Beed

In the heart of Marathwada region, Maharashtra, where the sun beats down mercilessly and rain is a fickle friend, lie ten villages nestled along the banks of the Bobhati River. These villages, part of the Kaij block in Beed district, are home to communities that have struggled for generations against the harsh realities of drought.

As the Covid-19 pandemic reaches new corners of the country, the NGO community in India has been preparing itself to respond to the unexpected needs that the crisis is producing. DHAN Foundation, a professional development organisation working in several states of India with the communities has begun to develop a strategy.

The people of the Marathwada region have been facing severe water crisis for more than three decades. Despite adverse circumstances, the Akoladev panchayat in the Jalna district has set an example for other panchayats by solving their water woes through community participation and effective water harvesting measures that suit their geographic terrain.

The Shirpur pattern propogated by Suresh Khanapurkar has been widely criticised but also accepted by many villages in Maharashtra.