For Farming / Animal welfare

Farming is the main livelihood of majority of these villages and most are small landowners of about 25 acres. The main crops grown are groundnuts, cotton, wheat, millet, sugarcane, mangoes, etc. As the farm holdings are small and most farmers are not educated, there is very limited use of modern farming techniques and also uptake of many Government subsidies which are available. Water is a scarce resource in this region which has to managed carefully through many Government built water dams so there is a supply of water throughout the year.

Through this Anand Dhara programme, education on modern techniques are regularly held in Chaparda through seminars on use of drip irrigation, use of greenhouses & net houses, use and benefits of organic fertiliser, encourage tree planting, water conservation methods, building check dams, importance of biodiversity etc. Couple of years ago, Anand Dhara organised a group of farmers to go on a 3 day visit to an organic Agriculture show in Maharashtra. Aim of these seminars and visits is to empower and educate the farmers so that they can increase their income and hence be able to live better.

Regarding animal welfare, almost every household in each village keeps livestock like cows and buffaloes for milk. As with farming, seminars are held in Chaparda to promote best practice in animal welfare like keeping Gir breed of cows as it gives best nutrient in milk, helping in breeding good stock of cows and regularly holding animal camps where free check-ups and treatments can be carried out by team of veterinary doctors.