Kita village: Where Sarpanch turns drought hit village into self-sufficient one

Kita village (Maharashtra): From a drought affected region of Maharashtra, a local sarpanch successfully converted his village into a self-sufficient one. Indrapal Dhane, Sarpanch of Kita village since 2013. He has secured funding from the Chief Minister of Maharashtra and constructed 35 ponds, 15 wells and 200 toilets in the village. Indrapal Dhane is scheduled to also have a conference with the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Mr. Devendra Fadnavis about these developments at Kita village. In his efforts he was helped by World Vision India, an NGO. Dhane comes from one of the worst affected drought regions of the country. Over 25% of India's population, 330 million people have been hit by drought and are facing severe water scarcity. Image: World Vision India Multiple failed crops leading to rising debts, has so far forced 216 farmers in just the Marathwada region (400kms from Mumbai) to take their own lives, according to government records. The Bundelkhand region (Uttar Pradesh & Madhya Pradesh) and the Marathwada region are the worst affected, with the government declaring 27,723 villages as drought hit in these areas alone. World Vision India, a Chennai-based NGO, has been carrying out mitigation programs for a long time in the drought-prone ADPs (Area Development Programme), by bringing in watershed programs, advanced farming techniques and mixed croppings. This resulted in turning the situation around in many places and most specifically in Kita village in Yavatmal district of Maharashtra. Mr. Dhane says, “In 2012, I directly talked to the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Devendra Fadnavis about the need of our village and our plans to mitigate them and be self-sufficient. After World Vision India and we prepared the Net plan for our village future which consists of farm pond requirements, toilet constructions, wells etc.” Image: World Vision India