India: Drought - ACT: 14-Oct-02

Action by Churches Together (ACT) Appeal - India Assistance to Drought Victims ASIN-24 Appeal Target: US$ 4,957,856 Balance Requested from ACT Network: US$ 4,860,296 Geneva, 14 October 2002

While two states, Assam and Bihar, are still recovering from severe flooding, the country is now also experiencing a severe drought situation and of India's 593 districts, 321 in 12 states have seen little or no rainfall during this monsoon season. The deficiency in rainfall is close to the 100-years' record figure - 48 percent in the month of July in 2002. The states worst hit by scanty and deficient rainfall have officially been declared drought-affected. These states are Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Orissa, Gujarat, Haryana, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh and parts of Tamil Nadu. The ACT members, Church's Auxiliary for Social Action (CASA), Lutheran World Service India (LWS-I) and the United Evangelical Lutheran Churches in India (UELCI) wish to respond to this emergency situation in their respective working areas. After consultations amongst the three partners taking into consideration each member's operational areas CASA prepared a proposal for Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu; LWS India for Orissa and UELCI for one district within Orissa. The appeal proposals comprise the following components: Food for Work Water & Sanitation Water Harvesting & Irrigation Health & Hygiene Agricultural Inputs - seeds, fodder, manure, etc Capacity Building - workshops, Sphere Project Completion Date: CASA - 31 July 2003 LWS-I - 28 February 2003 UELCI - 30 September 2003 Summary of Appeal Targets, Pledges/Contributions Received and Balance Requested Total Less: Pledges/ Balance Requested Appeal Target/s Contr. Recd from ACT Network CASA 2,763,043 0 2,763,043 LWS-I 1,415,552 0 1,415,552 UELCI 779,261 97,560 681,701 Total US$ 4,957,856 97,560 4,860,296 Ms. Geneviève Jacques Thor-Arne Prois Robert Granke Director Director, ACT Director WCC/Cluster on Relations LWF/World Service GENERAL BACKGROUND DESCRIPTION Background While two States, Assam and Bihar, are still recovering from severe flooding, the country is now also experiencing a severe drought situation and of India's 593 districts, 321 in 12 states have seen little or no rainfall during this monsoon season. The experts are already calling it the worst monsoon in recent memory. The south-west Indian monsoon which runs from June to September, was 19 % below normal, resulting in drought-like conditions in 29 % of the country. The deficiency in rainfall is close to the 100-years' record figure - 48 percent in the month of July in 2002. The states worst hit by scanty and deficient rainfall have officially been declared drought-affected. These states are Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Orissa, Gujarat, Haryana, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh and parts of Tamil Nadu. Monitoring of rainfall takes place in 524 districts and according to the Indian Meteorological Department report for July, this year 355 districts (68%) have received deficient or scanty rainfall. The country's 70 major water reservoirs were holding only 48% the normal water quantities, and 17 key reservoirs held only 18% of their full capacity. Due to shortage of rainfall the under-ground water level has receded drastically and open wells as well as bore-wells in many states have gone dry. This has been exacerbated by over exploitation of ground water through tube wells, bore wells for agriculture and industrial use. Current situation The failure of the monsoon is the most widespread and the magnitude worse than in 1987. Some of the states have recorded 80-90 per cent deficient rainfall while Rajasthan had zero rainfall during July. Orissa recorded the lowest rainfall of 140.14 mm which is 60 percent less than the average rainfall of 351 mm in July. This is the lowest rainfall in the state recorded during the last 40 years. Consequently, nearly two-thirds of the monsoon crop of paddy, coarse grains like bajra, soya, maize, pulses, and vegetables is at risk. The drop in output could be upwards of 10 million tons and nearly 150 million casual agriculture labourers face severe food shortages, which will lead to malnutrition because there is no work for them to earn their daily income. People are experiencing severe disruption to their normal lifestyles and to their environment and migration, over and above the normal seasonal migration, have started taking place. The ACT members, CASA, LWS India and UELCI, wish to respond to this emergency situation in their respective working areas. After consultations amongst the three partners CASA prepared a proposal for Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu; LWS India for Orissa and UELCI for one district within Orissa. Orissa After the Super Cyclone in 1999, severe drought in 2000 and unprecedented Floods in 2001; Orissa State is experiencing another severe drought this year. Long monsoon breaks, continuous dry spells and sporadic rainfall has badly affected the Kharif (autumn and winter) crops. All the 30 districts of the state have been affected damaging around 70% of crops and affecting nearly 35 million people. The Government of Orissa has already declared 283 Blocks out of total 314 Blocks as drought-hit. The government estimates the crop loss due to deficient rainfall at USD 360 million. Altogether about 60% of the total crop areas could not be covered during the current year and according to the state Agriculture Department, nearly 70 per cent of the paddy crop has been damaged. Other crops such as pulses, groundnut, cotton, oilseeds, vegetables are also seriously affected in these districts as the monsoon continued to play truant in the current year. The monsoons failed in the month of July which is the most critical month for agriculture operations in India. During the second half of August there were some rains but it was too late and too little to save the crops. However, these rains have somewhat eased the drinking water and fodder crises. Impact on Human Lives More than 66 % of the total rural families (6,784,130) in the state live below the poverty line. This includes ~ 1,417,500 marginal farmers and 1,689,750 landless agriculture workers living in the rural areas. Failure of monsoon and consequent failure of crops and loss of employment opportunities has severely strained the coping mechanisms of these rural population groups. These groups do not have access to work and therefore face severe food insecurity. Labour contractors representing business interests in other states and regions have begun to make a beeline to the distressed villages offering advance payment in return for work at below the normal wages. This will bind the people in a vicious cycle of debt apart from other forms of exploitation, particularly of the women and the female children. Large-scale migration to other states has begun, disrupting social and economic life of the communities. According to local press releases about 8 - 10% of the total population from the drought hit districts have left for neighbouring districts or other states to earn their livelihood. Distress sale of cattle, other small animals and poultry are being reported from all the districts particularly from Kalahandi, Nuapada, Bolangir and Suabarnapur. Depletion of all capital and reserves as well as liquidation of assets for survival now points towards the beginning of yet another debt trap- they will have to borrow to invest in the fields in the coming cropping season also. Officially no deaths have been reported but there are unconfirmed reports of starvation cases in this region. Description of Damages In Orissa, about 5.8 million hectares of land are cultivated during the monsoon season. Of this rice is cultivated on 4.2 million hectares of land. It is estimated by the Government of Orissa that rice crops on 2.85 million hectares of land will be or has been damaged totally due to the drought. Significantly, no cultivation was taken up on close to one million hectares of land. Ponds, tanks, dams and reservoirs have dried up resulting in an acute crisis for irrigation water. The drought due to monsoon failure has depleted underground water level in several districts in western Orissa. Water levels have fallen by over 10 feet following heavy withdrawal by farmers for irrigation purposes. It has also led to drinking water scarcity in some areas. - - - - - - - - REQUESTING ACT MEMBER INFORMATION The Lutheran World Federation/Department for World Service- India Programme (ACT/LWS India) IMPLEMENTING ACT MEMBER & PARTNER INFORMATION The Lutheran World Federation /Department for World Service- India Programme (ACT/LWS-India) is a relief and development organisation, established with the mandate to alleviate the suffering of distressed groups irrespective of caste, religion, gender or political affiliation. ACT/LWS India has been implementing Integrated Development and Disaster Response projects since 1974 in several States of India. LWS India program continues to receive strong support and co-operation from the respective State Governments and International donors. LWS India is a nominated member of the State level High Powered Committee on Disaster Management. LWF, being one of the sponsor organisations of the 'Code of Conduct' for The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in Disaster Relief', LWS India designs its disaster response intervention accordingly. LWSI also follows, to the extent possible within the local context, the SPHERE standards in disaster assistance. DESCRIPTION OF THE EMERGENCY SITUATION Presently, LWS India implements Integrated Rural Development projects in the districts of Bolangir, Nuapada, Subarnapur and Kalahandi of western Orissa. These districts are chronically drought prone. The topography is undulating, soil is degraded with very little organic matter and therefore, with poor capacity to retain moisture. More importantly, the area is largely mono-cropped and agriculture is entirely rain-fed. Very few farmers have access to sources of irrigation such as wells and tanks. Even these have dried up due to poor rainfall. Paddy seedlings in 90 % of the seed-beds have withered away. Farmers were mostly unable to transplant the seedlings, where they survived, due to lack of rains. In the case of broadcast paddy, inter-cropping operations could not be carried out for want of water. As a result, the land-poor and the subsistence farmers who depend on agriculture for survival are looking into a bleak, food insecure, immediate future. Supplementary income through wage labour is also now denied to them because of the failure of agriculture across the region. Another rural economic group also deprived of all employment opportunities is the landless agricultural workers who depend entirely on agriculture wage labour for sustenance. A similar situation exists in Puri, Bhadrak, Jagatsinghpur, Ganjam and Jarsuguda districts of coastal Orissa. In the first three districts ACT/ LWSI is implementing Disaster Preparedness Projects and in Ganjam the LWS-I intervention was concluded just recently. In a normal situation, these districts receive about 65% - 75% of total rainfall during the period from January to July in every year. But during the same period in the current year the districts have received only 27% of average annual rainfall. Unemployment and food insecurity threatens large population groups and ACT/LWSI proposes to intervene with employment generation programs which will in the short term guarantee employment and food while building assets which can, in the long term, contribute to reducing the impact of future droughts. This intervention is particularly important in these areas where ACT/LWSI is implementing development and disaster response projects among marginalized communities. Development intervention has, to a considerable extent, curbed the customary exodus following a crop failure in the past. Promotion of self-help groups, village and group funds and grain banks had helped to meet their immediate needs during the lean periods. Occasional employment and collection and sale of minor forest produce supplemented the income and migration, particularly whole family migration was curbed. But this year, the drought and repeated borrowing from group capital and grain banks to replant the damaged crops have depleted these assets. Large scale migration to other states and areas is the only option open to the people and the absence of a large number of people from the communities for a prolonged period will have serious negative consequences for the community development work taking place. Location of proposed response While several states are affected by severe drought, ACT/LWS India proposes implementing activities in nine districts of Orissa. The districts of Kalahandi, Bolangir, Nuapada and Subarnapur in the western part of Orissa will be one of the areas of operation. In these districts ACT/LWSI is implementing rural development projects and therefore has access to several hundred communities and a very large network of community based organisations and groups. Moreover, these are among the most severely affected districts and the impact of the drought will have serious consequences for the communities belonging to scheduled castes and tribes. Among the other seriously affected areas of Orissa LWS-I has selected the coastal districts of Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Bhadrak, Ganjam and Jharsugada. In the first two districts ACT/LWSI is at present implementing Disaster Response Projects and therefore has several teams present in the area and has links in a large number of communities through the Community Based Disaster Mitigation Teams promoted by the project. In Bhadrak and Ganjam, ACT/LWSI recently concluded their intervention but will be able to quickly activate the network of community organisations and groups which would be partners. In Jharsuguda, there is currently no network or LWSI presence but it has been selected for operation on the recommendation of CASA. Since ACT/LWSI is familiar with the state and enjoys the support and goodwill of the state administration, an implementation structure can be quickly established to implement activities. Key Problems and Issues Key issues and problems that the project plans to address can be summarised in three points: Loss of employment opportunities and consequent food insecurity (hunger) Whole family migration, liquidation of assets for survival, borrowing and indebtedness Scarcity of irrigation water, moisture stress and crop loss Lack of employment opportunities, depletion of food and cash reserves and rising rural indebtedness is reported from the region. Media reports show that 8 -10 % of population from the region have migrated to neighbouring districts or other states in search of livelihood. Under this situation, emphasis will be given to creation of employment opportunities that will increase food security and reduce the migration. If employment is assured, migration, distress sale of assets, borrowing and indebtedness will be controlled. Acute water scarcity and moisture stress has led to near total crop loss. Paddy seeds sown and transplanted on millions of hectares have been destroyed. Tanks, ponds and water reservoirs have dried up. Community employment generation programmes will help to re-excavate and deepen the tanks and ponds and also create new water harvesting structures that will reduce the impact of future droughts. Although food is offered by the Government at subsidised prices, the poor lack purchasing power and are unable to access the food. Employment will help to improve purchasing power. GOAL & OBJECTIVES The goal of the project is to alleviate the impact of the drought on the marginalised rural population in the affected districts. The project will also contribute to creating assets such as water harvesting structures which will reduce the impact of future droughts on these groups. Objectives To provide gainful employment opportunities for the affected communities with a view to minimising hunger, distress sale of assets and to reduce mass migration of people from the affected areas To create/improve community and group assets for water harvesting To promote household and community based disaster preparedness TARGETED BENEFICIARIES ACT/LWS India relief assistance will benefit families from socially and economically marginalised groups such as landless agriculture workers and marginal farmers belonging mostly to scheduled castes and tribes. Those families with income below the poverty line and female headed households will get priority. These peoples are among the groups most distressed and vulnerable due to the drought. ACT/LWSI proposes creating 1,200,000 person days of employment. Approximately one person per family from 12,000 families will receive around 100 days of employment over the most crucial period of 5 months, ie until harvesting of winter crops begins in January - February next year. In terms of population, the project will benefit approximately 66,000 persons. Criteria for Beneficiary Selection In the four districts of West Orissa, namely Kalahandi, Nuapada, Bolangir and Sonepur ACT/LWSI implements programs in villages with a high concentration of socially and economically marginalised population groups such as the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. Those involved in the ongoing programs are almost exclusively from the same social and economic backgrounds. ACT/LWSI implements all ongoing activities through representative groups and organisations of these population groups. These include Village Development Committees, self help groups and women's organisations. Since the members of these groups share the same socio-economic and ethnic backgrounds, the choice of beneficiaries will be carried out by these organisations in communities where there is only one representative organisation or group and through mutual consultation where there are more than one. Since there is already a system in place in these communities and since ACT/LWSI personnel are thoroughly familiar with the communities and possess data on individual families, cross checking the antecedents of the beneficiaries will not pose problems. In the coastal districts where ACT/LWSI is implementing or has finished implementing Disaster Response Projects, the people involved are from more diverse economic and ethnic backgrounds. But the target group for this programme will be the landless agricultural worker families, the marginal farmers and female headed households. In these areas ACT/LWSI will use the services of Community Based Disaster Mitigation Teams and other Community Based Organisations and leaders to identify those in need of assistance on a priority basis. The data provided by these organisations and leaders will be further verified with data collected by ACT/LWSI from local government administrative machinery and the net work of local NGOs. Where necessary, ACT/LWSI personnel will carry out surveys to identify and verify the economic and social profiles of the proposed beneficiaries. In Jharsuguda district where ACT/LWSI has no access to existing networks, the data provided by the government agencies and Panchayats will be used to identify the worst affected communities and households. Community leaders will be consulted and surveys conducted to identify the actual beneficiaries who will be landless agricultural worker families, the marginal farmers and female headed households. Number of Targeted Beneficiaries according to Proposed Assistance Food for community development work will generate approximately 1,200,000 person days of employment. The work will involve ~ 12,000 families or benefit approximately 66,000 population. PROPOSED ASSISTANCE & IMPLEMENTATION Food for Work Food for community development work will be taken up in drought affected communities of these nine districts to develop or improve water harvesting structures and land development activities. Excavation of water harvesting structures and other sources such as percolation tanks to collect run-off water will improve the availability of irrigation water and reduce moisture stress in agriculture fields. Land development activities will focus on bunding, levelling, terracing and gully control. These measures will have a positive impact on the environment of the region as these will arrest topsoil erosion, improve ground water recharge and in general improve the fertility of the degraded soil. It is estimated that 1,200,000 person days of employment created will help to carry out land development work on ~ 9,000 acres of land and excavate around 2,700 small percolation tanks. However, this is a very rough estimate and the actual figures will depend on the condition of the land, the nature of land development work that is required to be carried out as well as on the availability and suitability of land for excavation of these percolation tanks. Each worker will be provided 3kg rice, 200gm pulses, and 100gm cooking oil per person day. Employment will be provided 5 days a week to one person from each family. Payment will be made on a weekly basis. Thus each worker/family will receive 15kg rice, 1kg pulses and 500grm cooking oil per week. In addition, each worker will also be paid Rs. 10 per person day or Rs. 50/- per week to meet other essential needs. The value of this mixture of payments is approximately Rs 50 per day. The Government has prescribed a minimum wage of Rs. 50/- per day to prevent exploitation of the drought stricken and the distressed population. The minimum wage is paid in all employment generation schemes implemented by the Government agencies. Therefore, some adjustments to the food ration and cash component will have to be made to ensure that the sum of the value of the food commodities and the cash component works out to the mandatory minimum wage of Rs.50/- per day as stipulated. These adjustments will depend on the actual purchase price of the commodities. In the part of the areas included in the proposal, ACT/LWS India's rural development programmes are being implemented. These programmes have in-built systems for strengthening the capacity of the people and communities related to disaster preparedness at community level. In the other areas specific disaster preparedness projects are being implemented, or have just been finalised. Therefore no specific disaster preparedness training activities have been included in this proposal. Implementation Description per Activity In areas where ACT/LWSI is operational Self-help Groups, Community Based Organisations and Community Based Disaster Mitigation Teams will be involved in the process of implementing activities. They will, in consultation with their members and ACT/LWSI personnel determine the nature of work to be carried out, identify individual farmers whose land needs to be developed and choose sites for excavation or re-excavation of water harvesting structures. They will also be responsible for negotiating and securing agreements for activities on land that does not belong to the communities or individuals in the communities. Community leaders and members of the groups will also be responsible for organising workers into groups, maintaining and monitoring the attendance as well as to ensure that the agreed upon minimum output is provided each day. On a weekly basis, before payment, ACT/LWSI personnel will measure the quantity of earth excavated and or area of land on which development work has been carried out. The distribution muster role will be based on attendance records prepared by the village organisations and these will be signed by the workers and countersigned by community leaders and ACT/LWSI personnel. ACT/LWSI will pay the wages- cash and food commodity- on a weekly basis to groups from a central location. The groups will in return distribute the materials to individual workers from their communities according to the quantity of work put in by each member. In areas where there are no existing networks of community organisations with whom ACT/LWSI is or has worked, community and group leaders will play essentially the same role. But in these communities, ACT/LWSI personnel will play a more direct if necessary daily role in monitoring attendance, measurement of work and payment of wages. Procurement Process Materials required for the program will be procured in accordance with ACT/LWS India financial norms and procedures. ADMINISTRATION, FINANCE, MONITORING & REPORTING ACT/LWS India has more than 26 years of experience in planning, implementing and monitoring relief, rehabilitation and development projects. It has well-established internal administration, personnel, financial and material management as well as reporting systems. The Head Office in Kolkata which consist of the Director's, Finance as well as the Disaster Response Unit office, will be responsible for overall administration of the project. >From the head office, the Emergency Officer, as Head of the Disaster Response Unit, will directly oversee this programme. The existing Project Co-ordination Units of the Rural Development and Disaster Response Projects of these districts will be responsible for planning, implementing, and monitoring the progress of the drought relief operations on a day to day basis. Monitoring Overall planning and monitoring of the programme will be done by LWS India Head Office. Head Office personnel will visit the project sites at regular intervals to monitor and guide the implementing staff. The personnel implementing the projects at village level will report on a weekly basis to the district co-ordination unit. The District Project Co-ordination Units will submit statistical and narrative reports, including financial and material use reports to the Head Office on a monthly basis. Reports will be sent to ACT Geneva Office as per schedule. Finance LWS India uses the ACCPAC accounting system. The auditors are PriceWaterhouse. IMPLEMENTATION TIMETABLE A project span of 5 months between October 2002 and February 2003 is projected. However, LWF-I envisages the major part of the food for work programme to be completed in 4 months - by January 2003, before the harvesting of winter crops begin. February has been included to accommodate activities which may have a delayed beginning and also to windup the project. Activities will begin as soon as indications of pledges are received. CO-ORDINATION The activities will be implemented in close consultation and co-ordination with the district administration and the representatives of the local self-government agencies. ACT/LWS India will also use the network of the local NGOs to identify the worst affected areas and co-ordinate work to avoid duplication of efforts. There has been consultation with the other ACT partners in India - CASA and UELCI. In recognition of the major presence that ACT/LWSI has in Orissa it has been mutually agreed that Orissa will not be included as an operational area by CASA. Similarly, LWSI has not included in its proposal the one district of Orissa where UELCI is operational. Similar co-ordination will be established with major NGOs and Government department to avoid duplication of work in communities. BUDGET ESTIMATED EXPENDITURE Description Type of No of Unit Cost Budget Budget Unit Units INR INR US$ DIRECT ASSISTANCE CRISIS PHASE Rehabilitation - Food for Work Rice MT 3,600 10,500 37,800,000 804,255 Pulses / vegetables MT 240 25,000 6,000,000 127,660 Oil MT 120 42,000 5,040,000 107,234 Cash assistance (12,000 families One person from each family) Man day 1,200,000 10 12,000,000 255,319 TOTAL 60,840,000 1,294,468 MATERIAL TRANSPORT, STORAGE, WAREHOUSING & HANDLING Transport Transportation by rented trucks Km 25,600 12 307,200 6,536 Insurance of goods in transit Lumpsum 50,000 1,064 Storage and Handling Rental of 9 warehouses Month 5 18,000 90,000 1,915 Labor fees for loading and offloading Truck load 1,024 250 256,000 5,447 Security guards (9 persons) Month 5 45,000 225,000 4,787 TOTAL 928,200 19,749 CAPITAL EQUIPMENT Motorcycles Number 10 50,000 500,000 10,638 Description Type of No of Unit Cost Budget Budget Unit Units INR INR US$ PERSONNEL, ADMINISTRATION, OPERATIONS & SUPPORT Staff Salaries and Support Prog co-ordinators (5 persons @25%) Month 5 12,500 62,500 1,330 Civil engineers (2 pesons) Month 5 19,000 95,000 2,021 Accountants (5 persons) (@ 25%) Month 5 9,250 46,250 984 Social workers (30 persons) Month 5 165,000 825,000 17,553 Store keepers (9 @ 50% of salary) Month 5 22,500 112,500 2,394 Drivers (9 @50% of salary) Month 5 29,250 146,250 3,112 Camp attendants (5 persons) Month 5 17,500 87,500 1,862 Staff Travel Local travel Lumpsum 40,000 851 Regional travel Lumpsum 25,000 532 Per diem Month 5 75,000 375,000 7,979 Accommodation Month 5 37,500 187,500 3,989 Office Operation Telephone, fax and e-mail for 9 units Month 5 7,200 36,000 766 Photocopies for 9 units Month 5 4,500 22,500 479 Stationery and supplies for 9 units Month 5 6,750 33,750 718 Postage for 9 units Month 5 3,600 18,000 383 Vehicle operation Fuel & maintenance 30 motorcycles Month 5 60,000 300,000 6,383 Fuel & maintenance 9 light vehicles Month 5 360,000 1,800,000 38,298 TOTAL 4,212,750 89,633 AUDIT AND EVALUATION Audit fees Lumpsum 25,000 532 Programme evaluation Lumpsum 25,000 532 TOTAL 50,000 1,064 TOTAL ESTIMATED EXPENDITURE 66,530,950 1,415,552 Exchange Rate : USD 1 = INR 47.00 (based on LWF September 2002 internal rate) Notes to the budget: Provision has been made to replace 10 old motor cycles. In addition at least 20 more motor cycles, used in the development areas, will be used for the proposed project implementation. Therefore fuel and maintenance costs are calculated for 30 motor cycles. Provision for fuel and maintenance for 9 light vehicles is included. These vehicles are already in the field, used in the existing development programmes. The provision included in the budget for per diem and accommodation expenses is related to travel of the senior monitoring personnel from LWSI Head Office to the field as well as for field staff's travel to the Head Office. REQUESTING ACT MEMBER INFORMATION United Evangelical Lutheran Churches in India (UELCI) IMPLEMENTING ACT MEMBER & PARTNER INFORMATION The United Evangelical Lutheran Churches in India (UELCI), Chennai, Tamilnadu, is an umbrella organisation of all the 10 Lutheran Churches in India. Integrated Rural Development of Weaker Sections of India (IRDWSI), Semiliguda, Koraput District, Orissa is a project of Divisional Social Action of UELCI. IRDWSI project has been working with other NGOs who are part of the Network called Orissa Development Action Forum (ODAF). Description of ACT Member's Implementing Partners IRDWSI of UELCI will be the project applicant and it will implement the activities through its network partners of Orissa Development Action Forum (ODAF). IRDWSI will work with the following partners; Seva Bharthi (SB) Council of Professional Social Workers (CPSW) Peoples Institute for Participatory Action Research (PIPAR) Antyodaya Chetana Mandal (ACM) Socio Economic Development Programme (SEDP) Tagore Society for Rural Development (TSRD) and Rural Action for Development (RAD) and Samajika Vikasa Kendram (SVK) These organisations were part of the earlier Orissa Cyclone Relief and Rehabilitation Programme (ASIN 95) and Floods Crisis and Post Crisis Operations (ASIN12 & ASIN 13) supported by ACT Geneva. DESCRIPTION of the EMERGENCY SITUATION Background Adivasis, Dalits and landless agricultural labourers are the people most affected and they constitute about 70% of the total population of the State of Orissa. The situation in Adivasi and hilly areas is reportedly growing from bad to worse. 80-100% damage to their crops and non-availability of occupation and employment in agriculture, the people are now forced to migrate to other states and urban areas in search for employment and food for their survival. Due to shortage of safe water, epidemics (diarrhoea, etc.) have broken out in some of the districts (Ganjam, Gajapati & Kandhamal) in southern and western parts of Orissa killing already more than 40 persons. There is a fear if timely emergency action is not taken up that the situation may spin out of control. Rapid Assessment of Drought The unusual behaviour of the monsoon, demands made by the people in UELCI operational villages, newspapers reports, etc made UELCI call a special meeting of its local partners on 25 July 2002 and Fact Finding Teams were sent to various parts of Orissa to study the field situation more objectively. The different Teams consisting of social scientists, agriculturists and journalists visited different areas from 2 - 6 August 2002. The Report of the Fact Finding Team is available on request. The Teams observed that the drought situation in different areas of the state is critical. The overall observations are: On average the entire Kharif cultivation of Orissa has been affected with drought due to scanty and erratic rainfall of this year. Stunted growth of plants then shrivelling and drying Fewer areas than usual under paddy cultivation The farmers are running out of seed stock The vulnerable sections are running out of food Less irrigation facilities available Substantial reduction in ground water resulting in drinking water scarcity Adverse effect on economic condition of farmers with reduced purchasing power and inability to pay the cost of required inputs for winter cultivation. Lacking scope of employment Increasing rate of migration No government action yet been taken to minimise the drought situation (as of assessment dates) This drought mitigation proposal is based on the findings of these Teams. Current Situation Lowest Rainfall in last 40 years: The state received only 140.14 mm of rainfall ( normal average is 351.60 mm.) in the months of June and July, the prime period for agricultural operations. Unusually, two long dry-spells 25 June to 15 July and 18 to 29 July, not only affected all agricultural activities, but also resulted in depletion of surface water and substantial lowering of water in tanks, reservoirs, major/minor irrigation projects etc. A comparative statement of rainfall in July during the drought-affected years in the selected area of intervention is given below; SI. District Normal Rainfall Actual Rainfall 1996 Actual Rainfall 2000 Actual Rainfall 2002 1 Angul 382.40 225.10 223.70 66.76 2 Dhenkanal 382.00 234.60 223.60 150.09 3 Kalahandi 343.50 365.20 442.90 121.08 4 Koraput 351.10 411.60 302.50 224.51 5 Mayurbhanj 426.40 268.50 256.70 114.30 6 Nayagarh 310.80 144.00 271.60 126.07 AVERAGE: 351.60 252.30 249.10 140.14 During the visit of the Fact Finding Team, it was observed that the marginal farmers, sharecroppers, agricultural labourers and small farmers have started selling/mortgaging their belongings such as cattle, assets, land, etc, at low prices. The landless labourers, sharecroppers, marginal and small farmers are without work (agricultural operations have come to a halt due to scanty rainfall) they have or are running out of any food stores they may have had. In some of districts of Orissa the landless labourers and other weaker sections have already started migrating to urban areas. However, the rate of migration will be more in the following months. Description of Damages - Crop Damage above 70% Acute shortage of water throughout the State caused by the scanty and erratic rainfall has damaged 70% of the crops meaning that the loss of production will be 3.542 Million MT. Food Insecurity and Malnutrition In general the land less labourers, share croppers, rural artisans, marginal and small farmers are already the most vulnerable in disaster situations. They do not have the food security or stores to sustain themselves for any period of time. Many of the most vulnerable such as the infirm, elderly, women and children with negligible social and economic security are going to face starvation from October onwards. The next few months will be the most precarious for these people. In some of the Adivasi areas of Orissa it is not uncommon for a mother to sell her son or daughter for a bowl of rice. Water scarcity The scarcity of drinking water and food insecurity has lead to water borne disease such as skin diseases, fever, gastro-intestinal problems, etc. In some of the districts of Orissa (Kandhamal, Koraput, Kalahandi etc) the epidemic started due to lack of potable water and it is reported that 40 people have already died of diarrhoea related problems. (Source: The Samaj dated 23 August 2002). The difficulties in tribal and hilly areas are even more pronounced. Locations of Proposed Response Sl. District Block GP Village Families Partners 1 Nayagarh Gania Gania, Kishoreprasad, Karadapada 15 1709 SB 2 Nayagarh Khandapara Sidhamula, Banapur 7 806 CPSW Nayagarh Gania Chhamundia 5 503 SVK 3 Dhenkanal Kamakhyanagar Tumisingha 4 546 PIPAR 4 Angul Pallahara Khemela, Badasada 6 355 SEDP 5 Kalahandi Narla Gadebandha 7 647 SEDP 6 Mayurbhanj Kaptapada Saradiha, Sarat 11 541 ACM 7 Dhenkanal Parajanga Muktapasi, Jayapurakateni, Kankadasoda 5 304 TSRD 8 Koraput Bandhugaon Alamanda, Bandhugaon 9 504 RAD Total 6 Districts 8 Blocks 17 69 5915 9 Disaster and Emergency Statistics Sl. Type of Loss Affected area in Lakh Hectares Anticipated % of Loss Anticipated Loss of production (In Lakh Tons) 1 Fallow Lands 7.73 100 13.35 2 Area affected by Gajamurudi 0.85 100 1.54 3 Area where no beaushana has been done 19.22 60 19.85 4 Area transplanted but subject to moisture stress 0.34 60 0.38 5 Beaushana done but subject to moisture stress 0.32 50 0.30 Total 28.46 35.42 Gajamurudi : Drying at seedling stage - Nursery Level Beaushana : Weeding Source : The Memorandum on Orissa Drought, 2002 submitted by Government of Orissa to Government of India GOAL & OBJECTIVES Goal: The main goal is to create wage-earning opportunities for the landless, help the small and marginal farm families to revive their agriculture and prevent the most vulnerable persons from facing starvation during the acute crisis period till the next harvesting period. Objectives: To generate employment opportunities through Food for Work Programme To provide agricultural support through seeds, manure and irrigation facilities To provide safe drinking water through repair/construction of dug wells, tube wells and spring protection wells. To undertake health care activities To address issues related to drought and relief through advocacy To undertake capacity building programme for the staff, volunteers and communities To co-ordinate with other developmental agencies and Government departments TARGETED BENEFICIARIES Number and Type of Targeted Beneficiaries according to proposed assistance. Programme Details Units Type of Beneficiaries Nature of activities Relief Food Distribution Food for work - Families 4,226 Landless labourers, Marginal farmers, Small Farmers- focus will be on women. Food items (Rice & Dal) for Rs.40/- & Cash Rs.10/- Total: Rs.50/- per day per person Human Days : 90 per persons in the family Food for Work - Human Days to generate 380,340 Drinking Water & Sanitation Dug well - repairing - Numbers 18 All 18 drinking water wells will be renovated at the cost of Rs.2,000/- each. Dug well - construction - Numbers 11 All 11 drinking water well will be constructed 10 11 villages at a cost of Rs. 40,000/- per well. Tube Well - Repairing - Numbers 10 All Defunct tube wells will be repaired in 10 villages at a cost of Rs.2,000/- per well. Tube Well - Construction - Numbers 39 All 39 tube wells will be constructed in 39 villages. The work will be done with the help of LWSI. The budget per well is Rs.50,000/- SPW - Numbers 8 All 8 spring protection wells will be constructed in 8 villages. The budget is 10,000/- per well Sanitation - Villages 56 All Renovation of drainage canals will be undertaken in 56 villages at a cost of 3,000/- per village. Health & Medical Inputs Health Education Activities 69 All Health Education Activities will be organised in 69 villages. Budget Rs.2,000/- per Village is proposed. Medicine - Villages 69 All Essential drugs will be provided to the needy people in 69 villages. Agriculture - Seeds and Manure Rabi Crop (Oct 02 to Mar 03) Black gram - Acres 3729 Small & Marginal Farmers To support 3,729 families to cultivate Black gram Seeds. Green gram - Acres 256 Small & Marginal Farmers To support 511 families to cultivate Green gram Seeds. Horse gram - Acres 339 Small & Marginal Farmers To support 339 families to cultivate Horse gram Seeds. Groundnut - Acres 90 Small & Marginal Farmers To support 450 families to cultivate Groundnut Seeds. Homestead Vegetable Seeds * Per Family - Acres 56.36 Selected families for vegetable cultivation for home consumption. To support 5,636 families to cultivate in their homestead land @ 0.10 acre per family. Seeds of bitterguard, tomato, ladies finger, pumpkin, cucumber etc., - 10 items worth Rs. 100/- will be provided. Farmyard Manure - Acres 4,446 Small & Marginal Farmers Farmyard manure will be provided @ Rs.300 per acre. Kharif Crop (Apr 03 to Sep 03) Black gram - Acres 645 Small & Marginal Farmers To support 645 families to cultivate Black gram during Kharif season. Paddy - Acres 3223 Small & Marginal Farmers To support 3,223 families to cultivate Paddy Seeds. Ragi - Acres 247 Small & Marginal Farmers To support 247 families to cultivate Ragi Seeds. Suan - Acres 72 Small & Marginal Farmers To support 144 families to cultivate Suan local millet seeds. Farmyard Manure - Acres 4187 Small & Marginal Farmers Farmyard manure will be provided @ Rs.300 per acre. Support for Water Harvesting - Irrigation WHS - Numbers 16 All Water harvesting systems will be constructed in 16 villages costing Rs. 35,000/- each. Check Dams - Numbers 2 All Check dams will be constructed in 2 villages @ Rs.45,000/- each. Advocacy Meetings - Numbers 69 All Meetings will be organised at the field level in all the 69 villages. Campaigns - Numbers 9 All Campaigns will be organised in 9 regional basis at a cost of Rs.20,000/- each. Capacity Building Programme Staff Level - Numbers 16 Staff Capacity Building Programme will be organised by UELCI at the NGO Level Staff. Volunteer Level - Numbers 67 Volunteers Capacity Building Programme will be organised by UELCI for all the Volunteers. Community Level Representative - Numbers 276 Communities Capacity Building Programme will be organised by the partner organisations in 72 villages Criteria for Beneficiary Selection Geographic - people living in remote hilly/Adivasi areas where government attention is less. Socio culturally Marginalised - Adivasis and Dalits. Economic - land less agricultural labourers, marginal farmers and small farmers - food for work and seeds support. The most vulnerable women, children, elderly and the disabled - food distribution Beneficiaries have been selected in consultation with community members, Panchayat leaders and local Government officials etc. PROPOSED EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE & IMPLEMENTATION Relief Food Distribution - Food for Work 4,226 families (Adivasis & Dalits, landless labourers, marginal farmers etc.) will benefit and 380,340 human days will be generated with each human day recompensed by food items worth Rs.40/- and cash Rs. 10/- and in total Rs. 50/- . Through the food for work programme the following community infrastructures will be created/repaired. Sl. Details of Work 1 Water Harvesting Structures 2 Pond Renovation 3 Check Dam Construction 4 Bunding 5 Road Repair 6 Land Development Drinking Water and Sanitation Drinking Water: To mitigate the problem of safe and sufficient drinking water, repairing/construction of dug wells, tube wells and construction of spring protection wells will be undertaken where the marginal sections (Adivasis, Dalits, landless share croppers, marginal farmers, small farmers etc.) are mostly affected. The following activities will be undertaken under this programme. Sl. Programme Details No. of Units No. of Villages 1 Dug well - Repairing - Numbers 18 18 2 Dug well - Construction - Numbers 11 11 3 Tube Well - Repairing - Numbers 10 10 4 Tube Well - Construction - Numbers 39 39 5 Spring Protection Wells - Numbers 8 8 Sanitation 54 villages will be covered under this programme. Sl. Area No. of Villages Types of Activities 1 Khandapara 7 Repair of drainage, canals, dug wells and tube wells 2 Gania 20 - ditto - 3 Kamakshyanagar 4 - ditto - 4 Parjang 5 - ditto - 5 Kaptipada 11 - ditto - 6 Narla 7 Total 54 In most of the villages the drainage system has not been cleaned or maintained properly. Therefore, in order to carry out the cleaning/repairs properly, construction materials such as cement, sand, bricks as well as skilled workers are required. Health & Medical Inputs Emphasis will be on health education activities to prevent/minimise diseases such as skin infections and gastrointestinal problems among the people and particularly children, old age, women, disabled, etc. Individual health check-ups will be undertaken and medicines to be provided to people in 69 villages. Sl. Area Medicine Distribution No. of Villages 1 Khandapara 7 2 Gania 20 3 Kamakshyanagar 4 4 Parjang 5 5 Kaptipada 11 6 Pallahara 6 7 Narla 7 8 Bandugaom 9 The health education activities will be undertaken with the help of a team of professionals (doctors) and para-medical staff who are already working under the implementing partners. The local government health staff will also participate in the programme. The amount of Rs.2,000 is towards medical team expenses (travel, food, etc) and also for the medicines which the team will carry during their visits to the villages. The team will carry out health awareness meetings for the villagers with regard to use of medicines, sanitation and hygiene etc. The team will also carry out individual health check ups, treatment and referral services. An amount of Rs2,000 is budgeted towards medicine to be kept at the village level. From each village an average of 50 families are expected to avail themselves of the services. Medicines for the most common diseases will be kept in the villages. The villagers will be expected to reimburse the cost of medicines to the community so that the medicine stocks can be maintained at the village level in the future. The volunteers based at the village will be oriented in the treatment of common diseases, hygiene and sanitation. Agriculture - Seeds and Manure Rabi Crop - October 02 to March 2003: The worst affected share croppers, marginal and small farmers would be provided with seeds by which they would grow Rabi crops. Rabi crop is crucial for such families to recover from the distress situation and September and October months are a critical period. UELCI also plans to accompany the farmers during the Kharif Crop from April to September 2003. All these families will be assisted with farmyard manure. Sl. Type of Seed No. of Families No. of Acres Remarks 1 Black gram 3,729 3,729 Rabi Crop 2 Green gram 511 256 Rabi Crop 3 Horse gram 339 339 Rabi Crop 4 Groundnut 450 90 Rabi Crop 5 Homestead Vegetable seeds 5,636 56.36 Rabi Crop 6 Black gram 645 645 Kharif Crop 7 Paddy 3,223 3,223 Kharif Crop 8 Ragi 247 247 Kharif Crop 9 Suan 144 72 Kharif Crop Water Irrigation 16 water harvesting structures and 2 check dams will be constructed to provide irrigation in 18 villages. Advocacy Advocacy programmes will be undertaken for drawing the attention of State Government and Central Government for drought support and effective implementation of different drought relief programmes. Meeting and workshops will be organised at different levels to pressurise the Government for the following: To streamline public distribution system To regularise Annapurna Yozana, BPL and APL programme support To implement EAS and food for work on a large scale To implement crop loans for the farmers To ensure crop insurance etc., Capacity Building Programme Capacity Building programmes will be undertaken at three levels viz., staff, volunteers and at community level. Staff and Volunteer level programmes will be organised centrally by UELCI while the community level capacity building programme will be undertaken by the implementing NGOs. The following activities will be undertaken under this programme. Capacity Building Programme - Staff level - 14 Staff Capacity Building Programme - Volunteer - 67 Volunteers Capacity Building Programme - Community level - 276 People. Training of Trainers (ToT) will be undertaken for the staff for facilitation and smooth implementation. Orientation will be given to the volunteers to facilitate the programme at community level. Both Capacity Building of staff and volunteers will be undertaken centrally. Training on Community Based Disaster Preparedness will be undertaken at the community level (by the implementing partners) with four representatives (2 men and 2 women) from each village. Transition from Emergency The projects listed above will assist the most vulnerable from the emergency phase to rehabilitation. The food for work programme will assist 4,226 families for a period of 90 days while seed support will help the farmers cultivate their lands in Rabi season. Organising seed banks and self help groups etc to rotate seeds will improve food security by making available seed loans to those who have nothing. The health assistance along with provision of potable water will improve the general health situation. Through advocacy and capacity building people will be empowered to gain knowledge of their rights, demand and get that which is their due - eg benefits from the Governments and establish community mechanisms for self-sustainability. Through the rights education programme they will be linked to Panchayat Raj Institutions. ADMINISTRATION, FINANCE, MONITORING, REPORTING Administration IRDWSI/UELCI is responsible for general project administration. The field team headed by the chief functionaries of local partners will carry out the implementation of the field level activities. The role of the Chief Functionaries will be co-ordinated by the UELCI Co-ordinator. Field level liaison with local authorities and other related bodies will be co-ordinated by the Field Team. Record-keeping at village level: at the village level, details of the activities undertaken in the village will be maintained by the village committee with the assistance of a volunteer. Weekly reports will be sent to the field co-ordinator. Registers, village committee resolutions, family cards, progress reports and other details of activities will be maintained at village level. Finance The financial control system built in at the IRDWSI/UELCI level will be followed. The IRDWSI/UELCI will be the recipient of the funds in their FCRA account. Conceptual orientation and training, calling in the funds, channelling and management of the funds, consolidating the narrative reports and financial reporting will be the responsibility of the IRDWSI/UELCI. Upon completion of the programme, there will be an external audit carried out by: JK Reddy & Co, Chartered Accountants, New No.128/10, Ntr Street, Rangarajapuram, Chennai - 600024. Monitoring IRDWSI, will take general responsibility for administration, finance monitoring, and reporting involving the local implementing partners. The Co-ordinator of UELCI will co-ordinate the programme with support of the Field Team which will implement field level activities at grassroots level in close co-operation with the beneficiaries. The team will report on the progress of the field activities to the person in-charge on a weekly basis. The consolidated field report will be made available to ACT on a monthly basis concerning aspects of material usage, finance utility in the field, statistical data on the activities and overall progress of the Programme by IRDWSI/UELCI. IMPLEMENTATION TIMETABLE The programme will start in the month of October and will come to an end by September 2003. The support will be extended to the next Kharif season. The detail of the time frame is given below; Sl. Programme Time Frame Remarks 1 Food for Work Oct to Dec - 02 During the acute food shortage period 2 Water & Sanitation Oct 02 to Sep 03 Repair will be undertaken immediately and construction will be undertaken after the rainy season 3 Health & Medical Inputs Oct 02 to Sep 03 According to the requirement 4 Seeds support - Rabi Crop Oct 02 to Mar 03 Seed & manure 5 Seeds Support - Kharif Crop Jul 02 to Sep 03 Seed & manure 6 Support for Irrigation Oct 02 to Sep 03 Repair will be undertaken immediately and construction will be undertaken after the rainy season 7 Advocacy Oct 02 to Sep 03 Periodic meetings will be conducted 8 Capacity Building Programme Quarterly Staff, volunteers level - quarterly and community level - yearly. 9. Staff Meetings Monthly Till the end of the Time Frame CO-ORDINATION UELCI will set up a mechanism to ensure effective co-ordination with the implementing partners. Co-ordination meetings will be organised at the field level to central level. The implementing partners already have their own co-ordination procedures and systems used during their normal work. Depending on the nature of work and resource needs, co-ordination will be facilitated. The proposal will be shared with other ACT partners and UELCI plans will be shared with Government State (OSDMA and Special Relief Commissioner) and District (Collector) authorities only after confirmation from ACT. BUDGET INCOME RECEIVED - ACT Network US$ ACT Netherlands (Pledge of 100,000 Euros) 97,560 TOTAL INCOME 97,560 ESTIMATED EXPENDITURE Description Type of No of Unit Cost Budget Budget Unit Units INR INR US$ DIRECT ASSISTANCE CRISIS PHASE Relief Food Distribution Food for Work for 4,226 Persons for 90 Days (each person represents one family) Rice (3 kg per day per person) Ton 1,141 10,000 11,410,200 242,770 Dal (1/2 kg per day per person) Ton 190 20,000 3,803,400 80,923 Cash (Rs.10 per day per person) Man/day 380,340 10 3,803,400 80,923 Sub Total 19,017,000 404,617 Water and Sanitation Repairing of dug wells Number 18 2000 36,000 766 Construction of dug wells Number 11 40000 440,000 9,362 Repairing of tube wells Number 10 2000 20,000 426 Construction of tube wells Number 39 50000 1,950,000 41,489 Protection of spring wells Number 8 10000 80,000 1,702 Sanitation - repairs drains & canals Village 54 3,000.00 162,000 3,447 Sub Total 2,688,000 57,191 Health and Medical Inputs Education in disease prevention Village 69 2,000 138,000 2,936 Medical checkups and medicines Village 69 2,000 138,000 2,936 Sub Total 276,000 5,872 Agricultural Inputs Rabi Crops (October 2 to March 3) Blackgram (3,729 acres/15 kg/acre) Ton 55.935 40,000 2,237,400 47,604 Greengram (256 acres/15 kg/acre) Ton 3.84 36,000 138,240 2,941 Horsegram (339 acres/15 kg/acre) Ton 5.085 36,000 183,060 3,895 Groundnut (90 acres/72 kg/acre) Ton 6.48 30,000 194,400 4,136 Homestead vegetable seeds/family Packet 5,636 100 563,600 11,991 Description Type of No of Unit Cost Budget Budget Unit Units INR INR US$ Farmyard Manure X Rs.300 acre Acre 4,446 300 1,333,800 28,379 Kharif Crop (June 3 to September 3) Blackgram (645 acres X 15 kg/acre) Ton 9.675 40,000 387,000 8,234 Paddy (3,223 acres X 40 kg/acre) Ton 128.92 12,000 1,547,040 32,916 Ragi (247 acres X 15 kg per acre) Ton 3.705 28,000 103,740 2,207 Suan (72 acres X 20 kg per acre) Ton 1.44 12,000 17,280 368 Farmyard manure at Rs.300/acre Acre 4,187 300 1,256,100 26,726 Sub-total 7,961,660 169,397 Support for Water Harvesting - Irrigation Rain water harvesting structures Number 16 35,000 560,000 11,915 Diversion wires for check dams Dam 2 45,000 90,000 1,915 Sub-total 650,000 13,830 TOTAL 30,592,660 650,908 MATERIAL TRANSPORT, STORAGE, WAREHOUSING AND HANDLING Truck Rental and Related Costs Regional transport - food inputs Truck load 140 5,000 700,000 14,894 Regional transport - seeds Truck load 22 5,000 110,000 2,340 Local transport food inputs & seeds Lumpsum 100,000 2,128 Rental of warehouse Month 6 10,000 60,000 1,277 Labor fees loading & offloading Truck load 162 400 64,800 1,379 TOTAL 1,034,800 22,017 CAPITAL EQUIPMENT Motorcycles Number 9 50,000 450,000 9,574 PERSONNEL, ADMINISTRATION, OPERATIONS AND SUPPORT Staff Salaries and Support Central coordinator Month 12 10,000 120,000 2,553 Field coordinators (13 persons) Month 12 52,000 624,000 13,277 Per diem field visits by Lumpsum 60,000 1,277 finance & monitoring staff Volunteers' honoraria (67 persons) Month 12 67,000 804,000 17,106 Staff Travel Central coordinator Month 12 6,000 72,000 1,532 Field coordinators (13 persons) Month 12 26,000 312,000 6,638 Volunteers Month 12 13,400 160,800 3,421 Office Operations Office rental Month 12 8,000 96,000 2,043 Stationery and supplies Month 12 24,000 288,000 6,128 Records keeping at village level Village 69 1,000 69,000 1,468 Photographs - purchase & dev films Lumpsum 60,000 1,277 Photocopies Lumpsum 120,000 2,553 Staff meetings Month 12 20,000 240,000 5,106 Communications Telephone and fax Month 12 12,500 150,000 3,191 Electronic mail Month 12 3,000 36,000 766 TOTAL 3,211,800 68,336 Description Type of No of Unit Cost Budget Budget Unit Units INR INR US$ OTHER Advocacy Meetings Village 69 2,000 138,000 2,936 Campaigns Number 9 20,000 180,000 3,830 Capacity Building Staff Number 14 4,000 56,000 1,191 Volunteers Number 67 2,400 160,800 3,421 Community Number 276 1,200 331,200 7,047 TOTAL 866,000 18,426 AUDIT AND EVALUATION Audit of ACT appeal funds Lumpsum 120,000 2,553 Program evaluation & monitoring Lumpsum 350,000 7,447 TOTAL 470,000 10,000 TOTAL ESTIMATED EXPENDITURE 36,625,260 779,261 Less Income 97,560 BALANCE REQUESTED FROM ACT NETWORK 681,701 Exchange Rate : USD 1 = INR 47.00 (based on LWF September 2002 internal rate) REQUESTING ACT MEMBER INFORMATION Church's Auxiliary for Social Action (CASA) IMPLEMENTING ACT MEMBER & PARTNER INFORMATION CASA is registered as a Society under the Societies' Registration Act XXI of 1860. Its members consist of 24 Protestant and Orthodox Churches in India and CASA functions as the outreach arm of these Churches. As the Related Agency of the National Council of Churches in India, CASA is mandated to do relief work on behalf of all the Protestant Churches in India. CASA has a history of responding to emergencies and disasters since 1947. CASA's responds regardless of caste, language, religion, ethnic origin or political affiliation. Operating on an all-India basis, CASA responds to some 60-70 emergencies - both natural and man-made - per year. CASA has a decentralised disaster preparedness plan. This system has been created through the establishment of a wider and more effective infrastructure network and capacity building programme for CASA staff, representatives of churches and identified partner organisations, both at the disaster management and grassroots level, who can, at short notice, respond to CASA's call for assistance. This network is backed by relief materials purchased and pre-stocked at CASA's warehouses at strategic locations throughout the country. The relief programme will be implemented directly by CASA, with the assistance of partners organisations. This list of partners is not exhaustive and could be expanded to include church organisations and other partner networks wherever available. The finalised information about the partners in each state will be sent in due course. Uttar Pradesh (UP) Partners: Sabhagi Gramin Vikas Samiti : this organisation works in Manihar block of Mirzapur district in Uttar Pradesh in villages dominated by Kol tribes. Illiteracy, lack of awareness, women's low status etc are some of the major problems of this tribal society. Sabhagi Gramin Vikas Samiti is engaged in ensuring a better community life for this tribal population. Patha Kol Vikas Samiti: works in the Chitrakoot district of UP which is inhabited by the tribal and scheduled caste community. This organisation is working for restoration of tribal dignity and improvement in the socio-economic condition of the tribal population. Margshree Charitable Trust: works in the Badagaon block of Jhansi district in UP. People are forced to migrate to other places due to the continuous drought for the last three years. Activities are directed towards the issues of food security, generating sources of livelihood, reducing gender disparity and Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRI's). Gram Unmesh Sansthan: the work is spread over the Badarwar Khurd block of Banda district. Indebtedness, migration, food insecurity and livelihood problems are the common features in this area. Focus is on empowerment of local community over village natural resources, creating livelihood opportunities and to sensitising people to local self-governance. Samarpan Jan Kalyan Samiti: is active in Konch block of Jalaun district. Due to the consecutive years of drought, people in this area migrate in search of livelihood. The focus is to organise and strengthen the community, work towards food security through people's participation, promote sustainable agriculture practices through soil & water conservation and make efforts for increasing women's participation in Panchayati Raj Insitutions. Rajasthan Partners Rural Education Development Society: has been engaged in rural development work since 1988 and is active in 2,031 villages of Barmer and Jaisalmer districts. The focus is on literacy, employment for rural women, environmental awareness and strengthening of the Panchayati Raj Insitution. Society to Uplift Rural Economy (SURE): has been active in rural development work since 1991 and the work is spread over 60 villages of Chohtan sub division of Barmer district. The focus is towards the improvement of quality of life of the poor community by promoting educational and literacy work, integrated rural development and capacity building of the local community. Shiksha Avem Jan Kalyan Samiti (SJKS): in Khichan, Jodhpur, is a grass roots organisation engaged in development work since 1990. Its project area is spread over Phalodi sub division of Jodhpur district where it is active in 88 villages. The primary aim is to improve the quality of life of poor and marginalized communities by undertaking education, health, water management and capacity building interventions. Vikas Bal Niketan Society (VBNS): promotes literacy, health, slum development and employment oriented work in nearby area of Bikaner. The focus is to involve the local community in planning and monitoring of development work through awareness and capacity building. Kelanser Vikas Samiti: is operational in Khichan block of Jodhpur district. Its focus is on countering the desertification process through plantations and other appropriate measures and on strengthening Panchatyati Raj Institutions. Madhya Pradesh (MP) Partners Kasturba Banwasi Kanya Ashram: works among the tribal communities. The activities are being carried out in Dhenora and Sandhwa blocks of Khargone district in MP. Major issues relate to forests, loss of tribal control on local and natural resources and the status of women. National Centre for Human Settlement & Environment: is operational in Dhar and Jhabua districts of MP, covering 25 villages with a population of about 6,000 - 8,000 families. Issues relate to land, environment and gender. New Life Centre: is working for the poor tribals and backward communities in Ratlam and Jhabua districts of MP, mostly inhabited by Bhil tribes. Focus is on issues of illiteracy, indebtedness, water scarcity, low agricultural production, lack of employment opportunities. Sampark: is involved in 20 villages in Jhabua district in MP. comprising mainly of poor tribals and follows a people centred approach. Vikas Anusansdhan Evam Saikshanik Pragati Sansthan (VASPS): is working in 10 tribal villages in Dhar district in MP an working for the uplifting of the socio-economic condition of the tribal people. Poverty, illiteracy, indebtedness, low agricultural production, lack of employment opportunities are some of the common problems in the area. Adivasi Chetna Shikshan Seva Samiti: is working in the tribal dominated villages of Jhabua district of MP in 10 villages, covering 1,500 families, mostly belonging to the Bhil and Pateliya tribes. Samiti helps the tribals regain their dignity through resource development and capacity enhancement. Chattisgarh Partners Surguja Gramin Vikas Sansthan: is working with the tribal community in Surguja district which is inhabited by Pahari Korba tribals. Focus is to sensitise and empower communities to keep in check the depletion of natural resources, help with conservation of the environment and better utilisation of existing resources, food security and participation of women in decision making. Sri Gandhi Seva Ashram: is working in the tribal dominated villages of Surguja district. It focuses on soil & water conservation and effective use of available land & water resources, promotion and generation of agro-based income, sensitisation of the community towards gender issues and women's empowerment in the decision making process. Vanvasi Chetna Ashram: works among the tribal communities and is working to sensitise and enable local people to better utilisation of available resources such as land, water, cattle, forest etc as well as to increase output of livelihood sources and ensure better community life. Surguja Gramotthan Samaj Sevi Sanstha (SGSSS): is working in Surguja district which is inhabited by Pahari Korba, Bhaswar and Korea tribals. The focus is towards livelihood, NRM, Gender and strengthening of PRI's. Prayog Samaj Sevi Sanstha: is working in Raipur district dominated by landless, small and marginalised farmers. Focuses on land development, drinking water as well as irrigation water resources and runs economic development programmes and campaigns against social evils. Vardan: is working in the tribal villages of Rajnandgaon district in Chattisgarh and its focuses is to enhance the socio-economic condition of tribal populations through organising them, promotion of appropriate and sustainable agricultural practices, strengthening of self governance systems, ensuring food security and livelihood sources for the people. Karnataka Partners Grama Vikasa Vidhya Samsthe: has been working in Bagalkot district of Karnataka since 1995. The focus is towards serving the rural poor people in the field of education, health, agriculture, employment and enhancement of socio-economic levels, etc. It has been associated with CASA's Food For Community Development (FFDC) programme. Tamil Nadu Partners Tirupputhur Rural Uplift Project Association (TRUPA): is active in 40 villages in Tirupputhur block. The focus is on education, health, nutrition, awareness generation, self-help group formation, savings, income generation, skill training, land development, water conservation, creating or improving community assets, welfare schemes, etc. CSI Tirunelveli Diocese: is associated with CASA for more than 50 years and developmental activities and relief programmes have been implemented through this diocese. CSI Madurai & Ramnad Diocese: has a separate department to implement socio-economic development projects and relief and development projects and is associated with CASA. Tamil Evangelical Lutheran Church (TELC): has been associated with CASA for more than 50 years and has a Socio Economic Development Board to implement socio-economic development projects and relief and development projects. Team for Education and Action Trust (TEA TRUST): is a rural development organisation involved in sustainable development activities for Scheduled Cast (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) since 1986 in Kattankulathur block of Chenglepet district. The focus is on non-formal children's education, health care, small savings and credit, housing, government welfare programme and skill training. DESCRIPTION OF THE EMERGENCY SITUATION Current Situation and Impact on Human Lives As stated under the general background description 14 States have been affected. The lives of the people especially the poor depends on agriculture and related activities therefore the most affected in the communities are the marginal farmers and agricultural labourers. The delayed monsoon negates the possibility of reviving the grain production. Paddy and coarse cereals crops like millet and sorghum are the worst hit by the erratic monsoon behaviour, while pulses and oilseeds have also been substantially affected. Lower availability of food grains, green vegetables, etc has created a situation where the prices of essential commodities are rising. The poor do not have such purchasing power and are running out of food stocks. Malnutrition prevails especially among women, children, the elderly and infirm due to lack of sufficient food and potable drinking water. And with no earnings or employment possibilities, anti social activities and crimes are increasing. The depletion of family food and cash reserves and lack of employment opportunities is forcing the poor to borrow at exorbitant rates of interest. Distress sale of property and livestock, which in many cases is a primary source of income, is on the rise. Migration has assumed massive proportions. Migration for occupational reasons is a continuous phenomenon in most of the states but only for short periods. People are used to migrating for a few months and then returning with the arrival of the monsoon. This year however, many people who have never migrated before are joining the ranks. People are now migrating to urban areas after selling their live-stock and other assets. Cities like Delhi and Mumbai, are flooded with these migrants who have come in search of livelihood. Focus areas within the States To mitigate the effects of this catastrophic situation CASA and its partners plan to take up relief work in some of the most severely affected areas in the 6 states of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. These states have been selected since they are, in large parts, becoming increasingly drought prone due to the consistent decline in rainfall. CASA also has some direct presence in most of these states due to the concentration of the poor and marginalized that are its major reference community. In Uttar Pradesh, the programme will be primarily implemented in the Bundelkhand region which is drought prone and inhabited by scheduled casts (SCs) and in some parts of central and eastern UP. In Rajasthan, the programme will be primarily undertaken in western and southern Rajasthan which are perpetually drought prone and dominated by the tribals and OBCs. These areas have significant presence of CASA partners. In case of Madhya Pradesh the work will be primarily undertaken in the western part as this area is predominantly inhabited by tribals and is drought prone. In Chattisgarh, a small state, the programme area will be at different locations throughout the state excluding the areas dominated by Naxalite movements i.e. central Chattisgarh and area bordering MP and Bihar. In Karnataka the work will concentrate on the drought prone areas and with the reference community of CASA i.e. tribals, dalits etc. primarily in the drought prone districts as declared by the Government. These include Bidar, Bagalket, Bijapur, Dharwad, Raichur and Bellary. In Tamil Nadu the work will include those areas of the state where there has been a severe rain shortfall and which are primarily dominated by Dalits, Tribals and OBCs. The final selection of the working areas will be based on the following criteria: demographic characteristics i.e. dalits, tribals landless and presence of small and marginal farmers; drought prone and rain deficient conditions, districts declared as drought hit by the government and, last but not least, on CASA's ability to implement the programme efficiently and effectively. Description of situation in proposed working areas Uttar Pradesh In UP, 52 of 74 districts are drought affected. However, the Government has declared only 39 districts as drought affected till now. The whole of the Bundelkhand region is severely affected while most of the districts of Central UP and some parts of Western UP & Eastern UP are also affected by drought. The economy of the state is dependent on agriculture and the main source of livelihood of the community is agriculture and related activities. Here 75% of the total agriculture is rain-fed. The state has had low rainfall for the last two years and this year the delayed rains have made the situation worse. Many areas have not received rains at all. Due to lack of timely rainfall, the seedlings in the fields have died and the loss to agriculture in the region is more than 70%. The situation is worst in Bunderkhand region where almost 90% agriculture has been lost. The water table in certain areas has gone down by 25 feet. Consequently, wells ponds and other available water sources have dried up. Parts of central and eastern UP is also facing severe drinking water problems. In the overall assessment the small and marginalised farmers and landless labourers, rural artisans and other small enterprises are the most affected by the drought. The overwhelming presence of SC and OBC who collectively constitute 21% and 41% of the state's population has created complex situations with reference to the livelihood and survival of this category of people in the current drought situation. Rajasthan This is the fourth consecutive year that the state faces severe drought - with this year being the most severe. The state had received less than 50% of the average rainfall and the state government has declared all 32 districts as drought affected with 41,000 villages in the grip of scarcity. The districts worst affected are Jodhpur, Barmer, Jaisalmer, Phalodi and Pokhran. The Meteorological Department has predicted and that the monsoon has already weakened over Rajasthan. Nearly 31% of the Kharif crop has perished and there has been a sharp increase in the price of food items. Crop failure is 25% in Banswara and 40% in Udaipur, Rajsamund, Dungarpur, Chittorgarh and Bhilwara. This scarcity has created an acute shortage of irrigation water, which in turn results in damage to more than 40% crops. The entire damaged crops adversely affect the economic condition of the farmers (specially small and marginal) and the labourers employed in the farm sector. The failure of kharif crop has created an acute shortage of fodder, resulting in an increase in the price of fodder. People of the drought hit areas are not in a position to maintain their livestock due to low purchasing power. The situation is worse in western Rajasthan which is known for its cattle wealth. CASA is operational in 17 districts in Rajasthan through networking between 50 organisations for promoting sustainability of local level participatory initiatives in more than 250 villages covering a population of approximately 35,000. The livelihood system of operational villages has been severely affected by drought. Madhya Pradesh Here it is also the fourth consecutive year that the rain has failed and out of the 45 districts 10 districts hardly received any rainfall and another 18 received very scanty rainfall. Some of the worst affected districts are Khandwa, Khargaon, Badwani, Dhar, Ratlam, Jhabua and Indore. Indore has received only 30 mm of rainfall in July compared with the average of 316mm. Jhabua has also been dry with only 100mm and in the Bhopal area the rainfall in July was only 114 mm whereas last year it was 276 mm. The standing crops have been severely affected not only due to the lack of rain but also due to an attack of pests. There has been a fall in the underground water table as rainfall has been deficient for the last 3 years. The state is the largest producer of soya bean in the country. Soya bean is cultivated in around 46 lakh hectares. However, this year planting could only take place on 25% of the area due to water shortages, and this crop has been totally lost. Another major kharif crop is paddy which is cultivated on nearly 16 lakh hectares, in the south east of the state. Cultivation has not even started due to lack of water. Overall only 10 - 15% cultivation has taken place in Sagar and Rewa Districts, 60% in Indore and Ujjan Districts and cultivation has not started at all in Gwalior, Chambal, Bhopal, Hoshangabad and Betul areas. There is also a huge shortage of fodder. Chattisgarh All the 12 districts of Chattisgarh have been declared drought affected by the Government. There is extensive damage to the Kharif crop, acute drinking water shortage and shortage of fodder for the animals. According to reports, up to 17 July 2002 the state has received only 35% of the normal rainfall. Because of sufficient rain at the beginning of July, 22-25% planting had already taken place. But due to complete absence of rainfall later, a high percentage of the crop has already perished. Furthermore, due to the impact of low rainfall only 45% of the kharif crop could be sown. 85% of the population in this state depends on agriculture. Therefore, from August onwards 8-10 lakh people are expected to be out of work and unable even to find work in the neighbouring state as it is also suffering from drought. Karnataka The main agricultural activity in the state of Karnataka, as in the other states of India, depends on the south-west monsoon. In Karnataka 175 talukas in 18 districts have been declared drought affected due to shortfall of monsoon rains. The deficiency is calculated from *20% in the south to *59% in the northern districts. In Karnataka - Bidar, Bagalkot, Bijapur, Gulbarga, Dharwad, Raichur and Bellary are the most drought hit districts. With the failure of monsoon this year the sowing of the main crops had been completely suspended. Happy with the initial rainfall farmers had prepared their fields and sowed nearly 12% of the targeted area of cultivation. Generally the sowing is completed during the end of June or early July. Now, even if some rains have fallen, sowing cannot be undertaken. Thus the entire crop has failed this year. Even last year, the yield was only 50% due to failure of rains. If the same scenario continues, farmers in the state will have to give up agriculture. The impact would be drastic leading to a complete breakdown of normal socio-cultural life in the state, especially in the rural areas. This would also affect other sectors like electricity production etc., which is already inadequate due to lack of water in the Hydro-electric reservoirs and dams. Tamil Nadu The drought hit districts of Tamil Nadu are Kanyakumari, Salem, Dindigul, Virudhunagar, Tirunelveli, Tuticorin, Madurai, Sivagangai, Ramnad, Theni, Erode, Namakkal, Vilupuram, Coimbatore, Kancheepuram, Vellore, Darmapuri, Thiruvarur, Nagapattinam, Cuddalore, Pudukkotai, Tiruvannamalai, Tanjore, Trichy and Perambalur. For the first time in the past couple of decades the normally rain-rich Kanyakumari district presented a parched picture and 11,000 hectares of paddy has withered. In Salem district standing crops are also withering. Hundreds of acres of sugarcane crop and coconut groves have begun withering due to severe drought in Dindigul district. At Vadasandur in the district, farm labourers are selling their cattle to slaughter houses and migrating to north Tamil Nadu for construction work. Poor people in Tanjore, Nagapattinam and Thiruvarur districts have started eating field rats and lotus roots as they have no other food. In the Coimbatore district 3 lakhs out of 182 lakhs of coconut trees have been affected. The lower Bhavani reservoir, lifeline of the Erode district and irrigating two lakhs acres has only 1.6 tm.cft. of water against in full capacity of 32 tm.cft. In Tirunelveli district the water level is decreasing daily by 1 foot in the Pavanasam Dam. Paddy crops in 6,000 areas have dried up. Water level depletion has affected the salt pan of Tuticorin district and rendered 1 lakh workers jobless. In Dharmapuri, the main stay of mango crops in the state, groves are wilting and 2,347 tanks catering for 19,779 hectares are dry. The situation is grim in Trichy, Perambalur, Karur and Pudukkottai districts where the truant monsoon has virtually ruled out kuruvai cultivation. No cultivation has been taken up in 77% of lands in Cauvery Delta region. With rain playing truant and Karnataka expressing its inability to release water, farmers of the cauvery delta districts of Thanjavur, Nagapattinam, Thiruvarur are worried about the prospects of the long-term rabi crop. Overall Key Issues It has become apparent that certain key issues have arisen which are common to all the areas described above. Food insecurity: The deficient and untimely rains have led to near total crop loss, depletion of food and cash reserves, rural indebtedness, and lack of employment opportunities. While food is available the poor lack purchasing power. Consequently millions of people are becoming malnourished and face the threat of starvation. Depletion of agricultural inputs, seeds & manure: Due to the crop loss the affected families have exhausted all their seeds stocks and will be unable to procure the same from the market due to financial constraints which have further been aggravated by the government's decision not to waive loans taken by farmers from banks and financial institutions. In order to prevent them from falling further into the clutches of the village landlords and moneylenders it becomes necessary to take up distribution of seeds for staple crops to be planted in the Rabi (winter) or Kharif (post monsoon) season. It is also proposed to provide manure for enhanced productivity. Animal Husbandry/Fodder: The late rains in North India towards the end of August and early September 2002 will contribute substantially to meet the immediate drinking water and fodder needs at least till February 2003. It is however expected that the fodder situation in some of the areas where CASA will be taking up the FFCD programme may turn critical in the following months. The rural economy in the Northern states is highly dependent on animal husbandry as a source of livelihood. It may therefore become important to provide fodder in some of these deficit areas of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh. A provision for fodder distribution is therefore being made in the proposal for utilisation as per need. Potable Water: As in the case of fodder drinking water scarcity is anticipated in some of the programme areas in the four northern states. This is mainly caused by the depletion of ground water resources due to over exploitation and the drying up of surface sources as a result of the inadequate monsoon, poor water and environment management. A provision for distribution of drinking water is therefore being made for utilisation as per need. It is further proposed to undertake drilling of 200 tube wells and installation of Mark IV hand pumps in the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Drilling of tube wells will only be taken up in specific areas where there is acute drinking water scarcity and the underground water level is sufficiently high and sustainable. Perspective and capacity building: In order to strengthen understanding of the NGOs and develop a long-term perspective on disaster mitigation, state level workshops will be organised in all the 6 states. In addition to the implementing partners other NGO's, support organisations and concerned government officials will also be invited to the workshops. The overall objective of these workshops will be to generate a synergetic effect on drought and related issues. These workshops may also provide a platform for undertaking advocacy work at different levels. A National level workshop will also be organised with selected key stake holders to develop a clear understanding and acceptance of the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards to be followed during emergencies. The primary emphasis of CASA's relief programme will be to provide the affected population with adequate and safe drinking water. The Food for Community Development (FFDC) programmes will have a longer-term perspective and will provide food to enable the community to develop assets primarily targeted at water harvesting/storage, land development, etc. which will mitigate the effects of future disasters. In order to safeguard the livestock of the victims a provision has been made to provide fodder at the appropriate time. CASA also proposes supplying seeds and manure to small and marginal farmers to enable them to sow winter crops at the appropriate time. These measures will check the large-scale migration that is becoming rampant. GOAL & OBJECTIVES Goal The overall goal of the project will be to minimise the adverse effects of drought on the human and livestock population in the drought-affected areas. Objectives Activities Outputs To reduce mass migration of people from the area Food for Community Dev. Prog,. 1,200,000 man-days generated benefiting approximately 40,000 people To restore livelihoods of farmers and agricultural labourers Employment generation through construction of water harvesting structures and FFCD programmes. Provision of Seeds and Manure 360 tonnes of seeds distributed 24,000 tonnes of manure distributed To contribute to health and nutrition levels to some extent Provision of safe drinking water Drilling of tube wells and installation of hand pumps 20 percolation tank and 20 check dams constructed in 4 states. Rajastan, Chattisgarh , UP and MP. 66,666 people have access to potable water 200 tube wells dug and hand pumps installed in the areas in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu To save livestock Provision of fodder 8,332 heads of livestock To create awareness on causes and impact of drought and capacity and perspective building of key stake holders. State level workshops National level workshop 6 state level workshops 1 national level workshop Note: It is important to note that all planned interventions are expected to have a collective impact on reducing mass migration, increasing income and health and creation of assets at individual and community levels. TARGETED BENEFICIARIES CASA will be targeting the communities most affected by the drought. Priority will be given to the most vulnerable sections among those affected such as women, children, the elderly, scheduled tribes and scheduled caste categories who are generally agricultural labourers, share croppers or small and marginal farmers comprising the bulk of the poor and the marginalised sections of Indian society. Criteria used in Beneficiary Selection It will be ensured that at least one person from each family falling into the criteria of SC and ST and/or from the category of agricultural labourer or small and marginal farmers will be given preference for employment. Preference will also be given to female headed households, the handicapped and families with members who have an acute illness. In the case of fodder and water distribution the total affected population in the village, irrespective of caste, will be considered since the drought is affecting the entire spectrum of society. CASA will however have to resort to rationing of water and fodder. The actual process of beneficiary identification will be initiated once funding assurance is received. The main criteria will remain to cover the worst affected Scheduled Tribes, Scheduled Caste, landless labourers, small and marginal farmers, women, aged and handicapped. On the basis of this criteria specific locations will be identified. The final selection of beneficiaries will be done in a participatory manner along with CASA staff, partners and/or NGOs operational in the proposed area. Efforts will be made to involve local Panchayat members and the community wherever possible. The process will be as follows: Primary discussion amongst different stakeholders for finalisation of draft criteria developed Application of the criteria at the field level in consultation with the community and Panchayat members, existing partners/NGOs (if any). Actual identification of beneficiaries. The process will be initiated immediately once the appeal has been launched and there are indications of support. It is to be noted that the beneficiaries identified will be a mixture of those who are in the direct and bilateral programmes of CASA, others outside the area and in some cases with absolutely no previous relationship with CASA. Women's Needs The heaviest burden imposed by the drought has been on the womenfolk who now have to trek increasingly longer hours and distances in search of water for their families and surviving livestock. They also have to look after the food and fodder needs within the remaining time. Their needs are of critical importance and need to be responded to as a priority. Beneficiary Information The following table is an estimate of the total beneficiary families. Out of the 40,000 families expected to benefit from the FFCD programme a substantial number will also benefit from the other activities. It is only in the case of tube wells in the states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka where CASA envisages that 50 of the 200 hand pumps will be installed in programme areas where FFCD and other interventions take place. The balance 150 hand pumps will be installed in areas suffering from acute drinking water shortage where the water table is reasonably high and sustainable thereby benefiting approximately 12,000 additional families. Therefore the total beneficiary families for the programme in its totality are estimated to be 52,000. Activities States Total Total Families Common Families Additional Families 1 FFCD 4 6,800 MT 40,000 0 2 Seeds 6 360MT 24,000 24,000 0 3 Manure 6 24,000MT 24,000 24,000 0 4 Fodder 4 2,000MT 8,000 8,000 0 5 Water 4 2,000 tankers 2,222 2,222 0 6 Tubewells 2 200 16,000 4,000 12,000 7 Percolation Tanks 4 20 2,000 2,000 0 8 Check Dams 4 20 800 800 0 TOTAL 12,000 PROPOSED EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE & IMPLEMENTATION The specific objective of this intervention focuses on reducing mass migration, restoration of livelihoods, contributing towards health and nutrition levels, saving livestock and creating awareness as well as discussing possible solutions amongst the partner organisations of CASA, other NGOs and other stake-holders on the causes and consequences of drought. The activities identified revolve around: provision of food grains through FFCD programmes; creation of employment and village assets through FFCD; construction of water harvesting structures; providing seeds and manure to small and marginal farmers; provision of safe drinking water; provision of fodder for animals; drilling of wells and installation of hand pumps; conducting 6 state level workshops and one national level workshop to be attended by partners, NGOs and other important stakeholders. The activities proposed to be carried out to achieve the set objectives are as follows:- To reduce mass migration of people from the area: The states identified by CASA for intervention are drought prone and migration from these during the lean season is a normal phenomenon. People migrate to outside areas for work after sowing their fields and return to harvest them. However, the acute drought conditions and loss of major percentage of crops has forced mass migration including that of the elderly, women and children (normally staying behind) in a majority of the cases. This is not the general characteristic of seasonal migration. The reason for the same is lack of availability of food grains during the current period for the family members who stay behind. Therefore, creating employment at the village level is the most important step in order to stop this exodus. Provision of food through FFCD programmes and employment generation through undertaking land development, water harvesting structures and other village infrastructure is essential. Mass migration can be reduced only when immediate food is available for the local people. Through this support people are encouraged to work on individual and community assets and continue to prepare their fields for the next crop. It will be ensured that at least one person from each family falling within the selection criteria will be given preference for employment. Each worker will receive 6 kg wheat or 5 kgs rice per man-day worked. A provision has also been made for structural and other costs related to water harvesting projects to be taken up in the four northern states. The earthwork on these projects will however be done under FFCD. Restoration of livelihoods of the farmers and agricultural labourers Subsequent to the efforts to reduce mass migration in the target area, it is important to immediately enable people to start working on restoration of their livelihoods. The current crop has been lost, people are already indebted to the money lenders and the seeds stored for the next crop are being consumed for survival. It is logical that they are provided seeds and manure at the time of sowing the next crop. Seed and manure distribution will be done @ 5 kgs of seed and one ton of manure per acre of land holding. This programme is meant only for small and marginal farmers i.e. with a maximum land holding of 5 acres of un-irrigated land. Agricultural labourers mostly dependent on local labour will also benefit through this intervention as they would find employment within the community in related activities. Contributing towards health and nutrition levels The prevailing conditions have reduced the normal calorie intake of the people. This has specifically affected the children and women who are considered the least important. Lack of minimum nutrition requirement leads not only to health problems but also breeds exploitation especially of women and children. The food grains provided through the FFCD programmes will significantly help in maintaining minimum nutritional requirements. Availability of potable drinking water reduces the possibility of water borne diseases. The project aims at addressing the issue of provision of safe drinking water in parts of the programme area in the Northern states during the summer of 2003. The ration of drinking water in the selected pockets of the Northern states will be 15 litres per family. Tube wells will be drilled in certain specific areas of the states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka which are facing acute drinking water scarcity and where the water table can sustain this intervention. 200 such tube wells will be drilled and installed MKIV hand pumps benefiting at least 16,000 families. Drilling of tube wells: There are certain pockets in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka which suffer from acute drinking water scarcity in the summer months and for longer periods in drought years. The government supply of water through tankers is mostly inadequate and does not meet the basic needs of the people. Provision of potable water through drilling of tube wells within the village and installation of hand pumps would go a long way in mitigating the hardship and suffering of the villagers specially the women and weaker sections of the society. This programme activity under the circumstances can be considered as an emergency intervention. CASA will give high priority to ensuring that such a programme is avoided in regions where the groundwater level is low and trends suggest that there is constant decline of underground water resources. Saving livestock In acute drought conditions one of the consequences is the distress sale of livestock and other movable assets of which the animal wealth comes first. This distress sale not only brings little money to the family but also reduces the resilience of the poor. There is past evidence of people abandoning their livestock to forage on their own when they had no sources for providing fodder. As a logical continuation of efforts aimed at reducing migration, restoring livelihoods, sustaining health and nutrition levels it is important to focus on animal health. In order to address this objective it is proposed to provide fodder in some of the target areas in the summer of 2003 as per need. Partner organisations will set up fodder camps with full community participation. Livestock owners will be able to either collect fodder or bring their animals to the camp for feeding. 8 kgs of fodder will be provided per head of cattle per day. Awareness creation on causes and impact of drought and capacity & perspective building of partners. It is CASA's understanding that the issue of disaster and development cannot be looked at in isolation in the present context where the frequency of disasters is manifold. It is thus essential that a long term perspective at the level of community, the Panchayat, the NGO sector and at the policy level is developed on the basis of detailed and in-depth analysis on the causes and consequences of drought through six state level workshops. It is hoped that this understanding will ultimately lead to improved perspective and better integration of drought mitigation and long term work (present and future) of different stake holders in the programme areas. At the National Level a workshop will be conducted to develop understanding and acceptance of the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards to be followed in emergencies among key stake holders. The objective of developing capacities and perspective of implementing partners through in-depth understanding of causes and consequences of disasters will enable them to integrate disaster mitigation in their thinking and actions. It is important to note here that people who will be attending this programme will, in addition to the partners and other NGOs, also represent Panchayats and government functionaries from different levels. The FFCD programmes, provision of seeds and manure and the awareness building workshops will be common to all six states. The provision of safe drinking water, provision of fodder, water harvesting structures will not be part of the intervention in the states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Similarly drilling of bore wells and installation of hand pumps will be limited to Tamil Nadu and Karnataka and will only be undertaken in areas where there is significant groundwater level. FFCD Programmes- understanding of CASA CASA considers food to be a very important and significant input in relief, rehabilitation and development programmes. However, the application of FFCD programme has to be dealt with judiciously. In a drought situation, use of food with the aim of creating employment at the local level, improving assets and quality of land as well as developing individual and collective water harvesting structures through participatory process, can contribute significantly to the process of drought mitigation. With this understanding CASA intends to use food as a resource exclusively focusing on land development, creating water harvesting structures and other village infrastructure with the common ownership of the villagers. CASA has been using the ration rate of 5 kgs wheat per man-day for many years now. Recently a decision to increase this rate to 6 kgs. per work day w.e.f. 2002 was decided upon taking into consideration the following: The prescribed minimum wages for workmen undergo periodic enhancement by the respective state governments. While the food grain provided under the FFCD programmes is only an incentive and in no way a substitute for wages it was felt that an increase was justified keeping in mind the all round increase in the minimum wages and prices of essential commodities. Both the wheat and rice provide 346 calories per 100 grams consumed. The minimum average calorie requirements of a person is 2,500 per day. Given a family size of 5 and considering that other food commodities would also form part of the diet. 30 days of work would yield food for 60 to 90 days considering some of the variables. FFCD Agricultural Inputs Water Harvesting Structures State Wheat MT Rice MT Seeds MT Manure MT Percolation Tanks Check Dams Fodder MT Water Tankers (nos) Tube wells with hand pumps State Level Work shops U.P 1200 60 4000 5 5 500 500 1 Rajasthan 1200 60 4000 5 5 500 500 1 M.P. 1200 60 4000 5 5 500 500 1 Chattisgarh 1200 60 4000 5 5 500 500 1 Karnataka 1000 60 4000 100 1 Tamil Nadu 1000 60 4000 100 1 Total : 4,800 2,000 360 24000 20 20 2000 2000 200 6 Note: There will also be a National Level Workshop on the Humanitarian Charter & Minimum Standards Implementation Description Per Agency CASA will be the main implementing partner and will be directly responsible to the resource sharing partners in all respects. CASA will supervise and monitor the working of the partners in the States and do periodic reporting on the progress of the programme. All finances will be received and accounted for by CASA. The staff of the partner organisations and some designated staff of CASA will be used for organising the various activities. Considering the spread of the programme and intensity of work, additional staff will have to be deployed by CASA for which budgetary provisions have been made. Transition from the Emergency The programme will be implemented in areas in and around the core programme of CASA, the bilateral intervention areas and also in areas where there is no ongoing CASA intervention. However the focus of all these interventions will be to ensure that there are some linkages with the work of NGOs, CASA or of some other developmental agency including Panchayats. The focus is on developing linkages between drought and long-term development. ADMINISTRATION, FINANCE, MONITORING & REPORTING Administration CASA has worked in the area of disaster management and response for 54 years. The experiences of many drought and famine relief programmes taken up in the past will form a platform of knowledge and experience for implementing the proposed drought relief programme. The CASA Delhi headquarters, with its expertise in disaster response, logistic and emergency communications, will co-ordinate the overall operation. The state level co-ordination in the six states will be with the concerned Zonal/ Project offices of CASA. Co-ordination, monitoring, consolidation of reports and accounting will be the main functions of these co-ordinating offices. At the field level the partner organisations have independent structures and the Chief Functionary of each organisation will be responsible for the co-ordination, monitoring and accountability of resources made available to them for the implementation of the project in their area. The CASA vehicle deployment currently in place in five of the six states is not adequate to meet the needs of the staff intensively monitoring the new programme activities in their existing work areas let alone in other areas. CASA has therefore budgeted for the purchase of 5 multi-utility four wheel vehicles and 10 motorcycles to be used by the staff exclusively assigned to the Drought Mitigation Programme. Finance Management and Controls The overall financial management and control will be with the CASA Headquarters. At the State level it will rest with the Chief Zonal Officer/Project Co-ordinator of CASA's Zonal/Project office. At the implementing agency level the Chief Functionaries of the partner organisations will be responsible for financial monitoring and control. The Zonal/Project offices of CASA have the requisite infrastructure and personnel for continuous monitoring of each partner organisation implementing the programme at the field level. The concerned field officers will visit the partner organisations every fortnight and ensure that proper procedures and accounting systems are being followed. The field staff will report to the Chief Zonal Officer/Project Co-ordinators who in turn will consolidate all reports and accounts of the partner organisations in their respective states and submit the same to the Headquarter on a monthly basis. Preparation of the consolidated financial report of the project and the final audit of the account would be done at the headquarters level by our appointed internal and external auditors as per standard practise. Quarterly consolidated progress and expenditure reports will be submitted to ACT over the project period. A final audit will be carried out by the audit firm Maheshwar. Monitoring Procedures: Monitoring of the project will be done on a regular basis through field visits, submission of reports, staff-partner meetings and interaction with beneficiaries. CASA and its partner organisations will ensure the active involvement and participation of the beneficiaries in the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the project activities. The programme will be constantly monitored to ensure progress according to the planned framework, and also in order to fine-tune it as and when required, based on field responses. Progress reports will be prepared on a regular basis. IMPLEMENTATION TIMETABLE The total project duration will be 10 months from its inception. An additional period of one month is reflected under certain heads in the budget for winding up operations. FFCD : Mobilisation of personnel, procurement of food grain and project planning will start immediately to be followed by programme implementation which is expected to be completed by June 2003 i.e. before the onset of the monsoon. Seeds and Manure : CASA is retaining the option of distributing seeds and manure for the winter crops (November-December 2002) and the post monsoon crops (June-July 2003). In case certain areas experience timely and adequate rains during winter proportionate distribution will be carried out at that time while the balance will be distributed in the remaining areas in time for the post monsoon sowing. Fodder and Drinking water : it is anticipated that there may be critical shortages of fodder and drinking water in some areas of the four selected northern states from March onwards. Distribution has been planned accordingly. Tube wells : The drilling of tube wells and installation of hand pumps will be commissioned immediately on receiving approval and the work is expected to continue till June 2003. Percolation tanks and Check dams : The work of planning and initiating work on these structures will commence after the launch of the FFCD programme. The earth work on these projects will also be done under FFCD and will be completed prior to the rainy season while masonry and related structural work may only be finished by July 2003. National and State Level Workshops : These workshops will be completed by November-December 2002. CO-ORDINATION Linkages with development actors working within the project area already exist based on CASA's prior activities and NGO/church partnerships in the area. A total of approximately 28 NGO/church partners who have played an active role in development activities in the affected areas will implement the programme. Furthermore, CASA will be working in co-operation with other NGOs and will network with them to ensure a co-ordinated implementation of its programmes as well as those implemented by other agencies. At the district, block and Panchayat levels too, CASA will be in constant touch with the Government authorities, local Panchayat leaders and the NGOs. The ACT partners in India are being consulted and kept informed of CASA plans. BUDGET ESTIMATED EXPENDITURE Description Type of No of Unit Cost Budget Budget Unit Units INR INR US$ DIRECT ASSISTANCE Crisis Phase - Rehabilitation Food and Non Food Relief Wheat Ton 4,800 7,500 36,000,000 765,957 Rice Ton 2,000 9,500 19,000,000 404,255 Fodder (500 MT per state/ 4 states) Ton 2,000 1,800 3,600,000 76,596 Potable water (500 tankers/state/4) Tanker 2,000 500 1,000,000 21,277 Seeds (60 MT per states for 6 states) Ton 360 35,000 12,600,000 268,085 Manure (1MT per 3 acres) Ton 24,000 640 15,360,000 326,809 Drilling of tubewells & install. Unit 200 33,500 6,700,000 142,553 MK-IV handpumps in 2 states Sub Total 94,260,000 2,005,532 Water Harvesting Structure Constr percolation tanks in 4 states Unit 20 250,000 5,000,000 106,383 Constr of check dams in 4 states Unit 20 200,000 4,000,000 85,106 Sub Total 9,000,000 191,489 Perspective Building Drought prevention Unit 6 200,000 1,200,000 25,532 & mitigation (state level workshops) Nat W/shop Humanitarian Charter Unit 1 500,000 500,000 10,638 & minimum standards Sub Total 1,700,000 36,170 TOTAL 104,960,000 2,233,191 MATERIAL TRANSPORT, STORAGE, WAREHOUSING AND HANDLING Transport Truck rental & related cost transport of food inputs Trip 755 8,000 6,040,000 128,511 Truck rental & related cost transport of seeds Trip 72 3,000 216,000 4,596 Storage Rental of 6 warehouses Month 10 36,000 360,000 7,660 Handling Labor fees loading & unloading Ton 33,160 150 4,974,000 105,830 TOTAL 11,590,000 246,596 Description Type of No of Unit Cost Budget Budget Unit Units INR INR US$ CAPITAL EQUIPMENT Vehicles 4 WD multi utility vehicles Number 5 700,000 3,500,000 74,468 Motorcycles Number 10 50,000 500,000 10,638 TOTAL 4,000,000 85,106 PERSONNEL, ADMINISTRATION, OPERATIONS AND SUPPORT Staff Salaries and Support Coordinators (6 persons) Month 11 60,000 660,000 14,043 Field officers (12 persons) Month 11 102,000 1,122,000 23,872 Support staff (6 persons) Month 10 30,000 300,000 6,383 Accountants (6 persons) Month 11 36,000 396,000 8,426 Accident and medical insurance Person 30 3,500 105,000 2,234 Travel Local & regional travel (30 persons) Month 10 240,000 2,400,000 51,064 Out of station staff and visitors Month 10 50,000 500,000 10,638 Office operations Office utilities (6 units) Month 10 30,000 300,000 6,383 Office stationary & supplies (6 ) Month 10 30,000 300,000 6,383 Communications Telephone and fax (6 units) Month 10 72,000 720,000 15,319 Mobile telephony (6 units) Month 10 48,000 480,000 10,213 Vehicle Operations Fuel & maint for 12 motorcycles Month 10 24,000 240,000 5,106 Fuel & maint for 6 utility vehicles Month 10 66,000 660,000 14,043 Vehicle insurance Unit 18 10,000 180,000 3,830 Other Costs Promotion and visibility Month 10 40,000 400,000 8,511 TOTAL 8,763,000 186,447 AUDIT AND EVALUATION4, Audit of ACT funds Lumpsum 50,000 1,064 Internal evaluation Lumpsum 500,000 10,638 Sub Total 550,000 11,702 TOTAL ESTIMATED EXPENDITURE 129,863,000 2,763,043 BALANCE REQUESTED FROM ACT NETWORK 129,863,000 2,763,043 Exchange Rate: USD 1 = INR 47.00 (based on LWF September 2002 internal rate) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Action by Churches Together (ACT) is a worldwide alliance of churches and their related agencies, meeting human need through co-ordinated emergency response. The ACT Coordinating Office is based with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) in Switzerland. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Ecumenical Centre Phone: ++41-22-791.60.33 150, route de Ferney Fax: ++41-22-791.65.06 P.O. Box 2100 E-Mail: act@wcc-coe.org 1211 Geneva 2 Telex: 415 730 OIK CH Switzerland http://www.act-intl.org distributed by - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Center for International Disaster Information Volunteers in Technical Assistance web: www.cidi.org listserv: www.cidi.org/listsub.htm - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - comments/suggestions/requests to incident@cidi.org