Hamirpur Village (ALWAR), MARCH 28: "While it is the responsibility of the government to create a situation where people can develop, it is up to the people themselves to work for achievement of true Gram Swaraj. Village Bhaonta-Kolyala and its surrounding villages have shown how people can do this on their own," said the Hon’ble President of India, Shri K. R. Narayanan, after presenting the "DOWN TO EARTH-JOSEPH C JOHN AWARD" for India’s most outstanding environmental community to Bhaonta-Kolyala village of Thanagazi Block, Alwar District, Rajasthan, here today. The award carries a citation and a cash awardof Rs. 1,00,000.

In a ceremony which was perhaps the first of its kind, the Hon’ble President flew down to Hamirpur to felicitate the village community. The community played a pivotal role in reviving the river Arvari, which had been reduced to a seasonal drain, by building traditional rainwater harvesting structures, such as earthen check dams called johads.

The 5,000 people from the region, who had gathered despite scorching heat, were also addressed by Mr. Anshuman Singh, the Governor of Rajasthan, Mr. Ashok Gehlot, the Chief Minister of the state, Mr. Anil Agarwal, the director of the New Delhi-based Centre for Science and Environment who is also the Editor of Down To Earth, and Mr. Rajendra Singh, general secretary of Tarun Bharat Sangh (TBS), the voluntary organisation that has worked among the people of the region for the past 15 years.

"Water is the basis of life. It is increasingly being realised by rich and industrialised countries as well as by poor and developing countries that non-availability of water is becoming a very grave problem. Some time ago, the Arvari, which flows through Gopalpura and Bhaonta-Kolyala, was absolutely dry. Lack of water had destroyed agriculture. The people here were forced to migrate to cities to earn a livelihood," said the Hon’ble President, speaking in Hindi.

"In such a situation, Rajendra Singh and others from TBS showed the way. Actually, it was a villager who asked TBS workers to ‘stop talking and start building johads’. The johads and check-dams built by the village folk regenerated groundwater and the river started flowing again, so much so that the river has become perennial", he observed.

Pointing out that as much as 75 per cent of the cost building johads has been borne by the villagers, the Hon’ble President said initiative and self-reliance of the people of Bhaonta-Kolyala is an inspiration and has established an example in frontof the rest of rural India.

Striking an extremely personal cord by pointing out that he was born in a village in Kerala and had spent the first 20 years of his life in his village, the Hon’ble President expressed a special joy at the opportunity to come to Hamirpur: "This is important for me in several ways as it is very seldom that one gets to address a ceremony of a village. I have not only been able to come and meet you but have also been able to see your good work."

"Another reason why I consider this visit of important is because I have come here at the invitation of Mr. Anil Agarwal, who is at the forefront of the environmental movement in India. He has created awareness of environmental issues and sustainable development among the masses and the governmental. I was also interested in presenting this award as it has been funded by the family of Mr. Joseph C. John, who is an old and intimate friend of mine and comes from District Kottyam of Kerala, just like me," said the Hon’ble President.

Expressing his gratitude towards the Hon’able President for accepting the offer to come to Hamirpur, Mr. Agarwal said that if rainwater harvesting is understaken all across Rajasthan like it has been done here, a lot of poverty in the state can be eradicated in the coming 10 years. He added that to take a step forward, it is very important to have the other foot placed firmly on the ground. This foot planted firmly in the ground, he said, was our belief in traditions which help us solve the greatest of our problems like water scarcity.

Pointing out that about 26,000 villages in Rajasthan are facing drought-like conditions this year, the Governor said that the best solution lies in improving groundwater resources through rainwater harvesting. However, he said that this task cannot be accomplished by the government and NGOs on their own. The people themselves have to come forward.

The Chief Minister said that Bhaonta-Kolyala has shown that the villages of Rajasthan have started understanding their problems. The President’s visit will provide great encouragement to the environmentalists of the state, he added.

The "DOWN TO EARTH-JOSEPH C JOHN AWARD" has been instituted by Down To Earth, India’s premier science and environment magazine. It is funded by the family of environmentalists Joseph C John, who is best known for making the first legal move in Kerala High Court against the Silent Valley hydroelectric project, the first successful environmental campaign in India.

To ensure that the process of selecting the winner of the award was thorough and transparent, an exhaustive process was formulated. More than 1,000 letters were dispatched to environmentalists across the country for soliciting nominations for the award. There were 149 entries and the reporters and stringers of Down To Earth painstakingly toured the length and breadth of the country to examine and evaluate each case separately.

The results were submitted to a jury of eminent people comprising N C Saxena, secretary to the Planning Commission, Government of India, Kamla Chowdhry chairperson of the Society for Promotions of Wastelands Development; Anupam Mishra, head of the environmental cell of the Gandhi Peace Foundation; Rahul Dev, eminent media personality and Vikram Lal, trustee of the Vikram Sarabhai Foundation discussed the merit of each and every nomination. After a series of consultations, the community of Bhaonta-Kolyala village emerged the winner.