Last April, people in the village of Manjhagawan gathered to meet our India director, Shamsul Akhtar to decide how to irrigate their fields in the dry season.
They decided that we should construct a pond and two irrigation canals together. Seven months later, the irrigation system was in place, just in time for the start of the dry season. Thanks to your donations, Karuna-Shechen has funded 50% of the project as part of our rural community support initiative: small money, Big Change.
Villagers with Shamsul Akhtar, our India director
In this isolated area, over 70km from Bodhgaya, during the monsoon season (June-September), families grow rice that they harvest in November. From December, the beginning of the dry season, farmers grow wheat and mustard. Until now, the harvest has been small because there was no irrigation system.
Five small rural communities will benefit from this newly constructed pond — nearly 5,000 people! “It will be good for everyone and allow us to produce more during the dry season,” says Rajo, one of the oldest women in the village.
Rajo, the village elder, shows the project monitoring chart
Our Approach to Community Development
We involve the villagers in every step. For the village of Manjhagawan, a committee made up of 7 women and 6 men coordinated the project. We subsidized 50%, and the villagers financed the rest. Each family contributed to a special savings account and two villagers, with the support of a Karuna-Shechen coordinator, kept track of the finances.
Our goal is to improve the daily lives of villagers, without creating dependency on outside help. Through our small money, Big Change initiative, we teach financial transparency to communities, while strengthening their sense of responsibility. The villagers feel proud to show the accounts, accurate to the penny, and the daily monitoring chart of the project.
The village of Manjhagawan also benefits from the following projects:
Mobile medical clinic (since 2014)
Creation of organic vegetable gardens (since 2016)
Mobile veterinary clinic (since the beginning of 2017)
Literacy course for women (since the beginning of 2017)
Video: See what it’s like to meet with villagers:
September 17 2018
Together, we’re building an altruistic movement! Please join us to support children and women in need in some of the most remote and underserved villages of northern India, the birthplace of yoga. ...
September 10 2018
Karuna-Shechen is creating many avenues for mindfulness and developmental growth for school children. One example is our intergenerational children’s yoga program that serves over 1,000 primary stud...
September 2 2018
Yoga for Karuna is a collaborative effort, born from the goodwill of a few yoga enthusiasts and expanded to spread a message of kindness and solidarity to build a better world! Ulrika Dezé is a yo...
August 24 2018
Matthieu Ricard shares his best wishes for all the children and adult students returning to school this fall. Each year, your generous donations to Karuna-Shechen improve the learning conditions for t...
August 20 2018
At 2100 meters above sea level in the mountains of Nepal, we’re building an elementary school to provide 80 young children access to a quality education that respects their Sherpa heritage. Const...
