Kolila Joga was an ordinary, uninteresting village, located in Alwar, Rajasthan. Like all other villages, water scarcity was a source of concern for the Alwar administration. Thirsting residents and livestock of Kolila Joga were dependent on high-priced tankers and fulgurating government supply during scorching summers. A village comprising of 1,500 families struggled to quench its thirst on the dry days until 2016 when CM Raje’s MJSA —‘Jal Swavlamaban’ provided them respite from the summer heat.
Kolila Joga was one of the first villages to witness first-hand implementation of Mukhyamantri Jal Swavlamban Abhiyan in early 2016. The concept was new and exciting for the villagers, who enthusiastically took part in this ambitious community project.
Two years back, the dry, dusty villages of Rajasthan saw fleets of men and women lining the streets. People moved out of their homes, carrying spades and hoes with them and move to the areas slated for development of water reservoirs. People dug tiny ponds over underlying water bodies—ponds brimming with monsoon waters that would quench their thirst all year around. With the contribution of dexterous villagers, the pond turned into a 26-hectare water reservoir.
The newly-built catchment area had a capacity to hold 7,630 cubic meters of water. The efforts of these villagers were noticed by the Alwar district administration that linked this project to MJSA phase I. Soon, MJSA turned into Rajasthan’s biggest, most successful community rainwater harvesting project that covered 2.3 lakh projects in 7,740 villages.
Jal Swavlamban was not just limited to construction of new ponds, but restoration of old temple bawdis (baolis) and historic wells. Two years since the completion of MJSA project in Kolila Joga, the village got its name stuck out from the list of ‘dark spots’ that is water-starved regions in Rajasthan.
The water from the catchment paved way for advanced agricultural practices such as double or mixed cropping that resulted in 30% increase in local farming. 10 tube-wells present around the village supply water to the fields and household. According to Kolila Joga sarpanch Mr. Bhup Singh, MJSA boosted their earnings through agriculture by 60% to 80%.
Ever since the pond was constructed, villagers no longer need to migrate to the nearby wet areas. During summers, women and kids don’t walk several miles in quest for water. Falling into the footsteps of Kolila Joga village, many other villages in Rajasthan welcomed this move.
Today, Rajasthan intends to use Jal Swavlamban as a powerful tool using which, the state can raise above droughts and water scarcity through construction of tanks, catchment areas, water bodies and dams in 21,000 villages to preserve rainwater. Thrilled by the success of this widespread community project, CM Vasundhara Raje gives villagers the credit for the grand success of MJSA in Rajasthan.
“Despite Rajasthan being dry and its geography posing multiple challenges to agriculture, the results have been good. But there’s much more to be done”, she says. The biggest state of India has experienced a fair share of agrarian and water problems. Nevertheless, government’s efforts, which came out in the form of GRAM, MJSA and Resurgent Rajasthan will surely transform the fate of Rajasthan.
For Rajasthan, happy days are not far away!
