SAMBANDHLATEST

Program Goal: Sustainable livelihoods, through the implementation of participatory planned & need based rural poverty reduction strategies and food security development particularly for the poorest through natural resource management

No. of Watershes: 4(Dhalabani, & Gurgudia G.P.) Covering more than 2550hectares of land

Interventions:
Water Resource Development through WHS, Community Tanks
Soil & Moisture conservation measures through Contour bunding, Bench terracing, Drop structure, Gully plugging.
Promotion of agriculture through Crop demonstrations, Agro-forestry & Agro-horticulture, community cashew plantation, backyard plantation, cashew plantation, · Capacity building to watershed committee, User groups, SHgs & Farmers on watershed development, cropping system, entrepreneurship & IGP for watershed, gender issue in watershed.

Documenting the crop genetic resources that are passed from generation to generation of farmers. .
Researching into environmental, biological and socio-economic factors influencing a farmer’s decision-whether to select or maintain a particular crop variety at any given time.
Supporting crop genetic diversity management on-farm
Collection and propagation of traditional seeds through seed bank
Local seed markets and fairs are organized for informal seed exchange system in the villages. Local markets, haat bazaar (weekly fairs) and "agricultural fairs" provide a good opportunity for the exchange of seeds and knowledge
Promote organic farming with diversity of indigenous knowledge on organic inputs for better productivity
Facilitating the campaign for making agriculture patent free, chemical free and free from genetic engineering

This program has substantial impact in
Degraded natural resources are conserved, protected and developed and put to sustain use.
Reduced incidence of lean season food shortages across all classes with increased availability of food/grains at rural poor household level.
Improved drought coping capacity by 60% of marginal farmers with diversified cropping pattern.
50% of men and women in special target groups (SCs, STs and landless) in project villages report significant income and asset increase
Networks of CBOs, women committees, user groups, SHGs and FPCs are active in majority of watersheds and are working in convergence with local panchayats
Around 70% of the poor have been organized into functional self-help groups.
35% of target group members/households have acquired new and appropriate skills and knowledge (diversified into non-farm activities, farm activities)
65% of participating women are empowered/skilled to access and manage finances, skills and information, and enhance their contacts outside their “daily routine”

Organic Agriculture :
Participatory Guarantee Scheme is a process of peer certification or peer appraisal system. We have been very active in promoting organic agriculture, horticulture & medicinal plant cultivation mainly in Mayurbhanj & Cuttack district of Orissa. Mass awareness generation among the farmers has been done on a large scale. SAMBANDH conducted a national level seminar on PGS at hotel ‘The Presidency’ involving all the major stakeholders at all level.

Malnutrition :
Silent deaths due to malnutrition have been a common phenomenon in Orissa in which Mayurbhanj District tops the list. 37 deaths in the year 2007 in the Gudgudia Gram panchayat of Dhalabani Block of Mayurbhanj District evoked us to think for the problem. When we assessed the reasons it was found that only unavailability food is not only the problem rather several other problems make the situation adverse. We started with there seven Villages of the Gudgudia Gram Panchayat. We started with the capacity building of the community on different issues like mother and child health care, awareness among adolescents and giving trainings to the farmers. Thereafter for the livelihood generation and entitlements among the community both the farm and non farm activities are being promoted. Among farm activities we do land development, crop demonstration, development of kitchen garden, community nutritional kitchen garden, agro horticultural plantation and development of grain banks in every village. Among non farm activities we promote rice business, rice processing, grocery shops, NTFP collection and its value addition and other entrepreneur activities through SHGs. Finally for the increased immune system to fight against the silent killer regular health camps, immunization of the children and mothers are done together with the distribution of nutrient enriched food along with the training on preparing the nutrient enriched food at home.