Glance at how communities in Chhattisgarh are responding to

water uncertainty through local, community-led action

Lucknow, 05 June (HS): Extreme heat stress, erratic climate,

depleting groundwater and shrinking reservoirs have pushed rural India into a

critical compound emergency, threatening drinking water security as well as

agricultural livelihoods. Apart from groundwater over-extraction and climate

variability, rural populations also have to deal with inadequate distribution

networks and intermittent supply. The silver lining in this bleak scenario?

Rural India is now actively creating sustainable solutions from the ground up.

In fact, a quiet movement is underway in Chhattisgarh to build practical and

community-led systems around water conservation, storage, and livelihood

resilience.

Sustainable resource management in Mardapal: For over 2,616

people in Mardapal Panchayat in Chhattisgarh, farming had served as the primary

means of sustenance till it faced multiple challenges like climate change,

extreme weather volatility and water scarcity. The resourceful Maradapal

community then decided to proactively leverage local ponds for enduring climate

and livelihood resilience with the help of Transform Rural India (TRI), a

development design organisation, working to transform India’s bottom 1,00,000

villages into flourishing localities. Maradapal's natural water system till now

had been underutilised, but with TRI's help, collective awareness increased,

and institutional linkages clicked into place. TRI’s locality-specific model

facilitated the synergy of the Gram Panchayat, CLFs (Cluster Level Federation),

SHGs (Self-Help Groups) and the State Fisheries Department to make the most of

existing resources. A collective aquaculture plan was mooted and the Gram

Panchayat agreed to lease two community ponds, covering over 8 acres of water

for 10 years to a group of 20 farmers. The State Fisheries Department stepped

in to offer 30 kilograms of fish fingerlings at a 50 percent subsidy.

Now water bodies that had remained underused for years are

brimming with life and opportunity as shared livelihood assets. The profound

lesson the communities have learnt is that when they take care of their natural

reserves, they return the favour as well.

It has also become clear that with institutional convergence and synergised

decision-making, community resources can offer sustenance even amid climate

challenges.

Collective water conservation in Badgaon Charbatha: Badgaon

Charbatha, a village in Chhattisgarh, had been in the throes of a persistent

water crisis caused by unpredictable rainfall and frequent extreme weather

events. The local community was well aware that they had to find a solution

urgently to ensure the safety of their health and income opportunities. Their

story took a turn when the decision-making about water governance was handed

back to women, the grassroots stakeholders, and default water managers in rural

households. TRI understood that systemic inequity could be rectified by

bringing together SHGs, village organisation leaders, Panchayat

representatives, and community members for a collective resolution. Today,

women in the village do not walk long distances to fetch water but know how to

conserve it and guide its use for collective benefit. Their hyperlocal wisdom

about water and the land has been leveraged to augment an Integrated Natural

Resource Management (INRM) framework. And now the Badgaon Charbatha community

maps their own landscape, using GIS-based tools to ascertain how water flows

and where it is collected. This work was

carried out through convergence with the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural

Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) and now over 2,000 Soil Conservation

Trenches (SCTs) and over seven farm ponds have been constructed to respectively

slow down runoff and hold rainwater. With better access to water, the community

has also increased plantation efforts to strengthen ecological balance and

ensure future livelihoods. A once parched community is now the proud custodian

of its water sovereignty.

Solar-powered irrigation revives farming in Hasel village: Hasel

village in Kondagaon district of Chhattisgarh, has long depended on the monsoon

for farming. With only 7.5% of cultivable land in the region irrigated

throughout the year, most farmers were limited to a single cropping season,

leaving fields dry and livelihoods uncertain once the rains receded. As

rainfall became increasingly erratic, many turned to groundwater extraction,

putting additional pressure on an already stressed resource. Recognising that

water insecurity was at the root of the village's challenges, community members

came together to explore solutions. With support from TRI’s team of Development

Designers, villagers assessed their local water resources and identified a

Community Managed Solar Lift Irrigation (CMSLI) system as a sustainable way to

improve water access. The system draws surface water from nearby rivers and

check dams and lifts it to farms using solar-powered pumps, reducing dependence

on groundwater while ensuring reliable irrigation for agriculture. To ensure

long-term sustainability, Women Water User Groups (WUGs) were formed, which now

manage and operate the system. Farmers were also trained in system maintenance,

collective planning and water governance, while exposure visits helped them

understand how reliable water access could improve agricultural productivity

and incomes. Today, Hasel village is among the communities benefiting from 10

CMSLI sites established across Kondagaon, collectively supporting 152 farmers

and irrigating 91 hectares of land. Access to reliable water has enabled

farmers to cultivate crops during the Rabi season and prepare for multiple

cropping cycles. What was once a village constrained by seasonal water scarcity

is now demonstrating how community-led water management can strengthen

livelihoods, reduce climate risks, and create pathways to year-round farming.

Hindusthan Samachar / Abhishek Awasthi