Social Education and Development Society

Republic day

2012-02-02T18:38:00.001+05:30

The 26th of January SEDS commemorates the date on which the Constitution of India came into force replacing the Government of India Act 1935 as the governing document of India on 26 January 1950. It is one of the three national holidays in India. While the main parade takes place in the national capital, New Delhi, the anniversary was also celebrated at the school in SEDS.

The morning started with speeches from Henry, the principal of the school, and the staff. Afterwards the children prepared a talent show, where they were performing songs and plays. In the afternoon, everyone played games on the field.

The patriotic fervour of the people on this day brings the whole country together even in her essential diversity. Every part of the country is represented in occasion, which makes the Republic Day the most popular of all the national holidays of India.

Annual Christmas clothes distribution – PIA

2012-01-10T19:58:00.000+05:30

In the morning of the 2nd of January 2012, 179 children came to the SEDS campus for the annual Christmas clothes distribution. After wishing each other a happy New Year, the children were divided into four different groups; green, blue, pink and white. In front of the school the first group went for an individual picture and received their new clothes. In the meanwhile the other groups went for art classes, outdoor games, measurements and indoor games. Thanks to PIA, SEDS and the VTC Centre who made the clothes, all the children started 2012 with a magnificent new outfit. In the end every one of them got a lunch of chicken and eggs at the SEDS campus.

Registration and distribution of ID cards

Handing over new clothes

Group picture: everybody wave those hands!

Yummy lunch!

Banner SEDS-PIA

Art Classes: Origami of Santa Claus

CDM progress

2011-12-13T19:40:00.001+05:30

While SEDS staff sat together for the CDM meeting of December, in South Africa world talks on climate change struggled to overcome a rift on the future of the Kyoto Protocol (and CDM). In Durban, the European Union is trying to forge a coalition of the willing behind its plan in order to put pressure on the world's top three carbon emitters - China, the United States and India - to sign up. None are bound by the Kyoto Protocol, the only global pact that enforces carbon cuts. Washington says it will only pledge binding cuts if all major polluters make comparable commitments. China and India say it would be unfair to demand they make the same level of cuts as the developed world, which caused most of the pollution responsible for global warming.

The conference is finished with an agreement that the EU sets a 2015 target date for a new deal that would impose binding cuts on the world's biggest emitters of the heat-trapping gases, a pact that would come into force five years later. The climate agreement is saved, the climate on the other hand…

SEDS is working hard on the CDM project (Clean Development Mechanism). By building well-functioning biogas systems, SEDS can yield a whole range of benefits for their users, the society and the environment in general. The major benefits SEDS is focusing on are the following: saving fossil fuels, saving time collecting firewood, protecting forests, saving money, improving hygienic conditions, producing high-quality fertilizer and improving the rural standard of living. SEDS realizes that they cannot reduce the global climate change, but they believe in the fact that they can reduce the local emissions and save the local environment. At the same time SEDS is doing research on the social and economic impact of the CDM-project, because they believe in the positive impact of biogas-installations on households.

Last month SEDS identified 977 new beneficiaries for biogas installations. The excavation of the pits is done and construction is going on. The digging of the pit can either be done manually with labor or use a mechanical excavator. Sand, bricks and granite chips (jelly), cement and hardware are provided by SEDS after the pit is excavated. In the mean while several tractors, trucks and bullock carts are transporting material to the people seven days a week.

Public awareness of the biogas-installations

Digging the pit

LCF meeting (Bagepalli)

2011-11-18T09:25:00.000+05:30

On the 10th of November 2011, the Low Carbon Farming (LCF) coalition came together once again for a meeting in Bagepalli. In April 2010 five participant NGO’s had taken a giant leap and planned out a strategy for a yearlong Pilot Project around LCF. The idea was to generate carbon revenues from Sustainable Agriculture (SA) practices for poor people.

The NGOs have been delineating discrete plots through GPS readings and GIS mapping where SA is adopted. Baseline emissions from current (mainstream) agriculture were researched and estimations for future emission reductions, through SA practices, were made. Diaries were handed out to the farmers and regular meetings and trainings were held in the villages to make sure farmers were adopting SA practices and understanding the new dimension of LCF. At the same time the five NGO’s have improved their knowledge on LCF.

LCF encourages farmers to adopt SA practices that reduce, minimize and remove the use of synthetic fertilizers because they generate green house gases. Their benefit in this will be the extra income they make by generating real emission reductions. This is done through, anaerobic composting, using organic fertilizers, mulching, intercropping, multi-cropping, water management in paddy and a horde of techniques specially designed for particular regions, populations and climatic zones. At the meeting every NGO talked about their LCF practices. All through the Pilot Phase the NGO’s SA practices and technical skills have been raised by the new requirements set by LCF. Now is the time to think forward about the Implementation Phase.

During the meeting the importance of the diary was discussed. We came to a conclusion that daily monitoring is very important. The diary is the basic document for each farmer. Each farmer has to use his diary on time. Every time the farmer undertakes an activity in his field, be it weeding, fertilizing or some other, he/she has to write it down in the diary. Many farmers have already practiced SA technologies in the Pilot Phase. Now is the time to collect all the correct information of each village. The following questions are very important: where (village), who (farmer), where (again) (plot), what (crop), how much. It is also very important to survey all the farmers, not only the LCF farmers. This creates a control group.

Paddy field

Another topic on the meeting was about the future vision: SA or organic farming. Organic farming can be seen as the pinnacle of SA. With SA the chemical fertilizer has to be reduced and organic input increased in order to bring a balance in the in- and outputs of the farmer. In organic farming the usage of chemical fertilizers and pesticides is completely abandoned. But there are a lot of difficulties and limitations in organic farming during the whole process. As for now we have to move towards organic farming, step-by-step but focus on LCF first.

During the Pilot Phase every NGO has built ‘trust’ with the farmers. This ‘trust’ has to be maintained and more LCF practices have to be implemented. This is one phase. The next phase is to present the emissions reductions from the LCF practices as scientifically validated ‘offer sheets’ to potential buyers of carbon credits. Ram proved this very clearly: what can’t be measured can’t be managed. Next to ‘trust’ we also need ‘proof’. The next three years the actual project implementation will be taken up. Small and marginal farmers will receive an incentive through carbon revenues to adopt Sustainable Agriculture practices. During this project implementation phase, the 5 participant NGOs will continue delineating the discrete plots of small, marginal and other drought affected farmers and improving their SA skills.

Discussion with a farmer group

Clothing for the needy

2011-11-05T15:31:00.000+05:30

One of the most important necessities for humans, besides food and shelter, is clothing. Around the world, several families in developing countries do not have enough clothes to wear every day. In some villages in Anantapur District, Andhra Pradesh in India, people wear the same clothes every single day because they have nothing to wear.

There are many people across the globe who have piles of unused clothing in their closets. In the past year SEDS received donations from kind hearts. These donations can truly make a difference in the lives of men, woman, and children who really need clothes to wear.

On the 2nd and 3rd of November SEDS prepared the collection of donated items for distribution to depressed villages. Together with the staff, SEDS decided to give the clothes to three poor villages in the area of Roddam and Gudipalli.

In every village men, women and children were smiling with their new clothes. These smiling faces and SEDS would like to thank all the donors. With donors working hand in hand with SEDS, those who used to be unclothed will be given a new hope!

Diwali at SEDS

2011-10-27T13:31:00.001+05:30

Diwali or Deepavali, popularly known as the “festival of lights”, is one of the most important festivals of the year for Hindus. Diwali involves the lighting of small clay lamps (diyas) filled with oil to signify the triumph of good over evil. These lamps are kept on during the night and one's house is cleaned, both done in order to make the goddess Lakshmi feel welcome. Firecrackers are burst in order to drive away evil spirits. During Diwali, all the celebrants wear new clothes and share sweets and snacks with family members and friends.

Diwali was also celebrated at the SEDS campus on the 26th of October. After the hostel children wished each other a Deepavali Shubhakankshalu (దీపావళి శుభాకా౦క్షలు), a happy Diwali, they got a new pair of shoes. Proudly as they were on their new clothes and shoes, the boys and girls posed for the camera. As you can see on the photos every single one of them was very excited.

During the evening, the children lit up the campus with dozens of diyas. In the end, everyone enjoyed the sweets and the firecrackers. The evening sky above the SEDS campus was a colourful sight to watch, thanks to Sunita Rajan and Anshu Srivastava. The children had a fantastic day and say thank you!

Sports Day

2011-08-17T19:45:00.007+05:30

This was the start to out 65^th Independence day of India. Ananda Vidyalayam school assembly prayer being said. Followed by the flag hoisting and some recitals performed by the school children. This was followed by the annual sports day

Flag hoisting by chief guest Ms. Maitreyi Kanjilal while everyone salutes the flag.

Ring-a-ring a roses

Songs performed by std 4 taught by Henry (left) our school English teacher. He has joined us this academic year and the children have been introduced to singing classes this year due to Henry’s musical talents.

Ananda Vidyalayam has 70 students this academic year. These 70 students are from the lower kinder garden till standard 5. This year they were divided into tiny tots, sub-junior and junior categories. This is the juniors performing at long jump.

Rolling pins. This game done by the tiny tot category which are the lower kinder garden and upper kinder garden grades, is performed by rolling a football and knocking as many pins down. Other games for the LGK AND UKG were a biscuit eating competition, lime and spoon race, frog jump, musical chairs, in & out, sack race.

This was the running races that were conducted for the sub juniors and juniors. In this picture you see Murthy from the junior section coming first with Anji and sri latha in third place. Other games were lime & spoon, frog jump, frisbee throw, long jump skipping race, sack race.

Prize distribution was followed after a cultural program of plays written by Henry performed for the whole school, staff of SEDS and parents who attended.

Finally, at the end of the program we had a surprise box event for the children. Euro SEDS from Germany sponsored this event. The children were each given a packet of Boost, a chocolate milk drink and a toy. The toys were cars, Rubik cubes, for the boys and kitchen sets, toy cell phones and Rubik cubes for the girls. There were also a few other gifts that were donated by individual people from Bangalore.

As the children were on their way home after the day of sports, they spent some time opening presents and snacking on a packet of puffed rice. Ananda Vidyalayam would like to say thank you to Euro SEDS the sponsors of the surprise box !

Coming to SEDS

2011-07-02T21:25:00.004+05:30

Coming to India was something of a whirlwind, touch and go affair for me. I resolved to travel to Andrha Pradesh to work at the Social Education and Development Society (SEDS) with my close school friends Nikki Ghorpade (whose family lives in Bangalore) and Douglas Jakobi during an equally impromptu visit to Miami – where Nikki attends university – back in March. What I didn’t count on was the rigidity of the Indian Embassy in Washington D.C., who basically refused to issue a visa to a UK citizen studying in the United States.

What followed was a flurry of rejected visa requests and applications, frenzied calls to companies designed to ease the process and the eventual realization that I would have to simply apply when I got home to London and then join my friends in India a little over a week later.

While I was twiddling my thumbs, watching rubbish films like Pirates 4 and venturing up to Twickenham Stadium to watch two rugby games in the space of seven days, my friends were sweating it out in the Indian heat .

My passport finally came back with the visa intact and within a few days I was on the Heathrow to Bangalore flight. A conversation with a Bangalorian sitting next to me on the plane confirmed many of my suspicions about India as a first time visitor: yes, Bangalore is very busy; yes, you should watch out for taxis and storekeepers trying to scam you; yes, the trains and buses couldn’t get any more crowded. But Andrah Pradesh? No tourists out there, hardly any crime, very traditional experience.

Certainly, walking out of the uber modern Bangalore airport at four in the morning and being confronted immediately by a Baskin-Robbins and a Subway was not quite what I was expecting from a country which I knew mainly from old Sharpe novels and certain parts of East London.

But as my taxi driver drove us out of Bangalore, the novelties of city life fell away around me. English signs advertising Sheraton hotels or jewelry stores were replaced by signs written in Hindi directing patrons to small shacks selling crisps, water and coconuts; bridges and tunnels disappeared and all that left was the road. For a few hours of my life, at least, I felt like Dean Moriarty, hurtling down that flat road into somewhere that I didn’t know, something that I had never experienced before.

As we dodged errant wild dogs which threw themselves in front of the wheels of the car and swerved to avoid cows or sheep which were simply sleeping in the middle of road, I was struck by just how totally different it was from where I had been just one day earlier. Skinny women sat on the ground, breaking nuts with a stone or a brick, with their children running around in the dirt, smiling and laughing and breaking out the biggest smiles in the entire world.

We arrived at SEDS at 7:30 AM, drove in through the golden-yellow gates and continued down the dusty driveway lined on both sides by tremendous coconut trees. SEDS’ motto is “Toward a Greener Tomorrow” – and on that front, they are certainly making progress. The driveway is paved with bright green royal oak trees which wouldn’t look out of place in Malibu, and the rest of the campus is chock full of coconut trees, bushes and plants.

Within a few hours I had awoken Douglas and Nikki and we were hurtling down the road in a resilient old Land Rover belonging to Rajen Joshua, one half of the married couple who created SEDS back in 1980. Rajen is a very large man with a big bushy mustache who carries a lot of respect around this rural area; I had previously heard that he had successfully repelled an attempt by the Indian mob to run him off the property.

As we drove down the road, Rajen exchanged harsh words with the driver of a small white car because he cut him off near the train track and literally ran into a cow that didn’t move out of his way fast enough. Twenty minutes later, we were bouncing along rocky trails which led into the Barren Hills where SEDS has set up watersheds to trap the few spats of water which fall over the monsoon season in manmade lakes in order to raise the water index and help nearby trees to grow. Rajen was very proud of the work that he and his organization has accomplished over the last thirty years and treated us three foreigners to an Indian picnic of fried chillis and mangoes in a shady grove in quite possibly the most isolated spot that I have ever been in.

We returned to SEDS and I collapsed on my bed, exhausted. Since then the experience has been a strange but culturally rewarding one. I hope to write a few more of these blog entries over the course of my three weeks here and try to show both my growing appreciation for the nobility and character of the Indian people as well as the work being accomplished by SEDS in this area.

Low Carbon Farming II

2011-03-25T10:20:00.007+05:30

Peasant farming by smallholders is the most sustainable and non-polluting way of life. Unfortunately the manner in which peasants traditionally tilled their fields does not work any longer. Cultivating small holdings is now an annual gamble. In order to help these people SEDS started with a sustainable agriculture (SA) programme (http://sedsngo.blogspot.com/2010/04/sustainable-agriculture-lead-farmers.html).

But glorifying the peasant lifestyle with clichés alone will not work. Small and marginal farmers will not agree to stay impoverished forever. They are lured by quick and easy returns. Mainstream cultivation, with high external inputs offers them a green dream but it ends in a nightmare. Over usage of chemical fertilizers and pesticides turns the soil into a lifeless medium. Annually farmers are forced to increase the inputs if they want to keep up the soil fertility leading to pauperisation and acute farmer distress. Mechanisms of the carbon market present a solid solution to this impending crisis by leveraging resources.

We started with a project called Low Carbon Farming (LCF) (http://sedsngo.blogspot.com/2010/01/low-carbon-farming.html). Simply stated, sustainable agriculture + carbon credits = LCF. By adopting SA practices farmers reduce the output of their green house gasses. These reductions can be quantified and sold on the carbon market.

LCF involves a basket of practices that reduce/minimize/remove use of synthetic fertilizers (methane avoidance and N2O reduction) while, at the same time, improving soil carbon. This is done through reduced tillage, precision fertilization, anaerobic composting, organic fertilizers, mulching, intercropping, multi-cropping, irrigation efficiency and a horde of techniques specially designed for particular regions and communities.

In collaboration with FCN we provide them the methodology to achieve this. Complex science is broken down into simple linked tasks. Staff visits the farmers and records demographic and land data.

For this we even go to the fields and record the plots with GPS so we get correct positions and figures of their landholdings. Walking around the circumference of the plot we register each corner point and create a two dimensional picture of the field.

These readings get double checked by going to the village and overlaying the figures over Google Earth

This is necessary to calculate the emission reductions the farmers will get by applying SA practices. The emission reductions of the practices are scientifically measured by a science team. Samples of soil, farm yard manure together with the knowledge of the emissions of chemical fertilizers will give us a precise picture of the reduced green house gases. In the end we will execute carbon contracts which each farmer individually.

Carbon revenues will be the incentive, and show the way for small and marginal farmers to reverse and restore the damage done to their lives, livelihoods and the environment and also receive an income for these practices from carbon buyers.

SEDS & Beyond

2011-03-22T21:00:00.003+05:30

Dear All

Blood, sweat and and a lot of laughter have gone into the making of this movie.

Please enjoy SEDS & Beyond with the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIRxRmUmEIY

SEDS CDM Biogas Project

2011-02-03T18:26:00.006+05:30

After almost three years of planning, preparation and groundwork the CDM biogas project has started. In this project, SEDS will build 5000 biogas units in the five Mandals of our working area. Using biogas (in this case gobar gas) for cooking has many advantages. For the women who prepare the meals twice a day it is a boon. The traditional three stone woodstove is cheap but it emits a lot of smoke which cause respiratory and long term health problems. These stoves are to be replaced by biogas units which are efficient and non-polluting. Omitting the use of wood for cooking means that families do not have to go out and fetch wood or buy it from a dealer. This will save both time and money. Most importantly, of course it will save the green cover of our area. Also, this being a CDM project, under the rules of the Kyoto Agreement, people will be paid money for the reduction of carbon emissions.

Initially, people were suspicious. Five years ago, the government had launched a biogas program. None of the units built under this program are in working order as a result of the inferior material used and no maintenance. The program was a failure. SEDS will not allow for this.

In the beginning of January, the number of pits excavated on a daily basis was low. But, as the loads of brick and sand reached the villages, the atmosphere changed. More people have come forward and now we have over 200 pits excavated in 8 villages.

On Friday the 21^st of January we started with the construction in Mavatur, a village in the Penukonda Mandal. The enthusiasm among the neighbours to observe the first biogas unit being built was great. The experienced mason, who was there to train our masons, was able to build the dome in one day. 33 units in Mavatur have already been completed.

Building these units is just one of the steps in a long and intricate process. First, is the marking and digging of the pit. The digging of the pit is the beneficiaries’ contribution. They can either do it manually themselves, or hire labour or use a mechanical excavator. Sand, bricks and granite chips (jelly) are provided by SEDS after the pit is excavated. Tractors are transporting material to the people seven days a week.

Once this is done, masons start building the dome. The construction of each unit is monitored. After plastering, it is checked to see if the work is up to standard. Once this is done, there is a curing period of two weeks before it can be filled up with cow dung. Finally the pipe and stove are installed. SEDS will monitor on a daily basis the usage of the gas. This data will be entered into the computer. This is absolutely vital for recording how much bio gas is being used. With this information SEDS can calculate the carbon credits generated by the beneficiary.

If a unit breaks down we must be notified immediately to enable repair. A lot depends on the owner of the biogas unit. As SEDS and the beneficiary are active partners in this project, it is essential to keep a two way communication on the upkeep and maintenance of these plants.

SEDS builds the unit, but it is their duty to use it and generate the carbon credits. SEDS and the women are in this venture together and we will need to work together if they are to reap the benefits.

This program is unique as it is not the regular development programs that NGDOs have taken up all these years. This is more an economic plan for sustainable development and to counter climate change.

SEDS 30th Anniversary

2011-01-12T19:20:00.008+05:30

I arrived on the farm on the 20^th of December. I had been looking forward to it so much and found a lot of changes on the farm but especially a lot of hard work. With not only the function but also the holidays coming up, everybody was busy making sure that the buildings got a fresh coat of paint, all the new tiles were in place, the field was cleaned up and the farm looked good to receive our guests. Aside from all the handy work, others were working hard to get the activities for the day well prepared. Friends of SEDS came out to the farm early to lend a hand and the farm looked and felt more and more like a happy bee hive with everybody running around, working and discussing. And as always on the farm, we made it a cozy, happy gathering of friends and family despite the pressure we all felt to get everything done.

On the morning of the 30^th, the guests and local people started arriving and were invited to go to the VTC center for an exhibition on 30 years of SEDS made by Flip design. At the school, there was an exhibition on the different working areas of SEDS . There were photos, charts with explanations and data and props to explain what SEDS is doing around CDM (the biogas project), Sustainable Agriculture, Watersheds & Reforestation, Mandal Facilitation Centers, Women Empowerment, Education and Health. In addition there was a stall explaining and portraying different artisan products made in the villages with an opportunity to buy.

At 11 o’clock, the new wing of the training center, in memory of Father Vicente Ferrer Moncho was officially inaugurated by his son Moncho Ferrer Vicente, the Program Director of RDT, an NGO from Anantapur. After the opening, we were finally allowed to see Vishal’s documentary on 30 years of SEDS. After all the work he put into it – with the help of others – his enthusiasm was not in vain because we all liked it and several people even had tears in their eyes.

The guests went to the school for a tour of the Mela with explanations by Iris, who coordinated it and the CLO’s responsible for the content of the stalls. It showed data of the different work areas in the 5 mandals. There were pictures and charts explaining what SEDS is involved in for all the work areas. We saw the materials and techniques which are used to make the most of the soil and the fertilizers that are used to accomplish this. The part I liked best were the pictures of Sanipalli and Petakunta from 30 years ago to be compared to the pictures from now. It showed how much work has been put into this and confronted me with the main thing that I learned the last time I was here: it’s one day and one tree at a time and it’s worth it.

Before lunch, the stake holders of the villages had an opportunity to explain to the crowd how they experienced working with SEDS on the self-help groups, the tuition centers, sustainable agriculture and so on. Regretfully I couldn’t understand but it was important for the people to share their experiences and get recognition for their going commitment to change their lives with the help of SEDS.

Then lunch was served in the dining hall of the main house and in a big tent on the field. After a bit of rest and a chance to explore the farm, we were treated to a concert on the courtyard by Karthik Mani and group from Bangalore. This was fusion music of western and Karnatik. As a music lover, this was my favorite part and I wasn’t alone. There was dancing all around.

And finally – after a more than lovely dinner - we all joined in the garden of the main house to portray something else that SEDS is famous for and a reason for people to come back time and time again: a nice dancing party with great music, great people in a cozy, homey atmosphere which makes it impossible for anyone not to join in.

Anneleen Vandebossche,

Belgian Volunteer

SEDS in the news: SEDS for pro-poor biogas project

2010-12-02T12:28:00.003+05:30

The Hindu, Wednesday, Dec 01, 2010

SEDS for pro-poor biogas project

Anantapur: Social Education and Development Society (SEDS), a grassroots NGO in Anantapur district is making arrangements to setup a pro-poor biogas CDM project. 5000 ‘gobar' gas units will be built in 5 mandals as part of the project, Director of SEDS Rajan Joshua informed in a press release.

The use of biogas as a cooking fuel brings an improvement in the overall quality of life. The primary objective of the CDM Project is to provide clean and smoke-free cooking environment.

It reduces the drudgery of rural women and time and money saved can be used by them to undertake other activities. As part of the project, revenues will flow back to the people after fulfilling the initial 7 year crediting period, 80 per cent of all future CER revenues will be paid out to each of the women running the biogas units.

The remaining 20 p.c. will be set aside in a long term fixed deposit account and to pay the salaries of SEDS staff, cover all costs of repair and to provide grants to end users facing a shortage of substrate.

Staff Reporter

http://www.hindu.com/2010/12/01/stories/2010120154560300.htm

Water & Trees

2010-11-25T20:53:00.015+05:30

Water and trees have been and still are the most central activities in the operations of SEDS. The philosophy of SEDS is that in this drought prone region the regeneration of the environment is the first thing that must be taken up before anything else. Why? Well how can one organise and strengthen communities if the basic needs are not fulfilled? How can you make people listen if their bellies are empty? So the first priority is to fill their bellies. But the problem is the environment. 30 years ago the SEDS working area saw the first signs of desertification. The farmer families who are living off the land saw their harvests fail year after year

In the beginning it was believed was that all mankind’s problems could be solved with technology. You want water, drill a bore well. Bore wells seemed the answer to all the problems giving the people easy access to water for their families, fields and cattle. But then again, one can drill bore wells, but if there is no restoration of the natural reserves than you will quickly end up with a dry well.

So it was clear to Rajen that even if you take up the most eloquent plan to uplift people and the communities and not consider natural regeneration, you would fail miserably in each of your attempts that would ultimately prove as useful as pouring out a bucket in the dessert. This is why the environmental balance in its most holistic approach must take centre stage in the grand development plan.

Of course the communities must get involved in these undertakings, without them no project would be sustainable or let alone be feasible. In the beginning there was a lot of scepticism, suspicion and sometimes even mistrust for this work. The laborious work of planting trees, digging bunds, excavating trenches, building dams, gully checks and percolation tanks was more or less seen as a bizarre undertaking. A short-lived experiment that very soon would be forgotten. But slowly, over the years, as trees started growing and wells were filling up, people realised the changes that had been made. Mothers were able to give their children fresh water. Farmers could plant their wet fields twice a year and shepherds saw that their livestock was increasing. It was obvious that all benefitted from this work.

From the first well Rajen has dug on top of Sanipalli Hill (and still full of water) we have come a long way. SEDS has developed many watersheds, planted millions of trees and restored countless wells and check dams.

The change that this work brings is profound and long lasting. Take the village of Gonipetta.

Gonipeta is a small village community in Penukoda Mandal. The village accounts for around 800 residents and with the two tribal communities in the area there are about 1400 people. They live in a harsh and difficult terrain. The village is located in a narrow valley of a small rocky plateau 6 km east of Penukonda. It is characterised by a rolling landscape, sparse vegetation and with rocky soils. Locked in between the hills there is not a lot of good farming land for the people to live off.

Before SEDS came, in 2002, the community faced a lot of hardship because of the poor land management. A high reliance on biomass for energy requirements and a depleted water table resulted in a lack of vegetation and erosion. The old people in the village expressed that they had faced so many droughts from the past 7 to 8 years and suffered with hunger.

SEDS first priority was to restore the ecological damage that had been done. By creating a network of water harvesting structures, constructed at strategic locations, water run-off was slowed down and given the time to seep into the ground. Before this the water would just flow down from the hillsides to the tank of the village. Valuable top soil would be lost causing the tank near the village to silt up quickly. Also the free flow of water would mean that all the water would come straight to the village tank resulting in a quick overflow and a loss of precious water.

In total eighteen km of road was formed. 103 acres of soil terraced and 56 acres of stone terracing were done. 20 spill ways, 29 gully checks, five rock filled dams, ten farm ponds, two percolation tanks, two supply channels and one check dam were constructed. 24 old wells were restored and two drinking wells were made. 10200 trees were planted and grass seeds were dibbled over 180 acres.

With all these different structures and plants in place the water gets stored at different stages and erosion is halted giving natural vegetation a chance to grow. The results are astonishing.

Water

The drinking water problem was permanently solved in the village. Ground water level has increased from 30 feet to 10 feet level and all the open wells in the village as well as in the field have water. Most of the villagers are taking water from the open well in the village since the water is so sweet and clean to drink. Burden on women and children reduced to fetch water from the fields and faraway places. Due to this, time is saved for the women to attend to house hold chores and children can concentrate on their education. The availability of clean drinking water also benefits the health of the villagers.

Crops and yields

More land has come under irrigation and dry land cultivation has increased. Now all the families in the village are having sufficient stock of food grains. More land also gives more labour opportunities to the villagers.

Livestock

Livestock population in the village increased more than 50% in the past five years due to the availability of water and fodder.

Forest coverage

Forest coverage has increased due to planting and natural regeneration is taking place. The availability of fire wood has improved since the hills and hillocks and forest area are protected under the watershed.

Migration

The families have stopped migrating from the village to distant places. Only 10% of the youth are going to faraway places in search of better wages and employment. 20% of the men and women are going to Penukonda town for better wages and regular work.

Celebrating 30 Years of SEDS & beyond

2010-11-03T16:00:00.005+05:30

SEDS is turning 30 so a major celebration is in place.

We invite you to come on the 30th of December and stay for the New Year.

For more details click on the pictures

VTC: SEDS/Roger Griffiths Driving School.

2010-10-20T18:14:00.004+05:30

Since the beginning of this month the SEDS/Roger Griffiths Driving School has taken off.

More and more people have become interested in driving as a driver can bring in a nice additional income to the family revenue. candidates for this course need a minimum 10th Grade certificate to enroll.

Three students have taken up the course and two more have applied. The students get daily classes, theoretical as well as practical. Basic maintenance and simple repairs are just as important as cruising down the highway.

To start off they must know all the parts of the car. The motor of a car is explained in detail to them. A practical thing comes up when they learn how to change a tire. Then it is in the classroom where traffic rules are explained and they get to learn all the sign boards.

After 45 days they are eligible for taking their driving test in Hindupur.

SEDS in the news: Award for Indian woman

2010-10-08T12:15:00.003+05:30

Anantapur: Manil Jayasena Joshua, chief executive officer of SEDS received prestigious Information Week Edge Award at Mumbai for introducing IT based census information system for effectively catering to the NGO's target groups. She is the first lady in India to receive this award.

Social Education & Development Society (SEDS), an NGO, has partnered with Bangalore-based Wolf Frameworks India Private Limited in creating a technological data base relating to millions of beneficiaries in 250 odd villages in Penukonda mandal in the nation's second largest drought-prone district.

A cloud-based Census Information Management System (CIMS) has been created which can transform many lives. Sunny Ghosh, Director of Wolf Frameworks told ‘The Hindu' that tt took SEDS and Wolf Frameworks just 120 hours to design, develop and deploy India's first CIMS.

Manil Jayasena Joshua said that with UIDs for individuals being auto-generated, CIMS enables SEDS to track effectiveness of the programme from the mandal to individual-level.

Staff Reporter

The Hindu 07/10/10

http://www.hindu.com/2010/10/07/stories/2010100758430200.htm

SEDS in the news: NGO uses cloud computing platform to build Census Management system.

2010-10-04T16:56:00.000+05:30

SEDS is in the news again and how this time. We are proud to announce that SEDS has won the prestigious SILVER EDGE award of Interop. EDGE stands for Enterprise Driving Growth and Excellence through IT. Interop is the leading business technology event with the most comprehensive IT conference and expo available. http://www.interop.com/

On 29^th of September SEDS received the award for its UID project. http://sedsngo.blogspot.com/2010/05/seds-in-news-uids-go-saas-way-in-ap.html, http://sedsngo.blogspot.com/2010/05/seds-in-news.html.

SEDS is the first NGO to receive this award and CEO Manil Jayasena Joshua is the first women to do so. Once again SEDS is at the forefront of breaking boundaries of emancipation and development.

Double click to read the article from Information Week

Before & After

2010-09-17T16:34:00.012+05:30

What better way to show the results of watershed work and
afforestation by SEDS than Before & After pictures.

Petakunta

Sanipalli

Edu Cheruvu

Mandal Facilitation Centre

2010-08-10T18:02:00.013+05:30

In the last 3 months the Mandal Facilitation Centre (MFC) took off. Lying dormant for such a long time people might have wondered why it took so long to start this project. Of course this project was never inactive. Most effort was invested in the communities in the form of training and awareness building. There is no rationale to start up a centre if the women did not have an idea of the possibilities that are available to them. The last decennium India has undergone some enormous economical changes. Between 2005 and 2008 the GDP grew with 9.4%, 9.7%, 9.1% and 6.1% respectively. This gave the government the chance to invest in development. In Andhra Pradesh many schemes have been set up in order to help people such as the Indiramma housing project which gives free houses for people below the poverty line. Ration(food) shops have been set up in villages for ration card holders who now get rice, sugar, oil and other basic commodities at lower prices. Different pension schemes have been created for the elder and health services have been tremendously upgraded to accommodate the villagers. Many scholarship funds and insurance programs have been set up. Farmers get subsidised seeds to plant in their fields. Then there is the NREGA that brings employment to the rural unemployed during the months when there is no work on the fields. For these plans the government tries to ensure full transparency with the Right to Information Act (RTI).

Spreading of awareness in the villages

All these programs can bring great benefits to the people but in a lot of cases it fails to deliver. People can be unaware of their rights, there can be lack of interest from the authorities to accommodate the people, corrupt officials divert capital streams into their own pockets, instalments are not being paid and sometimes honest mistakes are made but nobody cares to follow them up. In a sense people lack the acquaintance, knowledge and confidence to take up these problems. Many things can be blamed here. A shortage of awareness, a society that is solidified in hierarchy and an unwillingness to perceive one’s own problems all contribute to a certain apathy that needs to be curbed. As for now there are no institutes that take on awareness and empowerment building in an overarching way, one that brings the Community Based Organisations (CBOs) together and looks at the different problems the community faces. For all these problems solutions can be worked out by connecting them to the answers offered by governments and NGOs. It is important to understand that a community is just as strong as the level of participation of its members. For this the MFC must provide the answer.
For many years SEDS has been delivering facilities and trainings to the CBOs. Now SEDS is trying to phase itself out in the field of delivering these direct services to the community and it wants her members to pick up where it has left off. However, in the process of building up the MFC it became clear that the CBOs, mainly the Self Help Groups (SHGs) and Village Organisations (VOs) are a bit stuck at the village level and have a great difficulty transcending this. Yes, there are the Mandal Samakyas who bring the VO leaders of the Mandal together but these government institutions do not take up empowerment roles for the larger community. They just train their own members and divert government funds in different projects.
So SEDS came up with the plan to facilitate the SHGs and VOs to set up a body that would rise above the village level and tackle the issues collectively. In a first stage, as mentioned before, it was necessary to inform the CBOs about all the options and prospects that are out there. Now we have arrived at a point that we know that the community is ready to take it to the next stage, the actual start up of the MFC.
During VO meetings the concept of the MFC was explained to the women. We wanted them to understand that the MFC will be an independent institute run by them and will provide information, services and advocacy for their benefit.

Mandal level meetings to explain the MFC
Concept to the General Body Members

Three main functions are identified.
- Information
o On development programs of government and private institutions
o Possibilities of training
o Education / health / environment
o All other matters that are deemed important for community development
- Services
o Delivering trainings to the SHGs
o Follow up on micro credit scheme
o Facilitate all kinds of services towards government schemes and private institutions, eg. Bank linkages, insurance applications, infrastructure requests etc.
- Lobbying and Advocacy
o Use of free legal services
o Legal advice
o Issues with implementations of schemes
o Issues with the government

A General Body Member explaining the
structure and functions of the MFC

The MFC itself will be governed by the women of the VOs. To get all the women of the five Mandals involved each of the 125 VOs elected a member to be a representative in the MFC. They will be called the General Body Members. From all these women an Executive Committee of 19 members (representing the 19 clusters in our area) was selected. These women will be the main working body. Monthly they will conduct a meeting at Mandal level to gather all the issues and requests from the villages, brought to them by the General Body Members. Then all the Executive Committee Members will come together to discuss these points and work out trainings, help out in legal issues, contact the government, set up rallies, etc…. Also there will be a permanent office in Penukonda where the women of the SHGs can come to receive help for requesting loans or insurance applications, urgent appeals for legal help or other assistance.

Selection of the Executive Committee Members

On the 6th of August the Executive Committee members came together for the first time in Penukonda. In their first meeting SEDS discussed the features of an institution and the roles and responsibilities of the office bearers. In the afternoon the women selected a president, a vice president, a secretary, a joint secretary and a treasurer.

The Executive Committee Meeting

SEDS will be providing the starting capital for the MFC and give a full year of financial backing. Also In the following three years SEDS will be standing next to these women and guiding them in all aspects of the three main functions of the MFC. The hand over of the MFC as a people’s function will then start taking place facilitated by SEDS.

The Executive Committee

The Five Office Bearers of the MFC

Waste Policy Advocacy

2010-08-09T13:33:00.007+05:30

On Thursday 29^th of July SEDS and the community conducted a plastic awareness rally in Penukonda. During the monthly meetings with the Village Health Workers (VHWs) women were voicing their frustrations on the ongoing pollution caused by plastic. Although people recognize that plastic waste is a problem, only a few will take up any action to do something about the problem. So in cooperation with the women SEDS decided to bring the issue forward and raise awareness in the community.

The complaint is that everywhere there is plastic waste. Plastic bags, cups, slippers, bottles and covers are carelessly thrown away by people and cause many grievances. Animals are eating the waste and dying. Water stagnates in the plastic making it the ideal breeding ground for mosquitoes. Drainage systems get clogged because of the plastic and waste water will be flowing in the streets during rains. Then there is of course the visual pollution caused by the waste. Then there is the rather ominous solution of burning the waste causing air pollution.

The demands of the women are simple. Awareness must spread among the people. In the villages the Panchayat must organise rallies to educate the people to stop using unnecessary plastic. Also they are looking to make policy changes. Panchayats should be able to penalise people who just throw their waste on the street and proper disposal grounds for this waste should be provided. Another suggestion is that linkages must be sought and built for generating an income from this household waste. People can earn a living by segregating waste which can be sold off to recycling centres.

Marching through Penukonda

For the rally nearly 200 women came to Penukonda, VHWS and VO leaders. Together with our staff they marched to the offices of the Revenue Divisional Officer, the Mandal Revenue Officer, the District Panchayat Officer and Secretary and the Circle Inspector. Also letters were written to the Agricultural Minister, the District Collector, the District Medical Officer of Anantapur, the Project Director of DRDA and the Sanitary Inspector of Penukonda.

The Revenue Divisional Officer

The Divisional Panchayat Officer

The Circle Inspector

All the government officials showed great interest in the initiatives and proposals and promised to follow it up with the people.

The Revenue Divisional Officer agreed to a meeting after the tenth of next month with the women.

SEDS in the news: SEDS: story of a green revival

2010-07-30T11:53:00.004+05:30

The Hindu 20/07/2010

Staff Reporter

ANANTAPUR: The once bald mountains and barren valleys in the five Mandals of Roddam, Penukonda, Chillamathur, Gorantla and Somandepalli in Anantapur district are now teeming with greenery and life. More than 20 years of sincere effort in the direction has paid rich dividends.

Dense forests have been raised and massive shade giving and fruit bearing trees developed into a canopy covering thousands of hectares in what were once forest lands devoid of greenery. As one traverses through the length and breadth of the five mandals adopted by Social, Education and Development Society (SEDS) in the Penukonda revenue division, it is unbelievable that such massive forestation work has been done by a low profile NGO founded by Rajan Joshuva from Kerala and Manil Jayasena Joshuva from Malaysia.

They both met in Anantapur district and by providence got married. Soon after their marriage, they settled in a remote village called Anandapuram in Penukonda mandal and by their hard work and sheer dedication they built a set-up which uplifted the underprivileged on the educational, social and environmental front.

“We faced stiff resistance and blind opposition to the forestation drive from the locals. They cut down the trees planted by us and offered no cooperation as we opposed tree felling by the locals; but our persistence, perseverance and patience paid off and ultimately they began to understand the seriousness of our cause,” said Rajan Joshuva, executive director of SEDS.

Environmental police

SEDS was not only able to successfully raise 2.2 million living trees in the five mandals, but were able to transform every villager into an environmental policeman. Today if any outsider came with any ulterior motive , the villagers act as policemen and drive them away, Mr. Joshuva remarked.

http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/thscrip/print.pl?file=2010072053000200.htm&date=2010/07/20/&prd=th&

Stakeholder Feedback Round

2010-07-21T11:45:00.003+05:30

Dear All,

We completed the Gold Standard stakeholder’s meeting for the “SEDS Biogas CDM Project for the Rural Poor" on 18/02/2010. We thank all of you who were present for the meeting and gave us your valuable inputs.

In accordance to the guidelines of the Gold Standard, a Stakeholder Feedback Round should be conducted, which covers all issues raised in the local stakeholder consultation meeting and how due account was taken following the stakeholders’ comments.

A report of the stakeholder meeting has been prepared which describes about the stakeholder meeting conducted and the sustainable development indicators. This document can be downloaded from

http://docs.google.com/fileview?id=0B30nvnyZAAs_YTEwZGU5MTItNzQzYy00ZTNlLTgzNjYtODRkOGIyOWNkYTEz&hl=en&authkey=CPXqir4P

Through this email I encourage you to kindly download these documents and give your valuable comments and suggestions on the Local Stakeholder Consultation report. Your valuable comments will help us in achieving sustainable development of gold standards for the project. I request you to submit your valuable comments and suggestion in the next 60 days i.e. by 09-20-2010

Looking forward to your feedback on the Stakeholder Consultation Report.

Regards

Manil

SEDS in the news: NGO brings about a change in lives of villagers

2010-07-19T18:05:00.005+05:30

The Hindu, 30/06/2010
Staff Reporter

Social Education and Development Society (SEDS) on the forefront of creating ecological consciousness.
SEDS currently supports 125 villages, with some 12,000 women and their families, and 980 SHGs.
Over the years more than 2 million trees have been planted on the barren lands of Anantapur
Anantapur: Social Education and Development Society (SEDS), jointly founded in 1980 by Rajen Joshua and Manil Jayasena, has made a big difference in the villages in Penukonda revenue division.
During its three decade of service to people in the region, it has created an ecological consciousness to such an extent that the people themselves act as ecological policemen effectively checking tree felling activity by outsiders.
Among the multifarious activities undertaken by SEDS, aforestation and avenue plantation is the most successful programme in the region apart from livelihood, agriculture, education and other training and equipping programmes.
SEDS is working through an integrated rural development approach with an emphasis on women's empowerment, watersheds, reforestation and natural resource management in five mandals including Penukonda, Roddam, Gorantla, Somandepalli and Chilamathur.
SEDS currently supports 125 villages, with some 12,000 women and their families and 980 SHGs. Through its sustained efforts the NGO has made a significant impact on the lives of the people in the area and the local environment.
Vocational Training Centre (VTC) offered training in different trades including tailoring, embroidery, carpentry, welding and fabrication, two-wheeler repair and domestic electrical wiring and were eventually employed in various places.
The NGO integrated all these livelihood activities in a sustainable agriculture programme, with focus on training to farmer groups using Farmer Field School Methodology.
Dr. Rajan Joshua told The Hindu that he and his wife Jayasena and the SEDS team had done pioneering work and today enjoys a sense of achievement and satisfaction that their work has paid dividends.
He attributed the success of SEDS to the active participation of people.
Waste lands development had been undertaken on a massive scale including re-afforestation by planting tamarind, neem, pongamia and jatropha plants that have an additional value.
Over the years more than 2 million trees have been planted on the barren lands of South Anantapur.

http://www.hindu.com/2010/06/30/stories/2010063057300200.htm

Tank desilting

2010-07-15T06:33:00.015+05:30

In the working area of SEDS the desilting of tanks has been a regular feature in its activities since the early nineties. SEDS took up this pioneering role to help the farmers improve their lands. The buildup of silt in the tanks is a result of water erosion. Every year the monsoons wash away tons of earth silting up the precious water bodies. In our region most of the soil end up in the numerous tanks in the area.

The benefits of tank desilting are twofold. First it increases the water holding capacity of the tanks. Tanks that are heavily silted lose out on a lot of stored water. This water is needed to irrigate the fields of the farmers and a decrease in the holding capacity results in fewer lands being irrigated This means a smaller harvest and a direct reduce in income for the farmer. So by doing the desilting, SEDS is directly contributing to the livelihood of the farmers who live downstream of the tank.

A previously desilted area in Mavatur

Secondly - and the mean reason for desilting - the excavated silt is applied on the fields of the farmers . The silt is much more fertile and has better water retaining capacity than the common red soil on which the farmers cultivate. All this helps in increasing the yield of the farmer.

Silt in the field of a farmer

In Mavatur there was a strong interest of the people to remove silt the tank. SEDS already worked here in 2007/2008. A village meeting was conducted with SEDS and it was decided that digging would take place during the second and third week of May in three different places. 106 people in the area benefitted from the desilting. They divided 2109 tractor loads of silt between them. The local contribution of the community was Rs. 209820, while SEDS contribution was Rs. 195198.

Mavatur tank

Excavating the tank

In Cherukur the tank silt went to the people in Budipalli. 42 people divided 1258 loads of silt. The local contribution of the community was Rs. 130680, and SEDS contribution was Rs. 164136.

Cherukur tank

Demarcation of the site

A Puja before beginning

Work in progress

Silt in the fields

SEDS training of rural youths

2010-06-19T07:52:00.004+05:30

One of the projects of SEDS’s education programme is the schooling of rural youth. In order to give them employment opportunities outside the agriculture environment we offer them a wide range of activities from which they can choose.

VTC Penukonda
This year we have eight students, for domestic wiring and for mechanics. SEDS provides these courses free of cost but a registration fee Rs. 100 is charged– so that the students (and parents) will feel themselves inclined to complete the whole course instead of walking away in the middle of the semester. The boys sometimes come from far away to the VTC they reside in the SEDS hostel on top of a hill in Penukonda. There they stay the whole week and receive their meals, also free of charge. The courses in Penukonda will take three months to complete. By then the students will be thoroughly educated in electrical wiring and motor mechanics. The students of the motor mechanics classes get educated in fault finding, electrical wiring of the bike, general maintenance, changing components of the bike and repairs. In the Electrical training courses the pupils learn general things. They see how to repair common household appliances, detect faulty wiring and learn how to wire a house.
The students attend class from nine in the morning till five in the afternoon with a lunch break for one hour. This is from Monday to Saturday, Saturday evening they go back to their villages. After class it is time to relax and what is better than a game of volleyball!

Campus Anandapuram
In Anandapuram the computer and tailoring classes have been running non-stop. At this moment Lilani’s production centre is providing tailoring classes for six girls. They begin their education with stitching on brown paper to learn how to use the machines. After that they get taught in how to take measurements, patterns making and cutting and stitching. They make long Indian skirts(called langas), long blouses, sari blouses, churidars and other women’s clothing. Their training lasts about three months and the girls come from the surrounding villages. Girls who are located further away can go to the tailoring centres in their neighbourhood, see http://sedsngo.blogspot.com/2010/03/tailoring-centres.html.
Above the production centre there is the computer class where momentarily a total of eight youngsters receive training. There are three different courses. First there is basics for the ones who do not know anything about a computer. Here they learn how to type and the basics of handling a computer. This course takes three months. Then there is a Diploma in Computer Application (DCA) where the students receive an introduction in MS-DOS, the operating system and learn how to use all the MS office applications. This course also takes three months. Finally we offer them an extra two months course, Post Graduation DCA where they get a deeper understanding of networking and internet usage.
By providing these classes SEDS wants to give the village youth an additional skill. Employment is scarce in the region and each extra skill they posses can help them in their lives. These skills will not only assist them in their future but also dissuade them from anti-social activities. In this way SEDS hopes to contribute in a non-violent way to support the countrywide problem of the government against disruptive forces of youth joining up with anti social elements and political factions.

Exposure and visits from other organisations

2010-06-04T12:51:00.009+05:30

In April SEDS received a visit of the Rural Education & Development Society (REDS) in the program of the Empowerment and Entitlement Coalition (E&E coalition) The E&E Coalition comprises of many civil society groups in

India

. Each group and organisation in the coalition is involved in different activities in order to build a better

India

that will provide humanly possible equal and dignified space to all her citizens.

http://www.mynews.in/News/Empowerment_and_Entitlement_coalition_call_to_abolish_Untouchability_now_N37586.html

The purpose of the visit was to show the staff of REDS how SEDS is active in its working area. In total 13 people came from all cadres within REDS. The visit lasted three days and the participants got a broad overview of all the activities within SEDS. Because of the nature of the E&E coalition most visits saw our community organisation programs. They attended meetings with our Village Level Volunteers (VLVs) and Village Health Workers (VHWs), saw two of our tailoring centres and the Balwadi centre. In order to see how we work in the villages they went to a Village Organisation (VO) meeting in Thungodu to see the working of our village structures. The last day there was a visit to the VTC, where local youth are trained in electrical wiring and motor mechanics, and the MFC where legal advice is distributed.

Naturally they also saw our natural resource management, the project which constitutes as a major component of all our projects. The development of watersheds in our area is an immensely important aspect of the whole development of our area of work, as without it SEDS believe that sustaianability of programs is not possible without a livelihoods enhancement process.

This was also the reaction of Vibhawari Kamble, consultant with ICCO, who came to visit SEDS from the 20^th till 22^nd of May. On the first day she was taken to Gonipetta. The village is located between the rolling hills east of Penukonda where farming is a precarious occupation. During a meeting with the VO and some farmers the villagers were adamant that the watershed programme, introduced in 2002 with ICCO/EED funding, has brought the village a lot of relief. The water table has risen considerably, the landscape became greener and as a result of SEDS’ operations in the area, a lot of new Community Based Organisations (CBOs) have seen daylight. Vibhawari showed a lot of expertise in the field as her questions highlighted the different problems communities can face. Education, transport, youth development, employment possibilities, domestic violence, healthcare and general problems the community can face. The people themselves responded and gave her an adequate amount of information. Of course delicate subjects as in the cases of domestic violence will not receive a straight forward answer, but the reply of the women that every man who beats up his wife gets a beating himself shows that they are able to deal with this now.

Other places she visited was a tailoring centre, she saw the tank desilting, visited the VTC and attended a night meeting in Konapuram with the VO and SHGs. For our projects on watershed areas we took her to Thungodu and Sanipalli where she witnessed the first stage of such an undertaking and the astounding result that is only visible after thirty years of hard work.

Both visits, although different in nature and undertaking, fulfilled all the needs and wishes of the participants. REDS was highly interested and appreciative in implementing watershed structures and tailoring centres in its working area. The ICCO representative saw many good points in our work and was quite satisfied with our projects.

SEDS in the news.

2010-05-13T14:07:00.004+05:30

Dataquest has done a cover story on UID's. As a part of a larger story they have covered Wolf & SED's and their role in Anantpur's UID Journey.

Please click on the picture to enlarge.

SEDS in the news: UIDs Go The SaaS Way In AP Villages

2010-05-13T10:16:00.000+05:30

By: Abhishek Raval | May 12, 2010

"All the people in this room have access to everything they want, but there are a large number of people who don't have access to basic services like an ID, birth certificate, something as basic as an address and there are 75 million homeless people in this country. They are not able to get basic public services like opening a bank account, a mobile connection and a ration card." This was Nandan Nilekani, Chairman – UIDAI, speaking at this year's NASSCOM conference on the challenges faced due to the lack of proper identity.

Despite such a situation, there are certain institutions already working towards resolving these issues for people at the bottom of the pyramid, who are deprived of the aforesaid services. Technology is an indispensable component of their service delivery model. One such institution is the Social Education and Development Society (SEDS) in Ananthapur, Andhra Pradesh. The society under its flagship Census Information Management (CIM) programme, is providing unique identities in about 150 villages, via the SaaS model provided by Wolf Frameworks. Through this model, it is managing the information of about 40,000 people with a data size of about 800 mb.

Reasons for building this system include managing villager profiles and measuring the effectiveness of SED programmes. The system covers the chain, right from the donor, SEDS’ business, right up to the beneficiary whose profile is being managed.

SEDS is running its women empowerment programme as well, which tracks the progress of various initiatives taken under it, using SaaS. This in turn passes on the loan request to the potential donor who further takes a call after going through the villager profile.

Why SaaS?

"When working with dynamic data such as population and resources, our needs for capturing, analysing and disseminating this data were not being met with any of the current technology offerings. With SaaS, I foresaw a technology that could bridge this widening gap," said Manil Joshua, CEO - SEDS.Due to the widespread nature of the operations and lack of skilled IT staff, there was no structure to the data gathering in the past. The field staff utilised a mix of spreadsheets, databases and even paper records for capturing this data, which was then brought back to the central office for consolidation.

After the data collection, the staff used manual methods for data analysis, which was both time consuming and highly error prone. Reports and statistics were then snail-mailed or emailed to donors and other interested parties sitting in different parts of the globe.

Moving To SaaS

"All you need is a browser and internet connection," said Sunny Ghosh, CEO - Wolf Frameworks.
SED uses the system in two of its centres in Penukonda, a small town in the Ananthapur district of Andhra Pradesh. The system has been kept simple with only the essential features so that it does not become too heavy to run the application at 113 - 140 Kbps internet speed.

'Census Information Management Solution' (CIMS), is a customised web Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solution that captures SED data and a specific program processes uniquely and generates analytical reports. CIMS allows SEDS to collect and relate consolidated data into a central repository and automates the process of data analysis, presenting reports and charts on different metrics at the click of a button. It also generates a Unique Identification Number, which helps locate and track individual data. The application imports previous data records of the last 5 years, maintained in Microsoft Access databases and spreadsheets and was built keeping in mind the future growth of SEDS and its operations.

The total cost of the application, including the services to get it up and running was 2 lakhs. The cost also includes monthly payments of the user base.

Security Concerns Mitigated

SaaS has its own concerns on security. The CIMS system has a 128 bit encryption. On the technology side, the data is replicated at multiple databases at the back end.

"There is always a concern on the data being not close to the parent organisation," said Ghosh. In the area of security, Wolf replicates the data with an automated back-up without human intervention, taking place in an automated encrypted fashion. It is backed up in two large cloud centres - one in India and the other in the US. "We also have no clue about what data is sitting in which part of the world," said Ghosh.

In the case of the platform, data can be extracted and downloaded from the back-end. It can be kept in CDs, disk drives, private servers etc. That is a crucial part of our system that keeps our clients rest assured about their data. Wolf also has control over the copy of the data with it.

Looking Beyond

SEDS is very ambitious in its plans and is not willing to restrict itself only to 150 villages. As part of this endeavour, it is looking providing unique identities to more villages in Andhra Pradesh.

http://biztech2.in.com/india/news/cloud-computing/uids-go-the-saas-way-in-ap-villages/81542/0