Watershed Development Projects
Coordinated Action Lacking

WATERSHED development projects serve to achieve multiple objectives, which call for integrating and balancing various concerns such as environmental conservation, productivity, participation and sustainability in its operational strategy. All these are mutually reinforcing elements for the success of watershed development projects.

In fact, watershed development at the local level is one way of arresting degradation of land and water. It is undoubtedly a good and efficient option which can be treated without A to Z of strictly mechanical methods.

The overriding consideration behind watershed projects has been environmental degradation and the need to restore the disturbed ecological balance. Other factors have been considered as of less importance because the solution lies on the ecology restoration of the degraded land water.

Since watershed development projects are basically land-based development activities, they help in raising the productivity of the farmers. However, being incidental to the treatment programme, this chiefly helps the large landholders who are centrally positioned and are able to manipulate project management in order to obtain maximum benefits.

If production is not emphasised as the goal, one may end up by achieving neither reduction in poverty nor employment.

In reality, watershed development is not possible without proper watershed management, which is a socio-technical process that provides for the conservation, utilisation and development of the natural resources of a watershed befitting all its inhabitants at present and in the future. It formulates the steps needed to preserve and develop watershed resources such as land, water, forest, wildlife and human, keeping in mind their interrelationship.

At present, watershed management programmes are dominated by bureaucracy with many departments engaged but coordinated action conspicuous by its absence. Lack of comprehensive integrated perspective apart from the top-down bureaucracy approach of management is the major factor responsible for poor performance of watershed development projects implemented by government agencies.

Actually, the economic factor has been underplayed in designing most watershed projects, perhaps because of obsession with engineering and environmental dimension issue. However, this is not to undermine the importance of environmental dimension in designing such projects.

Since poverty is both a cause and effect of overexploitation of nature and resources, successful exploitation of watershed development programmes would result in sustainable poverty reduction. However, most watershed projects lack productivity orientation, and research endeavours have been far from satisfactory in developing the methodology for an overall production system and its implication for increasing poor people’s income.

In the past, little conservation efforts were made to diversify the production base in order to extend the benefits to as many people as possible and especially those residing at the margin of society.

Only watershed management, which is both integrated and participatory, helps raise the living standard of the poor. This is because the conservation of a watershed area and the enhancement of the standard of the poor go simultaneously.

In fact, the real difficulty lies in enlisting local community receiving mechanisms at the micro-watershed level. Without a local community institution effective participation by all stakeholders in the watershed development projects will be complicated although the projects are implemented by voluntary organisation.

Several experiences have been gained in different parts of our country in participating watershed projects. However, it has been observed that people’s participation in watershed development activities involving government agencies is at best at the rhetoric level, which is much talked about but least acted upon.

For watershed projects to be sustainable, community managed systems are essential, and they can succeed only with local people’s commitment.

For sustainability it is important that the contribution from the local people be a necessary commitment before the inception of a project because that would ensure a sense of ownership leading to better quality, transparency apart from assuring many for maintenance.

In Nepal, some watershed development projects have been launched although their outcomes are far from satisfactory.

The Bagmati Integrated Watershed Management Programme (BIWMP), one of the biggest European community funded projects in Nepal, is working towards integrated community development through participatory watershed management in Kavrepalanchowk, Sindhuli, Makwanpur, Kathmandu and Lalitpur districts through the respective districts soil conservation offices.

It is reported that the BIWMP is at present involved in formulating integrated sub-watershed management plans in six watersheds under five districts.

Arrangements have been made to provide more than a million rupees for the Upallo Haldi Panaha Sub-Watershed Management Project in Gulmi district.

About 0.6 million rupees has been set aside for watershed management in Surkhet Valley under the present fiscal year 2058/59.

Despite the launching of these projects, how to make them beneficial to the people living within the watershed area? How to enlist maximum people’s participation? How to offset costs in order to increase coverage and maximise benefits to the community? These are some important concerns, which need to be included before embarking any watershed development project.

People Heave Sigh of Relief

By Bishnu Gautam

WITH the notices issued by the Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur district administration offices banning on mass rallies in the Valley, the Valley people have heaved a sigh of relief.

The notices were issued in view of the mass meeting of the Maoists, which was scheduled to be held in Kathmandu on September 21. Indeed, the proposed meeting had given rise to apprehensions among the denizens as well as the security organisations, because many suspected that the much-talked about meeting would disrupt the social harmony. This suspicion was but natural going by the track record of the Maoists.

It cannot be denied that the preparation and publicity carried out by the Maoist activists was enough to terrorise the people. They had allegedly started raising funds from private boarding schools, local industries, publication houses and businessmen at the gunpoint, schools and garment industries were asked to provide free lodging facilities and the hotels to provide meals at a very low price to their activists.

Coincidentally, the notices were issued just hours after the second round of Government-Maoist dialogue concluded in Bardiya. Despite assurances from the Maoist leader Prachanda that the rally would be held in a peaceful manner, the government not only prohibited the mass meeting but also tightened security in the Valley. The people at large had the fear that the mass rally would be an armed one. After the notice the Maoists too have cancelled their programmes.

The people in general have appreciated the government’s move as well as the decision of the Maoist to cancel the rally. With such a new development, the Valley people have now sensed a temporary peace. However, people outside the Valley have been unable to sense such temporary peace even after the Maoists declared a halt of violent activities after the new government came to power.

Indeed, the Nepalese people who hardly suffered any violence in the past have been badly affected by the violence carried out by the Maoists in the last six years. Over 1,700 people, including hundreds of police personnel and Maoist guerrillas, have lost their lives in the meaningless violence. The Maoist movement, which kicked off from Rolpa in Western Nepal, has now spread all over the country. Even the capital has failed to remain unaffected from the Maoists’ activities. In fact, the law and order situation of the country has greatly deteriorated in the recent years due to their activities.

Reports have it that they are now challenging the establishment by forcing the local elected representatives to resign and forming so called people’s government in many districts. Similarly, they are forcing people to donate. And if someone denies, he is sure to be threatened. This is the reason why the people are unwillingly giving money to the Maoists.

As such it is natural that the people have expected much from the Government-Maoist dialogues. However, the second round of the talks were not so encouraging when Maoists forwarded their impractical political demands, which the government side rejected strongly. Institutional development of a republic, formation of an interim government and abrogation of the present democratic constitution have been the major political demands of the Maoists which the government formed under the present constitution cannot fulfill at any cost. The people and all the political parties functioning under the present constitution are also against such demands. The major political parties have reportedly supported the government’s stand and its views on these demands. Yet the series of Government-Maoists talks have not ended. And the people are wishing that the problem be solved in the next round of talks. Prime Minister Deuba is still expressing his confidence that the talks between the government and the Maoists will be successful, which amply speaks of the government’s firm commitment to resolve the protracted problem through dialogues.

In fact, the Nepalese people have been giving emphasis for the solution of the Maoists problem since started in 2052 B. S. They gave mandate to the Nepali Congress to form a majority government in the 1999 general elections hoping that a strong government in the centre would succeed to tackle the Maoist insurgency, which was then confined to only a few districts of the Mid-Western and Western Development Regions. But the new government failed to solve the problem. Instead, the Maoists extended their strength in other parts of the country. After the collapse of the government headed by Krishna Prasad Bhattarai, Girija Prasad Koirala came to power with a firm commitment to resolve the problem. But his efforts too went in vein mainly due to intra-party conflict in the ruling party and non-cooperation from the opposition. Worse was the situation after the unimaginable Royal tragedy on June 1st.

After the Royal incident the Maoists strengthened their power and attacked one after another police post defeating the police in each front and abducted and killed several police personnel. They even kidnapped about six dozen police personnel from Holeri in Rukum. After the mass kidnapping of policemen from Holeri, Koirala stepped down thereby paving the way for Deuba to form a new government.

In a dramatic move, the Maoists had halted their armed attacks after an appeal from Premier Deuba, which he made even before taking oath to office to sit for dialogues. Now two rounds of dialogue have concluded one in Kathmandu and the other in Bardiya. And, according to the government, the third round of dialogues between the government and the Maoists will be held on the basis of mutual consensus.

Living By Yourself

By Ambar Mainali

HE is in his late thirties without a home and a family. The Uma Maheswori temple situated to the left on the way to Pashupati is his favourite dwelling. Life for him is as cool as it is for any other normal being. The coat, a token of mercy from a passerby is too big for him but still he is happy to have it. His belongings and his blanket are neatly placed on one side covered with a plastic. He is somewhat abnormal because he staggers a bit. It could be because of the health disorders during his childhood. The bright side of the story is that he is not ashamed of being dumb.

Unlike other beggars in the temple premises who speak foul against the devotees for not giving them alms, the dumb man has a special attraction. He knows well that to be rewarded one needs to serve the goddess. The words of respect to the goddess, which he utters, are beyond anybody’s understanding. His utterance of the words becomes more vibrant with the beating of the brass instruments.

Anybody who passes by has a modest view about this dumb man, who unlike others does not use coercion to get rewards. He goes on beating the brass plates as a mark of respect to the goddess. People are easily impressed with the way he woos them for alms. And of course he does get his day’s share of rice and rupees.

He is fond of cigarettes. One day, this writer tried to caution him about the health hazards caused by smoking. For a moment the dumb man was dumbsfounded. He reluctantly threw the cigarette away and grinned. But the next day he was smoking again. Somehow or the other this writer had the feeling that the dumb man was meek and liked to stick around to one place. He is indeed a hero because despite being dumb and out of balance, he is still taking up the challenge of facing all the odds of life.

It was a sunny afternoon. The traffic in Chabahil was quite heavy. This writer who was on his motorcycle caught the glimpse of the dumb man. He had his belongings tied to a thick club placed on his neck. The weight appeared to be quite unbearable and the man was shaking like anything unable to maintain balance. This writer stopped and paid a warm hello to which he responded with a chuckle.

The next day at our regular meeting in the temple, he was showing his neck. It had a bruise on it. He even asked this writer to feel it. The way he behaved was somewhat touchy. It was only later that the puzzle was solved. The bruise was the result of carrying the heavy load of belongings the day before.

The dumb man stands out among the crowd of beggars at Pashupati. His friendly behaviour and positive attitude towards life makes one feel something special about him. Almost everybody visiting the temple makes it a point to give him alms. As for the notes he folds them neatly and keeps them in the inner pocket of his coat while he leaves the coins to stay on the cloth for sometime.

The other rouges sniffing around the temple premises unlike the dumb man are healthy and physically intact to do any form of manual work. But why sweat yourself when you get things for free seems to be their motto. They give out a stinky smell of the booze that they consumed the night before and raise a question in the minds of the devotees. Why do young people who can earn their living by working hard turn into beggars and good for nothing rogues? It is just that they have gone out of the track. They have failed to understand the meaning of life. How precious it is and how it should be nurtured. If only these young beggars learnt from the dumb who wins his reward by chanting hymns then their lives too would certainly be happier and meaningful.