Old wisdom can be put to use to save water

Despite poor rains, people in the desert region of Rajasthan have water, thanks to an old system

Despite a drought-like situation across Rajasthan this year, farmers of a small village on the edge of the Thar Desert reaped good harvest from their fruit orchards. They are growing vegetables this winter. Just five years ago, residents of Khidrat struggled to arrange drinking water, let alone water for irrigation. Due to scanty rainfall (see table), groundwater was not only dipping, it had turned brackish. Even deep borewells would yield saline water. Every day, women and children would travel several kilometres to fetch drinking water. Beri is a pitcher-shaped structure that catches rainwater and stores it (Courtesy: Gravis) Those who could afford bought tanker water, which cost between 12 and 15 paisa a litre, depending on the distance and season. On an average, a family spent half of their income—more than Rs 1,250 a month—on buying clean water. “This was strange. For hundreds of years, people in this region had coped successfully with the harsh climate. They had a rich history of rainwater harvesting and groundwater conservation,” says Rajendra Kumar, programme coordinator at Gramin Vikas Vigyan Samiti (GRAVIS). The non-profit empowers communities in the desert. But the tradition had faded from their memory with the introduction of borewells in the late 1970s, and a few years later, with the Rajiv Gandhi Lift Canal that assured water at doorstep. A few villages, including Khidrat, however, did not benefit from the canal. The government assured water supply to these upstream villages through tankers. What was provided for free in the beginning soon became a paid service. “We had always depended on barter system for our needs. But with tanker water came the need for cash,” says Ram Kishan, a resident. People in Khidrat and adjacent villages abandoned agriculture and livestock rearing and became labourers to earn cash. “There was an urgent need to revive beris, a percolation well traditionally used to catch rainwater and store it,” says Kumar. The village had 34 beris, but all of them were defunct. In 2006 GRAVIS, with the help of Regional Housing Development Centre of Jai Narain Vyas Jodhpur University, revived the beris and began installing new beris. Source: IMD, Rajasthan water resource department, Rajasthan Government A beri is essentially a pitcher–shaped shallow well. It is about half a metre wide at the top and three to four metres wide at the bottom. The spot is strategically selected so that the percolated rainwater gets channelized towards the well. While setting up a beri, people stop digging once they encounter a layer of clay or gypsum. These layers prevent further percolation of the stored rainwater, while the narrow mouth prevents loss through evaporation. Beris can hold up to 500,000 liters of water, sufficient to meet the needs of 10 families for a year. People build raised concrete platform and cover it with a slab to prevent dust and surface runoff contamination. Depending on the size and structure, a beri costs between Rs 3,000 and Rs 15,000. When calculated, the cost of beri water comes to less than a paisa per litre, says Shrikant Bhardwaj, area coordinator of GRAVIS. The non-profit has so far built and revived 155 beris in Khidrat. About 90 per cent families of the village drink beri water. The effort has begun showing results. Mangi Laal, who boasts of owning the largest beri in Khidrat, says, “I dug it with the help of my brother and kids. All it took was two bags of cement, sand, a lid and two months of labour,” he adds. Dug to meet drinking water needs of the family, Laal’s beri holds enough water to irrigate his farm. Last year, he grew millets, pulses, watermelon and cucumber and earned Rs 7,000. By arrangement with Down to Earth

Organic food and responsible living

Organic living

Organic living is a basic common sense and conscious living , caring for our loving planet which has given so much to our mankind.
It is very important to use our minds to make informed decisions about what we are putting in our bodies, and working with nature rather than against it.

It will not only help sustain the planet, but mankind as well.
The moment we hear the word "organic" we automatically associate it with the words , "good" , "green" , or "healthy".

But what is really organic food?
Any food that is produced without the use of toxic chemical fertilisers, pesticides and genetically modified seeds is considered organic food. In addition to it even the farming practices also determine organic food production, like composting , green maturing , crop rotation , and bio pest control.

Organic food is not only healthy for people who eat it , but also for the health of the soil. Organic farming ensures the soil health is retained for a long time ! So it more sustainable in long run than chemical farming. 

The harmful chemicals used in the chemical farming cannot be broken down naturally . This endangers and pollutes the ground  water and soil.

The energy used in chemical farming is more.  More farm equipments and lot of fertilisers and pesticides need more energy to be produced . The logistics of getting all the chemicals to every part of the country adds to a deeper carbon footprint.
What is the difference between organic and natural food?
Natural food products are normally grown (with chemicals) but the next food processing happens in Eco friendly and natural way. .i.e food is processed with less or no preservatives, hormones, food colour and  additives.

Control of our choice:
Always encourage getting locally available and grown food products, rather than getting things which are produced halfway across the globe. If it is not seasonal, then may be they are grown in green houses which are more energy consuming.
If you are not able to get 100% organic food to meet your needs, you can at least get a certain percentage of it that is locally or easily available. This is a healthy alternative and also good for our planet.
Things you normally get organic from reliable sources:
Cereals , pulses, spices, tea , coffee, jam, pickles, almost all seasonal vegetables , cold pressed cooking oil, milk, washing powder, handmade soaps, agarbati, insect repellents  , shampoos, floor cleaners and even clothes . You also have a long list of stationary Items and gifting options .
Thus, Organic way is the healthy way , our best way of saying Thank You to  Mother Earth.

The real green man who created a forest

Indian man single-handedly plants a 1,360-acre forest

Jadav Payeng turned a barren sandbar in northern India into a lush new forest ecosystem.The forest, called the Molai woods, is a safe haven for numerous birds, deer, rhinos, tigers and elephants — species increasingly at risk from habitat A little more than 30 years ago, a teenager named Jadav "Molai" Payeng began burying seeds along a barren sandbar near his birthplace in northern India's Assam region to grow a refuge for wildlife. Not long after, he decided to dedicate his life to this endeavor, so he moved to the site where he could work full-time creating a lush new forest ecosystem. Incredibly, the spot today hosts a sprawling 1,360 acres of jungle that Payeng planted — single-handedly. The Times of India recently caught up with Payeng in his remote forest lodge to learn more about how he came to leave such an indelible mark on the landscape. It all started way back in 1979, when floods washed a large number of snakes ashore on the sandbar. One day, after the waters had receded, Payeng, only 16 then, found the place dotted with the dead reptiles. That was the turning point of his life. "The snakes died in the heat, without any tree cover. I sat down and wept over their lifeless forms. It was carnage. I alerted the forest department and asked them if they could grow trees there. They said nothing would grow there. Instead, they asked me to try growing bamboo. It was painful, but I did it. There was nobody to help me. Nobody was interested," says Payeng, now 47. While it's taken years for Payeng's remarkable dedication to planting to receive some well-deserved recognition internationally, it didn't take long for wildlife in the region to benefit from the manufactured forest. Demonstrating a keen understanding of ecological balance, Payeng even transplanted ants to his burgeoning ecosystem to bolster its natural harmony. Soon the shadeless sandbar was transformed into a self-functioning environment where a menagerie of creatures could dwell. The forest, called the Molai woods, now serves as a safe haven for numerous birds, deer, rhinos, tigers and elephants — species increasingly at risk from habitat loss. Despite the conspicuousness of Payeng's project, forestry officials in the region first learned of this new forest in 2008 — and since then they've come to recognize his efforts as truly remarkable, but perhaps not enough."We're amazed at Payeng," says Gunin Saikia, assistant conservator of Forests. "He has been at it for 30 years. Had he been in any other country, he would have been made a hero."

Save Sparrow

Most of us remember those childhood days , where we would have seen small little sparrows in our terrace, windows and balcony.

Can you believe that there numbers are drastically coming down everyday.
This is global concern. This is reason every year march  20th is observed as WORLD SPARROW DAY(WSD) , there are close to 26 species of sparrow all around the world .

With the growing urban development, sparrows do not get place to nest , rest and feed itself. Affects of telephone towers and its radiation is also an on going debate. But the population of sparrows have gone down and this is a fact.

What we can do ?
We can make provision in your balcony , terrace or window for water and grains . Providing nest boxes with feeding stations really helps in supporting these small little sparrows.
More more interesting information check www.worldsparrowday.org