WUNRN
Women's Feature Service
India - New Delhi
By Renu Rakesh
Because ofthe
falling ground water levels and erratic weather, the lives of women farmers
have been adversely impacted. (Credit: Renu Rakesh\WFS)
Jaipur (Women's Feature Service) -
"I was married as a child. When I reached my in-laws' home, they owned
around 100 high-breed cows and camels, and around 10 acres of land. Ours was a
rich family, but a few years after my marriage, the village witnessed a drought
and our downfall began. The number of cattle gradually fell. We had to rear
other people's cattle to make ends meet but the grazing grounds had shrunk and
I had to eventually shift to Ahmedabad with my daughter. In the city, I did
household chores for a living. But my earnings were insufficient and I was
forced to return to my village - and to my fate. The retreat affected my
daughter's education. She can't go to school now, and is forced to help me in
daily-wage work to sustain the family."
When Jali Ben, 52, of Sujpura village
in Ahmedabad's Detroj block narrated her story, the audience sat still -
empathising with this woman whose eyes welled up as she presented her testimony
on the impact of climate change on her life.
Jali Ben was one of the 350 participants
at a public hearing on 'Climate Change: Voices From The Rain-Fed Areas'. The
testimonies constituted a rich blend of academic insight and experiences of
ordinary people living in the rain dependent regions of the country. They came
from Rajasthan, Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Madhya Pradesh,
Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra,
Held at the BS Mehta auditorium of HCM
Rajasthan State Institute of Public Administration, the Jaipur hearing was part
of a nationwide series organised by Oxfam India and a coalition of civil
society organisations to inform world leaders - in the run-up to the UN global
climate summit at Copenhagen - that climate change is impacting the poor first
and to the greatest extent.
More than 70 per cent of agricultural
production in
Sita Devi, 45, from village Pandechhod,
Nainital, Uttaranchal; and
Mamta Kumari Gaund, 21, of West
Champaran district,
Mamta, who came with her father,
Sonalal Prasad Gaund, also talked about job insecurity and uncertainty of
livelihood with the
Talking about how the increased use of
chemical fertilisers has accentuated the agrarian crisis, Sita Devi said most
farmers in her area were now only growing vegetables. This has negatively
impacted the health of women. "Women have to spend more time in vegetable
farming. The use of chemical fertilisers has resulted in many falling ill more
often now, even as the cost of treatment has escalated. Sometimes women have to
travel as much as 40 kilometres to receive medical help."
Furthermore, the chemicals used in
farming have diminished soil productivity. "Less harvest means less fodder
for livestock. Women are now largely dependent on the forests for fodder. But
the forests are also shrinking. This means that women in our villages have to
walk longer distances to access this fodder," added Sita Devi.
Shekhar Sharma, 30, a social activist
from Guna district in Madhya Pradesh, points to the social turmoil caused by
deforestation. "While deforestation has forced forest-dependent
communities like the Saharia tribe to migrate from the region in search of
alternative means of survival, tribes like the Bheels and Gaunds from other
areas are making their way into Guna, Shyopur and Shivpuri, deforesting the
area further for their settlements. In the process, the forest area here has
been reduced to one-fourth its original size," Sharma said.
But by far the biggest impact of
climate change in this region is the drastic drop in groundwater levels. Sharma
cites deforestation and the sowing of crops that require more water as the
major reasons for this. The soil in this area is also not conducive to
groundwater recharge.
Quite distinct from other testimonies
were the observations of Nalinikant, 45, from Koilakh
After the presentation of testimonies,
the jury, in its interim order, demanded that the National Action Plan on
Climate Change be brought into the public domain and that inputs from all
stakeholders be taken on board to determine the course of national action. The
jury also highlighted the need to bring women into mitigation efforts. It
noted, "Bearing in mind that women will bear the worst brunt of climate
change impacts, it is recommended that all developmental programmes ensure that
adequate space is created for women to act as change makers. "
The jury included Arun Kumar 'Pani
Baba' - a journalist-turned-ecologist from Uttarakhand; CK Gangly 'Babloo' - a
political and theatre activist from Andhra Pradesh; Kamla Bhasin - renowned
activist and gender trainer; Om Joshi - agriculturist, who represents Phalodi
in Rajasthan Assembly; Rajendra Bhanawat - NREGA commissioner in Rajasthan
government; Dr Suman Sahai - scientist and convenor of Gene Campaign; and
Justice V.S. Dave and Justice
Panachand Jain, former judges of the
Rajasthan High Court.
By way of a warning, the distinguished
jury observed that climate change will worsen the living conditions of farmers,
fisher folk, and forest-dependent people, who were already vulnerable and food
insecure. More frequent and intense extreme weather events will make life
impossible for them.
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