August 13, 2009

Greetings from Seva Mandir!

Dear Friends,

Thank you for your continuing support to our programs. I am writing to share with you a bit of news.

Seva Mandir has recently won a Development Marketplace Grant Competition, organized by the Word Bank. The competition was exclusively for grassroots initiatives in South Asia to address the problem of undernutrition.

The Seva Mandir's project on 'Addressing Iron Deficiency Anemia in Rural Rajasthan through Iron Fortification of Flour at Village Level' was one of the 21 projects that won the competition in Development Marketplace.

We are all very excited at this achievement. If you have any queries on this project then please do write to me.

We are very happy to share this news with you. Thank you for all your support and contributions. We really appreciate it.

With warm regards,


Deepti
deepti@sevamandir.org

May 19, 2009

Dear friends,

First of all, thank you for supporting us ever!

I have some quick news to share. In April end (22nd and 23rd) Margaret and John from Global Giving visited Seva Mandir Projects. We took them around and showed them our work in four villages. We exchanged a lot of ideas and learnt a lot about each other.

During their time here we visited our Pre School Center, Rural School, Immunization Camp, Dal Mill Project (Profit for poor), Village Library and Pastureland Development. They both found these programs very interesting but our meeting with one of the Fellows (Fellowship Project) – Jawan Singh in Barawa village was a special highlight for all of us.

We had lunch with Jawan Singh. It was a very hot day but we all were very happy to be able to wash our feet by a dug-well which still has lots of water. The water in this well is a result of our soil and water conservation work in this village. Margaret and John were very impressed to see our efforts and the strong leadership that has emerged over the years. Jawan Singh is a one such leaders. He is currently a Vikas Mitra Fellow (Fellowship Program). He took us around and showed all the activities that took place over the years. He also explained the caste struggle of his village to Margaret and John.

There were two more striking episodes occurred.

One is – when we visited the village library in Medi village – we met the teacher – Ram Lal who runs the library. He told us that he has 6 kids whose names are after countries like – America, Japan, India, and England etc. We were amused to note that ‘America is married now’.

Another incident – when we were interacting with children in our Rural School in Ushan village, the villagers came to meet the guests. The villagers asked several questions to John and Margaret including – what crops do they grow in America, if they also have a hilly terrain, if the rains are frequent and adequate in their country, what is the mean age of marriage in America etc.

Then, an old man asked if they knew – where the Sun goes in the night and that why sometimes the moon is full and sometimes not???

The people in villages were so happy to have guests. But they were so happy to be able to interact with them. Their innocent questions indicate that they have a desire to learn things and that, they are confident to ask questions.

John and Margaret answered to all these questions very patiently and they both appreciated the fact that they were able to interact with villagers other than development issues.

A very big thank you Margaret and John – it was very nice meeting you and learning all the innovating ways of raising funds, you are trying. We all are very happy meeting you and we appreciate all your support and help that you and your entire team provide us time to time.

I am also taking the opportunity to thank all our friends who have been supporting us through Global Giving. The appreciation we received from Margaret and John for our work is also a result of support from people like you. Thank you once again for all your support.

Do let us know if you like this feedback.

Thank you,

With warm regards,

Deepti

Dear Friend,

Greetings from Seva Mandir!

Thank you for your continuing support to our programs. I am writing to share with you some good news. On 27th March 2009 Seva Mandir was awarded the first prize ‘The CSO partner’s Outstanding Annual Report Award 2009’ for our Annual Report 07-08 in the category of Large Organizations. The criterion to win the prize was to have transparent accounts, its disclosures in the report and its ability to communicate well (i.e. readable and understandable for readers).

Such awards and appreciation of our work is the result of many people’s contribution towards our work and mission. Therefore, your support and guidance is one of main attributes of this appreciation. You can find more details about this our website www.sevamandir.org and to view our annual report please visit the following link - http://www.sevamandir.org/publications.htm

Many thanks once again for all your support and love. I will be soon in touch with updates on programs you are supporting.

With warm regards,


Deepti

January 19, 2009

Dear Friend,

New Year Greetings from Seva Mandir!

Thank you very much for your continued supported. I am Deepti and I look after the Reporting and Communication Program in Seva Mandir. I will be staying in touch with you regularly to keep you updated about the program that you have been supporting.

We have some exciting news to share. However, before sharing the exciting news I would like to go over the time line for this program as to refresh what we have done in past few months in this program.

Starting with discussion on a Mill project in October 2007 we successfully sold the procured Tur Dal (Piegon Pea) in January 2008. This boosted confidence in all the member farmers (a total 50 farmer got registered initially from 5 villages). As a result, we agreed to revise the business plan and submitted its proposal to our various Partners including Global Giving in February-March 2008 for raising funds.

In April we organized a training on Processing Technique of Dal (Pulse) for member-farmers. This was funded and supported by the Government of India. In May the marketing of the processed Dal that farmers had learnt to produce during training in April was done. This particular exercise encouraged the farmers since they sold Dal at a price they could not imagine (the farmers otherwise sell off their Dal without processing at a very low price). As a result the member began to grow slowly and reached to about 100 in January 2009.

In June 2008 an agreement was made between the farmers, Seva Mandir and the Government for granting the farmers funds for buying Machinery for this Project. It was followed by procuring Machinery in July and in August the process of locating a piece of land where the machine can be installed was completed. In three months of last year i.e. from October to December the member farmers managed to procure a piece of land from the Local Village Council (Panchayat) and began the action plan of installing the Machinery.

The exciting news is that the member farmers have laid the stone of Foundation on 3rd January 2009. Every member is very excited about this. All part of the Mill has been bought except the Diesel Engine.

The procurement of Tur Dal is currently going on and the target is to procure at least of 100 qtl. We expect that Building the Mill-House will be completed by March 2009 if we manage to raise $ 3650 which is the deficit amount for construction.

On the other account, for procurement too, we are looking for funds. Although, we did manage to raise $ 2100, but we are in deficit of another $4000 to support the remaining costs for procurement.

It has become quite a long feedback, but there is more I want to share with you as what a member-farmer is? How does it work? Why we need funds for procurement etc.

We would like to say a big Thank you for keeping your faith in us and proving these farmers a big opportunity to earn more income.

Thank you once again. I would be very happy to address to your queries if any.

With warm regards,

Deepti Ameta
In Charge Reporting and Communications
deepti@sevamandir.org

Dear Friend,

Greetings form Seva Mandir!

We would like to communicate our heartfelt thanks to all our donors for their continuing support and faith in our work. We would like to share a brief update of the program that you are supporting.

In the Program – ‘Profits for Poor’ - the harvest season for the pulse (urad - blackgram and tuar - pigeon pea) is nearing and the community is making preparations for the harvest. As of now the community is discussing the procurement mechanism (place, responsible person, storage mechanism) and arranging for a loan. There is much enthusiasm about the whole process.

Along with it there has also been discussions regarding the contribution that each village community could do in the construction of the building where they will be installing the machinery for processing. Many villagers are excited to undertake their first big business venture. However, the constraints for funds are there because a working capital is required in order to run the processing plant at its full capacity. The community will also be seeking a loan from the Village Development Fund of the village and some amount from their membership fee will also be helpful in adding to the total working capital. However a big portion of the total working capital is still to be sought.

Your support therefore, is very critical in this program. We hope that it sees a wonderful success and that every farmer gets maximum benefits from the program. Everyone has been learning a lot in this program and the energy shown by the villagers is remarkable.

I would like to thank once again to all of you for helping the farmers is their first business venture. Kindly keep up your support.

If you have any questions then please do contact me at shailendra.tiwari@sevamandir.org

With regards,

Sincerely,

Shaildendra Tiwari
In Charge Natural Resource Management Program
Seva Mandir, India

Presently land transfer from the Panchayat to the Group is under process. Also efforts are being made to get electricity connection in the village so that the mill infrastructure when ready, can be electrified. Seva Mandir team is also planning for a common meeting of all the villages where a discussion can be held regarding the contribution that can be raised from the different villages for the construction of the mill infrastructure.
Near Future Plans and activities: 1. Land transfer from panchayat. 2. Building infrastructure. 3. Machinery installation. 4. Power connection.

In the month of May 2008 Seva Mandir team along with the farmers associated with Dal Mill Project organized a half-day long camp to sell off the Tur and Urad Dal (Pigeon Pea and Pulses) in Seva Mandir headquarter, Udaipur City. Both of these dals (Tur and Urad) had been processed during the trainings that these farmers had received in the month of April 2008. The sale was very good as the farmers were able to sell off a total of 45 kg Dal in just half a day. This has boosted a lot of confidence amongst them. It was also an assurance for them that there is a good market for their product.

As of now the farmers are in the process of negotiating with their local Panchayat (Government Village Council) to get an allotment of a small piece of land, which will be used to construct a Mill House. The villagers have had a meeting with the Government officials in early May but they have not been able to satisfy the Panchayat for the same. A couple of farmers are willing to donate their private land for the purpose but their common understanding is to get the local Government help in this because the project is for the common good for all of them.

Alongside the farmers have placed an order for the Mill Machinery from the manufacturer at Akola Maharahstra. The harvesting season for another Dal (Moong Dal) in the region is fast approaching. Hence, the farmers are preparing for it and planning to begin the operation soon in the coming weeks.

“We thank all of our donors for making the dreams of these farmers come true.”

The Mill to process the Tur Dal (Pigeon Pea) has been ordered. The farmers have been trained to process the Dal. Procurement so far has been successful and selling of the Dal at better prices has earned these many farmers a lot of confidence in this project. Please read the update to learn about the progress in detail.

Attachments:

• Farmers getting increased benefits... (PDF)