Community participation is the basis for developing and sustaining public welfare programmes.

Community participation is of special significance in areas which lack government resources and have uncoordinated development efforts. People's participations provides the community. Asia an opportunity to express their views and to participate in the decision making process. It provides information on the local environmental and economic systems.

Principles of Community Participation :The main principles of the community participation approach are the following: (i) (ii) Local people are the main stake holders of development projects. People have the knowledge and expertise to successfully handle a development project. People have the ability to determine their own destiny. The inherent skills and abilities of the people must be developed through participation. People must be empowered to control their own future. People must be provided with education and training to deal with any situation.

(iii) (iv)

(v) (vi)

(vii) The total community effort should be utilized.

Advantages of Community Participation :The main benefits of community participation in any environmental project are the following : (i) It becomes easier to identify the local needs .

(ii) Local knowledge end skills can be utilized effectively. (iii) Community participation provides reliable feedback on the impact of the projects. (iv) The community provides insights for adopting new schemes. (v) The community provides labour force for the projects. (vi) Community participation lowers the cost of production by improved utilization of resources and cooperation in the project. The National Forest Policy, 1998 envisages ; community participation in the development and protection of forests. The Government of India, in 1990, issued guidelines for involving village communities in the regeneration of degraded forests and initiated the Joint Forest Planning and Management (JFPM) scheme. This scheme involved the community in preparing plans for development and protection of forests. The initiation of JFPM project in a number of states like Haryana , Gujarat, etc. has been a major breakthrough in the involvement of local communities. It also involved women in the conservation and ecological restoration of forests in the state. It is hoped that these schemes would lead to more sustainable forest development. Similarly, construction of rain water harvesting structures in the villages of Rajasthan Gujarat and Maharashtra prove what community participation can do for ecological conservation. Here are some examples of community participation which have brought about significant achievements by pooling resources, skills, knowledge and by working in unison. These examples also make us understand processes of involving communities In conservation work.

Ralegaon Siddhi

In the 1960s Ralegaon Siddhi, a village in the Ahmadnagar district of Maharashtra, had problems related with environment and poverty. There was scarcity of water as water was available only during the monsoons. The farmers could grow just one crop a year. Added to this there were 40 illicit distilleries harbouring drunkards and gamblers.

All this sceneario changed because of one man, Anna Hazare, a retired army jeep driver who went back to his village, and brought changes with the support of the villagers. With the help from the government agencies and the cooperation of the villagers, he undertook massive tree plantation project. The hills were terraced to check erosion. Large canals were dug to retain rainwater. The next achievement of the villagers was in the area of non-conventional energy. All the streets in the village were lit by solar lights, each with a separate panel. There are now four large community biogas plants and one of them is fitted to the community toilet. There is a large windmill for pumping water. A number of households have their own biogas plants. The village has become self-sufficient. Besides reviving the agricultural and social life Hazare succeeded in encouraging people to build a school for the children. Follows the Gandhian principles, Hazare brought in equality among the villagers, who accepted Dalits as equals, giving them access to the temple, the village wells and schools. He discouraged child marriages and took interest in the education of girls.

Self Sustaining System :

Ralegaon Siddhi is a model for village self- sustaining system. Study the Hazare circle which highlights the sustainable principles of Anna Hazare. Some examples of the working of these principles is given below: (a) Community mobilization for water conservation. Water harvesting structures built with community participation. (1979- 1982) . (b) Watershed development activities taken up with community participation. Partial rabi crops besides total khalif crops were grown. Wells have enough water during the dry season. (c) Waste lands are put to use. Massive plantation is undertaken and landless residents benefit from it. Many user groups are in charge of managing resources with the Gram Sabha as the nodal body. (d) All the four watersheds in the village are treated. Earnings have risen three-to-four- folds, a quarter of the households earn in excess of half a million rupees a year.

Milestones of Prosperity :
The changes brought out by Anna Hazare with the help of local community has transformed Ralegaon Siddhi from a land of poverty to prosperity. This is evident from the following:

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The per capita income of the village went up from Rs 271 in 1975 to Rs. 2,257 in 1985. All the villagers grow seasonal vegetables apart from the large-scale cultivation of onion. The cropping intensity is now 180- 190 per cent higher than 25 years ago. Plantation of trees like guava, custard apple, mango and tamarind has increased village incomes as high as Rs. 14,000 per hectare. Women's participation through self-help groups has been crucial to the social stricture of the village. These groups mobilize marginal savings and use the money to generate business opportunities for themselves. Now there are 1 l such groups with 200 members and a savings of more than Rs. one lakh. Anna Hazare had made it clear that the youth had to be at the forefront of all social and development work. The Tarun Mandal (a youth group) worked to ban the dowry system, caste discrimination and untouchability. Open grazing was completely banned. Cultivation of water-intensive crops like sugarcane was banned. Crops such as pulses, oilseeds and certain cash crops with low water requirements were grown. A new system of sharing labour grew out of the combination of pride and voluntary spirit. People volunteered to work on each other's land and as a result, a more intimate community life was developed. In the middle of a predominantly rocky area, the Villagers have grown lush green crops, huge trees and vegetables. Each season, vegetables are exported to Kuwait, Dubai and Muscat. Within three years of Hazare's efforts, people stopped going to liquor stalls. They took a pledge in the village temple not to touch, sell or serve intoxicants. Today there is not a single shop in Ralegaon Siddhi selling cigarettes or bidis.

Sukhomajri
Sukhomajri, a village in Punchkula district, in Haryana, north of Chandigarh is another example of a model village for sustainable development. It is the greatest success story in community forest management. In the 1970s, Sukhomajri was riddled with severe ecological problems. The soil condition of the village was such that it had no vegetation. It could sustain very poor crops, was severely eroded with soil loss. Although the average annual rainfall in the region was 1, 137 mm, groundwater was not available within a

reasonable depth and, thus, tubewells could not be used.

Land Degradation :
Due to scarcity of land, villagers cleared hill slopes in order to cultivate the land. This reduced water retention capacity of the land. Fertile topsoil was washed away during the rains. The villagers reared cattle that grazed on adjoining valleys. This led to soil erosion and low grass production. All these conditions made the people poor. During this period, P R Mishra, a soil scientist took upon himself to improve the land in Sukhomajri by using a cyclical mode of development by involving the villagers.

Cyclic Mode of Development :

The villagers saved some of the grains they produced and invested the money by selling them back into the improvement of common natural resources. The money was used by village institutions to increase the productivity of the common land and water resources. The people's support contributed towards the economic growth of the village. The village also invested in the ecological improvement. This resulted in a kind of cyclical growth, pushing the rural economy into an upward spiral. This is what P R Mishra, the person behind the success of Sukhomajri, calls the Chakriya Vikas Pranali (CVP) or the cyclic mode of development. The principle behind the transformation of Sukhomajri was to increase the production of biomass so that the daily needs of the villagers for fuel, wood, fodder and food grains, are met. The emphasis was laid on maximising the production of bhabbar (a valuable wild grass) Such grass was used for roper-making, and was in great demand with paper mills.

Social Fencing :
It was clear that unless incentives, such as water, fodder and fuel wood be given to the villagers meaningful cooperation could not be achieved. Thus, the concept of 'social fencing' was born in Sukhomajri. Social fencing means that the villagers themlselves decide to protect hills from grazing through self-

restraint. At present, these villagers protect their trees and grass. Efforts were made to conserve the water in the village, as that would provide water for irrigation. The village stream was carrying away thousands of tonnes of silt to a large reservoir in Chandigarh, and was reducing its water-holding capacity. With the support of the villagers, Mishra built two earthen dams to hold back the rain water. He then dissuaded the villagers from uncontrolled grazing in the watershed. The villagers protected the watershed.

Water Users Society :

In order to remove corruption, the management control of the whole village welfare was given to an autonomous village institution. A crucial role in this entire exercise was played by the Water Users' Society (WUS), a village-level institution established in Sukhomajri for the purpose of watershed management. The institution provided a forum for the villagers to discuss their problems. The society made sure that no household allowed its animals to graze in the watershed. In return, it has created a framework for fair distribution of the resources generated, namely, water, wood and grass-among all households in the village.

Haqbandi :
Depending on the availability, each family was issued a coupon for a fixed quantity of water. If any family did not want to utilise the water, it could sell it back to the society or to any other family. Each family had an equal right (haq) in the common resources. Therefore, this policy was known as haqbandi Today, the entire catchment of the watershed is green and the village can withstand severe droughts. The society earns enough money to be used to increase the productivity of its common forest, grazing lands and water systems.

Beej Bachao Andolan (BBA)

Jardhargaon is a typical Himalayan vilage in Tehri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand. The village was actively involved in the Chipko Movement that st The once-degraded slopes are today forested with oaks, chestnuts and pines due to

this movement. But forest protection and rejuvenation is not the only conservation movement that this region has seen. It is also home to a people's movement to revive traditional agricultural practices and convene indigenous seeds, known as Beej Bachao Andolan (Save the Seeds Movement). The Beej Bachao Angolan (BBA) is a peoples movement for conserving traditional seeds, removing agricultural biodiversity, sustainable agriculture and local traditions. In the 1970s and 1980s, High Yielding Variety (HYV) seeds were introduced all over the county and cash-crop driven agriculture destroyed traditional farming. As a result, soil fertility declined and dependence on toxic chemicals increased. A Chipko activist and a local farmer, Vijay Jardhari, along with other activists from Jardhargaon, formed the Beej Bachao Abhiyan. later re-named as Beej Bachao Andola (BBA), to rejuvenate traditional farming and agricultural diversity. The BBA movement took its proper form in 1989, when Jardhari, together with other farmers, travelled extensively in Uttarkashi, Chamoli and Tehri districts in Uttarakhand collecting as many varieties of traditional seeds as possible.

Principles of BBA :1. The Beej Bachao Andolan follows the traditional mixed farming and intercropping of twelve or more crops. It revived the traditional system of farming using the Baranaja (meaning twelve grains). In this type of farming, combination of cereals, lentils, vegetables and root vegetables is grown. Each crop supports the growth of other crops. The creepers of legumes use the stems of plants as a natural support, while their roots grip the soil preventing soil erosion. Due to their nitrogen-fixing abilities, legume crops return nutrients which are used by other crops. 2. Chemical fertilizers or pesticides are not used. On the other hand, organic manure is used and pests and insects are controlled by using leaves of the neem or the walnut or by the application of ash and cow's nine. 3. This system of biofarming helps maintain ecological balance. It enables the farmer to get the benefit from certain varieties even in case of damage to some crops. 4. The concept of the twelve grain system is scientific and sustainable. Different crops harvested at different times of the year provide security against food shortage, as well as drought and crop failure in a small piece of land. Diversity in crops also helps in maintaining soil fertility and replenishing nitrogen.

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Due to the diversity of crops, the twelve grain system provides for nutritional security. Millets are rich in calcium, iron. phosphorus and vitamins, while legumes are a rich source of proteins.

BBA Developments :
The campaigners of BBA tried biofarming of various crops including about 130 varieties of rice. 110 varieties of beans, 40 of finger millets, and eight of wheat. They discussed the traditional cropping systems with local farmers, including youth and women, and effectively communicated the benefits of using traditional farming techniques and seeds. Today BBA, a non-formal collective of farmers and activists, is spread all over Uttarakhand. From the villages of Jardhargaon, it has spread to other of Uttarakhand through the efforts of non-NGO organizations like Adhar in Almora Samudayik Chetna Kendra in Nainital and Vividhara in Nahikalan in Dehradun. When India joined the World Trade Organization (WTO), there were apprehensions that farmers might be denied the right to sell seeds. To address this issue the Plant Variety Protection and Farmers' Rights Bill was passed in August, 2001. Under the Bill, farmers have the right to save, use, re-sow, exchange, share or sell their form produce, including seeds. The Act recognised the farmer not just as a cultivator, but also as a conserver and a breeder of successful varieties of crops.