Page 28 - Reliance Foundation Annual Report 2022-23

26 Rural Transformation Reliance Foundation | Annual Report 2022-23 27

To augment farm income, Reliance Foundation How Mahadevi Lokhande is changing Foundation provided regular advisories to around infestation. Nearly 60-70 were facing severe crop

supports alternative livelihoods which includes – the lives of women in Maharashtra’s 2,00,000 fishing communities in 2022-23. Since damage by September.
Parbhani district inception, it has reached out to over 4,20,000
poultry, goat rearing, fisheries and cattle management. The farmers in the school brought the issue to Reliance
fishing communities.
Under this initiative, the following activities were Mahadevi Narayan Lokhande, a 38-year-old Foundation through a WhatsApp query. Reliance

conducted: teacher-turned-Community Resource Person (CRP), Women bringing women to the Foundation organised a two-day programme with an
has helped establish more than 40 SHGs and 28 fore in farming agriculture expert for the farmers. The pest control
• To improve cattle health and improve their measures suggested by the expert, mainly guidance on
women-led enterprises in her village of Isad in
productivity, 30 veterinary camps organized in In 2022, Reliance Foundation started a Digital Farm application of pesticide, helped the farmers tackle the
Maharashtra’s Parbhani district. By motivating the
project villages of Shahdol and Kotma School in Boda, Balaghat district, Madhya Pradesh, to infestation at a reduced cost.
women, uniting them and educating them about help farmers there increase their returns from paddy
benefitting over 6,500 cattle from more than Additionally, many farmers including Nitu have claimed
income generating activities, she has made women cultivation. Nitu Nagpure, a woman farmer in the
1,000 households. that they harvested 18-18 quintal per acre while the
enterprises of Isad highly bankable. village, became instrumental in taking the group to yields of most other farmers reduced to 8-9 quintal per

• Fisheries was promoted among 979 households other women farmers and making it an all-women
Since 2018, Mahadevi was trained in market and acre and attribute it to the advisories provided by
belonging to project villages from Shahdol and banking linkages and has received livelihoods skill Digital Farm School. Reliance Foundation.

Kotma with support for fish fingerlings and feed training through Reliance Foundation. She has been The school began its operations at the time of paddy The women say that their collectivization and effort to
for fish in 250+ water bodies. an active participant in meetings related to Gram sowing in June by making regular advisories available help the village save its crop has empowered them and

Panchayat Development Plans that has helped her to farmers. Despite providing timely information on compelled more of the village’s women to use phones.
• Additionally, towards enhancing off farm income
front the agenda of women empowerment in her all aspects of farming, including crop protection, the They also believe that it will lead to more women
of over 1,200 households in Shahdol and Kotma,
village. Reliance Foundation takes pride in being a part paddy crop in the village was faced with stem borer having a greater say in farm decision-making.
1,5000+ poultry chicks were supported by
of the leadership journeys of women like Mahadevi and
Reliance Foundation.
is committed to fostering women’s leadership at levels.
• For improving healthier growth of goats and
Helping fisher folk weather storms
reducing mortality due to seasonal diseases,

deworming and vaccination was done for over Ismail Ishabhai Patelia knows that ocean weather can
8,000 goats benefitting 1,505 goat rearers from be fickle and timely information about it can prove

45 villages of Shahdol. lifesaving. Therefore, this fisher from Hirakot Bandar
in Gujarat’s Somnath Gir district has been following
Reliance Foundation’s efforts are also being recognized
Reliance Foundation’s precise ocean weather advisories
by the larger development ecosystem. Two farmers for more than a year now. These advisories alert
from the Reliance Foundation project villages received fisherfolk to ocean weather conditions that threaten

awards for best farmers under various categories by the lives and livelihoods.

District Administration of Shahdol. Over 100 farmers
In August 2022, Ismail escaped getting caught in rough
from Reliance Foundation project villages and field
waters and returned to the shore safely, thanks to the
cadres of Reliance Foundation benefitted by various timely warning from Reliance Foundation. Since other
trainings/fairs organized by KVK and ATMA on Rabi fisherfolk had not registered for the advisories then,

crop management, natural farming and organic Ismail became an advocate keen to share the benefits
farming; farmers were also provided seeds and other of the advisories in his community. Committed to

materials for demonstration purposes. safeguarding lives and livelihoods, Reliance