Migrants take the route home

VADODARA, Nov 7: It is migration, but with a difference. After years of one-way traffic from the nondescript hamlet of Rangpur Sadhli, vi...

VADODARA, Nov 7: It is migration, but with a difference. After years of one-way traffic from the nondescript hamlet of Rangpur Sadhli, villagers are finding their way back from the city. Lured by developmental projects launched by a voluntary organisation, people are spurning big-city temptations to return to their roots and traditional callings.

Not just one or two, we are talking of 300-odd farmers who have found their ways back this village 136-km away from Vadodara. They are the subject of a 20-minute documentary film, Jal, Jangal aney Jamin (Water, Forest and Land), made by Dhiru Mistry.

Inspired by the Shroff Foundation Trust’s work in the area, Mistry profiles, apart from the farmers, women who have gone back to basket-weaving and ornament-making from working as construction labour in the city.

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“Earlier, they were unable to use their land, as the monsoon eroded a lot of the topsoil. But now, a high barricade keeps the water away and allows them to grow both cash crops and food crops”, says Mistry.

Research also revealed that the villagers faced a problem storing water. Thus, precious rainwater drained away, leaving their lands dry and their cattle thirsty. “But they were trained to build proper catch dams,” says Mistry. “Since the foundation involved them in the project, they now know how to irrigate the fields and provide water to their cattle throughout the year”, he adds.

The film-maker says a village called Nimaj, about 27 km from Dahod, continued to face a similar situation because of improper training and inadequate funds. “Nimaj villagers are still leaving their home to work in the city”, he claims.

Incidentally, Mistry has also made a documentary on this village.