Jun 12, 2013

India’s ‘Paniwala Baba’

I know… I am sure that you must have heard about the famous Paniwala Baba?

He was walking on the dead river bed of the Agrani River in Sangli district. As he started walking, people started joining him and just a walk became a march for cause. The cause was to bring the Agrani River to life. Many people could feel that the Paniwala Baba-Water Man can speak to the rivers, he can understand their plight and bring them back. The march turned into a public meeting and Paniwala Baba became the initiator- Rajendra Singh.

Singh, always in his Khadi kurta and cotton pants has been known as the Paniwala Baba because he has reinvented the ingenious concept of ‘Johad’- the rainwater storage tanks and mud and rubble barriers that arrest rainwater under the ground. This indigenous and simple system has transformed the Rajasthan in to happy state as more than 1000 villages in the state have got easy access to water. He has now decided to transform the unhappy drought situation in Maharashtra.

Singh has already started working to rejuvenate four rivers in Maharashtra - Agrani, Manganga, Yerala, and Adan. While speaking about the conditions of dying river Singh says, “the rivers are yours, become their owners and transform them.” Back in Rajasthan, Singh has initiated the people to clean the river, build their own check dams and conserve water. He has named his movement as the ‘Jan Jal Jodo Abhiyan’ (People Water Connect).

While making people aware about the drought situation in Maharashtra, Singh is continuously spreading the message that how we ourselves can get over this drought situation. “There was only 40 per cent of rains in Rajasthan, if it can survive then so can Maharashtra with as good as 70 per cent of rains.” 

Singh believes that, if we follow only three things then our rivers will be transformed and can stay lively. These are River land should be encroachment free, sewerage and river should be separated and sand mining should be completely stopped. “But this is not enough, the work can only be completed with people participation means our participation.”

Greeny Says 
"Paniwala Baba- the Water Man can speak to the rivers, he can understand their plight and bring them back to life."
-As told by Greeny to Nitin Brahme

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Very inspiring... thanks Greeny...