Revitalizing Rainfed AgricultureNetwork Malkangiri

Background, Context and Design

RRA NETWORK , MALKANGIRI• Evolved in the context of MGNREGS and OTELP - the opportunity to

make a district level impact – evolved over an year long consultations and exchanges of ideas among the CSOs, District Administration and Line departments.

• Intended to be an open network and a process of engagement of stakeholders in Malkangiri to promote collaboration and partnerships in the development of the district.

• The network intends to bring in integration of various mainstream programs and make them effective and efficient, and to get the community in control over such public investment decisions and development processes.

• Taken up Gram Panchayat as a unit for planning and development and integration of various mainstream programs

Scale of Program with District Administration

S.N. Deatails Qty Units

1No. of Gram Panchayats 14

No.

2No.of villages 268 No.3No. of households 12414 No.4Upland 18795.301 Acres5mid land 17629.806 Acres6low land 7417.488 acres

Integration of Schemes/Programs• MGNREGS• RKVY• IAP• NFSM• ATMA• NHM • ISOPOM• JALANIDHI YOJANA ( Irrigation)• OTELP• FISHERY DEVELOPMENT• .. Etc.

Situation analysis of Seed Systems in Malkangiri

• Non-formal seed system is predominant. • Farmers use farm saved seed. • No community seed storage system exists. • Private Seed Market: Private seed sector has limited scope in Malkangiri district. The market

restricted to Vegetables, Maize, Hybrid paddy. They have also market non-certified, non-branded groundnut seeds and paddy seeds procured from neighbor districts of Andhra Pradesh. Farmers who access the seed from private shops are from good financial background and have irrigation facility. However private market is only source for vegetable seed in the region.

• Subsidy seed supply by Agri. Dept: Agriculture department supply HYV of paddy viz., 1010,1001, 1009 and

Naveen to eligible farmers. Majority of farmers reuse this seed.

Situation analysis of Livestock

• Going by the findings of this exercise 83% and 39% of the families maintained cattle and buffaloes respectively.

• Also 94% of the families kept BYP, 28% of the participant families had goats and 33% of the total participants maintained pigs.

• Thus 80% and 8% of the families maintained cattle and buffaloes respectively. Also 72%of the families kept BYP, 28%of the participant families had goats and 28% of the total participants maintained pigs.

Situation Analysis of Potential Water Bodies:

• Nearly 85 pond owners carry out fisheries and related activities in a limited manner.

• Potential of water under utilized • Average production for year 2011-12 was 50 kg per acre that has potential to

enhance up to 415 kg per acre. • Non availability of quality seed &.mostly pond owner buy it from local

agents who delivers at tank sites, but farmers doesn’t have any knowledge to verify the seed quality.

• Farmers not aware of scientific knowledge and ignorant of basic management practices.

• But the water bodies have potential for the fishery based activities. • whereas all hire local Bengali people for fish catch. No one is having ice box

to sell fish in local market. Other rearing related challenge is that they do not provide feed to the fishes and do not practice cleaning of pond before season starts. The details of each unit of ponds are attached with this plan.

Project Strategies & Approach for First Phase (2012-13)

• Initiated comprehensive pilot programs in 9 GPs of 5 Blocks with 9 NGOs.

• Five NGOs takes up one thematic area each like – Soil, Seed, Water, Livestock and Fisheries.

• Evolve GP level plans with help from the RRA – Support Organisations

• Four NGOs initiated integration of all themes in select GPs as Comprehensive Pilot programs.

• Scaled up programs on SRI (211 hect), Fisheries (185 individual and 11 community Water bodies) and Millets (160 hect) across the district in collaboration with Dept of Agriculture and Dept of Fisheries.

Key Activities Plan & under taken (SRI &Millet)

• Scaled up / Promoted SRI in 33 Villages spread out in 9 GPs

• No. of farmers adopted SRI – 820 • Area covered under – 211.3 hect • Promoted Ragi in 160 hect covering 800

farmers from 65 villages• Promoted small millet(Suan)- 50 hectares ,

250 farmers from 65 villages.

Soil health improvement

• Awareness building soil Health Measures and input.

• Introduced Biomass based manures – 1563 farmers practicing.

• Practicing green-manuring for the irrigated lands - 2044 farmers

• Demonstrate a model compost pits in the farm and at the households - 150 nos .

Community Managed Seed System:

• Formation of seed production groups - 20 • Establishment of community managed seed bank

at GP level -12• Collection of seed from farmers for seed banks 4

varieties of paddy , collected 7.37 Quintals.• Capacity building of selected progressive farmers-

informal seed production.

Diversification of crops initiative

• Facilitated diversified base crops • 5 vegetable growers cooperative promoted in

the GPs• 1000 vegetable cooperative members

involved in vegetable cultivation, grading and collective marketing.

Key Activities Plan & taken-Livestock• Vaccination and de- warming

camps - 76 nos (37800 animals).

• Promotion of backyard poultry – 5 vill ( 76 members from 42 SHGs).

• Each members earn Rs. 1500 – 2000/-

• Fodder Grass demonstration -4• Promotion of shelter –4• Girkanpalli GP of Kalimela

block submitted GP level perspective plan to district Collector on livestock.

Fisheries Initiative

• Participatory Mapping of potential water bodies in the GPs. – (547potential water bodies identified in 9 GPs).

• Fish production initiated- 197 water bodies – Individual – 185 tanks & Community tanks – 11

• Fingerlings stocked – 190800.• Women SHGs involved in Fish Production activities - 3

nos.• Capacity building on Fishery production for farmers

on fishery management.

Learning….• Quality Seed remain the basic

point of intervention for fishery sector /seed alone could ensure a rapid transition and transformation of small water bodies into most valued fish production.

• Handholding Support to farmers (Technical input /feed management ) enhances fish production .

• Largely quality fish seed dependence on private seed suppliers hampers desired fish production.

• Transportation of seed from long distance causes high mortality.

Learning• Demonstrating of SRI in few

pockets of villages and GPs will not enhance farmer’s productivity, for better productivity SRI need to be upscale in large way out.

• Demonstration of SRI paddy crop encouraged neighbouring farmers for the multiplications

• Principle is not only means of enhancing production, but practicing minimum standards make a farmers harvested 20-25 quintals per acre.

Learning cont……….• Private fish seed supplier

provides fish seed or fingerling of mixed breed that cannot be controlled at that point given these factors of seed supply.

• Developing inlands fisheries sector in rain fed agriculture areas, there is need for dissemination of information relating to improved fishing techniques and efficient post harvest techniques.

• Access to credit and services, control and access over productive resource like ponds.

• Inclusions of gender into fishery activities enhance economy of women members.

C: Institutional Arrangement & Support System

• Formation & strengthening of Producers groups & cooperatives.

• Community seed bank.• Capacity Building training (inputs)• Farmers Resource centre• Support from Node, Secretariat

Analysis & Reflection:

• Scale up & Demonstration – Soil Health, SRI, Fishery.

• Convergence /promote - SRI & Millet• Established Institutional arrangement with

District Administration • Established Farmers Resource centers in the

District (running from Govt. Building).• Formation of district monitoring committee

Moving Towards 2nd Phase (2013-2014)

Two District Level Programs:a) Realising fisheries potential in 50 Gram

Panchayats (50% of the district) – (integrating MGNREGS, ATMA, RKVY and Fisheries Development)

b) Enhancing Food Security : Through Integrated Productivity Improvement of Cereal & Millet Production Systems (integration of all programs)

Fisheries DepartmentTechnical & Financial support

Fisheries Resource Center

RRA Program(Process & Services)

Gram Panchayat

Fisheries Resource PersonTrained at CIFA

Fish farmer

• MGNREGS : • Renovation of pond

•Technical training• Growth Monitoring support• Marketing (at later stage)

One Fingerling Production farmer

• Fish fry – support• Nets (for own use and hiring)

Block level Fisheries Officer

PROGRAM:50 GPs50 water bodies / GP= 2500 water bodies@ approx Rs.15000 per eachPotential gross income : Rs.3.75 cr

Realizing Fisheries Potential in Malkangiri

District

Enhancing Food Security : Through Integrated Productivity Improvement of Cereal & Millet Production Systems

• Proposed in 14 Gram Panchayats• Community Based Organisations (Farmers Groups/ Coops, SHGs

etc.) + GP platform at GP level• Plans at Gram Panchayat• Facilitated by the NGOs with a Joint Secretariat between RRA-

Malkangiri network & the District Administration • Plans funded by various district level programs/ schemes• Funds routed to Gram Panchayat and implemented by the

respective Producer Groups/ organisations• Technical support from the Line Departments & National RRA

Network’s Thmatic Nodes.• Increase productivity and production of crops by about 40%• Securing crops against climate variability

DONGAR Poddar Bera

Intervention Possibility in Dongar (Up) land

Possibility in Podar (Medium land)

Possibility in Bera (Low land)

Land treatment moisture conservation-Land treatment

Land treatment where required

Safe discharge

Soil Productivity improvement Compost & biomass enhancement

Green manure, biomass enhancement, green leaf manure and Compost

Green manure, green leaf manure and Compost

Appropriate, diverse and quality seed

Yes Yes Yes

Farm ponds and protective irrigation

No Yes No

Easing Draft power constraints Yes Yes

System of Rice/ root Intensification

SRI – for millets SRI – Ragi & Paddy & suan (little millet)

SRI in Paddy---------

Liquid manures and bio-pesticides

Yes Yes Yes

Implements – for increased labour productivity

Yes Yes Yes

Others..

Landscape based Planning/ Interventions:

Focus on Establishing Support Systems At GP Level

• Seed systems at GP level – Managed by farmers’ groups and linked to Agrl Dept and KVKs.

• Custom hiring centers for implements/ small machines & other equipment

• Nurseries : chick rearing (BYP), Fish fingerlings rearing, vegetables, biomass

• Livestock primary health care systems (preventive vaccination in particular)

• Making sustainable agriculture inputs (bio-pesticides, liquid manures etc., available through local enterprises)

• Aggregation and market services

• Climate & market information centers : weather forecasting services,

• Trained Community Resource Persons : Para-hydro-geologists (for groundwater), crop management, SRI, livestock health workers.

Way Ahead

• Received invitation from District collector of Kandhamal District to start a Pilot with district administration in 1 GP in this Karif.

• Proposal in progress.

Thank