Ropes of hope
© Practical Action, 2012
No use of this publication may be made for resale or other commercial purpose without prior permission of the copyright holder. “This document has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Commission. The views expressed herein should not be taken, in any way, to reflect the official opinion of the European Commission.” Designed and Processed by: WordScape, 5526699
Photo: S. Giri/Practical Action
ISBN 978-9937-8352-8-2
Contents Message from the Country Director
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Growing vegetables profitable
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Idle to Ideal
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Home grown jobs more lucrative
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Local cooperative – one stop financial solution
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Ropeway linking opportunities
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Mothers happy and free
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Ropeway now in the government planning
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Rekindling hope
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Improved tuin saving lives
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Improved tuin connecting villages
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Improved tuin escalates school attendance
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Dish washer to a successful entrepreneur
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School girls using improved tuin
Message from the Country Director Practical Action launched Access for Opportunities Project in 2007 with the objective to improve the socioeconomic situation of 14,838 marginalised households in Achham, Kalikot, Tanahu and Gorkha Districts of Nepal. The main interventions of the project are focused on: improving the transport services, such as installation of gravity goods ropeways and tuins, to enhance people’s mobility and access to essential services such as health, education and water, and to increase interaction with external communities and markets; increasing and diversifying income generation activities through improved production, processing and marketing of farm products; and strengthening the capacity of local community based institutions to select, manage, operate and lobby for pro-poor transport services and policies. This five year project designed and delivered 15 gravity goods ropeways and 18 improved tuins (cable river crossing) to enhance people’s mobility and access to other essential services. The project produced standard design guidelines, operation and maintenance handbook, and technical briefs for wider replication of the technologies. This booklet provides an overview of Access Project’s activities (implemented from 2007 to 2011) and its early indicators of impacts. We sincerely hope that the success stories in this booklet will inspire like minded stakeholders to
scale up the ropeway and tuin technologies in other needy areas of Nepal. The dedication and hard work of the entire Access Project team and our implementing partners made possible to win an ward from the Jose Entrecanales Ibarra Foundation, Spain for outstanding project concept and delivery at the field level. In this note, I acknowledge the contribution of Rabindra Bahadur Singh, Project Manager, Practical Action Nepal Office for compiling and drafting the case stories; Project Coordinators from our partner organisations – Hari Adhikari from Gorkha, Tej Upadhyaya from Achham, Dipak Dhakal from Tanahu and Lila Naupane from Kalikot for supporting to collect necessary information for the stories; and Shradha Giri, Practical Action Nepal Office for editing the stories and coordinating the production of this booklet. Lastly, I thank our donors: European Union; Jose Entrecanales Ibarra Foundation, Spain; Rotary Club of St. Helen; the UK trust and foundations; and George and Margaret Taylor for supporting our work. I would also like to acknowledge the support of government line agencies. I wish all our project beneficiaries a bright future and acknowledge their support for making this project a success. Achyut Luitel Country Director
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Growing vegetables profitable Juthi Maya (42) lives in Chhimkeshwori, Tanahu. Her husband is in Malaysia opting for foreign employment. In absence of her husband Juthi alone is taking care of her six family members. As Juthi had little land and no other means of earning, she brewed alcohol to sell it in the local market to buy basic necessities for her family. In 2008, Juthi was selected as a beneficiary of Access for Opportunities Project. She attended five day training on off seasonal vegetable farming. After the training, she received improved seeds at a 50 per cent subsidy from the project. The project also supported to construct a plastic pond for irrigation which is shared by six families including Juthi. “Before I had to brew alcohol for income as I could not grow enough produce to support my family. But after I received the training and quality seeds at a subsidised rate I managed to grow enough and sell for profit.” Earlier Juthi was able to grow maize hardly worth NPR 2,000 (€18) per season. Today she earns NPR 20,000 (€182) from the same patch of land selling vegetables and she earns a total of NPR 50,000 (€455) per season.
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“Once I started growing vegetables, I made NPR 25,000 (€228) profit in the first season. It was unbelievable. And within a ten minute walk from my home, we have a ropeline1 installed to help us transport our vegetables to the market. The ropeline transports our goods in just three minutes for NPR 2 per kg, almost 70 per cent less than what we paid to the porters. It is not just me; the story is similar with my neighbours too.” Juthi emphasises that the ropeway installed in her village has been the main source of her success. She stated that if there was no ropeway, she would not have had the courage to transport the produce to the market which is two hours steep walk from her village. The ropeway is helping Juthi and her neighbours transport produce fast and fresh fetching them a competitive market price. After earning a descent income from her small patch of land, Juthi has asked her husband to come back home as she says she is earning more money than her husband earns in Malaysia. “I have stopped brewing alcohol as I earn enough to support my family. I am able to pay my children’s school fees and I am also saving NPR 4,000 (€37) per month.”
Gravity goods ropeway is commonly referred to as ropeline by the local community
Ropes of hope
Photo: C. Nayak/Practical Action
Before I had to brew alcohol for income as I could not grow enough produce to support my family. But after I received the training and quality seeds at a subsidised rate I managed to grow enough and sell for profit.
Juthi in her farm
The total installation cost of a ropeway is approximately NPR 1,600,000 (€14,545)
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Idle to Ideal Padam Bahadur Shrestha (32) was studying in grade seven when due to poverty he had to leave his home, Bhumlichowk village in search of a job. For more than 15 years he worked in India in various capacities, sometimes as a domestic helper and sometimes in small factories. Each job paid him a minimal wage insufficient to support his family back home. “The guilt of not being able to support my family was impossible to get away from. After a few years I stopped visiting my parents.” Back home his parents had hoped things would be different once their son Padam starts sending money. Their hope faded into despair. In 2007 when his employer shut the factory he was working for, Padam finally returned home empty handed. With no money to support himself and no opportunity in his village, he was considering going to a Gulf country for a better paying job. But the initial investment was too high. In the meantime, Access Project was installing a ropeway to connect Bhumlichowk perched on the hill top to the Fisling Bazaar situated at Prithivi highway. During the installation, Padam was assigned as a supervisor to assist the project engineers. By the time the ropeway was installed, Padam learned the process of ropeway installation and its operation and maintenance.
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After the completion of ropeway installation, the project provided a series of training on ropeway operation and maintenance to further build Padam’s capacity and other operators. Later, he was chosen by the community to work as the ropeway operator. “Initially, I was paid on a daily basis for a few months, but as soon as the ropeway started operating regularly I started working as a full time operator. Soon, I was earning NPR 5,800 (€53) per month plus extra NPR 600 (€5.5) as my communication allowance.” Over the years, Padam mastered his skill in installation, operation and maintenance of ropeway. Padam’s engagement was not limited to this single ropeway, he was mobilised in the installation of new ropeways in Gorkha and other districts. “Besides our own ropeway in Bhumlichwok, I was involved in the installation of seven other ropeways in Achham, Kalikot, Tanahu, and Surkhet Districts. While installing these ropeways I earned NPR 75,000 (€682) between April 2009 and March 2011.” In August 2010, Padam was sent to Achham District to facilitate the operation and maintenance training of the ropeway and tuin technologies. “During the facilitation training, the participants addressed me as “sir”. I was overwhelmed with pride and joy. A sixth grader could not ask for more.”
Photo: R.Bdr. Singh/Practical Action
The project mobilised the ropeway operators in the installation of new ropeways as a strategy to develop expertise and diffuse technology at the local level. The approach has not only encouraged the operators and enhanced their skill but also supported for the early adoption of the technology at new sites. Local people find it easy to converse with the ropeway operators compared to the project staff as they feel more at ease.
Padam explaining the mechanisms of ropeway bearing
“I am drawing more salary than a graduate or a lower secondary teacher in our village. I never imagined I could earn this well in my own village and the recognition gives me a different kind of satisfaction. I love what I do.” Padam is elected as the Secretary of the Alternative Transport Users Network in Gorkha District.
In addition to being a ropeway operator, Padam is an active member of the cooperative and he manages the overall collection and marketing of the produces.
“Just three years ago everybody in my village including my family thought I was useless. But now my family is proud as I can support my family working in my own village.”
Padam receives an additional NPR 5,000 (€46) for the added responsibility. This makes his salary NPR 10,800 (€98) per month.
“For youths in our village he is a source of inspiration,” says Bhekh Bahadur Thapa, an elderly member of the village.
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Home grown jobs more lucrative Rajkumar Gurung (40) had gone to Dubai seeking better income opportunities. After working for five years in a foreign country he came home for two months holiday to his village Baralung in Chimkeshwori, Tanahu. Baralung is a small village comprised of 19 households. While Rajkumar was home enjoying his holidays, he learned about the training sessions on vegetable production organised by Access Project. “Though I was here only for two months, I decided to attend the training on off season and organic vegetable production.” The knowledge gained from the training prompted Rajkumar to start a cauliflower nursery in three ropanis2 of land out of his six ropanis of land. Soon he planted cauliflower saplings and harvested cauliflowers in abundance. “No one in our village had produced so much vegetables as Rajkumar did in such a short time,” says Sheela Gurung, Rajkumar’s neighbour. After the successful harvest of cauliflowers, Rajkumar planted a nursery bed of 900 tomato saplings. Out of 900 saplings, he sold 700 to his neighbours at the rate of NPR 1 per sapling and planted the remaining 200 in his farm. “I had planted cauliflowers in three ropanis of land and I sold each kilo of cauliflower for NPR 25 to 32 2
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1 ropani is equal to 0.05 ha
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(€0.2 to 0.3) depending on the market price. My net profit from the cauliflowers was NPR 22,000 (€200) per season,” he shares. The Access Project supported 50 per cent cost of the first batch of cauliflower and tomato saplings and the remaining 50 per cent was paid by the beneficiary themselves. “This kind of support and activity was never offered to us by any other projects,” says Hom Bahadur Gurung, a local social worker. The success of cauliflower and tomato harvest led Rajkumar to grow other varieties of off season vegetables such as, chili, pumpkin, cabbage, ribbed gourd, and snake gourd in his remaining 3 ropanis of land. This kind of abundance production was possible because the project supported the farmers with the construction of a plastic pond. The plastic pond stores water for irrigation during the dry season and it also keeps the village clean as it stores the surplus tap water. Rajkumar says, “The reason I managed to make good profit is due to the ropeway installed in our village which transports our produce to the highway leading to Munglin market of Chitwan District.” Because of the ropeway, farmers in Chimkeshwori are saving 50 to 70 per cent of their transportation cost compared to the past. Their produces are being transported to the highway within 2 to 3 minutes.
In 2010, Practical Action received an award from Jose Foundation, Spain, for outstanding project concept and delivery at the field level. Raj Kumar was selected among the project beneficiaries to attend the award ceremony in Spain along with the County Director of Practical Action. Rajkumar has decided to stay home for good. With the technical knowledge he has on vegetable production, Rajkumar is known as a leader farmer in his village. When people have farming related problems one referes to Rajkumar. Similarly, there are lots of other farmers in Rajkumar’s village who have taken up vegetable farming as their
Rajkumar tending to his cauliflowers
main occupation. One cannot ignore the effort of these farmers which at the moment is full of green cabbage and other bounty harvest with due support from the project. “Earlier we spent a lot of money for exposure visits but now we want other farmers to come and see our produce and learn from us. We want to be recognised as the ideal village for vegetable production,” says Sanu Gurung, Director, Local Cooperative Group.
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Local cooperative – one stop financial solution Lack of financial institution is one of the major factors imposing limitations to economic activities in remote parts of Nepal. People often resort to borrowing money from the local money lenders at a high interest rate. The unusual high interest means sometimes people lose their valuables and property when they fail to pay the debt. Bhumlichowk villagers faced similar problems due to the lack of a legit financial institution. But things have changed in the village after the Bhairabi Agriculture Cooperative Limited was established in June 2010 which has been receiving continuous support from the Access Project. The cooperative is registered at the District Agriculture Development Office (DADO) in Gorkha District. The project promoted the cooperative to expedite economic activities in the village and take charge of the maintenance and management of the ropeway. The project also aimed to develop it as the independent loan provider to the smallholder farmers. The project facilitated the formation and supported the cooperative to formulate its business plan and execute it. On a timely basis, the project carried out the capacity needs assessment of the cooperative. It designed and delivered various capacity building activities for the cooperative members to fill the gap identified by the capacity need assessment. As a result, the cooperative grew rapidly. Within one year of its registration, its membership grew from 45 to 483
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(200 male and 283 female). Today, the cooperative has NPR 4,913,785 (€44,670) total capital. It provides 8 per cent interest rate to the saving and levy 16 per cent interest to the credit. The cooperative made NPR 2,67,641 (€2,433) net profit last year. The cooperative states that it plans to invest its collected capital to boost the economic status of the community. Beside the operation and maintenance of the ropeway, the cooperative is providing loan to its members to initiate development and economic activities such as: • • • • • • •
Toilet construction Solar panel installation for lighting Improved cook stove installation Livestock management Dhaka – traditional Nepali cloth making Bee keeping Vegetable farming (seasonal and off seasonal)
The Bhairabi Agriculture Cooperative Limited has become one of the ideal financial institutions helping community on development works as well as changing the saving habit of the villagers. It has been instrumental in boosting the morale of other cooperatives as well. The project has been organising exposure/interaction visit to Bhairabi Cooperative for other cooperatives personnel promoted by the project.
Photo: R.Bdr. Singh/Practical Action
Manager of the cooperative, Bam Bahadur Chepang – We organise regular meeting every month and discuss on different agenda such as saving, loan, ropeway and collection centre management, external subsidy, and income and expenditure details.
Cooperative in Gorkha
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Ropeway linking opportunities Kaji B. K. (45) resident of Devisthan VDC of Gorkha District was plagued with debt and ulcer. Mounting debts, expensive medical bills, and a family of six to feed almost led Kaji to end his life. But the newly installed ropeway in his village has changed Kaji’s life for better. “My life was hell. I had so much debt, I sold almost everything to pay the debts and then my illness accrued large medical bills. I did not know what to do. I had lost all hope,” recalls Kaji. “Two years back Practical Action installed a ropeway in our village. This ropeway has helped all of us earn a decent income and improve our living condition.” Kaji and many other farmers were left with few option prior to the installation of the ropeway. Their vegetables sought less price compared to the market price and finding porters was daunting and expensive. “Even though I had a small patch of land I grew good vegetables. But the cost of transportation was so high that I could not make any profit,” recalls Kaji. “We had to sell our vegetables for a low cost as the vendors at the highway knew we would not carry the load up again so either we sold it at their mercy or we had to pay more money to the porters to carry our vegetables back to our village.” As soon as the ropeway started operating, farmers’ goods were transported in just two minutes.
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Kaji did not have to worry as the cooperatives operating at the bottom ropeway station also carried out the transactions on the farmers’ behalf, which was very encouraging. As Kaji has very little land, he started leasing more land and planted tomatoes in the leased land with an investment of NPR 13,500 (€123). The harvest turned out excellent due to the favourable climatic condition and with the help of easy ropeway transportation and transaction, he earned a net profit of NPR 300,000 (€2,727) in a year selling mainly tomatoes. “For someone plagued with disease and debt this kind of income is truly a blessing. All I needed to do was concentrate on farming as the ropeway and the cooperative took care of the transportation and the marketing, which greatly helped me enhance my production.” Kaji expresses. Recently, Kaji was felicitated by the Local Development Officer of Gorkha District for his achievement in a small function. The success story of Kaji has encouraged his neighbours, friends and family. With the installation of ropeway, the highway is only two minutes far and the transportation cost is NPR 0.75 per kilo compared to the porter’s fee of NPR 2 per kilo plus the cost of two meals. The ropeway and the farmers’ cooperative have relieved the
Photo: A. Bhandari/Practical Action
Devisthan village is two and half hours walk from the Prithivi Highway. A quick trip to the market meant a whole day. However after the installation of the ropeway, the goods transportation to and from the market takes only two minutes! farmers from the daunting task of transportation and marketing. In the mean time the vegetables are now reaching the market in bulk through the ropeway. The ropeway has eliminated the exploitation, the villagers were subjected to, while selling their
Kaji B.K.
produce in the market. The installation of ropeway has encouraged smallholder farmers and others alike to embrace vegetable farming seriously as increased production guaranteed increase in income. Today Kaji has 15 employees working for him. He has paid back most of his debts; he plans to get proper medical treatment for his ulcer and is planning to buy a small plot of land in Chitwan soon.
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Mothers happy and free Pan Maya Chepang (30) lives in Hiklung village in Gorkha District. She has the responsibility to earn and support her three children while her husband is abroad working as a labourer. “I have to cook and clean for my whole family, I have my livestock to attend to, grow vegetables to support my family and I have the burden of transporting the vegetables too,” she says. “Trip to the market would take me two hours on foot and the heavy load on my back often left me tired with back aches. I had to make three trips in a week. It was really difficult when I was lactating. By the time I got home my youngest would be crying, cranky and tired.” Pan Maya spent most of her days working and transporting vegetables leaving her little time to take care of her children. All she managed was to provide them three meals a day, enjoying quality time with them was something Pan Maya never imagined. In 2009, a ropeway was installed in her village. Because of the ropeway Pan Maya has more free time as all the transportation of vegetable is done by the ropeway. Today her goods are transported in just two minutes. She has free time for herself and her children. Pan Maya’s produces are marketed by the Jala Devi Agriculture Cooperative which was formed to
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manage and market the flow of produce from Hiklung village and other adjoining VDCs. “The number one benefit the ropeway has provided to us women is free time. I have time to take care of my children, care for their health and hygiene, and I also keep an eye on their studies. My children did not have the luxury of being with their mother when they needed me the most. Look at them, they are so clean and healthy and my back is getting better,” says Pan Maya. “Pan Maya is a different person today. She always looked tired as she had to do everything alone. Look at her now, she looks so much better, calm and healthy,” claims Ratna Chepang, neighbour and President of Jala Devi Agriculture Cooperative. Today Pan Maya is the vice president of the Jala Devi Agriculture Cooperative and she attends the monthly meeting on a regular basis. “I am grateful to the project for installing the ropeway. The socioeconomic benefits brought in by the ropeway is secondary; the most important benefit is that I spend time with my children and I have time to attend social functions in my village,” adds Pan Maya.
Photo: U. Shrestha/Practical Action
Pan Maya is a different person today. She always looked tired as she had to do everything alone. Look at her now, she looks so much better, calm and healthy,” claims Ratna Chepang, neighbour and President of Jala Devi Agriculture Cooperative.
Goods arriving from Hiklung village
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Gorkha ropeway
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Ropeway now in the government planning Practical Action Nepal Office first demonstrated the ropeway technology in 2001. Since then, it has been promoting the technology in various parts of the country. Till date, it has installed 21 ropeways in 6 districts. The ropeways have brought life changing impacts on the lives of poor farmers from the hills and mountains. Despite the success of ropeways, the technology was promoted by Practical Action alone. In 2009 Practical Action organised an excursion visit and on the job training for the professionals of Department of Local Infrastructure Development and Agricultural Roads (DoLIDAR). Realising the importance of the technology and to scale up the technology in other parts of the country DoLIDAR and Practical Action developed and launched a ‘Technical Guidelines on Gravity Goods Ropeway’ to standardise the technology. The endorsement of the Technical Guidelines by the government has proved to be the corner stone for the replication of the technology as it has paved the way for its inclusion in the government planning. The then Director General of DoLIDAR announced to install at least 10 ropeways in 2010/11 across the country through its various projects during the launching ceremony. DoLIDAR approved NPR 3.3 million (€30,000) for the study of ropeways in Nepal. It has already identified 22 sites for ropeway installation and the pre-feasibility study for 22 sites is completed.
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The recognition of the technology by the DoLIDAR has encouraged other government agencies as well to include the ropeway technology in their planning. The farmers being the primary beneficiaries of the technology, the Department of Agriculture has shown growing interest in this technology. It has already installed a ropeway in Syanja and Chitwan Districts. One more ropeway is in progress for Chitwan District. Moreover, the Department of Agriculture had organised a training on technical design of ropeway for its engineers with technical assistance of Practical Action. A total of 17 engineers from five regional directorates participated in the training. By making its way to the government planning, the ropeway technology has made a shift as one of the important components of rural transport infrastructures in Nepal. “It is not practical to have each and every village of the country connected by the road network as it requires huge investment and have a serious implication on the environment. However, we need to find out some alternative to solve the transportation problem of those areas. Practical Action has demonstrated the gravity ropeway effectively catering to the transport need of such areas. Hence, the Government of Nepal has decided to build on lesson learnt by Practical Action and replicate the technology in wider scale.
Photo: M. Karmacharya/Practical Action
With the launching of the Technical Guidelines, the government has formally acknowledged the importance of the gravity goods ropeway as one of the rural transport infrastructure in Nepal – Dhan Bahadur Tamang, Director General of DoLIDAR (May, 2010). Inclusion of the gravity goods ropeway in the DoLIDAR planning is a starting point in this direction,”
Purna Kumar Sherma, the then Minister of Local Development, launching the Technical Guidelines
Dr. Jagadish Chandra Pokheral, Vice Chairperson, National Planning Commission, (May 2010).
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Rekindling hope Mangli Vishwokarma (30) is a single mother of two children. Her husband died when his boat capsized while crossing the Karnali River. She lives in a small hut perched at the bank of Karnali River in Kalikot District. Her village has a total of 20 households out of which 12 households belong to dalits. “When my husband passed away I wanted to die too, but I had two small children to look after. Being a widow and a dalit at the same time is difficult. With him, all my hopes died too.” Mangli’s husband was the primary earner of the family and after his death the family suffered. Mangli had to find a job immediately if she wanted her children to survive. She started working as a labour for a higher caste household and in return she received payment in kind; mainly food and old clothes. “For 2 years after my husband’s demise, my children did not have anything new to wear; we all wore the used clothes received from our land owner.” In 2007 Access Project installed an improved river crossing tuin to cross the Karnali River. The tuin connects Khulalu with the newly opened Karnali Highway on the other side of the river bank. Due to the installation of tuin, Khulalu has become one of the main transit points to reach and travel out of Kalikot District Headquarter. The Kalikot District Headquarter is now easily accessible to five other VDCs adjoined to Khulalu.
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“The tuin can ferry 4 people at one time and the daily traffic exceeds more than 300 persons. Hence, two attendants manage and help people cross the river safely,” states Dharma Raj Bhandara, Chairperson of tuin operation and maintenance committee. “As the dalit households have very little land (most of the households have less than 2 ropanis land) and limited economic opportunities, we decided to employ attendants from 10 dalit households on a rotation basis.” Mangli is one of the 10 attendants drawing salary working as the tuin attendant. “I attend twice or thrice in a month. In a good day I earn up to NPR 800 (€7) and in a month I earn around NPR 1,500 (€14),” verifies Mangli. The average tariff collection is NPR 1,000 - 1,500 (€9 – 14) per day out of which 25 per cent is set aside for the operation and maintenance of the tuin and the remaining is used to pay the attendants’ salary. The income has provided great relief to Mangli as she can now afford new clothes for her children and pay their school fees. The tuin has also brought in economic benefits in this village. Traders from all sides of the village have set up new market in Khulalu creating a demand for home grown produce. The demand has prompted many villagers to grow vegetables and earn money without having to worry about transportation and associated costs.
Nothing can compensate my loss, I am a single mother and it is difficult. But the income has helped my family to a great extent.
Earlier all of us grew tobacco but now everyone is planting vegetables. I earn up to NPR 2,500 (€23) per month by selling vegetables grown in my own land. Now, when my children need a new pair of sandal, I can pluck some vegetables and sell it in the market and buy the sandal immediately.
Mangli in front of the Khulalu tuin
The traders also use the tuin to transport the goods across the river. As the market is 10 minutes away from the tuin site, they use porters to transport goods. Mangli also works as a part time porter as it provides her with an additional income of NPR 1,500 - 2,000 (€14 - 18) per month. Today Mangli earns NPR 5,500 (€53) per month. She no longer has to work in other’s farm.
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Improved tuin saving lives Kusum Kala Sijwal (38) lives right across the Tila River in ward no 3 of Gela VDC, Kalikot District. Kusum was eight months pregnant with her fourth child when she suddenly went to premature labour and gave birth. Although premature, the baby was fine but post natal bleeding continued. Her condition worsened. Her husband immediately called upon his friends and carried his wife to the nearest health post. Quick medical attention on time saved her life and today both Kusum and her baby are fine. On the contrary, this happy story would have taken an ugly turn – if Kusum had to walk all the way to the nearest health post almost three hours walk. When Kusum delivered her three children she had to walk three hours and finally cross the trail bridge to cross the river to access any kind of medical support or any basic service. “I am so lucky to be alive. All thanks to the tuin which helped us cross the river in just three minutes
and we reached the health post on time,” says Kusum. Residents of Gela VDC had difficulties accessing basic services due to the lack of proper river crossing means. Mortality rate was usually higher prior to the installation of the tuin. “If Kusum was brought to this health post an hour late, I could not have saved her because we do not have a blood transfusion facility,” affirms health assistant, Min Bahadur Karki. “I believe the tuin is Kusum’s saviour.” Similarly, Buddhimaya Gurung (42) of Gorkha District fell off the roof of her house. “Buddhimaya was unconscious and bleeding profusely. Because of the newly installed tuin, we were able to take her to the clinic immediately,” says Durga, her husband and the Chairperson of the tuin construction committee. “She had fractured her hip but timely medical attention saved her life and today she has recovered fully. If there had been no tuin, we would not be able to save her.”
The total installation cost of an improved tuin is approximately NPR 700,000 (€6,364)
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Photo: T. R. Pandey/KIRDARC
If Kusum was brought to this health post an hour late, I could not have saved her because we do not have a blood transfusion facility. I believe the tuin is Kusum’s saviour.
Kusum with her youngest
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Improved tuin connecting villages Bhuwanitar is separated by the Marsyangdi River. The river swells to a maximum during the monsoon season and the villagers would often become isolated for many days as crossing the river on a wooden boat is life threatening. Despite close proximity to one of the major highways on the other side of the river and the operation of Marsyangdi hydro power plant, Bhuwanitar’s residents’ were unable to capitalise on the opportunities. Health posts situated right on the other side of the river bank would take more than two hours to reach. A quick trip to the market meant walking a whole day to and from. After the installation of a river crossing tuin in 2007, 14 Gurung households in Bhuwanitar are reviving their livelihoods. The tuin has helped the villagers acquire access to some of the basic services from which they were isolated. A small intervention has ushered in a sea of change in the Gurung households. “Today we hop on the tuin, and reach the health post on time. Visiting market centres is quick, children do not miss out on schools and it is easy transporting our vegetables,” explains Babu Ram Gurung, tuin operator. “Our travel time has reduced almost 75 per cent.” Residents in Bhuwanitar are also exploring other means of livelihoods besides subsistence agriculture and migration. Today, 8 out of 14 Gurung households are running restaurant and tea shops right on the highway.
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“The women started the restaurant business, now the male members of our families are also joining us. I called my husband back from Malaysia just after one year in the business. Now, we work together,” says Prativa Gurung, one of the first to set up the restaurant. “Our daily income is more than NPR 800 (€7) on an average, which means we earn almost NPR 20,000 (€180) per month, seven times more income compared to the past. I do not need to send my husband to work abroad.” Like, Prativa’s husband, other male members of the village are also returning home as most of them are abroad doing menial jobs. For those households, who do not own a restaurant are also earning good amount of money by selling vegetables. The tuin helps these farmers transport their produce. Moreover, many vegetable wholesalers come right at their doorstep to buy fresh vegetables bringing the trade closer – at home. Prem Bahadur Gurung (63) states that he has never seen any politician/government official or any service providers coming to their village earlier. “It is all because of the tuin, they come here to see the new tuin and while they are here we take the opportunity to share our problems.” After the installation of tuin, Bhuwanitar has received financial support from the District Development Committee (DDC), VDC, DADO, and the District Forest Office for the construction of small scale irrigation infrastructure and supply of improved seeds and sapling.
Our village is also known as the village with the improved tuin. Improved tuin inauguration
To maintain the tuin, each household contributes NPR 10 (€0.09) per month and additional funds are also raised during the social events. The progress in all the 14 Gurung households is appreciable. It has been three years since the tuin
was installed. Today, all houses have replaced their thatch roofs with CGI sheets. Each and every household has a separate toilet and a bio gas installed for cooking and heating. The tuin is opening up newer opportunities for the people of Bhuwanitar.
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Improved tuin escalates school attendance Kopila Thapa and 34 other children had to cross the Daraundi River every day to reach their school. Kopila lives in Ultae village and she along with other children had to walk one and a half hour just to reach the trail bridge to cross the river. The distance was too long for these children to walk every day and often these children would dare to cross the river risking their lives. During the monsoon, the river would swell leaving the school children with no option but to stay home. “Even during the dry season, the water level in the river is waist high. The boys would cross the river with their underwear, where as, we used to carry a pair of spare clothes to change. After crossing the river, we would change into our school uniform and hide our wet clothes in the bushes,” says Kopila Thapa, grade 10 student of Sunsari Higher Secondary School. “Sometimes our clothes were stolen and often we crossed the river in our uniforms. Going to school was so much trouble back then.” Today, Kopila and her school mates no longer have to risk their lives to go to school since a river crossing
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tuin was installed in 2009. Kopila can now reach school in 15 minutes. She does not have to carry an extra set of clothes and her attendance is almost regular. “During the monsoon, we missed so many school days that it was impossible to catch up with the school work. We could never catch up with our classmates living on the other side of the river. Thanks to the tuin we do not miss school days anymore,” says Sarita Baniya, grade 9 student of Sunsari Higher Secondary School. “Hardly, 8 to 10 students attended school during the rainy season from the other side of the river prior to the tuin installation. We had to postpone the terminal exams if it rained on the exam day as the students from Ultae would not make it to school,” shares, Rudra Bhatta, Secondary Teacher, Krishna Lower Secondary School. “But today no one misses school and all the students are doing really well. A simple addition to the village has helped resolve such a big problem. The tuin has helped reduce the drudgery of the students and the whole village.”
Photo: R. Subedi/Practical Action
Thanks to the tuin we do not miss school days anymore. Hiklung improved tuin installed in 2011
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Dish washer to a successful entrepreneur Kalyan Saud (37) lives in Kuskot VDC Achham. He was studying in grade seven when his father passed away leaving the responsibility of supporting his family on him. He had to quit school and soon poverty forced him to seek a job as a dishwasher in Delhi, India. “I was scared. I had to work day and night and the mental torture was devastating,” he recalls. “I was paid only NPR 1,600 (€15) per month. I changed many jobs during my 20 years of stay but none paid well.” Kalyan’s last job in Delhi was a watchman in a building which was adjoined to a dalmot3 factory. On duty he started observing the people working in the dalmot factory and became fascinated by the dalmot making process. “The dalmot factory was very close to where I worked so I would go there frequently to see the process,” he adds. “I would often talk to the workers and soon learned that the ingredients required are mainly cereals and peas which are commonly grown in my village.” In 2006 he came to Nepal to meet his family. During his stay he decided to prepare dalmot in his house. “I was skeptical but I wanted to give it a try so I made some dalmot and sold it in my village. To my surprise everyone who tasted my dalmot loved it,” he explains. “I decided not to return to Delhi and I earned NPR 40,000 (€364) in my first year.” dalmot is a mixture of fried cereal, peas and lentils mixed with spices
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Kalyan found it difficult to keep up with the demand. He wanted to expand his business but he did not have any formal training. He kept his business at a low profile for almost two years until he learned that Access Project was providing training on dalmot production. “When I heard about the training I requested our Community Based Organisation (CBO) to nominate me for the training and the CBO kindly approved my request,” he says. “I attended a 7 days training to prepare dalmot which honed my skills and boosted my confidence.” Subsequent to the training, Kalyan intensified his production and expanded his business further. He modified the ground floor of his house into a factory with separate production, packaging and storing units. His wife and his younger brother also work full time with him. Kalyan had to leave school due to poverty but today his children are attending school regularly and he plans to send his children to college one day. Currently, Kalyan is in the process of registering his business in the district small and cottage industry and printing the dalmot packet label. He is determined to take his business at the district level. Unknowingly, Kalyan has created a chain of demand for local produce.
Photo: R. Bdr. Singh/Practical Action
After the expansion I earned over NPR 250,000 (€2,273) by selling dalmot to seven other adjoining VDCs. I am happy and proud of my business as it has raised the living standard of my family and has also brought me social prestige.
“I encourage people to grow raw materials that I need for dalmot production as this will increase
Kalyan weighing dalmot
their income and I will not have to import any raw materials which will cut my expense. People now understand and they are growing peas, cereals, chili and processing oil needed for dalmot production,” he adds.
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Photo: A. de. la. Vega
Back cover illustration: R. Maharjan
Practical Action is a UK based charity organisation established in 1966 with the objective of reducing poverty through wider use of appropriate technologies in developing countries. With the Head Office in the UK, Practical Action works through its Country and Regional Offices in Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Sudan, Zimbabwe and Peru. Practical Action is working in Nepal since 1979. The current Nepal strategy, 2007 - 2012, focuses on six broad programme areas namely: 1) securing food for the poor; 2) reducing risks from disaster and adverse impacts of climate change; 3) maximizing the benefits of market for small producers; 4) improving the access of rural poor to basic services; 5) improving urban environment; and 6) supporting in healthy homes.
Practical Action Nepal Office House No. 2677 Narayan Gopal Sadak, Maharajgunj PO Box: 15135, Kathmandu, Nepal T: 977-1-4720 803/804/761 F: 977-1-4720 402 E:
[email protected] W: www.practicalaction.org
