Nita Ambani led-Reliance Foundation is aimed at enhancing the lives of the underprivileged communities in India. The foundation strives to not only provide help to people in need, but also encourage them to develop self-sustaining opportunities which would help enrich their livelihood.
The foundation provides solutions to the problems of rural communities by assisting them in agriculture, certain non-farming activities, and fisheries. Empowering villagers to improve the productivity of their land, the foundation helps them garner higher incomes.
Devitala, Rajasthan
Although food and water may be regarded as regular commodities, in rural areas they may not be easily accessible or in abundance. An example of such a situation is the Devitala village of Rajasthan.
A woman recalled how half her day would be spent on just trying to get water as she lived atop a hill and fetching water was not an easy task. Another woman added that her family only consumed vegetables when they had money.
This is when Nita Ambani led Reliance Foundation stepped in, and helped them set up a Village Farmers Association (VFA) under its Bharat India Jodo (BIJ) program.
The Village Farmers Association
The VFA in the village listed down its activities in order of priority, with Reliance Nutrition Gardens (RNG) featuring at the top. The RNG ensured the creation of quality kitchen gardens and their produce was meant to provide quality nutrition to villagers.
However, the lack of access to water impeded the growth of the RNGs. To tackle the water problem, VFA members laid down water pipes from a government-constructed water tank which was situated outside the village.
The result
VFA members raised funds wherein the Devitala community contributed Rs. 70,000 in addition to the Rs. 100,000 raised by the Panchayat. Reliance Foundation-BIJ also contributed Rs. 160,000.
The villagers’ hard work and extensive fund raising enabled 60 houses to have fully-operational RNGs and 60 out of 100 households acquired water connections.
Mission Rahat – Marathwada
In Maharashtra, the districts of Beed, Nanded, Hingoli, Aurangabad, Jalna, Parbhani, and Usmanabad collectively fall under the Marathwada region which has been facing a continuous drought over the past few years.
Nita Ambani led Reliance Foundation initiated a project titled Mission Rahat – Marathwada in order to help the region’s drought-stricken farmers. Along with government agencies, RF surveyed the surrounding areas which helped in identifying the 100 spots which were in dire need of water supply.
The water system devised by Reliance Foundation now supplies water to over 50,000 families residing in these 100 villages. About two to four water tankers are supplied to the villages daily which provide drought relief prior to the monsoons.
Reliance Foundation also kick started community welfare programs in 25 villages across the Marathwada region.