THE BACKGROUND
Many farmers in the Palghar and Marathwada districts of Maharashtra struggle with a meagre monthly income of around INR 3000-4000 per month. There is depression and a feeling of hopelessness among the farmers and their families. Low yield, low production and poverty are common problems. They have been practising agriculture just like their forefathers and there is no science to what they do in most cases.
They end up taking loans and this leads to a vicious cycle of being unable to pay their debts leading to suicides, depression and migration to cities etc. How do we make agriculture sustainable and remunerative for them?
Their plight also leads to a situation where they migrate to cities to make ends meet.
THE SOLUTION
The Rotary Club of Mumbai SOBO in partnership with the Rotary Club of Worli Bombay Trust and the NGO Global Parli are on a mission to transform the lives of these marginal farmers and their families by giving them fruit-bearing trees. These trees are planted instead of the traditional crops they grow ( sugarcane, rice, soya etc) and yield much better incomes. Each tree costs just INR 25 and usually a acre of land needs just 500 such fruit-bearing trees. That works out to just INR 12500 per acre to transform the life of a farmer ( 25*500=12500 INR).
These farmers typically own one to two acres of land.
The fruit-bearing trees are mango, papaya, orange, custard apple etc. The income generated is 10 to 20 times higher that what they usually earn. This is a sustainable and long-term solution and completely transforms their lives.
Read the story below to see the impact of this initiative :
Below is a glimpse of how their land will be transformed which would, in turn, boost their income and productivity.
The trees are given on the basis of soil type, weather conditions, access to water etc in a scientific manner. This leads to better yield and boosts income. The change in cropping patterns is supported by adequate training, knowledge transfer and use of technology.
All funding has 80G benefits.
A DEEP DIVE INTO THE CASE OF SANDEEP GITTE
Each tree costs just INR 25.
Typically an acre will need 500 such trees.
So INR 12500 (500 fruit bearing trees) will help one farmer move from poverty to prosperity.
From a meagre income of around INR 40,000 per year, these farmers will now easily earn from INR 2 to 4L per annum. In addition to these trees they also are motivated to practice integrated farming by growing seasonal vegetables and other produce between the fruit bearing trees to maximise yield.
The Pandemic has also taught us the importance of Oxygen. These trees will also improve the green cover for sure.
The above picture shows land with papaya trees
IMPACT
A STORY OF TRANSFORMATION
MORE SUCCESS STORIES
Below are examples of how fruit-bearing trees transformed their lives and boosted their income levels.
ABOUT ME
My name is Raghav Sharma. I am 14 years old and in Grade 9 at the Ascend International School, Mumbai.
I was shocked to learn that that marginal and small farmers earn a meagre monthly income of around INR 3000- 5000 per month. Low productivity and poverty is a common problem for them. They struggle to make ends meet and sustain their families.
I am running this crowdfunding campaign to help these farmers across the Palghar and Marathwada districts in Maharashtra by providing them with fruit-bearing trees. The trees would be given to farmers who have 1 to 2 acres of land yet struggle with low yield and productivity. Through this, the income levels are expected to rise 10-20 times. This would be transformational and their lives would change dramatically.
Planting a single fruit-bearing tree costs INR 25.
Just INR 12,500 will help transform the life of one farmer. Let’s all come together and do our bit.
LOCATION OF THE BENEFICIARIES :
ABOUT ROTARY CLUB OF MUMBAI SOBO
Rotary Club of Mumbai SOBO is a humanitarian service organization aiming to improve lives in communities locally and worldwide. SOBO Rotarians are a dedicated group of change-makers from all walks of life, committed to the core values of Rotary International: Service, Fellowship, Diversity, Integrity and Leadership.
Our motto "In Giving, We Receive" has spiralled service supporting hunger, housing, health, hygiene and we champion sustainable projects that help curb illiteracy & poverty and promote clean water, sanitation, and fight disease and disability. Caring for the environment and fostering peace initiatives is another area of our focus. We believe each person can make a difference, and kindness goes a long way.
ABOUT GLOBAL PARLI
Global Parli is a movement with a specific focus on the Environment, Economy and 360° development of our farmers and their families. Working in more than 3,856 villages, covering an area of 31,930 sq km of 4 districts in Marathwada, Maharashtra and 3 districts in Madhya Pradesh.
Vision
- Increasing farmer income by multiple times by changing cropping patterns.
- Providing a fusion of traditional agricultural practices with modern scientific methods
- Ensuring that farmers are trained through a team of best agricultural experts
- Bringing overall prosperity to the lives of villagers.
- Fighting climate change by mass plantation of fruit-bearing trees.
TAX BENEFITS
Funding for this campaign is eligible for tax breaks as ROTARY CLUB OF WORLI BOMBAY TRUST is registered and you can avail of benefits under section 80G of IT act. Foreign funding is not accepted.
FEEDBACK THAT YOU GET
FAQs
Will we get to know the details of how the money was spent?
Yes. After the money has been collected it will be transferred by Fueladream to ROTARY CLUB OF WORLI BOMBAY. It will take from 60 to 120 days after that to get details of who the beneficiary was with details of them. Once I get this information from them I shall upload the picture of the beneficiary on the UPDATES section of this campaign. You will then get an alert and can read details about the beneficiaries.
When do I get the receipts?
It takes up to 2-3 weeks after the campaign is closed for the monies to be transferred to the NGO. The receipts will start getting processed about 6 weeks AFTER the campaign is closed and will be sent to you directly.
How can we fund this campaign with a Cheque?
Fueladream Online Ventures Pvt Ltd account details are as below:
BANK NAME: HDFC Bank Limited.
BRANCH: Koramangala( Main Branch). City: Bengaluru - 560095.
ACCOUNT NUMBER: 50200013106778
IFSC CODE: HDFC0000053
Please draw a cheque in favour of "Fueladream Online Ventures Pvt Ltd", and deposit the cheque into the Fueladream Online Ventures Pvt Ltd HDFC Bank account (any branch across INDIA). After you deposit the cheque, please send an email to prasad@fueladream.com AND getintouch@fueladream.com with the following funder information.
1) Name of Funder:
2) Full address with Pin code:
3) Telephone/Mobile no and Email ID:
4) PAN of funder:
5) Cheque number:
6) Amount funded:
7) Whose campaign are you funding. (Name of the person OR campaign number/ID):
After the funds are received and the above details are verified, the fund amount will be transferred to the respective campaign. This can take from 1-3 working days.
How does crowdfunding work?
Crowdfunding in India is a relatively new concept and is growing very quickly.
It’s a concept that allows a large number of funders (like you) to fund an idea or a cause or event by giving small amounts of money online. Fueladream.com is a crowdfunding platform in India that allows for such pooling of funds. You can fund innovations and ideas on FuelADream and be the first to get these products or make them come true. You can also do a good turn by funding charities and causes through crowdfunding. When you fund a charity it’s more like a donation and you get small innovative rewards like a shout-out on an FB page or a thank you email from the beneficiaries.
