Small investments, big transformations: Lessons from 24 villages in 30 days

By Bharat Dogra 

I have been visiting villages in India regularly for several decades so that my writings on development, peace, and the environment can benefit from what I learn from local communities and activists. Despite all my reading and writing of books and scholarly papers, wherever I go I find that I still have so much to learn from villagers and grassroots workers.  

Recently, I visited about 24 villages across three states—Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh—over the course of a month to study various development initiatives and hold group discussions with community members. While I have written separate reports on these visits that have already been published, I am writing this piece to record some strong impressions of the overall situation.  

I was deeply impressed by how small, well-planned investments directed toward neglected and poorest communities can make a significant contribution to reducing distress at relatively low cost. In Jogipura village of Karauli district, for example, an investment of just sixteen lakh rupees (less than 20,000 US dollars) in water conservation transformed both the immediate and long-term prospects of the entire medium-sized village, with benefits extending to two neighboring villages as well.  

I compared this with the money a friend had recently spent on buying a typical middle-class flat in Delhi—five times more than the cost of this water project. I saw several such examples where modest, participatory investments greatly reduced distress and deprivation. Clearly, more funds and donations should be directed toward such initiatives.  

Unfortunately, I also witnessed how huge sums are often wasted on poorly planned or even harmful projects. This has been a matter of great concern and distress for me. If we could ensure that more funds are allocated to carefully selected, beneficial works while avoiding wasteful expenditures, it would greatly help in reducing suffering.  

After returning from these villages, I keep remembering the people I met who were experiencing severe hardship. There was Jhumli Bai, an elderly woman in a village of Udaipur district who lives alone and wanders from house to house hoping someone will give her food. There was Naru Lal in a neighboring village, suffering from mining dust-related ailments in old age without receiving any help. And there was an eighty-year-old woman with steadily diminishing vision who still goes daily to graze goats in the hills. Surely, there should be regular arrangements to support such people in distress, particularly the elderly and those living with disabilities.  

At the same time, I also remember those who are engaged in brave struggles to overcome difficult circumstances. Kenti Bai, a fragile and physically weak woman from Karauli district, responded to reduced family income following her husband’s illness by cultivating a rocky piece of land. Today, it is a flourishing garden of vegetables, fruits, and grains.  

Then there is activist Bhanvar Chauhan of Udaipur district, who suffered 32 fractures in a recent accident yet found the strength to return to work in remote villages where his presence is needed.  

These experiences highlight another important learning: our villages are home to hardworking people with immense practical wisdom and strong aspirations for development. Their efforts can bring remarkable improvements to rural life. What is less recognized is that much of this sustainable village development can also contribute significantly to climate adaptation and mitigation.  

We must therefore create enabling conditions and policies that allow this potential to be realized in the form of durable improvements for villages and their people. Such policies should prioritize justice, peace, and environmental protection.  

The immense development potential of our villages can be best realized through unity and cooperation within communities—based on equality of all people and the complete rejection of discrimination on the basis of caste, religion, gender, or any other identity.  

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The writer is Honorary Convener, Campaign to Save Earth Now. His recent books include When the Two Streams Met, Man over Machine, Navjeevan, A Day in 2071, and India’s Quest for Sustainable Farming and Healthy Food