SPECTRA

When the baseline assessment was conducted, it was observed that the economic condition of the majority of households in Ratakhurd village was very poor. The average annual income of a household was only ₹18,000 and many of the villagers suffered from acute malnourishment and its resultant health problems. Women in these households were financially dependent and subjected to exploitation and abuse.

The implementing body the Rajasthan government set up under the National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM), the Rajasthan Grameen Aajeevika Vikas Parishad (RGAVP) only reached Ratakhurd in 2019-2020. There was therefore limited access to government schemes and public funds for the local population, who had no clear incentive to organise themselves into community institutions.

Recognising the problems on-ground, SPECTRA executed a multi-stage Sustainable Livelihood Development Programme:

• Institutional Strengthening
  SPECTRA mobilised 2400 women into 240 self help groups (SHGs) that could avail of the RGAVP for regular cash transfers to help them improve their socio-economic status. SPECTRA also improved access of farmers to markets by consolidating them into farmer producer companies.
• Financial Inclusion
  Support has been provided to SHGs to open bank accounts and avail credit facilities.
• Capacity Building and Livelihoods Support
  Through these SHGs, SPECTRA shared best practices with women farmers and micro-entrepreneurs for improving agricultural production, enhancing livestock rearing capacities, and initiating goat and poultry farming. SPECTRA also improved linkages to MGNREGA, increasing the efficacy of the programme. Additionally, many women received training to become Community Resource Persons or Sakhis (Pashu Sakhi, Adhikaar Sakhi, Krishi Sakhi, etc). Capacity building of local leaders was also completed.
• Agricultural Practices and Dairy Development
  Agricultural training was introduced to increase crop yield and productivity. Loans were extended for the purchase of buffaloes. SPECTRA in collaboration with Saras Dairy, opened up milk collection centres. Through a partnership with Heifer International, 2400 women were provided with female goats to kick-start their micro-entrepreneurship journey.
• Convergence
  SPECTRA helped beneficiaries leverage government schemes and services like crop insurance, animal Insurance, the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), life insurance, kisan credit cards, skill development programmes, etc.
• Need Realisation
  SPECTRA helped local communities identify and prioritise their governance-related needs and requirements, including the setting up of basic civic infrastructure.

• 365% increase in average annual income levels in the village of Ratakhurd, Alwar in Rajasthan (from ₹37,200 in 2013 to ₹1,73,000 in 2019).
• 95% of the SHGs formed by SPECTRA follow optimal operational practices and have 100% loan repayment rates.
• ₹15.8 crore of funds unlocked by SHGs through bank credit linkages.
• ₹3,015 earned (by each household) as extra profit per acre of land using new agricultural practices.
• 40% increase in milk yields after dairy development interventions.
• 100% of households engaged in agriculture in Ratakhurd now have a Kisan Credit Card (KCC) and access to crop, livestock and medical insurance.

Increased income also led to better nutritional intake, leading to improved health indicators in Ratakhurd:

• 91.8% of children between 0-5 years in Ratakhurd have a healthy Body Mass Index as compared to 4.5% in similar regions
• Only 7% of girls are anaemic in Ratakhurd versus 80.3% in control areas
• 88% of mothers in Ratakhurd attain healthy weight gain during pregnancy compared to 13% in similar regions. This is a good indicator that both the mother and the foetus are receiving adequate nutrition, decreasing the likelihood of a complicated birth and increasing the chance of a healthy baby.