Panchayat Development Society Case Study

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General Information District Alappuzha Block Kanjikuzhy Area 110.13 km² No of Divisions 13 Population 148128 Male 72916 Female 75212 Population Density 1345 Sex Ratio 1031 Literacy Rate 94 Literacy Rate (Male) 97 Literacy Rate (Female) 91 Source : Census data 2001 Geography • Panchayat Area – 16.62 sq km & 17059 hectares. • 32% of land owners hold only 10 cents. • Only 8.8% of land owners hold more than an acre. • This land is highly fragmented. • 80% were engaged in traditional coir industry. • Agriculture was the principal livelihood of only 3.5%. Concepts learnt from Kanjikuzhy model of farming Social Capital Social capital is created when relations among persons change in ways that facilitate action • When people join together…show more content…
Farmers’ Club It is the responsibility of the Farmers’ Club to supply planting kits which include seeds, manure, natural insecticides etc. The Club also provides consultation service to the farmers with the help of experienced farmers who are called “Krishi doctors”. Panchayat Development Society The Panchayat Development Society (PDS) formed in 2002 is the brain child of the former Finance Minister Sri. Thomas Isaac. The PDS gave incentives for vegetable cultivation and ensured a strong marketing system, and the outcome was that vegetable ‘import' into the region came to a halt. Farmers and coir product manufacturers now get a fair price for their products and are able to bypass the middlemen. The PDS display a variety of fruits, vegetables and other farm produce, besides a range of coir products on the highway. The Society collects these regularly from the farmers, who are paid in cash. • Started in 2002 as a Self-help group of 200+ men as facilitators. • Trading platform for vegetables, milk, coir products etc. • Floor price when price goes down. • Fair price when price goes up. Decentralized…show more content…
Growth of the Revolution Last year, the panchayat distributed 25 lakh vegetable saplings of 11 varieties. Their aim is to produce 4000 tons of vegetable with an intrinsic value of Rupees 14 crore during the season. Presently, the average value per annum is between three to four crore rupees. Now only a part of the total production reaches the market after the personal use inside within the panchayat. Kanjikuzhy has an outlay of Rupees 50 lakh for this programme from different plan funds. The plan fund is obtained mainly from last year’s award by the state government for cultivation of fallow land, supply of organic manure etc. Self-sufficiency Seed Self-sufficiency of seeds was achieved by the farmers rather than depending on bio technologically developed seeds which give high yield but is harmful to good health. They went for seeds which they developed themselves that are more suitable for their location as well as for the environment. They had collectively researched and developed these seeds. The group of farmers started selling these seeds by showcasing the yield it provided and they were able to market these seeds successfully. These seeds are very environment friendly which will not destroy the land and is noted that they consume comparatively less water and therefore is suitable for almost all the farming grounds. This helps promoting environment sustainability to other regions where these seeds are

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