Activity Update August 2014: Kanha

Team: Amit Awasthi – Conservation Officer

            Sampathlal Dhurve – Field assistant

           

Highlights 

·      2 voluntary work projects for community assistance –area next to well cleaned at Bhagpur and school premises cleaned at Chapri

·      3 awareness programmes on snake bite

·      3 compost pits dug

·      2 anti-plastic programmes

·      1 village micro-plan survey completed

·      Environment education programme conducted in 9 schools - attended by 227 students

·      7 film shows on nature and wildlife - attended by 378 students

·      2 unemployed youths placed in local jobs

·      2 capacity-building workshop for women’s SHGs

Conservation

Amit speaks to Bhagpur villagers about their micro-plan.
Forest Department officers in attendance.

On August 8, Amit and Sampath led a team of 7 people in a programme to clear wild growth around a well at Bhagpur. Due to heavy rains, wild growth had proliferated around the well and access to the well was affected. Our team, which comprised 7 youths from the village, removed the wild growth and cleaned the area. Photos below.

Before cleaning

Team cleaning the area

Well and surrounding area cleared of growth

On August 14, Amit and Sampath organized a programme to clean the ground at Middle School at Kursitola in Chapri. The school ground was overgrown with weeds and grass due to the heavy monsoon rains. 9 youths from the village joined hands with our team to clean up the school ground.
Photos below.

During August, our team organized 3 awareness programmes on snakes and snake bites. During the monsoon, snakes come out of their pits as these get flooded and there is greater occurrence of humans being bitten by snakes. Our awareness programmes focussed on teaching villagers how to identify venomous and non-venomous snakes. We also explained to the villagers what to do when bitten by snake. Details of the programmes are given in the table above. Photo below.

Our team encourages organic farming as part of our strategy to reduce the impact of chemical fertilizers on fields adjoining prime wildlife areas. Part of our work includes assistance to villagers in setting up vermi-compost tanks and compost pits. During August, we helped 3 villagers dig compost pits – Satish Markam of Sautiya on August 17, Ramesh Maravi of Sautiya on August 22 and Garjan Singh Maravi of Patpara on August 22.  Below: the compost pit at Ramesh Maravi's.

Kutwahi children clearing plastic litter from the main village road

Education

During the month our team organized environment education programmes in 9 schools in the villages in our area of operations.

Mocha: nature education at the primary school

Education van programme

There were 7 film shows on nature and wildlife conservation in August.

Film screening at Mocha

Employment Cell

We helped two youths get jobs in August.

Mahadev Uikey of Kutwahi, who got a job at a resort with our help

SHG capacity building programme

As part of our assistance to villagers in alternative livelihood, we help women set up SHGs to start their own business units. During August, we organized a workshop for a total of 5 SHGs and taught them how to how to maintain documents and conduct proceedings. The SHG members were also introduced to livelihood that they could take up. The workshop was organized jointly with Ajiwika Mission – a project by the Madhya Pradesh state government to help empower women.

Kutwahi - capacity-building workshop for women's SHGs