight hectares will be acquired permanently for the\nproject. The rest will be temporary acquisition, which means they will be\nreturned to owners after the completion of work. The\nwork on closed ducts in Ujjain has already begun.

Edited by Rekha Pulinnoli

Cover Photo - Polluted Kshipra river, a breeding ground for diseases (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

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\n\n

Religious\ncustoms played a significant role in conservation of banyans, but population pressure and rising infrastructural needs are harming them in a big way

Betul, Madhya Pradesh: Ramnath Yadav (98) has lost his vision and can no longer walk without\nsupport. However, he still remembers his wedding with Mangli Bai Yadav of Harnya\nvillage in Betul district of Madhya Pradesh.

“My marriage procession travelled to the bride’s place on 10 bullock\ncarts. Our accommodation was arranged under a huge banyan tree standing near\nher house. Even the bullocks were fed there,” reminisced Ramnath of Lakkadjam panchayat\nin Betul district.

“At that time, transport facilities were not available. Bicycles were\nthe prized possession of a few rich people,” he adds.

Banyan [Ficus benghalensis] and sacred fig or peepal [Ficus religiosa] play a\nsignificant role in marriage rituals in the state. “My wife passed away 21\nyears ago. When she was alive, I used to visit Harnya quite often. After a\npoint, that banyan cannot be seen there. Her relatives told me that it had to be\nremoved as the family size grew, and division of land happened. People needed\nevery bit for farming, including the land that was once considered barren,” said\nYadav, who now recognises people only by their voice.

Ramnath Yadav, who is looking after cows and calves in the house (Photo - Gajendra Yadav, sourced by Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

The religious, ecological and medicinal significance of banyan —India’s national tree — is not lost on the people and\ngovernment. Nevertheless, it is losing out to population pressure and\ninfrastructural development.

Yadav animatedly described the banyans of Lakkadjam. “The humongous\nMatamai banyan tree in Pandu Yadav’s field was a sight to behold. Performing\nreligious ceremonies and hosting marriage parties under it were common then. In\nsummer, cattle found shelter there. People would make dung cakes there and take\nthem home to light their stoves or sell to brick kilns,” he reminisced.

The Matamai banyan temple has a platform on which stones considered\nauspicious are kept. Women worship the place and offer a prasad of coconut and halwa.\nNow, a mango tree has replaced the banyan tree once present there.

Yadav recalled another banyan tree in nearby Gawlijhira village. “That\ntree in Amari Yadav’s field was very old and near a river. A fire destroyed it.\nWhere are the big trees now? I am not sure if the present generation will ever\nbe able to see such large trees,” said Yadav.

The miracle tree

Banyan is one of the 750 species of\nfig trees that are pollinated only by its own species of wasps that breed\ninside the figs of their partner trees. It reaches a height up to 30 m and\nspreads laterally. Aerial roots that develop from its branches descend and\nentrench in the soil to become new trunks.

A single banyan tree may assume the appearance of a dense thicket due to\nthe tangle of roots and trunks over the years. They are the world’s biggest\ntrees in terms of the area they cover. Thanks to their extensive growth, banyan\ntrees sustain many species of birds, fruit bats and other creatures, which in\nturn disperse the seeds further.

Banyan and peepal produce more\noxygen than other trees, says RK Dixit, retired sub-divisional forest officer\nin Madhya Pradesh. “The banyan has thick and wide leaves rich in chlorophyll, due to which it releases larger quantities of oxygen,” Dixit told 101Reporters.

Dixit talked about the huge banyan\nof Kalu Amkheda in Vidisha district that is also a famous religious site. “I\nhave gone there several times. Bhagavad Gita sermons, mass marriages and community feasts are organised under this tree. The branches of this banyan are\nspread over 800 m, capable of sheltering 5,000 people,” he said, adding that banyans\nhave a lifespan of thousands of years.

Dixit also cites its health benefits. “Its wood, leaves, roots and\nmilky latex are used in ayurvedic medicines to treat vata, pitta and kapha disorders.\nIn villages, the latex is applied on wounds and is used to clean eyes,” he\nsaid.

Banyan is also used to treat diarrhoea, dysentery, leucorrhoea, piles,\ngum and teeth disorders, lower back and rheumatic pain, female infertility, ear\nproblems, skin and hair woes, nasal troubles, nausea and diabetes.

In Madhya Pradesh, which has banyan as its state tree, its leaves are\nused to dry homemade papads. Wood\nfrom these trees is used for religious ceremonies. “In our village, people make\ndisposable plates out of banyan leaves for serving food during community feasts.\nTraditionally, barbers did this job and when there was a demand, they sold the plates in exchange for grains,” said Ashok Rawat (64), a resident of Basari\nvillage in Chhatarpur district.

“There is a devi sthan\n(temple) under the banyan, right at the entrance of our village, but the two\nlarge trees inside the village, where people rested and socialised during hot\nafternoons, are now gone,” said Poojari Yadav of Pat Raiyyat panchayat in\nBetul district. Poojari reminisced about children playing on the sturdy banyan\nroots and listening to stories from elders under its shade, all things from the past.

Entrance to a park in Madhya Pradesh housing one of the largest Banyan trees in Asia (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

Why are big trees not wanted?

\"Not only banyan and peepal, but\nmany species like mango, jamun, harra, behera, haldu and mahua are also gradually\ndisappearing from the fields,\" AK Baronia, a retired state conservator of\nforests, told 101Reporters. Recalling\nan instance from 1955, when he accompanied a marriage party to Hoshangabad (Narmadapuram now) that\nwas lodged under a banyan tree, he said the danger to these trees has increased\nlike never before.

“Earlier, farming happened as per need and not for sale. But now, with\nincrease in families and division of land, no land can be spared from\ncultivation. The sprawling lateral branches and roots of the banyan take up\nprecious space as nothing grows under them. The ecological need of these trees\nis valid, but so is the point of people in whose fields they stand,” Baronia\nadded.

Shyamu Singh* of Lakkadjam said there was a banyan tree in his field and\na mahua tree next to it. “When mahua fruits dropped, they would get\nstuck in the broad branches of the banyan. As a result, I had difficulties in\ncollecting it and suffered losses. Though the banyan was on the\nedge of the field, its branches spread far and wide, due to which no crop grew\nthere. So I set fire under its trunk, and it was gone in two or three attempts.\nI really had no other option,” he said.

To cut any large tree in rural areas, permission has to be taken from the\ngram panchayat, informed Rajkumar Sinha, an expert in forest laws. “On information from the respective panchayat regarding tree felling without permission, the tehsildar can take action under Section 240 and 241 of the Land Revenue Code. But the majority of the panchayats are still not thinking\nin the direction of environmental protection,” said Sinha.

“There is an age-old belief that deities reside below banyan and peepal trees. I have not seen anyone in\nthe village outrightly cutting down a banyan tree, but definitely seen how it\nis destroyed slowly. Sometimes the branches are chopped off, sometimes the\nstems,” said Amarsingh Dhurve, a resident of Lakkadjam.

The forest department does not have any data on the number of banyan and\npeepal trees in the state, but has\nlaunched an initiative to plant big trees in new plantations. “Since last year\nonly, we have decided that wherever we take up new plantations, we will plant\nbanyan and peepal saplings. We encourage\nour field staff to grow these saplings. Our target is to have at least one or\ntwo banyan trees in one hectare. There is a plan to increase banyan plantations\nin city forests as well, as it attracts birds,” Ramesh Kumar Gupta,\nPrincipal Chief Conservator of Forests and Forest Force Chief of Madhya Pradesh,\ntold 101Reporters.

“However, people themselves will have to step forward to save the trees\non private land or in rural areas. Public awareness is needed to save banyan\nand peepal and I will raise the issue\nwith higher authorities,” he said.

*Name changed to protect\nidentity

Edited by Ravleen Kaur

Cover Photo - A huge banyan tree located in village Kalu Amkheda of Vidisha district in Madhya Pradesh (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

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Once always accessible, the mahur leaves are getting difficult to find in Madhya Pradesh's forests and residents blame forest fires

Betul, Madhya Pradesh: Khandu Suhane (56) a resident of Basner Kalan village of Betul district in Madhya Pradesh, inherited from his father the art\nof making dona-pattal, and he worries that this art is the only\nthing that he will be able to leave behind for his future generations.

“I have spent my life making pattals.\nNow, my wife, son and daughter-in-law are also involved in this work. We not\nonly sell our products locally but also to some areas in Maharashtra…” he\ntells 101Reporters.

“You hear people saying that dona-pattal is\neco-friendly and it is a great alternative to plastic but you never see anyone\ndo anything to promote it or even try to find out the hard work that goes into\nmaking it. The orders that we get are also infrequent and when we get them we\nhave to work through the day and night to fulfil it,” he adds.

Dona pattal is\nmade from the leaves of all-weather creepers mahur or Bauhinia Vahlii,\nwhich thrive in the forests of Madhya Pradesh.

“We have to wake up early in the morning to go to\nthe forest to pluck them by hand to ensure that they do not break. In the\nforest, we are alone, traversing tricky terrain amid fear of wild animals. Crossing through shrubs we often wound ourselves. If the creeper has reached a\nheight with the aid of the tree there is fear of falling and slipping. All of\nthis we have to do no matter what the weather is,” he says.

No leaves for this art

According to Suhane, his family of four can\ntogether make 1,000 pattals or 1,000 donas in a day. “The\nnumber varies on the availability of leaves. Four to seven leaves are used for\nthe small pattal or dona and six to eight for the big pattal.\nFor 1,000 pattals, I get Rs 1,200 and for 1,000 dona it is somewhere\nbetween Rs 400 to 800,” he says.

“If the cost of transport and packaging is included\nwe manage to make a profit of Rs 800 on every 1,000 dona-pattal,” he says.

Suhane is worried that his marginal profits are\nalso at risk due to increasing difficulty in procuring Bauhinia Vahlii leaves.\n“The forests are shrinking and the existing ones see frequent fires in the\nsummer due to which leaves are not easily available,” he adds.

Mulla Singh Kakodia, from\nBaghwad says that earlier the leaves were available easily. “You could get\nample leaves, even for big orders, nearby,” he says.

Bandoli Bai Kakodia along with a young boy (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

“If the\nleaves are exhausted in surrounding forests, one has to go to nearby forests\nlike Sawalmendha forest, Jaridhama near Khedisaoligarh, Tahali, Kumhali,\nBhimpur forest, Badgaon near Bhainsdehi, Kaneri, Koylari — all about 50-70km\naway. The cost of travel is not included in our profit,” Suhane adds.

According to environment expert Rashid Noor Khan, a\nresident of Bhopal, forest fires are prevalent in this area during the\nsummer season. After harvesting rabi crops, farmers usually set fire to their\nfields which ends up spreading in the forest area…”

Betul Chief Conservator of Forests Praful Fuljhele explains that instances of forest fires tend to occur during the summer months, prompting efforts by forest department ground staff to contain them. “Given the expansive forested area and challenges associated with round-the-clock monitoring, we also depend on forest committees and social information systems. These tools, while not pre-emptively prevent fires, aid in post-fire reporting and facilitate prompt local responses to control the blaze if you see in comparison to other districts, Betul has experienced relatively fewer fire incidents.”

Regarding the decline in mahur trees — an environmental concern in the area — Fuljhele highlights that their reduction stems not solely from fires but also from the impact of climate change. Talking about the assistance extended to families engaged in eco-friendly pattal-dona production, he says that forest access has never been restricted and will continue to remain unrestricted to the village residents.

Need government support

“The real work starts once we get the leaves.\nSometimes we start working at 5 am and only get up to eat\nlunch and dinner. There are times when we have worked till 2 to fulfil the\norders. I remember stopping only when I could not keep my eyes open and the\nback pain was getting unbearable. We are not machines, but we work like one…”\nSuhane tells 101Reporters, adding that they already operate in difficult\ncircumstances and get little support from the government.

Baghwad Gram Panchayat consists of Baghwad, Bodi\nand Pahawadi villages. The population of the panchayat is around 2,500 and the\nvoters are 1,700. Earlier, 50 families used to make pattal dona here.\nNow only 18 families are engaged in this work.

Gram Panchayat Baghwad (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

Mulla Singh Kakodia (65) of Baghwad says, “I learnt\nthis from my father. He used to fetch leaves from the jungles. Later, we\nstarted going together. We would pluck leaves and carry them back home on our\nheads. Then we would sew it to form dona and pattal and that is how I learnt. This is a\npart of my life now. When the demand comes, I do this work from morning till\nnight. If there are enough leaves, I can make 500 plates from 10 am to 2 pm.\"

“In one year, from 50,000-1 lakh dona pattals are\nmade here,” says Bhadoli Bai Kakodiya (62). “Villagers come to the village\nand buy and take the products from us. Sometimes we get Rs 500 for 1,000 plates\nand sometimes we get Rs 700. If we had access to the market, we would have got\nRs 1,000 for 1,000 plates, because that is the market rate. But we do not have\ntime to go there. There is also the added cost of going to the market and we\ndon’t know whether we will be able to sell 1,000 in one go.”

“Demand has increased in the last year, but we are\nstill earning the same amount as before. If the government is promoting and\nencouraging then why don’t we get a good price?\" Turri Kasdekar of Baghwad along\nwith other villagers have the same question.

Manai Kasdekar, a young villager living in Baghwad\nsays, \"Making pattal-dona is our ancestral work. We do not\nget any government help or formal training. Maybe some government help will do\nus good.\"

“The government has said that single-use\nplastic is harmful for water, forest and land then why is it not helping us as\nour product is a good alternative, says Khandu Suhane a resident of Basner Kalan village of Bhaisdehi tehsil of Betul.

“If the government wanted to encourage us they\nwould have also provided the leaves to us at low cost like it provides bamboo\nto the Basor community,” he says. Basor community of Madhya Pradesh area is eligible to procure bamboo from the forest\ndepartment depot at nominal rates for which cards have been issued by the\ngovernment. The Basor community is engaged in selling handmade bamboo baskets,\nwinnowing fans, and baskets among others.

Kamla Pandram, Sarpanch of Gram Panchayat Bhagwad\nsays, \"Such good work is being done in my panchayat and it is not happening today, but for years. I or the Gram Panchayat never thought in detail about the\nfuture of these Pattal-dona makers. I will work in this direction in future.\nWill talk to senior officers of Betul district. If needed, the collector of the\ndistrict will be contacted. We will make a proposal regarding the welfare of the\nvillagers who make eco-friendly pattal-dona, and they will get whatever support\nthey can get from the government.

Edited by Tanya Shrivastava

Cover photo - Mulla Singh Kakodia presenting the Pattal after being stitched (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

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'Kaccha' carriageway\nmade, people of Chira village now wait for monsoons to get over for the administration to construct a paved road over it

Betul,\nMadhya Pradesh: On the night of July 19, Ramkali Vadive (45) became dizzy with high fever. As her\nsituation worsened, her husband Surajlal Vadive sought help from acquaintances for a vehicle to take her to a nearby hospital.\n“None could arrive as there is no road for a four-wheeler to reach\nour house,” recalled Surajlal who stays in Dhobandhana locality of\nChira village in Madhya Pradesh’s Betul district. The next day, a\nfriend from nearby Bairagarh village brought a car. Ramkali was\ncarried on a cot to reach the vehicle from where she was taken to the nearby hospital for treatment. “My wife is alright now but this\nis the situation every time somebody falls sick,” said Surajlal.

Gayatri\nKavde (10) has to walk two kilometres from Dhobandhana to her school\nin Chira every day. She had to cross a nullah to reach school.\n“Sometimes I walk through knee-deep water. When it rains\nheavily, there was no option but to miss school,” said Kavde.\nShivraj Markam (11) goes to a school in Jhirna Batki since the school\nin Chira is only up to the primary level. “There was no road so I walked\nthrough the fields,” he said.

Chira is 80 kms from the district headquarters in Betul. Along with Khurda and Bhatki villages, it is part of the Batki Panchayat. Bhatki has a population of 2,500 people who predominantly belong to the Gond tribe. The area falls within the District Panchayat of Bhimpur in Betul.

Around 30\nfamilies live in Dhobandhana, a population of about 250. Till now,\nthey are not connected to the main road in Chira and that is the\nmain cause of their woes. On June 5 this year, on the occasion of World Environment Day, the Gram Sabha members of Dhobandhana passed a resolution to\ncarve a path for themselves, literally. “People voluntarily decided\nto give a part of their land for the carriageway,” said Lavkesh\nMorse (36), who works as a Gram Sabha money mobiliser with Batki\nPanchayat, under which Chira village falls. While a concrete road will come up\nonly when the district administration officially sanctions it, for now the\nvillagers are happy that there is at least a dedicated carriageway. \"It is still a mud path. No vehicles can ply on it. After rainfall, in fact, it is in bad condition but it is still better than nothing. We are all set to officially donate our land. We just want the government to start work on it as soon as possible,\" said Chagan Marskole, a resident of Dhobandhana.

All villagers together after the Gram Sabha meeting held on 5th June (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

The\nneed for a road from Chira to Dobandhana has been felt for 40 years\nwhen houses started coming up in this part of the village. “There\nwould be conflicts when people and cattle crossed through the fields. Many a time, police had to be called to resolve it. Ambulances are not able to reach houses in case of illness. Since childhood, I have\nbeen seeing people suffering due to the lack of a proper road here,”\nsaid Morse.

\"The\nonly way to go to and fro from Chira was through the nullah or the\nfields. It is especially difficult to bring pregnant women to the Bhimpur Community Health Centre for child delivery. Extra distance had to be covered to bring vehicles through the good roads. It took a lot of time and was risky as well,” said Kalu\nMarskole (55), Chagan's uncle.

People of Chira depend on subsistence\nfarming of maize and paddy during Kharif and collect tendu leaves, mahua and other minor forest produce. Nothing is grown during Rabi as no\nirrigation facility is available in the village, Chandravati\nSyamalal Marskole, Sarpanch of Bhatki\ntold 101Reporters.\nPeople take up work under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme like digging ponds, road construction and\nmaking check dams. During summer, they migrate to cities like Indore,\nBhopal, Nagpur, Amravati, Pune and\nMumbai for\nmanual labour. Despite minimal financial backup, the people of Chira collected Rs 30,000 to hire\nan earth mower and contributed voluntary labour to level the path. The total length of the\nfinal road till Chira would be two kms.

Since\nthere are concrete roads in all other localities of the\nvillage, the people of Dhobandhana assumed that road construction and\nland acquisition are the government’s responsibility, said Dhanu Markam\n(52). “No one explained the process clearly to us till now,” said Markam\nfrom whose house the carriageway begins. “Morse\nexplained to us that the government does not acquire land for the construction of\nvillage roads, but only national and state highways. He said since\nthis road is for the use of villagers only, only we have to get together and find a solution,” said Babulal Marskole, also a resident. Eight people, including Markam, Chagan Marskole, Kalu Marskole and\nBabulal Marskole, have agreed to donate a part of their lands for the\nroad, though the total amount of land in question can only be finalised once the road is sanctioned and measured.

“A\nvillage road is only slightly wider than the footpath. I explained to\npeople that if only so much land\nis needed, what is the\nuse of relying on the administration? It is only in the last six months\nthat people came on the same page. Talking to people helped\nstrengthen the social fabric of the village,” said\nMorse.

Villagers discussing that the road will pass through the fields of different villagers (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

As\nof now, people have donated 3-5 feet on either side and we have a 12\nfeet wide carriageway now that is actively being used by people,”\nhe added. In December 2020, the Panchayat State Directorate of Madhya\nPradesh introduced the\nposition of a 'mobiliser' for which Morse is hired with a view to help\nresolve conflicts and strengthen the Gram Sabha in 89 villages\nadministered under the Panchayat (Extension to Schedule Areas) Act.

\"Now that people have agreed to donate land for the road, this is our priority. As soon as the monsoon ends, we will ask the Revenue Department to measure the exact amount of land needed. The\n farmers contributing the land will have to give a formal letter \nconfirming the donation of land for the purpose of the road. After which\n we will send a proposal to the Bhimpur District Panchayat along with \nrelevant documents and begin work as soon as the proposal is approved. The trouble faced by people is genuine. Higher authorities are already aware of the resolution passed by Gram Sabha and we are sure to get the approval soon,\" said Sarpanch\nChandravati\nMarskole.

Edited by Ravleen Kaur

Cover Photo - Villagers discussing after agreeing to give land under the trees in Dhobandhana of Gram Panchayat Batki (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

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After a massive fire\ntriggered by stubble leads to loss of life and property in 2019, Panjara Kalan\nvillage adopts early ploughing to prepare the field for the next crop cycle

Narmadapuram, Madhya Pradesh:\nAs the wheat harvest season (March-April) ends,\nsmall fires billowing black smoke become a common sight across farmlands in\nnorth and central India. The concern of rising particulate matter draws\neveryone’s attention and the administration sounds alerts and issues orders\ndiscouraging stubble burning, but in vain.

First Information Reports (FIRs) are registered and forgotten and the\nsame cycle repeats everywhere, except in Panjara Kalan village where farmers have\njointly decided to not burn stubble to get the farm ready for the next sowing\nseason.

Located in Narmadapuram district of Madhya Pradesh, wisdom dawned on Panjara\nKalan by accident. In April 2019, a massive fire triggered by stubble burning\nengulfed thousands of acres of farmland spread over 30 villages. Four persons,\nincluding three from Panjara Kalan, died and 25 others suffered injuries.

The fire destroyed crops ready for harvest, motor pumps and agricultural\nequipment. Farm animals were charred to death. The intensity of the blaze was\nsuch that even 50 fire tenders could not extinguish it. Soon after the incident, the village residents decided to never set farm\nresidue on fire. It has been four years and the farmers have kept their\npromise.

“Milch animals chew on stubble. The leftovers get mixed with soil when\nwe plough the fields. This practice enhances the fertility of topsoil as decomposing\nstubble increases nutrient value,” says Jaiprakash Patel, a farmer and former\nmember of Krishi Upaj Mandi.

He says farmers were aware of the ill effects of stubble burning before\nas well, but did not pay much attention since it helped prepare the land for\nthe next planting season without any extensive manual labour or expensive\nmachinery.

While the Green Revolution led to\nsignificant increase in crop yields and food production, it also led to the\nintroduction of new crop varieties with shorter growing cycles. That meant farmers\nhad less time to clear and prepare the fields for the next crop. Thus,\nstubble burning emerged as a quick and cost-effective method to dispose of crop\nresidue.

Moong crop in the farms of Panjara Kalan (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

Knowing this well, the district administration always tried to deter\nfarmers by reminding them about the FIRs. But nobody bothered about it.\nAccording to farmers, proof of stubble burning is needed to present the challan\nbefore court. The government in Punjab uses satellite imaging to track farm\nfires, but there is no such mechanism in Madhya Pradesh, so there is no\naccurate system to monitor it in the state. This can be gauged from the fact\nthat the number of FIRs registered for stubble burning is negligible.

Farmers are the real force behind Panjara Kalan’s decision to stop the practice.\nNeither the gram panchayat nor any private organisation played a role in it. The\nfields anyway have to be ploughed before the next crop is launched, hence no\nextra cost is involved. The only difference is they do it early now and it\nwill require a little more effort to plough than when it was done after burning\nthe stubble.

According to a report of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, 21,157 incidents of stubble burning were reported from January to June this year. April recorded the highest at 16,101, as this is the month when farmers harvest wheat crop and clean their fields for sowing moong crop.

According to figures from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute and Madhya Pradesh Farmer Welfare and Agriculture Development Department, 49,482 cases were reported in 2020, with 28,855 reported from January to May alone. In the first five months of 2021, as many as 26,515 cases were reported. From July 2022 to June 2023, 33,122 cases were reported.

Under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, and as per the instructions of the National Green Tribunal, burning of residues in the fields after harvesting crops, especially paddy and wheat, has been banned in the state. If a farmer burns stubble, it is considered to be a violation of Section 19(1) of the Act.

The violator will have to pay environmental compensation or fine amount as per the notification provision for burning weeds or crop residue. Small farmers with less than two acres of land will have to pay a fine of Rs 2,500 per incident. Those with two to five acres will have to pay Rs 5,000 per violation. Farmers having more than five acres will have to pay a fine of Rs 15,000 per incident.

RN Sikarwar, Sub-Divisional Agricultural Extension Officer, Narmadapuram\nblock, is happy with the way farmers have raised awareness among themselves. “There\nwas a time when farmers needed to be told repeatedly to not set stubble afire.\nEven then such incidents did not stop. This effort made in Panjara Kalan\nwill bring more positive results in the coming days,” he says.

What Vinod Parsai, Rural Agricultural Extension Officer of Narmadapuram\nblock, found most\ninspiring was that nearby villages have adopted the Panjara Kala model. “Barodya Khurd, Nimsadiya, Jasalpur, Raipur, Bandrabhan,\nRaisalpur, Jomwada, Rajodia, Horiyapipar, Kulamdi, Pathodi and Pawarkheda have\nfollowed suit. The agriculture department has also been motivating farmers not\nto set the fields on fire. We conducted kisan\nkhet pathshalas at the panchayat level by involving farmers.”

Sanjeev Verma, Senior Agricultural Scientist, Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Pawarkheda tells 101Reporters that farmers have worked collectively\nto prevent fire, and it is time they stepped up their efforts to produce manure\nfrom stubble. “The straw mixed with soil from deep ploughing will be converted into manure when it rains. If farmers could use biodigester, stubble will turn into manure within a month's time. In\nany case, fire should not be lit as it not only affects our health but also\nreduces production during the next crop cycle,” he says.

Panjara Kalan youth Abhishek Barele says the no-fire decision has saved\nthe trees in the village, too. \"The trees on the edge of the fields caught\nfire or their leaves wilted when stubble burning was prevalent here,\" he\nsays.

Sanjay Dewan, a farmer leader of the area, highlights the gains made.\nStubble burning releases a significant amount of smoke, particulate matter, and\ngases such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide, sulphur dioxide\nand other volatile organic compounds into the atmosphere. These pollutants lead\nto poor air quality and respiratory health issues.

“The release of greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide and methane,\ncontributes to global warming and climate change. Stubble burning also removes\norganic matter from the fields. It can cause soil erosion and reduce its\nability to retain moisture, thus influencing agricultural productivity and\nlong-term soil health. It also destroys habitats of beneficial insects, birds\nand small mammals,” Dewan explains.

Besides keeping the promise of not burning stubble, the villagers also\nhave equipped themselves to firefight in case of a calamity. Farmers\ncomplain that electric sparks from overhead power lines sometimes trigger fire when\nit falls on dry husk during the post-harvest season. “We have decided to approach\nthe Madhya Pradesh Madhya Kshetra Vidyut Vitaran Company to find a solution,”\nsays Dilip Kumar, a farmer.

“We have a desi fire brigade\nin place. We installed a motor on a public tank to pump water and can spray\nit to a certain distance. It kind of works like a fire tender,” says Jaiprakash.

In case of a fire, it is controlled with the help of this tanker and pressure pump (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

“The villagers collected around Rs 40,000 to set up a desi fire\nunit. All farmers have the\nmobile numbers of sarpanch and secretary, who can be contacted in case of a fire,” says farmer Neelendra\nPatel.

Panjara Kalan sarpanch Raju Choure says if the panchayat’s financial condition\nis good, it will try to buy a low-cost fire brigade in future.

Edited by Tanya Shrivastava

Cover photo - A farmer extinguishing the fire with water pump (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

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Climate-induced crop loss makes Gulab Bhaiya, a farmer from Mandla in Madhya Pradesh, to move to cities in search of employment, and he is not the only one

Mandla, Madhya Pradesh: Gulab Singh Kurveti (42) alias Gulab Bhaiya is always worried. His daughters are of marriageable age, but he needs money to invest in their future. To make money, he needs a job, which does not exist in his hometown Rampuri. This leaves him with only one option — to migrate to a nearby city and live away from his family so that he can earn enough to save for a rainy day.

Ironically, rainy days make it difficult for Gulab Bhaiya to stay in his village in Mohgaon block of tribal-dominated Mandla district. A Scheduled Tribe (ST) member, he has five acres of land at his disposal. “But what is the use? When it should rain, it does not. And when it should not, it pours,” he says.

Even otherwise, Gulab Bhaiya manages to produce very little as most of his land is rocky and unsuitable for cultivation. His five-member family consumes the wheat he harvests.

View of village Rampuri; It is a village in Gram Panchayat Dhangaon of Mohgaon district in Mandla district with 161 houses and a population of about 700 people. This is where Gulab Bhaiya lives (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

His wheat crop was ready when hailstorms destroyed it in April. Farmers with small plots were particularly affected as they took fertilisers and seeds on loan. With unseasonal rains washing away all the hard work, they were unable to pay back the loan amount.

Earlier, Gulab Bhaiya's family considered mahua as its main source of income. Every year, they would go together to gather mahua flowers from the forest floor. Last year, they managed to collect 500 kg of flowers. But this year, they got only 150 kg, all thanks to the climate vagaries.

Gulab Bhaiya remembers mahua was priced at Rs 5 per kg in 1995-2000. Now, he can earn Rs 30 per kg, provided the weather cooperates. “Back then, inflation was low and the family small. I could work for a while outside and then come home by the time kharif crops ripened. We used to extract oil from mahua gulli (seed) for our cooking needs and sell the rest in the market… In summer, we would pick tendu pattas and medicinal herbs. We harvested harr (inknut) in May and June. From forest produce alone, we could make anywhere between Rs 35,000 and 50,000,” he says.

All that has changed. “We do not bank on mahua gulli or tendu patta anymore. Unseasonal rains have spoiled everything. Mahua trees do not bloom in erratic weather. If flowers do not come out well, then gulli is also not good. This year, mahua trees did not bloom well. In April, hail spoiled tendu patta also,” he adds.

Mahua season begins in April and ends by mid-May. If the collection is not good during this limited window, people lose a source of income.

Leaving hearth and home

Gulab Bhaiya’s problems are compounded by the fact that even farm labour is not available in the village, which has 161 households. “There is no work here… We have to leave the village again and again,” he laments.

Gulab Bhaiya alias Gulab Singh Kurveti, a resident of village Rampuri in Gram Panchayat Dhangaon of Mohgaon district of Mandla district, has an unfinished paved house (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

So, he heads out every year to Nagpur, Narsinghpur and Jabalpur, leaving behind his two daughters. His wife Hirondi Bai and son Govind also work in different cities over the course of the year.

“If I had an option, I would never leave. Who does not like his home? I also want to live in my village, be a part of the culture and traditions, family events, and marriages or other celebrations in the houses of friends. But it seems that life is not for me,” he exclaims.

Right now, Gulab Bhaiya is in Pipariya village of Jabalpur, located 125 km from Rampuri. His wife and daughter Jamna have accompanied him this time. “We are harvesting mung (green gram). The sun is so harsh here… If we had a choice, we would not have worked in these conditions,” he rues.

“We are never in our village. It is difficult to travel back and forth as there is no proper connectivity. That apart, we do not earn enough to afford frequent visits. If we take a bus, we will reach Rampuri in four to five hours. The day we travel we lose the earnings too.”

One of his daughters quit school after class 8 and the other after class 10. They both find work in and around the village. “If we had more money, I would have made my daughters study further. Now, they only have the option of becoming labourers… So if they wish, I take them along. This time, Jamna has accompanied me. Ganga is at home with her grandparents and they will look after our home,” Gulab Bhaiya says.

Gulab's daughter Ganga cleaning the house (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

Govind, who is about to turn 20, has been home since last month as he is in the process of switching jobs. “I worked in a factory manufacturing electric poles in Nanded, Maharashtra. The contractor used to provide food and accommodation. I was paid Rs 10,000 a month, but it was hard to survive on that income. I am looking for a job elsewhere. As soon as I get it, I will leave the village,” says Govind.

Gulab Bhaiya also sees work in cities or towns as an opportunity to make extra cash. His eyes are always set on that extra savings, which could help fund his daughters’ marriages.

“In cities, you can find work day and night. Working extra means extra money. The rate is Rs 400 to Rs 500 a day and you will get it on time. In villages, the maximum is Rs 300 a day. Despite being familiar with the people, there is no option of getting money in advance too. All these things make one opt for a city or town,” he explains.

Future impact

Mandla district has 1,203 villages. The ST households with income below the poverty line is a whopping 93.5%. The work participation rate of women among STs is 54.7%.

Like in Mandla, most families in other tribal dominated districts such as Chhindwara, Betul, Seoni and Dindori migrate for work. It was prevalent earlier also due to lack of proper resources and opportunities in villages. \"However, climate change has accelerated it, forcing more family members to leave,\" Dr Subhash C Pandey, an environmentalist and former executive vice-chairperson of the Haryana Pond and Waste Water Management Authority, tells 101Reporters.

\"This has an adverse impact on other social indicators as well. For example, many people take their children to cities, where they mostly live in shanties and construction sites. The children are at risk of getting involved in anti-social activities there. The situation is similar if they are left behind in villages as there is nobody to keep a check on their emotional, nutritional and educational requirements,\" explains Rajkumar Sinha, the convenor of the struggle committee on the proposed Chutka nuclear power plant project and activist working for the tribals of Mandla, Jabalpur and Dindori districts.

The children neither go to school regularly nor study at home. Taking note of the issue, the state education department issued an order in April, directing teachers to enrol dropouts by conducting house visits, among other measures.

“Climate change is disrupting the traditional monsoon patterns in India, leading to irregular and unpredictable rainfall. This affects the timing of planting and harvesting. Water availability for irrigation has reduced, while risk of droughts and floods has increased. Farmers also face issues in deciding when to sow, and often experience crop failures due to inadequate or excessive rainfall,” explains Pandey.

He says rising temperatures associated with climate change have adverse effects on crop growth and productivity. High temperatures during the growing season can lead to heat stress in plants, reduce photosynthesis and impair crop development. This can lower crop yields and quality, affecting the income and food security of farming communities. Higher temperatures also lead to increased evaporation rates, drying up of water sources and reduced availability of water for irrigation.

Gulab Bhaiya has faced all these and more, but does not know what to do other than going all out in search of employment. “If someone wishes to go outside for work, it is their choice. But for us, there is no choice over when to leave, where to go or when to come back. By the way, no one wants to leave the village. I do not want to go either.”

Edited by Tanya Shrivastava

Cover Photo - Old dilapidated house of Gulab Bhaiya alias Gulab Singh Kurveti, a resident of village Rampuri in Gram Panchayat Dhangaon of Mohgaon district of Mandla district (Photo - Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

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Poor government patronage and the increased price of sanitary pads following\nCOVID-19 lockdown put Madhya Pradesh scheme to ensure menstrual hygiene on the\nback burner

Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh: Chanda* of\nChimka Tola in Mandla skips school for four days in a month citing one reason\nor the other. A student of class 11, she is restless when she menstruates. The\ncloth piece that she uses these days adds to the irritability. When the state government’s\nProject Udita was up and running, things were much easier for adolescents like\nher.

“Walking to school is a problem. The constant rubbing of\nthe cloth piece with the skin can cause rashes, followed by itching and burning\nsensation. It should be changed frequently, but is also difficult to wash and\ndry. I do not feel like studying. In fact, the first two days are mostly spent\nsleeping,” said Chanda.

Launched by the Women and Child Development Department in 2016, Project\nUdita offered a pack of six sanitary pads through anganwadi centres.\nIt also sensitised women on the need to maintain menstrual hygiene, which made\nChanda and others switch to sanitary pads.

Some centres sold the pack for Rs 12, while others priced it at Rs 15.\nAs there was no government-fixed price, the vendors took the liberty to tweak\nprices after considering the cost of travel to a given village from the\ndistrict headquarters.

Yet, the low rates of sanitary pads were helpful for village women and\nadolescents who mostly depend on the nominal income of their husbands or\nfathers. Sanitary pads are priced upward from Rs 35 per pack in shops,\nwhereas good quality products cost anywhere between Rs 60 and 100.

Initially, the department helped coordinate the supply from pad-making\nagencies to anganwadi centres at the lowest possible price.\nLater, the agencies and anganwadis started dealing directly\nwith each other. Vendors sell pads to distributors, who then get it to the\ncentres through a commission-based channel. Anganwadi\nworkers made the payments before or after the sales, as per the agreement they\nmade with the vendor. However, this system did not work well in all centres.

In a tweet\nin April 2016, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had claimed that special\ncorners were set up in 22,000 anganwadis under\nProject Udita. In reality, only banners and posters provided by the government\nfor the scheme’s publicity adorn such corners. Forget villages, even anganwadis in cities do not have fully\nfunctional corners.

There was no government allocation to buy pads or install pad vending\nmachines. The scheme envisaged installation of vending machines by the Women\nand Child Development Department, after taking help from private companies,\nNGOs and donors. But that too did not take off. Only very few centres got\nthe machines under Corporate Social Responsibility activities of some\ncompanies.

$\"\"$ An empty sanitary pad vending machine at an Anganwadi center in Bhopal. It is too expensive now to restock, a worker there says (Photo sourced by Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

As a result, Project Udita came to an abrupt end in the early days of\nthe COVID-19 spread, thereby forcing women and girls to return to cloth use.\n“There is no risk of leakage or no issue in moving around when using sanitary\npads. Moreover, it lasts for more time than the cloth piece, which has to be\nchanged twice or thrice a day. We are not allowed to wash the cloth in the area\nwhere men take baths. Washing in the open is another problem. Sun drying of the\ncloth is also difficult as male members of the family should not see it,” said\nChanda.

Poor record

According to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4), 2015-16,\nrural Madhya Pradesh ranks worst in\nthe country in menstrual health management, with only 26.4% women between the\nages of 15 and 24 adopting hygienic practices.

A survey conducted in 2018 by Bhagidari Foundation on\nthe menstrual behaviour of adolescent girls and women found that 88% women use\ncloth pieces during menstruation, while the rest use sanitary pads. As much as\n42% of the surveyed women use the same cloth many times, while 29% use dirty\ncloth.

According to Bhopal-based Dr RK Badve,\nwomen who do not use sanitary napkins during menstruation are at 70% higher\nrisk of contracting reproductive tract infection. White discharge, itching,\nburning sensation, swelling in the uterus and frequent urge to urinate can be\nother fallouts. If not taken care of, the infection can reach vagina and enter\nthe umbilical cord. The possibility of bacteria reaching the vagina or urinary\ntract increases through defecation.

Rachna Dhingra, women's rights activist and member of the Bhopal Group\nfor Information and Action, said there was a need to create awareness in rural\nareas about menstrual hygiene. “Village women and girls use the same cloth for\na long time and do not wash and dry it properly, which can lead to many\ndiseases.”

$\"\"$ Maya Vishwakarma, along with other teachers of a Government Girls Higher Secondary School in Narsinghpur, provide information related to menstruation and hygiene (Photo sourced by Pooja Yadav, 101Reporters)

Nobody has an answer

If handling sanitary pads were much easier, why was its supply stopped?\nAsk anyone, and the standard reply is “they stopped coming”. An Accredited\nSocial Health Activist (ASHA) supervisor from Betul district told 101Reporters that\nsometimes the demand was so high that they had to make calls for distribution\nof more pads. “Even in rural areas, most adolescent girls and women started\nusing pads after Project Udita was launched. Now, it is back to square one.”

An anganwadi worker from Narmadapuram district\nconfirmed that the pads costing Rs 12 were much sought-after. Another from\nNarayanganj in Mandla said she used to order as many pads as she thought would\nbe necessary after gauging the demand. “We were told to buy for Rs 60 the\nsanitary pads that were earlier available at Rs 12. As women cannot afford it,\nwe stopped giving orders,” said another worker.

Along with lack of demand for sanitary pads, an anganwadi worker\nin Kilol Park area of Bhopal had to deal with the problem of rats. “The special\ncorner has proved to be very popular here. In January last year, we had to\nclose it down for two months as rats gnawed the pads stored there. As there was\nno scope of government help, I had to bear the cost of these unsold pads and pay\nthe price to the vendor,” she told 101Reporters on condition of anonymity.

She usually bought sanitary pads by keeping aside a part of her\nhonorarium of Rs 10,000 and adjusted the amount later when buyers gave money.\nThat had to be stopped as her honorarium was not paid for a few months. She has\nagain started receiving the monthly pay on time now, but has no plans to buy\npads as keeping them safe from rats is a big task. The pad-making units do not\nmanufacture dispensing units.

Sukarma Foundation chairperson Maya Vishwakarma, better known as ‘Padwoman of India’,\ntold 101Reporters that Project Udita has remained only on\npaper. “In anganwadi centres, women did not get pads free of\ncost. Only a few centres, that too mostly in cities, had special corners. The\npads can be cheaper, but 18% Goods and Services Tax (GST) is charged on the raw\nmaterial. In such a situation, how can anyone supply pads at low rates? If\nanyone still manages to sell cheap, its quality may not be good,” she said.

Emphasising the need to provide concession, she added, “No government\ncan distribute sanitary pads free of cost, it should not either. Rather, it\nshould reduce the production cost by giving a GST exemption.”

Despite repeated attempts, officials in the Women and Child Development\nDepartment were not ready to divulge any information regarding Project Udita.\nOn condition of anonymity, one of them told 101Reporters that\nnot a single rupee was allocated for the scheme.

“The government says sanitary pads should be made available to women.\nFrom where and how will anganwadis get it done? We do not have\nan answer when anganwadi workers put forth these questions. Earlier, it could\nbe made available at low rates. Now, the cost of raw materials and production\ncharges have increased. How can any vendor make it available for Rs 12 or 15?”

Meanwhile, Shashi Shyam Uike, Joint Director, Women and Child\nDevelopment Department, Jabalpur Division, told 101Reporters that\npads were being made available in the anganwadi centres in his\ndivision. “We will take necessary steps if they are not available in any anganwadi.”\nIrony is that Mandla falls under Jabalpur division and girls like Chanda are\nyet to see a renewed supply of sanitary pads.

* Name changed to protect privacy

Edited by Rekha Pulinnoli

Cover photo - For representational purposes only (Photo - Flickr/picturesbypriyesh)

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